Chapter 22, Piece 20 * * * * * * * *
Ryou waited where he always waited. North exit, near the bus stop. The wind was cold, but then Ryou hadn't felt warm in years. Not since...
"Ryou-kun!" Yugi yelled, waving. One bag. Yugi always traveled light.
Ryou smiled. "Welcome home." He hugged his friend and took his bag. "I'm parked this way."
Neither of them spoke much on the drive back to Ryou's apartment. They didn't need much conversation. Most of what they did discuss revolved around the manga.
Most of the rest was how not to commit suicide.
Yugi had had to watch as his soulmate walked into oblivion. Ryou had been joined magically with his soulmate when Zorc was destroyed, taking Bakura's life force as well. Some days it was hard to say which was worse.
Half-Hearted Mangazine specialized in stories about true-love-lost and right-man/wrong-time. About people for whom that one in a million had come and gone. Lots of mangas showed happy love. Half-Hearted was for those whom love had split in two.
Once in Ryou's small 1LDK, Yugi collapsed on the sofa.
Ryou dropped next to him. "Shower?"
"Later," Yugi groaned. He tugged Ryou's shoulder, turning the man for a passionate kiss.
It had been like this since high school. Sex didn't eliminate the pain and loss, it just made it easier to bear for an hour or two.
Yugi was always seme. Zorc had very quickly conditioned Ryou; he couldn't top now even if he wanted to. In all honesty, Yugi would have preferred bottoming. But then, in all honesty, Yugi would have preferred to be with Atemu. They both understood. They both accepted.
Slowly, gently, build to passion. Ryou wouldn't penetrate Yugi, but he'd do anything else and, in truth, Yugi could think of worse fates than to be 'stuck' with a lover who was trained by a demon. The white-haired man knew some tricks that had caused Yugi to scream in sheer ecstasy before he blacked out. Their first night together was always given over to Yugi's needs. And while Yugi would never give his heart to Ryou, he did love him as more than just a friend.
With Ryou, Yugi could let go - anger, frustration, need, grief - and Ryou did the same. No closure, no healing, no 'moving on'. They allowed each other to wallow in lost love without reproach.
Yugi woke later to the smell of fish steaming and eggs frying. "Mmm. God, I gotta learn to cook."
His primary income these days was dueling. Coming home twice a year actually paid for the trip itself and another couple months of daily expenses – if he was frugal. The local conventions and duels supplemented. So long as the appearance fee or grand prize was more than the cost of the trip, Yugi went. There were enough of them that he was able to keep the rent paid and food in the kitchen, but not much else.
This time would hopefully be different. Ryou-kun scraped up enough money for a dealer's table, so when Yugi wasn't defending his title, or pretending to be a celebrity, he was selling Half-Hearted back issues. Which was another one of Ryou's good ideas.
Ryou almost never asked permission or made suggestions, he just did things to help and appeared with money or a solution. A new distributor, a new list of subscribers. A warm bed for free.
Nearly free.
Yugi sighed, as they returned to Ryou's apartment. They'd had a deal since high school, but he would never feel comfortable with it. He understood. He understood his friend having a need only his dead lover could truly fill. He just wished he was more at ease helping.
They entered the apartment with a trophy and one box of unsold stock.
"Hungry?" Ryou asked, heading into the kitchen. "I can make some miso -" he gasped in surprise as Yugi grabbed his wrist and yanked him backward. The white haired man found himself abruptly on the floor.
Thanks to their relative sizes and strengths, Yugi had to learn a few tricks. Catching Ryou from behind and throwing him off-balance was one of the most effective.
"Yugi!" he snapped. "What the hell? That -"
"Hurt?" Yugi chuckled. "Good. I've been working on that one." He put his foot on his friend's groin and watched gray eyes widen. "Hurt is the point, right?" He shifted his weight forward and was rewarded with a sharp intake of breath.
"...you're...crushing..."
"It's not like you need them." Yugi shrugged. "Besides. You like it. Don't you." It wasn't a question. "Say it." He pressed harder.
"I...don't...pain..."
"Liar, liar, pants on fire." Yugi rubbed his foot back and forth. "I can feel you. Say you like it, or I'll stop and go stay with Grandpa tonight. You won't get to see any of the toys -"
"I like it!" Ryou gasped. "Please...please don't go."
"Ok." Yugi removed his foot, but Ryou stayed on the floor. "I found this unreal store on Colorado Boulevard. Fascinating, or something like that. Anyway, they sell – well, just wait." Yugi suddenly realized that he'd broken character and frowned heavily. "Go get the black bag in my suitcase. And strip for me. Slowly."
In the cabinet over the sink, Ryou usually kept a bottle of sake. Yugi found it and a glass, and poured enough to help him let the demon out.
Whether it was his own or his friend's, Yugi wasn't sure.