The last month of the term went by much faster than Anzu anticipated. Students rushed through their entrance exams for university, their lives consumed by studying, and by the time fourth year students had finished those, final exams had come and it was the last week of school before the graduation ceremony. Anzu, Honda, and Miho had all passed their mock exam with high percentages and when they received their acceptance letters with their entrance exam percentages, they all breathed a sigh of relief. In the case of Miho, she had jumped up and cheered when she and Honda had compared scores. The biggest stressor for them had faded and it was set that they would be going to University of Domino with Anzu.

Ryou had announced to his friends that he had been admitted into New York University and, because of the different semester system in the United States, he wouldn't be flying out until the end of summer when the autumn semester began over there. Neither Bakura nor Ryou mentioned whether Bakura would be following or if he had been admitted. In fact, they both had been strangely evasive in regards to that, even when Yuugi had questioned Ryou during a night at the Kame Game Shop. He had instead said, "I expect so," and had expertly maneuvered the conversation, as if knowing Bakura would not want to be the subject of any conversation.

Anzu had taken the answer in stride, having acclimated to the idea of being in a long-distance relationship for two years. While that all-too-familiar pang of absence entered her heart when she thought of the upcoming two years, she did not dwell too long on the thought and forcefully shoved it from her mind when it arrived. Her friends, all too caught up in their own busy studying schedules and lives, did not press the question to her and she was thankful for the brief reprieve.

As the final week came upon them and they prepared to travel to Hakone for their post-graduation trip, though, Anzu found herself preoccupied with thoughts outside of university and graduation. She had just finished her spring recital the week prior and now, she was faced with a different predicament altogether.

"Dorms?" Anzu repeated, looking up from her study notes for their final exams that week. "I didn't really think about it, to be honest...I kind of just planned to commute from home by train."

"I thought as much!" Miho settled into the desk across from her, glancing at Bakura, who was flipping through a textbook behind Anzu, and leaning over so that her voice would not carry. "Mai is going to be moving from her apartment and buying a house. You can't tell anyone else, because it's a surprise, but her and Jounouchi are moving in together. It's a big house, so Honda and I are moving in with them and going to be paying rent. It's way more room and will make expenses cheaper for them, too. Not that they're going to be worried about money." She rolled her eyes as she said this. "Jounouchi brings in a ton of money in his tournament sponsorships alone, but he's been saving up to send Shizuka to college."

"The four of you are moving in together?"

"That's the plan." She smiled and then drew closer, covering the side of her mouth as she lowered her voice further. "I would have invited you because there's a third bedroom. Mai seemed to think that maybe you and Bakura would move in together down the road."

Anzu's face flamed and she glanced at Bakura, who had the air of a man who wanted nothing to do with whatever they were discussing, busying himself with reading. "No...," she said softly to Miho, "I don't think so."

Miho cast her a puzzled glance, tapping her chin, and then sighed, straightening. "Well, anyway, don't tell anyone. It's going to be a secret until we head to Hakone. I just wanted to let you know in advance – I didn't want you to feel left out." At these words, Bakura raised his eyes from the textbook, his dark gaze landing on Miho and then sliding to Anzu, who was shaking her head.

"I don't, but thanks, Miho. I'm happy for you guys."

Miho clasped her hands, grinning. "I'll actually get to see Mai more often!" Seeing Bakura's gaze, she rose to her feet hastily. "I had better get back to study hall. I'll see you guys later."

Once Miho had left, Anzu released a tiny breath and dropped her gaze back to her notecards, her motivation waning. While she was happy for her friends, she still experienced a twinge of loneliness. She knew that Miho had told her to reassure her, yet it was difficult to suppress the feel of exclusion. It was reminiscent of shortly after Atemu's departure when everyone split into their close, respective groups. She had always been close to Mai and Miho, but understood that them being roommates made more sense given Jounouchi and Honda's close friendship.

That's what happens after high school, though, she reminded herself. People go in different directions.

"What is that girl scheming now?" Bakura's voice broke into her reverie, knocking her out of her gloomy thoughts.

"No schemes," she reassured him upon noticing his suspicious gaze. She leaned onto his desk, her elbow propping against the top as she rested her chin in her palm. "Her and Honda are moving in with Mai and Jounouchi."

He snorted in disbelief, smirking. "And she's happy about it? With her personality, I give it three months."

"Most roommate situations go bad, but those four have stuck together like glue. With as much as her and Honda are over at Mai's with Jounouchi, they're pretty much living together." She sighed, closing her eyes briefly. The strain of staring at too many words and numbers was beginning to have an effect. She rubbed her eyelids thoughtfully as she talked. "I don't think they're going to have a problem. Miho looks up to Mai."

"How optimistic."

Anzu opened her eyes, smiling wryly at Bakura. He had leaned forward, resting his arms over his open textbook. "Well, what do you think if we lived together?" she asked a bit too lightly. "How many months would you give us?"

He considered her, cocking his head to the side with his smirking half-smile in place. "If I chose to live with you, it wouldn't be for a short time." She blinked, startled by the statement. "Besides, Ryou and I do just fine living together. Obviously neither of us are terrible roommates."

"You also had to share a body together. I think having space outside of that is helpful."

He chuckled. "It helps."

Anzu had the question on the tip of her tongue –Where will you live during university? – but swallowed it before it could come out. They were in the middle of class and the question would dissolve into the pressing one that she really wanted to know, which was whether he was going with Ryou to the New York. She had resisted the urge to ask him, not wanting to guilt him into staying in Domino or changing his track at all. She did not want to be selfish and while she strongly wanted him to stay, she wanted Bakura to have the best opportunities in this lifetime. Going to NYU with Ryou was the best option available – better than most would have been offered. She could not take that away from him.

"I think Miho expects Honda to propose to her after university, anyway," she said instead, turning the subject away from them. "Living together is a good experiment for them."

"Those kids are idiots." He straightened up, returning to his book. "They can play house and party all they like. It's when their friends aren't there as a buffer when they get to be in the real world."

"Did you...live...with someone in Egypt?"

He laughed at the question. "No, stupid girl. Thieves don't live in houses, we're always on the move. I didn't have to worry about that. It's not hard to see in modern marriages. When Ryou's parents divorced, it was apparent why. Living together and sharing stress seems to kill most marriages. Modern humans don't understand how to cope with them, as if their life is so hard. I'd like to see half of these people try to feed their family on a farm."

She smiled at his observation and contemplated him as he closed the textbook. He had such a matter-of-fact way of speaking that she could not even get annoyed with him for calling her 'stupid' for the hundredth time after she had scolded him for it. While she could not imagine herself living in close quarters with Bakura, she had faith in him as a partner and could see him as taking on any stress or problems without a blink of an eye if he were married. The thought was somewhat jarring, imagining him with a wedding band. She might have asked him if he had ever wanted to be married, but the question felt so personal and she did not want to stir up any dark memories for him.

When the bell rang, she lifted her chin from her palm and collected her things, sliding them into her bag. A moment later, she followed Bakura out into the corridor into the crush of students. Looking around, she silently evaluated the number of students. Tomorrow would be their final exams and then, the next day would be their graduation ceremony. While her adventures with Yuugi had caused her to cut class early on occasion, since then she had been a dutiful student. She could not say the same for the rest of her friends.

"Hey." Anzu took hold of Bakura's hand, pulling him to the side. She glanced around, nervous, and then gave him a small, shy smile. "Cut class with me."

"It's a little late to be a rebel, don't you think?" he queried, though his voice was laced with amusement.

"It's the week of graduation – I think I'm allowed a little break."

He shrugged, his devilish smile reaching his eyes as he looked down to her. "Not like you and your friends have ever been good at following the rules, anyway."

She waved that aside and tugged him in the opposite direction. "Jounouchi and Honda have always skipped class. They still skated by with decent grades. That's more than what some other people can say."

She led Bakura outside and to a small, loose gate opening at the end of the school yard that she, Jounouchi, and Honda had used in on such occasion when they had gone after Yuugi. The two of them slipped out into the alley way without chase from any of the teachers and they followed the alley down to the other end of the street, away from the front of the school. Stepping onto the sidewalk, Anzu stretched her arms up to the sky, enjoying the morning glow of sunshine and fresh air from the stuffy classrooms.

"What exactly did you have in mind instead of school?" Bakura asked mildly, coming to stand beside her.

Turning, Anzu's eyes landed on him and she found herself smiling instinctively. Bakura's face was handsome and though his long hair was similar to Ryou's, that was where their similarities ended. It was not often that she was struck by Bakura's appealing looks like other women in his and Ryou's fan clubs, often becoming tongue-tied and embarrassed by his teasing, arrogant personality more than anything else. With the sun falling on his pale skin and hitting his eyes in a way that warmed them from a dark, almost black consistency to a warmer brown, she had to briefly appreciate that he was, in fact, quite attractive.

"To be honest, I didn't have much of any plan," she admitted guiltily. "Sometimes it's just nice to be somewhere else." As they made their way down the sidewalk, she brushed her hair from her face, taking note of an elderly man sitting in front of a shop, listening to a radio. He bared a toothless grin at them and waved. "Everything is changing so fast. We have two days until graduation and then we'll all split up. It almost makes me miss the days when we were out trying to save the world." She laughed fleetingly.

"I could always arrange to threaten little Yuugi, if you want some more excitement," Bakura dryly told her. "Threaten to slit his throat, drag him into an alley way – it would spice things up a bit. It doesn't quite compare to Egyptian gods and Sennen Items, unfortunately."

"As thrilling as that sounds," was her sarcastic reply, "I think I'll pass."

He snickered at this and they rounded the corner, facing a park. The playground was empty save for pre-school children that climbed precariously with their parents' help. Stepping into the park, Anzu made her way up a grassy hill that overlooked the park and into the city and sat down, splaying her legs out. The blades of grass tickled her thighs and the palms of her hands that she rested behind her.

She cast a smile his way as he settled beside her. "You know, it'll be a year next month since I started talking to you."

"The years go by fast." He had laid down beside her, his head pillowed beneath his hands. His gaze drifted from the clouds to her puzzled expression. "A year is short compared to a thousand. Be lucky that you've never been stuck in a piece of jewelry."

She almost laughed aloud at the comparison. Instead, she turned away and dropped her head back, closing her eyes as she sunbathed. A year was a brief blink in time from his perspective, and it was one of the many reasons she did not complain to Bakura about the time he would spend in NYU. It did not matter that her lifespan had been eighteen long years to her – for him, two years went by as fast as a river flowed during springtime. She had become determined to remain strong for him, even if meant swallowing her own desires for what she would consider twenty-four long months. When she was with him, she was happy. Without him, the days seemed a little longer, a little less enjoyable.

Opening her eyes, she blinked against the bright light until her vision had adjusted.

"Are you happy, Bakura?" It was a simple question, yet it was one she had never thought to ask him before.

"Happy," he echoed thoughtfully. She watched the play of shadows on his face as clouds drifted through the sky. He had turned introspective, though she was thankful he had not taken on a brooding air as he sometimes did when she asked such questions. "Interesting question. Why do you ask?"

"Er...well..." She glanced away, embarrassed. "It's just...you make me happy. I like being with you."

He chuckled at her fumbling. "Is that your definition of happiness?"

"You know what I mean, don't be an ass!"

He rose to one elbow, eyeing her with a far too perceptive gaze. In an attempt to avoid him reading too closely into her question, she turned her face back towards the playground, watching as one mother chased after a toddler. She did not need to hear Bakura say that he was happy or show any outward expression of joy. Being an inexpressive person in general, Bakura rarely showed it to the extent of Jounouchi or her other friends. Having experienced his bitterness firsthand, though, she was able to discern any moment of discontentment. In the last few months, he had seemed at ease. Aside from his disagreement with Yuugi and any discussion comparing him to Atemu, very little seemed to bother him.

"If you're asking if you make me happy," Bakura broke the extended silence, "then the answer should be obvious. Would I bother with you otherwise?"

In spite of his sarcasm, her lips twitched. "You're horrible to have these conversations with."

He barked out a laugh at her words. "Maybe I'm trying to make it hard for you." He sat up, pulling her back against him between his legs, startling her. After the initial surprise, however, she relaxed back against Bakura's chest, his arms circled around her shoulders. She felt the warmth of his body envelop her, his cheek resting against her temple, and pressed her lips against his wrist briefly. "There will come a time, girl, when you're going to need to have these discussions with me whether you like it or not. That's part of what this is."

'What this is,' Anzu mused. Meaning, our relationship.

"I think I've done a pretty good job of calling you out when you're being difficult," she replied flippantly.

"Do better." She felt his lips pass over her cheek and then his breath against her neck as he lowered his head. "It's annoying watching you wait for me."

Blinking, she turned to look at him. His expression was unreadable, however, and she was unsure to what he was referring. The only thing that had been on her mind had been their university choices, but she could not imagine that he knew about that. She had been very careful not to broach the topic in front of him, let alone to him. If so, he was making it clear in that moment that he had no intention of discussing it with her unless she brought it up. He was pressing her to be more forward and, guiltily, she realized in this regard, she had been far less like herself.

Now, however, she did not want to address it. She knew the response and did not want to discuss future plans and trips to see each other. She only wanted to be in the present with him at that moment.

"Come home with me."

He raised his eyebrows slightly. "Why?"

She wished, for once, that he was not so blunt. Scowling slightly, feeling the warmth entering her cheeks, she said, "Because I miss you. What kind of question is that?"

His eyes warmed considerably and his mouth curled into a smirk. "You miss me," he repeated.

Flushing further, her scowl deepened. "Yes, that's what I just said."

After a pause, he released a short laugh and his arms around her tightened slightly as he nuzzled her neck. "Fine, I suppose I've waited long enough," he said more to himself than her.

"I don't know why you were waiting in the first place," she muttered under her breath as he released her and they rose to their feet. He had gone a few steps in front of her, down the hill, but paused, glancing back behind her.

Cocking an eyebrow, he answered simply, "Exams."

She gaped at him in disbelief. You've got to be kidding me. "What does that have to do with anything?" she demanded crossly.

"You have enough distractions with your teenage drama." He waved a hand dismissively as he continued down the hill. "I didn't need you blaming me because I kept you in your bed when you should be studying." He cast a decidedly wicked grin at her over his shoulder, making her blush on what seemed like every part of her exposed skin. Once they arrived at the bottom of the hill, he caught her in his arms and kissed her behind a tree where they were obscured from the possible scandalized stares of the mothers at the playground. "Say it."

"Say what?" she asked breathlessly, her mind not quite catching up with her as it was still preoccupied with Bakura's hands on her hips and the previous, delightful ministrations his tongue had been performing.

Dropping his mouth to her ear, he rasped, "Say you wanted me."

"I-I'm not going to say that here!" When he ignored her protest, kissing her again far too persuasively, she briefly became aware that he had her trapped against a tree. Her fingers tangled in his long mane, her body pressing into his instinctively. As his mouth trailed along her jaw, leaving a moist trail that led down to her throat and the sensitive skin that lied there, she trembled in his arms and her breathing hitched with desire.

"You were saying?"

Defeated, Anzu huffed a tiny breath and in a low tone, murmured, "I...wanted you."

Once final exams had been completed, graduation had arrived and the fourth years were excitedly passing between classrooms to chatter excitedly to their friends. Several people were approaching upperclassmen to confess their feelings and, seated upon a desk next to the open windows that looked into the hallway, Anzu saw a familiar female approach Honda in the hallway. Ichika, her blonde curls piled on her head, was bowing in front of a bashful Honda, who rubbed the back of his head. It did not, however, appear as if she were confessing to him. She had made it clear to Anzu what she felt about girls confessing to girls that had boyfriends. Instead, given her wistful expression, Anzu suspected she was relaying a memory she had from their earlier years.

"I wouldn't have taken you to be a snoop, Mazaki," a familiar, dry voice said behind her. Glancing behind her, she saw Kaiba surveying the scene with a clinical stare.

"I can't do anything when it's happening right in front of me," she replied unabashedly, shrugging. "How many confessions did you get, Kaiba?"

He smirked, a triumphant gleam in his eyes. "Actually, none. I think I finally managed to scare off the mass of sheeple after I disbanded their band and had their leader expelled."

'Sheeple,' Anzu thought, her face going perfectly blank. Did he really just call them that? "That must be why I don't hear any baa'ing lately," she muttered, smiling to herself as she heard him snort derisively at her joke.

"Funny," was his dry comment.

Kaiba folded his arms, leaning his shoulder against the edge of the window to watch as Honda launched a long exposition, fumbling his way through it. Ichika stared at him, stricken, and Anzu caught Miho's name on occasion. Abruptly, Ichika shoved a bag in Honda's chest, yelled something indistinct and went bolting down the hallway. As she ran past, Anzu caught the sight of her red face and a stifled smile. Honda was staring after her, his mouth agape as he held the bag.

"Smoothly done, Hiroto," Kaiba called out tauntingly. "You and Katsuya could tie for 'Worst Ways to Handle Women.'"

"Shut up, Kaiba," he grumbled, trudging up to the open window, digging around in his bag, his face still a little pink. "It's not like she was confessing or anything. Maybe I shouldn't have brought up Miho..." He pulled out a frame and stared at uncomprehendingly for a moment.

"What's that?" Anzu asked, pointing at it.

"Er...well, a picture." Kaiba rolled his eyes, but before he was given a chance to release one of his sharp-tongued remarks, Honda had turned it over and held it out for them to see. Peering down, Anzu smiled at the sight of middle-school-aged Jounouchi and Honda striking poses with Ichika in the center, grinning and flashing peace signs. "Can't believe she still had this picture. It really takes me back."

"It'd be fun to look through some old photos. I bet Yuugi's grandpa has a ton of all of us together. I think there's even a few of you, Kaiba." Anzu tapped her chin thoughtfully with a finger. "Though, now that I think about it, he probably tore those up. He really doesn't like you."

"Good," Kaiba said, unfolding his arms and straightening, "that's how I like it. Less people to get in my way."

"Man, you need to loosen up sometime!" Honda told him, frowning. "You're going to have those V-line angry marks between your eyebrows if you keep that attitude." He mimed the wrinkles between his on eyebrows, appearing as if he were making upside-down devil horns in front of his face.

Kaiba stared at him, his eyebrows snapping down to form the said line, glowering at Honda. "Worry about your own wrinkles." Without another word, he walked away from them, leaving Honda staring after him, dropping his hands to his sides.

"You saw it, too, right?" Honda asked Anzu with a sidelong glance.

She smirked. "You're a little late to the party. He's always had that awful look on his face."

There was a cry down the hallway and Anzu poked her head out of the window to see Jounouchi jogging up to them, his face covered in a grin. Yuugi was trailing him, looking uncomfortable. "There you guys are!" Jounouchi said as he came to stand beside Honda, planting his hands on his hips. "Guess who's going on a date after our vacation?"

"You do know you already have a girlfriend, right?"

"Not me!" Jounouchi scowled at Anzu and then extended a hand out to Yuugi. "Our very own Yuugi! He got assaulted with confessions this morning." As Yuugi came to stop in front of them, he rubbed his elbow against his friend's shoulder, slyly saying, "Now you can finally use all those techniques I shared with you – "

"J-Jounouchi!" Yuugi spluttered, face reddening. "It's just a date."

"Anything can happen on a date! If she's a kisser on the first date, you know you can get further than that and – " His words were interrupted by Anzu taking a swing at him from the window, which he dodged by jumping back and almost trampling on a smaller first year girl.

"I don't know how accurate that is," Honda muttered under his breath, clearly thinking of his own experience with Miho.

"That's because Jounouchi's an idiot," Anzu told him, frowning as she rolled her shoulder back, glaring at Jounouchi warningly with her fist still clenched. "Just because you and Mai flirted for years before you went on your first date does not mean everyone goes further on the first date."

"Oh-ho! I know why you're mad." Jounouchi snickered behind a hand. "You must've kissed Bakura on the first date."

At this suggestion, Anzu launched herself out of the window, much to the horror of the teacher, who squawked out at her. There was a commotion as Anzu boxed at Jounouchi's ear with one hand, her other arm wrapped around his throat in a wrestling move, her legs wrapped around him in a piggy-back style. The teacher fretted outside the door as Jounouchi exploded expletives and Anzu yelled over him, "Take it back!" Wisely, both Yuugi and Honda had stepped back from them as Jounouchi stumbled back and forth in the hallway, attempting to throw Anzu off of him.

Only after Jounouchi gasped out, "Alright, alright!" did Anzu release him and Jounouchi collapsed onto his knees, gasping and rubbing his throat.

"Mazaki!" the teacher scolded, wringing his hands. "Just because this is your last day of school doesn't mean you can start assaulting other students!"

"Jounouchi might as well be her brother with how they act," Yuugi offered helpfully.

The teacher cast him a frown and only after he had served a long lecture on lady-like manners and the responsibility of a student post-graduation was he satisfied enough to return inside the classroom where a collection of students was waiting to deliver gifts at his desk.

"It looks like I missed something," Bakura's familiar drawl sounded as he walked up with Ryou, just as the teacher sent a last warning glance to Anzu, who was standing with her hands clasped behind her back, an innocent-wide eyed expression pasted upon her face. Jounouchi was getting to his feet, still rubbing his throat and coughing.

Anzu turned away from the doorway, smiling briefly as Bakura came to stand near her. He cast her a questioning glance, but she shook her head the slightest bit. She neither wanted Jounouchi to interrogate Bakura on when their first kiss occurred or endure another conversation with her relationship in the spotlight.

"You don't look too good," Ryou said to Jounouchi, patting him on the back with a broad smile. "Overcome with emotion?"

"If you count almost dying as an emotion," Jounouchi rasped.

Anzu scowled. "You might think before saying stupid stuff!"

"It's not that big of a deal!" He spread his arms out wide to indicate the school. "How many girls here do you think waited until past the first date to sleep with a dude? That's what high school's about – making bad decisions!" Behind him, Yuugi and Ryou exchanged a look while Anzu continued to scowl, her arms crossed over her chest.

"It's a good thing you're not going to university if you think high school is where bad decisions happen." He dropped his hands and gave her a blank look, but before he was given a chance to voice his confusion, Miho had come running up to the group.

"There you guys are!" She clapped her hands excitedly, her eyes bright. "Hurry up, we're going to be late for the ceremony!"

With the conversation of bad decisions and Yuugi's upcoming date put to the side temporarily, the group made their way down to the auditorium where the graduation ceremony was taking place. As they split off to the rows where their respective homerooms were located, Anzu looked around and a wistful smile crossed her lips. This will be the last time we'll all see each other in our uniforms like this, she thought, taking a seat as the auditorium began to quiet with the headmaster calling for attention.

After a brief speech from the headmaster and handing out the graduation diplomas, the student council president stepped up to the podium to give his farewell speech. Anzu recognized him as another fourth year that had been in the same middle school as both herself and Yuugi. At first, his speech touched on some of the things the headmaster had, and then he broke off from tradition, piquing Anzu's attention.

"For some of you," he said, pausing and looking up, "this will be a grand new adventure. And for some of us, it will be a hard farewell. I've been in the same class as some of you since I was a kid and it's hard to think that I won't see these faces again. Even if I wasn't close to you, there's a familiarity and comfort in seeing the same people each day – seeing the same groups together. You could always count on Aizawa, for example, to be kicking his soccer ball out in the grounds after school before practice. There's always Katsuya and Hiroto wrestling in the hallways or getting yelled at by the teachers."

There was a collective chuckle from the students and Anzu snickered, looking over to see Honda laughing, covering his face with a hand.

"From here, we all go our separate ways," he continued on, "and some of us may not even be in the same city or country. I recognize that this is part of the life cycle and these years of childhood and fun have to end at some point to start a new chapter. There will never be a time in life where we see the same faces day in and day out. At university, it may be mere chance if you end up in the same classes together with people and at work, your co-workers may move on. I just want to say to everyone – I was happy to have spent so many years seeing all of you every day at school. We may never be able to recapture these years somewhere else, but we'll always have the memories. Thank you."

There was an explosion of applause for the student council president and he smiled, bowing his head before taking a step away from the podium.

After a few more words from the headmaster, there was a cheer of, "Thank you for your time!" and the students left their seats, filing out of the auditorium. Outside, students hugged each other, some of the girls sobbing in each other's arms. Some of the boys were jumping around, waving their diploma around.

Anzu found her friends in the midst of the chaos and Miho immediately hugged Anzu tightly when she approached. "I'm so glad that we're going to the same university, Anzu!"

"The president's speech was really good, wasn't it?" Ryou said, his smile holding a touch of melancholy to it. "It's hard to believe that after all these years, we'll all be splitting up."

Jounouchi put a bracing hand on Yuugi's shoulder, his face scrunched up as if he were trying hard not to cry. "How about it, buddy?" he asked in a somewhat choked voice.

"Huh?" Yuugi, his eyes already watery from having cried during the speech, gave him a baffled glance.

"You've always got good parting words after the end of a tournament – give us some good words!"

Anzu smiled gently towards Jounouchi, sensing that he needed it more than Yuugi right then. Soon, their worlds would be changing. He and Mai would be moving in together with Honda and Miho, while Yuugi would remain at the Kame Game Shop. Ryou and Bakura would be going to NYU, Otogi and Kaiba would be focused on their companies, and instead of seeing each other at lunch, at club, or at each other's desks, they would all need to work to get the entire group together. It would be brief moments rather than every day.

She knew, like herself, that Jounouchi saw their friends as his own personal family.

"Well...," Yuugi cleared his throat, giving them a bright smile. "I like to think that this isn't just the end of our story, even if it is the end of high school. Everyone has a story of their own, and that story ends in light! For us, I think, our story has just begun."

"Well said, little Yuugi," Bakura commented from his place beside Ryou. "With words like that, you almost sound like the pharaoh. Did you steal that line from him?"

Yuugi laughed, impervious to the snide undertone. "No, but to be honest, it was something I thought of when Atemu left. This is just another door in our life that is shutting while another one opens."

"So true!" Jounouchi said in a gruff tone and cleared his throat, wiping his face with his sleeve from the few tears that had spilled out.

"Are you losers crying over here?" a familiar, amused voice came from behind them. Jounouchi whipped around, his fists tightening threateningly. "It must be because the pup is about to lose his owner."

"And exactly who is the owner, Kaiba?"

Kaiba smirked at him. "Guess."

"You pompous, little – "

"Actually," Mokuba loudly said from beside his brother over Jounouchi's expletives, "I wanted to get a picture with all of us together!" He gestured towards the tripod and expensive camera that was attached to the top that was propped against his shoulder. "Seeing as how it's the last day of graduation, I don't think we'll all run into each other as much and it'd be nice to remember something by." He flashed a grin towards them after he had finished his explanation.

"Let's do it!" Anzu said brightly, flashing a peace sign towards the younger Kaiba. "It'll give us all something to look back on when we're older and a little less immature." She shot a look towards Kaiba and Jounouchi, neither of whom acknowledged the comment.

"Great! Follow me, I already scouted out a great backdrop while you guys were in the auditorium!"

The group followed Mokuba to the front of the schoolyard where there were less students, as many of the fourth years were still lingering outside the auditorium. Otogi was standing at the gates with a taller man in a suit, his hands on his hips. He grinned at them as they approached, waving two fingers in greeting.

"Looks like we're set for a photo shoot," he cheerfully observed.

"Perfect, everyone line up!"

After a lot of bustling in which Honda wanted to be next to Miho and Kaiba riled Jounouchi up with remarks about having a dog on his knees, Mokuba took control of the situation and began to arrange people as he liked. Anzu ended up kneeling in front with Yuugi and Jounouchi, her and Yuugi striking a pose on one knee as Jounouchi splayed himself on his side between them like a Roman god on display. Mokuba took his place beside his brother and their driver, Roland, was the one to take the photos.

They went through several different poses, some more ridiculous than others, and at their final photo, Anzu posed next to Bakura. When she felt him lean closer, his hand on the small of her back, she looked up to him and he flashed a smirk. "Look at the camera, not me," he teased.

As the flash went off a final time, Anzu thought, I hope we have more of these photos together.

TBC

A/N: So initially next chapter was going to be the last, but I've decided to add a bonus chapter (chapter 19) which will be some scenes from Bakura's perspective. Another note and a disclaimer - Yuugi's "parting words" were drawn directly from the end of the manga. While I adjusted the quote to fit my purposes, it is mostly a direct quote from the manga, so I don't own those words - they are from Kazuki Takahashi. I'd rather not get slapped with a plagiarism/copyright claim for using his words in a fanfic... :'D