Yugi was closing up the game shop with Joey for the day when he heard Te'a calling him from upstairs.
He let out a frustrated sigh as he stacked the last box in the storage room. He looked at his happy blonde friend, who was vacuuming the front entrance of the shop.
Yugi knew he should be happy that Te'a was in Japan for the summer, but things were different. Te'a had become short tempered and bossy. She had insisted that she stay at the game shop for the summer, even though Yugi repeatedly said he didn't have the space.
She would immediately fire back that Yugi had space when Atem lived there, and now suddenly he doesn't?
He walked up the stairs and into his bedroom, seeing Te'a moving his furniture around.
"Ummmm, you called me?" Yugi asked, wondering why she was changing everything.
She flipped her short hair and sighed, "You need to buy a bigger bed. I haven't even spent the night yet and I can already feel the pain in my back." She walked over to his desk and began taking books off of the shelves.
"I can't afford a new bedroom set right now Te'a. Besides, it's not really cost efficient to buy a new bed just for the summer-"
"Just for the summer? You say that like I won't come back for the winter? What about spring break?" She interrupted putting her hands on her hips.
Yugi looked into Te'a's big blue eyes, "I'm sorry, I just really can't afford that right now." He said with a sigh.
Te'a crossed her arms and blew her bangs out of her face, "It seems like you could afford a new mattress for Atem almost immediately…"
"Te'a."
"Are you punishing me because I didn't want to crawl on top of my cheating boyfriend right away? Is that the deal? I spread my legs for you, and you start to be considerate toward me again?" Te'a was beginning to raise her voice. She walked out of the bedroom and stormed into the bathroom, slamming the door.
Yugi let out a frustrated groan and ran his fingers through his spiky hair.
That was their third fight today.
Te'a had arrived that morning.
It was the evening now.
Three fights.
Yugi stood outside the bathroom door and knocked lightly. He heard shuffling on the other side of the door.
"Te'a, please. I love you so much. Let's just talk." He pleaded, placing his forehead against the cold wood.
"Why did you do it?" He heard Te'a's voice, shaky and muffled.
"What?"
She cleared her throat, "If you love me, why did you sleep with Atem?"
Yugi's eyes were starting to water as he thought about his answer. After having dinner with Mokuba the night before, he had realized his true feelings for the pharaoh…
"Because…" Yugi hiccuped, unsure of his next steps. He would ruin everything.
No all he had to do was stay quiet and it would go away.
"Because?" Te'a asked through the door.
Yugi let out a small sob, "Because I'm garbage...I don't deserve you and I'm lucky that you still want to be with me after how I've treated you…" He lied.
He didn't think he was garbage...He knew that he was in love with Atem.
The bathroom door opened and Te'a threw her arms around Yugi. She kissed him full on the mouth and pulled away, smiling.
"You said you'd do the work, Yugi. I'm not trying to change your life...I just..I just know what I deserve. I want you, Yugi. I want you to show me that you want me too." She said, kissing his cheek.
Yugi stared at her face. He noticed there were no sign of tears or distress on her face.
She played him. Again.
Te'a 3, Yugi 0.
She had won all three fights.
Yugi sighed as he walked into the front of the game shop to turn the lights off. He was excited to put the day behind him and get some rest.
"Hey Yuge, Is that what you're wearing to dinner tonight?" Joey asked, adjusting his his button down shirt.
Yugi's eyes widened.
Oh...shit.
He had completely forgotten that they were all invited to dinner at Atem's tonight.
He heard Te'a come down the stairs and go into the kitchen.
Awesome. Great.
This was going to be fun…
Joey gave Yugi a questioning look before deciding it would be best to wait outside.
Yugi took a deep breath and went into the kitchen. He smiled at Te'a as she rummaged around in the fridge, trying to start dinner.
"Oh um...I'm sure you're tired, there's no need-"
"Yugi, it's fine. I'd love to make us a home cooked meal.." Te'a said, her mood completely different from their earlier argument.
"And I appreciate you thinking ahead but, Atem threw out his back this morning and his roommate invited us over for dinner." Yugi said, closing one eye, waiting for the yelling to start.
He heard Te'a sigh and slam the fridge.
"Fine. Let's go." She said shortly, walking into the game shop.
Yugi followed her excitedly, "Really? You're not mad?" He asked, as they exited the store. He looked the door and watched Te'a carefully, her expression unreadable.
"I said it's fine." She clipped, joining Joey at the sidewalk.
Yugi breathed through his nose. He knew better than to believe her but he wasn't about to start another fight. He didn't like arguing in front of Joey.
The air was tense as they walked through the city. Joey didn't know what to say the lighten the mood, and Yugi was scared to say anything at all.
As they approached the tower, Te'a stopped.
"This is where Atem lives?" She asked in disbelief.
Yugi nodded, leading them into the large lobby. He walked up the the front desk and smiled at the woman.
"Um, Hi. Yugi Mutou here for-"
"Yes, Mr. Mutou, you've been cleared. You and your party may head to the elevators." She said sweetly, giving Joey and unashamed wink.
"Thanks, toots." Joey said with a goofy grin.
Te'a rolled her eyes and followed Yugi and Joey into the elevator. She felt a sense of dread as the elevator stopped at the penthouse level. She didn't think Atem could afford a place like this, even with a roommate, the rent must be ridiculous.
She found herself glaring at the beautiful young woman waiting for them in the private lobby.
So, this is Salem.
Salem smiled warmly at the group and opened her arms for a hug, "Ahlan wa Sahlan, I'm so glad you all made it safely!" She said wrapping her arms and the three.
Yugi laughed nervously, "Um, good to see you again, Salem." He said as she released them.
"This is my best friend Joey-"
"Joey Wheeler, pro duelist! Nice to meet ya in person!" Joey interrupted excitedly.
Joey's cheeks turned bright red as Salem giggled melodiously, "I've heard. Atem speaks very highly of you." She purred.
"And you must be Te'a. Mashallah, gameela. Ah! Ana asfa-I'm sorry. When I get excited I start speaking Arabic. You're very beautiful." Salem continued, hoping her compliments would water down Te'a's obvious contempt for her presence.
They followed Salem into the living room and sat down on the couches. Yugi looked around, wondering why Atem wasn't already downstairs.
"Would you like something to drink? Water, wine, beer?" Salem said with a dazzling smile.
"I'll take whatever you give me if you smile at me like that…" Joey said stupidly.
Te'a elbowed the blonde and gave Salem a fake smile, "This idiot will have a beer, Yugi and I will have some wine if you don't mind."
Joey stuck his tongue out at Te'a as she rolled her eyes.
Salem laughed warmly, "You are guests in my home, of course I don't mind." She said heading to the kitchen.
Yugi sighed and looked toward Atem's room. He thought it was strange that he wasn't up to greet them. He knew that Atem had probably never never injured himself before, but he still thought it was odd.
Te'a squeezed Yugi's hand, "He's probably resting. Relax. He'll be down in a bit." She said, her words genuine.
Salem placed a tall glass of dark beer in front of Joey and three empty wine glasses in front of Te'a and Yugi.
"Is red okay? It pairs with dinner but if you'd like something else…" She said showing them the label.
Yugi stared at it blankly, "Ter-tero…" He couldn't pronounce the grape variety. He had never heard of it before.
Te'a looked at the label and narrowed her eyes, "This is..expensive…" was all she could muster.
"Mmmm? Not exactly. It's a Teroldego from 2007, yes, but the grape is common. Would you like something better?" Salem asked, ready to find a different wine.
"No, no. This is fine!" Yugi said, giving Te'a's hand a light squeeze. He didn't want to seem rude. Salem was being such a gracious host, he wanted to show appreciation by at least giving the wine a try.
Salem smiled and expertly uncorked the wine, pouring her glass last. She sat down opposite them and sipped at the red liquid, rolling the stem between her fingers.
"They'll be down soon. I think they fell asleep while I was out buying the guanciale." She said, watching the three friends sip their drinks nervously.
"They?" Joey asked, wondering if Atem had changed from male to non binary.
Salem nodded, "Yes, Atem and Mr. Kaiba." She said taking another sip of wine.
Yugi coughed as he took in a rather large gulp of the bitter red liquid.
Atem and Kaiba?
Alone upstairs?
Why? When?
Why?
"Oh are they back together?" Te'a asked, suddenly very interested in conversation with Salem.
"Hm? Oh, I don't think that's what's going on. I called Mr. Kaiba earlier this morning when Atem threw his back out and...well…" Salem trailed off.
"What is it? That jerk didn't threaten ya did he?" Joey asked, getting immediately angry.
Salem sighed, "I need him out." She said in a hushed tone.
Te'a's eyes widened, "You want Atem out?"
"No, no. Kaiba. How do I get him away from Atem? You guys know, mish kida? That Kaiba is dangerous? I'm worried...for Atem." She knew she was only half telling the truth, but she knew getting Atem's friends involved would be a good start..
Yugi's heart was thudding in his chest, "What do you know?" He asked, absentmindedly letting go of Te'a's hand.
"Well…" Salem started,
"Dinner will be ready in a few minutes." She finished, suddenly changing the subject and getting up from the couch to run into the kitchen.
The three friends blinked at this change in behavior and jumped when they heard Kaiba's deep voice from the top of the staircase.
"Look who's here to ruin my night." Kaiba said as he descended the stairs, leading a very sleepy Atem by the hand to the living room.
"Be nice, Kaiba." Atem yawned, as he sat on the love seat, Kaiba sitting next him with his arm around the ex pharaoh's waist.
Yugi glared at Kaiba, his jealousy plain on his face. He took another sip of his wine and tried his best to ignore the blatant display of affection in front of him.
Why wasn't Atem stopping him?
Te'a took a large swig of her wine once she noticed Yugi's reaction to the scene in front of them. She knew he still had feelings for Atem, his reaction just confirmed it.
Joey glared at Kaiba and then looked over at Salem, who was frantically grating cheese into a skillet full of sizzling meat and pasta.
Fear.
The blonde took his beer off of the coffee table and went into the kitchen.
"Hey, did you want some help? I'd like to think I'm a pretty good cook." Joey said, with a grin.
Salem smiled weakly, "I couldn't ask you to do that. You're a guest here. Please sit." She said warmly.
Joey looked over at the group, who were distracted by Atem and Kaiba. He stepped closer to Salem and took the hard cheese and microplane grater out of her hands.
"I'll finish the cheese, while you stir. Just tell me when to stop." Joey whispered, grating the cheese into the skillet.
Salem smiled and continued cooking, giving Joey different things to do around the kitchen.
Soon, the entree was finished, and Joey was instructed to set the patio table. Salem brought the large skillet outside and placed it on a pink cloth in the middle of the table.
"Thank you, Joseph." Salem said, her velvety voice turning Joey's skin a dark pink.
"Um, yeah. Your welcome. While we're out here, what's up wit Kaiba and Atem?" Joey asked, looking inside at what looked to be a very tense conversation.
Salem sighed, "I can't say a lot but, I'm glad you and your friends are here." She said opening the sliding door to announce that dinner was ready.
Atem yawned again and smiled, "I'm starving." He was still disoriented from his nap and earlier romp with Kaiba.
"Well you did lose a lot of fluid earlier." Kaiba whispered in Atem's ear, loving the jealous glare he earned from Yugi.
Yugi didn't hear what Kaiba said to Atem, but he knew something must have happened between them. That sort of closeness only happened after something sexual.
Te'a clicked her tongue and stood up, taking her wine to the patio area, brushing passed Salem without a thank you. She waited near a chair, tapping her foot impatiently.
Yugi followed behind Atem and Kaiba, hating how much they looked like a couple. He took his seat, next to Te'a, not noticing her annoyed glare as she sat down.
Atem was sat at the head of the table, Kaiba to his left, then Salem, and then Joey at then end. To Atem's right was Yugi, and then Te'a.
"What did you make Salem? It smells divine." Atem said, his mind slowly becoming less foggy.
"Carbonara." She said, placing a serving of the pasta on each person's plate, starting with Atem, and ending with herself.
"What's in it?" Te'a asked judgmentally, moving the pasta around on her plate.
"Handmade spaghetti noodles, eggs, fresh grated parmesan, and guanciale-"
"Guan-guan-chee all eh?" Joey asked staring at the bits of brown meat.
"Guanciale, you idiot. It's essentially fancy italian bacon." Kaiba said with a roll of his eyes.
"Kaiba, stop. Salem it tastes amazing." Atem said chewing a large bite.
"Thank you, Atem. Your friend Joseph was helping me-"
"Yeah we saw you two getting cozy in the kitchen. Seems like someone's hitting it off." Te'a said with a playful smirk.
"Is that someone Salem and Joey though? Or are we not going to talk about the elephant in the room?" Yugi blurted out, realizing that he was one glass of wine into the evening and already tipsy. He was a lightweight, but happily poured himself another glass anyway.
Te'a sighed and poured herself another glass as well, "I think it's nice that Atem and Kaiba are friends again. They're adults who can make their own choices, and if that's what they both want, who are we to say otherwise."
Kaiba snatched the bottle from Te'a and poured his first glass of the evening, also filling Atem's glass as he spoke, "Well that's very grown up of you Te'a. I can only imagine what you and Yugi are going through, you know, him being unfaithful and all." He punctuated his sentence by putting the bottle down, passing it to Joey.
Joey passed the bottle to Salem, who tried to pour her wine, but the bottle was empty.
He blinked and looked at Yugi.
"What are you talking about, moneybags? Yugi would never cheat on Te'a." The blonde said taking a bite of his pasta.
Salem sighed and left the table, returning with a new bottle of red wine, and another beer for Joey. She popped the cap off of the beer and refilled Joey's glass.
She opened the bottle of wine, serving herself first as all other glasses were full.
Te'a scoffed, "What a surprise, he didn't tell you." She said swirling the pasta on her fork.
"That's not fair, Te'a. I wasn't ready to tell anyone yet." Yugi said, polishing off his pasta with a final bite.
"Then how did Kaiba find out?" Joey asked, no longer hungry.
"I told him." Atem said, his glass to his lips.
"Well, I found out when you and Salem were talking. You didn't come out and say it." Kaiba corrected, savoring the taste of the entree. He was shocked at the smokey flavor of the guanciale mixed with the reggiano parmegiano and egg sauce.
"Wait, she knows?" Te'a asked, glaring at Salem.
"Of course I do. It happened in my home, not a lot happens here without my finding out about it." She said, chewing her food and washing it down with the wine.
"Then why didn't you stop them?!" Te'a asked, slamming her hand on the table.
"I was at dinner with Kaiba." She said pointing her fork toward the brunette.
"Whaaa?!" Joey yelled.
"Calm down, mutt, it was business only." Kaiba said matter of factly.
Atem laughed, "Is that why you tried to have sex with her? It must have been a blow to your ego when she turned you down."
Te'a and Yugi looked at Salem who was calmly enjoying her food.
"What?" Salem said, feeling everyone's eyes on her.
"Why did you agree to dinner with this asshole?" Joey asked, taking his seat.
"Like he said, it was supposed to be business only." She said plainly.
"Oh please, with that dress you wore? You were begging for me to fuck your brains out." Kaiba spat.
"Whoa.." Atem said, realizing that dinner was going downhill very fast.
"You couldn't get me into bed even if you tried. You probably wouldn't know what to do with me." Salem retorted, sipping her wine gracefully.
"Ha! I'd fuck you silly." Kaiba laughed, tossing his bangs out of his eyes. It was an empty statement, but he knew his capabilities in bed.
"Okay, can we cool it with the dirty talk?" Atem asked putting his hands up in the air.
"You weren't saying that when my mouth was on your dick earlier…" Kaiba scoffed.
"What?!" Yugi gasped, staring at Atem, his eyes full of hurt.
"Oohhh...shit." Joey said, guzzling the rest of his beer.
"I'll get you another one." Salem said quickly, getting up and running inside.
"I'll help!" Joey added, wanting to get away from the conversation that was about to happen.
Te'a let out a hysterical laugh and downed the rest of her wine. She was glad that she came to this dinner. Now Yugi knew what it felt like to have someone you love become intimate with someone else.
Karma.
Atem rubbed his temples, regretting his actions from earlier in the day. He knew he was letting Kaiba get too close too soon.
"Yugi, listen.." Atem started.
"I took advantage of the situation. Atem did consent but he was already too high to really say no." Kaiba interrupted.
"Since Salem and Atem will be signing a contract with Kaiba Corp and industrial illusions this evening, that behavior was completely unprofessional." He continued.
"Why are they signing a contract?" Te'a asked, genuinely confused.
"Salem and I are launching a cosmetics line together, and one of the products is a Duel Monsters themed eyeshadow palette. We were actually hoping we could announce the line in our next video...with you as our model, Yugi.." Atem said, realizing now wasn't the best time to ask for a favor of that magnitude.
Yugi was silent for what seemed like an eternity before finishing his wine and sighing, "I'll do it. Let's even film it now."
Te'a blinked at her boyfriend, "Yugi you can't be serious. You don't even wear makeup."
"It's just product. Plus, I need a makeover anyway. Maybe it'll draw in new customers so I can afford a new mattress. Then you'll shut up about it." Yugi said with a hiccup, not caring that he was picking a fight. He let Te'a mess with him all day, it was his turn now.
Te'a gasped and crossed her arms.
Atem looked at Yugi with concern, "You shouldn't speak to Te'a that way, Aibou."
Yugi laughed and stood up, "You should hear the stupid fights we have, Atem. She ran into the bathroom and pretended to cry just because I told her I couldn't afford to buy a bigger mattress right goddamn now." He sauntered into the living room, leaving a stunned Kaiba, Atem, and Te'a sitting at the table.
Te'a stood up and walked into the the living room, followed by Kaiba and Atem. Yugi was frozen in the middle of the living room. When the three turned toward the kitchen to see what had the lavender eyed man so shocked, they saw Joey and Salem, locked in a passionate kiss.
Joey was lost in the sensation of the softness of Salem's lips, and the tautness of her buttocks. He heard Yugi clear his throat and he was brought back to reality. As he broke the kiss, he gazed into Salem's honey colored eyes, full of want and confusion.
The two awkwardly pulled away from each other, not knowing what to say.
"Umm, wow." Te'a said, thinking the evening couldn't get any worse.
"Salem, um, Yugi wanted to help us film that video...now." Atem said slowly.
This was….good...right? Salem needs someone and so does Joey.
"Hmm? Oh, right. Is that a good idea? We've all had a bit to drink." She said, unable to make eye contact with Joey.
"Drunk makeup videos are popular. I'd say this humanizes you and Atem, makes you more relatable. Who hasn't gotten drunk with friends and tried to give each other makeovers. Isn't that what girls do during sleepovers?" Kaiba said. He needed this video uploaded and the contract signed. The sooner that happened, the sooner he could guarantee his spot in Atem's life.
"No." Salem said, plainly, looking Kaiba dead in the eye.
Kaiba glared at her, wondering if she remembered their bargain. "Excuse me?"
"It's one thing if that's the theme of the video, but this project is important to me. Not only that, I refuse to let Atem film while he's recovering or did you forget that's the only reason why you're here in the first place?" She said planting her feet. Her drunken kiss with Joey had helped her. No one in this room would believe Kaiba if he outed her. Not after what they just witnessed.
Kaiba glared even harder as he came to the same conclusion.
"Fine. We'll wait until the King of Games is sober enough to be your model." He said crossing his arms with a huff.
He realized that Salem was trying to stall this process. He would let her. For now.
"Perfect, and this will give me time to redline our contract." She said with a fake smile.
"Fine." Kaiba said, walking toward the door, completely done with the evening.
"Fine!" Salem called after him.
Kaiba looked at Atem, who waved goodbye weakly.
Great. He was on the outside again.
He gave Atem a knowing look and left the apartment, angry things didn't go his way.
Atem looked at his friends, drunk and sleepy.
"Hey, Salem. Would it be okay if they stayed the night? It's late and everyone's too drunk to walk home." Atem asked.
Te'a rolled her eyes. There was no way she was staying in the apartment where Yugi cheated on her.
"Don't worry, about it Atem. I'm leaving." Te'a said, taking out her phone to call a ride.
"Come on Te'a, let's just stay. They have plenty of room." Yugi said laying on one of the couches.
"I didn't say you were coming with me, Yugi. I'm done. I'm going to sleep in my own bed." Te'a said walking out of the apartment and slamming the door.
Salem sighed and started to clean up, trying to take her mind off of their stressful situation.
"Hey, you've done so much, let me at least help you clean." Joey said, trying to slow her down.
Salem breathed out of her nose and looked at Atem.
"You need to go to bed. Yugi needs to sleep in his own bed tonight. Joseph, thank you so much, but I'll call you and Yugi a car. You can help by getting him and yourself home safely." She walked and cleared the plates off of the patio table, bringing the dirty dishes to the sink.
Atem was still standing in the the living room, wondering why the night had to end so suddenly.
"Atem. Bed. Now." Salem said, shaking Joey off of her as he tried to take over the dishes.
"Salem. I'm an adult, and I live here too. Aibou is in no condition to move. He can sleep on the couch. Let Joey help you clean up." Atem said sternly.
"Better yet, let me clean up and you head to bed, Salem. I'll make sure these two don't get themselves into more trouble." Joey said, successfully prying the sponge out of her hand.
"Fine! Do what you want Atem! I'm going to bed. Joseph, it was very nice meeting you." With that Salem ran upstairs and slammed her door.
Atem sighed and sat on the couch next to Yugi as he watched Joey clean up the apartment. He felt bad having his friend do the cleaning, but he was still injured, Yugi was passed out drunk on the couch, and Salem was seething in her room.
"You're more than welcome to spend the night in the guest room, Joey. Unless you'd rather join Salem in hers…" Atem said with a chuckle.
Joey's face turned beet red as he put the last dish into the dishwasher.
"Shut up, pharaoh. It was just a kiss." Joey said drying off his hands.
"And how were you able to manage that? I noticed your blatant flirting earlier but I didn't think you'd actually make a move on my friend." Atem stated with a yawn.
"Well, Yuge is your friend too. And you slept with him. How did you manage that?" Joey shot back.
Atem raised his hands in defense, "Joey, please, you misunderstood. I made a mistake and so did Aibou. What I mean, is Salem told me that she doesn't date, literally this morning. I just want to know what you said to her to be able to get a kiss."
Joey shrugged his shoulders and leaned against the counter, "Well we just started talking is all. I told her about my home life and how I kinda had to grow up before I was ready. She had to grow up fast too, ya know?"
Atem looked down at his hands as his stomach dropped. He didn't know Salem had a rough past.
He didn't know anything about her past now that he had thought about it.
He guessed she technically didn't know anything about his past either.
"I felt something special, Atem...I think she felt it too." Joey continued, walking over to the couches.
"But if she doesn't date...should I even bother?" Joey asked leaning back with a sigh.
Atem gazed at Yugi's sleeping form, sprawled out ungracefully on the couch.
"I think you should go for it." Atem said in almost a whisper.
Joey snapped his head in Atem's direction, "What, really? But you said-"
"I know what I said. But, if you don't try, you'll never know. Do you want to spend the rest of your life wondering if she was the one? Or, you'll make the same mistake I did, and realize your feelings after they've already found someone else…" Atem said sadly, walking over to Yugi and draping a throw blanket over the small male.
Joey nodded, mainly to himself. He stood up and looked at the doors upstairs.
"We should get you to bed. Yuge, isn't going anywhere but I could use that guest room if that's still an option." Joey said, decided that he would wait to speak with Salem when she was less heated.
Atem nodded and lead Joey upstairs, "Last door on the left."
Joey said his goodbyes and silently went into the guest room.
Atem looked over the railing at Yugi, who was sound asleep, "Goodnight, Aibou."
He walked into his room and carefully got into bed, hoping that tomorrow would be a better day.
Thank you for reading! I'm so so so soooo sorry it's been a while! I'm in a show and I also got sick over the weekend so it's been tough.
I know I said I'd involve my OC less but it's too late lol
I'm hoping to post another chapter of Highlight of My Life this weekend to make up (haha makeup, get it like...I'll stop) for lost time BUT I won't know if you really want it unless you review and leave Kudos!
Also, to start accessing sneak peaks of future chapters, add me on discord #8434 and I'll invite you to my story server. You'll be able to give suggestions, ask questions (on stories and personal questions), and even submit prompts for one shots (see my one-shot The Honeymoon) and new stories!