~Chapter 9 ~

Tiredly, Yuugi knocked on the door. He didn't want to come back like this, but he had promised in the note that he would come back after seeing Kaiba.

"Chotto matte kudasai!" [Please wait a moment!] came a tired voice from inside, and a short while later the door opened. Bakura looked still half asleep, hair hopelessly tousled and sticking up in all directions. "Yuugi-kun," the sleepy sounding boy smiled, looking more awake. Suddenly, he paused, blinking. "Yuugi-kun... daijoubu....?"

Yuugi startled briefly at Bakura, the other boy's hair sticking out in all directions reminding him of the boy's other personality. He quickly realized that it wasn't and relaxed. He reached up, trying to cover the raw places at the edges of his mouth. "Ee, daijoubu."

Bakura blinked a few more times, eyes slightly disbelieving, then moved aside, inviting the smaller boy in.

Face lowered, Yuugi entered.

"Did you want something? I can make us tea..."

"Ee--ee," Yuugi said. "Ocha wa ii desu...." [Tea's good.]

Bakura nodded and shuffled off to the kitchen with a small yawn.

Yuugi sat, hands fisted on his thighs, trying hard not to cry anymore.

Bakura returned a short while later, carefully carrying two large mugs of tea. "Hai..." [Here] The pale haired boy's eyes were compassionate and concerned as he handed the smaller boy a mug.

"Arigatou," Yuugi said softly, wincing as the hot liquid hit the raw places around his mouth.

"Yuugi-kun...." Bakura near whispered. "What happened....?"

Yuugi looked up nervously. "Nandemo...." [Nothing]

"Yuugi-kun....." the pale haired boy's eyes looked hurt. "You can tell me...."

"Ii--iie," Yuugi said without looking up. "Ii desu...." [It's okay..]

"Ii ja nai yo!" Bakura insisted. [It's not okay!]

"I don't want to tell you," Yuugi said tearfully. "You'll get upset."

"Yuugi-kun..." Bakura gently took the mug and placed it down before giving the small boy a near crushing hug.

Yuugi melted into it, crying softly.

"Yuugi-kun, please... tell me what happened? How can I make it better?"

Yuugi shook his head. "Boku no sei, dakara.... I have to deal with it." [It's my fault, so..]

"Iie!" Bakura insisted. He pulled back slightly to look into Yuugi's eyes. "You should never have to be alone... even in suffering...." he said softly, eyes emotional. "That's what you always told me..."

Yuugi's lower lip trembled. "Demo...."

"Nani...?" Bakura asked softly.

"I don't want you to get hurt," the smaller boy said softly.

Bakura looked confused.

Biting his lip lightly, Yuugi pulled his shirt up to show faint bruises along his ribs.

Bakura's eyes went wide. "Yuu--Yuugi-kun...!" He hesitantly reached for the discolored skin, but pulled away. "How....?"

"Kaiba-kun was angry...." Yuugi said softly, looking down.

"Ka--Kaiba-kun did...." Bakura trailed off, eyes horrified.

"He didn't know!" Yuugi protested. "He was just... proving that I was his...." he boy looked down again.

"Demo..." Bakura's eyes watered and he shook his head near violently. "Yurusanai yo!" [I can't forgive!] he exclaimed. "For him to hurt you, no matter what the reason! I can't forgive him!"

"Iie!" Yuugi said, looking up into Bakura's eyes. "He didn't mean to! He didn't know he was!"

"Yuugi-kun..." Bakura hugged the boy tightly. "You have to tell him... or else he'll only hurt you again....."

"Iie, ii yo," Yuugi insisted.

"Ii ja nai! If he didn't know he was, he wouldn't know to be careful not to next time!"

"Bakura-kun... please...." Yuugi said, looking down again. "It's really not important...."

Bakura shook his head slightly. "It is important..." he insisted softly. "Because you're important..."

"He didn't really hurt me," Yuugi insisted. He bit his lip lightly. "Hontou ni daijoubu...."

"Yuugi-kun...." Bakura's eyes were saddened. Lightly, he traced the raw makes around Yuugi's mouth. "He did these too...?"

The smaller boy winced slightly. "He didn't want me saying your name again...." he whispered.

Bakura blinked a few times, then his eyes went wide. "Yuugi-kun... He-- he--" The pale haired boy's eyes watered slightly and he gave the small boy a near crushing hug.

Yuugi cried softly. "I tried to talk to him...."

"It isn't right... he doesn't own you, he can't just treat you like this!" Bakura exclaimed in a shaky whisper, still hugging the smaller boy.

Yuugi continued crying softly. "He didn't want to listen. He's so mad, Bakura-kun. I don't think he likes me anymore."

Bakura's hug tightened. "May-- maybe he'll calm down... if-- if you give him some time...." he said, biting his lip. "Until then... I'll take care of you...."

"You-- you really think...?" Yuugi asked desperately.

The pale haired boy nodded. "Un..." he said softly, eyes slightly sad.

Yuugi looked down. "Bakura-kun mo... Kaiba-kun mo... taisetsu na hito...." [Bakura and Kaiba... are importatnt people to me...] he said softly. "Kaiba-kun mo... suki... to omou.... Boku... kirai ka?" [I think... I also like Kaiba... do you hate me?]

Bakura shook his head. "Un," he disagreed. "Yuugi-kun ga daisuki... no matter what...." he said softly.

Yuugi looked up through his bangs. "Demo... it makes you unhappy, right?"

Bakura hesitated a moment. "Some..." he admitted, feeling slightly ashamed. "But... it's important to Yuugi-kun... and as long as I have your love, I can accept having to share it," he smiled.

"It's so confusing...." Yuugi admitted. "When we started, you had my heart and Kaiba-kun just my body.... But now...." He looked down, tears dripping onto his hands. "I feel like a whore again.... Except that I love you both! And I don't know when that happened, but I hate myself for it. Because I'm not being true to either of you."

"That isn't true!" Bakura insisted, eyes distressed. "You never lied to either of us, in any way!"

"Demo.... I told you that I didn't like him. But it's not true anymore...."

"But it was when you said it..."

"But I didn't tell you," Yuugi said pathetically. "And I didn't tell Kaiba-kun.... And I didn't tell him that we were...." he trailed off again, face going warm.

"It shouldn't matter. Yuugi-kun didn't do anything wrong," Bakura said, hugging the boy.

"Hontou?" [Really?] Yuugi asked in a small voice, melting against Bakura.

"Un," Bakura nodded, near cradling the boy.



"If you have to hurt someone, it should be me instead of him...."

Kaiba glared at him. "Mind your own business."

The pale haired boy shrank back some, but didn't leave. "Yuugi-kun is my business..." he said softly. "Especially when you're punishing him because of me..."

"What we do has nothing to do with you," Kaiba said, looking Bakura over with a look that was part disgust and part anger.

Bakura clenched his fists, trying hard to keep from trembling. "It does when he runs to me afterwards crying..." he said in a quiet voice.

Kaiba paused. "Crying?" he asked, with almost detached interest.

Bakura nodded. "He thinks you hate him...."

Kaiba snorted. "And that made him cry?"

The pale haired boy tensed, getting angry at the implied insult to his friend. "He cares deeply about you and you hurt him emotionally and physically," he explained, looking up to glare slightly. He flinched slightly as he met Kaiba's eyes but didn't look down. "He doesn't deserve that...."

"He cares about me?" Kaiba asked archly.

Bakura nodded. "He wouldn't have been so upset if he didn't...."

"Which is why he thinks of you when we're having sex," Kaiba said archly.

Bakura fidgeted, looking down, blushing slightly. "That doesn't give you the right to hurt him...."

"So he can do whatever he wants without care of who gets hurt but I can't?" Kaiba asked dangerously.

"Chigau yo!" [That's not it!/It's diffrent then that!] Bakura exclaimed, looking up again, blanching slightly at Kaiba's expression.

"Then your argument seems to have fallen apart. Yuugi can't get away with what he did, but I can't punish him. What more is there?"

"Yuugi-kun's been miserable and trying to make up for his mistake and you don't even care that you hurt him at all!" Bakura exclaimed, getting upset.

"Remorse changes nothing, least of all knowledge." Kaiba stood, towering over Bakura. "He was thinking of you," he growled, eyes blazing.

Bakura took a step back, eyes wide in fear.

Kaiba smirked slightly at Bakura's reaction. "How would you suggest I forgive him when he's made me question every time we were together? Perhaps he was thinking of you every time and that's how he was able to make himself come back. I can't know that." His eyes bored into Bakura's. "How can I forgive a betrayal of trust?"

The pale haired boy trembled slightly, wanting desperately to look away, but unable too.

"I see you have no answer for me," Kaiba said after a long moment. "Perhaps you should keep yourself out of this until you have one."

"I can't..." Bakura said in a small voice.

"Then we appear to be at an impasse," Kaiba said neutrally, sitting again and picking up his book.

Bakura took a shaky deep breath, hand over his heart and slumped slightly. "Gomen nasai..." he said softly one he was calmer. "I-- I think... if you tell him how you feel... ma--maybe..." he trailed off.

Kaiba glanced at him again. "How I 'feel?'"

Bakura hesitated a moment before answering. "That you were hurt by it because you also care about him...." he said carefully, hoping Kaiba wouldn't get angry again.

"Care is a weakness," Kaiba said roughly.

"You care about Mokuba-kun...." Bakura pointed out timidly.

Kaiba glared at him.

The pale haired boy flinched slightly. "And that care doesn't make you weak..." he continued. "It makes you stronger..."

"Someone with knowledge of your feelings can exploit them."

"Yuugi-kun won't...."

"Yuugi is my rival," Kaiba said, as though that explained everything.

"He's more then just that now..." Bakura pointed out.

"What do you know about what we are?" Kaiba asked, eyes narrowing.

The pale haired boy fidgeted slightly.

The door to the classroom opened and Yuugi entered. "Kaiba-kun... I wanted to talk to you... about everything, and...." He trailed off. "Bakura-kun?"

The pale haired boy grimaced slightly, looking embarrassed.

Yuugi looked between the pair. "What are you doing?"

Bakura fidgeted slightly. "I-- I didn't want him to hurt you again..." he explained softly.

Yuugi winced and looked down. "I was going to take care of it...." he said softly.

"Gomen..." Bakura hesitated a moment, then moved to leave the room.

"No!" Yuugi said. He looked at Kaiba, then looked down. "I mean, you don't have to go...."

The boy startled slightly at Yuugi's outburst, then nodded, turning to face the other two boys.

Yuugi closed the door and stood near it, fidgeting slightly. "Kaiba-kun... I wanted to talk to you...."

Obligingly, Kaiba put down his book and looked at Yuugi expectantly.

The small boy looked down, wringing his hands together slightly. "I feel like I've lied to you," he started. "I mean, since Bakura-kun and I have been getting more... intimate. Because that was supposed to be our relationship. And Bakura-kun was supposed to have my love."

Not looking up, he didn't see the flash of strong emotion cross Kaiba's face.

"But that's why.... Bakura-kun likes my neck, so when you...." Yuugi's voice trailed off as he blushed slightly.

"Is that all?" Kaiba asked coldly.

"Iie," Yuugi said, looking up with wide eyes. "Because... even though you were supposed to stay separate, I can't help liking sex with Bakura." He fumbled slightly, blushing again. "Demo, Kaiba-kun mo.... Kaiba-kun mo daisuki da yo!" [But I... I also like you alot, Kaiba!]

Bakura gave a soft sad smile, looking at Yuugi.

Yuugi looked down again as Kaiba was silent. "That... that was it. I-- I just wanted to apologize." He tried to keep from crying. "Because it was so good... and then I messed it up.... And I just wish... I wish you could forgive me.... Because I love you...." Giving up, he buried his face in his hands, shaking.

Bakura looked at the smaller boy, wishing he could go comfort him. He looked over at Kaiba, watching for his reaction, eyes full of mixed emotions.

After a moment Kaiba got up and went over to Yuugi, crouching in front of him and pulling the smaller boy's hands away from his face. In an almost tender move, he buckled the collar around Yuugi's throat again.

Yuugi looked at him wide eyed. "Kaiba-kun?" After a moment he threw himself into Kaiba's arms, kissing him passionately.

Kaiba returned it for a moment, then pulled back. "Not here."

Yuugi nodded happily, wiping his eyes dry on his arm. Kaiba rose, got his book and left the room. Yuugi turned to Bakura with a smile. Unable to contain himself, he hugged the taller boy tightly, nuzzling against his neck.

Bakura gave a startled exclamation, eyes widening. "Dame yo, Yuugi-kun!" he exclaimed, moving his neck out of the way of Yuugi's nuzzling, face slightly red.

Yuugi smiled impishly up at him.

Bakura gave a small grimace. "Yuugi-kun..." he pleaded. "Not in school...."

Yuugi smiled again. "Later, then," he promised with a wink.

Bakura gave a light blush, smiling as he nodded.