"Ohayou, minna!" Yuugi called cheerfully as his friends reached his desk. "Aa! Jounouchi-kun! I have to show you this new game the shop got in!"
"Another new one?!" Jounouchi near groaned. "Yuuuugi, pick one and stick with it! Ya've been switching to a new game every other day! Ya gotta gimme a chance to get the hang of something. You know how long it took me to get good with Duel Monsters!"
Yuugi gave a small laugh, rubbing the back of his neck in embarrassment. "Gomen, gomen! I guess we've just played Duel Monsters so long I want to try all the new games I missed at once."
"You and your games," Jounouchi sighed. "Yer gonna drive me broke."
"You already are broke, Jounouchi," Honda grinned. "You should been putting your time into studying for your exams instead of blowing money on new games."
"Bah," Jounouchi scowled. "Like you should talk, your grades are just as bad as mine!"
Honda smirked. "Not anymore!" he exclaimed with triumph. "Did you see the test scores? I went up 20 points!"
"Aa! That's so great!" Yuugi exclaimed happily.
"Ne, Yuugi, why don't we set up a study group?" Anzu suggested. "Maybe we can even help Jounouchi pass."
"Hey!" Jounouchi protested.
Yuugi smiled happily as Honda and Anzu laughed at Jounouchi's attempts to defend his grades. Everything was so peaceful now... He put a hand on the side of the Sennen Puzzle, almost cradling it. He still missed his other sometimes, he still wasn't used to not hearing his voice replying to his rhetorical thoughts and having an older brother figure around all the time. But he still could feel his others's lingering presence, like an echo, in the Puzzle, and could see and hear him in his own actions and words. After everything, it all had ended so perfectly, except....
As if on cue, the door to the classroom slid open. "Bakura-kun!" he called happily. "Ohaiyo!"
The pale haired boy smiled and waved at him and Yuugi's eyes went wide.
"Aaa!" he exclaimed, nearly jumping over his desk to go over to his friend. "Bakura-kun, what happened to your hand!" he asked, looking at the bandages in concern.
Bakura gave an embarrassed smile. "I wasn't paying attention when I was washing dishes and one of the glasses shattered," he exclaimed sheepishly. "It was easier just to wrap it then put on twelve bandages."
Yuugi looked up at him in concern, noting the tired lines marring the boy's face. "Bakura-kun, are you sure you're--"
"I'm fine," the paler boy said almost sharply, causing Yuugi to nearly flinch at the tone. "Ah, gomen," Bakura apologized with a slight grimace that looked almost like a twitch. "I haven't been sleeping to well," he explained. "The people in the apartment next door..."
Yuugi bit his lip, but nodded. He could tell Bakura was lying, but didn't feel right pushing the boy to tell him the truth.
"Teacher's coming," Bakura near mumbled, pushing past Yuugi to get to his seat.
Yuugi looked at his friend sadly, then moved back to his desk and sat with a sigh.
Ever since everything had ended, Bakura had been acting strange. He was tense all the time, even when he seemed fine, and so far, Yuugi was the only one who noticed. When he had pointed it out to Jounouchi, Anzu and Honda, they'd just shrugged it off. 'He's gone through a lot, give him some time to deal,' Jounouchi had said.
But it was more then just that, Yuugi could tell.
He gave a sigh, pulling out his books. Hopefully Bakura would talk to him and tell him what was wrong....
"All those needing to take the make up test, please stay, all others are dismissed."
Yuugi sighed, looking down as his desk as Honda and Anzu gave him sympathetic looks.
"We'll see ya when you get out, 'k, Yuugi?" Jounouchi ruffled the boy's hair briefly.
"And then we'll study for the next one. Together," Anzu added.
"Good luck, Yuugi!" Honda called as the trio left.
Yuugi sighed again. Normally he, Jounouchi and Honda took the make up tests together, but their grades had started to improve while his hadn't. 'Because you spend too much time with games,' he chided himself. He gave a small sad smile as his mental voice sounded like his other's.
He looked up as the teacher began to call roll. "Aki?" The teacher nodded as the boy replied. "Bakura?"
Yuugi's eyes went wide and he turned, spotting the pale haired boy. Bakura was taking he make up test as well? But Bakura's grades were always better then his, sometimes even better then Anzu's!
"Mutou? Mutou Yuugi?"
"Aa! Hai!" he exclaimed, turning around. 'Worry about your test now, and Bakura-kun later,' he chided himself. But he couldn't help but worry....
A half hour later his worry was fully on the test. With a sigh, he flipped the paper over, slowly working on the last problem. Why was the last question always the hardest? It was always--
His thoughts were interrupted by a loud snap of a pencil being broken. Blinking, he turned slightly to the sound.
"Is there a problem, Bakura-san?" the teacher asked.
Yuugi's eyes widened at the sight of his friend, fist clenched tightly around the broken pencil, expression almost seething with anger and frustration. He'd never seen Bakura look like that before... the pale boy was barely ever angry and always so reserved...
"Eyes on your own paper, Mutou-san."
Yuugi looked down at his test with a grimace.
"Bakura-san, is there a problem?" the teacher asked again.
There was a long pause before the boy spoke. "No," he said in a slow and deliberate tone. "I've finished...."
Yuugi bit his lip, watching out of the corner of his eye as Bakura left the room. Something was definitely wrong...
"Another new one?!" Jounouchi near groaned. "Yuuuugi, pick one and stick with it! Ya've been switching to a new game every other day! Ya gotta gimme a chance to get the hang of something. You know how long it took me to get good with Duel Monsters!"
Yuugi gave a small laugh, rubbing the back of his neck in embarrassment. "Gomen, gomen! I guess we've just played Duel Monsters so long I want to try all the new games I missed at once."
"You and your games," Jounouchi sighed. "Yer gonna drive me broke."
"You already are broke, Jounouchi," Honda grinned. "You should been putting your time into studying for your exams instead of blowing money on new games."
"Bah," Jounouchi scowled. "Like you should talk, your grades are just as bad as mine!"
Honda smirked. "Not anymore!" he exclaimed with triumph. "Did you see the test scores? I went up 20 points!"
"Aa! That's so great!" Yuugi exclaimed happily.
"Ne, Yuugi, why don't we set up a study group?" Anzu suggested. "Maybe we can even help Jounouchi pass."
"Hey!" Jounouchi protested.
Yuugi smiled happily as Honda and Anzu laughed at Jounouchi's attempts to defend his grades. Everything was so peaceful now... He put a hand on the side of the Sennen Puzzle, almost cradling it. He still missed his other sometimes, he still wasn't used to not hearing his voice replying to his rhetorical thoughts and having an older brother figure around all the time. But he still could feel his others's lingering presence, like an echo, in the Puzzle, and could see and hear him in his own actions and words. After everything, it all had ended so perfectly, except....
As if on cue, the door to the classroom slid open. "Bakura-kun!" he called happily. "Ohaiyo!"
The pale haired boy smiled and waved at him and Yuugi's eyes went wide.
"Aaa!" he exclaimed, nearly jumping over his desk to go over to his friend. "Bakura-kun, what happened to your hand!" he asked, looking at the bandages in concern.
Bakura gave an embarrassed smile. "I wasn't paying attention when I was washing dishes and one of the glasses shattered," he exclaimed sheepishly. "It was easier just to wrap it then put on twelve bandages."
Yuugi looked up at him in concern, noting the tired lines marring the boy's face. "Bakura-kun, are you sure you're--"
"I'm fine," the paler boy said almost sharply, causing Yuugi to nearly flinch at the tone. "Ah, gomen," Bakura apologized with a slight grimace that looked almost like a twitch. "I haven't been sleeping to well," he explained. "The people in the apartment next door..."
Yuugi bit his lip, but nodded. He could tell Bakura was lying, but didn't feel right pushing the boy to tell him the truth.
"Teacher's coming," Bakura near mumbled, pushing past Yuugi to get to his seat.
Yuugi looked at his friend sadly, then moved back to his desk and sat with a sigh.
Ever since everything had ended, Bakura had been acting strange. He was tense all the time, even when he seemed fine, and so far, Yuugi was the only one who noticed. When he had pointed it out to Jounouchi, Anzu and Honda, they'd just shrugged it off. 'He's gone through a lot, give him some time to deal,' Jounouchi had said.
But it was more then just that, Yuugi could tell.
He gave a sigh, pulling out his books. Hopefully Bakura would talk to him and tell him what was wrong....
"All those needing to take the make up test, please stay, all others are dismissed."
Yuugi sighed, looking down as his desk as Honda and Anzu gave him sympathetic looks.
"We'll see ya when you get out, 'k, Yuugi?" Jounouchi ruffled the boy's hair briefly.
"And then we'll study for the next one. Together," Anzu added.
"Good luck, Yuugi!" Honda called as the trio left.
Yuugi sighed again. Normally he, Jounouchi and Honda took the make up tests together, but their grades had started to improve while his hadn't. 'Because you spend too much time with games,' he chided himself. He gave a small sad smile as his mental voice sounded like his other's.
He looked up as the teacher began to call roll. "Aki?" The teacher nodded as the boy replied. "Bakura?"
Yuugi's eyes went wide and he turned, spotting the pale haired boy. Bakura was taking he make up test as well? But Bakura's grades were always better then his, sometimes even better then Anzu's!
"Mutou? Mutou Yuugi?"
"Aa! Hai!" he exclaimed, turning around. 'Worry about your test now, and Bakura-kun later,' he chided himself. But he couldn't help but worry....
A half hour later his worry was fully on the test. With a sigh, he flipped the paper over, slowly working on the last problem. Why was the last question always the hardest? It was always--
His thoughts were interrupted by a loud snap of a pencil being broken. Blinking, he turned slightly to the sound.
"Is there a problem, Bakura-san?" the teacher asked.
Yuugi's eyes widened at the sight of his friend, fist clenched tightly around the broken pencil, expression almost seething with anger and frustration. He'd never seen Bakura look like that before... the pale boy was barely ever angry and always so reserved...
"Eyes on your own paper, Mutou-san."
Yuugi looked down at his test with a grimace.
"Bakura-san, is there a problem?" the teacher asked again.
There was a long pause before the boy spoke. "No," he said in a slow and deliberate tone. "I've finished...."
Yuugi bit his lip, watching out of the corner of his eye as Bakura left the room. Something was definitely wrong...