CHAPTER TWELVE

He was running fast down the crowded streets, trying to catch something, find something, the missing piece to his puzzle, except he had no idea what the missing piece was. He could feel himself growing tired, and as he paused to take a breath, he noticed all the smiling faces around him. Slowly, he took off again, taking long and slow steps as he observed the love and joy that surrounded him.

As he turned the corner, the noise suddenly faded, and he found himself trapped in darkness. Desperately, he felt around for a solid object, and fell forward into a pair of familiar strong arms.

"Yami…" he whispered, reaching up to trace his savior's outline.

The arms tightened around him, and he suddenly realized the figure was shaking uncontrollably. He could feel his heart splitting into a million pieces as a small sob reached his ear. Almost hesitantly, he patted the darkness gently on the back, whispering useless words of comfort…

Yuugi woke up to find himself crying into something warm and soft. Looking down, he realized he had been clutching the inside of Yami's jacket. He closed his eyes and sighed, wiping his tears away with the back of his hand. But Yami had been the one crying in the dream, and it hurt to hear his sob, to feel the helpless tremble of Yami's weight.

Still holding the leather jacket tightly against his chest, Yuugi sat up on the bed and looked outside the window. It was early morning, and the sky was a dim shade of blue. Quickly, he brushed his teeth and threw his clothes on. He would give himself plenty of time before school. Was he really looking forward to seeing Yami again? It was almost awkward…

He silently tip-toed down the stairs, careful not to wake his grandfather, who's sound snores could be heard through the thin walls. As he walked through the quiet shop, he allowed his eyes to linger on the dent made by the first bullet before slipping on his jacket and pushing the glass door open.

The streets were still except for a few cars that would occasionally pass by. He made his way to the florist shop at the street corner several blocks from his house. The old lady who ran the shop was inside as usual, watering her plants with love and care. She looked up in response as Yuugi tapped lightly against the glass door and motioned for him to come in.

"How may I help you, my dear?" she asked gently.

Yuugi looked around the store timidly, eyeing the hundreds of flowers to choose from. "Well, I'm thinking of buying something red," he replied as the image of Yami's striking eyes flashed across his mind.

The old lady gave a wrinkled smile. "Oh, is this for a special someone?" she said, her eyes shining with youth.

"No!" Yuugi said, a little louder than intended. He could feel his cheeks burning with embarrassment. "It's—It's for a friend, nothing more. As a thank you present."

Shrugging casually, the old lady pointed to the vivid blur of flowers behind her. "Of course," she said knowingly. "You'll find the roses over there."

Muttering a quick word of thanks, Yuugi made his way over to the roses. There were at least ten shades of red, but one stood out above the others: a silky shade of crimson that was more mysterious than romantic. Almost automatically, he reached out and brushed his fingers against one of the velvety petals.

"You've chosen?" the old lady interrupted from behind.

Yuugi nodded wordlessly as he drew his hand away. He suddenly remembered he would have to somehow make sure Yami received the flowers. A moment ago, the idea had seemed so simple. Now, he was beginning to change his mind. But it was too late; he couldn't just tell the nice old lady he didn't want to buy the flowers anymore.

Carefully, the old lady began to pick out the largest roses, scraping the thorns off with a razor. "How many do you want, my dear?"

How many should I give him? Five? Ten? Buying flowers was more complicated than he had anticipated. "Ten will be enough," he said, digging his wallet out of his pocket as he watched the old lady fasten the flowers. In a bunch, the flowers didn't look like a proper thank you present anymore. Instead, it looked like something else, something that made Yuugi blush every time he thought of it.

He took the flowers into his arms and paid for them, politely thanking the old lady on his way out.

- - -

"So, Yuugi, who are the flowers for?" Jounouchi asked, lifting his eyebrows suggestively. "Who's the lucky girl?"

Yuugi smiled and clutched the bouquet closer to his chest, blushing madly.

Honda playfully punched him in the arm. "Come on, you can tell us."

Just as he was about to answer, several girls came by the lockers, talking in hushed voices and flattening their skirts. They paused as their eyes landed on the flowers and one of them gasped out loud.

"Oh, my god! Flowers!" she squealed, immediately rushing to Yuugi's side. "Are they for us?"

Yuugi shifted uncomfortably. "Actually—" he began.

"No, fuck off," Jounouchi interrupted. "They're for someone special."

"Who are you?" the girl asked, obviously not wishing for an answer as she carelessly shoved him aside. "Anyway, can I please have a flower, Yuugi? You know you love me." She batted her eyelashes flirtatiously.

Hesitantly, Yuugi reached into the bouquet and handed the girl a rose without looking up. His chest suddenly felt heavier and he resisted the urge to sob out loud. The roses are for someone special… for Yami.

"Oh, can I have one, too?" another girl said, smiling brightly. "They're so pretty!"

Once again, Yuugi drew a flower out of the bunch, his reluctance growing stronger. But his hand seemed to have a mind of its own as he handed a rose to each girl, one by one, until a single rose remained clutched tightly in his hand. Thankfully, the school-bell rang, giving the five minute warning before class would start.

He waved for Jounouchi and Honda to go to class without him as he pulled out a slip of paper and a pen from his bookbag. In the neatest handwriting he could manage, he quickly wrote something on the slip and taped it around the stem of his last rose.

Yami was still out of his seat by the time Yuugi arrived in the classroom, and he managed to secretly slide the rose into Yami's desk before the teacher walked in. He cast a sidelong glance at Yami as he watched the boy make his way to his seat. As he looked up at the teacher, he suddenly realized he had been holding his breath for the past minute.

"Good morning," the teacher greeted with an expressionless face.

Like everyone else in the class, Yami stood and returned the greeting. As he sat back down, he reached into his desk for a pen to copy down the assignment written on the board…

…but instead, he felt something else.

Cautiously, he leaned back in his seat and glanced into his desk. It was a flower, a half-bloomed rose, sitting elegantly on top of his textbooks. Feeling curious and a little anxious, he gently took it out of his desk and placed it on his lap. He looked around to make sure the teacher wasn't watching him before lifting the rose to his lips and inhaling the silky scent.

A piece of paper attached to the stem caught his eye. Feeling his heartbeat grow faster, he unrolled the slip. In a neat print of red ink, it read:

Love, Yuugi

His heart skipped several beats as he read the two words over and over again. He fingered the soft petals lovingly and closed his eyes, a faint trace of a smile lingering on his lips. Looking over to Yuugi, he found the boy concentrating unnaturally hard on writing down the assignment on the board. He sighed warmly, laughing inwardly at himself for being such a schoolgirl.

When he looked up again, he found the teacher glaring venomously at him. Giving her a sheepish grin, he placed the rose back into his desk and began to write down the assignment.

He would have to wait until after school to catch Yuugi.

- - -

Fortunately for Yami, Bakura had detention that afternoon and the rest of his crowd was easy to avoid. So he ended up hanging around Yuugi's locker, waiting for him to show. After a while, Yuugi was still nowhere to be seen, and Yami would be late for work if he didn't leave now.

He headed for the school exit, hoping Yuugi had already left for the shop. But on his way out, he noticed a few chattering girls had the exact same flower as he did. His heart suddenly felt strangely heavy. As he passed, he could hear them speaking in high-pitched voices.

"Yuugi gave me a prettier flower…"

"…no, I think mine looks nicer than yours…"

Feeling his legs weaken, Yami managed to carry himself away from school grounds and across the street, holding the rose against his chest. Dropping his bookbag on the ground, he propped himself against a building, slowly rotating the rose between his fingers.

- - -

Note: Blah. This fanfic sounds so unoriginal, so dead. This is the main chapter (you may have noticed the chapter title came from it), and I am well aware that it sucks big ass, but I don't really give anymore. I'm dying to start a million other fics and I can't do so until I finish this one because it just bothers me like that. I need to feel like I've accomplished something before moving onto the next. Anyway, here's what's coming up:

The Crossroad :: Prologue posted. Yes, once I outline the entire friggin' story, I will get to work on chapter one. 'Twill be a sad ending.

First Kiss :: A collection of one-shots of different ways Yami and Yuugi could have shared their first special moment. Fluff.

Measuring Love :: Series of short stories following Yami and Yuugi's childhood together all the way up until Yami goes to college. More fluff.

Yuugi - plays with chibi-Yami Did you hear that Yami? More fluff for us! pokes tummy

Chibi-Yami - giggles and kicks legs around in the air Wheeeeeee!

Yami - Now that… is scary. stabs chibi version of himself and watches blood spill all over the floor Much better.

Yuugi - passes out

Anyway, thank you so much to all my reviewers. If it weren't for you guys, I probably would've quit a long time ago. And please tell me if this fic absolutely sucks or if there's something bad about it. I appreciate any constructive criticism. Thank you! =]