A little over a week had passed since Yugi had been released from the hospital. He still had stitches and would need them removed, but it was no big deal. All of them had moved on from everything that had happened, and continued their regular, everyday lives. Though they would never forget it, they would no longer let it distract them. It was over, and now there were other things to be done.

Running home from school, Yugi waved to his friends and walked into the Game Shop, where his grandpa waited for him. When Yugi walked in, his Grandfather slowly walked over to him, grinning.

"I was able to get it for you!" he said, handing him a small folded piece of paper.

Excited, Yugi took it, handling it almost with caution. He slowly opened it and saw the ten numbers he had been searching for. He ran upstairs to his room, throwing his backpack onto his bed and went to search for his phone. Quickly, he picked up the wireless phone, pulled the antenna up, and dialed the number. Though a bit hesitant to call this number, it was what he had wanted to do.

A lady picked up.

"Hello?" she said calmly.

At first, Yugi did not know what to say to her. He stood silent, trying to find the right words to say. He didn't want to screw up, not again.

"…Hello?" the lady asked again.

He finally racked up the courage to say something. He took a deep breath in and shut his eyes.

"Hi, Mom," he told her, almost whispering.

"Yugi? What the-how did you find this number?" she screamed in unpleasant surprise.

Assuming she was about to hang up with him, he started to talk fast.

"It doesn't matter. I just needed to talk to you," he began. "Look, I don't want the things that happened with us last time be the last thing that happens between us. I know that it was hard for you, with dad always gone and me getting older, but I always still cared about you and loved you. And even now, I still do. You're my mother, my family, one of the only people that was there for me."

He paused. His mother so far had no reaction, or at least none that he heard. He hoped he wasn't loosing her.

"I-I'm sorry," he stuttered. "I'm sorry for everything I did. I didn't mean to make you feel alone and abandoned."

His mother gave a long sigh.

"Mom just wait. I think I messed up, and I want to try again. Things will be different and better. I promise…" he said.

She cut him off.

"Just shut up!" she yelled. He couldn't quite understand it, but it sounded as if she were crying. "You're apologizing to me? For what? Yugi, don't you understand? You've done nothing!"

She began crying even harder.

"Leaving you and your grandpa was the hardest decision I've ever had to make, but I knew I had to do it, not because I couldn't tolerate you or him, but because of my failure as a strong mother."

"What are you talking about?" he asked her.

She sniffed.

"Yugi, I left because I needed to overcome my weakness, the weakness of being afraid of loneliness. I somehow have to get over this irritation I have. This eerie feeling of always feeling by myself, I have to stop it. If I live alone, then maybe I'll adapt to the true feeling of being lonely…and learn to appreciate the times when I am not."

Yugi did not know what to say.

"I guess…I didn't know what I really had," she said almost to herself. "Right now, I don't deserve to be with you and Sugoroku. I need to learn from this."

"Mom, you're never alone," he tried to tell her.

"Maybe I'm not," she sobbed, "but maybe that's something I need to learn on this journey, a personal journey, something I need to do on my own."

Yugi wanted to say something, but he found that he could not release words.

"Someday," she was crying hard. "Someday, I'm going to make up for my mistakes and everything I did to you. Someday, I'll come back to you when I'm strong enough and deserving of the opportunity. I'll make things right to you…but now's not the time."

He heard her blow her nose. Again, he had no response.

"My son, someday…I will make it up to you," she finished. "I-I love you…"

He didn't even have time to reply. He heard a click and knew she was gone. He was unsure when he would ever talk to her and see her again. Slowly, he hung up the phone and placed it back on the charger. He pushed the backpack off his bed and laid down, resting his head on his pillow. He couldn't stop thinking about when he would see the face of his mother.

A day or two had passed. Yugi, after going to the store after school, returned home, holding innocently a small paper bag. Yugi's grandpa greeted him.

"I um, have some news. Your mother, she's left. I'm not sure where she's gone to this time, but I can't imagine it being anywhere in Domino, at least not after what you told me about what she said," he told him. "If you want, I can get the address and number for you still."

Yugi smiled and shrugged his shoulders.

"No, grandpa, it's okay," he said. "I appreciate that you did that for me, but you don't have to do that this time. I think I'm better off just leaving the situation as it is. I can't fix everything."

Sugoroku smiled at him.

"Yugi, you'll do just fine," Sugoroku said to him. "Keep your head up with this one, too. In time, it will progress."

Yugi nodded and ran upstairs.

In spirit form, Yami Yugi stood beside Yugi, who had place the brown paper bag down as he retrieved something from underneath his bed. He watched Yugi pull out an old shoe box containing several broken glass pieces and an old photo.

"You don't want to forget her face?" Yami asked him.

"No, but I don't think I could," he replied. "I just don't know when I'll see her again. I don't want to go years without seeing it."

Yami Yugi watched Yugi pull the old photo from the depths of the glass shards and place it carefully on the bed. He poured the broken frame into the garbage in his room and put the shoe box back under his bed. He then went back to the brown paper bag, taking out a brand new wooden frame. Carefully, he placed the picture in it, and then placed it on a stand near his bed, where the old one used to be.

"The time will pass quickly, and soon enough, the two of you will be reunited," Yami Yugi assured him. "I'm just glad she's trying to correct everything."

"Yeah, me too," Yugi agreed. "In many ways, she and I are the same. We're both on a personal journey to find who we really are, to make ourselves stronger and ready to face what we hope is a bright future. One day, we'll see each other, and we'll be able to tell our stories."

Yami Yugi just sighed happily. He had grown so much since he first met Yugi, and he could not help but grin at that fact. With Yugi refreshed and stronger than ever, he was excited on going on the final journey with his partner soon.

"For now though, I think it's better just to accept the way things are," he concluded.

Yami Yugi nodded.

"Our journey is not yet over. We've one more thing to do," he reminded his alter ego. "I'm not going to let you down, just like you didn't let me down."

"I owe you so much," he said. "Aibou, you shouldn't worry about the future. With or without me, you're going to be incredible. You'll have so many opportunities ahead of you, and every obstacle you'll beat."

He grinned at Yugi, who returned the friendly smile. Yugi held up his Millennium puzzle. Yami Yugi put his hands under his, looking like he was holding the puzzle up with him. Their bond was unbreakable.

"Trust me," Yami Yugi said.

"No," Yugi corrected him. "Trust us."

Author's Note: FIN! Hope you liked the ending!

Thanks for reading (and reviewing if you did so). It is all very much so appreciated. Hmm, I think this one turned out way better than the last one, but still could definitely be better. Anyway, please give me some constructive criticism or a comment or a thumbs up or what not, it would be quite helpful.

Now…I must start my essays. Ugh. Well, until next time! Have a good one!