Things are still very awkward for our favourite couple, but will an evening together, at a fine dining restaurant help heal their differences?

A reminder: Sadly, I do not own any of the rights to Yugioh! But I am happy to be able to write lovely fan fiction, where romance triumphs over dueling.

Chapter 9.

Make or Break.

Grabbing his coat, Yugi left the venue. Throughout the afternoon he had controlled his anxiety by focusing his attention on playing the games he was supposed to be demonstrating to potential customers.

But now, as he made his way to the subway station, his anxiety began to increase. He and Anzu had squabbled over silly things when they were kids, but he had never spoken to her so harshly, and with so much force, as he had this morning. After seeing a man she knew (whatever her relationship with Tony was, he did not wish to imagine) killed, she was already in a fragile enough state, and did not need Yugi putting pressure on her to make up her mind by tonight. Perhaps he should back-off a bit.

No. Given her dire circumstances, it had been necessary for him to show some metal as a man, and take control. It was also the only way he could think of getting her to show him the respect that he thought he deserved.

Not that she didn't respect him –she did, he was sure. It was just that she was so used to his kind, easy going nature, that, whether or not she realised it, she often had a tendency to take him for granted, and assert her own, slightly more bossy personality over his easy going one. Well, not this time; this time he was the one showing her who was boss.

The Subway was busier at this time of day. But it was nothing he was not used to in the crowded city centre of Domino.

Squeezing onto the subway train, he had to stand –the seats were all taken– and reach up to grasp the hand rail on the ceiling of the compartment. It was at times like this he cursed not being taller, especially when squashed up against a tall, rotund man with sweaty armpits, that were way to close to his face for his liking.

He ended up getting off a stop early; he would rather walk the rest of the way in the rain than endure someone's sweaty pits.

Looking rather bedraggled, he got back to the hotel at six twenty five. Heart beating fast, he checked the lounge and then the bar. There was no sign of Anzu yet and his heart sunk.

Maybe he was worrying prematurely; he had told her seven –plenty of time for her to get here.

He went to the reception desk. "Excuse me?" He asked politely.

The rather elegant, middle aged woman receptionist, looked up at him. Her expression changed to one of mild relief at the sight of him. "Ah! Mister Muto. Good to see you have returned. Will you be dining here this evening?"

Yugi wondered at her reaction; did she think something terrible had happened to him?

"Yes. Yes, I will be. Sorry I didn't come back last night." Why did he need to justify himself? "I was staying with a friend. In fact, I have invited her to dine with me tonight. If that's okay?" He felt himself blushing at what that might imply.

However, the receptionist maintained her professional indifference towards him staying out all night with a female friend, and smiled blandly. "Of course, Sir. What time would you like to eat?"

"Erm.." He checked his watch. The time was ticking. "I know I'm down to eat at seven each evening, but can we make it seven fifteen tonight?"

She tapped her screen thoughtfully, and changed his normal dining time. "All done for you." She looked up at him. "Will there be any extras?"

"Any what?" Yugi asked, confused.

"Champagne on the table. Flowers. That sort of thing."

"Oh!" He was blushing again. "Erm... No. It's okay. Anzu is an old friend of mine," he said, knowing that Anzu would probably think flowers a bit tacky. And they could always order champagne when she arrived, if they wanted. "But there is one thing you can do. If she comes in and asks for me, can you tell her I'm upstairs getting ready. She can come up to my room if she wants."

"Will do. Anything else?"

"No. I don't think so. Thank you." He bowed his head slightly, in customary Japanese gratitude, and moved away from the desk so that the receptionist could deal with the guest waiting behind him.

Dampness was seeping through his clothing and into his bones, making him feel chilled, and also pretty jaded. He could do with a nap but there was no time; he would have to make do with a shave, a quick shower and a change of clothes, in the hope that that would liven him up a bit.

Pressing the lift call button, he waited for it to arrive. Why did lifts always take so long when you're in a hurry? Impatient, he jabbed at the call button again, not once, but three times.

He watched the display above the doors, as the elevator, on its way down, stopped on one of the floors. It then moved down two more floors, stopping again. When it stopped a third time, he cursed under his breath; it would have been quicker to run the seventeen floors up the stairs!

At last, the elevator dinged to a halt and the doors slid open. He waited, tapping his foot impatiently, while the people in the lift got out. At last... he sighed through clenched teeth, when finally, he was inside the elevator. However, he nearly exploded in a fit of pique (but somehow held his temper in check) when the lift attendant held the door open for some more guests to get in.

Eventually, after three stops en-route, he reached his floor.

Hurriedly swiping his key-card he barrelled into his room and began throwing off his clothes.

He brushed his teeth, shaved, and then showered with the bathroom door open, so that if Anzu did arrive, he would hear her knocking.

Finishing his shower, he turned off the water, and listened carefully. Still no indication that she was outside.

He dried himself off, moisturised his face with aftershave balm, and then sprayed himself with a manly body spray, that claimed on the tin to drive women wild. Hopefully it would have the desired effect on Anzu.

But what if she wasn't coming?

Anzu was always punctual, or slightly early, but it was now six fifty and there was no sign of her.

Maybe she was waiting in the lounge-bar, like he originally said.

But she would message to say she was here, wouldn't she? Unless she was too upset after what he said to her this morning, and had stood him up...

Feeling a shudder of dread running up his spine, he ran to his discarded jacket and grabbed his phone from the inside pocket. Shit! It had not been charged since yesterday morning and the battery was now dead. Stupid! Stupid! Why did he not think to put it on charge at work today?

"Crap!" He yelled, running to his bedside table to plug it in. No time to wait for it to gain enough charge for him to turn the damned thing on. No time to waste deciding what to wear, either.

Grabbing clean boxers, he stumbled into them in such a hurry that he put them on back to front. He took a deep breath and told himself to cam down.

With his boxers on correctly, he grabbed a pair of dark grey trousers and a pale lilac button up shirt.

Trying to dress quickly, but without rushing, he fastened the buttons on his shirt and tucked the shirt into his trousers, arranging himself, and flattening down the she shirt, before zipping up his trousers, sliding his belt through the loops and fastening the clasp.

He checked his look in the mirror. At least he had managed to get his hair reasonably dry in the short amount of time, and it was a lot less fluffy than it was after using Anzu's shampoo this morning.

A thought occurred to him: Anzu had not said anything about his hair being slightly shorter that it used to be. She must have noticed –she always noticed things like that. Was she not interested in his appearance? She always used to be! If she had asked, he would have happily explained that he was twenty four now, and needed to look a bit more like a businessman than a punk-kid, hence the neater style.

He was thinking too much.

Pulling on his socks and smart black shoes, he took a deep breath to calm his nerves, and headed back down to the reception area, using the stairs this time.

His heart was pounding as he pushed the door open –and it was not just from running down seventeen flights of stairs. He was actually feeling more nervous than he did when he stepped out into a huge duel stadium full of adoring fans, all chanting his name.

The nerves he had before a duel, were super-charged with the excitement of the battle to come, and the incredible adrenaline rush of giving the crowd a good show, while convincingly beating his opponent.

This felt more like walking to the gallows. He was trying desperately hard not to break out in a sweat that would ruin the shirt he was wearing.

He looked around for her. There was no sign of her in the bar and his heart sunk.

::::::::::::

Back from her run, Anzu grabbed a can of Lemon Fanta from the fridge and popped the tab. She gulped it straight down from the can and it made her burp. Her nose tingled from the fizz and she had an attack of belching and hiccups; she always preferred water post run, so what on earth had possessed her to choose a fizzy drink instead?

Shaking her head, she started doing some stretches. Her mind was in turmoil again.

She loved Yugi, truly she did. But the idea of ending up like her mother frightened her. Her mother joined a pop band while in school, and held aspirations to be a professional rock singer; she even dyed her hair pink, such as the rebel she was. But her mother came from a very traditional, conservative family, and her parents squashed her ambitions, fearing their daughter's lifestyle in a rock band would bring shame to their family. They knew what was best for their daughter and chose several potential husbands; Anzu's father being one of the lucky young prospects. They were married at twenty one, and by the time she was twenty two she pregnant with Anzu's older brother. Three years later, Anzu was born.

Her mother's dreams had long been abandoned to a more stereotypical role in life; to support her hard-working husband, keep their home clean and look after the children. These days, her mother sang in a local choir as a hobby, while working as a receptionist at Anzu's father's dental practice. Anzu's brother had also become a dentist, like father, and had joined the family practice with the intention of one day taking over.

Anzu was not the least bit interested in sticking her fingers in people's ghastly mouths, and was determined to follow her own path. Luckily, her parents were not traditional like their own parents had been, and willingly supported Anzu's dreams of dancing professionally. If Anzu went home now, it would be an admission of failure and the end of her dream; she would probably end up just like her mother; married, pregnant and helping Yugi in the game store.

That would not be so terrible in the future, but not now; not until she had at least done everything she possibly could to justify the enormous amount of money her parents had paid for her to come to New York for her education.

If she could just get Yugi to understand that, then he might see why this was so important to her, and not put so much pressure on her to go home.

Rinsing out the empty drink can, she put it on the drainer, ready to go in the recycling bin –Anzu was always conscious to recycle what she could.

She went into the bathroom and took off her sweaty running gear, and was about to throw her clothes into the linen bin when she spotted the fairy lounge pants that Yugi had worn last night, thrown on the floor next to the linen basket.

She picked them up, and rather than put them in the linen basket, placed them on the towel rail to keep warm. She then took a long, hot shower.

Drying herself, she wondered how to explain how she felt to Yugi. It was so easy in her mind, but saying it aloud was a different matter; if she was not careful, she might end up sounding like brat, who was only interested in what she wanted to do, and not prepared to compromise. Compromise: that was what they both needed to do, wasn't it?

It was not just her wanting to stay and pursue her dreams and ambitions, however far from reach they may be; Yugi was being stubborn too. He was so concerned about her living in a rough area and working as a stripper, that he did not trust her judgement and was putting pressure on her to go home.

Stay here and it was all over between them. Or go home and... become an obedient little housewife.

How would that work out? What if the spectre of her occupation as a stripper loomed over their relationship, like a dark storm cloud waiting to burst?

Snatching up her body lotion, she tried to push the negative thoughts aside. There was no denying her shame, her guilt and humiliation. The look on Yugi's face when their eyes had met, moments before the bouncers dragged him away, had been a mixture of utter dismay, sorrow, regret, disappointment and anger.

He was always so forgiving; no doubt he would try and forgive this time.

However, Anzu did not know if she was as capable as he was when it came to forgiveness. She feared she would try too hard to make it up to him. She would do what she always did and pretend nothing was wrong, when in fact, she would always see that devastated look on his face. Whenever she looked into his eyes, she would remember the utter humiliation and self loathing she had felt in those moments. It would build up inside her, and then she might take out her anguish on him. Could she live with that?

She finished rubbing lotion onto her skin, and then picked up the fairy lounge pants Yugi had worn.

She closed her eyes, held them to her face and tried to pick up his scent. Yes, it was there, the masculine scent she typically associated with Yugi.

Even though she considered it a bit weird to wear something he had worn, she pulled them on over her naked lower body anyway; it was too tempting to resist, and the knowledge of them having touched his body made her quiver inside. It brought a nice feeling to her lower regions, that almost made her feel ashamed and embarrassed – good job she was on her own.

Finding an old baggy tee-shirt, she put it on, and then decided to rest.

Laying down on the bed, she put in her ear buds, and selected some music on her well loved I-pod. She listened to the first track, but after that the rest just faded away as tiredness overtook her.

She woke up at five fifty, feeling all pasty and disorientated. The earbuds had fallen out and were tangled around her.

Rummaging about to untangle them, she suddenly noticed the time. "Shit!" She was going to be late for dinner with Yugi. Moving too fast, her vision filled with stars.

After taking a moment to re-orientate herself, she glanced at the bedside table and spotted the money Yugi had left poking out from under her bedside lamp.

Naughty Yugi. She would make him take it back.

Tutting at his generosity, she made her way to the bathroom and squinted at the mirror. Doh! What was going on with her hair? A clump was sticking out where she had fallen asleep on it, and looked like she had grown a long ear.

She wet her hand and tried to stick it down, but it refused to behave.

A swift, cold shower would wake her up properly, and hopefully get the stupid tuft of hair on the side of her head.

The cold shower certainly did the trick, and after brushing her teeth, she was ready to get dressed.

She abandoned blow-drying her hair –it was taking too long. Instead, she ruffled it a little and then let it fall over her shoulders into a natural style.

What to wear? The hotel was probably full of business people, and the dress code was probably smart.

Used to quick costume changes, she hastily donned a pair of lacy black undies and matching bra, a black silk blouse, with short, lacy sleeves, and a dark burgundy skirt, that ended just above the knee and a matching blazer, that nipped in at the waist, showing off her trim figure. She slipped on a pair of sheer stockings and checked there were no creases in her outfit.

Make-up! She needed to do her make-up!

Remembering Yugi was not a fan of tons of make-up, she finished her look with a touch of mascara, some blusher and pale pink lip gloss.

Now, what to take? She was working the early shift at the cafe tomorrow and would need to take her uniform, just in case she ended up staying with Yugi. Not that she had plans to, but you never know...

Grabbing a small holdall, she placed her uniform on the bottom, added a change of underwear, some socks, flat work shoes, nightdress, toiletries, toothbrush, keys, purse and phone, and she was ready to go.

Better take a waterproof overcoat, it was raining outside.

Had she got everything she needed? Oh! The money Yugi left.

Running back into the bedroom, she grabbed it and put it in her purse, and then put the purse back in her holdall.

No more flapping about, it was already twenty past six, and would take around thirty minutes to get to the hotel where Yugi was staying. Slipping on a pair of black dress shoes, with a heel that was not so high that she would be taller than Yugi, she left her flat and locked the door behind her.

Her eyes were drawn to a small, jagged hole in the wall next to her door where the bullet had passed right through Tony and buried itself there. The forensic team had dug it out, and cleaned up the blood on the floor, but the images of last night were still vivid in her mind, causing her to shudder. Would she be able to forget? Or would the horror of last night haunt her every time she looked at it?

She shivered again and went down to the entrance lobby. The landlord's door was open, so she scurried past as quickly as she could, and managed to avoid being accosted by him.

Outside, it was cold and damp. A cab might be a better option, rather than the hustle and bustle of the subway.

Could she justify the cost of a taxi? She had the money Yugi left her, so she could easily afford it. She had planned to make him take the money back, but the idea of a warm, comfortable taxi...

The taxi won.

::::::::::::

Yugi looked at his watch again. It was one minute past seven. Since Anzu was not waiting in reception or the lounge area, he looked in the bar. His heart was breaking. A lump made it's way into his throat, threatening to choke him. After his ultimatum this morning, he was beginning to think he really had upset her so much that she had decided not to come. Perhaps his phone was charged enough that he could go back up to to his suite and check to see if she had messaged or called.

Feeling rejected, he turned around and trudged back towards the elevators. He no longer had any appetite for dinner.

"Ah! Mister Muto?" The receptionist intercepted him, having spotted him from the desk. "A young woman arrived about ten minutes ago. I tried ringing your room to tell you she was here, but you must have already been on your way down. She went to the ladies powder room and said to let you know she's here."

Yugi's face lit up, and he almost let out a massive celebratory whoop. Anzu had not bailed on him after all!

Thanking the receptionist, he bowed, and waited for Anzu to return.

He did not have to wait long. Grinning, he held up a hand in greeting.

With a nervous wave, she came over. "Hi, Yugi! Sorry I'm late. I fell asleep and ended up having to rush," she flushed a cute shade of pink. "Am I late? I must be late." She started fumbling in her purse for her phone, to check the time.

"Hey! It's okay. You're here. That's all that matters." Knowing he was grinning like an idiot, he looked her up and down. "You look really nice," he said appreciatively. "I've never seen you wear a skirt suit before. It makes you look super important."

"Thank you," she said coyly. "You scrub up pretty well too, Yugi." She nudged him playfully, making him blush. She giggled, "You would think we would have grown out of getting embarrassed by now, wouldn't you?"

He shot her a cheeky grin. "Who said I'm embarrassed?"

She rolled her eyes.

Offering her his arm, he took her into the lounge, where they found a small round table, with two high backed leather chairs situated at a nice angle to one another, so that it would be cosy, without seeming too intimate, near the inglenook fireplace.

They sat down in the comfortable leather chairs.

"This is nice," she said, looking around the room. "The fireplace reminds me of one of an English stately home."

"It's not unlike Kaiba's mansion," he added.

After a second or two of awkward silence, Yugi spoke again, "I thought you weren't coming," he said, adding, "I said some pretty harsh things this morning. I'm sorry."

Anzu meanwhile, was distracting herself by fiddling with with the signet ring her parents gave her for her twentieth birthday. "Don't apologise Yugi. You just said a few home truths that I needed to hear. I was upset at the time, but I'm fine now." Was she really fine?

"Does that mean you've made up your mind?" He asked.

There it was –the question she had been dreading. Still unable to give him a definitive answer, she was forced to look away from his gaze. "I honestly don't know what I'm going to do..." She mumbled, concentrating on the flickering flames, dancing in the fireplace. It was only then that she realised it was a gas fire, not a real log fire.

Gathering herself, she looked away from the flames and back at his face. He looked confused, and a little worried. She needed to be honest with him. "I want us to be together, Yugi. But I'm not sure if I'm ready to go home and settle down just yet.. My dreams, they..." she trailed off. "I'm sorry I can't be more.. what's the word?"

He shrugged. "I don't know. You tell me?" He sounded a bit exasperated, and she felt herself shrinking away. But she had to get her feelings through to him somehow.

"I'm not in a good place right now, Yugi, and I don't know if I can be the girl you used to know and love –I'm too broken." She looked like she wanted to flee, so he reached out and took her hand.

"Hey! It's alright. Don't get upset. I want us both to enjoy the evening."

But he had a slightly sad, defeated smile on his face, and Anzu knew it was anything but alright.

"I'm sorry Yugi. I'm making a pigs ear of explaining myself." She pulled her hand away and started playing with her ring again. "I just feel so conflicted."

He smiled, but it was a sad, almost defeated smile. But he still spoke with clarity. "Well. I'm not sure I fully understand what's going on in your head right now. But if you need more time to decide, take your time. I only have one more full day before I fly home." There was an element of sarcasm in his voice, which she ignored.

After a moment or two, he spoke again, this time with less sarcasm and more empathy, "If you want, I can change my flight so that I can stay for a few more days. Maybe if we spend more time getting to know each other again, it will help you decide."

"Maybe. It's up to you," she shrugged, non committal evident in her voice.

"No. It's up to you," he said firmly. She pouted at him.

"I'm being difficult, aren't I?" When he nodded, agreeing that she was, she slapped his knee gently.

"It certainly seems that way from where I'm sitting, he replied. "So, here's my final offer: I'm willing to back-off, for now, providing you promise to smile, relax, enjoy the evening and let me spoil you. What do you say?" He was pretty sure, that by the time the night was out, he will have convinced her to go back to Japan with him anyway.

His suggestion sounded reasonable. It would be nice to put her anxieties and concerns aside for a while, and just enjoy being together again –it might even be like old times. "Okay!" She agreed. No talk of me going back to Japan for the rest of the evening, and I will be happy." The smile on her face was one of relief. The tension seemed to drain away from her, and for the first time since the terrible moment he confronted her in the club, she felt relaxed in his company.

Upon seeing the nice smile on her face, he beamed happily. "I'll tell the restaurant were here. Would you like a drink?"

"Yes. Thank you." While Yugi went to the bar to speak to the Maitre' d', Anzu gazed around the room, taking in the oak panelled walls and rich dark blue carpet. It was very cosy in here. All that was missing was a Blue Eyes White Dragon statue, then it would be like the Kaiba mansion.

Yugi returned and sat back down. "A waiter will come and take our drinks order in a minute," he told her, "They said we can go through to the restaurant whenever we like. No hurry."

"I like it here," she said, "It's cosy and we can talk without people listening."

He chuckled, "I don't think anyone here understands Japanese anyway."

The waiter came over and handed them each a restaurant menu for them to peruse, and then he took their drinks order: Yugi asked for a Scotch Malt Whiskey, with plenty of ice, while Anzu ordered a Gin and Tonic, with ice and a slice of lemon.

After the waiter left, Anzu raised an amused eyebrow at Yugi. "I never imagined you drinking whiskey, Yugi!"

"Neither did I," he huffed lightly. "You can blame Kaiba for introducing me. He is a connoisseur of fine malts."

An image of Kaiba and Yugi sitting in Kaiba's drawing room sprang to Anzu's mind; the two men nursing lead crystal glasses full of the finest malt whiskey, as they discussed projected sales targets for Yugi's game.

She gave a mildly amused snort, as she shook away the bizarre image –like that would ever happen! But they must be at least be getting on well enough if they were able to cooperate on producing Yugi's ambitious game together –a game which would not have been easy to make without the help of Kaiba's advanced technology.

Eager to see what sort of food they served, she picked up her restaurant menu. Yugi followed suit. So far, Yugi had only eaten off the all inclusive menu for guests who were staying at the hotel. He was looking forward to trying the wider menu. It was fairly expensive, so must be good.

Anzu's eyes went wide with horror. It was hideously expensive! Way out of her price range. "Yugi! I can't afford these prices!" Her voice going up an octave. He looked up at her from his own menu.

"You don't have to," he smiled reassuringly. "I'm paying. And don't look at the prices, just order what you would like."

"Yugi!" She whined. "I don't deserve spoiling like this. I can't..." She trailed off. She did not wish to appear ungrateful. Yugi was too good for her. Maybe it would be best if she left.

But before she could make her excuses and leave, he reached over and took her hand, giving it a comforting squeeze. He had no idea how close she was to running away right now.

"You deserve spoiling way more," he said, disarming her with his soothing voice. If that alone was not enough to totally defeat her, he was also seducing her with his eyes. They way they sparkled in the warm glow from the fireplace, made them resemble freshly cut Amethysts, that were flickering with hints of Amber and Gold. She could drown in those eyes all night.

She let out a little whine, that almost ended up sounding like an appreciative sigh of contentment. Oh... there should be a law against those seductive eyes. Compose yourself Anzu..

She cleared her throat, and spoke very deliberately, "At least let me pay something towards it?"

He shook his head resolutely. "Absolutely, no way. No matter how things turn out between us tonight, this is still my treat."

Anzu pouted. Clever Yugi. No wonder he was a game master. He was pulling out all the stops; charming and attentive, wooing her with an expensive meal, skilfully manipulating the odds in his favour.

It was working too. If it continued like this, she would be agreeing to everything he asked of her, and more. Why did she give in so easily when it came to gorgeous, charming, romantic men?

The arrival of the waiter with their drinks, broke Yugi's eye contact with her, giving her a moment to breath and get her feelings back under control.

Once he had left, Anzu picked up her Gin and Tonic, relaxed back into her arm chair and took a sip.

Yugi sat, angled in his chair, watched her relaxing. It made him happy to see her looking contented. The war weary look he had seen in her last night and this morning, and to some extent this evening, was going away, and some of her sparkle was returning.

As he sipped on his whiskey, savouring the warmth as it went down, he vowed to do everything in his power to make sure her sparkle never faded again.

::::::::::::

The waitress showed them to a different table to the one Yugi had sat at the first night he was here. This table was more private, and had a view out onto the garden at the rear of the hotel. It was too cold to sit out at this time of year, but the garden was lit up at night, causing the shrubs and sculptures to cast interesting shadows.

"This is perfect," Anzu observed, smoothing her hand over the crisp white table linen – there was not a single crease; it almost seemed a shame to disturb the fancily folded napkins and silver cutlery.

Tony had taken her to some fancy places when they first dated, but it had been several months since she had been anywhere this nice.

"I'm pleased you like it," Yugi beamed, picking up the wine list. "Do you like drinking wine?"

"I do," she nodded. "I think I prefer white though."

"Anything in particular?" He showed her the wine list. "I was thinking Chardonnay, but I don't mind. You choose."

"Chardonnay is probably my choice too," she agreed.

He ordered a bottle of the Californian Chardonnay.

"Have you decided what you're having to eat yet, Yugi? I still can't decide. Everything looks so nice."

"It does," he agreed. "Tough choice, but I'm going for the pork loin with creamed potatoes – sounds interesting."

"Very nice. Well, I think I will have the monkfish wrapped in Parma ham."

"Are you having a starter?" He asked, intrigued by the salmon mouse, he added, "Do you know what mousse is? I always thought it was a rodent!" His eyebrows knotted together in concern, but he was also smirking and Anzu was not sure if he was joking or confused by the spelling. She had to press the back of her hand to her mouth to stop herself letting out a loud shriek of laughter.

"Mousse; it's like salmon with cream cheese and herbs –and mouse only has one S, silly," she giggled. He winked at her, cheekily.

"Maybe I'll have the soup then. What about you?"

"I'm not having a starter," she replied. "I learnt a long time ago that American sized portions are way too big for me." She had a point. He had struggled to eat all of his burger yesterday, it was that big!

"You're right. No starter then. Just the main."

"And possibly a desert," she grinned. She always loved desert.

The waiter returned with their wine and asked if one of them would like to taste it first. Anzu gestured to Yugi. He took a sip and nodded. It was nice.

Anzu thought it ought to be at that price!

The waitress took their food order, and Yugi started munching on his bread roll.

"Are you not eating yours?" He asked, noting that Anzu was not touching her roll.

"Not yet. I'm waiting to see how big the meals are first." Good point, he thought, placing his half eaten roll back on the side plate.

A few moments later, the waitress brought them each a fresh green salad, with croutons, crispy bacon, walnuts, and crumbled feta. They were both surprised, but Yugi more so.

"We didn't order a salad?" Yugi queried, wondering if the waitress was bringing it to the wrong table.

"The salad is complimentary," she explained.

"See what I mean about the food, Yugi?" Anzu said, after the waitress had gone. "Now you know why I said not to order a starter."

Salads devoured, their main courses arrived. It was fine dining, so the plates were not overloaded, but it was very tasty and Yugi found the pork melted in his mouth.

"How's your monkfish?" He asked.

Unable to speak with her mouth full of food, she nodded, and hummed her satisfaction.

They both demolished their plates and even had room for a desert: Yugi ordered a chocolate delice, which came with Irish coffee ice cream, while Anzu ordered strawberry bavarois.

She could not resist when Yugi gave her a cheeky grin and reached across the table with his spoon, and popped a some of his desert into her mouth. Giggling, she returned the favour with the delicious, creamy strawberry.

They finished the evening with coffee, which they decided to take at their table, since the lounge was now quite packed.

"This feels like old times, doesn't it?" Anzu smiled, her smile reaching all the way up to her eyes. "Although," she hastened to add, "it's definitely a step up from our old days at Burger World."

"It is," he agreed, not letting on, that, as long as she was with him, he would be just as happy with Burger World.

Anzu found herself wishing that the evening would never end, but she started work at eight tomorrow morning. If she went home now, she could get to bed at a reasonable time, stay in bed until seven thirty in the morning, and still be on time. But if she slept here, with Yugi, she would need to be up at seven to ensure she could make it to work by eight.

But, he had not suggested she stay, yet. And he had no idea that she had brought an overnight bag with her, because she had left it in the safe drop area behind reception.

Should she tell him she had an overnight bag with her?

Who would make the first move?

If anyone is not sure what Irish Coffee is, it's coffee with Irish Whiskey. So the ice cream Yugi had, basically, had coffee and Irish Whiskey added.

Chocolate Delice is basically a posh chocolate mousse. Strawberry bavarois is a thin layer of sponge, with a strawberry mousse.