Disclaimer: I don't own Yugioh
A/N: Yes, I know, I know another new story posted. With the Covid-19 on going and having nothing else really do to other than work and fiddle around on my laptop I've found myself tinkering with this story quite a bit. So, I decided to start posting it. As always, please leave a review I would love to get some feedback on this one. Its my first attempt at writing a divorce story, so if I get it wrong please tell me. This story will deal with a lot of character perspective. If you think one character is getting bashed or getting the short end of the stick, I just ask that you bare with me. Also, pay attention to whose perspective that particular section is focusing upon. I won't outright label the point of views like I do in Orphans but you will be able to tell whose the focus of the section. The narration or inner thoughts are that characters. So, their opinion is their own. And there are a lot of intense emotions in this story.
Warnings: Well, for starters I'm going to warn for swearing. If that bothers you then this story is most certainly not the one for you. All of the characters in this story are adults. Mid to late 20s. There are some serious problems and there is also some real anger expressed. Many characters will swear. Infidelity, cheating will be mentioned a lot in this story and it does play a very large role on the plot as a whole. I again apologize if this makes you uncomfortable. Homosexual relationships...I don't know if that really even should count as something that needs to be warned about, but yeah...its in this story. There are also several pairings both past, present and future and I'm not saying that those pairings won't change over the course of the story. Medical terminology will also be discussed. There is a character who winds up hospitalized with some serious injuries at the beginning of the story. I will do my best to not gloss over what that character is going through. I will try to keep the medical jargon to a minimum but it will appear. Sex will also be discussed and perhaps later in the story you might even see lemon, don't know if they will appear quite yet but they might. Again, all characters in this story are well over the age of consent. Alcohol will also be mentioned, primarily in the prologue. So, yeah...you've been warned.
Atemu sighed as he sat in the living room of Seto Kaiba's mansion. It was Halloween and Kaiba was throwing a massive Halloween party and the entire gang had been invited. Well, the entire gang minus Yami.
Atemu's gaze drifted over to where Yugi Motou was laughing with Joey and Ryou in the corner, a glass of punch in his hand. Yugi was dressed as an angel, whereas Joey had gone more high school and dressed up as Flamed Swordsman (or better yet a knight with his outfit dyed blue and his sword painted red, but for a do it yourself costume Joey didn't do too bad). Ryou had decided to dress up as a vampire and Atemu had to admit it was a decent, albeit creepy costume.
Atemu sighed once more before he took another sip of his glass of wine. He'd come to this damn party because his cousin Seto would have dragged him over if he hadn't come willingly. He was wearing a pharaoh costume and had done nothing but sit on the couch ever since he had arrived. To be perfectly honest he felt really awkward here.
Yami had been his best friend since they were in middle school. Yami and his family had moved to Domino City the summer before the beginning of seventh grade and they had hardly gotten all their boxes unpacked before Atemu had gone over and asked if Yami wanted to join him and some friends for a game of kickball down at the park. Yami had agreed and the two had been practically inseparable ever since.
Of course that all changed when Yami met Yugi. Yugi Motou best friends with Joey Wheeler and Ryou Bakura not to mention several others had begun dating Yami during their senior year in high school. Atemu had witnessed Yami falling more and more in love with Yugi as time went by and Yugi of course was the kind of magnetic personality that just brought people together. Their group swelled to include Joey, Ryou, Akefia, Malik, Marik, Tristan, Tea, Mai, Vivian, Rebecca, Serenity as well as Seto and Mokuba.
Yami and Yugi had dated for two years before Yami actually asked Yugi to marry him. Atemu still remembered the day Yami had shown up at his apartment at 8 in the morning on a Saturday demanding that Atemu get dressed and come with him. Yami had dragged Atemu to every jewelry store in the entire city looking for the perfect engagement ring to give to Yugi. And he needed Atemu's opinion because it had to be PERFECT.
To be honest, when it came to Yugi, Yami thought that EVERYTHING had to be perfect. And Yami was never beyond putting in the time or the effort to make sure that everything was perfect. Something that looking back Atemu didn't think that Yugi ever truly appreciated.
The two got married the summer after their senior year in college. It had taken Yami a long time to save up the money needed to pay for Yugi's dream wedding. Yugi had insisted on having a destination wedding not to mention blew through his entire savings account to pay for Yugi to have a wedding on a freaking cruise ship inviting all his friends and family plus a honeymoon getaway with of course all of his friends there to join in. The whole thing cost Yami almost fifty grand with Yugi not putting up a single penny, just a list of demands.
Yami made sure that every last detail of their wedding was exactly how Yugi had described what he had always dreamed about. Atemu had asked Yami about why he was letting himself get talked into this since he knew that Yami always got sea sick and in general hated boats and that Yami had always wanted a small, simple wedding at the local church. His answer had bothered Atemu for awhile. Yami had said 'Hopefully you only get married once. There is no reason I can't make sure this wedding is everything Yugi has ever dreamed of.'
So, they got married on the cruise ship and they appeared to be happy for a couple of years. And Atemu couldn't have been happier for them. And then, with absolutely no warning everyone had gotten summoned to Kaiba's house. Everyone except Yami.
Yugi had stood up in front of the entire group, with tears in his eyes, telling everyone how terrible Yami was and that they were getting a divorce. Said that Yami worked too much. He thought Yami was having an affair and he just couldn't deal with him anymore. Yami after graduating college had gone into a start up company with a college buddy of his named Mahad. It was some kind of technology company, Atemu couldn't begin to describe the details of but he did know that Yami was the co-owner and that business had been booming last he checked.
What really made Atemu sick to his stomach was the fact that it was like a switch had been flipped and Yami was suddenly in the eyes of all their friends the most evil man who had ever walked the face of the earth. Suddenly Ryou, Malik, Marik, Tea and Tristan couldn't come up with enough terrible things to say about Yami. All the years that they had been friends didn't matter, suddenly the group had apparently decided that, based solely on Yugi's word, Yami was the villain of the piece and everyone hated him.
Yami hadn't contested the divorce and it went pretty smoothly. Yugi got the house, their dog, the car, and a huge monthly alimony check every month. Yami got nothing. He never said a word against Yugi. In fact, within days of Yugi's big announcement at Kaiba's house Yami just up and left. No note, no forwarding address, nothing. He was just gone.
That was five months ago and perhaps it was the alcohol but Atemu really missed his best friend. He always was curious what Yami's side of the story was. Hell, Atemu wondered if Yami was even alright? Maybe I should just get out of here. Atemu thought to himself as he rose to his feet, his eyes briefly locked with those of his cousin, who had chosen to dress up as a dragon.
It didn't take Kaiba long to excuse himself from his guest and make his way over to Atemu.
"Where do you think your going? The party is still going for at least another couple of hours." Kaiba said briskly.
Atemu shrugged, "I just got to get out of here. I didn't want to come in the first place but I know you would have dragged me here if I hadn't." Atemu said.
"Look, you know that if I had Yami's address I would have invited him as well. No matter what the rest of the dweebs say. Yami was a great guy but I also know that you and I are the minority that think that." Kaiba said.
Atemu snorted, "How can all of them just, not care, that Yami's gone? How can all of them act like Yami never mattered? They all act like Yami was some abusive alcoholic monster and he wasn't. He would never have hurt Yugi." Atemu growled.
Kaiba quirked a brow, "And if your actually voicing thoughts like that out loud then maybe it might be for the best if you head home. You clearly have had too much to drink and the last thing I want to risk is you and Joey getting into it over Yami." Kaiba said.
Atemu snorted, "Trust me, if me and Wheeler got into it he'd deserve everything I did to him." Atemu muttered before he once more headed towards the door.
Kaiba snorted, "Good night Atemu. I'll have Isono give you a ride home." Kaiba replied just as the man in question appeared beside Kaiba, keys in hand. Atemu just nodded once more to Kaiba before following Isono out the door and climbed into the back seat of one of Kaiba's limos, his head leaning back against the leather seat.
The drive back to Atemu's house was a short one. Atemu had moved back into his parents house so he was able to take care of his father, Aknamkanon. Aknamkanon had suffered a stroke two months ago and now needed some additional help around the house. Help that Atemu was more than willing to offer.
Atemu frowned when he saw a police car pull into the drive way of his neighbors house, the house that Yami and his family had lived in,and Yami's parents still did. He saw a pair of officers climb out of the car and walk up to the front door.
Atemu didn't know by but something spurred him to make his way across the yard and over to the police. "Can I help you with something officers?" Atemu asked.
The officers turned to face Atemu, "We are looking for the next of kin of Yami Dark. Would you happen to know where we could find them?" The officer asked.
Atemu felt like his blood had turned to ice as he starred at the officers for a moment, "Yami was my best friend and neighbor growing up. His parents are out of the country right now celebrating their anniversary. They'll be back in two weeks, is there something I can help you with? Is Yami okay?" Atemu asked.
The officers seemed to share a look, "There's been an accident." An officer finally said.
Atemu frowned, "An accident? What happened?" Atemu practically shouted.
"Yami Dark's car was T-boned by a drunk driver who ran a stop sign. He was airlifted to Domino hospital. We were looking to notify his next of kin. Right now he is listed as being in critical condition and there is a chance he may not survive the night." The officer said.
Atemu swallowed thickly. "I-i-i'll contact his parents." Atemu said, "And would it be alright if I went to the hospital?" Atemu asked. Personally, Atemu didn't care what they said he was going to the hospital as soon as they left regardless. He owed Yami that much.
The officer nodded, "That would be fine." The officer said.
Atemu didn't waste any more time he turned and sprinted back over to the driveway. Isono had not left yet, waiting to see what was going on with the police before departing. Atemu wrenched open the back door and climbed back into the limo. "Isono, I need to get to Domino Hospital. Immediately." Atemu said, his tone grave.
Isono did not ask any questions before he pulled out of the driveway and back onto the road. To be perfectly honest Atemu didn't care how ridiculous he looked still dressed in his Halloween costume. All that mattered was getting to the hospital.
Atemu pulled out his cell phone with a shaking hand and called Kaiba. Kaiba picked up on the second ring, "Kaiba." He greeted briskly.
Atemu swallowed once more, "I'm having Isono drive me to Domino Hospital. Yami was airlifted there a short while ago. According to the police he was involved in a really bad car accident. The police said he was listed as being in critical condition and may not make it through the night. I thought you would like to know." Atemu said.
"Well fuck." Kaiba replied through the phone. "I'll be there as soon as I can get all these damn people out of my house." Kaiba replied before he hung up.
Atemu sat back against the seat. Just hoping and praying that his best friend was okay.
XXXXX
Yami slowly blinked open his eyes before quickly closing them once again to shield against the intense bright light that was shining. God where am I? And what happened? Yami wondered considering there wasn't a single part of his body that did not hurt.
"Yami? Yami can you hear me? Please open your eyes again!" A voice Yami vaguely recognized pleaded from the bed beside him. He also felt a slight pressure on his hand, like someone was squeezing it.
Yami just groaned. The person squeezed his hand once more before shouted, "NURSE! I think he's waking up." The shout did nothing to help the pain radiating through Yami's skull. There was a sound of rapid footsteps as Yami presumed a nurse came bustling into the room. Yami could now register the steady 'beep beep beep' of hospital equipment which suggested he was in the hospital. But how did I even get here? And what happened to me? Yami thought as his mind raced trying to remember what had even happened.
He had been at work. He remembered that. There was a presentation he had been working on for the last two months and he was putting on the finishing touches before the board meeting next week. Mahad had suggested that Yami go home, arguing that he had been working way too much these past few months.
Yami had snorted and muttered, "Not like I have anything better to do at home than work."
Mahad had playfully slung his arms around Yami's shoulders and pleaded with him to take a break, "Look Yami, you're an amazing co-worker. We couldn't have made this company what it is without you and your brilliant mind. But, that brilliance will be lost if you don't take a break every now and then. I don't want to come into work one day and see that you collapsed from a heart attack in the middle of the night. So, please for the love of god go home Yami."
Yami chuckled but had reluctantly consented to head home for the night. Not that it was much of a home. Yami had rented a simple one bedroom apartment about fifteen minutes from company headquarters in Gin City. His apartment was very sparsely decorated. There was a bed. A couch. And a couple of dishes and an empty refrigerator. Not exactly something to rush home to.
But Yami packed up his laptop and all his notes he had been working on so he could just work from home instead. It would at least give him something to do. And climbing into his car to head home was the last thing that he could even remember. Did I get into a car accident or something? Yami wondered. Logically given what he did remember and his realization that he's in the hospital it was the only thing that made any sense. Sadly, to figure it out he was going to have to open his eyes and ask.
Yami slowly blinking his eyes back open to see a nurse fiddling with the hospital equipment beside his bed as well as the white walls and equipment which definitely proved he was correct with his assumption he was in the hospital. "What happened?" Yami groaned, his voice came out gravely like he hadn't spoken in days.
The nurse briefly stopped fussing with the machinery to glance down at Yami, giving him a kind smile. "You were in a car accident dearie. A real nasty one. You were air lifted here after the fire department cut you out of your car. A doctor will be in shortly to go over your injuries and plans for future treatment." The nurse said.
"Okay." Yami said, there honestly wasn't anything else he could say in response.
Once the nurse had finished fiddling with the equipment she walked out of the room leaving Yami alone once again. Or so he had assumed, until someone cleared their throat. Yami turned his head slowly to lock gazes with a very peculiarly dressed Atemu Sennen. "Nice outfit." Yami said with a small smile.
Atemu chuckled before he took another seat beside Yami's bed. "Yes, I know I haven't been home to change since I heard you were being airlifted here. I had just gotten home from a Halloween party when I saw the police at your parents house and they told me about the accident." Atemu replied.
"Oh. So I'm in Domino?" Yami asked slowly.
Atemu nodded, "Yes. Domino General." Atemu replied.
Yami just sighed, "I honestly never thought that I would be back here." Yami muttered.
Atemu bit his lip. Yami glanced up at what had been one of the best friends he had ever had. Things should not feel nearly as awkward as they did. Atemu looked nervous, both nervous and absolutely exhausted.
"What day is it?" Yami asked.
"November the 3rd." Atemu replied.
Yami frowned, "So, I've been unconscious for three days then?" Yami asked.
Atemu nodded, "Yes, you have. You've also had as far as I know four different surgeries. The doctors would only tell me so much. I didn't know that you had me listed as a healthcare proxy. Me and Yugi. You should probably take Yugi's name off that list." Atemu said.
Yami snorted, "Yeah, that's one of the many things I apparently need to update. My will is another. Need to change it so it no longer says Yugi gets everything." Yami replied bitterly. The whole situation left Yami feeling really bitter even though the divorce had happened months ago. It didn't change the fact that it really hurt. Of course, that would have been the ultimate irony if he had died in a car accident and his damn ex-husband ended up inheriting Yami's entire estate. A sizable sum of money built from the fact that Yami and Mahad's business was actually quite successful. He may not be a multi-billionaire, no not quite. But he was a multi-millionaire. Worth probably over 75 million dollars after the most recent deal was signed last month.
"So, Yami...how have you been?" Atemu asked.
Yami shrugged, which turned into a wince as the motion caused pain to shoot through his body. "Busy. Working." Yami replied, "How has everyone else been?" Yami asked, his voice clipped and his tone coming off as pretty cold. He couldn't help it, the fact that all of his friends turned on him at the drop of a hat hurt, it hurt a lot. But the rules of awkward small talk almost required that he ask that question, although to be frank Yami didn't care how any of the others were. They could all go to hell as far as he cared.
Atemu shrugged, "They're fine I guess. I don't hang out with them too much anymore. They seemed fine when I saw them at the Halloween party. Smiling and laughing, all having a grand ole time." Atemu muttered darkly.
For a moment things fell silent once again as Yami's gaze drifted back over to his best friend. Or is he even still my friend? Did he turn on me just as readily as everyone else? If he did then why the hell is he here now? Yami wondered before his eyes narrowed, "If you want to ask me, then ask me." Yami said sharply.
Atemu shrugged, "You don't have to tell me anything you don't want to Yami, although I am curious. What is your perspective on why you and Yugi got a divorce? The only side I ever heard was Yugi's and to be frank, that didn't sound like you. Not to me at least. You aren't the type to have an affair. You loved Yugi." Atemu said.
Yami snorted, "Yeah. Loved. Past tense. But no, I didn't have an affair, something Yugi knows damn well. But if he shouted it loud enough everyone would believe him and to tell you the truth Atemu I got tired of fighting with him over stupid shit. I had to work late, a lot. It happens. I'm sure Kaiba can understand, I am the co-owner of a company with the other president who just came back after a leave of absence. His wife just gave birth and the pregnancy was a rough one, so he took time off to be with her. Which meant when Yugi served me with the divorce papers I was the only one running the company. It wasn't worth the fight. Yugi could have all the meaningless crap. I didn't need it or him." Yami muttered.
Atemu frowned, "You sound angry." Atemu said.
Yami couldn't help it, he laughed. It was a dark laugh that truly lacked any genuine hint of amusement. "You better fucking believe I'm angry. I'm furious. I'm hurt and I was betrayed in the worst possible way by people who were supposed to be my friends." Yami growled.
"What do you mean?" Atemu asked slowly.
"Wheeler for one called my office to inform me that if I ever went near Yugi again, and I quote 'I'll rip your fucking balls off and shove them down your throat you cheating scumbag. Yugi deserved so much better and a bastard like you.' End quote." Yami growled, "And I'm sure you saw the posts Tristan and Tea left on twitter bashing me. Calling me a man whore and a whole bunch of other disgusting names. And that's just the tip of the iceberg, I'm sure." Yami said.
The room fell quiet as Yami caught his breath after releasing some of his pent up frustrations that had been building over the past several months. "Which then leads me to the question, what the hell are you doing here Atemu? Remember, I'm persona non grata."
Atemu sighed, "Look Yami, I never really believed what Yugi said about you. But, you were gone before I even had the chance to try and ask you what happened." Atemu said.
Yami snorted, "Right, and you don't own a fucking cell phone Atemu. Don't give me that line of crap." Yami replied.
Atemu frowned, "Look, Yami you say we all turned our backs on you, and to some degree you may have a point. Yugi, Joey, Tristan, Tea, Ryou, Malik, Marik all of them sure as hell did. But I didn't. I actually wanted to hear your side of the story. A side you never offered up. Cellphone calls can go both ways Yami. You could have contacted me just as easily as I could have called you." Atemu snapped back.
"And you never thought to make a trip over to Gin City? You may not have known where I lived anymore but it doesn't take a genius to figure out where I work. It was a forty minute drive from here to Gin City. You easily could have come and seen me, but you never made the attempt." Yami growled.
Atemu rose to his feet his hands clenched tightly at his sides, "You know what, I had planned to go to Gin City to look for you at the end of August. I wanted to try and surprise you for your birthday. You want to know why I didn't? Because my father had a FUCKING STROKE and I spent your birthday in the hospital with him. So I'm sorry I haven't yet had an opportunity to reschedule my trip to try and track you down." Atemu snapped back. "And while we're at it I should probably apologize for spending every minute since I found out you were in the hospital parked in one of these damn uncomfortable chairs since Halloween. Kaiba was here with me until you got out of surgery for the first time, but he sadly had to go to work. I've stayed so that there was someone with you here. But, you know what fuck it! You've already made up your mind about me Yami, so I guess it might be for the best if I just go. Sorry my presence was such a fucking bother." Atemu snapped before he rose to his feet to leave the room.
"Atemu wait." Yami called out.
Atemu paused just inside the doorway, "What?" Atemu growled.
"I'm sorry. You're right, I have no right to assume that you agreed with the others. I didn't hear anything from you after the divorce. It was wrong of me paint you with the same brush as everyone else. And, for what its worth, I'm sorry to hear about your dad. Is he alright?" Yami asked.
Atemu sighed, "He's, well he's not dead. But no I don't think by any stretch of the word would my father say that he's alright. The stroke fucked him up pretty good. I moved back into the house with him and I've been taking care of him. Although, thank god for my cousin because Seto has hired a home health aide to take care of him while I've been here in the hospital with you." Atemu replied.
The pair were interrupted by a light knock on the door before Yami's doctor strode into the room. "Ah, Mr. Dark, its good to see that you're awake. How are you feeling?" Yami's doctor asked.
Yami sighed, "Well, to be honest I'm in a lot of pain and really confused."
The doctor nodded, "Well, that is to be expected. You've been through a very traumatic event. You have a pretty severe concussion which we are also going to be monitoring now that you are awake for any signs of possible brain damage resulting from the crash. Three broken ribs, one of which punctured your lung. You also fractured your clavicle and shattered your left shoulder. We also had to perform stabilizing surgery on your spinal cord. You suffered pretty significant damage to your C6 and C7 vertebrae. I'm sure you've noticed that you are wearing a back brace, that will be necessary for a while I'm afraid and we will continue to monitor your condition and additional surgeries might be required with your spine. Fortunately we were able to relieve enough of the inflammation to hopefully prevent paralysis but we are not completely out of the woods where your spine is concerned. Your hip was also fractured and we were forced to insert surgical pins to repair the worst of the damage. Regardless you are looking at long term disability and a very long road to recovery." The doctor said briskly.
"So, what happens now?" Yami asked.
The doctor sighed, "For right now you will remain here in the hospital for probably the next couple of weeks while we monitor your condition. Following your release from the hospital you will require long term in home assistance as well as extensive physical therapy treatment. We will go over this with you in greater detail when it comes time for your release." The doctor said.
For a moment Yami was quiet as he attempted to take in the news the doctor had delivered. It was quite a substantial blow. The doctor was quiet for a moment before he turned and headed for the door, "If you think of any other questions Mr. Dark, just have your friend page the nurse and she'll be able to get in touch with me. I'm glad to see that you are awake." The doctor said before he strode out the door.
Yami continued to just stare at his lap as the weight of what had happened to him really began to hit home. The doctor may not have outright said it but it truly sounded like Yami was lucky to have survived the accident. An accident he was probably lucky he didn't yet remember. If I'm in this bad of shape then I hate to ask how the other driver is. Yami thought to himself.
Yami was drawn from his musings by the feeling of Atemu gently resting his hand on Yami's right shoulder. It seems that the bulk of the damage Yami suffered was focused on the left side of his body. "I'm here for you Yami. I'll be here as long as you need me to. I'll help you through this, I promise." Atemu whispered softly.
Yami could not help but smile at Atemu's promise. After the last several months it was very nice to see that he hadn't truly lost all of his friends over his and Yugi's divorce.
"You don't have to do that Atemu, really. You have your hands full with your father." Yami replied.
Atemu sighed as well, "I did mention that Seto hired a home health aide for my dad. And not to make you feel worse about your situation but you are in considerably worse shape than he is. He just needs a little bit of help here and there. You, however, are going to need a lot of help. Help I am more than willing to offer." Atemu gave Yami a wry smile, "Apparently my degree in physical therapy might come in handy after all."Atemu replied.
Yami couldn't help it, he laughed, "Right, because I end up severely injured and you, of course, have to seize the opportunity to show off. Ass." Yami teased. And it felt so go to be able to joke with Atemu again. Don't get him wrong, Mahad was great. He was a great friend and a brilliant coworker but he wasn't Atemu. He wasn't one of those friends that you went over to their house to hang out with or just called to chat.
Atemu smirked, "Of course. Its not often that I have the opportunity to show off my skills." Atemu replied.
Yami snorted. He knew that no doubt the gravity of his situation would fully hit him later but right now it hadn't. Probably in denial. No doubt once he was out of this bed and the full realization of what he could or could not still do was proven then he would probably have a breakdown. But, for right now Yami was able to lie to himself and say that he was fine, if not in a lot of pain.
"You know Atemu, it probably wouldn't be a terrible idea if you went home and changed into some real clothes. Unless of course you have taken a liking to wearing a dress since I've been gone." Yami couldn't help but tease.
Atemu had the decency to blush, "It's not a dress. Its a tunic." Atemu mumbled, his hand awkwardly tugging down on the bottom of the tunic which came to rest just above Atemu's knees. Atemu then cleared his throat and glanced up at Yami, "But I can see your point. I'll run home quickly and grab a shower and change into some real clothes. Then I'll be back. I promise Yami. I'm not going to leave you alone in this hospital." Atemu said.
Yami smirked, "Good because not to be rude or anything you were beginning to smell." Yami teased.
Atemu rolled his eyes, "Oh yes, laugh it up. You aren't smelling like roses either Yami." Atemu replied.
Yami chuckled, "Seriously, go Ate. I'll be fine on my own for a couple of hours while you shower and get something to eat. Not like I'm going to run away on you." Yami said.
Atemu playfully narrowed his eyes at Yami, "You had better not." Atemu replied before he finally took Yami's advice and headed home, leaving Yami alone with his thoughts.