Seto and Ryou were playing chess. Ryou barely managed to take any of Seto's pieces and even then those were only pawns.
Seto reached his hand over to a black pawn that was on the third row of Ryou's side of the board.
"I use one of my pawns," He moved it diagonally, knocking over one of Ryou's pawns. "to take one of yours."
In that instant, Ryou was reminded of an old memory that in of itself wasn't unpleasant. The memory invoked deep emotion within the boy.
Seto looked up at his boyfriend, surprised and concerned to see an expression of profound pain flash on Ryou's face before being replaced by a smile, the feeling remaining in his eyes. He retracted his hand, muscle memory making him grab the white pawn as he did so.
Before Seto could speak, Ryou stood up. "I'm sorry, but I cannot finish the game. It's really complicated and you're clearly very skilled so it's an unfair fight. Pardon me."
He walked out of the room. Only when he was past the door frame did he allow his smile to fade.
Seto didn't like what he had just witnessed. Not only did he not like the anguished look Ryou had expressed, but the fact that he felt that he had to lie about it felt even worse.
Seto stood up from his seat and dropped the wooden piece. Since the game now had a much lower priority, he pushed it aside and followed Ryou in the hallway. "Ryou…"
Ryou froze in his tracks.
"What's wrong?" He slowly walked over to Ryou.
"N-Nothing." His voice broke. "It's just something ridiculous; a trivial matter of a weak boy."
Seto placed a hand on Ryou's shoulder. From where he stood, we could see a trail of undisturbed tears on his face.
"I disagree. If it bothers you so badly, then it matters because it matters to you." He stepped in front of Ryou and held his face tenderly with his hand. "This is a place where you don't have to hide how you feel if you don't want to. We've established that already."
"I know, it's just...when I was younger, my parents taught Amane and me how to play chess. My mother went against Amane, and my father went against me. When you knocked over my pawn, it was the same place and in the same manner as when my father had taught me and…I just really miss him sometimes." Tears continued down his face.
"Ryou," Seto moved the hand on Ryou's face to the small of his back and the one on his shoulder to the back of his knees to position him so he would be in a seated position. He held Ryou close. "it's okay to miss someone, especially someone so close to you like your father."
"But...I'm supposed to be stronger than this. Most days, I go about living as normal as possible and I'm as fine as can be. But some days, it feels like the weight of the world is on my shoulders with the pressure of the spirit and from the deaths of my parents and sister."
Seto used the hand behind Ryou's knees to gently lift up his chin so he'd look at him. "What you forget is that I will always be here for you. When you feel like you have to carry the world, I'm here to carry it with you. When you feel chained with burden and responsibility, lend me one of your chains. I will support you, Ryou. All the way. After all," His expression softened. "It's one of the many reasons why I became your boyfriend."
More tears came down Ryou's face, but this time they were tears of overwhelming positive emotion; gratitude for Seto's support, comfort by his touch, love for him, and happiness for his presence.
Seto lowered his hand to reinforce the support for Ryou's back as his head rested on his chest. He kissed the top of his head.
After several minutes, Ryou went from crying to calm and relaxed breathing.
Ryou lifted his head a little, obviously getting sleepy. "How did I get so lucky to have you as my boyfriend?"
A few minutes more and Ryou falls asleep with a comforted expression.
Seto picks up and carries Ryou to his room. In Ryou's bedroom, he gently lowers himself onto the bed to not disturb him. After pulling up the blanket, Ryou curls up a little. Seto uses a gentle touch to move the hair from Ryou's face.
'The real question is,' Seto thought, 'how did I get so lucky to have you?'