"fan fiction . net" has been really, really strange lately. Like for every review I receive from my wonderful and talented readers I'm supposed to get an email but recently, like for the last two chapters, I wasn't getting any emails. Then like two days ago I check my email and there is like 40 something emails there and I'm like "YOWZA!!" (seriously) It was really weird. So some of you all's reviews I had to hunt down on the website and some I read on my email and some I read twice, I just hope I didn't miss any.

I hope the last chapter was at least a little realistic. Obviously it couldn't be perfect, as explained before, but I don't know if I went a little over board on the whole, "You're Atemu? You're Yami? CONFUSION!!!" thing.

And now the thrilling conclusion.

-(7)-

Chyaputa 7: Silence

-(7)-

The faint titter of birds coming in through Yugi's window woke him. Their sounds could not be called music; nothing was music that day. The teenager lay on bed, still fully clothed from the night before; he had been too exhausted when he got home to do anything but collapse into fitful sleep. He still felt exhausted, emotionally exhausted.

Slowly, barely moving, Yugi forced his eyelids to open. When his vision focused, Yugi found Atemu's face staring down upon him. Yugi was so shocked that he leaped from his bed, terrified. There seemed to be thousands of Atemus staring, pouting, and smirking down from every angle of the room. Yugi backed away, horrified, hands clutching his face. They were mocking him, their deep red eyes showing a face he could no longer see.

Yugi snapped; he couldn't take it anymore. He reached for the nearest poster on the wall and tore it down. He ripped it into pieces as he reached for the next one and tore that one down as well. Yugi had made it half way around the room before he noticed the sour tears streaming down his face.

"Why?" he mumbled, fingers fumbling as they tried to tear the posters into even smaller pieces. The largest poster above his bed was the last. Yugi jumped up onto his bed and grabbed a corner and dragged it down with him. There was a large rip across Atemu's perfect face. Yugi sobbed and pulled the rest of it down. He was now surrounded by pieces of Atemu; Yugi's eyes couldn't help but recognize stray pieces of hair or fragments the rock star's face that he had once admired.

Who cared about Atemu anymore? Who cared that he was amazing and gorgeous? Yami… but who was Yami? He didn't exist. His best friend, the one he had told his most precious secrets to, the one he had… was nothing. All because Yugi had wanted to see him!

"I'm such an idiot…" Yugi mumbled to the empty room.

((7))

Atemu stared at his computer screen, his insides cold. The shock from the night before numbed his system. The name "GemuMasuta52" was there under his IM list but Atemu made no motion to write a greeting or apology. What did he have to apologize for anyway? Yugi was the one who run away. And he had promised! He had promised he wouldn't run away and he had! What was Atemu supposed to say to him? Yugi should be the one apologizing.

Atemu's stomach felt queasy. He had never in his entire life felt so… helpless, useless, and so in the dark as he did now.

But why? Why had Yugi run away in the first place? That question wracked Atemu numb brain over and over again. Yugi was a fan, right? So why had he run away when he found out he was Atemu? Shouldn't he have been happy? Any normal fan would have been happy. But Yugi wasn't normal, that's why he had…

Atemu leaned his head upon the table, sorrow filling his lungs, slowly drowning him. Had he done something wrong? Had he said or done something to offend Yugi? They had barely stood there for five seconds so why? Why?

Would they ever talk to each other again? Was there any hope? What had all those conversations with Yugi been about? What were they worth to him? What were they to each other now? Yugi loved Atemu already so what had to change?

The hole of bundled confusion in Atemu's chest seemed to be eating everything up every feeling inside of him.

There was a knock on the door.

"Atemu, can I come in?" It was Malik. Atemu's stomach sunk even more. He hadn't allowed himself to even think about Malik yet; it was too shameful.

"If you want," Atemu moaned miserably, forehead still upon the computer desk. The door opened. Atemu did not raise his head to greet Malik.

"Nee-san says we have another photo shoot today," Malik said softly. "We'll need to go to make up in an hour."

"Tell her I'm not going and she can't make me," Atemu spat.

There was a pause.

"Did something happen between you and Bakura?" Malik asked. Atemu lifted his head up from the table in curiosity.

"No…" Atemu said finally facing the Egyptian, looking suspicious.

Malik looked away. "Oh…" he muttered, curtains of blond hair hiding his eyes from Atemu's view. He looked so sad it made Atemu feel so disgusting. Was this his fault too?

"Why would you think there was something going on with me and Bakura?" Atemu asked. Malik shrugged.

"You both disappeared after the concert and you both came back really depressed and sad," Malik said, eyes on the floor. "I was just wondering..."

"Wondering what?" Atemu questioned.

Malik made a face, like he was swallowing something very nasty. "Do you love him? Bakura, I mean."

Atemu couldn't believe his ears. The idea was so insane and so far away from the truth that, for the first time in a week, Atemu laughed. His ribs strained under the unusual pressure but Atemu just couldn't stop.

"Wow… wow…" Atemu muttered, gasping for air wiping tears from his eyes. "No really, what did you really want to ask me about?" Malik looked very uncomfortable.

"That was what I wanted to ask you…" Malik muttered, ashamed.

"Oh. Well, don't worry. There's no chance of that happening," Atemu reassured, getting up from the floor. "Me and Bakura have known each other way too long."

"Then what has been going on with you two?" Malik asked. Atemu scratched his head.

"I don't know what's up with Bakura, I didn't know there was anything wrong."

"He's been in his room the entire time and he won't come out, just like you. Only," Malik paused thinking, "It's different. He just seems angry about something. He keeps muttering stuff under his breath and breaking things."

"That's Bakura," Atemu said, "He's always gets angry over something. He's probably just pissed off that I pushed him to the ground." Malik's expression immediately pained and he forced his eyes to turn away, glaring at the floor. Atemu realized his mistake too late. "Oh sorry," Atemu said also not looking at his friend. "I didn't mean to bring that up."

"It's okay," Malik muttered, not very convincingly.

There was silence. Atemu wanted Malik to leave, he wanted so much to be alone but he couldn't bring himself to speak. He didn't want to hurt Malik anymore, not when he had already hurt Yugi.

Atemu was visibly slipping back into his depression again. Malik noticed Atemu's form was shrinking, his shoulders hunching. He felt pity and that gave him the strength to speak again.

"I was kinda hoping you loved Bakura, cause then I would know why you seemed so sad and why you don't…" he paused, he couldn't say the rest of the sentence. There was another blow to Atemu's stomach, a dull, painful, sinking blow. Atemu could not find his voice. Malik took his shield of silence as a reason to leave.

"I'll tell, Ishizu you're not feeling well," Malik said about to leave.

"Malik?" Atemu's voice shook when he spoke. Malik winced.

'No, don't start crying again, Atemu! I won't be able to stand it!' Malik pleaded silently to himself.

Atemu's head had turned. Malik met his eyes. He looked painfully desperate. "Say there was this person that you cared for a lot… and you got the impression that the two of you have this… understanding and then, for some unknown reason, that person runs away. What would you do?"

Malik hesitated. Atemu couldn't be talking about Malik because the Egyptian hadn't been the one who had run away and Atemu had made his feelings about Malik pretty clear.

"Then there is someone else?" Malik asked. It was surprising how easy it was to keep his voice calm. Atemu nodded like a guilty child.

"I think… I think I may have done something wrong but I don't know what! He just ran away and I don't understand…" Malik took his hand off the door knob. If Atemu needed him, he would have to stay.

"What did he say when you told him this?" Malik asked kindly. Why was this so easy? How could he help Atemu so effortlessly?

"We haven't talked," Atemu admitted shamefully.

"Then you need to ask him what happened," Malik instructed. "Nothing will change as long as you sit here, not talking to each other." Atemu nodded, still looking at the floor. Malik smiled and turned to leave again.

Atemu spoke up suddenly before Malik could leave. "I feel so awful about what I did, to you, I mean. I don't want to do it again."

Malik nodded in understanding and left.

((7))

Bakura woke up again for the fifth time that night. He looked over at the clock; it was almost 3 in the morning. Bakura let out a loud groan and kicked the musty sheets off his body and rolled off the bed. He was tired, dead tired, but every time he tired to sleep…

'Stupid kid. All over some freaking cheap necklace,' Bakura cursed silently as he got up and walked down the hall. 'What a fool. If he hadn't wanted the necklace to be stolen he shouldn't have kept in a backpack in the first place!' Bakura made it to the bathroom. He looked in the mirror to see his hair in complete disarrayed and his dark eyes bloodshot with lack of sleep. He glared pitifully at his reflection.

"Whiny brat," Bakura grumbled darkly and splashed water on his face.

((7))

Yugi was lying on his bed staring up at his newly blank ceiling, feeling empty. He had tired himself out crying. Now he found he didn't have enough strength to care anymore. There was a deafening buzzing in his ears, ears that were once filled with Yami's kind voice.

"Yugi! There's a phone call for you!" the faint voice of Yugi's grandfather called from down stairs. Yugi sat up numbly.

"Who is it?" Yugi called back.

"Your friend Yami from school!" his grandfather cried. Yugi's eyes widened. Yami was calling him? Yugi glanced down at the phone. Should he answer it? What did Yami, or Atemu for that matter, have to say to him? But the urge to talk to Yami once again, the will to find some small piece of their past happiness was too strong. Yugi picked up the phone and held it to his ear.

"…hello…" Yugi answered, voice small and tight.

"Hi… Yugi," Yami's voice said. God, he sounded so much like Atemu too. Why hadn't Yugi ever noticed?

There was a very long uncomfortable pause.

"Why did you call?" Yugi said finally, hating the empty silence.

"I…" Another pause. "I was thinking about that night and I… I realized that I…," he paused, trying to find words. "On that night, did I do something wrong? Why did you run away, I didn't want it to be like this… It wasn't supposed to be like this…" Yami's voice died. Yugi didn't say anything. "I guess I was hoping you could tell me, what happened that night," Yami muttered awkwardly.

There was another long pause. Finally Yugi broke the silence.

"I knew Yami wasn't your real name but I didn't ask what your real name was. At first it wasn't that big of a deal but… I wanted you to tell me without me having to ask, but you never did. Why didn't you tell me you were Atemu?"

"I… don't know," Yami admitted awkwardly. "When I first started talking to you it was because we were on that message board and… I've gotten so used to lying, it just came naturally, I guess. Then later on, I didn't want to tell you cause… I was nervous. I was kinda hoping that… when you did find out, you'd be happy."

"Happy?" Yugi said. There was a notable edge to his voice. "Why would I be happy that my best friend turned out to be you?" Yugi knew he sounded cold, but at that moment he really didn't care. "You knew I liked Descendants of Ra. You- god- I ranted about you to you! And you just let me!"

"I didn't mind. I'm used to it… It was nice," Yami tried.

Yugi's anger flared up again. "It doesn't matter what you think! I was the one completely embarrassing myself the whole time! I told you things I've never told anyone!" he cried, flustered and upset. "I had no way of knowing who you were! You didn't give me any warning! And you lied to me! Telling me that you traveled with your parents! And I believed you because everything I told you was true! Everything! I told you private things, secret things! And it's humiliating! You knew so much about me and I thought I knew something about you but I didn't! When I found out, it felt like someone was playing a sick joke on me!"

Yami was stunned into silence once again. Yugi felt like at any moment he would start crying again or throw the wretched phone against the wall.

"Can you blame me, Yugi? With my life. I wanted to separate you from that, I needed a break every once in a while, an escape. Sometimes it's hard being me," Yami explained, weakness echoed over the static in the phone. "When I met you online, I thought you weren't like the others. You're smart. All those things you saw in my music, it was all true! I was afraid to tell you because I didn't… I don't want us to change. You were- are so real and I'm a real person too!" Yami explained but Yugi's anger was still not satisfied.

"But after all this time, even as we made plans to meet, you didn't even drop the slightest hint! I trusted you! You could have been an ax murderer or a rapist and I was planning on meeting you! Why couldn't you trust me?!" Yugi exclaimed. "You couldn't even tell me your name! Can you blame me for freaking out when I saw you?"

"I'm sorry I put you through that but if I had told you who I was, would you have believed me?"

"No, I probably wouldn't have but at least when I saw you, I would have known it was the truth," Yugi argued. "I would have known that you trusted me. And that's what hurts the most, knowing you couldn't even give me enough credit! Your name. God, just your name!"

"Yugi," Yami's voice grew soft again, that lovely silky tone that Yugi couldn't resist. "I'm truly sorry, I really am. Please believe that. I can't… I can't say anything else to make you believe me." There was an uncomfortable silence. Yugi waited for Atemu to say something, anything, to explain, to announce, to speak one more time. By now, Yugi's anger was finally starting to subside.

"So, what do I call you now? Atemu? Or do you want me to keep calling you Yami?" Yugi asked calmly, the sharpness was at least gone from his voice now.

"You can call me whatever is easier for you," Yami answered. Another pause.

"I want to make it clear," Yugi said firmly. "I'm not like- like obsessed over Atemu, I mean over you, ok? Yeah, I did dye and gel my hair to look like Atemu's- yours and I know it looks kinda bad but its permanent so I can't get rid of it," Yugi explained reluctantly. "I could try to dye it another color if you want, or cut it…"

"Yugi, I don't care about your hair," Yami insisted. "Well, its not like I don't care about it, cause I do, I mean, I care about you, obviously, but your hair's just your hair. It's fine, I don't mind, really," he rambled. Yugi breathed, it was nice to know that rock stars got flustered too. "Keep it," Yami finished, lamely.

"What were you doing on a fan website anyway?" Yugi questioned curiously.

"I… like to know what people think of me," Atemu admitted simply. "It's not like I can just go up to someone on the street and ask them."

"But you're not getting a realistic opinion. The only people who go on that site are already totally obsessed with you. You'll never really get a sense of what people think if you only look at one side."

Yami hesitated. "Yeah, I guess…" he admitted. "But that's what the forums on that site are for, right? To discuss, criticize..."

"Yeah, stuff like which song is there favorite or what outfit you look best in," Yugi said.

Yami chuckled. "I loved that one."

Yugi shook his head in a mix of disbelief and amusement. "A little narcissistic, are we?" he teased.

"Well, maybe…" Yami admitted. Yugi found himself grinning despite himself. "Yugi?" Yami asked nervously after a few seconds.

"Yeah?" Yugi asked just as nervous.

"I really am sorry," Atemu pleaded. "I did want to tell you, I did, but I wanted you meet too and I suppose I took the easy way out."

"It's fine," Yugi said and it finally was.

"So… are we cool again?" Yami asked.

Yugi smiled into the phone's receiver. "Yeah, we're cool."

"Then… do you think we could try again? Try to meet again?" Yami asked uncertainly. "I… I really do like you, I mean I…" Yami hesitated. "I miss you, Yugi." Yugi's heart raced, he could feel his face heating up.

"Uh… I guess, we could try again," Yugi said trying to sound casual though his hands were shaking with excitement again just as they had done when Yami and he had planned that disastrous night. "I…" Yugi gulped. "…I missed you too."

"I'll take you out to lunch this time," Yami explained, gaining confidence. "Somewhere nice. You'll like it, I promise."

"Lunch?" Yugi repeated. Yami was making it sound a little bit like a date. Yugi's heart pounded faster.

"You don't like that idea?" Yami asked uncertainly.

"No!" Yugi cried. "No, that sounds fine, I mean… it sounds great," Yugi corrected nervously. "Ah… when?"

"Do you have somewhere to be on Sunday?" Atemu asked.

"Not that I know of," Yugi answered.

"Good, then that's settled! I'll send a limo to pick you up around 1 o'clock," Atemu said very quickly as though he were in a rush. "Well, I have to go!"

"Wait! Do you even know where my house is?" Yugi questioned, before he could hang up.

"I can find it. I've got my resources. Bye!" Atemu finished and before Yugi could reply, he hung up.

"Uh… bye…" Yugi muttered uselessly to the empty line. He hung up the phone, feeling slightly unfulfilled.

'Well, at least I get to see him again,' Yugi thought hopefully. But at that moment, Yugi wasn't sure if he wanted to.

o o ((7)) o o

Bakura ran his bony pale figures down the frets of his guitar, the strings vibrating according to their pitch. Then his hand slipped, he hit a sour note. Bakura winced as it rung through the empty air. He wasn't concentrating enough. He knew this song! He had played it more than a hundred times already! Why wasn't he getting it right?

Bakura stopped, lifted his hands from the guitar and shook out the thin sheet of moist sweat that had accumulated on their surfaces. He took a deep breath.

'Concentrate…' he order himself, closing his dark eyes to the distracting world. He placed his hands back on the guitar and began the song again.

Not even five measures into the piece, his hand slipped again.

"God dammit!" Bakura cursed loudly. He threw the instrument onto the couch in anger.

The room became silent. Bakura glared down at the floor, frustration fuming off his body in the humid summer heat.

He knew why he couldn't concentrate. It was because he hadn't slept at all this passed week and he couldn't sleep because of that pizza delivery kid still haunted his dreams.

'Why can't I just get him out of him head?' Bakura shouted at himself, hands running frantically through his wild white hair. 'Why is this bothering me so much?! He's just some stupid kid!' Bakura's hands slowly relaxed. He took another large breath.

One thing was for sure, he wasn't going to get any guitar practice standing there, thinking about some stupid whiny kid.

'If only there was some way I could get him to leave me alone!' Bakura thought seriously, pacing up and down the room.

Suddenly an idea hit him, his wandering feet stopped in their tracks. Bakura stood, eyes narrowed in pondered thought.

"Yeah… that might just work," Bakura mused, a cold mischievous smirk returning to his face.

(-7-)

I never realized it before but Yugi's so emo in the first scene.

This chapter went through a lot, a lot of rewritings. Originally Yugi was a lot wimpier and Atemu was nicer but the story just got more interesting when I tweaked the characters' reactions a bit. I think it seems more realistic this way. Besides its not like Yugi can't get angry, he just… doesn't usually.

Anyway, they're together. Sorta.

Mwahaha, karma's coming back to kick Bakura in the face.

Teehee. You guys actually thought I was going to make Atemu jump out a window. Well… maybe I still will…

Man, Malik is too awesome. He should stop being so awesome, then I won't so bad about making his life hell.

NEXT CHAPTER: AAAAAAAAHHHHHHH!!! Yugi's freaking out. Atemu vandalizes furniture. HOLY CRAP!! WHO IS THAT!?!

REVIEW!!!

Seriously, I actually got a complaint about Atemu and Yugi being OOC so now I'm like completely freaking out and biting my nails and pulling out my hair. Do guys really think they're out of character?

REVIEW!!!!