Ryou woke the next day to face a sight that he had never seen before.

It was Yami. Fast asleep on the couch.

Even though Ryou had known that Yami slept there, he had never actually seen it. After all, even when Yami was in the apartment when Ryou went to bed, he was always awake until well after Ryou wasn't. And again, Ryou woke to fine him in the apartment he had always been awake for hours. Sometimes Ryou wondered if he actually slept at all.

And yet here he was, just lying there under Ryou's Star Wars blanket.

The couch was just long enough to fit the full length of his body without causing him to bend his knees. His head was propped up on the couch's armrest, the pillow jammed precariously in between the two as though it was going to fall off the side of the couch at any moment.

Keeping on the tips of his toes, Ryou crept over to him. Even when he was sleep, his spiky hair never strayed from its predestined place. It splayed out over the pillow like some kind of strange yellow, black and purple fan. One of his blonde bangs hung down over his face, tickling at his nose. Without even thinking about it, Ryou gently brushed it aside. Yami made to indication that he had felt the gesture.

Taking care to be quiet, Ryou kneeled down beside Yami's sleeping figure. Yami looked so peaceful when he slept; nothing like Ryou's mysterious roommate, shrouded in secrets. "Who are you?" he whispered. "Who are you looking for?"

Ryou didn't expect a reply and received none. Feeling silly, he straightened up again and made his way into the kitchen. Pouring himself a glass of milk, Ryou peered through the open door to the lounge. He could still see the tips of Yami's hair protruding from one side of the couch.

Ryou sat down at the table with a bowl of muesli and a straw for his milk – this one was banana flavoured - sitting so he would see when Yami woke up. Wondering if Yami had some kind of morning routine, Ryou got up again and flipped the button down on the kettle. Just in case.

While he ate his breakfast, he pondered the previous day again. He hoped Yami wasn't mad at him for making him leave, or thought that Ryou was mad at him for the same reason. He stared at his bowl sadly. He would have to make some kind of hint of offer so that Yami would know that Ryou wasn't mad. Just in case.

"Ryou?"

Ryou jumped, accidentally flinging his spoon. It landed about a foot away on the table, spilling muesli. "Good morning, Yami!" he smiled happily as he ran to get a sponge for the spoon.

Yami yawned and entered the kitchen. "You're up early."

"No, you're just up late."

He stopped mid-step. "What time is it?" He looked at the clock. "It's six o'clock," he finished, answering his own question. "Great."

"Are you taking off again?" Ryou asked, looking at him curiously over the rim of his milk glass.

He looked away. "I have nowhere to go; I've been following false leads for weeks now. I'm down to just doing a general sweep."

"Maybe he's not in the area," Ryou suggested.

Yami closed his eyes. Ryou could sense that he was far more dejected than usual. "That's just the thing; I don't know. He was last...seen, in this area, but he could be anywhere by now. All I can do it keep looking." He hit himself in the forehead, causing Ryou to jump out of his chair slightly out of pure instinct. "And I...I hate it, Ryou; I just can't stand being helpless. That's why I'm always out so late; I have to keep looking, because whenever I stop, I feel like I'm letting him down. But while I am searching, and I can't find him, I feel even worse because I'm wasting time."

"Time until what?" Ryou asked, his voice heavy with concern.

Yami sat down opposite Ryou. "Time until..." He sighed. "It doesn't matter; it probably won't even happen. I...I know it won't ever happen, but I'm still afraid that it will."

Ryou was touched. Yami had finally confided in him. He only wished he knew what to say to him. He hesitated before reaching out and touching his hand gently. "Wh- whatever it is…I'm sure it won't."

Was that the right thing to say? He didn't know the full story; for all he knew he could have just said something horrible.

Yami didn't look all too upset, though. At least not with Ryou. He just sighed. After a moment, he pulled his hand away from Ryou's and stood up. "How is your rib?"

Ryou had forgotten about it until now. "Oh – it's fine. Thanks for asking. It only hurts if I move it or apply pressure."

Yami nodded, going over to the fridge. "That's good. I guess the fracture wasn't too bad."

"Thanks again for bandaging it for me," he threw in sincerely.

Yami smiled. "No problem, Ryou."

"What are you going to be doing today?" Ryou asked.

He sighed. "I don't know; I guess I'll try and find another lead."

"I have to go to work today; will you be here when I get back?"

"I don't know; it all depends on what I dig up."

Ryou nodded sadly. "Okay." He hesitated. "I…hope you find him today…so you can be at home more."

Yami looked across at him, a sad look across his features. For a second, he opened his mouth as if he was going to say something, but then shut it. Ryou recognised the same sad smile that appeared to mar Yami's face sometimes. "I hope so too."

Friday afternoon traffic was always the worst. Luckily for Ryou, he walked home on foot. This was normally a time eater, but on this occasion, he was able to bypass the standstill traffic entirely on his way back from work.

He ran through the events of that morning in his head. Yami had been sleeping; that was strange in itself. Yami must have slept, but it had seemed until now that Yami never did so. Ryou bit his lip. Spending so long out and about on his fruitless mission couldn't be good for his health. Ryou didn't know much about sleep related diseases, but even so. He sighed. He wished that there was something he could do to make it easier for Yami; he was practically killing himself with so little sleep, whether he showed it or not. But when he didn't even know what Yami was doing, or who he was looking for, Ryou could barely hope to even understand.

But he had made progress, hadn't he? After all, Yami had talked to him about it that morning. What was it that he had said? He was last seen in the area but he could be anywhere by now.

Ryou would have been lying to himself if the possibility of Yami's mysterious friend being the person he was looking for hadn't crossed his mind. It would explain why Yami was so desperate to find him – and was so torn up over his prolonged failure. It would also explain why Yami hadn't spoken to his friend in so long.

But was that really it? Was Yami's friend really the missing person? Ryou sighed; there was still so much about Yami that he still didn't know. There was just so much about him to know.

There was nothing unusual about Ryou; he hung out with his friends most weekends and worked on weekdays. He might as well have still been attending school, for all the change that occurred in his life. Yami already knew everything there was to know about him.

He had reached his apartment block and, sighing again, let himself in and made his way to the elevator. He couldn't believe how much he was obsessing over his roommate. After all, that was what Yami was; somebody who lived with him to help him pay the rent. That was all.

So why am I still thinking about him? Ryou wondered. Because he fascinates me? Because he's so damn gorgeous? Because I'm worried about him? Because I think I…

Ryou cut the thought off before it fully materialised. It was, after all, ridiculous. There was no way he would ever admit to having fallen for Yami.

The lift doors slid open and Ryou dejectedly walked towards his door. Ever since he had first met Yami – barely two weeks ago – everything had been different. There were two types of time; time when Yami was nearby, and time when he wasn't.

And whether he liked it or not, nothing seemed natural, nothing even seemed plausible – during the latter. Every moment was a moment between now and when he next saw Yami.

Ryou unlocked the door and rested his hand on the handle, hesitating before he turned it. What if Yami was home? Ryou bit his lip. He cherished the few moments they had shared, but talking to him, seeing him there, just...being Yami – relentless, mysterious Yami...it was becoming harder to think.

Maybe I...I...Ryou closed his eyes. Maybe I really have fallen for him.

He opened them again.

In two weeks? When he was out looking for somebody I don't even know most of the time anyway? What am I saying; I hardly know him at all. What right did he ever have to just...to just drop out of the sky and make me care?

Ryou gulped. Whatever happened, he had to keep his feelings bottled up inside. Because if he didn't...He had a friendship with Yami, and he wasn't going to lost that too because he couldn't keep his mouth shut about his true feelings.

Thinking of corn flakes before a tear could fall from his eye, Ryou opened the door.

Their apartment was in complete shambles. Ryou stared, utterly gobsmacked. Every pillow from the furniture lay separate from its case and strewn across the floor. The furniture itself was upside down as though it had been pushed over in a hurry. Ryou let out a gasp, wondering if anything had been stolen. The contents of both the fridge and the pantry were also lying all over the kitchen floor, most of it no longer fit for use.

Blinking away his shock, Ryou made for his bedroom. All his clothes had been pulled from their draws and hangers and were in a messy heap on the middle. His blanket and pillow were out of their cases and strewn across the floor, like the pillows in the lounge. Even mis mattress had been thrown off and the bed had been pushed aside.

He found the study in a similar state of disarray. The books were scattered everywhere, and the desk draws lay untidily on the floor. Yami always took his computer and bag with him when he went; at the very least they couldn't have been touched.

Still in a state of shock, Ryou half-fell down onto the cushion-less couch. Had Yami done this? No way...this wasn't something Yami would do. Their apartment had been broken into.

But why? Had they taken anything? Or had they been looking for something specific? How was Ryou ever going to know what was still there?

He looked at the phone, which was hanging from its chord on the wall. He could try calling the police...but what if nothing had been taken? Would they really care if somebody had just broken in and made a mess before leaving? Probably not. Ryou considered telling them that something was missing anyway, but...that would be misinforming.

There was only one thing he could do to find out if anything had been taken. Ryou pulled himself to his feet. He had needed something to distract his mind from Yami anyway. He rolled up his sleeves and set to work.

When you're about to cry, think of corn flakes. You have no emotional connection to corn flakes. Therefore, you stop crying. Try it; it works ^^

I know this chapter was laaaaaame D: Please don't hate me XO And thanks again for reading - I love you guys C;!

I won't be able to do any writing until this weekend at the very earliest - I'M SORRRRRRY D: I'm going on a super important Biology camp (Huzzah :D)

Anyway, thanks again :D See you in chapter six~!

~IA