Warnings for this chapter are: Underage drinking, spending the night in a pedophile-I mean Yami's—home, and mentions of Jack.
Sage: How is Yami a pedophile?
Yugi's 17. He's 21. Do the math.
Sage: But we hate math!
Exactly!
Sage:….
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Yami drove his red car on the narrow, dimly lit road. His hands gripped the steering wheel tightly and he did his best to keep his mind off the incidents. The day had not at all gone as he had hoped, and he wanted to do nothing more than to forget it all.
After he and Yugi had left the small hotel, he had tried to get the boy to talk, but he only remained silent. Yami offered to take him out somewhere to eat, or to a movie, something to get his mind of his blonde friend. His efforts had been in vain, though. Yugi had barely talked, and after several minutes of gentle prodding, Yami realized Yugi wasn't up to anything. He walked the smaller boy back to his apartment where they said their goodbyes.
Yami hoped that it wasn't really goodbye. He hoped that Joey would see how important the two boys were to each other. It was selfish of him to think that he was important to Yugi, but Yugi was important to him. He wanted nothing more than for the boy to be safe and happy. Seeing as how Yugi had always eagerly asked when they could next see each other, Yami assumed it was safe to say that Yugi didn't hate him.
He sighed. He didn't know what he would do if the blonde somehow prevented the two from seeing one another. In the weeks he had known Yugi, he had seen a dramatic change in the boy's demeanor. He did still have his mood swings, but he seemed to be happy the majority of the time.
He still couldn't that image out of his head. The day they met at the grocery store how Yugi had just lost it. Something had obviously happened to the teenager, something he didn't want to share. Yami understood that some things were just too personal to share, but he still wished that Yugi would.
Suddenly, Yami slammed on his brakes, and pulled the car over to the side of road. He thought he had seen something lying on the sidewalk. Hastily, he got out of his car, slamming the door loudly behind him. He could see it just a few feet in front of him. There was a dark figure lying sprawled out on the concrete.
"Hey!" Yami called, making a running start towards the figure on the ground. "Do you need help?" He got to the figure and fell to his knees, gasping as he saw who it was.
Yugi was lying on his back with his arms outstretched. An uncharacteristic smile was on his face and his eyes were closed. Yami knew he was alive because he saw the steady rise and fall of his chest, but it still scared him. They were only a few blocks from his home. What was Yugi doing all the way out here?
Yami shook Yugi gently, earning a groan from the younger boy. His eyes opened slowly and his smile relaxed. Yami breathed a sigh of relief as Yugi began to sit up on his own.
"Yugi," he said, "what are you doing here?"
Yugi looked at him, but there was something off. His eyes seemed to be glazed over and they weren't really focused. Yami helped him to his feet, but still received no answer.
"Yugi?"
"Yami." Yugi said, swaying slightly. "Did Joey kill you yet? Wait. Did he kill me? Are we dead?"
Yami took a step back, a worried look coming onto his face. Yugi was acting rather odd, and seemed to be unable to stand still. Then he saw the bottle held tightly in Yugi's fingers.
"What do you have there?" Yami asked, reaching slowly for the bottle. Yugi's smile widened and he held the bottle out towards his friend.
"Want some?"
Yami took the bottle, trying to read the label in the dark night. He saw the name 'Moonshine' written in bright red letters. He could still see some a lot of the liquid. It looked as though only a few sips had been taken, but Yugi was small. It wouldn't take much to get him…
Yami growled, angry. How could Yugi do something stupid? How could he get himself stranded miles away from home in this condition?
"Is something…wrong?" Yugi asked, slurring his words slightly.
"You're drunk." Yami said, grabbing Yugi's wrist. He wasn't going to let Yugi stand here. He was tempted to take Yugi home, but then he realized the late hour. He didn't want to have to face Joey again, especially not with Yugi like this. He sighed. He was going to have to take Yugi back to his house.
He led Yugi to the passenger side of his car and gave him a soft push in. Then he walked around and went into the driver's seat, glaring at Yugi.
"Do you want to get yourself killed?" He said, holding up the bottle. "Moonshine? You could have given yourself alcohol poisoning!"
Yugi seemed to be ignoring him, instead rocking his head left and right as though he were listening to a song.
Yami seethed, and put the car into motion. He was going to have to wait until Yugi was sober before he could hope to have a real conversation with the younger boy. Yami didn't have any idea how Joey was going to react. He figured the two roommate must have gotten into a fight for Yugi to be out at this hour drunk off his ass.
But surely Joey wouldn't be so angry as to not worry about his friend. Yami sighed and ran a worried hand through his hair. That was something he would have to deal with later. For now, all that mattered was Yugi's safety. Yami was glad he found the younger boy when he did. God only knows what could have happened if someone else had found him.
After several moments of silence, with the occasional incoherent mumbles from Yugi, Yami pulled into the parking lot of his apartment. He put the car in park and pocketed the keys before getting out. He opened Yugi's door and lead the boy to his door roughly by the shoulder. Yugi put up no protests or struggles. Once inside, Yami sat Yugi down on his couch.
"You wait here. I'm going to set up the guest bedroom." He turned around and went into the linen closet where he pulled out several different sheets. He quickly made up the guest bed, which was in the room just across the hall from his own. Then he left the room to retrieve Yugi. He found the younger boy still on the couch, but he had in his hands a small cellphone.
The screen was lighting up and a small tune was playing, but Yugi did not answer it. "It's Joey." He said, still swaying.
Yami sighed. Yugi was in no condition to talk to the blonde. He took the phone away from Yugi and flipped it open before placing it to his ear. "Hello?"
"Yugi, thank God! Where are you?" The worry in his voice was evident and Yami felt a pang of guilt hit his heart. Joey had no ill intentions towards Yugi; he only wanted to protect his smaller friend.
"Actually," Yami said slowly. How was he going to explain this? "This is Yami."
There was silence between them. Then, "Why the hell do you have Yugi's phone?" He didn't scream the question. Instead, he was rather calm. But Yami could still hear the malice in his tone, the hatred.
"Look," Yami said, trying to keep his anger under check. "I found Yugi just a few blocks away from my home. He's drunk, I mean stupid drunk. I was just going to have him stay the night with me. I promise I'll have him back home in the morning."
Joey was quiet for a moment, and Yami was prepared to hear any shouting or profanities the blonde had ready. The reaction he got instead, shocked the older man. "Okay."
"Okay?" Yami repeated, although he wasn't sure why. The blonde wasn't getting into a fight with him, so why was he provoking one? "That's all you have to say? Early this morning you were just about ready to kill me. What suddenly changed your mind?"
Joey was silent for a moment, mulling over his thoughts. Yami bit his lip as he waited for an answer while he eyes would occasionally drift over to Yugi who appeared to be muttering something about a kuriboh floating in the corner. Yami sighed and pinched the bridge of his nose. He honestly had never thought about it, but he didn't imagine Yugi would be the stupid drunk. He didn't even think he would ever see Yugi drunk. But apparently there is a first time for everything.
"For two years I've watched him disappear." Joey's reply finally came. It was quiet and distant, and Yami thought it sounded like it pained Joey to say the words. "Then, out of nowhere, he seemed to come back, and I couldn't figure out why. I guess I got my answer today." There was a pause. "Look, what I'm trying to say is…you make him happy."
Yami had to bit his lip to keep himself silent. He wanted to hear what else Joey had to say. He couldn't believe what the blonde had just said. Did he really make Yugi happy? He couldn't help but look up at the drunken kid on his sofa who was now convinced that the coffee table had eyes.
"I haven't seen him happy in years." Joey confessed. "I can't take that away from him. He can spend the night with you. But I swear, you try anything funny with him, I will not hesitate to kill you." The last sentence came out cold and harsh and it sounded like Joey had his lips pressed right against the receiver.
"Well, goodnight to you too." Yami said before flipping the phone shut. Honestly, he was glad Joey was beginning to come to his senses and allow Yugi some freedom, but what the threat really necessary? He sighed. It was time to get Yugi to bed anyways. He could still hear Yugi mumbling in the background. It was difficult to hear, but not impossible. Right now Yami didn't want to hear any more of the younger boy's drunk idiocies.
"Come on Yugi." He said grabbing the boy's hands and lifting him to his feet. "Time for bed."
Yugi stumbled behind him but let out a dumb laugh. "Okay, but can you…can you tell kuriboh to stop…stop following me?" Yugi turned and looked over his shoulder, swatting at something. "Go away!"
Yami rolled his eyes. "You're not drinking ever again." Then a question popped up in Yami's head. One he should have had a long time ago. "How'd you get that moonshine anyways? You're underage."
Yugi giggled. "Nobody cares where I live. Not the people in the alley, at least."
Yami didn't know whether to be angry or scared at the comment. "You bought alcohol in an alleyway? Damn it, Yugi. Are you trying to get yourself killed?"
Yugi said nothing and just allowed Yami to lead him to the guest room. He was pushed gently until he was sitting on the bed, staring into Yami's glaring eyes.
"I'll be right across the hall if you need me." Yami said and turned around. He went to his own bedroom and quickly changed out of his clothes. It had been a long day and he was pissed. All he wanted to do was rest, and pray that Yugi would sleep this off. He didn't want to wake up to a drunk teenager inside his apartment. He flopped down onto his bed, inhaling the scent of his pillowcase. Before he knew it, he was asleep.
There were soft cries ringing in his ears. Yami got up groggily, rubbing the sleep out of his eyes. Where were those cries coming from? They sounded desperate and alone. Who was crying? They sounded hurt and Yami felt the need to help them. Then the events of a few hours earlier came crashing down on him like a tsunami. Yugi!
Yami's eyes glanced at his small digital clock and saw the red numbers read : 2:18. Another pained sob was heard and Yami jumped out of bed, running towards the guest room. He threw the door wide open and saw Yugi, sitting up in the bed, letting out a strangled sob.
Yami ran over to the bed, placing his hands on Yugi's shoulders and shaking him slightly. The younger of them was still asleep, and in the middle of a nightmare, it looked like.
"Yugi?" Yami said, trying to break the concentration. Yugi's eyes were shut tight, his hands clenched around the covers. "Yugi, wake up!"
Yugi shook his head and seemed to be cowering. "Don't hurt me…." He whispered his voice soft and childlike.
Yami felt his eyes rise at that statement. Somebody was hurting Yugi. Granted, it was just a dream, but still. Nobody hurt Yugi. He began to shake Yugi a little harder, his voice speaking a little louder. "Yugi, wake up!"
Yugi seemed to relax a bit for a moment. His shaking had slowed down, and his breathing wasn't as rapid. His eyes slowly opened and Yami was relived to be looking into the beautiful violet orbs he had fallen in love with. His eyes were still unfocused, and Yami was reminded that Yugi was still drunk. It would take another several hours before the alcohol had cleared his system.
Yami sat down the very edge of the bed, still keeping his hand on Yugi. "Are you okay?"
Yugi nodded, but avoided Yami's gaze. Instead he chose to focus his attention on his knuckles, which were a ghostly white from having gripped the bed sheets so hard.
"Do you want to talk about it?" Yami was curious to know what his little one was dreaming about. Someone had been hurting him in the dream and that was unacceptable.
Yugi looked up and Yami had to suppress a gasp. Yugi's eyes were full of tears and they looked empty, dead. It was as if he was a soulless shell.
"Don't tell Joey." He whispered, his voice every bit as empty and dead as his eyes.
"Don't tell Joey about what?" Was Yugi ashamed of having a nightmare? Was he ashamed of crying? Yami doubted that Joey would have a hard time believing either statement, and it did not make sense for Yugi to kept it a secret.
"Don't tell Joey about Jack."
Yami felt the hairs on the back of his neck stand up. He had gotten a name out of Yugi; an unfamiliar one at that. Maybe this had to do with that apparent accident Yugi was in about a year earlier. Was this Jack person somehow involved in that? Yami wanted to know, but another part of him was saying maybe ignorance was bliss. Yami swallowed. He couldn't live in the dark. He wanted Yugi to be a part of his life, and that meant knowing everything about him.
"Who is Jack?" Yami managed to say, feeling his mouth grow dry as soon as the words left him. Yugi shifted slightly and then began to lean onto Yami's shoulder. The action was surprise to Yami, especially since Yugi did his best to avoid touch. This Jack person seemed to bring up bad memories for Yugi; it looked as though he wanted to disappear.
"My boyfriend." Yugi said after a moment of silence.
Yami didn't know how to feel. Yugi had told him he had never been in a serious relationship before. Was he lying that day they had their first date? It was obvious the alcohol was speaking for Yugi. Having that, plus his already current memory problems, made it clear to Yami that Yugi had no idea what he was saying. All the weeks Yami had known the boy, he made it his mission to keep his past secret. Yami doubted Yugi would suddenly change his mind out of nowhere.
But still. Hearing Yugi speak of a past lover did bring up some jealous feelings. But he had to shove them down. Right now Yugi was his main concern. And finding out about this Jack person, which would more than likely answer more than a few questions Yami had about Yugi's past.
It did seem kind of sleazy now that he thought about it. He was taking advantage of Yugi; he was using the boy's impaired mental state to get the answers he wanted. But Yami couldn't let this opportunity go to waste. Yugi would probably never tell him about his past willingly, and Yami doubted he could get Yugi tell him, even with persistent and annoying nagging.
"Why don't you want Joey to know?" Yami asked, feeling his grip on Yugi tighten. He could feel the smaller boy sinking deeper into his body and he got a feeling that he wasn't going to like what he was about to hear.
Yugi was silent for several minutes. Yami could feel him playing with the sheets that covered his lower body, trying to get his mind of the topic. He didn't like thinking about it. The memories caused him pain. They made him live through the pain again. But, he looked up at Yami, and the way the older man looked down at him made him feel safe. Yugi wanted to confide in Yami, he wanted to spill every dirty little secret of his to the older man.
"He…" Yugi began, feeling his throat constrict as he tried to form the words. "He hits me."
Yami had no reaction at first. He was hit by a variety of emotions. Surprise, anger, pain. He felt his grip on Yugi tighten again, this time unconsciously. He wanted to protect Yugi. He couldn't believe his ears at first. Had Yugi said what he thought he said? Did he say that Jack hit him? There was more to the story, Yami knew. He wanted to know more, but at the same time, he didn't. He didn't want to hear of Yugi's pain. But, he also knew that he needed to.
"What…what else does he do?"
"He tells me things…" The tone of Yugi's voice was beaten.
"What does he tell you?"
Yugi paused, a choked cry escaping his lips. "He tells me I'm stupid…and worthless. He says that if it…if it weren't for him, I'd be back on the streets because nobody wants me."
Yami thought he heard Yugi say 'back on the streets'. That would imply that he was once on the streets. But he couldn't focus on that now, no matter how much his curiosity had peaked. Yugi needed to talk, he needed to get everything off his chest. And Yami needed to listen.
"…Sometimes he would say that he was going to kill me."
Yami mentally cursed inside his head. So that's why he was so insecure. That's why he had that scar on his eye. He had been abused mentally and physically. Yami wanted to go out and find that Jack person and give him hell. Nobody had a right to hurt another human being. Nobody had a right to hurt this small, beautiful, broken boy beside him. Yami wanted to whisper soft, comforting words inside his ear and tell him that everything was going to be okay. But, Yami refrained from doing so because he wasn't sure if everything was going to be okay. Yugi needed help. Professional help. He sighed and petted Yugi's hair as the young boy began cry softly, sniveling.
The two sat together in that embrace for what felt like forever. Neither saying anything, content in the silence.
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Yami hadn't realized he had fallen asleep until he woke up to the sun shining brightly through the curtains. He groaned and turned over onto one side, but ended up falling out of the bed. He cursed and sat up, rubbing the back of his head. Yami opened his eyes and saw that he was in the guest room.
He sighed as memories of the previous night came back to him. He still couldn't believe it; Yugi had been abused. He had been abused by a significant other. Suddenly Joey and Anzu's overprotectiveness made sense, and Yami knew, had their roles been reversed, he would have reacted in the same way. Yami turned his head to catch a glimpse of his sleeping partner, but found the bed empty. Yami stood up, scanning the surrounding area. The boy was nowhere to be seen.
Yami felt panic gripping inside him. What if Yugi left during the middle of the night? There was no way he could get home safely. Yami ran out of the bedroom, turning his head left and right for any signs of the boy.
He relaxed when he heard movement coming from the nearby bathroom. Yami walked towards it, surprised to see the door wide open. Yugi was on his knees, his face in the toilet. Retching sounds could be heard. Yami walked over there and stood in the doorway for a moment, watching the smaller boy. He could see Yugi stretch forward slightly each time something came up, and afterwards his shoulders would rise and fall with his rapid breathing.
"Hangovers are a bitch, aren't they, aibou?" Yami said, and he couldn't help but smile.
Yugi pulled his head up. His eyes were bloodshot and his face was red. He turned over to face Yami and the older boy could see the misery in his eyes. Yugi placed his elbows on the toilet seat and rested his head in his hands.
"My head feels like it's going to explode." He complained, through deep breaths.
"Maybe now you'll learn your lesson about drinking? Why did you try it anyways? That was really stupid of you."
"I wanted to know what it tastes like." Yugi said as if it were the most obvious thing in the world. He took in a few deep, rapid breaths before turning to face Yami. "What happened last night?"
Yami tensed. He knew that Yugi didn't want him to know about Jack. That's why he tried to so hard to keep it a secret. But, how would he feel knowing he spilled his guts in his drunken stupor? How much did Yugi remember? Yami hoped he didn't remember their two am conversation. If Yugi figured out Yami knew, he would more than likely run away, thinking Yami would want nothing to do with him. Of course that was far from the truth, but Yugi had no self-confidence, and whatever that bastard told Yugi, Yugi thought it applied to everyone around him. Yugi thought he was worthless and a nuisance to everyone.
"What do you remember?" Yami asked, feeling the tension rise in the air.
"You were talking to Joey…on the phone…Then I woke up."
Yami felt himself relax some. Yugi didn't remember their conversation. It was a relief, but Yami also felt guilty. He knew something he wasn't supposed to know. And Yugi believed he didn't know. Yami couldn't lie to the teen, at least not for long. He hoped that he could new answers, but he defiantly knew not from Yugi.
Yami bit on the inside of his cheek. Maybe he could get answers from someone else. After his conversation with Joey last night, Yami was sure the blonde didn't hate him. Maybe he would be willingly to talk, at least now that Yami knew half the story.
"Let's take you home."
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And the plot rolls on! Despite the dark themes in this, I found this a fun chapter to write. It's always run writing about a drunk Yugi.
Sage: That's messed up….especially considering you know nothing about alcohol.
Yup!