(A/N:) Originally posted on dA. Hints of tendershipping (BakuraxRyo) and angstshipping (MalikxRyo).

"…This is the afterlife, isn't it?" I said with a bit of callousness.

"…Yes," Bakura responded. He combed his fingers through my messy hair. "You can die and stay here, or leave here and continue living."

"So…," I started, looking up at him, "…this all depends on my will to live or not?"

Bakura smiled. I sensed his old malice in the smile. "Exactly," he said. "You're a smart little thing; I knew you'd understand it quickly."

"I…" I looked down again, and said quietly, "…I want to live."

I felt my chin jerk upwards, and Bakura gripped my chin a little too tightly. Although we were at eye level, his look still seemed intimidating at the moment. "If you live, you'll never see me again," he said coldly and candidly.

Something clicked in my mind when he said this. "…Oh," I said dumbly.

The smile returned on his face. "I suggest you think about it instead of making such quick decisions," he said smoothly. He left a swift and light kiss on my lips, leaving me wide-eyed and with color on my cheeks. Bakura strode over to the other side of the room, and looked up at the framed pictures again.

"If you want to live, you must confirm this as so within twenty-four hours," Bakura explained, without looking back at me. "And that's twenty-four hours in the human world, mind you. In the spirit world, or afterlife, or whatever you want to call it—it feels like a few days or so. Actually, it feels like no time goes by at all. So…no pressure, really." Bakura paused, and turned around to smile at me. "But I'm sure you'll make the right decision, yadonushi."

I simply looked back at him, not saying anything.

What felt like days went by. But remembering what Bakura said about the time here, I realized that it was probably only a few hours in the human world. I remained in my so-called soul room, and conveniently, there was a small bed. I spent my time lying on that bed, getting up every so often to look at the framed photos. Bakura would come in and out every few hours or minutes, checking up on me.

"You okay, Ryo?" he would ask.

"Yeah, I'm just thinking," I would respond.

"Alright," he would say, and give me a smile. A few times he walked over and gave me a small kiss on the forehead and told me things like, "You're a smart kid, you can make the right decision," or something like, "Don't overthink it or anything."

I think he told me he loved me once, but he said it so quietly that I couldn't understand.

After that, he would leave and let me be.

He never told me where he was going or where he had been.

I laid quietly on the bed, on my back and hands behind my head. I stared at the high ceiling, trying to think.

However, I couldn't think straight at all. My thoughts felt so jumbled as I tried to comprehend everything. I thought of the pros and cons, but it didn't help much.

If I died and stayed here, I'd be with Bakura. Bakura would be happy. I would be happy too, I suppose. But if I die, won't Malik be sad? Wasn't he crying? I don't know. I'd also be leaving my other friends behind, wouldn't I? But if I lived, won't Bakura be sad? Will I be sad? I don't…

I groaned out loud in frustration. I was near to pulling my hair out.

The door opened a crack. "How're you doing?"

"…Just fine. Just thinking."

"Okay." The door creaked shut after a moment's pause.

I glanced over at the door where Bakura just was, and thoughts started coming to me again.

Why is he asking so much? Does he want me to stay? Or is he eager to get rid of me? Do I want to stay? Do I want to leave? Do I…

I groaned again. I sat up, staring at the wall adorned with the framed photos.

"…Bakura?" I shouted. I didn't know if I was allowed to leave the room or not.

The door almost immediately opened. I wondered if Bakura was just standing outside the door the whole time. "Yes? What is it?" He sounded eager.

I stared at him, and he stared back intently. He closed the door behind him slowly. "What's wrong?" he spoke up.

"…Sit down," I said. I sat cross-legged on the bed, and Bakura proceeded to sit on the edge.

"What is it?" Bakura repeated his earlier question.

"…Do you want me to stay?" I asked a bit boldly. I didn't want to beat around the bush.

Bakura seemed a bit disturbed by the question, but opened his mouth to respond, "Of course I do."

Everything seemed confusing to me at that moment. I sighed, and stated my next question. "…Why?"

Bakura cocked his head to the side, his face looking like he was worried. "Because I love you. Didn't you hear me earlier?"

You barely whispered it, I thought. How was I supposed to know? "Um…yeah, sure. I-I guess I just forgot for a moment," I stuttered a bit.

Bakura smiled and stroked my face. "You're so cute…" He leaned in closer, and kissed me on the lips.

My face was buried in the pillows, and I was as confused as ever.

What do I do? What should I do? What do I want to do? Argh!!

I almost actually screamed out loud in the midst of my never-ending frustration. Luckily I didn't.

Unexpectedly, my mind clicked.

There was a knock at the door, and Bakura walked in. I was a bit surprised he actually knocked this time.

"Hey, yadonushi," he said, "I don't mean to rush you, but…" He walked over to me, and sat on the edge of my bed. "…You have about half an hour left."

Half an hour, I thought to myself. That was fast.

"…Bakura?" I said, muffled. My face was still in the pillows.

"Yes?" he responded.

"…What will happen if I don't confirm I want to live?"

Bakura paused. "…You'll die."

"…Oh."

It was silent again, and the aura was a bit uneasy. I turned over to look at Bakura, and he was staring at the floor.

"…Bakura, I…I've made my decision," I said openly, and sat up.

"You have?" he suddenly perked up, which seemed a bit out-of character for him. He looked at me, his eagerness evident in his eyes. "So, what have you decided?"

I took in a deep breath before speaking again. "…I want to live."

Bakura's face fell. "…I see."

Seeing the disappointment in his face, I tried to make him feel better. "I-it's not that I don't want to stay, I-I just…" I gingerly placed my hand over his. "…It's just that…I have so much to live for. So much ahead of me…So much to do…" I squeezed his hand a little bit. "But…I will miss you."

Bakura glanced at me, then looked back at the floor again. "…I'll miss you too," he said a bit monotonously.

I paused. Something felt wrong. Isn't he disappointed? I thought he would've at least protested, or something. Or is he purposely doing this to make me change my mind? To make me feel bad? Is he…

"Bakura?" I said. "Are you alright?" I moved my hand up to his shoulder.

I flinched when I heard a chuckle escape from his lips. The chuckles became louder, and became little fits of giggles. Finally, his head was thrown back, laughing. Laughing. My eyes widened.

"Bakura?"

"Ohhh yadonushi…" Bakura went into another fit of giggles. "You can't leave here! This is the land of the dead! You're dead! I'm dead! We're all dead!"

I raised an eyebrow. "Bakura…"

Bakura's wild eyes looked at me. "You can't leave!" He said. "You can't leave! You can't…leave…" His wild expression suddenly became serious. "…You can't leave."

"Bakura," I said, "stop being ridiculous—" I made a small shriek as Bakura suddenly pinned me down to the bed.

"You. Can't. Leave," he said darkly.

My eyes widened, and my body tensed up. He was dead serious.

"You can't leave here. You can't leave here, yadonushi. I'm telling you, you can't leave here. You can't leave…" Bakura trailed off. "…You can't leave…me…" His expression went soft, and he started to lean in to kiss me.

I stopped him. I sat up and leaned against the headboard. "Bakura, I've made my decision. I want to live."

Bakura was silent. He stared at me for the longest time.

Suddenly, it was like a bomb dropped.

"YOU CAN'T LEAVE!! YOU CAN'T FUCKING LEAVE ME!!" Bakura suddenly screamed. He grabbed my shoulders and started shaking me violently. "DO YOU KNOW WHAT HELL I'VE GONE THROUGH?! I'VE BEEN ALONE HERE ALL THIS TIME!! I'VE BEEN GOING INSANE!! EVEN MORE INSANE THAN I ALREADY AM!! DON'T YOU UNDERSTAND, RYO?! YOU CAN'T LEAVE!! YOU JUST CAN'T!! YOU CAN'T LEAVE ME HERE!! YOU…" His voice trailed off again, and he stopped shaking me. His eyebrows were furrowed and he seemed angry beyond belief, but his eyes told me what he was really feeling. His expression softened. He looked down, suddenly quiet.

Then he started crying. And I found no words to comfort him.

It was white. Everything was white. It was like there were giant lights all around, so that you saw nothing but the white lights emitting from them. Somehow, I was not blinded.

I stood in front of Bakura, who was looking down. I knew for a fact that he didn't want to see me leave.

I wanted to say something, but couldn't find anything profound or meaningful enough to say to him. Nice seeing you again? Hope to see you again when I die? Never forget me? None of it seemed right to me. I decided to keep it simple.

"…Goodbye, Bakura," I said softly. He made no sound. I slowly walked towards him, and wrapped my arms around him. I felt him grip on the back of my shirt. I was a bit afraid he would start bursting into tears again, but he didn't.

Slowly and a bit hesitantly, I pulled away. I tightly held his hand for a moment, staring at him intently. He still didn't look up.

"…Goodbye," I repeated even more softly. I walked away, letting our hands linger together a little longer.

I walked towards what seemed like nowhere, but would indeed get me somewhere.

My eyes fluttered open, and I groaned in pain. My head was throbbing.

"R…Ryo?"

I glanced to my side, and saw the familiar blonde.

"Hey…Malik…," I said weakly. I made a weak smile.

"Ryo!!" He threw his arms around my neck. "I was so worried about you!! I was afraid that…that you…"

"Ow…Hey, I'm alright, okay? Just let go so I can breathe for a sec," I jokingly said.

"Oops, sorry," he said, letting go. "I'm just…really happy you're okay," he smiled.

I smiled back. "Me too."

That was a year ago. It feels like it happened yesterday, though, like most memories seem to be…

Now here I lie, in my bed, reminiscing. I can't help but wonder if it mattered if I happened to get into another accident, or some other life-threatening situation, and return to the afterlife. Would I choose to live again? Would I choose to die? I'll never know.

I just know that I need to keep living for now, until it's the proper time.