A/N: Again the first version, 'cos it's so late. I read this again tomorrow. I should really stop writing this late. :D

14. Trauma

The door was made of stone. It was a sandy color, which reminded him of deserts in Egypt. It made sense, really.

The door was shut.

Yami stared at it from the other side, his side of the narrow hallway. He sat next to his Soul Room's door, which was open, light emitting form it to the dark hallway, lightening it just a little.

But Bakura's door was shut. Damn.

The door was covered in red marks, writing and drawings. Actually the whole wall on Bakura's side of the hallway was covered with painting, language Yami couldn't understand. It was really Bakura-like, Yami decided, if you think about it.

Yami got up, and slowly walked to the door. He looked around him. He saw no one, so he put his hand to the door. It's surface was rough. Yami let his hands follow one of the drawings. His fingers stopped when the drawing ended.

Then he tried to push the door.

It did not open. Yami looked around him, making sure Bakura was nowhere to be seen and tried again. The door remain shut.

Yami frowned as he stared angrily at the door. Then he shrugged, turned around and left. He stole one last glance from it before disappearing into his Soul Room and shutting the door behind him.

Next day Yami agreed to hang with his friends after school. It was Yugi's idea really. He had said that it seemed like Yami was avoiding his friends. Jou was getting really suspicious, Yugi had said, Jou was thinking that Yami like to hang out with Bakura. Yami had argued back, said that he was tired, and he did not hang out with Bakura, they just happened to meet everywhere. But then finally he had agreed.

Everybody were there. The old gang, Yami, Yugi, Ryou, Honda, Jou and Anzu. Jou wanted to go to arcade, but Ryou had said he was hungry so they went to eat first. Now they all sat at the table, waiting for their burgers to arrive. They did soon, and everybody started digging in their food.

"Hey isn't that Bakura?" Anzu suddenly asked, pointing out of the window, with half eaten burger still in her other hand.

Everybody glued their faces to the window, trying to look. It was Bakura. He was on the other side of the street, sitting on a fence, so his head was higher than the passersby.

"Who's that chick Bakura's talking to?" Honda asked. " Oh no, wait, it's just Malik."

Kinda effeminate Egyptian stood in front of Bakura, though his head was at the same level as yami's stomach.

Malik said something funny, because Bakura burst out laughing.

They were totally oblivious to the audience they had.

Everybody had cramped to the window, expect Ryou who just ate his burger, kinda passively.

"You're food s are getting cold, " he said, but was ignored.

"I wonder what they're doing?" Yugi asked, half lying on the table, so he could get a clear look.

"Something evil, " Jou grumbled, crammed between Anzu and Yami.

The group, or their butts, were receiving angry glares from the people in the restaurant. Ryou hid his face in his hands.

"Where's Marik?" Yami pondered. " He's usually with them."

Bakura bended closer to Malik and said something. Malik nodded. People passed by them without giving a second look.

They were like this for a while, Bakura grouched forward and talking fast.

Yami wondered what they were talking about. He even considered opening the Mind Link.

Suddenly duo's heads darted up. They turned to look at something on their left. Bakura jumped down from the fence. He stood next to Malik, and put his hands to his pockets. They both stared and they both had confused, almost adorable looks on their faces.

Marik stopped in front of them, panting heavily because of the running, and arms full of fruits. Bakura raised his eyebrow to the psycho. The psycho grinned and said something.

Malik and Bakura immediately stared loading the fruits from Marik's arms to theirs. There were all kind of fruits: apples, bananas, oranges, even a pineapple.

Malik looked over his yami's shoulder and one word escape his lips: run!

Two psychos turned to look where Malik was looking. For a moment, the trio just stared at each other. A glint of amusement in Marik's eyes wasn't seen by Yami and his friends.

The trio ran away. Soon an angry crowd screaming followed them.

The group in the restaurant was silent for a while.

"Well that was weird, " Honda admitted.

"Thieves," Yugi said chocking back his laughter.

Ryou had already finished his burger.

Bakura collapsed against the wall. His heart pounded in his chest and his breath was heavy. He heard his two friends panting behind him.

"I think we lost them," Malik said, looking nervously behind him.

Marik just smirked. It had been his turn to steal food. They did that because Bakura obviously didn't have any money, nor a place to live. Marik and Malik were also broke, trying to keep enough money to flight tickets back to Egypt, though Bakura was sure that if they asked Yami would lend them money just to get rid of them. So they stole food, no need to pay, and it was fun too. Bakura always got out without being caught, and Malik too, but Marik was a different story. Bakura thought his psycho friend wanted to get caught, and chased out of the store. Bakura didn't mind the running, it was good for health after all, but Malik, the slowest of the three (though still not very slow) had a problem with it.

Bakura turned to face two Egyptians.

"That's it, " Malik continued, this time with a steadier voice. "From now you are not allowed to steal without us. Marik, I'm tired of this running! We get chased every fucking time!"

Marik laughed.

"But it's more fun this way, he argued.

"Idiot!" Malik hit Marik with a pineapple, but he was laughing too.

Bakura was fairly amused as he watched his bickering and laughing friends beating each other up with fruits. Bakura let his Mind Link open. Silently, so that Yami would not notice he pushed his fatigue through the Mind Link to Yami. It wasn't very likely that Yami would ever find out what Bakura was doing, Bakura had had something like 3000 years to practice and study the Mind Link.

When he felt better he shut the Link as silently as before. He started searching for something to eat from the pile of fruits in his hands. He found a red apple. He stared at it for a while in thought. Then he shrugged and bit it, savoring the sweet fruit.

Bakura chuckled to himself.

This was one hell of a way to get food.

Yami took a sip from the water glass on the table. He opened the laptop and put it on. Then he leaned back in his chair and waited.

It was evening. Yes, he had gone to the arcade with his friends after eating. Luckily he hadn't ran into Bakura, Marik or Malik since they had ran away from a man screaming death to thieves.

Yami didn't say that he hadn't had fun spending time with his friends. They hadn't gone to arcade since God knows when. Yami had had lots of fun, but he was happy to finally get home. A sudden burst of tiredness had hit him when he was playing with Jou, and that had got him really nervous.

Ryou, Yugi and Anzu had gone to find DDR for the girl, and Honda had disappeared to buy candy. Jou and Yami had been playing one of the hundreds of games in the arcade, when suddenly Yami had almost fell over, his head had felt dizzy and he almost fainted. Jou had asked if everything was alright. Yami had lied, again. He seemed to do that more recently nowadays.

He was relived when he got home, without fainting. He got to rest his tired body for a while until grandpa announced that the dinner was served.

After dinner Yami had asked if he could use Yugi's computer. Yugi had nodded, like he understood and started watching TV.

The computer was open, and Yami logged in.

Marik and Malik had been right. Yami shouldn't always ask for help from them, or from his friends. He should, for once, take care of his yami, all alone.

But Yami didn't know what exactly was wrong with Bakura, and he didn't knew how make him sleep. Marik and Malik probably knew, I mean Malik knew almost everything. Yami however couldn't ask from them, and they wouldn't tell the answer anyway. Yami was glad that they had Internet. If he couldn't ask from Egyptians, he could ask from million other people through Internet. Yami clicked browser open. He wrote insomnia to the empty box and clicked search.

Of course, it would be easier to search from Bakura's Soul Room, Yami was pretty sure he could find the answers if he looked hard enough. And Yami had tried it too. Bakura's door was locked, would always be. It would never open to Yami.

Internet was a good option too, Yami thought when the different options of websites appeared to the screen of the laptop. Yami clicked the first one, and started reading.

Drugs, said the text.

Drugs were always an option, Yami thought, kinda amused, in tired way, when everything is funny. How could he make Bakura eat them? Bakura wasn't stupid. Yami had told him what he was going to do, and if Bakura didn't want it he would find a way to avoid every situation he might get in.

Yami had never heard of someone avoiding sleep, but then, everything is possible.

Drugs were one option, if he found a way to give them to Bakura.

Yami continued reading.

Therapy, was another suggestion, but Yami crossed it out immediately. He just couldn't picture Bakura in a group talking about his problems to other people.

Yami read until it was hard to keep his eyes open and until his head felt dizzy.

These texts were made of normal human beings with normal problems, Yami thought, not to 3000 years old spirits, with special powers and lot of problems. Yami sighed. If he knew how, he would use Shadow Magic. He could probably make Bakura fall asleep using that.

Yami closed his eyes for a while.

But Bakura was prepared for that option, surely was. He was probably half expecting that Yami would jump to him in every corner, chanting spells and burning incense. So it was the last option.

Then Yami got an idea. He typed 'trauma' to his search engine. Few links popped up and Yami clicked the first one.

Bingo! Yami thought.

'Psychological trauma is a type of damage to the psyche that occurs as a result of a traumatic event,' he read and skipped to the symptoms. From there he found what he was looking for. '...Insomnia may occur as lurking fears and insecurity keep the person vigilant and on the lookout for danger, both day and night.'

Suddenly feeling very exited Yami tried to read more, but his vision blurred. Another wave of fatigue hit him, it was just like the one in the arcade. Yami fought it, tried to keep his eyes open. The words in the screen meddled together, and Yami's eyes closed. He still tried to open them, but he just couldn't.

Does it matter? Yami thought, before he fell asleep on the keyboard.

In the silence of the dark hallway Bakura opened his eyes and looked at Yami's Soul Room's door It was slowly closing. Yami had fell asleep. Good.

Bakura smiled to himself.

He turned around and disappeared to his Soul Room, closing the door as he went.

A/N: Zzzz