A/N: Leave reviews please! =D
Cold and Lonely
Chapter Three
Bakura lounged on Ryo's bed while his other crouched over his desk studiously, a book full of confusing symbols laid out in front of him, all while scribbling furiously on a piece of paper.
Bakura rolled to his feet and slunk over to the desk to peer over Ryou's shoulder. He didn't notice Ryo's sudden stiffening, nor the tightened grip on the pencil. Bakura was too busy scoffing at all Ryo's hard work.
"What the hell is this?" Bakura snatched up Ryo's calculus homework before he could even begin to form a protest.
"Bakura! Please…just give it back! I really need to finish…"
The sound of ripping paper filled the air. Ryo heaved a sigh and dropped his head to rest against his desk.
"Oops…guess you'll just have to start over. Such a pussy…can't even rescue your own damn homework. Absolutely pitiful." He tossed the shredded paper into the garbage can.
Ryo, face down against his desk, winced slightly as Bakura continued, punctuating comments with painful nudges on Ryou's back.
"You can't defend yourself, you're malleable, and you're WEAK! Weak, weak, weak! Of all people, I had to get saddled withYOU."
"Shut up, you asshole!" Ryo, spinning around, gave Bakura a firm shove, bracing himself against his desk and sending Bakura sprawling.
"You'll regret that…" The words were more growled than spoken.
Ryou sucked in air and verbally lashed out, his words dripping venom as he vented his bottled-up anger and frustration.
"You bastard! Why can't you just lay off? I have much more important things to do than worry about a god-damned sadistic yami! If it makes you so unhappy to have me as a hikari, then…" Ryo ripped the Sennen Ring from about his neck and flung it at Bakura, "Here! Take it and get out! S'not like you NEED to hang around since the Items spat up you yamis' bodies! Go! Get out of my house! I'm gonna go to dinner, and when I get back, you and all your SHIT better be gone!"
"Ry…"
"No! Just leave me the fuck alone!" Ryo stormed out of the bedroom, leaving Bakura staring after him with a stunned expression smeared across his face. He heard the front door slam closed a few seconds later.
Silence fell. Bakura pulled himself into a cross-legged sitting position and gently lifted Ryo's ring from the floor, cradling it delicately between cold hands. His knuckled whitened as his hands clutched convulsively around the Ring's rim. He sat there, gazing out the door for a long while.
Finally, he slipped the necklace-cord of the duplicate ring over his head, but continued to watch the door thoughtfully as the two rings merged into one.
Bakura bolted upright out of a sound sleep, launching Pita from his chest and nearly falling off his neon green couch in the process. He resettled himself, only sitting normally instead of laying down. He put his face in his hands, and tiny kitty paws led a small kitten to sit next to his legs.
'Damn dream…memory…whatever. Why do I have to keep reliving that evening?' Bakura sighed. 'I was so stupid! He was right…I was an asshole. I wish I could just tell him that I'm sorry….' Bakura stood and walked over to the window wall.
He slid open a discreet door and stepped out onto a narrow balcony, the kitten trailing behind. He leaned against the railing, looking down at the ground, seven floors below. The cool night breeze against his bare skin was refreshing. A furry shape rubbed lovingly against his ankles.
"Well, I don't think sleep is an option from here on in…" He looked down at his cat, who stopped her ecstatic stropping and stared solemnly back in the style of cats everywhere. "So, Pita, if not sleep, what shall I do until morning?"
"Meu?"
A throaty laugh escaped him. "I have two walls to paint white…that sound like a good way to kill some time."
He slipped back inside the apartment and walked over to the southwest corner of the living room. He ran searching fingers over the elegantly painted image of the Sphinx, until, with a distinct yet quiet snapping sound, a hidden door swung open. He peered inside.
The dim red glow of the lava lamp on the bedside table cast eerie shadows across the painted walls and turned the green velvet bedspread black. Yuugi, highlighted by soft red light and shadows, lay snuggled under the covers, a small, mysterious smile curving his lips.
Bakura nodded in satisfaction, then grabbed a pair of paint splattered jeans from the floor, figuring he'd find some boxers when his rummaging around would not risk waking the little one.
He stealthily pulled the bedroom door shut and donned the jeans before popping open a can of white paint. A few stirs later and it was poured into a plastic tray.
"Meu?"
Bakura laughed softly and scooped his eager pet up, placing her on his shoulder where she promptly entrenched herself in his wild white hair, her claws not breaking the skin of his naked shoulder. Bakura grabbed a paint roller and went to work.
A/N: AND done with my edit on this ^^