Hello everyone!

For the olds: This is now Chapter 2. It was Chapter 3 in the original, but after editing Chapter 2 was so short it was pointless on its own, so I combined it with Chapter 1. But you already knew that, right?

I don't own Yu-Gi-Oh.

You knew that too.

It was raining hard, and at three in the morning Domino was quiet in its wet haze. A solitary taxi rolled along the road. On one steamed up window, one tan finger traced a smiley face in the condensation. The owner of the finger watched the rain-drenched streets of Domino flash past, orange in the street lights. Then the taxi jerked, and Malik's head turned involuntarily. He saw his sister Ishizu sitting in the seat next to him, wrapped in the arms of her boyfriend, Aaron. He couldn't stop the scowl smothering his peaceful features as his sister spoke quietly to Aaron and ignored him, in her own little bubble of bliss.

Malik knew it was ridiculous to take their affection for each other personally, but it was difficult not to. His sister's new boyfriend made no secret of his disdain and disapproval of him, and he responded by being as annoying and difficult as possible. Plus, he had absolutely no idea what she saw in him. He was a great hulk of a guy with a bad temper, imbecilic friends and a drinking problem.

At least, that was Malik's opinion.

He wasn't surprised his adopted brother Odion had chosen to stay home.

Malik crossed his legs and pulled his hands into the sleeves of his hoodie, slanted lilac eyes glaring from beneath bright blonde bangs and his anger at being separated from the only home he knew resurfacing.

After a few minutes of awkward driving, the taxi slowed outside a grubby block of flats, its front wheel clipping the kerb as it braked. Malik peered out of the steamed up window, after decapitating the smiley face with a swipe of his hand.

"Overflowing bins, check. Graffiti, check. Rats and tramps..." Malik turned around and glared at Ishizu and Aaron. "...yep, check. Right, that settles it. This place is officially a dump."

"Your sister is not a tramp." Aaron growled.

"Actually, you were the tramp. Coming and moving in with us, sponging off our money. Ishizu was a rat, sneaking around arranging surprise migrations halfway across the world without telling me!" Malik snapped. By now the awkward group were standing out in the rain, looking up at their new home.

"Let's go, Aaron." Ishizu sighed, giving Malik an exasperated look. They walked off, with Malik trailing behind them, rain running down his face and dripping onto the ground like a mockery of tears.

Trying to ignore the overpowering damp smell of the corridor, Malik listened as they walked along, trying to find their flat. A little snippet of life seeped beneath each firmly closed door.

A baby wailing in 11A. Canned laughter from a cheap comedy programme in 25A. Something shattered as he walked past 2B and he paused to listen to the buzz of whispered obscenities that followed, drowning out the arguing couple next door. The noises coming from 13B made him blush.

So much for unlucky 13.

21B was at the end of the corridor. The white door was no different to the others, except for the fact that it was silent. The room was empty.

Not for long, though.

"Here we are!"

Ishizu's smile was embarrassingly forced; Malik felt bad for her, knowing that she hated the travelling and the stress but also knowing that she had no choice.

Malik took in every detail of their new house as they walked through the front door. It was tiny. There was a main room, two bedrooms coming straight off it, a kitchen just around the corner and a bathroom the size of a cupboard.

Great.

Malik dragged his solitary bag towards the smallest bedroom, the strap cutting into his hand. To his surprise, he liked it. One single bed was pressed against the wall beneath one perfectly square window, and one white shelf on the wall next to the door was just begging to be filled with clutter.

Lots of single things. Perfect for one single person.

Malik slumped down on the bed and leaned against the window, breath misting the glass, eyes reflecting the lights of a dozen flat windows, watching the city throb and glitter. He shifted slightly, and unzipped his hoodie, folding his knees into his chest and pressing his feet into the bare mattress. He stayed there until he fell asleep.

The next morning, Ishizu was woken by the delightful sound of Malik yelling at the top of his voice.

"Agh! God, that's cold!" Malik recoiled from the icy shower in shock. "Shitty apartment..." he muttered limply, watching goosebumps come up on his tan arms. He couldn't be bothered to wait for the water to heat up, so he pulled on his jeans and went to search the kitchen cupboards for food.

"Ishizu! Where's the food?"

"In the kitchen." Ishizu walked into the living room. Malik was sitting on the kitchen counter, applying his eyeliner and using the back of a spoon for a mirror. "Well, duh." He said, rolling his eyes.

"Get off the counter. And stop wearing my eyeliner!" Ishizu snapped. She opened one of the cupboards and, lo and behold, there were some boxes of cereal.

"What's this, if it's not food?" Ishizu asked sarcastically, taking a box of muesli and raising one perfectly disapproving eyebrow at Malik.

Malik shrugged and jumped down from the counter.

"Didn't search that one" he said, snatching the box. As usual, Ishizu noted, Malik didn't have all his clothes on. She decided this would be a good time to tell him off.

"Malik, are you allergic to shirts?" she said to him. He was now eating muesli straight from the box, getting more on the floor than in his mouth.

"Pig," she said.

"No bowls. Saves washing up. No shirt, saves washing," he grunted. He looked up at her, mouth stretching into a grin. "If you raise your eyebrow any higher, you might lose it."

"Shut up."

It may not have seemed like it, but it was at these times that the two siblings were closest. They were fighting, sure, but at least they weren't actually angry. It was when the boyfriend came on the scene that the atmosphere became cold and awkward.

"Malik..."

"What?"

"You need to stop being so rude to Aaron."

Malik snorted derisively. "Because he's such a gentleman to me. He's so kind and understanding! And not at all prejudiced and judgemental."

"Malik. Don't spoil things for me, please. This is our chance to make a new start after what Dad..."

"Don't talk about him."

"Fine. But Malik, just...please?"

Malik scowled. "He's a complete homophobe."

"He'll come round."

"Yeah. We'll see."

Then there was a yawn and some thudding footsteps. Aaron appeared in the doorway, wearing no shirt. Malik smirked. He knew who looked better.

"Morning, Ishizu!" Aaron said, ignoring Malik. "Where's the muesli?"

"Malik finished it." Ishizu said, with a hint of a smile.

"Oh, typical. Well, what am I supposed to eat, eh? Keep your little sister off my food in the future, Ishizu," he said.

Malik smiled icily and gave Ishizu a look which clearly meant 'I told you so'. He was well used to Aaron's obnoxious stabs at his feminine tendencies.

"Hey, Aaron. Guess what?" Malik asked, smiling sweetly. Ishizu knew Malik well enough to see the nasty side of him stir behind his lilac eyes, like a viper raising its head.

Aaron only grunted, as blind as ever.

"It's my seventeenth birthday soon."

"Really. Well, after that, maybe you can start thinking about moving out," Aaron said, deadly serious. "Maybe if you're good enough, you can get a job in some shop."

"I'm going to college. Art college. And, as the 'man' of the house, you should be paying my tuition fees," Malik said, knowing money was a taboo subject with the bankrupt man.

Come on, then. Do your worst.

"Yeah. In your dreams, kid!" Aaron glowered, and a feeling of satisfaction settled in Malik's chest.

Nope. Not with Ishizu listening, you pathetic coward.

Malik turned to Ishizu. "While you're at your dance show this afternoon, can I go out? I wanna buy cakes."

In particular, doughnuts. Doughnuts were Malik's guilty pleasure. He could just imagine their chewy, jammy, sugar coated goodness. But of course, Aaron had to ruin it.

"Oh no, you don't. You're grounded!" said Aaron, pleased to be denying Malik his pastry treats.

"Grounded for what?"

Aaron paused, evidently searching through the cobwebby recesses of his brain for a decent excuse.

"Malik!" Ishizu said, throwing him a half-hearted glare. "Don't argue. You are coming to the dance show with us."

Ishizu felt her gut twist as she watched a cold mask settle itself on her brother's face; keeping the peace could have some truly unpleasant consequences.

Ryou sat down heavily on the bus, heaving a huge sigh. They were about to drive to the other side of Domino for the trip to the dance show, and Ryou wasn't looking forward to it; the journeys to and from least of all. Spending thirty minutes on a musty smelling coach with his classmates was bad enough, but he knew that after the show he would have to walk the hour's journey home. Trying not to think about that, he put his headphones in and started listening to his IPod, losing himself in the music.

By the time they actually arrived, the dance show was about to start. His class piled into the theatre, making a ridiculous amount of noise as they did so. Ryou found himself sitting next to a short, acne-ridden boy and a complete stranger. A stranger who appeared to be completely uninterested in the show. They were wearing a grey jumper with the hood pulled up, which was all Ryou could really see in the dim lights of the theatre. He soon lost interest and turned back to face the stage.

The dancers were good, the music was infectious, and the coloured lights were still dancing in Ryou's eyes as the show finished and his class clapped and whooped their approval. Ryou vaguely heard his teacher announce that they could leave or wait for their parents to pick them up. The class started to trickle out of the theatre, chattering loudly as usual. The person next to Ryou stood suddenly. Ryou shifted his legs out of the way. The person didn't acknowledge him, just walked quickly down the stairs and disappeared backstage.

Ryou sighed, and stood to leave as well, realising he was the last person left in the seats. Then he noticed a canvas bag lying on the floor underneath the seat next to him. Being the Good Samaritan, Ryou picked the bag up.

It belongs to that person who was sitting next to me, he realised. He knew it would make him late, but decided to go backstage to see if the person was still there somewhere.

Behind the double doors that the stranger had gone through, Ryou walked along a small untidy corridor, littered with old props and bits of costumes, old spotlights tangled with wires hanging from the ceiling. He almost tripped on a mop and bucket that were propped against a door. Ryou began to feel as though he was in some kind of messy theatrical maze, but all of a sudden he came to what looked like a changing room.

After opening the door as quietly as he could, he could see the stranger was sitting there, head in hands. Ryou stopped, thinking he should just leave the bag there and go, when the door he had swung open closed, whacking him on the back of the head as it attempted to close around him.

"Ow!" Ryou cried out without thinking. The person looked up, hood falling down to reveal the stranger's face.

Ryou saw him properly for the first time. It was a him, that was obvious now. He was striking, no doubt about it. With that cinnamon tan and bright blonde hair, he was definitely unique and probably gorgeous. He was also crying, mascara stains dirty against his cheeks and purple eyes glowing. He sniffed.

"What?" he said, in that hoarse, I've-just-been-crying voice.

Ryou flushed. Some random stranger had just witnessed his act of extreme klutziness, and he had walked in on this stranger crying. All in five seconds.

"Erm... Sorry! I just came to return your bag."

Malik glanced from the boy to the bag he was clutching limply in his right hand.

"Thanks," Malik sighed. He leaned his head on his hands and gazed blankly at the floor. The boy stood awkwardly just inside the door.

"Are you okay?" he asked, shyly. Not in the way some people would have asked, as though they had to, but with a genuine, naive curiosity.

"Not really."

"What happened?"

Wow, he gets to the point. Malik thought. I really want to tell him, whoever he is. My crappy family life needs to come out into the open at some point. And I'd rather some stranger than a nosey friend or neighbour.

"Well, this happened." Malik pulled a piece of paper from his pocket and held it up for the boy to see.

Malik,

Gone out for meal. Be back later. DON'T COME ALONG.

Ishizu + Aaron

The boy winced as he read the note, his face crumpling slightly.

"Ouch. That's harsh," he said sympathetically. "Well, join the club, I suppose. I haven't exactly got a lift out of here either."

"It's not the lack of a lift home that bothers me. It's the fact that they really don't want me around. Well, I would have expected nothing better from Aaron, but Ishizu..." Malik trailed off. He didn't want to admit it, but it hurt like hell knowing that his own sister wasn't even going to make an effort to stand up to her boyfriend for his sake.

"So your name's Malik, right? Are you new around? I haven't seen you in school," the boy asked, in an obvious attempt to change the subject.

"Yep. Malik, the newbie, the freak, the oddball. As usual. My sister is always moving house with her dance troupe and I'm just an extra piece of baggage for her to lug around. And you are...?" Malik looked up at his companion curiously.

"Ryou Bakura. I've been living here all my life and half my class don't even know my name," Ryou said, smiling ruefully.

"Ha. What a pair, eh?"

Ryou glanced at his watch. "Four? I really need to go soon."

Malik's face fell slightly. "Do you have to go?"

Ryou was surprised by the question. It was totally alien, someone actually wanting him to be around.

"Well... it'll take me a long time to get home. It looks like it's gonna rain." Ryou's argument was feeble. He didn't even know why he was trying to get away. He should have been jumping for joy, crying with happiness, offering to stay for as long as Malik wanted because he was so desperate for a friend.

He supposed it was because he knew that as soon as Malik got to know him, he would abandon him. Like someone discovering a new toy has no batteries.

"Please stay." Malik saturated the request with as much of his loneliness as he could muster. He even threw in the tiniest hint of lust, feeling terribly deceitful as he did so.

"I don't know..." Ryou was wavering.

"Hey, I know! You could come to my house," Malik said, abandoning his smouldering facade. "It'll be fun, I promise! I need you to tell me where I can find out about Domino High. I'm starting there on Monday."

"I go to that school. It's the only school in this city," Ryou said, fighting down the urge to shriek girlishly at this news.

"Really? Oh, thank God for that!" Malik leapt up from his seat and placed a hand lightly on Ryou's arm. "You have to come round now!"

"I... okay."

Normally Ryou might have put up more resistance, but he was distracted momentarily by the tan hand that was now loosely gripping his own. He felt heat rise to his face as he realised this, and found himself thinking.

Should I hold tighter?

This isn't what two guy friends (strangers!) normally do, is it?

Should I let go?

...I hope my hand isn't sweaty.

But before Ryou could do anything, the hand withdrew and buried itself firmly in his companions pocket. Internally, he mourned the loss.

The short walk to Malik's house passed quickly, Ryou soaking up Malik's bubbly chatter like the sunlight pouring between the trees as they crossed Domino Park.

"You probably think I'm a complete freak, asking you over after five minutes," Malik said, chuckling. His eyes gleamed in the sun, translucently purple. Ryou often found himself staring into those eyes as they were talking.

"No. Of course not."

"Liar. You're lying. But I don't mind being a freak."

Eventually they came to a square, ugly block of flats, all dull, rust coloured bricks and plastic window frames. Malik started up the steps that led inside the building. Ryou followed, taking in the scenery. He wasn't familiar with this side of Domino at all.

Which, he privately decided, was probably a good thing.

"Here we are. Home sweet home!" Malik said brightly as they walked down the damp smelling corridor with a rather hideous green carpet. There was no hiding the undertone of bitterness in his voice.

As they walked along, an elderly couple emerged from 13B.

"Good morning!" they said.

"Good morning." Malik answered, with a strange expression on his face. After they had gone, he burst out laughing.

"What?" Ryou asked

"Oh God...Nothing, it's just..." Malik dissolved into giggles once more, and Ryou gave up.

They entered flat 21B, Malik flinging open the door and throwing his bag onto the small sofa. Ryou took off his shoes, privately wondering how three people could be living in a house the size of his front room.

Maybe I'm just lucky. He's probably used to it by now. Ryou thought, feeling slightly guilty that their huge house was wasted on a family of two.

"Want a drink?" Malik asked, tucking a strand of blonde hair behind his ear. He had evidently recovered from his giggling fit.

Ryou jumped. "Erm... yes please. What do you have?"

"Tea, coffee, water, orange juice..." Malik said, rattling off a list of beverages as he wandered around the kitchen.

"...Beer, vodka, wine, eggnog..."

"Eggnog?" Ryou giggled uncertainly.

"Kidding." Malik grinned at him. Ryou's eyes wandered to the calendar on the wall behind him. Someone had circled one of the days in a rainbow of glittery gel pens and written 'Malik's BDay!' in huge purple letters.

"It's your birthday soon?" Ryou asked.

"Yes! I'm going to be seventeen. I don't think I'll be having a party though. I don't know any hot boys or girls in this town." Malik turned around from the tea he'd decided to make and winked at Ryou. "Except you, of course."

Ryou blushed. "Yeah, right."

"Silly Ryou. Look in the mirror once in a while. Not that I fancy you, of course."

Ryou tried not to be flattered, but failed miserably.

"You know, our old house wasn't this small," Malik said, turning to face Ryou, a mug in each hand.

"Really?"

"Yeah. It wasn't a mansion or anything, but...it was nice, you know? It was home." Malik frowned and began pouring water into the two mugs.

Ryou sighed.

If only I knew...

He looked away, suddenly feeling decidedly miserable.

Malik noticed his expression. "Hey, what's up?"

Ryou turned back, instinctively pulling his face into a fake smile. "Oh, nothing!"

Malik gave him a disbelieving look and thumped the kettle down on the counter. "Oh really? I may not be the most intelligent person, but I'm not stupid."

"Ok. It's not nothing. It's just not important," Ryou said, looking down at his feet. Malik smiled at him, his bad mood gone in an instant.

"Well, good! This is way too heavy for me," Malik suddenly reached over and grabbed him by the arm.

Again.

"Come on. You have to tell me about Domino High. I want to know everything. Teachers, students, food."

Ryou found himself being dragged unceremoniously across the living room and into what appeared to be Malik's bedroom.

"It's tiny, I know," Malik said, not sounding in the least apologetic. He pushed Ryou down onto the bed and then sat down next to him. The bed creaked loudly.

"It doesn't sound like it can support two people," Ryou said nervously, glancing down. Sure, it seemed stable, but he didn't want to go to someone's house and start breaking things.

"Of course it can support two people. What do you use your bed for? Sleeping?"

"What el – oh!" Ryou suddenly realised what Malik had been implying, and felt himself flush. Malik burst out laughing.

"Oh, you're blushing! How cute." He pinched Ryou's cheek, which didn't help with the blushing problem.

"This is so embarrassing..." Ryou whined, covering his face. "Don't look at me."

"Rosy cheeks are cute."

"Ugh." Ryou shook his head vigorously.

"You're so funny, Ryou. Lucky I left my bag in the theatre, eh? Otherwise I might never have found you."

Ryou removed his hands from his face so he could look at his companion properly. Had he really heard what he thought he'd just heard?

"You're actually glad you met me?" he asked uncertainly.

"Well, duh. Why wouldn't I be? You seem nice enough."

"I'm not very interesting," Ryou mumbled, looking down at his knees. This confident, funny person couldn't possibly want to be his friend. Not really.

He'd been trying not to think about that.

"Who cares? I'm interesting enough for both of us!" Malik said jokingly, trying to lighten the atmosphere.

Ryou wouldn't be cheered up. "As soon as you meet someone better, you won't want to hang out with me anymore."

"Don't be so pessimistic."

"I'm not being pessimistic; I'm being realistic." Malik winced at the bitterness in Ryou's voice. It was clear he was talking from past experience.

"Whoever's done that before... I'm not like them. I don't give up on people."

"But you will. I know you will. It doesn't matter how nice you are, or how nice you think you are. When it comes to Ryou, no one even cares." Ryou stumbled over the words in his hurry to get them out; he hadn't even realised he was going to say them.

"It doesn't matter about anyone else. I'm not like that. I swear."

"Yeah, right. My own parents are like that, and they're supposed to love me unconditionally."

Malik frowned.

Ryou could feel himself welling up, but fought it down. He was not going to cry. Especially not for his parents, who he hadn't cried over in years.

Something about revealing his emotions made everything more real. For all his life he'd bottled up everything he'd felt, but now the bottle had shattered.

And broken bottles can be sharp.

He bowed his head and looked away, not seeing the boxes stacked up in the corner of Malik's room, but remembering.

Birthdays, Christmas, meals, school, parties.

Times when Ryou should have been happy.

Like today. He should be happy being with Malik, but instead, he was practically crying.

Poor Ryou, Malik was probably thinking.

He'll probably ask me, very quietly, whether I want to go home. I'll say yes.

Then he'll ask if I want him to walk me. I'll say no.

And then I'll walk home by myself. As usual.

And then everything will go back to normal.

"Oh, for God's sake, come here."

Ryou felt a pair of arms wrap themselves around him from behind. Malik leaned his head on Ryou's shoulder, resting his chest against Ryou's back. It was slightly awkward, but mostly just comforting. Ryou found himself leaning backwards into the hug, despite his initial surprise.

"Are you crying?" Malik asked cautiously.

"No."

"Good. I'm awful if anyone cries. I'm no use at all."

Ryou tried to move, but Malik had him trapped. He felt Malik's laugh vibrate through his back.

"Oh no, you don't. You aren't going anywhere until you start being happy!" Malik chirped.

"You'll have to keep me here for a while, then," Ryou muttered, wiping his eyes. He could feel his previous shyness returning now that he was done pouring his heart onto the carpet.

"I won't. I'm the resident ray of sunshine. Just think about me, and how awesome I am. That'll cheer you up."

Ryou couldn't help it. He laughed at that.

"See! Point proven," Malik said triumphantly, poking Ryou in the side. "Now shift, Rosy. It's time to do something else."

"Rosy?"

"Oh yes."

"Please don't call me that at school."

"I'll try."

Ryou sighed, smiling, and stood up, Malik having finally released him. He caught sight of a clock on Malik's dresser. The time didn't really register at first, the clock being draped in necklaces, but after a few seconds of squinting, Ryou's eyes widened in horror.

"Quarter to six?" he yelped. "I really have to go now!"

Where the hell did all that time go? He asked himself as he dashed from Malik's room towards the front door. It took all of three seconds.

Well, that's one advantage of having a small house, he thought as he pulled on his shoes.

His mother was always home at the weekends, and this would be the first time in about seven years he hadn't been there to greet her like a little automaton, pretty and lifeless.

"Bye Malik! Sorry!" he said as he ran out the door.

"So I'll see you at school on Monday?" Malik asked, running a few paces after him.

"Sure! Definitely," Ryou said, waving as he dashed down the stairs.

It was already dark outside, and the chill of winter was just starting to settle in. Ryou's breath misted as he sprinted across the road and towards the bus station.

"Ryou!"

He stopped and turned. He could see Malik hanging out of the window of his flat.

"What?" he yelled back.

"You didn't drink your tea!" The sound of Malik's indignant wail had Ryou giggling to himself as he set of again towards home, happier than he had been in a long time.

Thanks for reading!

I love reviews...hint hint. Please?

CC is greatly appreciated (although I get plenty from my Beta, FIVER)!

Kal277 x