A/N: Welcome to chapter 6 of Overcoming Differences!

It took me a while to get started on this chapter, since I had only bits and pieces of it planned. Once I did start on it, it went surprisingly well though. Anyways, my job is nearly over and then I can relax over summer…sort of. I need to find a new job, and that's a real bitch…

Without further ado, I'll let you get to reading this new chapter. Remember that I don't own Yu-gi-oh! or any of its characters, that mobiumshipping rocks, and that I love reviews.

Enjoy!

0o0o0

Doing it for you

Yami was feeling vibrant. It had been a while since he had felt this energised, and it was all thanks to a certain someone's surprise visit and the subsequent phone call with another. Even Dartz couldn't deny that his charge was looking better than he had in a few weeks. The way he conducted himself during interviews, fan meetings and the shows themselves was notably different. Before Atem had decided to show up Yami's fatigue made him only dutifully performing these tasks. Even though the fans hadn't seemed to notice, those who were close to Yami had. But now everything was different. Pharaoh was laughing heartily with a few fans as he handed out his autograph. It was actually his own idea. They were at a music festival, and Yami didn't have to go on stage until another hour, so had announced that he wanted to kill time by meeting the people who came to see him. It seemed like such a small matter, but Dartz knew that it would only improve Pharaoh's reputation, so had eagerly approved of the suggestion. And it was paying off. It was such a joy to see his charge give it that little bit of extra effort, and see the smiles on everyone's faces. He grudgingly adjusted his opinion of keeping distracting factors like his boyfriends away from Yami while on tour, because he now witnessed the positive effects of the surprise visit first hand.

More people started to join the small group surrounding Pharaoh, but luckily Rafael was nearby to make sure everything went fine. Yami didn't have to worry about a thing as he handed out his autograph and briefly chatted with the people around him before moving on to the next one. It was a bit of a challenge at times, with Yami being Japanese and them being in China. Yami's English was good enough to use as a lingua franca, but many of his fans only spoke it brokenly. But with hands and feet and a little bit of time they were all able to get the meaning across, and Not a single fan was left wanting, as Yami took his time to address every single one of them. Everyone was smiling and laughing. Many of the girls were blushing profusely, while the more daring ones actually flirted with him. Yami brushed them all off, but let them down easily. They left with slight disappointment, but satisfaction at the same time.

But suddenly the gathering people started to stir. Somewhere near the back of the line was going on that drew Rafael's attention. Yami didn't notice it at first, but after a while he heard a voice calling over the crowd. They couldn't understand what was being said, because it was spoken in another language. They were still in China, and neither of them spoke a word of any of the languages spoken there, but they could distinctly hear that someone was crying, while other voices sounded angry.

"What's going on?" Yami wondered out loud, momentarily forgetting the fan he was talking to in favour of finding out what was wrong.

"I'll go check it out, you stay here." Rafael said, nodding briefly to Dartz, who was standing a little ways off, to signal him that he was going to leave the pop singer's side for a moment.

Dartz nodded back his approval, but tensed a little bit. If there was any trouble, then they would have to cut this meet and greet short in favour of Yami's protection and keeping public order. He hoped Rafael would be able to solve whatever issue that was going on.

Rafael slowly made his way through the crowd, using his large frame and his authority as security guard to order people to stand aside. Letting the angry shouts and cries guide him, he eventually reached the location. There he saw a crying kid in a wheelchair hopelessly trying to secure a spot in the line while the people around him simply ignored him and moved past him despite the boy's calls, which sounded both desperate and angry. Some people even had the audacity to become angry at his efforts and shout something back that sounded like insults. Judging from the boy's heated reaction to the words they were. Rafael felt his blood boil. The sight was despicable, and the fact that no one was standing up for the poor boy made it even more so. He knew Yugi personally, and was glad to consider him a friend, so this situation hit a sensitive nerve. But even if he hadn't known the disabled young man he would have done the same thing he was about to do now.

"Hey!" He roared over the crowd, effectively getting their attention, "What's going on here!" He demanded to know in English.

The people fell silent at first, intimidated by The security guard's commanding presence, but eventually one man spoke up, "This boy think, he in wheelchair, he go first."

Despite the broken English of the man, Rafael clearly understood that the man was trying to imply that the boy had tried to jump the queue. He felt like the man had guts claiming that, since Rafael had witnessed the man moving to stand in front of the boy himself just moments before.

The boy, despite his age, had also clearly understood what the man was trying to accuse him of, and immediately shouted in response. "That not true! I first here. They go before me!"

"You wait turn cripple."

Rafael saw that this final comment hit the boy hard and made him burst out in even more tears. He too was amazed by how carelessly this man had used the offending term. It was just the lowest of the low to use someone's disability against them. He decided that he had seen and heard enough, "Enough!" He bellowed, causing everyone to shut up and turn their attention back to him, "I saw how you people all walked past him and shouted at him. Even though I didn't understand what you were saying the meaning was clear to me. You people should all be ashamed of yourselves to treat this boy like you have. Everyone has the right to meet Pharaoh, and it disgusts me that you deny him this simple right just because he's in a wheelchair. Pharaoh will not like this when he hears of it, and I will make sure that he will." Rafael then walked up to the boy and stood behind his wheelchair. Many of the people there understood only half what he was saying, but it was enough to make them stare at him in fright. They silently parted so he could roll the boy to where Yami was waiting.

Yami was surprised when he saw Rafael walk behind a wheelchair. For a moment he thought that Yugi had been able to come on a surprise visit after all, but his excitement soon waned when he noticed that it wasn't Yugi who was in that wheelchair, but a boy who was rubbing his face with his arms, "What happened?" He asked as soon as Rafael had joined him.

"This boy was trying to get in line to see you, but those people over there wouldn't allow him to."

"What? Why?" Yami asked in bewilderment.

"Beats me." Rafael replied with a shrug, "I guess these people just like picking on the weak."

"That's awful." Yami replied, glaring angrily at the crowd still gathered around him. Some had the decency to look a bit guilty, while other just didn't seem to care.

Yami bend down through his knees so he could address the boy more comfortably. Tears were still rolling over his cheek, but he was looking at him in awe. Yami smiled at him to reassure him, and reached out with his thumb to brush the tears away, "What's your name?" He asked gently.

"Leon." The boy answered timidly.

Yami smiled again, "Well Leon. Did you want to see me?"

Leon nodded vigorously, "Yes! You be my idol!"

Yami chuckled at the boy's enthusiasm. At the same time he was glad that the boy understood him despite his obvious lack of English skills, "And why is that?"

The boy opened the small bag that he had slung across his shoulders, letting the pouch rest on his lap. He took out a cd box and held it out to the pop singer. Yami took it so he could take a closer look, noticing it was a copy of his single Follow your Dreams.

"My dream," The boy started to explain, "I want walk. Out of wheelchair. Doctor say it can. Song make me strong."

Yami closed his eyes and smiled, nearly moved to tears. His own disabled boyfriend wanted him to follow his dreams as a singer, and it ironically caused this disabled boy to provide him the strength that Yugi never could have. It somehow made it all worth it. He reopened his eyes to look back at Leon, seeing the strength in his eyes, "I think that that is a very beautiful dream Leon. I'm glad I can help you achieve it."

Leon beamed at the praise, all traces of his earlier sadness gone and seemingly forgotten, "Sign my cd?" He asked hopeful.

"Of course I will Leon." Yami took his pen and opened the case. He found some open space on the backside of the small booklet serving as the front cover. He wrote:

Dear Leon,

Work hard and you will walk again.

Follow your dreams.

~Pharaoh

Leon was so happy when his idol returned his cd that Yami almost expected him to jump out of his wheelchair and start dancing. It made him feel very satisfied that he had been able to draw the reaction out of the boy. But then he turned more thoughtful, and shyly looked back to his idol, "Why you care so much?" He asked.

Yami winked at him, "Let me tell you something Leon. A very dear friend of mine is in a wheelchair, so I know how hard it can be."

Leon's eyes grew big, "Really?"

Yami nodded, "But he is also a great person and a very good friend. I try not to look at his wheelchair whenever I see him, and just look at the person sitting in it. That way he isn't any different from somebody who can walk."

"Wow." Leon sighed in admiration, now understanding why his idol was being so nice to him. It made him idolise him even more.

Yami would have loved to talk to him more, perhaps tell him a little bit more about Yugi, but Dartz interfered by telling him it was almost time for him to go on stage. If it weren't the truth then Yami would have thought Dartz was trying to prevent him from spilling too much about his personal life. Not that Yami saw any harm in talking about his boyfriend as long as he kept that final detail to himself, but Dartz tended to get a little bit paranoid every now and then. So with regret Yami said his goodbyes to Leon and the other fans that were still gathered around him, and focussed on his upcoming performance, telling himself it would be for both Leon and Yugi.

0o0o0

Mondays were the worst. Having to get up early with the prospect that this would be only the first of the upcoming five days wasn't something Atem looked forward to. At least he had a small bit of salvation knowing that the alarm clock that was currently pulling him from his sleep wasn't meant for him yet.

Yugi shifted on his chest and reached out to silence the offending machine. It was six-thirty in the morning, and it was time for him to get up. Atem had the luxury to be able to stay in bed for another half an hour. Ironically they both started their jobs at eight o'clock, and the administrative office where Yugi worked was situated near Kaiba Corp headquarters where Atem worked. The reason Yugi had to get up earlier was simply because he needed the extra half an hour to get ready for his day. At times it was annoying, since he too would rather stay in bed for another half an hour, but at the same time he was used to the routine by now. Even if he would forget to set his alarm clock he would still wake up at six-thirty. Besides, it wasn't like this was an odd time to get up compared to other working people. Still, the fact that Yugi had to witness Atem lazing about for a moment longer didn't really improve his mood.

Yugi stretched and yawned, moving to get out of bed. Once he had he looked back at his sleeping boyfriend, noticing how, like usual, he had fallen asleep again. He shook his head and rolled over to the closet to get some fresh clothes. Unlike the easy clothes he wore on weekends and off days, he picked out a more fitting set of clothes for work. The administrative office he worked at didn't have a strict code on what to wear, mainly because any contact with clients was mostly conducted over email or phone, but Yugi felt that it wasn't very appropriate for him to be wearing a simple t-shirt and sweatpants. So instead he got out a nice pair of jeans and a casual buttoned-up shirt, and moved over to the bathroom to change.

After removing his sleeping wear and relieving himself on the toilet he took out a wet washcloth and set out to gently rub himself clean. He did it this way because he loved how it made him feel fresh and clean, but he didn't want to go through all the hassle to take a shower. He simply did that whenever he could take the time for it, but didn't want to get out of bed another half an hour earlier for it, so it was usually on his off days that he did.

By the time he was done and had finished dressing himself he heard the alarm clock rang again in the other room, signalling Atem's time to get up. A few moments later said person sleepily walked into the bathroom, "Morning squirt." He greeted with a yawn.

Yugi smiled, "Morning sleepyhead."

Atem looked at Yugi attentively at the greeting, frowning a bit, "Is that your nickname for me?"

Yugi chuckled, "It's not something I could use in every situation, so I guess not."

"Then keep working on it." Atem replied as he turned so he could use the toilet.

Yugi just rolled his eyes and left the room to give his boyfriend some privacy, and started to make his way downstairs. Their short conversation replayed in his mind as the stair lift slowly made his way down. He thought it was odd how he was so comfortable at calling Yami 'sweetheart', and how nice it felt to be called 'aibou'. At the same time it was nice that Atem referred to him as 'squirt', despite the illusion that Atem was insulting him. Atem also liked to call Yami 'darling', a common nickname, but for some reason Atem always said it with a little bit of mockery, as if he was being melodramatic. It made the whole 'squirt' thing feel all that more normal. But that's where the endearing nicknames stopped. Neither Yami nor Yugi had a term to use for their other lover. Over the past few weeks Yugi had been trying to figure something out, but had so far been unsuccessful. None of the common nicknames seemed to fit Atem. He was simply just too rough to be referred to as 'dear', 'pumpkin' or even 'honey', and coming up with his own unique nickname had proven to be very difficult. Atem was fine with just being called 'Atem', but loved teasing him relentlessly about his efforts, just like he did just now. But someday, Yugi swore, he would find the perfect nickname for Atem.

0o0o0

As Atem entered his office at Kaiba Corp, he found his cousin Seto waiting for him there. He frowned and checked his watch, "Unless my working hours have been changed without me being notified of it, I'm perfectly on time, so to what do I owe my cousin's visit?"

Seto scowled at him, which only caused Atem to chuckle because he was used to his cousin's foul moods by now. Even though they both owned twenty-five percent of Kaiba Corp, the remaining fifty being equally divided among their fathers, Seto always seemed like he was trying to find fault in any of Atem's work, even going as far as making sure he showed up on time. Atem didn't really mind the former, since it made sure he was always on top of his work and producing nothing short of the best. He was always confused about the latter though, since he had never been late ever since he started working at their father's company twelve years ago. But he guessed Seto should do whatever made him happy, and in general they got along just fine, so he wasn't too bothered.

"Don't flatter yourself cousin." Seto growled in response, "I only came here to personally tell you that our negotiations with Atlantis have been successful, and that your idea for the Pharaoh Music Studio has been approved by the board. My team has already started working on the technical aspects of the programme, and you should start working on the graphics. Our fathers want the first draft to be presented to them by the end of next week, so you had better get your ass into gear."

The news made Atem light up immediately despite the commanding tone Seto used. The Pharaoh Music Studio had been an idea that had been haunting him for a while now, and he had spent hours hammering out the details. The idea was nothing short of revolutionary, and would provide a whole new area to both music games and music programmes. In short, it allowed users to play Pharaoh's existing songs, but also create their own. Throw in a bit of rpg-like elements and an online exchange and battle features, and it could keep gamers and programmers alike hooked up for decades to come. During his preliminary research Atem had even found a company that showed promise of being able to synthesise Yami's voice from text to speech. In layman's terms, programmers would be able to input the lyrics to the song they've created and let the programme translate it into actual singing. The possibilities were so diverse that even Seto had become excited at the idea, and would be personally overseeing the programming of the game / programme. This was probably also the reason why he had brought this news to him personally.

"That's great! I've got to tell Yugi straight away!" He exclaimed with a huge grin as he made his way over to the phone on his desk.

"Just a moment cousin." Seto interrupted him, causing him to stop his advance on his desk and frown at him in question. Seto then sighed and let go some of his rigid posture. For a moment he looked very vulnerable, and it confused Atem, since he had never seen his cousin like that, "There was something else that I wanted to talk to you about."

Atem cocked his head and crossed his arms across his chest. He observed his normally composed cousin for a moment, trying to read him. He seemed conflicted, hesitant even. For a moment he feared that there was still a problem concerning the project, but Seto's behaviour quickly made him discard the notion. He simply wouldn't behave like this if it was work related. The only moments where Atem saw the actual person behind Seto's mechanic demeanour was when his little brother Mokuba was concerned, so this had to be something personal, "What is it?"

Seto turned to stand in front of the window and looking at the world outside, as if not looking at his cousin would make talking about what he wanted to talk about easier, "Promise not to laugh Atem?" He requested after a brief moment of contemplation. The sincerity in his voice made the situation all that more serious, and Atem more curious.

"I promise Seto, so tell me what's on your mind. You seem troubled." He said honestly as he moved to stand beside his cousin.

From the corner of his eye Atem could see Seto sigh again and bow his head in resignation. He was truly uncomfortable with whatever was bothering him, "You have a friend who is blonde, right?"

"Joey?" Atem questioned, receiving a nod from Seto, "Yeah, he's Yugi's best friend and colleague and a good friend of mine. Why?"

"I think I might have feelings for him."

Atem's eyes grew big and he turned to fully face his cousin with his mouth agape. Of all people he would have never thought his cousin to admit he had a crush on someone. He was simply too dedicated to the company to have any time to fraternise, let alone even think about starting a relationship with anyone other than Kaiba Corp itself. Seto looked away as if ashamed, staring at the wall to avoid his cousin's bewildered stare.

"But…how?" Atem finally managed to say.

Atem was taken aback by the sudden glare directed his way again, "Just because I'm a workaholic and dedicated to this company doesn't mean that I don't have feelings Atem!" He barked accusingly.

Atem held up his hands in silent apology, "Easy there cousin. It just comes as a bit of a surprise is all." Seto huffed at the reply and turned his attention back to the world outside the window. Atem lowered his hands and continued, "But what I meant was how do you know that you have a crush on him? You don't even know him."

"Remember that party two weeks ago?"

Atem nodded. Their company had sold one million copies of their latest game in record time, so their fathers had decided to celebrate the achievement with a company party. Friends and family had also been invited, so Atem had taken along Yugi. Yugi in turn had taken along Joey, because he was avid fan of the game and really wanted to come.

Realisation then dawned on Atem. That's when Seto must have seen Joey. He even remembered that Joey had really wanted to meet Seto. Since Atem had his own obligations during the evening he had left his boyfriend and friend alone for a part of the evening. Something must have happened within that time to explain Seto's sudden confession. "So, did you talk to him there?" Atem asked.

Seto nodded, "Only briefly. I was called away moments after he had approached me, but for some reason he hasn't left my head."

Atem nodded sympathetically, "What do you want to do about it?"

Seto then turned back to face his cousin, an unsure expression on his face, "I seriously don't know. I have never felt anything like this before. That's why I came to you for advice."

Atem sighed deeply and ran a hand through his hair, "To be honest with you Seto, I don't think you and Joey could work out. He's very different from you, and I doubt whether you would fully understand what is necessary in any kind of relationship." Seto looked like he was about to protest, but Atem held up a hand to silence him as he continued, "But I don't want to stand in the way of what could be. I'll talk to Yugi about this, and maybe he can arrange for the two of you to meet up and get to know each other. We'll see what happens from there."

Seto nodded and resumed his normal, rigid composure, "Have him contact my secretary. She'll be able to find a spot for such a meeting. But for now, you'd better start working on your project."

Now it was time for Atem to try and protest. His cousin's reaction clearly indicated that his suspicions were right, but his cousin had already left his office before he could say anything. Atem sighed again and ran another hand through his hair. He truly wanted his cousin to be happy and find someone who could stab through his dedication for the company and settle down with him. At the same time he was worried that Joey was going to get hurt by Seto's twisted conception of a relationship. He would have to talk to Yugi about it when he got home, but for now he had to focus on this project.

0o0o0

Afternoon had come around and Yugi was rolling down the familiar hallways of Domino City Hospital. He only worked during the morning hours at the office, and was now on his way to his regular appointment with his physical therapist. He had to wait for a short while after he had announced his presence at the front desk, but soon doctor Valentine appeared around the corner to retrieve him.

"How are you doing today, hon?" She asked as he shook his hand in greeting.

"I'm fine Mai, thank you." He replied with a smile. He then moved to follow her to the exercise room.

"Have you been doing your exercises at home?" She continued asking.

"Zealously. I want to surprise my boyfriend when he gets back home in two months, so I've been working very hard."

Mai chuckled warmly. It hadn't taken her long to become accustomed to treating Yugi after she took over from doctor Hawkins, and the two had gotten really comfortable around each other. She even knew about him having two boyfriends, having met Atem personally during Yugi's first session with her and simply knowing the other one was called Yami. But even though the real identity of this other boyfriend was a mystery to her, Yugi had confided in her to share a very special wish he had ever since she had told him it should be able for him to gain a little bit more strength in his legs. It involved this elusive boyfriend, and Mai couldn't help but try a little bit harder to help him achieve it before Yami came back home.

"Well, let's assess your progress then." She said as they arrived at the parallel bars.

Yugi positioned his wheelchair between the bars and put it on its brakes. Then he grabbed the bars and hoisted himself up. Balancing himself with his arms he slowly put more of his weight on his legs. The moment he would let go of the bars he would drop to the floor. His legs simply weren't strong enough to hold his weight like this, nor would they ever, but two months ago could only put a marginal amount of weight on his legs for temporary support before they would buckle under the strain. Now he could nearly put all of his weight on his legs for a few seconds as long as he supported himself with his arms. Once he was standing upright he slowly bend his elbows and allowed his knees to bend along with the movement. It was only a small movement to the observer, but any more and Yugi would be forced to drop himself to the floor. His arms were strong due to years of rolling a wheelchair along, but even they had their limits. His next task was to try to get upright again, but by using his legs to push back instead of his arms. He repeated this exercise a few times until he became tired and plopped back into his wheelchair.

Mai shot him a bright smile as she scribbled something down on his file, "You did great Yugi. You did more than last time. Let's move on to the next exercise, okay?"

Yugi smiled at the praise and nodded. During the remaining hour he did all sorts of exercises testing his leg strength with Mai correcting him where needed. She also gave him a couple more suggestions of things he could do at home. Overall, she was very pleased with his progress. She guessed he had the right motivation. He wasn't only doing it for himself, but also for someone else. His dedication to his boyfriends made him push himself to the limit to achieve his dream before Yami came back home, and Mai was happy to guide her favourite patient through the process.

0o0o0

A/N: Lots of characters doing something for someone else in this chapter.I thought I'd keep Yami out of the picture, but I didn't want him gone. There would simply be too much Yugi and Atem if I hadn't. In the end, I'm very pleased with how that scene turned out. I even gave Leon a cameo! Put him in a wheelchair though, hehe. I think the scene is fairly canon otherwise though. What do you think?

The puppyshipping was so unplanned, but I wanted to have a little bit of interaction between Atem and Seto. In the end I've thought of a way I could incorporate the entire meaning of this story in this little side-story. Don't worry for those who don't like the shipping. It won't be a major part of the story. I might even wrap it up in the next chapter. Will Atem's worries prove to be unfounded?

I've had this idea to do a physical therapy scene in my head ever since the beginning of the story, but man was it hard to write. I wanted it to be longer, but I seriously didn't know what to tell that wouldn't make it boring. I think I have given you a little insight in what Yugi hopes to achieve though. If it's still confusing, then I might have to add a little bit more. Let me know please!

On a final note, this chapter addresses an issue that has been bothering me for a while now. The nicknames. It just feels odd that both Yami and Yugi don't have a nickname for Atem, and I can't up with anything. Suggestions are welcome!

Next chapter: More puppyshipping. Depending on the response I will either wrap that up or give it a bit more love in subsequent chapters. We'll also get some more insight in the exercises Yugi does at home, along with his other activities.