Ch. 5 Hellfire
Yuugi sat on the floor in his room, both his body and gaze unmoving. All around him was what he called "organized chaos": school books covered the table, game boxes were stacked up and arranged on a low coffee table in a certain order only Yuugi understood and a tangled mess of various pieces of clothing blanketed every inch of the carpeted floor. This was a normal room for an average teen, except for the baby blue walls with cute animal decals, softly illuminated by the morning sun peeking through the skylight in the ceiling. However today Yuugi couldn't care less about the annoying childish wallpaper, as he had a problem of a century before him to solve: what was he going to wear to his date with Yami? Wait, Yuugi smacked himself, did I just say "date"? It's not a date you dumbass, Yami probably doesn't even know what a date is!
Yuugi exhaled a held up breath exasperatedly. After the awkward dinner at the Burger World the other day, Yami pulled Yuugi aside and told him he was worried and wanted to see Yuugi soon (of course he said that while nonchalantly gripping Yuugi's sweaty palms). So what could this be other than a date?
Yuugi shook his head. A good few days had passed since then and he was still getting his hopes up and beating himself down for it periodically. An unrelenting feeling nagged at him, telling he was going to be disappointed at the end. I'm not even sure I like him that way. Fuck, am I even gay? Yuugi thought while picking at his skin absent-mindedly. He always had a sneaking suspicion, but never delved deeper into his feelings, as that would've brought way too many problems to deal with emotionally.
Door creaking open made Yuugi look up to see the intruder he dreaded the most.
"Yuugi, are you up?" Mrs. Mutou asked before looking around to see the messy state of the room. "God, Yuugi, what is all this? Clean up right now. Or you're not going anywhere. Anyway, come down for breakfast."
Yuugi didn't bother to answer and stared at the door long after his mom left. A familiar tingle itched his eyes, but Yuugi didn't give in to it, abruptly stood up and grabbed the shirt that was his initial choice, a sleeveless black shirt with a metal band's skull logo, paired with a black long sleeved mesh blouse underneath.
Yuugi remembered his mom's warning right before leaving, so he hurriedly kicked the loose clothing under the bed and bolted out. If he was fast enough, no one could stop him and guilt trip him into staying at home, and so he ran as if his life depended on it, down the stairs, past the kitchen and his family, shouting excuses behind his shoulder. Yuugi pulled on his white converse shoes with smudged black stars drawn on them and dashed outside, cherishing the warm wind brushing out and messing up his hair for him.
Yuugi slowed down only when he reached a park's edge where he found an empty bench. A little secluded from the park visitors passing by, it was the perfect spot to pull out a mirror and eyeliner. After twenty minutes of meticulous drawing around the eyes, Yuugi looked into his tiny hand mirror with a hint of satisfaction. Maybe his eyes were lined a bit too heavily and maybe just a tad bit too femininely, but no one could deny the boy looked pretty. Feeling ready for whatever was about to come, Yuugi could finally head to Burger World.
~O~
This is fucking unfair, Yuugi quietly fumed by himself. Because of all the hold ups he arrived to the meeting late and, guess what, all his friends for some reason were already there. Yami nodded a silent greeting, awkwardly huddled away in the same corner he always sat at, with Jou squishing into his side and angrily pushing Anzu away who for some reason wanted to sit together with them. Yuugi slumped his shoulders and plopped in the seat next to Honda in front of the uncomfortably huddled trio. Yuugi glanced to his left to greet Honda, but he was intently reading a newspaper, hands shaking a bit. Yuugi hadn't seen his friend so shaken reading the morning news before, so he leaned closer to Honda and peered at the column he was reading. It was something about a serial killer who escaped prison nearby Domino city and the headlines warned citizens to be careful and stay at home after the sunset. Yuugi shrugged, even though there was a high possibility of the killer coming into the city, he doubted they would encounter him. After all, the city was quite large and had a big population, what were the odds of them running into one person?
"Don't worry, Honda," said Yuugi with a faint smile and added, "An escaped criminal wouldn't randomly decide to eat at a crowded burger restaurant."
"What do you know?" Honda snapped back, slamming the newspaper shut.
Yuugi recoiled at the harsh tone. Everyone at the table quieted down. Jounouchi leaned back in his seat as much as he could while being squashed on both sides and looked at Yuugi with those pleading puppy eyes of his. Yuugi knew exactly what he was asking for, but only shrugged. He had tried to talk to Honda several times over the week, but all his attempts at reestablishing peace were futile. According to Honda, he was hanging out with them still only because he didn't trust Yami and was ready to throw fists in case it was needed.
"I… I think Yuug's right!" Jou exclaimed, trying to sound cheerful and break the uncomfortable silence.
However, Yuugi forgot to take his shit luck into account. Just when he was about to open his mouth to reassure Honda again, the restaurant's doors swung open. In the loud clamor of voices and food trays being pushed around the tables no one paid attention to the scrawny man in a dirty orange uniform who stood in the doorway seemingly waiting to be seated. When no one came up to him, the man scanned every person until Yuugi's group caught his eye. He leisurely stalked over, never letting his target out of his sight.
Before anyone could react, the man was already looming over Anzu with a gun pressed to her head. A loud gasp escaped Yuugi's lips and Honda went stiff and pale, for they were the only two who could see what was happening. Seeing their horrified faces Anzu turned a bit and screamed.
The busy clamor in the cheery restaurant's atmosphere died down within seconds. The killer rushed to shout with a hoarse voice, "Everyone shut the fuck up and get on the floor! Or I'm splashing this girl's brains on her friend!"
When everyone froze over, the killer licked his lips, satisfied with the compliance. Since no one dared to even breathe, he decided to up his demands.
"All right everyone, good job!" He grabbed Anzu's arm, twisted it behind her back and pulled her out of the seat.
Finally fully seeing the situation, Jou clenched his fists, shaking with frustration. Even though he wasn't being pushed against Yami anymore, he didn't dare move an inch. The killer motioned for the gang to get up and sat at their table with trembling Anzu still in his grasp while Yuugi stiffly observed.
At first Yuugi wracked his brain trying to look for a possible escape from the terrifying situation, but the more he stared at the gun in the killer's hand, the more dissociated he became. It was just not fair. Anzu was his first real friend. Why should she die such a pointless death?
"Yuug', get down," Jounouchi whispered through clenched teeth and pulled on Yuugi's pants to wake him from his stupor.
Yuugi blinked twice and looked around. Dread settled in his guts when he realized he was the only person in the whole restaurant still standing and the killer was looking directly at him. Yuugi swallowed heavily and was about to slowly lower himself to the floor, when the killer suddenly barked a command, "You! Tiny guy with funny hair! Bring me some booze and cigs!"
Yuugi felt Jou's sweaty grip on the hem of his pants tighten and cast an apologetic look in his direction. He also saw Honda paler than a ghost and Yami, who somehow had kept his cool and only moved his eyes as if calculating his next move.
Yuugi complied and once he brought a tray with a bottle of vodka, pack of cigarettes and a lighter, he placed it before the killer and slowed his movements; he absolutely wanted to make sure Anzu was still alright and help her somehow.
"Hey, what are you dawdling for? Get out of my sight!" The killer shouted, waving his gun which with every swing tapped the side of Anzu's head.
Yuugi wanted to say something, to stand up for himself, to save Anzu; he wanted it so badly he lost his reasoning. He stood there, his lip quivering, as he tried to squeeze out at least a word. With the pressure Yuugi put on himself and the tension of the situation weighing him down, his mental state was like a bent straw on the verge of breaking.
A gentle hand rested on Yuugi's back and Yami's warm breath brushed against Yuugi's ear.
"You gave me enough time to think, it's alright now," Yami whispered and pushed Yuugi gently towards Jou and Honda, both of them still in a petrified state.
"Hey, who gave you permission to get up?!" The killer bellowed. Some teen ignoring his orders was definitely a first.
"Let's play a game," Yami calmly said with a sneer and sat before the killer and Anzu. Anzu locked her eyes on Yami, hope and fear mixing in her eyes.
"Are you crazy? I've got a gun!" The killer shouted, but curiously leaned forward, forgetting Anzu momentarily.
Yami got an exact result he was aiming for, therefore seized the opportunity to direct the madman's attention on him. "The rules are simple. After the start signal each of us can use only one finger pre-chosen right now."
"Alright alright, this is easy. I choose the one on the trigger," the man cackled and pointed his gun at Yami, "I'll shoot you as soon as the game starts."
Yami only hummed in response. He managed to keep a neutral facade, but Anzu had the chance to get to know that dangerous red gleam in the depths of his eyes and could discern the hardly suppressed mocking smirk beneath the relaxed aloof expression. She quietly prayed for Yami to deescalate the situation with minor offences but as one could guess, that was nowhere near what Yami had planned.
After Yami kept silent, the killer became restless. "What are you waiting for?" He said while squirming uncomfortably under Yami's stare and finally released Anzu from his grasp to pour himself a drink. That was exactly the moment Yami had been waiting for.
"Then I choose my thumb," he hastily said, "let the game begin."
The killer froze mid-pouring with the bottle still in his hand and liquid almost to the brim but the surprise lasted only a second. He smiled a wicked grin and lifted his eyes to shoot the pretentious teen; however one second was all Yami needed. When their eyes met, the killer froze up for a second time. Yami was holding a lit lighter above the glass now overflowing with alcohol. Anzu and Yuugi, who could see Yami's actions the clearest, held their breaths; they thought in unison, he wouldn't… right?
Blue flames lit up with red ones to follow, their light masking the brilliant glow on Yami's forehead. Yuugi dove for Anzu, grabbed her by any part he could reach and pulled away from the killer who was flailing his arms around with burning sleeves splashing hot fire on every flammable object. Painful screams left Yuugi's ears ringing, he looked back at the thrashing burning body, the nauseating smell overwhelmed his senses and he felt disoriented. He knew Anzu was nearby, hugging him with crushing strength, but he couldn't draw from that strength and kept his sight glued on the flaming man, every detail of blistering and leaking skin, charred clothes and smoking hair burning into his memory. Yuugi sluggishly searched for the comfort of wine red amidst the blazing madness before blanking out.
~O~
Police sirens blared in the distance, faintly echoing in a narrow alley between two houses. The alley was so narrow, if a couple holding hands were to walk through, they'd barely squeeze in. Always shaded by the two houses and trees growing nearby, the alleyway looked deserted and lifeless, only a dark gray passage between two sunny worlds. It was exactly in this miserable cool tunnel where Yuugi awoke from his comatose state. Anzu and Jou were nearby, trying to catch their breath, with Honda lagging a bit behind; Yami was on Yuugi's other side, leaning against a wall. While staring at Yami's hunched form Yuugi rapidly blinked a couple of times to refocus his vision; when he finally managed to discern the state Yami was in, he gasped, drawing the group's attention.
Yami was leaning his back against the wall for support, as his shaky legs couldn't hold him upright properly; he took quiet shallow breaths, eyes glazed over and cast downwards. Yuugi hesitantly took a step but came to stand within arm's reach; he hadn't seen Yami so shaken yet.
"Y-yami? Are you alright?" Yuugi asked. His voice dripped with concern but at the same time quivered, sobs threatening to spill any second. He swallowed, trying to get rid of the suffocating blob in his throat and this time spoke steadier, "Yami, I'm here, what's wrong?"
Yami's shoulder's still shook. Everyone baited their breaths and waited for him to say something, anything, to reassure them what they had just witnessed was merely a magical illusion. After all, seeing a man being set on fire wasn't a daily occurrence for high school kids.
A tiny laugh was heard from Yami's hunched form; Yuugi, Anzu, Honda and Jounouchi all flinched at the same time.
"I killed him. The shadows told me to punish murderer with death," Yami again humorlessly laughed, "just when I thought I was in control…" his voice cracked and he felt silent.
Yuugi didn't feel the one stray tear rolling down his cheek. With a quivering lip he lifted his arms to do… what? He didn't know himself. How would one show comfort and compassion in this situation?
While Yuugi stood around with arms raised but undecided how to approach Yami, Honda shoved past Jou and Anzu, then violently pushed Yuugi aside and grabbed the collar of Yami's shirt.
"You fucking murderer!" Honda screamed. His grasp on Yami's shirt loosened only to immediately clench into a fist ready to hit. Yuugi saw Honda taking a swing and all hesitation was left forgotten as he jumped to grab onto Honda's arm. Since Honda was much taller and stronger, he came to a halt, standing with his arm still raised and Yuugi dangling from it like a small kid. Jounouchi found the composition of the scene so comical, he snickered, but seeing Anzu's angry glare, stifled his laugh behind his palms.
"Honda, please listen," Yuugi wailed, resembling a fussy child even more, "Yami has some trouble with his powers, but we will find the rest of the Millennium Puzzle and that will solve Yami's problems, right, Yami?"
However, Yami avoided those pleading yet hopeful amethyst eyes. He stepped backwards away from Honda. Yami prayed to his long forgotten gods that Yuugi was right and with every silent prayer took slow deep breaths to keep the shadows buried in his heart. He had long realized the shadows' punishments were far from righteous and a question arose: were his judgements as a pharaoh just as muddled with darkness?
Seeing no end to the argument, Anzu cast a glance at Jou, who only shrugged in response. Anzu bit her lip and opened her mouth, slowly coming up with sentences as she spoke.
"And besides, the killer… actually… might've survived? I think only his clothes got on fire? I've heard of… people surviving terrible… house fires…"
"Oh fuck this!" Honda shouted, shook Yuugi off of him and stomped past Yami, harshly pushing him aside. He walked out of the gloomy alley and turned left, disappearing from everyone's view.
Jou only sighed and patted Yuugi's shoulder. Yuugi locked his teary eyes on Jou's warm honey irises and nodded: he knew Jou was going to catch up to Honda, so he stepped aside to let Jou past him. Anzu also stepped to Yuugi, embraced him in a comforting hug and went the opposite direction of Honda and Jou.
Left alone the two teens seemingly relaxed. Yuugi leaned his back against the wall and slid down into a sitting position. With all the craziness he never got the chance to eat and fatigue was catching up to him. Only now he felt a distinctive itch of makeup mixed with tears, so he took out a small hand mirror and peeked at his reflection, only to cringe and rub under his eyes furiously. A gentle hand rested on Yuugi's palm.
"You're hurting yourself. Let me," Yami softly whispered and carefully wiped the streaks of eyeliner off of Yuugi's cheeks.
"Thanks," Yuugi sniffled and gave Yami a shy smile. "I don't know about you, but I'm very hungry right now, well, maybe not for burgers though."
~O~
With sun almost behind the horizon, Yuugi straightened out a fresh blanket and threw it onto a spare futon on his bedroom floor. After the mandatory polite "no, you should sleep in the bed" argument, Yami agreed to take Yuugi's bed for the night. He made himself comfortable amidst the pillows, piled around him by Yuugi, and spilled the gold Millennium Puzzle pieces on a deep blue pillow in front of him. Yami curiously glanced around, noting that most of the decorative details in Yuugi's room were of blue shades, with yellow star stickers stuck here and there; he found the room adorable, even if the owner of it was currently kicking plush toys into a closet in embarrassment.
"I'm so, so sorry for the mess," whispered Yuugi for a hundredth time, trying not to look at Yami's sunny grin. Sometimes he couldn't tell whether it was sincere or mocking.
"Stop kicking that poor stuffed… horse," Yami furrowed his brow, not entirely sure what the plushy was, "and come here, I think I made some progress."
"It's a giraffe," Yuugi laughed. Oh how adorable Yami could be.
Yuugi shut the closet and came to sit on the bed. The shining king before him wore a spare pair of Yuugi's plain baby blue pajamas, accidentally bought a size too big. Yuugi still couldn't believe his luck: sure, the morning was awful to say the least, but after that Yami let himself be dragged all over town by Yuugi, visiting arcades and game stores, eating at street food stalls and chatting about a thousand things. In his mind Yuugi shyly called this a successful date, even if neither of them acknowledged it as such. Besides the incredibly delightful "date", Yuugi also lucked out at home; turns out, his mom went to one of her monthly trips with her co-workers and grandpa Mutou was easily persuaded to let the boys have a sleep-over. An uneasy premonition at the back of Yuugi's head was reminding him that such an amount of happiness and good luck will definitely be followed by sorrow and tragedy.
The butterflies-in-stomach causing laugh rang out. "Yuugi? Are you trying to suffocate that "giraffe" animal?"
Yuugi released the poor plushie from his sweaty grasp and relished this moment of flutters and warmth. Last rays of sunshine finally died down and Yuugi's room gradually sank into darkness with only yellow star stickers glowing faintly on walls and ceiling like stilled fireflies.