Atem P.O.V.
Scene: A Night in Cairo
The club was loud, pulsing with music that thrummed through Atem's bones as he tilted his head back and let the warmth of the alcohol settle deep in his stomach.
He hadn't meant to drink this much.
But then again, he hadn't meant to still be here at all.
The others had dragged him out—Jounouchi, Honda, Anzu, and even Yugi, all buzzing with the leftover energy of the night. The Ceremonial Duel was over. The world hadn't ended. Atem was still here, still breathing, still real.
And now, after months of uncertainty, they had a reason to celebrate.
He just hadn't expected Yugi to be so insistent that he come along.
"C'mon, you never got to do stuff like this before, right?" Yugi had grinned, already tugging on his wrist. "We're in Egypt. We gotta live a little."
So he had come.
And now he was here, perched on a sleek leather booth with a half-empty glass in his hand, surrounded by the familiar warmth of his friends. The club was a blend of old and new—dim golden lights, flashes of neon, and a haze of hookah smoke curling in the air. A DJ was playing a mix of Arabic pop and Western house music, the heavy bass shaking the floor beneath their feet.
Jounouchi had already thrown himself into the center of the dance floor, dragging Honda along despite the latter's protests. Anzu had gone to get another round of drinks, and Yugi—
Yugi was next to him.
Hours past midnight.
Atem glanced sideways, watching as Yugi swirled the amber liquid in his glass, cheeks flushed from a mix of alcohol and the heat of the crowded club. His eyes were bright, hazy with the kind of uninhibited joy that only came after a long, exhausting battle was finally over.
Atem hadn't seen him like this in a long time.
Not since before the Orichalcos. Before the constant weight of fate had settled on Yugi's shoulders.
It suited him.
"Not tired yet?" Atem asked, a lazy smile tugging at his lips.
Yugi shook his head, setting his glass down with a soft clink. "Not even close."
Atem chuckled, tilting his own drink to his lips. The burn was pleasant now, a slow warmth that made everything feel a little lighter, a little softer.
He liked this.
The easy companionship. The way Yugi wasn't looking at him with that hesitant, worried expression anymore. The way, for the first time since the duel, things felt almost… normal.
The thought should have sobered him.
Instead, it only made him take another sip.
Yugi leaned in slightly, voice warm with amusement. "You're actually having fun."
Atem exhaled, shaking his head. "You sound surprised."
"I am surprised." Yugi grinned, nudging his knee against Atem's beneath the table. "I was expecting you to spend the whole night brooding in the corner."
Atem scoffed, rolling his eyes. "You wound me, aibou."
Yugi laughed, tipping his head back, and damn.
Atem felt it. The sound, the moment—something deep in his chest tightened in a way that had nothing to do with the alcohol.
Yugi turned to him again, eyes lidded, the light catching in his lashes. "We should dance."
Atem blinked. "Should we?"
Yugi stood, holding out a hand, his smile tilting into something playful. "Yeah."
Atem hesitated. He wasn't the type to shy away from a challenge, and Yugi knew that. But this—this felt like something else.
Or maybe that was just the alcohol talking.
Either way, he found himself reaching for Yugi's hand before he could second-guess it.
The dance floor was hot, packed with bodies moving in time with the heavy, hypnotic beat. The song had changed to something slower, something that thrummed in Atem's chest as Yugi pulled him closer, falling effortlessly into rhythm.
It was easy, too easy, to let himself sink into the moment. To move with the music, to feel the heat of Yugi's skin when their hands brushed, when Yugi's breath ghosted against his neck as he leaned in to laugh against his ear… so close to his scent glad it made Atem feel like his skin was on fire.
Atem swallowed.
He should pull away. He should—
Yugi's fingers curled around his wrist, sliding down to lace their fingers together, and Atem's breath hitched.
Oh.
Something shifted.
Something tilted.
Atem's head was light, his thoughts muddled, and suddenly, the air between them felt thinner. Charged.
Yugi's grip tightened, his expression unreadable, but his lips parted—like he was about to say something, like—
The music swelled. Someone bumped into them. The moment broke.
Atem exhaled sharply, tearing his gaze away. "I need another drink."
Yugi hesitated. Then, slowly, he nodded.
Neither of them pulled away.
Hotel Room – 3:42 AM
Atem barely remembered how they got back.
One moment, they were at the club—dancing, drinking, laughing—and the next, they were stumbling into the dimly lit hotel room, Yugi's hand still wrapped around his wrist like he was afraid to let go.
The door shut behind them with a click.
Atem sucked in a breath, head spinning—not just from the alcohol, but from the heat still thrumming beneath his skin, from the weight of Yugi's gaze when he turned to face him.
They should go to bed.
Separately.
He knew that.
But neither of them moved.
The air between them was thick, humming with something unspoken, something neither of them had dared acknowledge back at the club. Yugi licked his lips—nervous, uncertain—but his fingers twitched where they still hovered near Atem's wrist, as if resisting the urge to close the space between them.
Atem swallowed hard, heart hammering against his ribs.
This was dangerous.
Not because he didn't want it.
But because he did.
Because he had spent months pretending, he didn't feel the way Yugi's presence wrapped around him like gravity, pulling him in even when he tried to keep his distance. Because he knew that if they crossed this line, there would be no going back.
"...We should sleep," Yugi said finally, voice barely above a whisper.
Atem nodded. "Yes."
But neither of them moved.
A breath passed.
Two.
And then Yugi shifted—stepping forward just enough that Atem felt the warmth of his body, the scent of alcohol and something sweet curling around him like an embrace. Atem's breath stuttered, every instinct in him screaming at him to stop—
Then Yugi kissed him.
And Atem fell.
It wasn't tentative. It wasn't careful.
It was a collision, a mess of heat and urgency, of hands grasping at fabric, pulling, tugging, needing. Atem barely had time to think before they were moving—stumbling backwards until his knees hit the edge of the bed and he collapsed onto it, pulling Yugi down with him.
Yugi gasped, hands fisting in Atem's shirt, and Gods, the sound—Atem barely registered the way his own fingers shook as they tangled in Yugi's hair, pulling him closer, closer, like he could drown in him and never surface again.
He wasn't thinking anymore.
Just feeling.
Heat. Teeth. Desperation.
Yugi whispered something against his lips, something breathless and slurred, and Atem didn't know if it was his name or a prayer, but it didn't matter.
He was already lost.
Atem woke slowly, feeling the weight of sleep pressing down on his limbs, his mind sluggish as it drifted toward wakefulness. The hotel room was quiet except for the muffled hum of the air conditioning unit and the steady, even breathing beside him. For a moment, he couldn't recall why he felt so groggy, why there was a dull ache just behind his temples—
Then the memories slammed into him like a crashing wave.
The club. The drinks. Yugi's hands on him, pulling him closer. The way he'd lost himself in the heat between them, in the press of their bodies, in the way Yugi had—
Atem's breath caught as the most vivid memory surfaced: Yugi knotting him. His entire body went rigid, heat crawling up his neck and into his face. That— that couldn't be right.
Yugi was a beta. He'd never presented—so that memory couldn't be correct. Beta's cannot knot an omega. Only an alpha.
Atem forced himself to take a breath, trying to shove the thought away. Maybe he'd just been too plastered to remember correctly. Maybe his drunk brain had filled in gaps with something impossible. He refused to dwell on it any longer.
Carefully, he turned his head. Yugi was still deeply asleep, his face soft with the kind of peace Atem rarely saw on him anymore. The sight sent something tight curling in his chest. Not now. He needed space to think— or, more accurately, to not think about any of this until he was capable of dealing with it.
With slow, deliberate movements, Atem slid out of bed, trying not to disturb Yugi. Doing his best to ignore the ache in lower regions that suggested his memory was accurate… maybe Yugi was just larger than he realized, Atem immediately regretted that line of thought and the heat that pooled in his belly as a result. He grabbed a change of clothes and made his way to the bathroom, closing the door as quietly as he could before turning on the shower.
The hot water helped clear some of the lingering fog from his mind, but it did nothing to stop the heat lingering under his skin. The memory still clung to him, a ghost of sensation that refused to dissipate.
It didn't happen. He repeated it to himself like a mantra. I was too drunk. I don't remember right.
Once dressed, he left the room without a second glance, heading downstairs in search of something— anything— that would distract him from his own thoughts.
The breakfast room was already bustling with the lazy energy of a late morning crowd, people moving in and out of the buffet area while the scent of coffee and fresh toast filled the air. He spotted Honda first, the alpha was loading his plate with a frankly impressive amount of food.
As soon as Honda caught sight of him, he raised an eyebrow. "How's your head?"
Atem exhaled, rubbing at his temples. "I am never drinking that much again. Lesson learned." It's true enough, nobody needs to know that his headache is the least of his problems.
Honda snorted. "Yeah, you and Yugi had a bit more than was wise last night." He nodded toward the buffet. "You should eat something. Might help you feel human again."
Atem hummed noncommittally, not entirely sure food would fix what was actually wrong with him; Any more than it would fix what happened last night, or the very insistent ache of a certain area. Still, he stepped toward the buffet, hoping that if he focused on the simple task of picking breakfast, he could pretend, just for a little while, that last night hadn't completely shaken something loose inside him.
Atem had just started to relax—his plate mostly cleared; his second cup of coffee half-full—when Jounouchi strolled into the breakfast room.
"Morning, nerds," he greeted, grabbing a plate and piling it high with eggs and toast. He looked way too awake for someone who had been downing shots like water the night before.
Atem hummed in acknowledgment, sipping his coffee while Honda muttered something about how unfair it was that Jounouchi never seemed to get hangovers.
"It's a gift," Jounouchi said smugly, stirring an obscene amount of sugar into his coffee.
"It's unnatural," Honda shot back, resting his chin in his palm. "Seriously, you had as much as Yugi did, and he's probably dying right now."
Atem nearly choked on his coffee at the reminder, but thankfully, neither of them seemed to notice. Instead, Jounouchi snorted.
"Well, maybe he just can't hold his liquor. Or maybe it's 'cause I hydrate like a responsible adult—"
Honda gave him a flat look. "Drinking juice at midnight does not count as hydration, dumbass."
Atem found himself exhaling a quiet chuckle, letting their banter wash over him. It was easier to focus on them—on anything other than last night.
Jounouchi waved him off. "Whatever, man. Anyway, we got a couple more days in Cairo. We should make the most of it! There's gotta be some cool stuff we haven't seen yet."
Honda perked up a little at that, stretching back in his chair. "Yeah, no kidding. We mostly stuck to museums and tourist stuff last time. We should check out some local spots. Maybe a market or something?"
"Yeah! I saw a bunch of stalls near the hotel—food, jewelry, all kinds of stuff. We should definitely hit those up."
"You just want street food," Honda accused, raising an eyebrow.
Jounouchi smirked. "So?"
Atem found himself speaking before he could think better of it. "The markets here are well worth exploring. You may find things in them that no museum can offer."
Jounouchi blinked at him, then grinned. "See? Atem gets it!"
Honda snorted. "Yeah, yeah. You just wanna eat your way through Cairo."
Atem allowed himself a small, amused smile, watching the two of them bicker. Their energy was a welcome distraction, something he could focus on besides his own swirling thoughts.
Still, when the conversation shifted to arguing over which market to visit, Atem let himself drift into the background again, simply sipping his coffee.
An hour passed like that, the easy chatter filling the space between them until Anzu finally appeared, looking only mildly groggy as she joined them at the table with a cup of tea.
"Morning," she mumbled, rubbing one eye.
Jounouchi leaned back in his chair, grinning. "Look who finally decided to join us!"
Anzu gave him a deadpan look. "I don't want to hear it from the guy who once slept through half a school day."
Atem bit back another chuckle. Maybe today wouldn't be so unbearable after all.
And then—
Yugi.
The moment Yugi stepped into the breakfast room, Atem felt it before he saw it. A shift in the air, something tight pulling in his chest. And then their eyes met.
They both froze.
Atem's mind flashed back—heat, breathless gasps, the pressure of Yugi's body against his own, the pressure of something expanding inside him and—
No.
His face went hot as he immediately ripped his gaze away, staring down into his coffee like it suddenly held the secrets of the universe. Across the room, Yugi was doing the same, his face burning as he stood awkwardly near the buffet table, looking like he'd rather be anywhere else.
Unfortunately, Jounouchi was already watching.
The blonde's eyes darted between them, his smirk slow and sharp as he leaned forward, elbows on the table. "Alright," he drawled. "Did something happen with you two last night?"
If the blushes had been bad before, they were catastrophic now.
"No!" Atem and Yugi blurted at the same time, voices overlapping in a way that did absolutely nothing to convince anyone of anything.
The table went silent.
Anzu raised an eyebrow. Honda coughed into his drink to hide a laugh. Jounouchi grinned like a damn wolf.
"Uh-huh," Jounouchi said, "Suuuure…" dragging out the syllables. Atem had never wanted to punch the loud alpha so badly. He exchanged a glance with Honda, who only shrugged with a knowing smirk.
Yugi, still standing by the buffet, quickly busied himself with pouring a cup of coffee, refusing to look in their direction. Atem, for his part, took a slow sip of his own drink, willing himself to stay calm even as his ears burned.
Nobody pressed the subject further.
But they didn't have to.
The damage was already done.
And from the way Jounouchi and Honda kept exchanging glances, Atem knew this wasn't the last he'd hear about it.