Punished Love

"Yugi! You're going to be late for school if you don't get up now!" an angry voice yelled from downstairs.

"OK," Yugi yawned. "Yami. Come on, Yami, time to get up." He reached to the other side of his bed to wake Yami. He felt nothing and started to panic. "Yami?" No answer. "Yami!" He sat up, but then had an idea. He carefuly opened his mind. /Yami?/ His voice still sounded panicked.

//I'm here.//

/You scared me./

There was a glow to the puzzle and Yami was sitting on the bed. "I am sorry, hikari." Yugi ignored him and started getting ready for school. "Are you still angry?" Yugi still didn't answer. "You are, you know."

Yugi looked up at Yami. "I am what? I'm not mad at you. I was, but-."

"No," Yami chuckled. "I mean, you are my best friend."

"Oh." Yugi went back to what he was doing. With that Yami left Yugi in peace and went back into the puzzle.

The walk to school was uneventful. Yami didn't talk to him. Yugi was deep in thought, though, and didn't mind the silence.

"Yugi, wait up," a female voice behind him called.

He turned to see who was calling him and imedietly closed his side of his link with Yami. "Tea." Yugi hugged his friend-since-kindergarden.

"How was your vacation? It's been a week since I last saw you. What did you do all that time without calling me?" She said this all in one breath, stressing the last few words.

"Oh, the usual me stuff. Actually, helped Grandpa with the shop." They continued on their way.

"Oh. I bet you had more fun than I did."

"Not as much as you think." Tea looked at him questioningly. "Yami and I had a fight." Tea was shocked. "It started four days ago, and it's still going on."

"What happened?"

"He felt he had to punish himself. Don't ask me why; he hasn't told me. I don't think he ever will."

"Do you know if it was something you did?"

Yugi shook his head. "He said it wasn't, but...I don't know." The bell rang. "I'll see you after school." He opened his link again, instantly regretting it.

//What was that about?// Yami teased.

/Shut it./ He closed the link again.

~ ~ ~ ~ ~

He was walking home with Tea. They had agreed to go to her house to study.

"How's everything going?" Tea asked.

"OK, I guess. First day back was boring."

"Yeah, but it's always like that after vacation." Tea hesitated. "Yugi?"

"Yeah?" He looked at her.

"Would you...? What would you say if I...?" She couldn't think of a good way to ask.

"Tea, you OK?"

She nodded. "Yeah. I just...What do you thing of me as?"

"A friend. Why?" He stopped.

"You don't think we could be anything more?"

He shook his head and looked down. "I'm sorry. My heart hurts for someone else right now. But I don't think h- sh- that someone feels the same."

They started walking again, slower now. "Who?" she asked, curious now. Her disappiontment vanished. He shook his head. "Come on. You can tell me."

Yugi rolled his eyes at Tea's puoting face. "Promise you won't laugh?" She nodded. "Promise you won't hate or reject me?" Another nod. He made sure his link with Yami was blocked. "It's Yami."