[fic] Outdoors - Yugioh, 'Atemu'xYugi, G, gen/serious, theme 079 (100_chances)
REVIVING FOR KAORU'S BIRTHDAY. =3=
Theme: 079 - Outdoors; for 100_chances
Author: Chey (duelist_gurl163)
Genre: General/serious
Rating: G
Pairings: 'Atemu'/Yugi
Archive: Here
Warnings: AU
Spoilers: None
Summary: The years change many things, but some remain untouched.
Disclaimer: Yugioh is still not mine.
----
“Daddy!”
Atemu lifted his arms and looked down at the boy gripping his leg. “Excuse me?”
At the sound of his voice, the boy let go and sprang back, head bowed as he trembled slightly, saying in a tentatively polite voice, “Oh. I’m- I’m sorry mister.”
Atemu looked around in concern at the crowd, but no parents emerged to claim him. He looked back down at the boy helplessly. He’d never been much good with kids. “Um…do you need help?”
The boy looked up at him and Atemu felt his breath catch in his throat.
He had purple eyes, wide and innocent. The sight of them, so familiar, yet on the face of this unknown child, shocked him to his core.
He has his eyes. But…how…?
“Renju!” A frantic voice rose above the buzz of conversation in the outdoor square. Atemu’s heart leaped to join his stalled breath as a man came hurrying through the crowd, relief crossing his face as the boy turned and ran toward him.
“Daddy!”
“Renju, how many times have I told you not to wander off?!”
The boy seemed not to care that he was in trouble, tugging at his father’s arm. “Daddy, you have a clone!”
The man laughed. “That was in a movie, there are no clones in real life.”
“But Daddy! Look!” The boy insisted, pointing.
“Renju, it’s rude to point…”
Every sensible fiber of Atemu’s body was telling him he needed to leave, now. Instead, he was rooted where he was, captivated by the sound of a voice from a long-ago memory, and couldn’t move as the man straightened up and they met gazes.
Yugi broke the silence first. “Atemu! I didn’t know you were back!”
“Just got in yesterday,” Atemu replied, startled at how calm his own voice sounded.
Too calm. Painfully calm.
Yugi must have noticed, but his voice didn’t waver when he replied, “Just to visit, or are you moving back?”
“I don’t know yet. I’m thinking about moving back.”
“Oh, that sounds nice.”
Nice? Atemu swallowed, hating the formal small-talk. Ever so polite, Yugi hadn’t so much as insinuated they were anything other than old acquaintances, chatting pleasantly.
That was what hurt the most. They weren’t just old schoolmates or co-workers, they were more, and the polite smile wasn’t reaching Yugi’s eyes.
They had been so much more, so much closer than most knew. Atemu knew every inch of Yugi, of his body, of his heart, of his soul, and Yugi knew him just as intimately. There wasn’t a secret Atemu held that Yugi didn’t know about, up until six years ago anyway. And in truth, not much had happened to Atemu in the interim to make much of a difference.
It had been a kind break-up, at least. An honest one. One person had wanted space, and the other had respected that. Respected it to the point that he crossed an ocean to get away.
Apparently the space Yugi had wanted so badly had done him good, Atemu couldn’t help thinking as his gaze drifted to the boy, who was now engrossed in watching a bird begging for scraps from patrons of a nearby outdoor diner.
Atemu had never wanted to be “that man.” That man who fell in love once and then pined for the rest of his life, never able to undo that love. But sometimes things didn’t go the way people planned, and it shot pain like lightning through his body, the thought of someone else knowing Yugi the way he had.
“Oh…I’m sorry I didn’t introduce you sooner, this is Renju,” Yugi said, after the long, uncomfortable pause. “My son.”
Atemu managed to nod. “I figured…the eyes.” He hesitated, then bit the bullet. “So who’s the lucky lady?”
Yugi smiled. “I don’t know.”
Atemu felt his jaw drop. He’d heard of women not knowing who their baby’s father was, but was it possible for a man to not know? “You…you don’t know? But…?”
He laughed a little. “I used a surrogate mother. It was all arranged through an agency.”
“But why?” Atemu asked before he could stop himself. “I mean…I know you wanted a family, but…why go through a surrogacy agency?”
Yugi lifted one shoulder and his smile seemed to gentle. “I just never met anyone, and I was getting older. I didn't want to waste any more time.”
The painful lightning had been replaced by something else equally as painful, but Atemu wasn’t sure what it was. Whatever it was, he couldn’t keep it from his eyes, and Yugi saw it.
“Sorry…we should be going,” Yugi said quietly, taking Renju’s hand. “It was nice seeing you again.”
“Yeah…nice,” Atemu echoed.
Yugi took a step, stopped, and said, “Would it be all right…if I called you sometime?”
“Of course,” Atemu said. At least, it’s what he thought he said. His heart was pounding too hard to hear properly. “I have the same cell number.”
“All right. I wasn’t sure…before…thanks.” A smile crossed his lips, and this time it lit the rest of his face. A real smile, one Atemu hadn’t seen in years. “Atemu…?”
“Huh?”
“I…hope you decide to move back.”
With Renju looking back and forth between Atemu and his father curiously, Yugi walked away, and Atemu remained rooted where he stood, frozen even in the hot summer sun.
X - X - X
Notes: I WILL FINISH THIS CHALLENGE. Happy birthday Kaoru! I know you rather like adult-Yugi AUs, so it seemed fitting that this would be posted today. ^^
Theme: 079 - Outdoors; for 100_chances
Author: Chey (duelist_gurl163)
Genre: General/serious
Rating: G
Pairings: 'Atemu'/Yugi
Archive: Here
Warnings: AU
Spoilers: None
Summary: The years change many things, but some remain untouched.
Disclaimer: Yugioh is still not mine.
----
“Daddy!”
Atemu lifted his arms and looked down at the boy gripping his leg. “Excuse me?”
At the sound of his voice, the boy let go and sprang back, head bowed as he trembled slightly, saying in a tentatively polite voice, “Oh. I’m- I’m sorry mister.”
Atemu looked around in concern at the crowd, but no parents emerged to claim him. He looked back down at the boy helplessly. He’d never been much good with kids. “Um…do you need help?”
The boy looked up at him and Atemu felt his breath catch in his throat.
He had purple eyes, wide and innocent. The sight of them, so familiar, yet on the face of this unknown child, shocked him to his core.
He has his eyes. But…how…?
“Renju!” A frantic voice rose above the buzz of conversation in the outdoor square. Atemu’s heart leaped to join his stalled breath as a man came hurrying through the crowd, relief crossing his face as the boy turned and ran toward him.
“Daddy!”
“Renju, how many times have I told you not to wander off?!”
The boy seemed not to care that he was in trouble, tugging at his father’s arm. “Daddy, you have a clone!”
The man laughed. “That was in a movie, there are no clones in real life.”
“But Daddy! Look!” The boy insisted, pointing.
“Renju, it’s rude to point…”
Every sensible fiber of Atemu’s body was telling him he needed to leave, now. Instead, he was rooted where he was, captivated by the sound of a voice from a long-ago memory, and couldn’t move as the man straightened up and they met gazes.
Yugi broke the silence first. “Atemu! I didn’t know you were back!”
“Just got in yesterday,” Atemu replied, startled at how calm his own voice sounded.
Too calm. Painfully calm.
Yugi must have noticed, but his voice didn’t waver when he replied, “Just to visit, or are you moving back?”
“I don’t know yet. I’m thinking about moving back.”
“Oh, that sounds nice.”
Nice? Atemu swallowed, hating the formal small-talk. Ever so polite, Yugi hadn’t so much as insinuated they were anything other than old acquaintances, chatting pleasantly.
That was what hurt the most. They weren’t just old schoolmates or co-workers, they were more, and the polite smile wasn’t reaching Yugi’s eyes.
They had been so much more, so much closer than most knew. Atemu knew every inch of Yugi, of his body, of his heart, of his soul, and Yugi knew him just as intimately. There wasn’t a secret Atemu held that Yugi didn’t know about, up until six years ago anyway. And in truth, not much had happened to Atemu in the interim to make much of a difference.
It had been a kind break-up, at least. An honest one. One person had wanted space, and the other had respected that. Respected it to the point that he crossed an ocean to get away.
Apparently the space Yugi had wanted so badly had done him good, Atemu couldn’t help thinking as his gaze drifted to the boy, who was now engrossed in watching a bird begging for scraps from patrons of a nearby outdoor diner.
Atemu had never wanted to be “that man.” That man who fell in love once and then pined for the rest of his life, never able to undo that love. But sometimes things didn’t go the way people planned, and it shot pain like lightning through his body, the thought of someone else knowing Yugi the way he had.
“Oh…I’m sorry I didn’t introduce you sooner, this is Renju,” Yugi said, after the long, uncomfortable pause. “My son.”
Atemu managed to nod. “I figured…the eyes.” He hesitated, then bit the bullet. “So who’s the lucky lady?”
Yugi smiled. “I don’t know.”
Atemu felt his jaw drop. He’d heard of women not knowing who their baby’s father was, but was it possible for a man to not know? “You…you don’t know? But…?”
He laughed a little. “I used a surrogate mother. It was all arranged through an agency.”
“But why?” Atemu asked before he could stop himself. “I mean…I know you wanted a family, but…why go through a surrogacy agency?”
Yugi lifted one shoulder and his smile seemed to gentle. “I just never met anyone, and I was getting older. I didn't want to waste any more time.”
The painful lightning had been replaced by something else equally as painful, but Atemu wasn’t sure what it was. Whatever it was, he couldn’t keep it from his eyes, and Yugi saw it.
“Sorry…we should be going,” Yugi said quietly, taking Renju’s hand. “It was nice seeing you again.”
“Yeah…nice,” Atemu echoed.
Yugi took a step, stopped, and said, “Would it be all right…if I called you sometime?”
“Of course,” Atemu said. At least, it’s what he thought he said. His heart was pounding too hard to hear properly. “I have the same cell number.”
“All right. I wasn’t sure…before…thanks.” A smile crossed his lips, and this time it lit the rest of his face. A real smile, one Atemu hadn’t seen in years. “Atemu…?”
“Huh?”
“I…hope you decide to move back.”
With Renju looking back and forth between Atemu and his father curiously, Yugi walked away, and Atemu remained rooted where he stood, frozen even in the hot summer sun.
X - X - X
Notes: I WILL FINISH THIS CHALLENGE. Happy birthday Kaoru! I know you rather like adult-Yugi AUs, so it seemed fitting that this would be posted today. ^^