Queer As Tachi – Chapter 16
Though his heart clenched with fear in his chest, Yami pushed it aside and simply wrapped his arms around Yugi, hugging him close as he shuddered and sniffled, trying to keep from completely losing it and collapsing into sobs on the floor. Much as he wanted to assure the young one that everything would be all right, the pharaoh did not feel comfortable lying. He was as unsure as Yugi what this meant, and equally as scared that the worst had befallen his grandfather, but it was his duty to swallow emotion and be strong so Yugi didn’t have to. “Shh…” he implored, holding Yugi close no matter how hard his shoulders shook. “Come now. Call the doctor back. Find out what happened.”
“O-okay,” Yugi sniffled, sitting up a little. Yami could see that he lacked the strength to get up, so he rose to his feet and pulled Yugi up after him, steadying him with gentle hands on his shoulders. Yugi’s hand still shook as he picked up the phone, but he took a few deep, sobering breaths in order to banish his tears long enough to make the important call. Yami stepped back from him, allowing him to have his space so he could listen to the message again for the number to call and then try to reach the doctor. Meanwhile, he thought he would do a kind favor and knelt down to pick up the tray of booster cards that had been knocked onto the floor. A minute later Yugi suddenly gave an angry gasp and slammed the phone down. “It just keeps going to his voice mail!” he cried. “How am I supposed to find out what happened to Grandpa?”
Startled, Yami stood up with the cards and set them on the counter, going back around to Yugi and reaching to touch his shoulder again. “Shouldn’t you leave a message, so he knows how to reach you?” he said softly.
Yugi grimaced and glanced at him, but then got a look of dark determination and shoved past him. “I’ve got to go down there,” he decided. “I’ll find him. At least I know they’ve taken him to the hospital.”
He raced up the stairs to the house, Yami following a few paces behind, and went straight to the place on the bookshelf where he knew Grandpa usually left the keys when not in use. The Mutos did own a car, but they used it so rarely, so of course the keys were laying right where he expected. He knew how to drive and had his license, though it had been a while since he’d last taken the car out. It was so much easier and more convenient to walk or bus everywhere, and the car was old. Yugi checked to be sure he had pocketed his house keys and went right back downstairs, leaving Yami to follow him helplessly, though he had enough spare thought for his boyfriend that he waited for him to come outside before flipping the shop sign to “closed” and locking up after them. Yami peered anxiously at him, his brow furrowed. “Yugi…are you sure about this?”
“What else can I do?” Yugi countered, his voice betraying signs of more tears.
“Very well, we’ll go,” Yami agreed, putting an arm over his shoulders to guide him. They walked around the house to the back where the car was parked under the trees, but as they got closer, Yami could feel his partner’s back twitching with suppressed sobs again. He glanced nervously down. “Are you sure you can drive?”
Yugi sniffled back his tears and nodded. “Yeah, yeah…I can do it.”
He reached to unlock the car, but he fumbled and dropped the keys. Cursing, he bent to retrieve them and scuffled around in the dark for a minute looking for them, pausing only to wipe the back of his sleeve across his face. When he finally found the keys and straightened up, he was already well on his way to losing it all over again. From behind him, Yami took his arm, forcing him to turn around to face him. He laid his hands on his young love’s shoulders and leaned in to kiss him on the forehead, and then wrapped his arms around his shoulders and pulled him in so his head rested on Yami’s chest. Yugi gave a huge, trembling sigh and surrendered, wilting against him. “Shh,” the pharaoh encouraged. “Take a deep breath. You need to be calm. You won’t do your grandfather any favors if you’re too shaky to drive us to see him.”
“I’m so scared, Yami,” Yugi whimpered into his chest, hugging him tighter.
“I know, love. I know.” Yami rested his cheek on top of Yugi’s head and just held him for a minute or two longer. At last, as Yugi’s breathing began to return to normal, he kissed his forehead again and began to let go. “You can do this. I can’t help you, I can’t drive. But we need to get there. All right?”
“Yeah,” Yugi nodded, wiping away his tears. Yami also flicked a few of them away with his fingertips, glad to see that the tender touch made Yugi smile ever so slightly. “Come on,” he breathed softly. “We need to find Grandpa. He needs us.”
Yami nodded his agreement and went around to the other side to get in. The hospital was clear on the other side of town from their home, and at this time of night it would be far quicker for them to just drive even though Yugi was so shaken. He managed to keep his composure, though, diverting his mind deliberately to the necessity of watching traffic and obeying the signals. He pulled into the parking lot and raced in through the emergency room, his partner right beside him the whole way. The woman at the main desk started at the pair of breathless young men with identical hairstyles who accosted her. “May I help you…?” she began to ask.
“It’s my grandpa,” Yugi said immediately. “I got a phone call, he’s been taken here. The doctor said he had a heart attack. I need to find him!”
“All right, all right. Please, sir, just calm down,” the woman said as soothingly as she could. “What is his name?”
Yugi forced himself to take a breath. “Solomon Muto,” he answered, more calmly.
The clerk typed briskly at her computer, a positive look sweeping over her features at what the screen revealed. “He’s been admitted to the hospital,” she reported. “In the cardiology wing, room 327.”
A ripple of relief shuddered through Yugi. “He’s okay?” he asked timidly.
The woman glanced at him and gave him a faint smile. “I wish my computer told me those kinds of things,” she said comfortingly. “You’ll have to check with his doctor.”
“Dr. Kaneda,” Yugi remembered. “He’s the one who left me the message.”
She nodded briskly. “Dr. Kaneda is on call, he should be around.”
“Room 327?” Yugi looked around briefly for the elevators.
The clerk rose out of her seat and pointed down an adjacent hallway. “Through there, to the main lobby, and then to the right. Take the elevator to the third floor.”
“Thank you,” Yugi gushed. “It’s okay? I don’t know visiting hours…”
“If it was an emergency and you’re the next of kin, you’re allowed. Go ahead, tell them you need to see Dr. Kaneda if anyone stops you.”
“Thank you!” Yugi hurried away through the doors the woman had indicated, trying not to run though every fiber of his being screamed for him to do so. Yami walked briskly beside him, saying nothing but being the stoic, commanding pharaoh he was used to being for Yugi. They followed the directions to find the cardiology floor without a problem, and from there did their best not to dash up the hallway counting numbers to find room 327. It lay just ahead, and Yugi noticed the white-coated doctor about to enter what should have been that exact room. “Excuse me!” he called out. “Are you Dr. Kaneda?”
The aging doctor turned with a start from the clipboard in his hand. “I am,” he answered. “What can I do for you, young man?”
Yugi rushed up to him and came to a breathless stop. “I’m Yugi Muto,” he said, “you called me about my grandpa. Solomon Muto.”
“Ah, yes. Come with me.” Dr. Kaneda continued on his way into the room, and it took all of Yugi’s composure not to freeze in fear behind him, unsure what he would find. As he came around the doctor’s shoulder, he nearly cried with joy at the sight of his grandpa sitting up in bed as if anticipating visitors. The doctor smiled amiably. “Good news, Solomon, your missing grandson has appeared.”
“Grandpa!” Yugi forgot everything else and leaped toward him, his eyes filling with tears all over again. He stopped short of pouncing on his bedridden grandfather, instead just catching up his hand and clasping it to him.
“Ah, good,” Grandpa sighed. “Yugi…oh dear, did I give you a scare?”
“Give me a….Grandpa!” Yugi laughed weakly. “What are you talking about? You’re the one in the hospital. Are you all right? What happened?” He glanced aside at the doctor. “All the message said was that you had a heart attack. I thought you might have been dead!”
“Oh, dear.” Grandpa Muto patted Yugi’s hand kindly. “Yes, well, I wasn’t in very good shape to leave the message myself, I’m sorry. It’s a good thing they didn’t need to get a hold of you any quicker, I didn’t know when you two would be back.”
“I’m sorry,” Yugi whimpered. “I’m so sorry, Grandpa, I didn’t tell you where we’d be or anything. I should have been there, I…”
“Now, now,” Grandpa interrupted him. “You didn’t know anything was going to happen. It’s not your fault, Yugi.” He let his grandson cling to his hand for a bit, turning to the doctor instead. “So? What’s the verdict? Am I free to go?”
“I’m afraid not, Mr. Muto,” the doctor replied. “Even a mild heart attack is cause for concern. I’d like to keep you overnight for observation, and run some tests. It looks like this was just a small one, but a warning, that there’s something that needs to be taken care of so you don’t have another one. The next time, you might not be so lucky.”
Yugi rubbed his eyes free of tears. “So, he has to stay here tonight?”
“Don’t worry, we’ll take the best care of him,” Dr. Kaneda said kindly. “Tomorrow we will know whether he can go home, or if there’s anything more we should be doing.”
“Um…okay.” Yugi straightened up a little, feeling his immediate fears ebbing away at last. “Is there anything I need to do, or sign or anything?”
“I’ll check.” The doctor smiled and turned to go. “In the meantime, I’ll let you get caught up. I’ll be right back.” He did the subtlest of double-takes at Yami standing silently behind Yugi and breezed out the door.
Yugi let his grandfather’s hand rest on the bed, though he still held it tightly. “So, it really was a heart attack?” he asked softly.
“That’s what they say,” Grandpa answered, the humor going out of his voice. “A little one, though. I only passed out for a short time in the ambulance, I’m okay now.”
Thinking about it made Yugi’s lower lip tremble, so he swallowed anything else he was going to ask. Instead, Yami stepped forward. “What happened?”
“Nothing much, really. I was just puttering around,” Grandpa explained, “when I started to get a little short of breath, and then I felt that tingling in my left arm like they talk about. I went to the phone and called for help right away, but before I could leave you a note I collapsed. Good thing the ambulance got there quick.”
A fleeting thought made Yugi smile faintly. “So, it was just one of those things,” he realized. “Nothing really caused it.” He shook off his inner worries and faced his grandfather as bravely as he could. “I’m sorry. I should have been there.”
“No, you should have been right where you were, on your date,” Grandpa scolded. “I won’t have you second-guessing yourself, Yugi. These things just happen, you can’t be hovering over my shoulder twenty-four hours a day expecting me to keel over. Now, I don’t want to hear another word about it.” He worked his hand free from Yugi’s and patted his grandson’s cheek comfortingly. “I’m going to need you to be strong for me, Yugi,” he said more seriously. “I need you to take care of the shop, especially if they’re going to keep me in here any longer.”
Yugi nodded furiously. “I won’t go to class tomorrow, I’ll stay and open the shop. Do you think they’ll call when they have more news, about whether they’re going to keep you here?”
“I’m sure they will. If they don’t, I will. I’ll be fine for tonight,” Grandpa sniffed, “but if they plan to keep me longer than tomorrow, I’ll want my own pajamas. This isn’t going to do me any good,” he complained, pulling at the hospital gown he wore.
Yugi gave a small laugh, though he was feeling far from amused. Inside, he felt cold and numb, despite having his grandfather sitting right there talking and joking like usual. Somehow, he could just sense that everything was not all right. “Well,” he said hesitantly, “if that happens, I’ll bring you anything you want from home tomorrow. Anything you need, Grandpa, you know I’ll take care of you.” He glanced down at his grandfather’s wrinkled hand lying on the bedcovers, with an IV stuck in the back. “Do you want me to stay with you?”
“Oh, you don’t have to,” Grandpa Muto assured. “You’re going to need a good night’s rest, if you’re going to be up to open the shop.”
“Even just a little while?”
Grandpa smiled, understanding what he really wanted. “Maybe just until the doctor comes back,” he relented. “You can tell me about your day. But then I want you to go home and get some sleep, all right?”
“Yes, Grandpa…”
Then, Grandpa looked past him to Yami, who stood patiently watching from a few steps away. “Is something the matter, Yami?”
The pharaoh raised his eyes upon being addressed, and smiled demurely. “No, I’m just letting you have some time,” he said quietly. “I don’t want to be in the way.”
“You’re not in the way.” Grandpa reached out to gesture him closer. “You’re part of the family too, you know.”
Realizing he was right, Yami stepped closer, coming up behind Yugi and placing a hand on his shoulder. Yugi smiled warmly up at him in encouragement. “I’m glad he was there,” he said to his grandfather. “I don’t know what I would have done if I was all alone when I got that message. It was so awful. Yami was there to catch me and take care of me.”
“That’s good.” Grandpa Muto shot the pharaoh a quick smile. “I would expect nothing less of him. And I’m sure he’ll continue taking good care of you the rest of the night.”
“Of course I will,” Yami murmured, smiling at last.
Yugi perched himself on the side of his grandpa’s bed in order to answer questions and tell him about their day, though he was sure it wasn’t very interesting to Grandpa to hear about their walk in the park and their date. But he listened and smiled and told them it sounded like fun, not even batting an eye when Yami reached to take Yugi’s hand in his for support. The doctor returned at last, carrying a complete file with his clipboard now. He first assured Yugi that he didn’t have to sign anything for now, until after they had decided what the next step in Grandpa’s treatment would be, before turning to Solomon himself. “Your EKG is stable for now, but I saw a few things I don’t like, so we’ll definitely be running some tests,” he reported. “It’s too early to say for sure, but there may be surgery involved to prevent any further heart attacks.”
“Surgery?” Yugi repeated, his eyes going wide. “But…Grandpa takes good care of himself. What caused the heart attack?”
“That’s why they’re running the tests,” Grandpa told him. “It might not be that serious, Yugi, so just relax.”
“We’ll know better tomorrow,” Dr. Kaneda agreed. “Is there anyone else who needs to be notified, or is involved in making decisions of this nature?”
Solomon shook his head. “Just myself. My surviving daughter is in Kyoto, Yugi is my closest kin here in Domino. I’m his guardian.”
“All right, then.” The doctor glanced at Yugi. “If you’d like to be here when I report my findings, I can have one of the nurses call you.”
“Yes, please,” Yugi nodded. “I’ll close the shop temporarily, so I can come down here.” He gave the doctor a worried look. “You sound like you’re pretty sure I won’t be picking up to take him home tomorrow.”
“I just want to make sure that he’s completely in the clear, first,” the doctor tried to explain, keeping his voice light. “After all, we wouldn’t want you to have to get another message in a week or a month bringing much worse news.”
Lowering his head, Yugi sighed. “Yeah, I know. Thank you, doctor.”
“And now, you promised me, Yugi.” Grandpa wagged a finger at him. “You’re going to go home and get some sleep, because you have a lot to do tomorrow. Yami’s going to take you home and watch out for you…aren’t you?”
Yami straightened up at the purposeful glare he was getting. “Yes, I will,” he promised. “I won’t leave him, Mr. Muto, you know that.”
Grandpa Muto huffed a short sigh. “What’s with that? I told you, you’re part of our family. You had better start calling me Grandpa too, or I’ll have to teach you a lesson when I get out of here.”
Yugi groaned. Yami grinned sheepishly. “Yes…uh, Grandpa…”
The doctor left them for the night, so Yugi leaned forward and hugged his grandfather good night. Yami settled for simply clasping his hand, and then they had to say goodbye. They promised to see each other tomorrow, as Yugi would wait anxiously for the phone call to summon him back, and he left with Yami holding his hand more firmly than usual. The two hardly spoke as Yugi drove them back, Yami sat with his hands folded in his lap so as not to distract his partner. At it was, Yugi kept both hands firmly on the wheel, trying to maintain his calm and concentrate solely on driving. Fortunately, their parking space behind the house hadn’t been taken, and for a moment Yugi blithely treated that stroke of happiness as the most important thing for him to be worried about right now. But when he got upstairs into the house and set the keys back on the bookshelf, Yami noticed him go rather quiet and his actions slow down. “Yugi?” he wondered as silence enveloped them in the empty house.
Yugi stood where he was, his hand resting on the shelf and head bowed, his back to his partner. Yami crept up behind him and slid a hand onto his shoulder, and the touch snapped Yugi out of his thoughts. He turned and melted into Yami’s arms, laying his head on the pharaoh’s chest. “I can’t shake this feeling,” he whispered. “I know Grandpa’s okay but I’m still so scared. I can’t make myself stop thinking about it.”
Yami closed his eyes and enfolded Yugi in gentle arms, cradling him tenderly. “It’s all right,” he finally felt able to say. “It’s natural for you to be afraid. There is so much uncertainty, so much it seems like they can’t or won’t tell you. But you must trust that your grandpa is in the best place right now, they won’t let anything happen to him. He’s safe, and they’ll make him better. You’ll see.”
“I know,” Yugi murmured, “but I can’t make it go away. I just feel so…helpless. I can’t do anything. All I can do is wait and worry.”
Yami just held him closer, trying to banish his lover’s fears with his warmth and comfort, since he knew words were useless. After a while, he brushed a kiss to Yugi’s forehead to get his attention. “Come, let’s put you to bed,” he encouraged. “I intend to keep my promise to Grandpa and look after you.”
Yugi mumbled something affirmative under his breath and allowed himself to be led away to his bedroom, submitting to Yami’s patient care as he helped him into pajamas and went about turning off lights and making sure the door was locked. It wasn’t very late, but Yugi did indeed have much to do early in the morning if he was to run the game shop and be on alert for a phone call from the hospital. It occurred to him as he set his alarm that he should call Joey and spread the news about Grandpa, but he decided to wait until he knew more. Or until he just couldn’t stand it any longer, which might happen sooner. For now, he was all right so long as he had Yami, but after midnight passed, he would return to his spirit status and be unable to hold and comfort his lover any longer. Yugi sat on the side of the bed waiting for Yami, head down and looking dejected, making the pharaoh sigh sadly when he saw him. “Yugi,” he worried.
Yugi just heaved a deep breath as he felt the bed jostle with Yami’s weight. “I wish you didn’t have to go,” he murmured, leaning his head on his partner’s shoulder. “If there was ever a time I really needed you to be real, it’s now.”
“I know.” Yami brushed Yugi’s bangs back and kissed his brow. “I will at least be with you until midnight. Hopefully by then you can fall asleep, everything will be all right. Come, now.” He stretched across the bed and pulled back the blankets.
Yugi followed his prompting and crawled into bed, curling up on his side so the Millennium Puzzle could rest on the bed next to him. Yami settled down beside him, still fully clothed even though his body would vanish at midnight and leave them behind. As the covers came up around his shoulders, tucking him in, Yugi couldn’t help the rush of tears that blinded him and quickly rolled over, burying his face in Yami’s chest and clutching him tightly around the middle. Yami held him and soothed him, letting him cry out the pain and fear he had been restraining all night, no longer telling him to be strong and stay calm. He just bowed his head over his young love and cradled him, providing him a safe, warm haven in which to cry until he exhausted himself and finally fell asleep. Yami remained awake until the ritual’s end, serving as Yugi’s pillow and comfort, stroking his face or his hair with soft fingertips. It hurt him to see Yugi in so much pain, and not be able to do much else to help ease it, but he knew he would still be there in the morning, bonded with the young one’s mind so he could share the pain to the best of his ability. It would have to be enough. Yugi hardly knew when he vanished, except that he fell back into his actual pillow and stirred, prying himself up to go to the bathroom. He didn’t even remove the Puzzle when he came back, just falling back into bed and tugging the covers up around him in his fists, breathing deeply of the pharaoh’s scent still lingering on the sheets.
Yugi had never made so many phone calls as he did the next morning, one right after another, though most were short as he tried to get a hold of some of his professors and let them know he wouldn’t be in class for a while. He was glad to not have to explain more than a “family emergency,” and the two he spoke directly to said he wouldn’t miss anything if he needed to be out up to a week. There were more trying phone calls yet to make, but Yugi put off the one to his aunt in Kyoto and decided to call Joey first. “Hey, Yug,” his best friend answered with some surprise. “Something up?”
“Yeah, actually,” Yugi said hesitantly, his voice solemn. “I’m not going to be at school today, or for a few days. You see…” He took a deep breath and willed himself to say it. “…Grandpa’s in the hospital. He had a heart attack last night.”
For a moment, there was no sound from the other end of the line. Finally, Joey whispered, “Yug…”
“He’s okay,” Yugi assured, “for now. But I’ve got to run the game shop. And wait for them to call, they’re supposed to let me know today whether they’re keeping him in the hospital longer and if he needs surgery.”
“Man, I’m sorry,” Joey said heavily. “But you’re sure he’s okay?”
“Yeah. I haven’t gotten any calls yet, so I’m pretty certain nothing happened overnight.”
“That’s good.” Joey sighed sadly. “You okay?”
Yugi closed his eyes. “I don’t know,” he murmured. “I feel…blank, like everything’s going on around me and I’m just a black hole in the middle of it.”
“Is it serious? Grandpa?”
“They haven’t said. The doctor mentioned surgery last night, but…”
“Hey,” Joey said a little more firmly. “You want me to come over there and keep you company? My classes aren’t important either.”
Though he wanted so much to say yes, Yugi swallowed the tears that rushed to his eyes and just sighed. “No, you don’t have to do that. Don’t skip school on my account. Remember…I’m not completely alone.” A smile worked its way to his lips, thinking of Yami. “I’m going to be in the shop anyway, that’ll keep me busy. I have to be ready for when they call, I’m going down to the hospital to find out what’s next. If we’re lucky, I can bring Grandpa home.”
“Here’s hoping,” Joey encouraged. “All right, then, but anything you need, anything at all, I’m just a phone call away, okay? Hey…how ‘bout I pick some dinner up for you tonight?”
Yugi’s voice grew faint, though he smiled even more. “That would be nice, Joey. Thanks. But call, first. I might be at the hospital.”
“You got it. Man, now’s the time when you really need a cell phone,” his best friend complained.
“I know…” Yugi shook his head. “If I had one last night, Grandpa would have been able to get a hold of me. I was out with Yami, we were on a date and totally absorbed in each other, it was so selfish of me…”
“Aw, man,” Joey said sympathetically. “Hey, don’t beat yourself up over it. Grandpa’s all right, right? No harm done. I’ll give you a call later, and when you get back I’ll bring you some food. Don’t you worry about a thing.”
“Okay…” Yugi blinked back his tears. “Thanks, Joey.”
“Tell Grandpa I said hi and get better,” Joey added, sounding just as solemn.
“I will.”
After that, Yugi had to make a rather awkward call to his aunt Keiko, Solomon’s only living child now that Yugi’s father was gone, and explain matters without making her hysterical about her father’s condition. She wanted to come up to Domino right away, but Yugi cautioned her and told her it would be better if they knew whether he would be staying on or checking out first. The conversation was stiff and cautious, as Yugi had not spoken to his aunt in a couple of years, but he promised her that he would call as soon as he had any news. Keiko would undertake the responsibility of spreading the news to other relations, as Yugi had other things to do. He went downstairs and checked around, opening the till and counting the money before going to the front door and unlocking it, putting Kame game shop officially open for business. He felt warmth steal through his soul as he returned to the counter to oversee another day. “A little work will keep your mind off things,” the pharaoh’s spirit murmured kindly.
Yugi smiled despite his apprehension, clasping a hand over his chest, over his heart. The moment he had woken up with the alarm, Yami had been there, and though he wasn’t constantly chattering to remind Yugi of his presence, Yugi knew he was still and always there, watching over him, wishing he could be there in body. “Yeah,” he responded, not hesitating to speak out loud. “It’ll be all right. Though, every time the phone rings I’m going to be a nervous wreck.”
“I would imagine so.” Yami’s phantom presence hovered beside him, gazing at him with big, sympathetic eyes. “I know you’re scared, and I know how much it hurts. I feel it, too. I may not be his kin, but your grandfather means as much to me as he does to you. And we share our feelings through our bond. I know your pain, Yugi, because I bear it with you.”
Yugi gave a soft sigh. “That’s almost better than having you here to hold me,” he said quietly, a tingle of warmth rising in his cheeks. “Almost.”
He hadn’t expected there to be much in the way of customers that morning, and there weren’t, but Yugi managed to stay busy straightening up or dusting shelves. One older gentleman, a regular who often commiserated with Solomon over mah jong or Go, was very upset to hear of the development and asked Yugi to pass on his well-wishes to his grandpa before making a small purchase to replace some missing tiles in his game set. Only a couple of calls came in during the morning, asking about shop hours and whether they carried a certain new card game, but as he expected, Yugi tensed up each time and answered timidly, relaxing only when he heard the inane questions posed to him. At last, a little after noon, the call he was waiting for came in. “I’d like you to come down and discuss your grandfather’s treatment,” the doctor said crisply. “He insists on having you here, and I see no reason to keep you in the dark. He will need your support and assistance through this, you should be with him.”
“Okay,” Yugi said, nodding, trying to keep the tremor out of his voice. “I’ll be right down, I have to close up shop but I’ll be there right away.”
“Your grandpa would like a word with you,” the doctor added.
Yami glided into view beside his young partner, listening to both halves of the conversation while Yugi jotted a few things down on a scrap of paper by the phone. “Yeah, yeah, I’ve got it,” he assured Grandpa. “Anything else? …Grandpa!”
“What?” Grandpa Muto said innocently. “I need something to read while I’m sitting around here bored. There’s nothing on TV.”
Yugi heaved a put-upon sigh. “Fine, I’ll stop and get you a magazine.”
“Nothing too racy,” his grandfather snickered. “The nurses say I’m not supposed to get too excited and stress my heart.”
“Yeah, just be glad I’m so nice to you,” Yugi grumbled good-naturedly, “or all you’d get is crossword puzzles. Is that it?”
“I think so.”
Yugi listened to a few more instructions about what to do with the shop and finally hung up, taking his paper with him. Yami, of course, was with him as he ran his errands upstairs. “It sounds as though he’ll be staying a bit longer,” he observed, having heard the request for pajamas and other personal items.
“Yeah, I expected that would happen.” Yugi dug out a duffel bag and prepared to pack it for his grandfather. “We’ll have to close down for the rest of the day. I don’t know when I’ll be back. But…half a day open is better than losing money completely.”
A new sign tacked to the front door of Kame game shop read “Closed – family emergency.” Yugi had gone to the hospital, stopping only at the bookstore to fulfill his grandpa’s request. He brought the bag up to the room and sat with Grandpa Muto for a little while, catching up, letting himself be reassured that nothing had happened during the night and passing along the kind words from Joey and the customer. He also sat thankfully aside while Grandpa called Keiko himself to let her know how he was doing. At last, the doctor came in to speak with them, a new doctor, who introduced himself specifically as a cardiologist. He seemed young but confident, and kind, as he sat on the end of Grandpa’s bed in order to talk to both of them about the situation. “Most heart attacks are caused by a blockage in an artery,” he explained, “but once in a while, someone will suffer an arrhythmia due to an outside factor, like heart disease or a genetic defect, something of that order. That is what your grandfather suffered last night. We stabilized him just fine, but unlike a regular old heart attack, it wasn’t the main problem. It’s only a symptom of something much larger.” He held Yugi’s gaze as he talked, though both of them needed to hear the diagnosis. “Mr. Muto has a condition that has weakened the valves of his heart. Most likely simply due to his age and family history. If not repaired, the valves will occasionally spasm, causing another small heart attack every time. If it can’t be caught in time and reversed, a spasm could cause his heart to shut down.”
Yugi squeezed his grandfather’s hand, though he still bravely faced the doctor. “So what do you need to do to repair his heart valves?”
“The most common treatment requires surgery,” the doctor said plainly. “These days, we don’t have to do a complete open-heart surgery, it’s less invasive than that, but it’s still a complicated procedure. To your good fortune, one of the best surgeons in Japan who specializes in this procedure is right here at this hospital.”
Yugi gave a little sigh of relief and glanced at Grandpa, who nodded affirmatively. “How long would he have to stay in the hospital?”
“Barring any complications, it would be about a week,” the doctor replied, checking his file. “After that, it would be best for Mr. Muto if he had a long rest, perhaps a month before he was back in any kind of shape to be working.” He eyed them both. “You told me you still work?”
“We own a game shop,” Yugi responded. “Grandpa runs it mostly himself, but I help.”
The doctor’s gaze shifted to him. “After this surgery, your grandfather will need you to help out a lot more. Recovery takes time, especially after a bunch of surgeons have been poking around in your chest.”
Yugi nodded, appreciating the doctor’s candor. “Don’t worry, I’m ready to do anything I have to in order to help Grandpa get better quickly. And I know he wouldn’t want to make it worse,” he added with a look toward Mr. Muto. “No matter how bored he is being laid up.”
“You’re not kidding,” Grandpa sighed. “Are you sure, Yugi? You’re going to need to step up and become the man of the house for a bit.”
“I can do it,” Yugi vowed.
“We have room on the schedule to fit this surgery in today, if you’re ready,” the doctor continued, rising and paging through the file pinned to his clipboard. “I must inform you, that any surgical procedure carries risks. With this particular surgery, the risks are generally low, but any cardiac surgery could lead to complications. After all, we’re working with a heart. The survival rate is very high, but I’m required to make sure you’re aware that there is a small chance that a complication could develop and…”
“He could die,” Yugi said in a small voice. “I understand.”
“As do I,” Solomon added. “But I consider my health worth the risks. I consent to it, doctor.”
The doctor nodded his acceptance. “Then, I’ll work up the information and have you sign it, and set you up on the schedule for surgery this evening. The sooner we get this taken care of, the better. We don’t want any sudden spasms weakening your heart any more.”
Yugi’s head turned to follow him as he started to leave. “Can I stay here, and wait for him?”
The doctor smiled kindly over his shoulder. “Yes, you’re free to stay. The nurses on call can help you if you need anything.”
As soon as he was gone, Grandpa Muto gave his grandson’s hand a little squeeze of reassurance. “I hate to have to do this to you, my boy. You’re going to miss so much school.”
“It’s okay, I don’t care.” Yugi turned to him and leaned forward to hug him, just like he always used to when he was little and still short enough to rest his head on his grandpa’s chest. “Anything to keep from losing you. It’s too soon for you to go.”
“I know.” Grandpa patted him on the back and let him lie there for a few minutes, touched to see that Yugi’s affection was still so strong at his age. “I have too much to do, yet. I’m not ready to give up and waste away the rest of my life in a nursing home. I still have places to go, butts to kick.”
Yugi sat up with a little laugh. “I’m not letting you anywhere near a tournament ever again,” he scolded. “Not after last time!”
Grandpa grinned back. “Who said I want to kick butt in a tournament? I just need to kick yours around a little, keep you humble.” His smile softened, then, and he took his grandson’s hand again. “I wanted to take you to Egypt someday. After all you and the pharaoh have been through, even if he still hasn’t regained his memory by then, I want you two to see where he came from.”
Yugi wrapped his hands around his grandpa’s. “Then you have to get better,” he ordered, “so we can all go to Egypt together. I want to see the places you’ve seen. I want to see where you found the Millennium Puzzle.”
Grandpa Muto nodded firmly. “Then that’s what we’ll do. I won’t let this little roadblock slow me down. Besides.” He grinned again. “I still haven’t drawn up the papers to make you part owner of the game shop. I better not kick the bucket before I can do that, or you’ll have a hard time fending off Kaiba. Vulture,” he added with a wry look that made Yugi chuckle.
Responding to a rather cryptic and uncharacteristically serious phone call, Mai showed up at Joey’s apartment after he had returned from campus, car keys in hand. He had barely let her in when he grabbed his denim jacket and made to leave. “What’s going on, where are we going?” she asked. “It’s kind of short notice for a date, don’t you think?”
“Sorry, Mai,” Joey sighed, “but this isn’t a date. I need to use you for your car for a bit.”
“What is it?” Mai gazed intently at his face as he came up to her. “I haven’t seen you this quiet in ages. Somebody die?”
“Not quite.” Joey took her hand and mustered a smile of gratitude. “Yugi called me this morning. His grandpa’s in the hospital.”
Mai’s look softened. “Oh…”
“I want to go see how he’s doing,” Joey went on. “I tried calling him but there’s no answer, at home or the shop, so he must still be down at the hospital. He’s all alone there, he could really use a friend.”
“Two friends,” Mai corrected. “Let’s go. I’m happy to drive.”
The sun was sinking in the sky already, and most decent folk were sitting down to dinner in their homes, when Mai and Joey arrived at the hospital and inquired at the desk to find out which room Solomon Muto was in. They went up to the third floor and tracked him down, but as they stepped quietly into the doorway of the room to investigate, they found Yugi sitting there alone, his back to the door, a manga open on his lap. The bed was empty, though the covers were turned back. Joey rapped lightly on the door frame with his knuckles. “Hey, Yug?”
Yugi turned with questioning eyes, which softened as he saw his visitors. “Joey…Mai…”
They both looked around, though Joey asked, “Where’s Gramps?”
Yugi closed the book in his lap. “In surgery,” he said softly. “They said it could be hours, so…I’m just waiting until they bring him back.” He lifted his eyes to his friends again. “What are you doing here?”
Joey presented the take-out box he was carrying. “Hungry?”
Mai pulled over the little table on wheels meant for the patient, and Joey laid out dinner for Yugi, who sat back and shoveled rice into his mouth for a bit before feeling up to talking. He hadn’t even realized how hungry he was until the food was there in his hands. Fortunately, Joey took up the duty of chattering for him, telling him what little he missed in class that day and what he and Mai had been up to while Yugi was out with Yami on his day of freedom. He trailed off as Yugi paused eating for a bit to take a breath and relax. “How you holdin’ up?” he asked his best friend.
“I’m okay,” Yugi murmured. “It was hardest when I didn’t know anything, and had to just trust it would be all right. It’s a good thing I had Yami with me.” He lowered the box of rice and let his head droop sadly. “I don’t know what I would have done without him. He took care of me last night, just when I needed someone to be there. I didn’t have to go to sleep alone.”
“Yeah,” Joey agreed. “Though, you’ve still got him with you.”
“I know.” Yugi mustered a little smile. “He’s been hovering all day, so I don’t forget that he’s there. Not that I ever could. It’s kind of sweet.”
“So, what happened?” Mai asked. “Is your grandpa going to be all right?”
In between bites of food, Yugi told them as much as he knew, about the heart attack itself and the reasons Grandpa Muto was in surgery. Somehow, it felt cathartic to be able to explain it all to someone else, someone who listened patiently and would not panic like a family member. “…so now, I’m just waiting,” he concluded with a sigh. “They said if there weren’t any complications, they’d bring him up here to recover, but if there’s any trouble he’ll be in the ICU overnight. I really hope that doesn’t happen.”
Joey sat close enough to reach out a hand and rest it on Yugi’s shoulder. “It’ll be okay,” he said. “Grandpa’s tough. Before you know it, he’ll be up here harassing the nurses again.”
Yugi nodded and resumed eating, since it kept him from having to think about what else to say. Mai gave him a sweet smile. “Joey’s right. Your grandpa’s a fighter. Especially when he knows you’re there for him.”
“Just like Duelist Kingdom,” Joey agreed.
“I guess you’re right,” Yugi conceded with a little laugh.
They changed the topic to something less heavy for a while, so Yugi could eat, but then Joey’s reminder that they were going out next week to the sakura festival sobered him again. “I can’t,” he said solemnly. “I’m going to be too busy. You guys will have to go without me.”
“Aw, come on, Yug!” Joey protested. “After all of this, you’re gonna need to get out and have some fun! You can’t back out on us now.”
Yugi shook his head. “I know, I want to, but I can’t. I’m going to be the only one running the store for a while, I won’t be able to get away. And I don’t even know yet if that’s the same day I’ll be bringing Grandpa home from the hospital. I just can’t make any promises.”
“Oh, Yugi,” Mai said worriedly. “Are you sure? Joey’s right, you need to get away just for one night, and get your mind off all this heavy stuff.”
“I really appreciate it, guys…” Yugi kept his head lowered so they couldn’t see the sorrow in his eyes. “But now’s not a good time. Everything’s so up-in-the-air. Let’s just wait and see, all right? If things are more normal, I’ll think about it, but…I probably won’t be able to go.”
Joey relented with a nod. “All right. I won’t push you. You gotta do what you gotta do, Yug.”
At that moment, an intern came into the room and looked amongst the three of them. “Yugi Muto?”
Yugi sat up, though his heart sank to his toes. “Yes?”
The intern focused on him. “I was sent up to let you know that your grandfather is out of surgery. They’re keeping him in the ICU until he wakes up, then he’ll be brought up here.”
All three gave a sigh of relief simultaneously. Yugi blinked up at the intern. “Were there any problems?”
“I don’t know, I wasn’t actually in the operating room. If you’d like, I can show you down there. You can ask his surgeon.”
“If you could, please.” Yugi set aside what was left of his dinner and hopped up.
“We’ll go with you,” Joey decided, also rising.
The intern frowned at him. “Are you family?”
“Well…”
“Please,” Yugi begged. “They’re my friends. I don’t have anyone else here with me.”
The intern shook his head. “I’m sorry, only family members are allowed in the ICU.”
Mai stood and shouldered her purse. “It’s okay, Yugi. We’ll walk you down there, but then we should probably go so you can be with him. It’s getting late.”
“Okay.” Yugi nodded to the intern to let him know it was settled. The man went ahead of them, and they followed a few steps behind so they could continue to talk. “Thanks, you guys,” Yugi breathed in relief. “I’m so glad you came. It really means a lot to me.”
Joey slung an arm around his shoulders as they walked. “You gonna stay here tonight?”
“I don’t know. It depends on if they let me.” Yugi hung his head dejectedly. “I want to stay by his side, but I don’t know if I should just blow off the store like that. With all that’s going on, I need to keep it going. This surgery is going to cost us a lot, every hour we’re closed means less money to pay off those bills.”
Mai came up on his other side and gingerly placed a hand on his shoulder. “You should really go home and get some sleep,” she offered. “It’s hard to make decisions when you’re worn out. Stay until he wakes up, so he knows you were here, and then go take care of yourself.”
“She’s right, Yugi,” the deep voice inside his mind implored. “Grandpa wouldn’t want you to exhaust yourself for his sake.”
Yugi closed his eyes briefly but didn’t acknowledge either suggestion. “If there’s anything I can do to help you out,” Joey put in, “say the word. Maybe you don’t want me running the store in your place, but I can be here when you need me. I’ll run errands for you. I’ll do anything for you, you know that.”
“Thanks,” Yugi said under his breath, suddenly feeling as tired as everyone claimed he looked.
Outside the intensive care unit, Joey and Mai said their goodbyes, promising to look after Yugi and come at his beckoned call if he needed them. Mai even kissed him lightly on the forehead, and then Joey wrapped him in a big hug. “It’ll be okay,” he promised, sounding certain. “We’ll help you. You’re not in this alone.”
Yugi clutched him around the middle, sinking into his embrace with a grateful sigh. “Thank you, Joey,” he whispered into the folds of his coat. “I owe you guys. I’ll call you, okay?”
“Okay. Be good.” Joey ruffled his hair and stepped away, waving over his shoulder as he and Mai walked out.
Yugi had to go through a nurse’s station at the door to get into the ICU, at which he could check in and find out more information about his grandfather. Fortunately, one of the surgeons who had been assisting on his surgery was there, making notations on another patient’s chart, and could tell him how it went. There were no complications, he reported, but they put him here to recover instead of his room just as a precaution. After all, he had just had surgery on his heart. It was within bounds for Yugi to sit with his grandpa in the ICU until he woke up, and the nurse even pulled over a chair for him. There were only a couple other people like him in there, holding vigil with their loved ones. The ward was eerily quiet except for the beeping of monitors and the hiss of machines keeping some of the patients breathing. Grandpa Muto was hooked up to one at the moment, but only until he regained consciousness, however long that would take. Not knowing anything about surgery or anesthetics, Yugi forced himself to have faith in the doctors and let it run its course, trusting that Grandpa would wake when he was ready and deciding to stay by his side until that happened. He was alone again but for one person, the constant presence that he was starting to realize he used to take for granted. It wasn’t until performing the ritual of embodiment that he even understood how much he had come to rely on Yami’s existence, for that was the only time when his mind was no longer directly bonded to the pharaoh’s. He loved having Yami there as a real person, with his own life again, but he loved his partner’s inner presence just as much. He knew it was special, being bonded so closely, never having to worry about being left alone or abandoned, and as he sat there in the dim intensive care ward with sterile machines beeping at him, he thought about how lucky he was, and how he needed to be more appreciative of Yami. The softest chuckle stirred in his mind. “Don’t worry,” the spirit said warmly. “I don’t feel unappreciated, Yugi.”
Tears glimmered in Yugi’s eyes as he sat motionless, his hand resting on his grandpa’s. “I love you so much,” he said inside his mind. “I’m glad you’re here with me.”
The presence enfolded him in warmth, and he imagined Yami standing behind him, wrapping his arms around him. “I will always be with you,” he promised. “Even though I can’t hold you right now, I am with you. You can tell me anything, or just sit and say nothing. Either way, I know your heart and share your thoughts. Nothing you can say will bother me, none of your worries will surprise me.”
Yugi nodded mutely, figuring that if he let his emotions get the better of him, the only way they could communicate would be thoughts. He settled in for his vigil and gazed at his grandfather’s sleeping form, so frail and powerless compared to what he was used to seeing. “He looks so old,” he mused inwardly, not saying anything aloud for fear of disturbing the other patients’ families. “I never consider him old, he’s so active and fun for someone his age. But right now…it’s like it’s all catching up with him.”
“Our human bodies are so fragile,” Yami murmured pensively. “All the more reason for me to cherish the one I am allowed to have those few, fleeting days.”
Yugi leaned against the side of the bed, clasping both his hands around his grandpa’s and focusing on it as he turned his thoughts fully inward to converse with the pharaoh’s spirit. “Yami? Can I ask you to be honest with me about something?”
Yami’s voice grew serious. “What is it, Yugi?”
“Would you be upset with me…if I went back on a promise I made to you?”
It was hard for Yami to separate Yugi’s worried thoughts about his grandfather from any other upsetting thoughts, requiring him to interact with Yugi to find out what this meant. “I find it difficult to be upset with you for any reason, Yugi,” he assured, “but I don’t understand. What promise do you mean?”
Yugi sighed lightly. “I know I decided to study archaeology in school so I could help you,” he said in his mind, “in the hopes of someday discovering something to help you get your memory back. But…lately I’ve been wondering if…if maybe I set the bar too high. Now, with Grandpa sick like this, I’ll have to miss a lot of school and maybe take an incomplete, but…” He glanced to his side, envisioning Yami there beside him, listening with an intent look on his face. “…that’s if I decide to go back. What if I just quit school?”
Yami considered this patiently. “Do you want to quit school?” he wondered quietly.
“Well…” Yugi pondered how to word his response. “You know school has never really held my interest. I thought if maybe I gave myself a goal that relates to you, it would motivate me to stay with it. But…not even that is worth it.” He sighed again. “I love you, but I don’t know that wasting four years of my life studying archaeology for a degree is going to help you. The store is right here, right now, Grandpa needs me right now. I have to say, it’s a much more appealing option.”
There was a brief silence, but when the pharaoh’s voice returned, it had a hint of a smile to it. “Yugi, forgive me, but I’m going to say something very irresponsible for a lover. I can’t tell you what to do, and I won’t…but I want you to follow your heart. As much as my mind tells me I ought to be wise and convince you not to quit school, my heart doesn’t want to do that. I want you to be happy. If leaving school and planning your life around the game shop instead will make you happy, then you should do it. Don’t force yourself to endure university for my sake.”
Yugi smiled to himself as he sat there. “How did I know you weren’t going to yell at me,” he said with some humor. “Are you sure? Since the choices I make in my life affect you. You’re with me for every step of it.”
“I am,” Yami conceded, “but it’s still your life. You should do what you need to, not what you may think is the appropriate thing, what people expect of you. There is no shame in not going to university. As you’ve said before, your life isn’t like other people’s. You have a unique destiny, and you should follow it no matter where it leads you. And I will walk that path with you, no matter what.”
Yugi sat back a little, placing one hand over his heart as if to cherish the spirit inside him. “I suppose I shouldn’t speak so soon,” he cautioned. “This will be the real test. We’ll see, after a month of running the game shop alone, whether it’s what I want to do with my life.”
“I agree,” Yami said understandingly. “Now is not the time to be making decisions of this size. It’s late, you’re exhausted and unstable, and easily swayed by your emotions. But, it seems to me your concerns are valid. This is no whim…I can sense it. You have been thinking about it.”
“Yeah, I have.” Yugi closed his eyes. “I’ll give it a few days. Sooner or later, though, I’ll have to go to the university and let them know whether I’ll be out for a long time, or what’s going on.”
“You’ll be able to come to a decision by then. For now…” The presence seemed to wrap even tighter around him, like a warm blanket around his soul. “…concentrate on taking care of yourself, and your grandpa. We’ll get through this together.”
Yugi sat back in the chair with a smile, keeping one hand on his grandpa’s as he found himself breathing a little easier. The talk had done him some good. He sat there for a long time without moving, his thoughts becoming less concrete but still on some level sharing them with Yami, as if communicating feelings instead of words. But then, as the night deepened around him, he heard a light voice come up behind him and ask, “Hey, are you Yugi Muto, the Duel Monsters champion?”
Yugi glanced curiously over his shoulder. A young boy, perhaps ten years old or so, stood behind his chair staring at him. “Well…yes, I am,” he said hesitantly.
“Akira! I’m sorry…” A woman came over and collected the kid, bowing in apology to Yugi. “He didn’t mean to disturb you.”
“No, it’s okay,” Yugi assured, cocking his head curiously at the boy. “Your name’s Akira? You like Duel Monsters, huh?”
“Yeah,” Akira enthused. “I’m not very good at it, though. My brother taught me. He was in the Duelist Kingdom tournament a long time ago! But…he got beat on the first day. He…” Akira’s voice caught in his throat, and he glanced back to where his mother had gone. She was sitting beside another bed in the ward just like Yugi, but the patient lying motionless was a youth, a mere teenager, looking worn and sallow in his unconscious state. The little boy spoke softly. “He was in an accident and now he’s here.”
Yugi gave him a sympathetic look. “That must be hard,” he murmured. “I know, it hurts when someone you love is in trouble.” He glanced toward the bed. “My grandpa is sick, he’s here so they can fix his heart.”
“That’s good,” Akira said with uncommon politeness. “That’s why my brother is here too. They’re going to fix him up so he can walk again.”
Yugi smiled. “And then he can play Duel Monsters with you again.”
“Yeah! But he’s not as good as you. I saw you in the tournaments.” Akira tapped him on the arm. “You wanna come over and meet my brother?”
Giving his grandfather a glance to make sure he wasn’t on the verge of a breakthrough, Yugi nodded. “Uh, sure,” he decided, getting up.
He followed the boy across the ward to his older brother’s bed, and couldn’t stop the twinge of pain he felt when he realized that the accident victim was in much worse shape than his little brother seemed to understand. Their mother sat at his side with the posture of someone who had been there many days and nights just like this, never giving up though time was starting to take its toll. Yugi smiled kindly at her even as Akira nudged his hand. “This is my brother Kazuma,” he introduced. “Kazuma, meet Yugi Muto! I bet you never thought you’d get to meet a real Duel Monsters champ. Maybe when you’re better you can have a duel, and see how good he is.” Akira glanced up to Yugi with a smile. “Kazuma knows you’re way better, he talks about you and Seto Kaiba and Joey Katsuya all the time. If he ever wants to duel you, go easy on him.”
Yugi chuckled. “I will,” he promised, “though I won’t let him win. You can’t get better at dueling if you don’t practice against people who are stronger.” He glanced at their mother again, sharing his smile with her, glad to see that a glimmer of friendliness appeared in her eyes. Kazuma was clearly in a coma of some kind, and wouldn’t know that Yugi had been there, but it seemed to do her and Akira good to speak to him about his favorite things nonetheless.
Showing the typical attention span of a ten-year-old, Akira turned to his mom. “Can I go get a drink of water?”
“Yes, dear,” she answered, handing him one of the cups from the table near her. “You remember where the drinking fountain is?”
“Yeah,” he assured, taking the cup and turning to go. “I’ll be right back, Yugi,” he added.
Yugi smiled after him, but as soon as he was gone, turned to the woman with sad eyes. “How long has your son been like this?”
“Three months,” she answered. “He was hit by a car on his way home from school one afternoon. They say he could come out of it at any time, but they really don’t know.” She tried to smile, but it just made her teary. “Akira has faith that he’ll be back to his old self in no time, but it’s so hard. He just doesn’t understand.”
Yugi sighed softly. “Sometimes, all we have is faith,” he whispered. “It keeps a light burning brightly where all other lights fail in the darkness. All Kazuma can do is follow that light.”
The woman looked up to him, smiling in a different way now. “Thank you for talking to my son, Yugi. It meant a lot to him.” She glanced behind him, to the other side of the ward. “Is that your grandfather you’re with?”
“Yeah.” Yugi glanced back also. “I should probably go back and stay with him.”
“I hope everything works out for him.”
“Thank you. I wish you the best, as well.” Yugi smiled as he turned and walked back to his grandpa’s bed. On the way he was accosted once more by Akira, coming back in with his glass of water. “It was nice to meet you,” he said kindly to the boy. “They’re probably going to move my grandpa to his room later, so if I don’t see you again, take care of your brother.”
“Okay,” Akira grinned. “He’s never going to believe that Yugi Muto came to see him.”
“You’ll just have to tease him about that,” Yugi said good-naturedly. Akira giggled and went on to sit with his mother, leaving Yugi to return to his grandfather’s side. Somehow, he thought as he sat back down and was aware of Yami observing every thought and word, his own worries about the future and Grandpa’s health seemed suddenly so small.