Some Things Change

Atem

Seto typed away tirelessly at his desk; he had been desperately trying to keep his mind occupied on his work. The task near impossible, ever since Atem's return.

He thought back to how it happened, how he made that blasted machine, spent fortunes -merely pennies to him- to have it created, countless hours and sleepless nights he couldn't get back. Was it worth it?

"Not hardly."  he thought, numbly. He had successfully beaten his rival yes, and on the wager that he'd return to their world if he lost, no less. Atem had argued it impossible, but Seto never took no for an answer. He had brought Atem back in his ship and discovered that his otherworldly body was in fact made of flesh, that, or the gods had magically "given him one" upon his return to Earth.

Either way, Seto finally had what he wanted. Atem was here, he was done building crazy machines and jumping through mechanical hoops to get to him. So he should be happy, right?

So why did he feel so numb? Why did he suddenly feel like a weight was crushing him every time he even thought about Atem?

With a sigh he sat back in his office chair and intertwined his fingers under his chin, elbows lying upon the armrests casually. He crossed his legs and tapped his foot anxiously.

"What's wrong with me?"  His eyes narrowed in thought, "Since when do I care about anyone, much less Atem?"

He seethed when he thought back to how he had offered to house Atem, an attempt to get closer to him. Perhaps even become his friend.

Atem had blatantly refused, opting that if Yugi would accept him he'd much rather live with him. Yugi did, of course.

So in the end, all Seto had done was nearly kill himself to challenge his rival, bring him back to life, and was still no closer to him than when Atem wasn't in their world to begin with. Great. Months of his time wasted.

Not to mention that ever since Atem had gotten his own body he and Yugi seemed even closer. Seto had to ponder how that was even possible considering they literally shared a body before. Every time he saw one of them the other was right behind, never just Atem, alone, like how he'd pictured it. No, Yugi was always right there, holding Atem's hand, or hugging onto the Pharaoh.

Seto's jaw set as he felt the strange heaviness fill his chest. Gods what he'd give to be able to hold At-

A quiet knock at his door roused him from his thoughts.

"What?" his voice came out a bit rougher than he had intended.

"Mr. Kaiba, I uh.. Just wanted to tell you that the Muto's are outside."

"Right."  

Kaiba sighed, he'd forgotten he had invited Atem over to duel.

"Muto's, as in plural?" he felt his teeth clench to the point where he swore they'd snap into pieces with even the slightest bit more pressure.

"Yes sir. Two of them."

"Alright."

He sighed and lifted himself from his chair, not even wasting time to change out of his suit. He brushed the wrinkles from his clothes, and picked up his case with his cards inside.

Once he opened the door he locked it behind him and strode purposefully toward the lobby of Kaiba Corp. Upon entering the lobby his eyes immediately settled upon tan skin and spikey red, black, and gold hair, his radiant smile seemed to brighten the entire room. The only issue was that the dazzling and heartfelt smile was pointed towards the shorter Muto, and not Seto.

He inhaled sharply seeing their hands once again intertwined, Atem was looking at Yugi as if he were the only meaningful thing in his world. Seto could feel a strange knotting in his stomach; he felt vile rise in the back of his throat, and had to force himself to focus on breathing.

He cleared his throat loud enough it seemed to echo in the otherwise empty room, and both of their heads immediately snapped toward him.

"Hello, Kaiba." Atem's smooth voice greeted him, his smile fading quickly.

Seto focused his hands on straightening his tie to keep them from fidgeting, seeing Atem's smile fade away while addressing him was enough to make him want to find a hole and lie in it.

"Atem." he allowed his eyes to pierce his rivals for just a moment. He was met with enough pride to match his own.

Seto walked past them, not addressing Yugi at all. The runt wasn't even worth his time. He heard their footsteps following behind him, signaling that they were intelligent enough to follow without being instructed to at least.

The Pharaoh's voice finally cut through the thick silence, "So, Kaiba, how have you been? It's been nearly a month since we last heard from you." 

"Busy." 

"Ah, I suppose everything's well?"

"Well enough."

"I see."

No more words were exchanged until they made it to the dueling room. They were using a stadium that was normally used for testing, at each end sat the bigger and older model projectors so they wouldn't have to use duel disks. Both players got on either side of the stadium and a long silence came between both of them. Both rivals meeting each others fierce gazes before saying the famous line in time with each other:

"It's time to duel!"

...

The duel came to an abrupt end as Kaiba lost his blue eyes ultimate dragon and the rest of his remaining life points. He let out a small sigh of satisfaction.

This  was why he had went through so much trouble to find Atem and duel him. He missed this, this excitement, this change from his every day routine. He needed Atem because he signified the only thing in the world that wouldn't just bend over and break for him.

Kaiba felt a small smile start to grace his lips, he looked up with the words to congratulate and thank Atem on his tongue, only to have his mouth go completely arid.

Yugi was kissing Atem, no, they were kissing each other. Atem had his hands run through Yugi's hair, clutching the nape of his neck as his other hand slid down his back. Yugi was clutching tightly to Atem's shirt, and Seto heard a small moan escape the Pharaoh's lips.

Something snapped in Seto's head; he felt his knees grow weak, and grabbed the railing beside him for purchase. He bit the inside of his cheek until his teeth punctured it, leaving a metallic taste behind. His chest felt as if someone had placed a ten ton weight on it as he struggled to breathe normally. He wanted to look away, but it was as if he wanted to torture himself. His blue eyes bore into them until they finally pulled apart, smiling and laughing to each other.

Seto actually felt tears begin to prick at his eyes, a sensation he had long forgotten since he became Gozaburo's monkey. "Why?"  he thought cruelly, not sure if he was asking why he was about to cry, or why he could never hold Atem's affection in such a way.

He finally straightened his back and set his shoulders. He'd be damned if he'd cry in front of anyone, especially not these two. Atem and Yugi finally turned their attention back to him, and he felt Atem staring holes into him.

"Do you want a rematch, Kaiba?" Atem questioned, those cat-like amethyst eyes piercing his very soul.

"No." Kaiba stepped away from the dueling podium, straightening his tie once again, "I think it's best for me to quit dueling."

It took Atem a moment to register.

"Wait, Kaiba, you don't me-"

"Good-bye Atem, Yugi." Seto bowed just slightly, "This will my last duel, as well as the last time I plan to see either of you."

He curtly walked away, hearing a mix of, "What?!" and "Wait, Kaiba!" but never dare stopping. The first tear finally breaking through his tough exterior and rolling down his cheek.