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Little Writer: I, admittedly, have very little patience. First of all, I wanted to type up this story only after I'd finished writing it. I started typing half-way through February, and I've almost finished writing the story just this week. (Only a paragraph or so left!) Nextly, I wanted to post this up at the same time as the other story I'm working on, Love the Player. This was foiled when I learned that my aunt has my laptop, and said laptop will not be returned for a few months. So now... I've posted it. n.n!

Little Writer thanks Bourei no Hikari for Betaing/editing. And to Satine89 who told me to finally end the gosh darn story when I kept complaining about how I couldn't end it after seventeen chapters.

Please note that each song this story is placed to is not owned by me, or near anywhere owned by me. This first songis my all time favorite anime theme song: Duvet by BoA, theme song to Serial Experiments Lain.

I have poured myself into the making of this story for at least two months; I don't really remember when I started writing it, but I know it's the longest I've ever worked on a fic before typing it up to post it. The first few chapters are pretty short, but Ryou's chapters are longer than Bakura's.

DISCLAIMER: I do not own Yugioh, or Duvet.

Warnings/notes: Shonen-ai, and angst. Lots of angst. Yami no Bakura, for the mostpart,is just called Bakura.

Summary: Yami no Bakura loves his hikari, of that much he knows.That's how he knows when it's time to step out of the picture. Yami no Bakura/Ryou

Forever and After 1- Liar

((And you don't seem to understand
A shame you seemed an honest man))

I love my hikari. I do, I do.

I can't help thinking this as I curl myself into Ryou's blankets, breathing in his delicious scent.

It's just the way his soft brown eyes smile at me, his delicious lips curving upwards. That's why I love him. Not that he's ever smiled at me. I like to daydream though. Can't harm anything, right?

It's because my Shadow Magic was so familiar with the face that it automatically chose that form, and no matter how I tried to force-shape the face, it always remained the same. I think my Shadow Magic loves him too.

I love my little Ryou. It hurts so much he's not mine, and I will never be his. In fact, what happened earlier today had to be proof of this.

It just made me so mad that Ryou could just–

"Yami?" The voice I fell in love with sounded softly from the doorway. My heart throbbed at the silhouette standing there, my red-rimmed eyes threatening to spill again. "Yami, are you all right? Without waiting for a response, my little tenshi entered his room, opening the shutters to reveal the noon-day sunlight. I blinked my eyes rapidly, letting my eyes adjust. Ryou pressed a cool hand to my forehead. "You look feverish..."

I could be optimistic about what this meant, except that he's Ryou; of course he would care about me, even if he hated me! I mean, I have no chance with the boy; look at what happened earlier that day...

Growling, I swatted the boy's hand away. "I'm fine," I snapped. Sitting up in bed, I glared at the white-haired angel as best I could, while he shuffled his feet a little.

"Ano... Yami? How was your day?" Ryou asked softly.

I remained determined not to melt at the voice. "What do you think? It's only noon. You think I would've been out by now?" I would not let him know that I was lying. "Where'd you go today?"

Ryou grinned slightly. I felt a pang, knowing what had happened to cause that grin. "Nowhere," Ryou relied.

LIAR! My mind shouted.

"I got these rare cards for you." His hand delved into his pocket. "I went to the Kame Game shop to get it. They're some of Yuugi's rarest cards..."

Yami no Yuugi you mean? I stared at the cards the boy held out to me. My mind was filled with jumbled messages, thoughts, and feelings. I let the silence form a coherent sentence.

LIAR! I SAW you!

With that, I looked up at the shocked tenshi of mine, and slapped his card holding hand away, watching the cards he'd offered me scatter across the floor.

Liar.

With that, I fled.

((And all the fears you hold so dear
Will turn to whisper in your ear))

tbc