Don't you love stupidly long titles? ^^

Umm... I really don't know what to say about this. I meant for this story to be really light and fluffy, but for some reason it didn't want to stay that way, and by the end it got really quite depressing. Strange. I don't seem to have any control over how my fics turn out!

This was written for Round 3 of Compy's contest, and the pairing was Malik Ishtar x Anzu Mazaki. (I love this pairing to bits, by the way. You probably won't be able to tell that through this fic... Malik, I'm sorry. I'm just sorry.)

Note: Malik's the hikari in this. I tried so hard to get his character right- I know to some he may seem a little too 'good', but as far as I'm concerned Malik's just a really confused teenage boy, and although he may not be as kind as some of the other characters, that doesn't make him completely evil. Plus, he's reunited with his family and everything, so I like to think that he'd be a bit less... intense and pyschopathic. Here ends my random rant! ^^

Enjoy reading!

Madly, Deeply, ObsessivelyNote to self: If you're trying to get over someone who has no clue that you are madly, deeply and obsessively in love with them, DO NOT on ANY account agree to help them with their homework after school.

Anzu groaned inwardly as she entered her next class. Why, why, why? Why had she agreed to go over to his house and help him with extra maths? Was she stupid or something? Sinking into a chair, she buried her face in her hands, and tried very hard not to cry.

'Being in love with someone is difficult', she thought, unhappily. Especially when that someone only knew you existed for the purpose of helping him with his schoolwork.

Especially when that someone totally and utterly out of your reach.

"Anzu! Anzu!" She turned her head to see who was calling her.

"Oh, hey, Malik," she said, smiling wearily at the tanned boy who had just run up to her across the school courtyard.

"Hi… what's wrong?" he frowned at her tired expression, anxiously.

"Nothing… well, you know, not much…" she mumbled as she shifted the heavy schoolbooks she carried around in her arms, trying to reach a strand of hair that was blowing across her face. "I mean, it's nothing important… Oh!"

As most know only too well, in bad situations things can only get worse, and this was certainly true for Anzu. Not only was she on her way to spend more time with the object of her adoration (who remained oblivious), but her schoolbag had just broken and all of her papers and books were unceremoniously dumped onto the ground.

This was the last straw. She burst into tears.

Malik was slightly alarmed by this. Well, 'slightly' was a bit of an understatement. Unfortunately, growing up underground had not given him much experience of how to deal with hysterical women. Malik had only moved to Japan very recently, and although his sister had prepared him for pretty much anything he might encounter going to a new school in a foreign land, she hadn't told him what to do when a girl just started crying for no apparent reason in the middle of the school courtyard. He looked around frantically for Yuugi or one of the others to help him, but for once Anzu was not surrounded by a gaggle of friends.

'Brilliant', he thought.

Uncertainly, he put an awkward arm around the sobbing girl, and stiffened when she buried her face in his shoulder. Not sure what to say, he just stayed like that for a few minutes until the sobs had subsided enough for him to move her gently over to a bench.

"Um… I think you should sit down," Malik muttered, and eased her down before shuffling as far away from her as he possibly could.

Anzu laughed shakily and wiped her eyes. "Oh Malik, I'm sorry. I don't know what… I mean, I'm just having a really bad day."

All Malik could think of to say was, "Oh."

Anzu giggled. "You're eloquent, aren't you?"

Malik couldn't help but smile.

There was silence for a few minutes whilst Anzu wiped her eyes, and calmed down. "So…are you sure you're okay?" Malik mumbled eventually (he was even worse with awkward silences than with weeping girls), staring hard at his lap, whilst cursing his own bad luck inwardly. 'Why me?' he wondered. 'Why did she have to break down in front of me, possibly the worst person at giving comfort in the history of the world? I'm completely hopeless at this mushy stuff...'

But Anzu seemed to be utterly unaware of Malik's dilemma. It never occurred to her that, as she and Malik weren't that close, she maybe couldn't tell him all of the things she was too afraid to admit even to her best friends. Somehow talking to this strange, messed-up teenager that she barely knew felt… right. It was comfortable.

(Although it was pretty uncomfortable for Malik.)

"No. I'm not okay. I'm having a few… problems."

Malik snorted. "Well, I'm the one to talk to if you've got 'problems'. Believe me, I've got my fair share of them too."

Anzu shook her head, smiling. "No, not that sort of problem. I'm not saying I've been taken over by an evil spirit or anything," (at which Malik laughed) "It's more normal. I'm… I'm in love with someone."

If Malik had thought the situation could get any worse, then he was wrong. He flushed, mortified, and avoided her eyes.

"Oh."

There was a pause, in which Malik refused to look at the girl.

Then: "I'm sorry. I shouldn't be telling you all of this, you're obviously embarrassed. I'll go."

Malik heaved a silent sigh of relief, but caught a glimpse of Anzu's face as she stood up to leave. She looked upset.

Malik was used to guilt. He felt it virtually every time he saw his family, or Yuugi and his friends. It weighed down on him like a lead weight, but he'd become accustomed to it. It was always there; that shadow that he could never lose. So when he felt his heart twinge at the sight of Anzu's tear streaked, forlorn face, he knew perfectly well what that familiar feeling was. And he couldn't bear to hurt anymore people, even if it was just in such a small way.

So, although he needed to swallow his pride to do it, he reached out and caught her hand. "Stay," he said, quietly. "You can talk to me, Anzu."

She turned her head, smiled hesitantly at him, and returned to her seat. "Thank you," she murmured.

Malik just grinned and asked, "So you like someone, huh? But why is there a problem… Isn't it a good thing?"

"Not if they don't like you back."

"Oh." It occurred to Malik that he really had to stop saying that. "Well… have you asked him?"

Anzu blushed and shook her head.

"Then how do you know he doesn't like you?" Malik said practically. "Who is he, anyway?"

Anzu's blush darkened. "Ryuuji. Ryuuji Otogi."

Malik raised his eyebrows. He certainly hadn't expected that. He'd always thought that she'd fallen for the Pharaoh or his hikari. This was interesting.

He didn't really know Ryuuji all that well; all he knew about him was what he'd gathered from school gossip: that he was an incredibly intelligent, rich, charming womaniser that just happened to be totally gorgeous as well.

'But then again, he's friends with Yuugi and that lot', Malik reasoned. 'So there must be more to him. He may be a really nice guy'… he broke off that thought when he realised that he still hadn't replied to Anzu.

"Ryuuji?"

Anzu nodded.

"Um… just out of interest, why him?"

Anzu glared at Malik, eyes flashing. "Oh, so you think I'm stupid for 'choosing' someone that barely knows I exist? That it's my fault that I cry myself to sleep every night? Do you really think that I chose to fall in love with him?" Her voice had risen in pitch, until it was virtually hurting Malik's ears to listen to her.

"No, no- calm down!" Malik said, trying to control his own anger. Sheesh, did all girls have such dramatic mood swings? "I was just wondering when it… happened. You know, how long have you liked him?"

This seemed to appease Anzu a little. "For about a month now. I thought it would pass… but now it's even more obsessive than ever."

She looked like she was close to tears again, and Malik frantically tried to think of something to say.

"Look, Anzu, I'm not exactly the best person to give advice on love. But… if it were me, then I'd want you to tell me. I would want to know."

Anzu looked at him desperately. "But this is Ryuuji we're talking about! At least one girl confesses their love to him every day, and he strings them along for about three days and then drops them! What makes you think I'll be any different?"

Malik shrugged, and said simply, "You're you."

Anzu was about to laugh and say that he wasn't making any sense, but Malik stood up and winked at her.

"Look, I've got to go… but just talk to him, okay? I'm pretty sure I'm right."

Anzu nodded slowly, and stood up. She kissed Malik on the cheek, and smiled. "Thanks, Malik. You're a real friend."

As she left, Malik felt his heart twinge yet again. But this time it wasn't from guilt.

He didn't want to know what he was feeling; he didn't want to think at all, just as long as he could watch her run off, with her chestnut hair flying all over the place, and the dying sunlight reflecting in her eyes as she turned to wave happily at him before she disappeared from view.

Malik rubbed the place on his cheek where she had kissed him as if in a daze, before he turned and walked off slowly.

He just couldn't work out why he felt extremely angry whenever he thought of Ryuuji Otogi.

Malik was right. Of course.

Ryuuji was different with Anzu. He really seemed to care for her, and although it took a few people (Jou and Honda in particular) a while to get used to the idea of them as a couple, the whole group accepted them and were fine about the whole thing.

Another change was Malik being included in their group more. One day Anzu just said brightly (completely out of the blue) "Why don't I invite Malik to come with us to the park this afternoon?", and from that day on that was that.

Although no-one ever found out what happened that day between Anzu and Malik, it didn't take long for her very best friends to realise that she really liked and trusted the Egyptian boy, and that was enough for them. Yuugi smiled and added Malik, happily, to his mental list of 'close' friends, both Jou and Honda shrugged and welcomed him (albeit slightly warily, none of them had quite forgotten Battle City), and Ryuuji was content as long as Anzu was happy.

Only Ryou noticed that Malik acted strangely around Anzu. But then, as they were best friends, Malik never bothered to ask him to keep his mouth shut about it- he knew Ryou's lips were sealed.

Ryou would never tell anyone exactly who Malik had fallen deeply, madly, obsessively in love with.

A tall, tanned boy sat in the audience of Domino's top theatre. He ignored the fidgets of the people surrounding him; the crackle of sweet packets that were clutched in the grubby fingers of small children, and the creaking of the chairs as people leant back in their seats. He could barely hear the strains of the music that the orchestra was playing that echoed around the large space. All of his attention was fixed on the solitary girl that was dancing, dancing, dancing on stage.

She was beautiful. Maybe not the conventional beauty (tall, thin, blonde) but to him she would always out-shine all those other girls that were virtually queuing up to be his girlfriend.

And the way that she danced… You'd think she was a professional, not an 18 year old girl dancing in her first ever show. She'd never even been to that dancing school in New York. She was a natural.

The boy had come every night, just to watch her. He'd seen her six times so far, and there were only seven performances. It's only an amateur production, the producers had scoffed, It won't sell for more than seven performances.

But he would buy all of the seats in the theatre every night if that was what it took for him to see her dance.

'One year', he thought dully, as the performers bowed and he realised that his hands were clapping automatically. 'One year ago today. The day she burst into tears in front of me'. He watched her sweep the audience with her eyes, and he shrank back into his chair. He didn't want her to know that he came every night. He had enough pride left for that.

'One year ago', he thought as he stood outside in the dusky, lamp lit street, not wanting to move. 'One year ago today she kissed me on the cheek.'

'One year ago', he thought as he watched Anzu throw herself, laughing, into the Ryuuji's arms, who had waited outside the stage door with a huge bunch of flowers just as he did every night. 'One year ago today my heart began to ache for the first time.'

'One year ago', he thought, as the happy couple stumbled into Ryuuji's car on their way to a special 'Anniversary' date. 'One year ago today she became out of my reach.'

'One year ago', Malik thought, as he turned to trudge back home. 'One year ago today that I fell deeply, madly and obsessively in love with Anzu Mazaki.'

Hmm. I'm still not sure whether I like this... I hope you enjoyed it, though!

Bookworm