Return of the Kings

Chapter 7

A/N: This chapter contains talk of self harm. I will be putting trigger warnings before and after this so if you have experience or are trigger-able from such talk, please scroll through. I do not wish to offend anyone who has experienced similar episodes or experiences, self harm and depression are very serious issues however I have included such in this story to give a more 'real' touch to the development. If this is not your thing, that's okay, you may scroll through.

He enjoyed standing on his own now, with only limited mobility mind but enough that he could wash his hair and body without assistance. Feeling the warm water run down his skin was soothing... and closing his eyes he felt as if he was back home already. He hoped he'd be allowed to come home tonight. He didn't see the point in resting here if he was allowed home tomorrow. He was able to walk and stand on his own... he didn't see a reason to stay here any longer. The pain medication they kept giving him was strong... he knew once it wore down he'd need to take something weaker... so perhaps the reason he was kept here was because the pain medication was masking the severity of his injuries... he didn't doubt there was likely damage he could do because he currently couldn't feel that much pain... but if all he was doing was resting well he could do that at home.

He sighed as the water made his hair lick his face and cling to his skin. His hair was getting long again... he'd need to get it trimmed soon if he wanted to keep his style.

He was drying his hair in nothing but his hospital trackpants when Atem decided to come forth again, eyes downcast. Something was bothering him... and it made him nervous. Something had been bothering him earlier too but since then he had cheered up... he wondered what could possibly be going through his mind and what might have triggered such an emotional response.

"Yugi." Atem said distantly, refusing to look at him.

"Hey, are you okay? What's wrong?" Yugi asked him as he draped the towel over his shoulders. He thought that if it had been the tattoo then making sure he couldn't see it in the mirror might help.

"Nothing's wrong... just... I'm sorry. I didn't mean to cause you such pain when I left." He said sadly.

"I thought we'd been through this. It's okay buddy, I mean we both had each others best interest in mind." Yugi said sweetly, trying to get into his view. Atem looked away from him more though, frown lines forming on his forehead as he struggled internally.

*** TRIGGER WARNING ***

"They told me how you took it when I left. How you quit dueling and shut yourself away, that you needed counselling and medication and you were on some kind of 'watch'... I didn't know what that meant but then I saw the scars.... I know of self-inflicted pain Yugi and it hurts to know I hurt you so much. I know it's been years but I just... I wanted to say that I'm so sorry." Atem was almost in tears by this point, and seeing him like this only hurt his own heart more. He didn't tell him about how he dealt with his loss for this very reason; he wasn't proud of what he had done and never wanted to hurt him like this. He just... didn't know what else to do at the time.

Yugi reached out to him but he felt him retreating. Under other circumstances he'd have allowed him to but this time he imposed, taking his hand and forcing him to touch the scars upon his arms.

He could feel Atems tension and discomfort but that was exactly what he didn't want him to feel. This was difficult for him too, but he needed Atem to know him.

"I should have been the one to tell you. These scars don't reflect the pain I felt when you left. These scars reflect how foolish I was to think I was nothing without you. Everyone asked me how I was doing, almost constantly to a point that I became terrified to leave my room. The expectancy people had when they looked at me as if I was supposed to break down in tears because you were gone, the image of me they had in their mind that I was some dependant child without his guardian angel to hold his hand everywhere he went. I hated it so much I distanced myself to avoid the looks, the questions pretty much everything. Before I knew it leaving my bedroom actually became terrifying. I slept all day just so I could leave my room when Grandpa was asleep."