Awkward Romantic Breakfast (Part 2)

DIMENSION: MANGA (The One That Saves the Day)

Best day of his life, and the worse. Yuugi rubbed his hands together as he got in front of the stove. ///Yuugi: Breakfast, breakfast, breakfast! Romantic breakfast. Friend breakfast. Awkward breakfast? What would make her happy?/// He tried to lookup something. He tried not to completely shun her away from America, so he tried to put some things in the house traditionally more American. But? He didn't have much. ///Yuugi: Hotcakes. I can make that. ///

It was hard to be happy or not happy. Anzu lived in America. She was there for protection, but she'd eventually . . .

Yet, they also.

Yuugi heard his phone ring as he started to pull off the first hotcake. He plated it and answered his phone as he started the next. "Jounouchi. How is everything?"

"Mai's having premonitions about a disastrous future and my daughter!"

Um? "Could you back up a little bit, Jounouchi?"

Yuugi heard everything. Shizuka's eyesight wasn't gonna get better and she was at home with Honda. Mai finally told him the truth. He was the dad, and they were having a little girl. A sonogram. Jounouchi's first picture of it. Then, Jounouchi told him about the interesting parts.

Mai thought her time spent with Marik gave her some kind of psychic ability to see the future. He could see how Jounouchi was nervous about that. He could see why Mai was nervous about it too. But? "Jounouchi?"

"Yeah?"

"You're gonna be a dad." That was really the most important part. "You're gonna be a great dad."

"Uh. Is it gonna be okay?"

"Yeah," Yuugi assured him. "Your mind is just wandering, Jounouchi. Pregnant women probably dream more about their future child because it's inside them and it's their future. As for the changing disaster, you always pop up in front of the window in her dream. Maybe it's a sign of a happier future?"

"Oh. Yeah. Maybe? She's been dreaming this a long time. There's also more people in the room though."

It didn't matter. "It doesn't matter."

"I think she saw Atem and Satiah."

Confused. The past and present coming together, that was all. Atem was in the afterlife, never to return. "Dreams are a combination of unconscious thoughts, past and present. Even if Atem did somehow come back, he wouldn't be standing there in his own body. Neither would Satiah, she doesn't have a body either. Don't worry about it all. You're gonna be a great dad," Yuugi told him again. "Just, how are you going to do this with Mai?"

"Well, she isn't gonna be doing visual duels, just basics she said. Other than that. Ah? Oh, crap, Yuugi. I don't know the first thing about being a dad! Mine was absolute shit, what am I gonna do?"

There it was, it just hit Jounouchi. "Just be Jounouchi. I know you'll get through it. You've gotten through everything else."

"Shit, shit, shit Yuugi. I never even told Shizuka about the possibility, she thinks Mai and I are still friends. I mean, technically we are. Shoot, now what? I had her stay with me 'cause of this Skeezy stuff for now. She should really move in. Maybe I should propose? I don't think Mai would like that. Maybe she would."

Yuugi didn't know what to say. "Life's kind of . . . tough in general. Talk it out."

"Hang on. Yuugi, you don't sound right. You okay?"

Well now that the world wasn't falling to Jounouchi, he noticed Yuugi's dilemma. Damn. "No. I don't know. I'm fixing breakfast for us. Hotcakes."

"Yuugi, it's like two."

"Yep, and I'm fixing breakfast for us."

"Aw, Damn it! What happened? What's going on with one of my best friends right now?"

Yuugi looked toward the batter on the side. He couldn't lie. "I slept with Anzu." Damn it, he was starting to lose it. "I screwed up, Jounouchi, I shouldn't have, I know it. The moment felt right but, now she's so confused between America and here and everything. It wasn't . . ."

"But you're fixing hotcakes for the both of you?" Jounouchi asked. "Yuugi. Don't be scared. She coming down to eat?"

"I follow my heart, Jounouchi, it's what I've always done. I don't regret following it." His face was heated. "I wasn't planning on this though, and while we . . . I guess signals got crossed. I'm sorry about Shizuka."

"Yuugi?" Anzu's voice drifted toward him. "It's past afternoon, are you trying to make hotcakes?"

"I better go."

"Crossed signals as in relationship or crossed signals in like protection, Yuugi Mutoh?"

Yuugi hung up. "How would you like your hotcakes?" He turned back to look at her. "Anzu."

"It wasn't just your fault, it was my fault too!" She suddenly yelled. Her cheeks were flush in shame. "Yuugi, you are the sweetest friend in the world, but my life is so up in the air right now, that it just-"

"I never said you had to stay forever, I never said that." The words came out that way. His heart was yelling differently. ///Yuugi: You stupid, stupid idiot. After this whole thing is over, she's going back to America. This isn't her dream, Grandpa's shop isn't her dream, America and dancing is./// "I'll help you out, Anzu. I have enough that I can help you try to reach your goal one more time."

"Yuugi, no."

"Then you can be the dancer that you want to be. Everyone has a dream, and if I can help you with yours, then I will," he insisted. "How do you like your hotcakes?"

"How do I like my hotcakes?" Her voice was tougher. A certain attitude behind them he hadn't heard in a long time. "I like them in the shape of hearts!"

Yuugi tried to process that meaning as he worked hard on keeping them into the heart shape she wanted them to have. A little tricky. He ended up cutting out a heart shape in them. He plated the hotcakes and brought them over. Yuugi sat down at the table next to her. "Like?"

"Yep." She poured syrup on them. "Smothering a heart." She took her fork, cut it roughly and took a big bite. "Yuugi. I can't believe you didn't tell me."

"About protection or about wanting you to stay because I don't even know what to tell you that isn't going to make this turn bad." He watched her scoot her chair away and leave. Damn. At least, Anzu's old vibrant attitude had come back.

Just not for the reasons he wanted. He watched her come back in the room with some of the laminated fake copy 'not for sale' duel cards. What was she doing?

"I swear, Yuugi." She put out five of them. "We . . . feel what we remember from each other." She gestured to each card. "We think we know what's face down." She looked toward him, trying to speak in a way he understood. "But we don't. That's where we messed up. You assume I am still the same, like everything I believed in six years ago is still the same."

"No, I-"

"Zip it. I don't want you to fund me for America." She flipped the card over. "I don't want that because I don't know what I want. I'm lost right now. I was with you because I followed what I thought was right." She looked at the next card still turned over. "This is your card though. I don't know what's underneath anymore."

Yeah. Okay. "Well, for one?" He placed his hands over the cards and moved them out of the way. "My life doesn't revolve around duel monsters. I like it, and I used to like it better, but it's not all I like. I like all kinds of games out there, and no matter how old I get, that's never going to change." He crossed his arms. "I'll still swing by vending machines to get the latest games or just to spend a little to see what new interesting monster pieces I can get to play for different games. I don't care what others think of me in that line." That? That was something he learned absolute from Atem. Be himself.

That didn't seem to make her mad at all though. Her face was staring straight at him, like she was seeing something. "I'd stand in that vending machine line with you, Yuugi." She dared to smile again. "I didn't want to hurt my friend's heart even while I followed mine, but I did. Didn't I?"

Because she couldn't guarantee the future. And? ///Yuugi: I messed up. Okay./// "It's your choice."

"Yuugi! What do you want? What is your perfect future?"

"It doesn't matter my-"

"Yuugi!"

"I want you to stay in Japan with me, right here where I can design games and we can run the Game Shop together!" That's what she wanted to know. What he wanted too, more than anything. "I didn't want to say it so loud though that it drowned out your own dreams and thoughts."

"Nothing can get drowned out, my future's completely up in the air." Anzu sighed. "There isn't anything big waiting for me in America."

"I could help out."

"You could, and you would because I know you, Yuugi. I think I do anyhow." She was cautious. "That's not right. I'm leaning toward maybe staying and saving up some money again. Maybe I can make another new start at it. Maybe I can try in Japan this time to find work dancing. Maybe I don't even want to go for it and I do want to just stay." She shrugged. "Do you get that?"

Yuugi nodded. "Yep. So then." Yep. "Then that leaves you mad about the other mistake?"

Now Anzu did a total 180. "Of course that is what I am mad about! I have no idea which direction my life is even going, Yuugi, why didn't you tell me you didn't have anything?"

"Well, why would I? It's not like I was planning on, you know, anything."

Anzu shrugged. "I thought every guy carried something in their wallet."

"Well, I'm not every guy." Oh, that was not how to start this. "I figured 'cause you didn't say anything, you were okay. On the pill. It's used in America a lot more, isn't it?"

"It's higher I think," Anzu admitted, "but not every girl uses it." She looked at the table. "What do we do now?"

"Chances are fine nothing will happen, but if it did, I'd take responsibility," Yuugi said. "In the meantime. Do I leave to the nearest store for actual protection or . . ." Yeah. Her eyes met his. "Should I get to know my friend better again?" She nodded. "We could do both? I'm super fine with both."

"I don't want to be like Mai and Jounouchi," Anzu said. "I don't want to keep you on the fringe, Yuugi. Honestly, I want." Her hands tightened. "I want to be with you, but I don't know how you . . ."

Fit in her life. That? That was enough for him. He tried to hide his smile, but probably failed. "Why don't I actually call out for some real food?" He picked up his cell and dialed a number.

"Speaking of Jounouchi, did he call yet?" Anzu asked. "How is everything?"

"I think we should invite him and Mai over," Yuugi answered. "Shizuka isn't going to get better, and Mai told him he's having a little girl."

"Jounouchi's really going to be a dad. A good and bad day at the same time for him." She nodded. "You invited Bakura over tonight as well, remember?"

"Oh yeah, I better call him for that." He picked up his phone. "Little hectic of a week, I forgot." ///Yuugi: A little? Mai and Jounouchi with their baby, sleeping and refriending Anzu, Shizuka losing her eyesight, and people out there ready to kill for revenge.///

"Big hectic week," she corrected him. "You can tell Jounouchi, I know he'd figure it out anyway and you always tell each other everything." She put her finger out in a warning. "But no details."

///Yuugi: How about it was the best experience of my life, finally having Anzu Mazaki, until I screwed up at the end?/// Nope, nope. Anzu needed time. ///Yuugi: I'll wait for you to get it together./// "Right, no real details. Does that include the little cute birthmark on your-"

"Especially not that!" Aggressive, then calmed down. "Yuugi."

Perfect. He just looked at her innocently, like he hadn't planned on that. "Okay."