the_campus | Effect Room: Amnesia

Ah...I see. [Malik accepts that readily enough. Based on what little he remembers, the idea of having nightmares doesn't surprise him.]

I should see both of them sometime--[yaaaawn]--maybe it'll help jog my memory.

I'll call over to the Rose dorm in the morning and see if I can catch her. But in the meantime... [Getting up off the couch, he looks over at the teenager still sitting there.]

You should really get some sleep. Come on.

[Malik looks up, but doesn't move as he looks puzzled.]

...? Where are you going?

To test out a theory. [He jerks his head towards the bedroom, carelessly. Honestly... You're as naive as ever.]

You said you felt at ease around me. Maybe I'll be able to help you sleep.

[He grimaces slightly, looking away.]

I don't know if I'll feel at ease like that.

What? Are you afraid I'll try to feel you up? [Resting one hand on his hip, he gestures extravagantly.]

I'm not trying to screw you, but it seems you don't quite get that yet. Sex was never centric in our relationship, Malik. It was a fun byproduct, but it isn't something that rules our lives. We didn't even do it very often.

[The smile on his face is almost taunting.]

But if it makes you feel better, I don't mind sleeping in my clothes. And if you're unable to get comfortable in ten minutes, I'll leave you alone. That should be enough time for you to decide if it's helpful or not.

...I wasn't--

[Malik's jaw drops and his shoulders slouch dramatically. He's speechless as Bakura speaks, staring wide-eyed like a frightened cat. Finally once the other man has finished, he blurts out his feelings on the matter:]

We've what?!

[Not once had he reached the conclusion that they'd done anything like that. He had been suspicious of Bakura trying to get a little too touchy, but nothing that extreme!]

I'm not sleeping anywhere near you! [He had sex with this guy?! How did that even work?!]

...

Good grief... How long has it been since you've looked at me like that?

[Bakura's shoulders shake with repressed laughter. No, he can't be as outwardly callous as he usually is. He'll have to bottle up these laughs that keep threatening to force their way from his lips, making his chest tremble. It probably looks like he's ill, head lowered as he shakes. But...]

[...he can't help but tease.]

What? Are you scared? I already promised you that I'd be nice.

But if you're so bothered by it, I'll just go and sleep on my own. You don't mind taking the couch, right? I've become rather accustomed to our comfortable bed!

Edited 2013-12-17 00:01 (UTC)

[Malik glowers in return, feeling a but uneasy as the other man shakes there for whatever reason. Was he going to be sick?]

The couch is fine.

[Ignoring that goading, Malik instead turns his head and makes to get comfy on the couch.]

Heh. That's fine by me!

[A strange smile settles on his face as he looks at Malik. How familiar... it reminds him of the stubborn way the boy had clung to the couch in the past. Well, he's not going to argue. Whirling on his heel, he strides into the bedroom and casually flops down on his back upon the bed.

It's only once he's out of Malik's sight that he lets the casual act drop. Resting an arm over his eyes, he sighs quietly to himself. How irritating. If Malik slips out and gets robbed, he'll be the one who has to track down the Rod.

More annoyingly, sleeping on his own again is a pain. He could just let Ryou out, but that would be even more troublesome. Malik doesn't know Ryou is his host, and Ryou can't be trusted not to let things slip to him. For all his kindheartedness, Ryou is uncontrollable. Bakura knows that well. Especially lately.

Well, that's fine by him. After three thousand years in the Ring, he's more than just used to solitude. It only feels strange because he's gotten so used to sleeping with Malik now.

That's all it is. If he just tells himself that, it'll be fine. Rolling over onto his side, he lets the body rest, staying in control but settling into a dormant state that can only tangentially be considered sleep. Sure, the body is relaxing, eyes closing and breathing evening out as it calms, but the spirit controlling it is perfectly aware. It's more like an act than an actual sleep, the body utterly at ease while the mind still races, running over the events of earlier.

If Malik didn't regain his memories... would he be able to walk away? Could he treat it as just a bizarre friendship and let Malik do what he liked?

He wasn't sure. Malik would be harder to control like this, and less of an asset. It would become like it was in the past. Pawns like him were so irritating. Of course he could gain control of him again, but would it be worth the effort?

More than that... it would be painful to let him run the risk of growing attached to other people.

Tch... he really had grown soft. It was infuriating. Being uncertain wasn't his thing. It never had been, as long as he remembered. It was better that way. He had always simply acted to his advantage, regardless of danger. Like in a minefield, even if he don't know where it was safe to walk, he walked as if he did. It wasn't a conscious thought. It was as if the fear that should have held him back had never been there at all. There was logic to it. If you didn't act, it was pointless. It was better to go on, regardless of fear.

Uncertainty wasn't something to show, even if it was felt. Fear was transient. Everything could be turned to your advantage. And more importantly, it would throw off the enemy if they thought you controlled more than you did. Just stepping forward without fear took away more of the enemy's power than any magic could.

So why...

...did he feel like he was hesitating to step forward for the first time?]

Edited 2013-12-17 00:44 (UTC)

[On the couch, Malik eventually found sleep; a quiet escape from his racing thoughts. But even in sleep he seemed tense and guarded after Bakura's confession. More than once he'd considered leaving the dorm entirely, worried that the other man might go too far.

He only stayed because he had nowhere else to go, and looking for somewhere else to stay when he was tired wasn't the brightest idea.

At least after a few hours that tenseness gives way to a more relaxed state of sleep, and his arm even ends up hanging off the couch. It really was just like before they'd been together.]

[It's late in the day when Bakura finally awakens. The sunlight streaming in through the window is a reminder that he forgot to draw the curtains the night before. Sometime during the night, he must have slept for real, spirit as well as body, yet he doesn't feel terribly rested. Stirring, he lifts his head slowly to blink into the air.

His mind is a little foggy, too full to think straight, and at first he doesn't understand why he's curled up alone on the bed. Sometime in his sleep, he'd grasped the pillow he wasn't using and hugged it to his chest like a child with a beloved toy. How pointless.

Releasing it, he throws it aside, rolling over to sit up.

That's right... he just went to bed fully dressed to avoid Malik's paranoid shock over their relationship. He's in no hurry to wake the man up, so he doesn't bother to shake him awake, just disappearing into the bathroom to shower and change.

It helps, a little. His mind feels less messed up once he's done, and he feels bold enough to go over and shake Malik's shoulder.]

Oy. Planning to sleep all day?

[...well, the kid did sleep at an odd time.]

[Malik stirs after a few shakes, planting his hand firmly on that arm and grasping it to make it stop.]

What are you doing...? [He groans, peeling his eyes open to leer up at the other man. The first thing that strikes him as odd is the fact he's looking at the living room ceiling instead of the bottom of the top bunk.

Letting go of Bakura's hand, Malik sits up and looks around, befuddled.]

Huh? What am I doing on the couch?

Edited 2013-12-17 01:35 (UTC)

...

[It can't be. Can it? His heart is racing a little. Malik sounds like... himself.]

You really don't remember? Malik...?

[Did he imagine the last night? No, that's surely not possible.]

...Remember what? [Malik throws both his legs off the side of the couch and sits up with a yawn.]

I had a really weird dream... [He blinks.] Which is weird, because I don't usually remember my dreams.

[Bakura steps back, staring at him with wide eyes. The back of his knees strike into the coffee table and he stumbles, barely catching himself. What the hell...?

There's one way and one way only to test this.]

Malik. Do you remember me?

What kind of question is that?

[He looks around to make sure the Rod is still on him, and it is. With that taken care of, he smirks up at Bakura.]

Keh...how weird. In my dream I didn't. I was wondering if maybe you went and peeked.

...That wasn't a dream, Malik.

[And with that, he sinks down to sit on the table, low as it is. Odd... despite his calm voice, laughter is bubbling up inside of him again.

Relief floods him like a dam has burst somewhere and he shakes with the force of the laughter that somehow can't escape.]

You didn't... remember me. You bastard, don't scare me like that again!

Are you kidding me? [He sounds a little indignant, but there's a bit of teasing in his voice.] I don't just forget things, let alone you.

...

[Jeez. This guy... Closing his eyes, Bakura sighs. Clearly it's no use pressing the issue. He could probably forget it. Assume he just tapped into Malik's dream. Except... He knows it happened. How come Malik can't remember it? Is this place fucking with him?]

Heh. You really are something interesting, Malik. But if you're so sure it was just your dream, tell me about it.

All of it? Or just the parts that prove it's a dream? Keh keh.

Edited 2013-12-17 03:05 (UTC)

Like I said. It wasn't a dream. But go ahead and try to prove it.

You're stubborn as always.

[He shrugs and leans back, looking all too amused.] Well for one...after you--dream you--said we were partners, I kept trying to imagine you with breasts to try and find you more attractive.

That and you served me food on the couch... [Talk about bad manners, especially when you're trying to make a good impression on your amnesiac boyfriend.]

...firstly, that actually happened. But more importantly...

[You bastard, Malik. That doesn't prove anything at all.]

Did you at least imagine me with nice tits?

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