Digimon Fan Fiction ❯ Izumi no Hikari ❯ Lost Soul, Spirit of Light ( Chapter 2 )
[ X - Adult: No readers under 18. Contains Graphic Adult Themes/Extreme violence. ]
By: WannabeKoushiro 
We find out something about Koushiro's past, and a very innocent sleepover.
Anime/Manga: Digimon Fan Fiction | Genre(s): Romance / Hentai / Drama | Type: Continuation | Uploaded On: 11.03.2002 | Updated On: 06.29.2003 | Pages: 6 | Words: 5.5K | Visits: 831 | Status: Completed
We find out something about Koushiro's past, and a very innocent sleepover.
Anime/Manga: Digimon Fan Fiction | Genre(s): Romance / Hentai / Drama | Type: Continuation | Uploaded On: 11.03.2002 | Updated On: 06.29.2003 | Pages: 6 | Words: 5.5K | Visits: 831 | Status: Completed
[Untitled]
Chapter 2: Lost Soul, Spirit of Light
by Wannabe Koushiro
A/N - This chapter is safe as well. No lemon yet, thank goodness. I don't think there's anything else that really needs to be explained. Oh, wait, one thing...during 'the dream,' I'm not sure if doing that with a manual transmission actually does that, but I think it does because of what happened to my dear, departed Geo Metro. And having expierenced my ex-boyfriend's driving, I seriously believe it possible, especially with any vehicle that's rearwheel drive. I'll quit rambling now and let you get on with enjoying the story.
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"I'll become a happy butterfly
and ride on the glittering wind,
I'll come to see you soon."
Butterfly, Digimon Japanese Theme
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Thank goodness it's summer vacation. No school to get up and get ready for. Nothing to do, except whatever I wanted. And right now, that happend to be staring at my ceiling and thinking about the strange thing that happened last night. No one calls me 'Koushiro' anymore, not even my parents. That was really wierd because very few people even know that's my name. I turned to stare at the wall. I can't believe my life is getting this wierd. I want to know what's going on, but I don't have the slightest idea where to start. I didn't have the time to worry about it, as there was a knock at the door. "It's open." I called out. Lucky for me, it was Tai.
"Hey, what's up?" Tai asked as he walked in, and sat down beside me.
"A lot of things. The sky for one." I answered him sarcastically.
"That was so funny, I forgot to laugh." He said. "Were you okay last night?"
"Yeah. I think that nightmare only comes around when it storms. And maybe I won't have it anymore now that I have an idea of what it possibly is." I said, shivering at the thought of a memory that I wasn't even sure of.
"It's possible. I sure hope so. If you want the truth, you scared me that night."
"I'm sorry about that. But, I'm glad you were there." I said, leaning into him. His arms went around me in response. I sighed. "And I'm glad you're here now."
"You know, it's funny. Everyone thought that I'd have these kind of feelings for Sora. No offense, but I didn't think I'd end up feeling like this about you." Tai laughed about that.
"Well, we had the feeling that you and Sora were kind of meant to be, you know what I mean. I'm glad I know better." I said, leaning back even more, so I could lay down. I looked up at Tai's face. "Tai? Do you believe in ghosts?"
He looked somewhat confused by it. "I'm not sure. Why do you ask?"
"Well, then, do you believe in angels? Not like the digimon angels, I mean real ones. Ones that are possibly the souls of lost loved ones." I asked.
"You mean like a guardian angel?" Tai asked. I nodded. "It's very possible that everyone has one. Well, in our case, it's kinda like how Tentomon was explaining it when we fought VenomMyotismon. Our guardian angels are probably our digimon."
I sighed. "Do you think it's possible that we have guardian angels besides the digimon?" I asked, still wondering what that was last night.
"Where are you going with this? Of course it's very possible. Anything is possible. Whether or not it exists is beyond me, though." Tai answered.
"Something strange happened to me last night." I started. "Did you know my first name isn't 'Izzy?' It's Koushiro."
"I didn't. Why are you telling me this?"
"It has to do with what happened. I was walking home, alone with nothing but my thoughts. I was still kind of upset about the scar. Then I heard a voice say 'Things happen for a reason, my dear Koushiro.' When I turned around to see who had said it, there wasn't anything there." I related the strange events of last night to him.
"Freaky. It was probably all in your head." Tai told me.
"I don't think it was. But, then again, I can't think of what it would be either." I sighed, frustrated that I didn't know what was happening.
"Well, let's not worry about it, okay." Tai said, as he leaned down to kiss me. "Are you starting to forget about it?" He asked as he grinned down at me.
"A little. Kiss me some more, and I might be able to." I grinned back, and sat up to make it easier. We made out for most of the afternoon.
It was a couple of hours later when we finally decided to take a break. We were almost out of breath. We were lying on the bed. I'm glad Tai was there. He's a lot better to look at than the wall.
"Izzy?" Tai started. I looked at him, silently telling him to go on. "I hope I don't scare you by saying this, but," He paused for a moment. "I think I love you." I smiled at that.
"I think I love you, too." I replied, as I snuggled closer to him. "It's kind of strange though. We're totally diffent, and yet..." I trailed off.
"What's that old saying? Opposites attract? It seems to fit." Tai said. I didn't answer. I reached over to turn on the radio. They were playing some popular love song that was all mushy and just made you want to puke. For once in my life, I didn't want to think about it. I just stayed where I was, not wanting to break the moment.
I felt something near me, and it wasn't Tai. A faint chill passed through me. I looked over at the window, which I knew was closed, but I had to make sure. I must have looked like a prairie dog looking nervously out of its hole.
"Izzy?" Tai asked. "Something wrong?"
"No, no. It's nothing." I said. I didn't know what it was, but it sure was intent on scaring me. "Do you realize we missed lunch?" I asked, changing the subject.
"Well, at least your mom's a good cook." Tai said. I laughed.
"You know something, I don't think I've eaten in almost two days." I said.
"Izzy! You must be starved!" Tai exclaimed, extremely concerned about me.
"Just don't tell Mom, please." I asked him. "I just haven't been able to eat. And then, when I helped you with your room, and that made whatever bit of appetite I had coming back leave just as quickly."
"Well, let's eat. I'm starved, but at least I've been eating." Tai grabbed my arm and dragged me into the kitchen. He rummaged around the fridge for a while. "There we go." He said, pulling out what had to be almost everything that was probably in there.
"Is there anything left?" I teased him.
"There might not be after we're through." He answered.
I was starved. I couldn't believe how much I did eat. I didn't know starving myself would do that. "Oooohh...I really wish I hadn't have done that." I groaned afterwards.
"You're not going to be sick again, are you?" Tai asked, still eating.
"I hope not." I replied, lying my head down on the table.
I didn't hear mom come into the room with us. "Are you alright?" She asked as she sat down next to me.
"I just ate a bit too much. I'll be fine." I answered, as I sat up again to look somewhat normal.
"Anyway, I found something that I think you should have." She pushed what looked like a photo album towards me.
"What's this?" I asked, somewhat curious.
"It's sort of a scrapbook. Though, I feel I should warn you that there are some graphic pictures in there."
"Let me guess, the accident?" I asked. I saw Mom nod out of the corner of my eye. "Why?" I asked. "Wait, I think I know why. And it fits perfectly." I grabbed the book. "Thanks. I think I'll look at it later." I didn't think I could do it right now. I felt Tai give me a small squeeze on the shoulder.
I left the book on the table and gathered the dishes we had used for our "snack." I grabbed Tai. "Come on, help me with the dishes." I didn't leave any room for arguing.
"So, when are you going to look at it?" Tai asked as he stood drying a plate.
"I'm not even sure I'm going to." I answered. Tai shrugged. He knew better than to press on.
"I think you will." Tai said.
"Why do you think that?" I asked.
"Just knowing you, I have a feeling about it." He answered. I just shrugged, and finished with the last of the dishes.
"What's that supposed to mean?" Tai just grinned in response.
"It means exactly what you think it does." He used my own words against me. I punched him in the arm. "Oh, that really hurt, Izzy."
"Sorry. Maybe I should start working out..." I thought out loud. Tai started laughing.
"You...in a gym...." I didn't think it was that funny. He wiped his eyes when he was finally done laughing. "Anyway, Izzy, I think you're perfect just the way you are."
"Thanks." I said as I sat at the table again. I brushed my hand over the cover of the book Mom had given me a few moments ago. Tai stood over me, with his hand on my shoulder.
"Why don't you just do it?" He asked.
"I'm afraid of what I might find out." I said. I don't know if I wanted to know these answers. This was my past we were talking about. Maybe it's better if it just stayed that way. For a change, this was something that I had the feeling that I didn't want to know. Screw the crest of knowledge.
"Well, I have to go. Maybe I can talk my mom into letting you stay over tonight, and we can talk about it some more, okay?" He stole a quick kiss when he was sure no one might see us. "Hopefully, I'll see you later." He walked out the front door.
"Yeah." I said just after the door shut. I went into my room and set the scrapbook down on my desk. I turned on the computer, but I just wasn't really interested in it for a change. The screen was glowing and I could see my reflection in the screen. The strange face I had seen last night was also being reflected in the screen. I'm not sure what made me ask, but I think I did want to know what's going on. I sure hope I'm not going crazy.
"Are you an angel?" I asked whatever it was that seemed to be haunting me. I never imagined that it would answer me.
"I'm not quite an angel, and I'm not really a ghost." It answered in a low, feminine voice.
"Then, what are you?" I asked. I turned around to see if I could see her, but all I saw was empty air.
"A lost soul." She answered. "I need to make things right here before I can be at rest, Koushiro. Or at least find someone who'll understand."
"Who are you, then?" I asked. "And why are you bothering me, and how do you know my name?"
"You'll know soon enough, if you'll find the answers you know you seek, even if you won't admit it." She said, then left.
Tai called later that afternoon.
"Hey, it's alright to stay tonight."
"Great." I said. "I just have to ask mom, and I'll be over soon."
"Alright. See you later. Bye." And he hung up the phone.
I went back to my room after I had asked Mom if I could stay over there tonight. I got some clothes for tomorrow. The scrapbook was taunting me from where it lay on my desk. "I have to face this sooner or later." I said to myself quietly. I placed it on top of the stuff already in my knapsack. "At least Tai will be with me when I do." I sighed. I walked out with my bag. "See you tomorrow!" I called as I walked out.
I walked slowly towards Tai's building. "I can feel you." I said quietly to the...I guess it's a spirit... following me.
"If things go right, you'll see me again soon, only not as a spirit."
"What do you mean by that?" I asked.
"Oh, Koushiro." She sighed. "You need to know of the past before you can think of the future."
I shrugged it off as I arrived at Tai's door. I rang the doorbell. I heard some scuttling and a cat screeching from behind the door. "Poor Meeko." I said quietly, just before the door opened.
"Hi, Izzy." Kari greeted me. "Tai's torturing the cat." She said. "Or something like that." I smiled.
"I don't think he'd do something like that." I said.
"I know. I just like messing with his friend's minds." Kari giggled.
"Even when they're Digi-Destined, just like you?"
"Especially us." She said. I just shook my head. Maybe I should be glad I'm an only child, if this is what having a little sister is like.
"Come on, you can put your stuff in our room, and then maybe we can find Tai." Kari led me into their room. I set down my bag in a corner.
"I think we found him." I said as I pointed out at their balcony. Tai was posed to pounch on the cat. He had just jumped when Kari surprised him.
"What are you doing?" She asked. Tai ended up falling flat on his ass. I laughed. "If you just wanted Meeko to come in, all you had to do was this." She bent down to the cat's level and held out a kitty treat. Meeko came to her, and she picked him up. "Now, wasn't that easy?" She asked her brother. He just sighed. Kari turned around and went back inside with Meeko in her arms. I went over to Tai and offered him my hand to help him up.
"I really wish you hadn't have seen that." Tai said as he got up. "And you didn't need to laugh at me."
"Yes, I did." I replied. "Though I did think you were more graceful than that."
"That was Kari's fault."
"Uh-huh." I said. "Do you blame everything on your sister?" I asked.
"I blame anything I can get away with on her." Tai answered. I just shook my head. "Anyway. Did you ever decide to look at that book your mom gave you?"
"Yeah, I did. I haven't done it yet. I want you with me when I do. I brought it with me so I could do just that." I answered him.
"That sounds like a plan." Tai said. "Have you ate yet?"
"Tai, is that all you think about, food?" I asked. "No, I haven't. Your mom's not cooking, is she?"
"Nope. We're on our own." He grinned at me. "So don't give me any of that 'I'm not hungry' crap."
"Well, as long as it doesn't make me sick, I'll be happy." I answered.
"How do you feel about eggs?" He asked.
"I haven't made that for a while." Tai said.
"You're actually a good cook, Tai." I complimented him. He had fixed scrambled eggs for us. He even made enough for Kari to have some. It was so she didn't have to suffer when us boys didn't. "Well, you want to..." I didn't finish that.
"If you want to." He answered. I was not looking forward to this. I dug the scrapbook out of my bag. We sat down on the floor of their bedroom. It just sat there, waiting for its cover to be opened.
'Do it, Koushiro. Release me from this prison.' I heard the voice again.
"Tai, before we look, I have a question for you." I started. "Remember our conversation about angels? What do you think of the idea of lost souls?"
"What happened to you to turn you so philosophical? Anyway, I've never considered it. Why do you ask?"
"No reason." I said, dejectedly.
"Tell me. You wouldn't be asking me if there wasn't a reason." Tai said, trying to drag it out of me.
"I think I'm going crazy. I keep hearing this voice. The same one that calls me by my real name. I can see a reflection of her. She told me she was a lost soul that can't rest until she makes things right. She won't explain why she talks to me though. She also said something about knowing the past before thinking of the future."
"I think you're going crazy, too." Tai said.
"Thanks a lot." I responded.
"I mean that in a nice way." Tai tried to defend himself. "Anyway, I live with Kari, so I know wierd things. Remember that day in the Digital World when Matt sicked MetalGarurumon on WarGreymon?"
"Yeah, but remember, anything is possible there." I reminded him. "That includes spirits taking over our bodies. And I think there's something about Kari that makes her more inclined to that sort of thing." I said.
"What's wrong with me?" Kari asked from the door way.
"Nothing that we know of." Tai said.
"And it may not be necessarily wrong." I said. "You're just special in your own way."
"Oh, okay. What are you guys up to?" She asked as she sat down across from us. "What's this?" She asked as pointed to the scrapbook.
"It's a scrapbook." I answered. "We're about to look through it, but I don't know if you should be here when we do." I looked at Tai for his support.
"She's tough." He answered. "Kari, if you see something you don't think you should be looking at, either leave or close your eyes, okay?" He warned her.
"Okay." She said nervously.
"Well, are we ready?" I asked, as I put my finger on the cover and flipped it open. The first page had some normal stuff on it. "What do you know, a marriage announcement." I said. It was one from a newspaper. There was a picture next to it. The people in the picture didn't look very familiar to me. "That must be my real parents." I said. "I can't quite read what their names were."
"Your mom was really pretty." Kari said as she looked at the picture. "I can tell you what your mom's name was, though. I'd recognize that character anywhere." She said as she pointed to one particular character.
"What was it?" I asked, not being able to read whoever's writing it was.
"It's kinda sloppy, but I think it's Hikari, just like my name." Kari spoke up. "Though I'm only called 'Hikari' when I'm in trouble."
I didn't say anything about that. I took a closer look at the picture. "Tai. That's the reflection I've been seeing." I told him, pointing to the picture of my real mother.
"That's freaky." He commented.
'I'm sorry.' I thought to myself. 'Keep going.' I heard her think back at me. I turned the page. There were some newspaper articles. The next page had my birth announcement, and a picture of mom holding me just after I was born.
"You were a cute baby." Kari said.
"All babies are cute." Tai said. "By the way, what happened to you?" He teased me.
"I thought you said I was fine the way I was." We laughed about it. Kari didn't get the joke. "You had to be there." I explained to her. "Well, is anyone besides me dreading the next few pages?"
"I kinda am, after the story your mom told." Tai said. Kari looked somewhat scared.
"What is it?" She asked. Tai looked at me to explain. It is my story after all.
"A car accident." I said flatly. "The one in which my real parents died."
"I didn't know." Kari said. "I'm sorry." She said as she scooted around and sat next to me so I was between her and Tai.
The pictures of the accident made it seem worse than how it was told by Mom. The worst damage to the car that I could see was to the front right side. The fender looked really mangled. That must have been where the two cars impacted. I didn't see the other car in any of the pictures.
"Is it me, or does this seem worse than what your mom told us?" Tai asked the question I had been thinking.
"That's exactly what I was thinking." I said, as I still stared in shock at the page. Tai was in shock also. Luckily, Kari was horrified, but was smart enough to turn the page.
"Hey, what's this?" She asked as she took a loose piece of paper out of the book. "'Koushiro?'" She read off of it. "Who's Koushiro?"
"Me." I told her. "That's my real name."
"Well, it's a nice name." She told me. "How come everyone calls you 'Izzy,' though?"
I shrugged. "Beats me. I think someone at school just started calling me that. They probably had a hard time pronouncing my family name. It sure stuck though, didn't it? Anyway, give me that." I took the piece of paper out of her hand. It was dated January 13, 1989.
"January 13? That's my birthday." I said. I read the letter quickly.
"Dear Koushiro,
Friday the thirteenth is usually seen as an unlucky day. For me though, it wasn't, for today you were born. You're my first child, and I am glad to have you. I hope someday that you will have a brother or a sister, but even if you do, I'll always love you. You are very special to me, and always will be. This may sound wrong, but I hope I've passed away when you read this because I'm sure it will be a comfort to you. Just remember that I love you dearly and always will, no matter what happens. Love always and forever, Mom."
I was crying by the time I reached the end of her letter. 'This is why, isn't it?' I thought at the spirit. 'Mother?'
'Yes.' It thought back at me. A chill went through me as I realized the truth. I could barely feel both Tai and Kari holding me.
"Izzy? Izzy, snap out of it." I heard Tai saying.
"Sorry." I apologized. "It's kinda late isn't it? Shouldn't we get some sleep?" I asked.
"Yeah." Tai agreed with me. "Look at Kari." She had fallen asleep next to me. "You two look cute together."
"Funny. It's you I want to kiss, not your sister." I told him quietly, as he picked her up and placed her in her bed. "You're a pro at this, aren't you?"
"Just standard big brother stuff." He answered as he climbed to his bed. "Come on up, no one's going to mind if we share the bed."
"You sure?" I asked, suddenly not feeling very comfortable about it.
"You're getting nervous now? Get up here." He commanded me. I did as I was told. When I did get there, he wrapped his arms around me. "Wouldn't you rather be like this, than way down there away from me?" He asked as he stole a quick kiss.
"You're right." I said as I kissed back. I fell asleep quite easily in Tai's arms.
Something wasn't right. I was leaning against a man's broad shoulder, almost asleep, but not quite. He gave my shoulder a squeeze. "We're almost home." He told me.
I felt a drop of rain on my face. "It's starting to rain" I said, in a voice that wasn't my own. My answer to that was the top of the convertible coming up to cover us. We pulled up to a stop light, preparing to stop for it when it changed. We didn't see the car that hit us.
The man next to me hit the brake and the clutch. It threw the car off balance and it started spinning. I couldn't help but scream. The next thing I knew, I had been thrown from the car. I was bleeding from several places. I knew I wouldn't survive. I had glass in my gut, not to mention several other places. I wasn't sure what happened, but I must have gone through the windshield. "No...don't take me yet...don't take me from my son..." I heard the words come from my mouth, wondering what they meant. Then I realized what had happened.
'Mother?' I thought at the spirit.
'Yes, that was the accident from my point of view.' She answered the question I hadn't asked yet. 'I'm close to being set free. I know you don't know me very well, but I can be given a second chance at life. All I need to know is, do you love me?' She asked me nervously.
'How could I not? I know we don't know each other well. I found your letter, and it was comforting and it made me realize that you must have loved me very much to write that. I love you just as much. What about dad?'
'He was at peace. I wasn't. I needed to know what happened to you.'
'I understand. Is your spirit free now?' I asked.
'It is. Thank you, Koushiro. I'll see you soon.'
'Huh? What do you mean?'
'You'll know soon enough.' She answered, and true to her name, turned into light and vanished. I woke up.
"That was strange." I said to myself, looking at Tai's sweet face as he slept on. I stole a kiss. "You're lucky that the strange things only happen to your sister and not to you." I said quietly. I heard him murmur, but he stayed asleep. I snuggled back up to him and went back to sleep.
Sunlight lit up Tai and Kari's room as I woke up. I yawned as I sat up. "Ow!" I exclaimed as I hit my head. I forgot Tai slept in the top bunk. I heard giggling.
"You forgot you're about 1 meter from the ceiling, didn't you, Izzy?" Kari asked.
I blushed. "Uh, yeah."
"It's okay. Tai did that a lot when we first got the bunk bed."
"Hey, that explains a lot." I said. Kari and I shared a giggle at that.
"What are you two laughing at?" I heard Tai mutter next to me.
"Actually, me." I said, not wanting Tai to get too upset with us. "I hit my head."
"And I thought you were the smart one." Tai said.
"I am." I retorted. "Anyway..." I trailed off. I climbed down off of the bed. "We need to talk later." I told Tai. "Something wierd happened last night."
"It wasn't the dream again, was it?" Tai asked, concerned.
"It was, but it wasn't." I answered him.
"Let's eat first, talk later." Tai said.
"He's as bad as the digimon, isn't he?" Kari said. I had to laugh at that.
"I think it's just as bad as his digimon. I don't seem to remember Tentomon, or Gatomon for that matter, having stomachs like Tai's and Agumon's. Of course, you weren't there when this happened, but Agumon once did over eat, but that was Tai's fault. Just because he was the first to find his crest, he wanted Agumon to digivolve to ultimate. Instead of becoming MetalGreymon though, he became SkullGreymon instead, and he didn't care what or who he hit. He eventually de-digivolved back to Koromon, who sounded like Mimi for a short while...anyway, it was kind of a downer for all of us." I related that story to Kari.
"That's sad. Though that does sound like Tai." She said.
"What are you guys talking about?" Tai asked as he came back.
"Just telling Kari about some of the adventures she missed out on in the Digital World." I said innocently.
"You told her about SkullGreymon, didn't you?" He asked. I nodded. "That's not as bad as what you did to Tentomon." He countered.
"I was tricked. You did what happened to Agumon on your own."
"What did you do to Tentomon?" Kari asked me.
"Well, there was this digimon, I don't think he was evil, but he wasn't good either, called Vademon. He tricked me into giving up my curiousity. I got sucked into a wierd dimension and turned into kind of a zombie. I, at one point, got tricked into throwing away my digivice and crest. When I did, Tentomon started de-digivolving. He went clear back to his baby form, Pabumon. It took me a bit, but I started to realize what was happening, got my digivice and crest back, and little Pabumon led me back to my curiousity. He digivolved back to Tentomon, and then we decided to take care of the little matter of Vademon. That was the day he first digivolved to MegaKabuterimon."
"Wow. Tentomon went through all of his evolutions in one day. That had to be rough for him." Kari commented. "And to think, all I had to do was save Gatomon from the bad guys. You guys really had it rough." Tai and I bowed our heads as we remembered what we went through, learning about the digimon in a few days.
We all kind of sighed, remembering the digimon in general. Tai and I had seen ours less than a week ago, but to us it sure seemed like a long time. It had been even longer since Kari had seen Gatomon. "We'll see them again, I'm sure of it." Kari said. I think Tai and I had the same thought that we wouldn't. But we knew better than to tell Kari that.
"You said we needed to talk, let's talk." Tai said, and walked out on to the balcony. I followed him. When we were sure that Kari was going to leave us alone for a while, I started.
"It was the dream, only from a different point of view."
"A different point of view. That had to be strange." Tai commented.
"It was. It's kind of like I was in someone else's body. I can't really explain it though. Afterwards, though, that spirit voice spoke with me."
"Izzy, I really think you need a shrink." Tai said.
"Actually, she said that her soul was free now, and that she could be reborn now, or something to that effect. I think that this is probably the end of this." I said.
"I hope so. I worry about you." Tai said, coming up behind me to put his arms around me.
I turned around. "I wonder if I'll ever encounter her again." I said.
"Fate works in mysterious ways, Izzy." Tai said, giving me a hug.
"This reminds me, should we tell people about, you know, us?" I asked. "I'm kind of afraid of how people will react."
Tai shrugged. "Why not just tell Kari about it and work from there?" "You sure?" I asked. He wasn't too thrilled about the idea a few days ago. Tai nodded in answer. We walked into the study.
"Kari?" Tai asked. "Can we tell you something? You have to promise to keep it a secret, okay?"
Kari looked...I'm not sure. It was a mixture of worry and curiousity. "Okay." She finally said. I know I was nervous.
"I don't really know how to explain this," Tai started. "But..."
"Just say it." I told him.
"Well, you see,"
I shook my head. "Fine, I'll say it. Tai and I have a major crush on each other."
Kari looked a bit shocked, but got over it quickly. "That's cool." She said. Now it was my turn to be shocked.
"You don't have a problem with it?" Tai asked.
"Nope. Besides, I heard you guys last night and kinda got it from that. You two look cute together." Kari told us. Both Tai and I blushed.
"Well," I said later. "That went better than I expected." Tai was walking me home.
"Yeah. I wonder how everyone else will take it." He responded.
"I wonder how our parents will take it." I said.
"Well, it's our lives, but I know what you mean. I just know that I feel like I need to be with you." Tai said.
"I feel the same way." I said as we arrived at my front door. I leaned up to give him a good bye kiss. "I'll see you later." I didn't know it would a long time before I did see him again. And that my life was about to change forever.
Chapter 2: Lost Soul, Spirit of Light
by Wannabe Koushiro
A/N - This chapter is safe as well. No lemon yet, thank goodness. I don't think there's anything else that really needs to be explained. Oh, wait, one thing...during 'the dream,' I'm not sure if doing that with a manual transmission actually does that, but I think it does because of what happened to my dear, departed Geo Metro. And having expierenced my ex-boyfriend's driving, I seriously believe it possible, especially with any vehicle that's rearwheel drive. I'll quit rambling now and let you get on with enjoying the story.
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"I'll become a happy butterfly
and ride on the glittering wind,
I'll come to see you soon."
Butterfly, Digimon Japanese Theme
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Thank goodness it's summer vacation. No school to get up and get ready for. Nothing to do, except whatever I wanted. And right now, that happend to be staring at my ceiling and thinking about the strange thing that happened last night. No one calls me 'Koushiro' anymore, not even my parents. That was really wierd because very few people even know that's my name. I turned to stare at the wall. I can't believe my life is getting this wierd. I want to know what's going on, but I don't have the slightest idea where to start. I didn't have the time to worry about it, as there was a knock at the door. "It's open." I called out. Lucky for me, it was Tai.
"Hey, what's up?" Tai asked as he walked in, and sat down beside me.
"A lot of things. The sky for one." I answered him sarcastically.
"That was so funny, I forgot to laugh." He said. "Were you okay last night?"
"Yeah. I think that nightmare only comes around when it storms. And maybe I won't have it anymore now that I have an idea of what it possibly is." I said, shivering at the thought of a memory that I wasn't even sure of.
"It's possible. I sure hope so. If you want the truth, you scared me that night."
"I'm sorry about that. But, I'm glad you were there." I said, leaning into him. His arms went around me in response. I sighed. "And I'm glad you're here now."
"You know, it's funny. Everyone thought that I'd have these kind of feelings for Sora. No offense, but I didn't think I'd end up feeling like this about you." Tai laughed about that.
"Well, we had the feeling that you and Sora were kind of meant to be, you know what I mean. I'm glad I know better." I said, leaning back even more, so I could lay down. I looked up at Tai's face. "Tai? Do you believe in ghosts?"
He looked somewhat confused by it. "I'm not sure. Why do you ask?"
"Well, then, do you believe in angels? Not like the digimon angels, I mean real ones. Ones that are possibly the souls of lost loved ones." I asked.
"You mean like a guardian angel?" Tai asked. I nodded. "It's very possible that everyone has one. Well, in our case, it's kinda like how Tentomon was explaining it when we fought VenomMyotismon. Our guardian angels are probably our digimon."
I sighed. "Do you think it's possible that we have guardian angels besides the digimon?" I asked, still wondering what that was last night.
"Where are you going with this? Of course it's very possible. Anything is possible. Whether or not it exists is beyond me, though." Tai answered.
"Something strange happened to me last night." I started. "Did you know my first name isn't 'Izzy?' It's Koushiro."
"I didn't. Why are you telling me this?"
"It has to do with what happened. I was walking home, alone with nothing but my thoughts. I was still kind of upset about the scar. Then I heard a voice say 'Things happen for a reason, my dear Koushiro.' When I turned around to see who had said it, there wasn't anything there." I related the strange events of last night to him.
"Freaky. It was probably all in your head." Tai told me.
"I don't think it was. But, then again, I can't think of what it would be either." I sighed, frustrated that I didn't know what was happening.
"Well, let's not worry about it, okay." Tai said, as he leaned down to kiss me. "Are you starting to forget about it?" He asked as he grinned down at me.
"A little. Kiss me some more, and I might be able to." I grinned back, and sat up to make it easier. We made out for most of the afternoon.
It was a couple of hours later when we finally decided to take a break. We were almost out of breath. We were lying on the bed. I'm glad Tai was there. He's a lot better to look at than the wall.
"Izzy?" Tai started. I looked at him, silently telling him to go on. "I hope I don't scare you by saying this, but," He paused for a moment. "I think I love you." I smiled at that.
"I think I love you, too." I replied, as I snuggled closer to him. "It's kind of strange though. We're totally diffent, and yet..." I trailed off.
"What's that old saying? Opposites attract? It seems to fit." Tai said. I didn't answer. I reached over to turn on the radio. They were playing some popular love song that was all mushy and just made you want to puke. For once in my life, I didn't want to think about it. I just stayed where I was, not wanting to break the moment.
I felt something near me, and it wasn't Tai. A faint chill passed through me. I looked over at the window, which I knew was closed, but I had to make sure. I must have looked like a prairie dog looking nervously out of its hole.
"Izzy?" Tai asked. "Something wrong?"
"No, no. It's nothing." I said. I didn't know what it was, but it sure was intent on scaring me. "Do you realize we missed lunch?" I asked, changing the subject.
"Well, at least your mom's a good cook." Tai said. I laughed.
"You know something, I don't think I've eaten in almost two days." I said.
"Izzy! You must be starved!" Tai exclaimed, extremely concerned about me.
"Just don't tell Mom, please." I asked him. "I just haven't been able to eat. And then, when I helped you with your room, and that made whatever bit of appetite I had coming back leave just as quickly."
"Well, let's eat. I'm starved, but at least I've been eating." Tai grabbed my arm and dragged me into the kitchen. He rummaged around the fridge for a while. "There we go." He said, pulling out what had to be almost everything that was probably in there.
"Is there anything left?" I teased him.
"There might not be after we're through." He answered.
I was starved. I couldn't believe how much I did eat. I didn't know starving myself would do that. "Oooohh...I really wish I hadn't have done that." I groaned afterwards.
"You're not going to be sick again, are you?" Tai asked, still eating.
"I hope not." I replied, lying my head down on the table.
I didn't hear mom come into the room with us. "Are you alright?" She asked as she sat down next to me.
"I just ate a bit too much. I'll be fine." I answered, as I sat up again to look somewhat normal.
"Anyway, I found something that I think you should have." She pushed what looked like a photo album towards me.
"What's this?" I asked, somewhat curious.
"It's sort of a scrapbook. Though, I feel I should warn you that there are some graphic pictures in there."
"Let me guess, the accident?" I asked. I saw Mom nod out of the corner of my eye. "Why?" I asked. "Wait, I think I know why. And it fits perfectly." I grabbed the book. "Thanks. I think I'll look at it later." I didn't think I could do it right now. I felt Tai give me a small squeeze on the shoulder.
I left the book on the table and gathered the dishes we had used for our "snack." I grabbed Tai. "Come on, help me with the dishes." I didn't leave any room for arguing.
"So, when are you going to look at it?" Tai asked as he stood drying a plate.
"I'm not even sure I'm going to." I answered. Tai shrugged. He knew better than to press on.
"I think you will." Tai said.
"Why do you think that?" I asked.
"Just knowing you, I have a feeling about it." He answered. I just shrugged, and finished with the last of the dishes.
"What's that supposed to mean?" Tai just grinned in response.
"It means exactly what you think it does." He used my own words against me. I punched him in the arm. "Oh, that really hurt, Izzy."
"Sorry. Maybe I should start working out..." I thought out loud. Tai started laughing.
"You...in a gym...." I didn't think it was that funny. He wiped his eyes when he was finally done laughing. "Anyway, Izzy, I think you're perfect just the way you are."
"Thanks." I said as I sat at the table again. I brushed my hand over the cover of the book Mom had given me a few moments ago. Tai stood over me, with his hand on my shoulder.
"Why don't you just do it?" He asked.
"I'm afraid of what I might find out." I said. I don't know if I wanted to know these answers. This was my past we were talking about. Maybe it's better if it just stayed that way. For a change, this was something that I had the feeling that I didn't want to know. Screw the crest of knowledge.
"Well, I have to go. Maybe I can talk my mom into letting you stay over tonight, and we can talk about it some more, okay?" He stole a quick kiss when he was sure no one might see us. "Hopefully, I'll see you later." He walked out the front door.
"Yeah." I said just after the door shut. I went into my room and set the scrapbook down on my desk. I turned on the computer, but I just wasn't really interested in it for a change. The screen was glowing and I could see my reflection in the screen. The strange face I had seen last night was also being reflected in the screen. I'm not sure what made me ask, but I think I did want to know what's going on. I sure hope I'm not going crazy.
"Are you an angel?" I asked whatever it was that seemed to be haunting me. I never imagined that it would answer me.
"I'm not quite an angel, and I'm not really a ghost." It answered in a low, feminine voice.
"Then, what are you?" I asked. I turned around to see if I could see her, but all I saw was empty air.
"A lost soul." She answered. "I need to make things right here before I can be at rest, Koushiro. Or at least find someone who'll understand."
"Who are you, then?" I asked. "And why are you bothering me, and how do you know my name?"
"You'll know soon enough, if you'll find the answers you know you seek, even if you won't admit it." She said, then left.
Tai called later that afternoon.
"Hey, it's alright to stay tonight."
"Great." I said. "I just have to ask mom, and I'll be over soon."
"Alright. See you later. Bye." And he hung up the phone.
I went back to my room after I had asked Mom if I could stay over there tonight. I got some clothes for tomorrow. The scrapbook was taunting me from where it lay on my desk. "I have to face this sooner or later." I said to myself quietly. I placed it on top of the stuff already in my knapsack. "At least Tai will be with me when I do." I sighed. I walked out with my bag. "See you tomorrow!" I called as I walked out.
I walked slowly towards Tai's building. "I can feel you." I said quietly to the...I guess it's a spirit... following me.
"If things go right, you'll see me again soon, only not as a spirit."
"What do you mean by that?" I asked.
"Oh, Koushiro." She sighed. "You need to know of the past before you can think of the future."
I shrugged it off as I arrived at Tai's door. I rang the doorbell. I heard some scuttling and a cat screeching from behind the door. "Poor Meeko." I said quietly, just before the door opened.
"Hi, Izzy." Kari greeted me. "Tai's torturing the cat." She said. "Or something like that." I smiled.
"I don't think he'd do something like that." I said.
"I know. I just like messing with his friend's minds." Kari giggled.
"Even when they're Digi-Destined, just like you?"
"Especially us." She said. I just shook my head. Maybe I should be glad I'm an only child, if this is what having a little sister is like.
"Come on, you can put your stuff in our room, and then maybe we can find Tai." Kari led me into their room. I set down my bag in a corner.
"I think we found him." I said as I pointed out at their balcony. Tai was posed to pounch on the cat. He had just jumped when Kari surprised him.
"What are you doing?" She asked. Tai ended up falling flat on his ass. I laughed. "If you just wanted Meeko to come in, all you had to do was this." She bent down to the cat's level and held out a kitty treat. Meeko came to her, and she picked him up. "Now, wasn't that easy?" She asked her brother. He just sighed. Kari turned around and went back inside with Meeko in her arms. I went over to Tai and offered him my hand to help him up.
"I really wish you hadn't have seen that." Tai said as he got up. "And you didn't need to laugh at me."
"Yes, I did." I replied. "Though I did think you were more graceful than that."
"That was Kari's fault."
"Uh-huh." I said. "Do you blame everything on your sister?" I asked.
"I blame anything I can get away with on her." Tai answered. I just shook my head. "Anyway. Did you ever decide to look at that book your mom gave you?"
"Yeah, I did. I haven't done it yet. I want you with me when I do. I brought it with me so I could do just that." I answered him.
"That sounds like a plan." Tai said. "Have you ate yet?"
"Tai, is that all you think about, food?" I asked. "No, I haven't. Your mom's not cooking, is she?"
"Nope. We're on our own." He grinned at me. "So don't give me any of that 'I'm not hungry' crap."
"Well, as long as it doesn't make me sick, I'll be happy." I answered.
"How do you feel about eggs?" He asked.
"I haven't made that for a while." Tai said.
"You're actually a good cook, Tai." I complimented him. He had fixed scrambled eggs for us. He even made enough for Kari to have some. It was so she didn't have to suffer when us boys didn't. "Well, you want to..." I didn't finish that.
"If you want to." He answered. I was not looking forward to this. I dug the scrapbook out of my bag. We sat down on the floor of their bedroom. It just sat there, waiting for its cover to be opened.
'Do it, Koushiro. Release me from this prison.' I heard the voice again.
"Tai, before we look, I have a question for you." I started. "Remember our conversation about angels? What do you think of the idea of lost souls?"
"What happened to you to turn you so philosophical? Anyway, I've never considered it. Why do you ask?"
"No reason." I said, dejectedly.
"Tell me. You wouldn't be asking me if there wasn't a reason." Tai said, trying to drag it out of me.
"I think I'm going crazy. I keep hearing this voice. The same one that calls me by my real name. I can see a reflection of her. She told me she was a lost soul that can't rest until she makes things right. She won't explain why she talks to me though. She also said something about knowing the past before thinking of the future."
"I think you're going crazy, too." Tai said.
"Thanks a lot." I responded.
"I mean that in a nice way." Tai tried to defend himself. "Anyway, I live with Kari, so I know wierd things. Remember that day in the Digital World when Matt sicked MetalGarurumon on WarGreymon?"
"Yeah, but remember, anything is possible there." I reminded him. "That includes spirits taking over our bodies. And I think there's something about Kari that makes her more inclined to that sort of thing." I said.
"What's wrong with me?" Kari asked from the door way.
"Nothing that we know of." Tai said.
"And it may not be necessarily wrong." I said. "You're just special in your own way."
"Oh, okay. What are you guys up to?" She asked as she sat down across from us. "What's this?" She asked as pointed to the scrapbook.
"It's a scrapbook." I answered. "We're about to look through it, but I don't know if you should be here when we do." I looked at Tai for his support.
"She's tough." He answered. "Kari, if you see something you don't think you should be looking at, either leave or close your eyes, okay?" He warned her.
"Okay." She said nervously.
"Well, are we ready?" I asked, as I put my finger on the cover and flipped it open. The first page had some normal stuff on it. "What do you know, a marriage announcement." I said. It was one from a newspaper. There was a picture next to it. The people in the picture didn't look very familiar to me. "That must be my real parents." I said. "I can't quite read what their names were."
"Your mom was really pretty." Kari said as she looked at the picture. "I can tell you what your mom's name was, though. I'd recognize that character anywhere." She said as she pointed to one particular character.
"What was it?" I asked, not being able to read whoever's writing it was.
"It's kinda sloppy, but I think it's Hikari, just like my name." Kari spoke up. "Though I'm only called 'Hikari' when I'm in trouble."
I didn't say anything about that. I took a closer look at the picture. "Tai. That's the reflection I've been seeing." I told him, pointing to the picture of my real mother.
"That's freaky." He commented.
'I'm sorry.' I thought to myself. 'Keep going.' I heard her think back at me. I turned the page. There were some newspaper articles. The next page had my birth announcement, and a picture of mom holding me just after I was born.
"You were a cute baby." Kari said.
"All babies are cute." Tai said. "By the way, what happened to you?" He teased me.
"I thought you said I was fine the way I was." We laughed about it. Kari didn't get the joke. "You had to be there." I explained to her. "Well, is anyone besides me dreading the next few pages?"
"I kinda am, after the story your mom told." Tai said. Kari looked somewhat scared.
"What is it?" She asked. Tai looked at me to explain. It is my story after all.
"A car accident." I said flatly. "The one in which my real parents died."
"I didn't know." Kari said. "I'm sorry." She said as she scooted around and sat next to me so I was between her and Tai.
The pictures of the accident made it seem worse than how it was told by Mom. The worst damage to the car that I could see was to the front right side. The fender looked really mangled. That must have been where the two cars impacted. I didn't see the other car in any of the pictures.
"Is it me, or does this seem worse than what your mom told us?" Tai asked the question I had been thinking.
"That's exactly what I was thinking." I said, as I still stared in shock at the page. Tai was in shock also. Luckily, Kari was horrified, but was smart enough to turn the page.
"Hey, what's this?" She asked as she took a loose piece of paper out of the book. "'Koushiro?'" She read off of it. "Who's Koushiro?"
"Me." I told her. "That's my real name."
"Well, it's a nice name." She told me. "How come everyone calls you 'Izzy,' though?"
I shrugged. "Beats me. I think someone at school just started calling me that. They probably had a hard time pronouncing my family name. It sure stuck though, didn't it? Anyway, give me that." I took the piece of paper out of her hand. It was dated January 13, 1989.
"January 13? That's my birthday." I said. I read the letter quickly.
"Dear Koushiro,
Friday the thirteenth is usually seen as an unlucky day. For me though, it wasn't, for today you were born. You're my first child, and I am glad to have you. I hope someday that you will have a brother or a sister, but even if you do, I'll always love you. You are very special to me, and always will be. This may sound wrong, but I hope I've passed away when you read this because I'm sure it will be a comfort to you. Just remember that I love you dearly and always will, no matter what happens. Love always and forever, Mom."
I was crying by the time I reached the end of her letter. 'This is why, isn't it?' I thought at the spirit. 'Mother?'
'Yes.' It thought back at me. A chill went through me as I realized the truth. I could barely feel both Tai and Kari holding me.
"Izzy? Izzy, snap out of it." I heard Tai saying.
"Sorry." I apologized. "It's kinda late isn't it? Shouldn't we get some sleep?" I asked.
"Yeah." Tai agreed with me. "Look at Kari." She had fallen asleep next to me. "You two look cute together."
"Funny. It's you I want to kiss, not your sister." I told him quietly, as he picked her up and placed her in her bed. "You're a pro at this, aren't you?"
"Just standard big brother stuff." He answered as he climbed to his bed. "Come on up, no one's going to mind if we share the bed."
"You sure?" I asked, suddenly not feeling very comfortable about it.
"You're getting nervous now? Get up here." He commanded me. I did as I was told. When I did get there, he wrapped his arms around me. "Wouldn't you rather be like this, than way down there away from me?" He asked as he stole a quick kiss.
"You're right." I said as I kissed back. I fell asleep quite easily in Tai's arms.
Something wasn't right. I was leaning against a man's broad shoulder, almost asleep, but not quite. He gave my shoulder a squeeze. "We're almost home." He told me.
I felt a drop of rain on my face. "It's starting to rain" I said, in a voice that wasn't my own. My answer to that was the top of the convertible coming up to cover us. We pulled up to a stop light, preparing to stop for it when it changed. We didn't see the car that hit us.
The man next to me hit the brake and the clutch. It threw the car off balance and it started spinning. I couldn't help but scream. The next thing I knew, I had been thrown from the car. I was bleeding from several places. I knew I wouldn't survive. I had glass in my gut, not to mention several other places. I wasn't sure what happened, but I must have gone through the windshield. "No...don't take me yet...don't take me from my son..." I heard the words come from my mouth, wondering what they meant. Then I realized what had happened.
'Mother?' I thought at the spirit.
'Yes, that was the accident from my point of view.' She answered the question I hadn't asked yet. 'I'm close to being set free. I know you don't know me very well, but I can be given a second chance at life. All I need to know is, do you love me?' She asked me nervously.
'How could I not? I know we don't know each other well. I found your letter, and it was comforting and it made me realize that you must have loved me very much to write that. I love you just as much. What about dad?'
'He was at peace. I wasn't. I needed to know what happened to you.'
'I understand. Is your spirit free now?' I asked.
'It is. Thank you, Koushiro. I'll see you soon.'
'Huh? What do you mean?'
'You'll know soon enough.' She answered, and true to her name, turned into light and vanished. I woke up.
"That was strange." I said to myself, looking at Tai's sweet face as he slept on. I stole a kiss. "You're lucky that the strange things only happen to your sister and not to you." I said quietly. I heard him murmur, but he stayed asleep. I snuggled back up to him and went back to sleep.
Sunlight lit up Tai and Kari's room as I woke up. I yawned as I sat up. "Ow!" I exclaimed as I hit my head. I forgot Tai slept in the top bunk. I heard giggling.
"You forgot you're about 1 meter from the ceiling, didn't you, Izzy?" Kari asked.
I blushed. "Uh, yeah."
"It's okay. Tai did that a lot when we first got the bunk bed."
"Hey, that explains a lot." I said. Kari and I shared a giggle at that.
"What are you two laughing at?" I heard Tai mutter next to me.
"Actually, me." I said, not wanting Tai to get too upset with us. "I hit my head."
"And I thought you were the smart one." Tai said.
"I am." I retorted. "Anyway..." I trailed off. I climbed down off of the bed. "We need to talk later." I told Tai. "Something wierd happened last night."
"It wasn't the dream again, was it?" Tai asked, concerned.
"It was, but it wasn't." I answered him.
"Let's eat first, talk later." Tai said.
"He's as bad as the digimon, isn't he?" Kari said. I had to laugh at that.
"I think it's just as bad as his digimon. I don't seem to remember Tentomon, or Gatomon for that matter, having stomachs like Tai's and Agumon's. Of course, you weren't there when this happened, but Agumon once did over eat, but that was Tai's fault. Just because he was the first to find his crest, he wanted Agumon to digivolve to ultimate. Instead of becoming MetalGreymon though, he became SkullGreymon instead, and he didn't care what or who he hit. He eventually de-digivolved back to Koromon, who sounded like Mimi for a short while...anyway, it was kind of a downer for all of us." I related that story to Kari.
"That's sad. Though that does sound like Tai." She said.
"What are you guys talking about?" Tai asked as he came back.
"Just telling Kari about some of the adventures she missed out on in the Digital World." I said innocently.
"You told her about SkullGreymon, didn't you?" He asked. I nodded. "That's not as bad as what you did to Tentomon." He countered.
"I was tricked. You did what happened to Agumon on your own."
"What did you do to Tentomon?" Kari asked me.
"Well, there was this digimon, I don't think he was evil, but he wasn't good either, called Vademon. He tricked me into giving up my curiousity. I got sucked into a wierd dimension and turned into kind of a zombie. I, at one point, got tricked into throwing away my digivice and crest. When I did, Tentomon started de-digivolving. He went clear back to his baby form, Pabumon. It took me a bit, but I started to realize what was happening, got my digivice and crest back, and little Pabumon led me back to my curiousity. He digivolved back to Tentomon, and then we decided to take care of the little matter of Vademon. That was the day he first digivolved to MegaKabuterimon."
"Wow. Tentomon went through all of his evolutions in one day. That had to be rough for him." Kari commented. "And to think, all I had to do was save Gatomon from the bad guys. You guys really had it rough." Tai and I bowed our heads as we remembered what we went through, learning about the digimon in a few days.
We all kind of sighed, remembering the digimon in general. Tai and I had seen ours less than a week ago, but to us it sure seemed like a long time. It had been even longer since Kari had seen Gatomon. "We'll see them again, I'm sure of it." Kari said. I think Tai and I had the same thought that we wouldn't. But we knew better than to tell Kari that.
"You said we needed to talk, let's talk." Tai said, and walked out on to the balcony. I followed him. When we were sure that Kari was going to leave us alone for a while, I started.
"It was the dream, only from a different point of view."
"A different point of view. That had to be strange." Tai commented.
"It was. It's kind of like I was in someone else's body. I can't really explain it though. Afterwards, though, that spirit voice spoke with me."
"Izzy, I really think you need a shrink." Tai said.
"Actually, she said that her soul was free now, and that she could be reborn now, or something to that effect. I think that this is probably the end of this." I said.
"I hope so. I worry about you." Tai said, coming up behind me to put his arms around me.
I turned around. "I wonder if I'll ever encounter her again." I said.
"Fate works in mysterious ways, Izzy." Tai said, giving me a hug.
"This reminds me, should we tell people about, you know, us?" I asked. "I'm kind of afraid of how people will react."
Tai shrugged. "Why not just tell Kari about it and work from there?" "You sure?" I asked. He wasn't too thrilled about the idea a few days ago. Tai nodded in answer. We walked into the study.
"Kari?" Tai asked. "Can we tell you something? You have to promise to keep it a secret, okay?"
Kari looked...I'm not sure. It was a mixture of worry and curiousity. "Okay." She finally said. I know I was nervous.
"I don't really know how to explain this," Tai started. "But..."
"Just say it." I told him.
"Well, you see,"
I shook my head. "Fine, I'll say it. Tai and I have a major crush on each other."
Kari looked a bit shocked, but got over it quickly. "That's cool." She said. Now it was my turn to be shocked.
"You don't have a problem with it?" Tai asked.
"Nope. Besides, I heard you guys last night and kinda got it from that. You two look cute together." Kari told us. Both Tai and I blushed.
"Well," I said later. "That went better than I expected." Tai was walking me home.
"Yeah. I wonder how everyone else will take it." He responded.
"I wonder how our parents will take it." I said.
"Well, it's our lives, but I know what you mean. I just know that I feel like I need to be with you." Tai said.
"I feel the same way." I said as we arrived at my front door. I leaned up to give him a good bye kiss. "I'll see you later." I didn't know it would a long time before I did see him again. And that my life was about to change forever.