Once again my knack for overestimating my ability to produce in a timely manner has hit again. I offered to write this story for one of my favorite digimon fanfic writers, mahwish1. She wrote an amazing story, "If Tomorrow Never Comes". It seriously pulls on the heart strings. Well, I have struggled with this story for a while. I have outlined, loved, hated, and scraped the story nearly seven times trying to get this right but I think I finally pulled this together. This story is a little different than what I am used to, but at least it forced me to grow. Please review and let me know how I did. And mahwish1, hope you like it and I'm sorry I drug my feet on it.
Anyway, I hope you enjoy and I hope this lives up to mahwish1's standards. By the way, did I say you should go read her fic? Cuz you should ^_^ Oh look, here's the link!
s/7882612/1/Tomorrow_Might_Never_Come
So without further ado, here is the story inspired by Boyce Avenue's cover of Just a Kiss by Lady Antebellum.
Disclaimer: I do not own digimon or either versions of this song. They belong to people with a lot more money and talent than I have.
Warnings: Some suggestive adult type situations (nothing to constitute and M rating though) and a little Tai bashing. Promise it was necessary to create the story. I do really like Tai.
"Just a shot in the dark that you just might
Be the one I've been waiting for my whole life
So baby I'm alright, with just a kiss goodnight."
~Just a Kiss by Lady Antebellum; covered by Boyce Avenue
She released a breath as she exited the theater. The movie had been intense, keeping her and her friends on the edge of their seats throughout the last 45 minutes of the show, leaving her feeling emotionally drained. She took a second to collect herself again before her friends came out and the craziness ensued.
"That was so fricken good!" said Yuri as he threw open the doors behind Sora, the remainder of the group of junior University of Tokyo students they had gone out with following behind him discussing their favorite parts of the action movie they had just seen.
"I know! That scene where the girl was walking down the hall and that guy jumped out and grabbed her…OH MY GOD, TAI!" screamed Maiko as Tai came up behind her and grabbed her around the waist, hoisting her up in the air. He placed her back on the ground, laughing as she turned around and smacked him on the shoulder.
The group laughed at the new couple's antics, Sora forcing herself to join in. They had gone to the movie determined to have a good time before finals began. Matt, Tai, and their third roommate, Yuri, had decided to ask their good friends and neighbors Sora, Suzano and Maiko to go. Maiko, Tai's new girlfriend, was sure to come and Suzano was practically her shadow. Sora, however, had deliberated for a while before deciding to attend.
Tai had always been a source of strain in her life; at least, he had been since their breakup. It had been so good, what they had; dating for four years, starting one night around Christmas of their junior year of high school. She had debated for years between Tai and Matt, and had actually decided on Matt after a lot of thought. But standing outside the stage one winter night, Tai came and asked her to sit with him. In that moment, something clicked and she thought he was the one she needed, because he needed her. She loved him so much, he loved her in return, and they had an amazing relationship.
After three and a half years, the pair finally spent the night together. Their relationship became even more serious after that, but little by little, Sora started noticing Tai becoming more possessive. She thought it would pass. She thought it was just him beginning to worry because their relationship had changed.
Then that night happened. She had lunch with her lab partner that day and went to Tai and Matt's dorm after class. The minute she walked though the door, Tai went off on her, accusing her of cheating on him with 'the guy she was having lunch with'. They fought unlike they had ever fought before, their voices rocketing to immeasurable heights. An hour into their fight, Matt walked in. Their blonde friend had always been a rock in her life, in both of their lives really, and he had become her best friend after her relationship started. He never interfered with their little arguments and even now he simply stated that the pair could be heard from outside the building. Unfortunately, it caused Tai to start yelling at Matt. Accusing him of knowing that Sora was cheating on him.
She had never seen the two go at it like they had that night, Matt defending her and Tai angry his best friend wasn't taking his side. No fists were thrown, only words that no one could take back. Some came from Tai, some from Matt, and a few tear-filled curses from Sora. She and Tai broke up that night, years of an amazing romance lost. Not only did Sora and Tai's relationship end that day, but the boys' friendship took a major blow as well. Matt actually moved out for a couple months due to the tension, but like boys usually do, the pair made up with the understanding that Matt would remain friends with Sora even if Tai could not. The three's friendship would never be the same again.
She had wondered after that fight if she had chosen the right one the night of the concert.
Sora snapped out of her thoughts as the new couple gave each other a quick kiss after their mock fight and noticed Matt's eyes glance toward her. He knew how she felt towards Tai now. She didn't want him back, but she missed him and what they shared. She tried to hide it, but she knew she was still affected by it. The way their relationship ended would never allow them to be the friends they used to be and they most definitely would never be alone together again.
"Holy crap, get a room you two," giggled Suzano.
The pair giggled again before giving each other one more kiss; two of the four remaining friends smiling at their interaction. "So it's still early, only 10:30. What do you want to do now?" asked Tai, looking at each of his friends.
"How about a night out on the town?" said Suzano. "I just really feel like dancing."
"You mean you really feel like drinking," teased Yuri. Sora couldn't help but roll her eyes. Yuri better not try and take Suzano home tonight. God knows the girl he brought home last weekend somehow ended up waking Matt up at three in the morning, drunkenly crying in his room before passing out on his bed. He then spent the night sleeping on her couch in order to get away from the drunken girl.
"Yeah!" agreed Maiko. "Finals are going to start soon so we won't be able to go again for a while."
"What do you say, Sora? You up for a little drinking and dancing?" asked Suzano.
"You know I can't. I'm not old enough yet," said Sora. She knew that wasn't why she didn't want to go. Just because she was over Tai doesn't mean it wasn't hard to see that he had replaced her and didn't feel like spending the night watching her ex and her roommate hang on each other.
"Oh come on Sora, don't be such a stick in the mud," scoffed Maiko. "You know we could go get a fake ID whipped up for you any time."
"Thanks, but I can wait a few more months."
"You don't have to drink, you could just come with us," suggested Tai. "It would be fun if we could all go together."
"Tai, you know as well as I do that if she doesn't drink she'll just be her old mother hen self the whole time," said Maiko.
"Come on, Maiko," chastised Suzano, "that's not very nice."
"Whatever."
"Besides, Sora, it's kinda late in the night. It's really not a good idea to walk home by yourself," said Yuri.
"I'll be fine," said Sora shortly. She didn't know why she even tried being around Maiko. Ever since she started dating Tai, she had turned into a rude lunatic. She could see her being nervous because she dated Tai for a long time, but they were over and had been for a while. If Tai wanted her back, he would have a least tried to get her to go out with him again. But since he hadn't…
"It's good guys. I'll walk back with her," said Matt sending a smile to his friend.
"What? Not you too, Matt! You have to come with us. Just cuz old fuddy duddy over there…" said Maiko.
"No, it's good," he interrupted, his voice a little harder than before. "I have a big project due soon and I should really get some work done on it."
"What project?" asked Tai.
"I told you about it last week," said Matt shaking his head at his friend. "I have to start my research thesis for next year, remember? I told you I'm doing a project on the possible breakdown of the quark structure of nuclear particles…"
"Ah, that's why I don't remember," said Tai with a smile. "You start spouting that physics and engineering mumbo-jumbo and my brain shuts off. Seriously, dude, I have no idea what you are talking about when you start with the quark structure and gamma radiation stuff."
Sora couldn't help but smile at the pair's interaction, especially when Matt let out one of his signature laughs. Six months ago, she would have joined in. She missed that. "Yeah, well the same goes for me when you star a sentence with, 'Well, according to this person vs. this person…' I'm pretty much done with the conversation."
"Fair enough. You two sure you're alright?"
Sora saw Matt's gaze fall on her before he shot her a smile. "Yeah, it's fine. I'll drop her off at home first. I'll probably still be up when you get back."
"Sounds good," said Yuri. "And I promise, no girls this time. I still owe you for not throwing out the last one."
"And me for giving him somewhere to go so he didn't have to throw her out," joked Sora.
"Yeah, you too," said Yuri with a smile.
"Hey, Sora," whispered Suzano moving closer to her roommate. Sora turned her attention and gave her a questioning look. "Since Matt is taking you home, maybe you should take the opportunity to get to know him better," she said with a giggle.
"I've known Matt since I was twelve. I think we are pretty good on that," she sighed.
"You know what I mean, Sora. The boy, he be sexy."
Sora rolled her eyes. Suzano had been trying to get Sora to hook up with Matt since Maiko and Tai had started dating. She knew it came from a place of love, but she wished she would stop. "He's Tai's friend. You know we can't happen."
"And Maiko is yours, but it didn't stop tem. I'm just worried about you. You seem so sad and I just want you to be happy," she said sadly. "You deserve that."
Sora gave her friend an appreciative look. "Thank you, Suz. I'll find it. I promise I'm ok."
"Okay. Will you still be up when we get home?"
"Probably not," she said with a smile. "I plan on getting some sleep."
"Well, its Saturday so about eleven there will be no sleeping," she joked. "The rabbits upstairs have a schedule to keep."
"Oh, they aren't that bad," said Sora.
"Ready to go, Sor?" asked Matt, putting his hand on her shoulder.
"Yeah," she said. "Have fun, you guys. See you tomorrow."
Everyone waved to each other and headed their separate directions, the pair to the on-campus apartments and the other four to the bar. "Thanks for helping me get out of there," she said shyly.
"No problem," he said nonchalantly, sticking one of his hands in his pocket. "You shouldn't walk back alone this late and I actually do have some work that it wouldn't hurt to get done. It would free up some time to study this week."
The pair walked in a comfortable silence, Sora stealing a few glances at him, slightly wishing she could reach out and grab his hand. Even though she knew she couldn't, it was always nice to know that she would always have him there as her friend to talk to. To get comfort from. He always looked out for her, like he did tonight. He did have a project to do, but she also knew he was already almost done with it.
"So do you want to talk about it?" he asked, pulling her from her train of thought.
"Talk about what?" she retorted. She knew what he was asking, but she definitely didn't want to discuss that topic tonight.
"Come on, you know exactly what I'm talking about. I'm not going to let you push it all down. Tai is dating your roommate. How are you feeling about that?"
"You know I don't want to be with him anymore. It's fine," she said, trying not to look at her friend. He could always see right through her.
"Doesn't mean it doesn't still hurt to see him with someone else, Sora."
"It doesn't matter. He has the right to move on with his life," she said, getting almost irritated.
"I know, but that doesn't mean I don't still notice the hurt in your eyes when you see him with her. It's obvious he's not worried about his relationship affecting you, maybe you should stop worrying about how you starting a new relationship will affect him."
Sora felt her muscles tense at his words. A few weeks ago, Sora had tried drinking for the first time at Matt's apartment while the others went out to the bars. She unfortunately drank too much and in her alcohol stupor admitted to Matt that she was afraid to start a relationship because she was afraid it would hurt Tai's feelings. She now found herself irritated that he was throwing it back at her, no matter how calmly he was saying his words.
"What do you know?" she said angrily. Tai had raked on her nerves all night and Matt's slight nudge had pushed her over the edge. "It's not like you've ever had a relationship long enough to have to worry about it. I was with Tai for four years. What do you know about how one person's actions affect someone else after a serious relationship breaks up?"
She was so angry she didn't even notice Matt had stopped until he spoke. "I know a lot about it. You know that," he said. There was no hurt or anger in his voice, only a calm, kind matter-of-factness that brought her anger to a screeching halt.
His parents.
Matt never really spoke of his parents' divorce. He had talked with her a little bit about it but only mentioned it was a long road up to their sudden decision to separate. He never talked about why they had split, only that one night they had realized that the majority of their time was spent in irresolvable arguments and the next day Matt and Hiroki moved out.
"I'm sorry, I…I wasn't thinking."
"Look, I know I don't have the greatest track record or reputation when it comes to relationships, but I think I know more about what kills one than most."
"I know we don't talk about it much but…," she couldn't help her hesitation; she had never gone here in their conversations. "You're such a good person. You're kind to everyone and so understanding. I guess I've just wondered why your relationships are so short," she said sheepishly.
"Sor, I could give you this whole long story about it, but the short version is I get, well, scared I guess," he said, starting to walk again.
"I don't follow," she said jogging to catch up with him. "How about we go into the long version?"
Matt gave her a small smile. "I do care about the girls I date, Sora, and then we get to the point where it gets physical. It just happens a little quicker than others. I…I figure that at that point we're in a relationship, but then I start to think about my parents and start over thinking things. I remember what happened to my dad and worry that's going to happen to me. I get myself so worked up I end up breaking it off the before I get hurt. Every time I feel like it will work, that it will be different and I will learn to trust her, but it always ends the same. Three years and seven girls later and it's still the same."
"Oh," she said a little embarrassed. She had heard from girls around campus that Matt was know for dating a girl for two weeks, sleeping with her, and breaking up with her about a week later. She had to admit she had a hard time believing it knowing Matt like she did, but found herself judging him a little for it.
"It gives me a bad reputation, I know, but I just can't seem to get past this trust issue. I have to admit I've… I've been avoiding asking you what you think of what I do."
"What I think doesn't matter, Matt."
"What you think always matters to me."
"I guess I've always wondered why you do it, but I didn't feel it was my place to question you. It's your life and you have the right to live it the way you want to, especially now that you don't have to worry about taking care of your dad," she said, starting to walk again; Matt following.
"I just wish I wouldn't worry so much about everything."
"Matt," she began to express her thoughts, but hesitated. She had never approached this subject, it was definitely something he had explicitly deemed a forbidden subject, but she had to try. They had been friends for years and they knew things about each other that they had never discussed with anyone else. Maybe it was time to clear this elephant. "You know I care about you and you always know you can say you don't want to talk about it, but I have to ask. What did your parents do that made it so hard for you to trust? I mean, it even took Tai and I a while to break down that wall you've built and sometimes I feel like we knocked down the first one only to find another one behind it."
Matt dropped his gaze to the ground and began toeing some of the ice pieces on the sidewalk. "My dad loved my mom, Sora. He was totally dedicated to her, but they did have their problems." Sora walked silently beside him, not daring to say another word in case it caused him to change his mind about sharing this. The blonde never talked about his parents of their divorce. T.K. admitted he didn't remember much about it other than they yelled sometimes and Matt would keep them in their room once in a while, but he was so young when it happened. He had asked Matt about it, but he always told him to ask their parents, so she was not interrupting him for any reason. "Dad worked long hours to support the family after my mom decided to be a stay at home mom when Takeru was born.
"He started going to get a drink with coworkers one a week after work. He would come home late on those days, most times after T.K. and I had gone to bed. That's when they started arguing. Mom said she wanted one day a week to go and have a break from home. She wanted him to come home early one day a week and wanted him to be home more. But Dad couldn't, his work wouldn't let him do it.
"That's when Mom started getting us a babysitter once a week, Itami. Itami was… she was a bitch. When T.K. would ask when Mom was getting home, she would always say after she was done getting screwed. Well, you can imagine we had no idea what that meant, I mean I was nine, so I did what any kid would do. When Dad and I went to the arcade one day, I made the mistake of asking him what it was.
"That's when it all started going downhill. Dad started staying out later and even came home drunk a few times. Mom started going out more too, about three times a week. Eventually, Dad found out mom was actually having an affair. He got really drunk one night and started questioning how long it had been going on, even going as far as thinking T.K. wasn't his.
"It was the scariest thing, the fight that night. I ended up locking our bedroom door and rocking T.K. to sleep as he cried. The next morning, dad and I left. Dad…he never really recovered from it. He worked as much as possible. I literally didn't see him for weeks at a time. He'd leave before I got up for school and came home after I went to bed. He couldn't cope with losing her and…I'm sorry. You probably didn't want to hear all of that," he said sheepishly, scratching the back of his head.
"No, it's alright. I've always wondered what happened to them. I think I understand better. You just don't want what happened to your parents to happen to you."
"I've never told anyone that before."
"I'm glad you could tell me," she said, giving him a sweet smile. It made her feel special.
"I trust you," he said, facing her. The pair stopped and Matt moved toward her, causing her heart to stop. "You're a good friend," he said as he pulled her into a hug. She felt her heart drop at his words. Why was it he could trust her, but he wouldn't make a move on her? Honestly, Matt was broken, yes, but he was everything she wanted in a guy. Once again she felt as though she had made the wrong choice all those years ago.
She wrapped her arms around him and returned the hug. "It suddenly makes sense why you were so angry with Tai that night."
"Yeah, well…"
The conversation halted after that. The pair entered their dorm hall and climbed the stairs to their floor, stopping in front of Sora's door. He chuckled a bit and gave her a wide grin. "So glad I can always give you something bright and cheery to talk about."
Sora giggled in return. "It's okay, I didn't mind it." Matt's smile faltered a bit, morphing into something more sweet and nostalgic. "Looks like I've made another crack in that second wall, huh?"
"I think this one is more of a gaping hole," he said with a chuckle, taking a step forward to open her door for her. He looked at her and Sora realized how close they were, his eyes shifting between her eyes and her lips. Sora was about to close the gap between them, but suddenly, Tai jumped into her head. Matt was his best friend despite everything that happened. She couldn't be the one that came between them again; she had almost caused irreparable damage with the last feud she started. She had gone through this in her head a thousand times before. Matt. Was. Off. Limits.
"Well, I should probably let you go work on that research project before it gets too late," she said stepping backward into her apartment. She felt her heart drop a little, feeling as if she let an opportunity pass. "Thanks for walking me home. I really appreciate it."
"Sure," he said, his voice a little strained. "I'll talk to you tomorrow, okay? Maybe we can study for our World Religions final."
"Yeah, that sounds great," she said, giving him a smile.
"Great," he said, giving her a genuine smile back. "I'm just across the way if you need anything. Don't hesitate to come over."
"I won't," she said with a giggle. "Good night."
"Night, Sora," he said, turning toward his door across the hallway.
Sora shut the door and leaned against it, letting out a deep breath. Well that went well, she thought. I think its time for pajamas and bed.
She lay down in bed, her feet seemingly sighing when the weight was taken off them from wearing those stupid pumps all day. Never again, she swore. She was going to burn them tomorrow.
Yeah right. She loved those shoes.
She snuggled down into her pillow and thick quilt her mom had made for her; letting out sigh, relaxing her body and allowing all thoughts to be purged from her mind. She was glad to finally be able to get some sleep.
That's when she heard it, the sound of something hitting the wall in the dorm above her in a rhythmic pattern. Sora couldn't help but groan in frustration. Why does she end up living under these types of people every year? She turned over and opened her laptop, quickly playing some music to try and drown out the noise. She turned over and put her pillow on top of her head.
She found the method quite effective, the beat of the music the only noise passing through the pillow. The muffled melody was soothing, slowly lulling her into sleep.
Until a pleasured scream passed through the feathery material. That was it, she was done. She threw off the covers and the pillow, finding that the noises from upstairs were much louder than she thought they were, and left her bedroom. She didn't want to listen to this. In a matter of seconds, all exhaustion in her body was gone and she bolted from her dorm. Sora could only think of one place to go, so she opened her door, crossed the hallway, and knocked on the adjacent door.
"Come in!" she heard from inside the apartment. She quickly opened the door and stepped inside, smiling at the sight before her. Matt had wasted no time making the living room couch into his study hole, lying down with a blanket and at least seven books stacked next to him, one in his hand. She felt her heart speed up as he looked up at her. He was wearing his reading glasses. Something she had always found attractive about him was the way he looked with his glasses.
"What can I do for ya?" he asked playfully. "Couldn't bare the thought of being away from me for a night?"
She laughed, before pointing to the ceiling. "The rabbits upstairs are going at it again."
Matt turned over his hand with the book in it and looked at his watch. "Is it already Saturday at 11:00 pm?"
"You're funny, Ishida," she said sarcastically. "I swear, they must have a Red Room of Pain up there. No one screams that way. How is that even a turn on?"
"Who do I look like, Christian Grey? I have no idea."
"I know you're working, but would it be alright if I stayed here for a while? You know, maybe just stick in a movie and wait until I can sleep without worrying my upstairs friends are gonna come through the ceiling."
Matt flashed her another mirthful smile before turning back to his book. "Nah, go for it, as long as you don't mind me studying out here. I kinda already set up shop."
"It's your apartment, Matt. You tell me where to go. You don't ask me permission to stay in your own living room," she chuckled.
She went over to the guys' movie shelf and looked through their selection. She found one, a horror movie, that she had been wanting to see since it came out, but was too scared to watch it alone or with her roommates who both had tendencies to scare the people they were watching these things with. She popped the movie into the DVD player and sat on the end of the couch by Matt's feet.
Matt worked on his research as Sora continued to watch the movie. The movie was absolutely terrifying. Every once in a while she would jump when the killer appeared suddenly and a few of those times she would have sworn she heard Matt chuckle at her expense.
As the end of the movie approached, Sora had curled into herself and suddenly realized she had slowly shifted her way toward the other end of the couch. Matt had turned onto his side to give her more room to sit in front of his chest where she found herself now perched. She couldn't help but sneak a peek at him. His brow was furrowed over his glasses in a confused concentration as he read his book. She looked at the title of his book, International Conference on Quark Nuclear Physics by Charlotte Elster, Josef Speth, and Thomas Walcher. Wasn't that a little advanced?
Sora looked back at the television just in time to see the killer jump out from behind the shower curtain to claim the main characters life. Sora let out a loud scream and covered her face with her hands, throwing herself into the closest pillow she could. She thought she might die of embarrassment for her reaction in front of Matt, but she hoped she would just die when the softness below her began to vibrate with a chuckle and arms wrapped around her, giving her a gentle squeeze. "You can go toe to toe with a killer clown digimon but you can't watch a fake serial killer on a television?"
She looked up to find his face just inches from hers, a genuine smile gracing it as he looked back at her. The thoughts of closing that gap overcame her mind for the second time that night, and just as quickly, so did her thoughts of Tai, the same as before. She looked at him and saw what she had always known in the back of her mind. The man that sat holding onto her was not the player he was rumored to be. He was the physics nerd and the rockstar. He was the kindhearted understanding man she had dreamed about being with since she knew what love really was, and for the first time she knew something for sure. Though Tai was a great man who deserved all of the happiness in the world, he was not the one she should have chosen all those years ago. She should have chosen the man in front of her. He was the one that she'd been waiting for her whole life, but being with him meant hurting Tai.
"It's obvious he's not worried about his relationship affecting you, maybe you should stop worrying about how you starting a new relationship will affect him."
Fuck it, she thought as she finally filled the gap between them and pushed her lips to his, one hand finding its way to his cheek. She was surprised with herself. She was never the one to make the first move, but then again, the only other time she had been so sure she wanted something was when she had decided to go to school for fashion design. She was so shocked by her own actions that it took her a few moments to realize that he had not pushed her away.
In fact, he was kissing her back.
His lips, as soft yet firm as she had imagined them were moving against hers in an unmistakable want. Both of them pushed themselves deeper into the kiss, trying to make more contact. This caused something in Sora to push things further. Without breaking the kiss, she moved on top of him while Matt pushed his books to the floor, helping her to straddle him. His hands stayed on her hips as she began running her hands through his hair, effectively knocking his glasses to the ground. She heard him hum a small giggle, felt him smile into the kiss, but she didn't care. She didn't want to stop. She just wanted him. Screw Tai and his feelings, it was time for her to get what she wanted, and what she wanted was the blonde below her.
She shifter her hips to get a better kissing angle and heard Matt release a deep yet quiet moan. She was glad to have this effect on him, but the sound also made her think of something else. Matt always thought the physical part of the relationship would deepen it, make them more attached to one another. She allowed the thought to mingle for a while. Should she do it? Should she push them that far that quickly? Technically, they had done the whole 'get-to-know-each-other-and-see-if-you're-compatib le' thing over the past eight years of their friendship, so what would be the harm? Maybe it was a good idea.
No, it was a great idea. Maybe she did feel like she was rushing it, but it was what Matt needed to prove she would be with him. Besides, if she was honest with herself, she had allowed herself to fantasize about being with him once in a while. She wanted to be with him, why not do it? She wanted this.
She began running her hands over his chest, feeling the toned muscle hidden under his now untucked shirt. She felt his hands leave trails on heat as he began to move then up her back, pulling her deeper into the kiss and intensifying every touch. Yeah, it was time. She slowly moved her hands farther down, playing with the hem of his shirt before her fingers began wrapping around his belt.
Before she knew it, his lips were gone from hers and his hands had left her back. In a flash, one of his hands found its way to the fingers on his belt, the other was lightly pushing her back in an unmistakable indication of 'stop'. "Sora," he said breathlessly, "wait…"
She felt her heart drop. He was stopping her. He realized his lapse in judgment and was going to give her the whole speech about how it was a mistake and they were just friends. Exactly what she always worried would happen if she made a move on him. She felt the heat build up in her cheeks and the tears well in her eyes. Before he could say another word, she was off his lap and bee-lining it for the door as quickly as her feet could carry her without breaking into a full out sprint. How could she be so stupid to believe he would want to be with her? He was Tai's friend, it could never happen.
She grabbed the door handle and attempted to pull the door open, ready to escape and never come back, before a strong hand pushed the door shut again. Sora jumped back in surprise, shocked to see Matt standing there, his hair disheveled and face flushed. She quick looked back at the door, unable to look at her friend. "Sora, wait…"
"It's fine," she said, eyes trained on his hand holding the door shut. "It was a mistake, I get it." She tried to keep the tears out of her eyes and the sadness out of her voice.
"I…let me explain," he stuttered. Sora's mind flashed to everything he was about to say. I got caught up in the moment. We're really good friends and I don't want to lost that. Tai is my friend; I can't do this to him.
"You don't have to explain. It was a mistake. No one has to know about it and we can pretend it never happened." She watched as Matt's hand slowly slid off the door. Once it was gone, she quickly opened it and hurried out the door toward her own apartment where she could hide away in her bedroom until the end of the school year.
"Do you really think it was a mistake?" came Matt's voice; soft, almost hurt sounding.
Sora stopped in her tracks, unable to move forward from this moment, but unable to speak for fear he would be able to hear the hurt in her voice. She could feel her heart breaking as she stood there, knowing that they could never turn back from this moment; never go back to being the friends that they were.
"Because I don't think it was."
Sora's heart stopped for a moment before she turned to look at the blonde. He stood watching her, waiting for her reaction. "W..what?" she asked. She had to make sure she heard this right.
"I'm hoping you don't really think this was a mistake, Sor, because I don't want it to be a mistake."
"But you stopped," she said, her hopes rising with every moment.
"If you always do what you've always done, then you'll always get what you've always got. Isn't that what Tony Robbins said?"
"You mean…you actually want…" she stammered, tears finally welling in her eyes.
"I don't want to mess this thing up by pushing it too fast, Sor. I always go too fast, but not this time. I gotta make it work this time. I waited a forever for you and I'm not letting you slip by me a again," he said coming out to meet her in the hallway.
"Matt…" she said, looking into his eyes.
"Oh my god, Tai!" came a yell from the bottom of the stairs followed by a maniacal chuckle.
Sora looked back at Matt in panic, a smile on his face as he approached her. "What are we going to tell Tai?"
He gave a deep chuckle as he wrapped his arm around her waist, pressing a kiss to her forehead. "Don't worry about it. I'll take care of that."
"Can we just keep this between us for just a little while?" she asked. "I just don't think I'm ready to tell Suzano she was right."
Matt let out a laugh, easing Sora's worry that he would be upset or concerned that she was already ashamed of the relationship. "Ok, I was thinking about telling him when he and Maiko became a little more serious."
"Okay," she said. "In that case, I should probably head to bed. You have studying to do after all."
"Alright," he said releasing her. She headed toward her door, intent on being inside before the group made it upstairs.
"Hey Sora!" yelled Yuri as he climbed the top stair. "You missed out, lemme tell you."
"Shhh," hushed Maiko loudly. "We said it would stay a secret."
"Yeah, we weren't going to tell anyone that Maiko flashed her T.A.," said Tai.
The group let out a laugh as Maiko turned around and gave Tai a good slap to the arm before pushing him into his apartment, chasing after him with a giggle. "So, what did you two end up doing?" asked Suzano, slightly slurring and raising her eyebrows in a suggestive manner.
"We watched a movie while I did some studying," said Matt with a smile.
"Biology?" she suggested with a giggle.
"Nuclear physics," he said, raising his own eyebrows as if questioning her sanity.
"Oh," she said, her disappointment evident. "Well, was the movie at least good?"
"Yeah, it was pretty good. My favorite part was the ending," he said, sneaking a smile toward Sora. She couldn't help but smile back.
"Whatever, you two are no fun," she said heading toward the girls' apartment door. "I'm going to bed."
"Me too," said Yuri. "See you in the morning Suzano, Sora."
"Night, Yuri," smiled Sora, giving him a wave.
The two watched Yuri enter the guys' apartment skirting by the two lovebirds chasing each other around the couch. Sora watched them for a minute before returning her gaze back to Matt, smiling at the thought that she and Matt would have that one day soon. She just wished they could have had a little more time before everyone came back, just some more time to explore each other.
Matt walked over to her, and smiled before placing a soft kiss on her lips. It was so unlike the passionate one they had shared earlier, but it was as if the same amount of a different kind of love was being passed through this stolen kiss. "Sorry our time tonight got cut shorter than I had hoped," he said, keeping his face close to hers. "Hopefully a kiss goodnight is good enough for now."
Sora was about to respond when she heard a crunch resonate from inside boys' apartment. "Matt! Why the hell are your glasses on the floor?!"
"Goodnight, Love. See you tomorrow," he said, giving her one last kiss on the cheek before heading in, his laugh echoing through the apartment as Tai apologized profusely for stepping on his reading glasses. She thought about how his glasses got on the floor in the first place and smiled. She thought about everything that had happened that night, everything that had changed and everything she had gained. She thought about his words and had to admit that Matt was right.
She was okay with just a kiss goodnight.
"Oh, there you are, I've been looking for you forever."
~Blaine Anderson - Glee
That took me waaaaaay to long to write and hopefully mahwish1 isn't disappointed after waiting so long. I usually don't do scenes like this, so please let me know how I did! Constructive criticism is always welcome. Now to work on the next chapter of My Protector, My Guardian!