.Mimi Tachikawa sighed and leaned up against the side of some building. She was waiting for her boyfriend to come and pick her up. She had been dreading this day, knowing what was in store, knowing what she had to do, and she hated it. Four years ago, when she was Fourteen, she had moved off to the United States. Now she was Eighteen, offically an adult, and living with her boyfriend, Yamato Ishida, back in Japan. After a fight last night, she had thought him picking her up from work in the building next to her would be a great idea on how to resolve their problem, but the more thought she gave to it, the less she liked the idea. He had been to self-centered, too pushy for her liking, and she decided they were through. Now if only it were easier to tell him.
The sound of Matt's car came sputtering down the road. She looked down the road, praying that it wasn't his car, but of course, it was. You could hear it from a mile away it was so loud. She sighed and felt a tear come to her eye. She loved Matt, but she could tell that it wasn't meant to be. Why was it so hard for her to accept? Would it be easy for him? Her mind was racing as Matt's car pulled in front of her and he leaned over, opening the door for her. Taking a deep breath, she climbed in, not bothering to fasten her seatbelt.
They had traveled about a mile when Matt pulled the car over to the side of the street. He turned towards her, his eyes serious, and said, "Mimi, about last night, I am so sor-"
She cut him off. "Matt, about last night....I am sorry, but," she paused, "I can't see you anymore."
Tears welled up in her eyes, and one escaped, gliding down her cheek. She brushed it away and looked at him, waiting for his reaction. His eyes showed no feeling. Without a word, he leaned over her lap and opened the door. Making sure she was wearing no seatbelt, he pushed her out of the car onto the pavement, then not bothering to check to see if she was out of the way, sped off.
Her tears were flowing freely now. No matter how much of a jerk he had been, she still loved him, and she didn't know why...
She stood up and whipped the tears of her cheeks. She was going to get through this. With a sigh, she checked out her surrondings. Nothing special. A mall, a deserted burger place, and a few random buildings. She walked towards the burger place, figuring she would drown her sorrows in food. Not even shopping would help this.
Entering the Burger place, she looked around. No one was there, only the employees. It was pretty shabby inside, and she didn't know what to do, so she just sat down and waited for someone to come to her. A cute red-headed boy behind the counter noticed and her and smiled, but she made no effort to smile back, she wasn't in the mood to be friendly. His smiled faded, and he came out from behind the counter. Walking over to her, he studied her, wondering what he should do. Her tears had been aborted momentairly, but no she felt them springing back up into her eyes. She looked away, and as he approached, said, "I will take a plain cheeseburger."
He noticed her eyes glistening with tears, and was overwhelmed with pity, he shouted to the back, "I am going on break!'
She looked up at him, puzzled to why he was doing this for her, but didn't say anything. She heard a voice in the back yell for him. "Break from what?"
Looking around again, she saw the place was still deserted, and knew what the guy meant.
She felt his hand on her shoulder and looked up to him. The tears sprang through her eyes and started rolling down her cheeks. It was no use hiding them anymore. She couldn't have willed herself to anyway.
A comforting arm wrapped around her shoulder, and she leaned into him. A sharp pain sprang to her head, and she sat back. What had been digging into her head? She looked at his shirt, and saw his name tag. Wiping the tears away from her eyes so everything was less fuzzy, she read it. KOUSHIRO IZUMI Her mouth opened wide and she started staring at his name tag.
Wondering why she was staring st his chest, he asked, "Is there something fascinating about my name tag?"
She didn't even feel any tears anymore. She couldn't get over the shock that this man, may well be Izzy. A thought then struck her. Izzy had been so smart. Why would he work in a Burger place? She looked away and muttered something, a fresh set of tears beginning to roll down her face. He didn't know what to do, she seemed fine one minute, and totally hysterical the next. All he could think to do was wrap her in another hug, careful not to get her head on the nametag this time.
After about five minutes he pulled away. "Now, tell me, what's this all about?"
There was something familar and soothing about his words. She looked up at him, her eyes filled with distrust. But somehow, they also had an innocent look that made him think of someone he used to know.... "Are you Izzy?"
Her forwardness also made him think. A little unsure, he nodded.
Her eyes widened. She stumbled over her words, but got them out. "Really... I mean, Tent, I mean, um," she looked at him catiously, "Tentomon?"
It was now his turn to be speechless. No one had spoken of his digimon for years. Heck, he hadn't seen the Digidestined for years. But this girl, this upset girl could only be one person...
"Mimi?"
Their eyes met, and she nodded, smiling brightly. All of her troubles washed away, and she totally forgot about Matt. With all the excitement, she even forgot the fight, and all her other problems, nothing else seemed important. "Izzy! How have you been? Why are you working here? Aren't you still smart?"
He laughed at her questions and shook his head. "I haven't been to good. I got fired from my old job and now I have to work here temporarily."
She looked down at her feet and sighed. She was no longer smiling, his troubles making her think back to her own. He saw the hurt overcome her smiling face, and questioned it. "Mimi, I know somethings wrong." He took her hand in his and lifted her chin to meet his eyes, "You can tell me. I am trustworthy."
A silent tear rolled down her face. 'Great,' she thought, 'He's going to think that I have mood-swings and that I am all wishy washy.' Wiping the tear away, she escaped his gaze. "I have been seeing Matt... and I just broke up wit him." Another tear rolled down her face, then another and another.
His hand glided across her cheek and wiped the tears away. Pulling her close, he let her cry herself to sleep in his arms, in a destered burger bar, for most of the night.
Her eyes fluttered open, and Mimi felt an immediate jolt of pain travel up her back. Biting her lip, she tried to remember what had happened before she had falled alseep. Izzy... Matt... the fight, memories came back to her slowly. She looked up at Izzy, who was still holding her, and half-smiled. 'He looks to cute when he snores!' she thought. Carefully removing herself from his lap, she stood up. The dawn was breaking outside, and a yawn escaped her mouth. Streching her stiff back, she walked over to the counter. All she could do was wait for Izzy to wake up. He had been so kind and understanding, he deserved the rest.
Mimi wandered about the resturaunt, looking at various things, but soon became bored with it. It was all she could do to go back to Izzy and wake him up. Clutching her grumbling stomach, she walked across the room to the table where Izzy still slept, and sat down facing him. He awoke by the sound on her heels walking across the room, and she silently smacked herself for forgetting to tiptoe.
"Hey," Izzy said groggily, "When did you get up?"
"About thirty minutes ago. I didn't want to wake you." She stared at the ground and then looked back up at him.
Feeling her gaze upon him, he cocked his head to one side. "How long have you been in Japan."
Only for a few months, she said, sighing. "I was living with Matt..." he voice trailed off.
Izzy looked at her with sympathy, and leaned across the table, catching her hand. "Would you like to stay with me until you find a place of your own?"
Mimi was sort of flattered and sort of irritated. Was he hitting on her at a weak moment... or was he just being a friend? She looked at the ground again, playing with the ideas in her head, flip-flopping her decision. She was silent for a few minutes, but shook her head. Of course he wasn't taking advantage of her. Izzy was her friend, he wouldn't do that to her. She managed a smile, though fake and unsure as it was, and nodded. "Yes, Izzy, I will."
Izzy gave her one of his smiles, which she rarely saw in the digiworld for his head was always behind that computer. "Great! My car is right out front, come on!"
Mimi sighed and followed Izzy out the front door. This was going to be interesting....
She glanced nervously over at him as they walked down the street. Izzy, the boy whom she hadn't really thought about when they were in the Digiworld, was now offering to let her live with him... alone.... in a house.... together? She did her best to conceal a shudder. 'Maybe I should reconsider...' she told herself, but then shook her head. This was IZZY, responsible old Izzy who couldn't hurt a fly, she pushed any doubts to the back of her mind, and just kept walking. There was no sense in worrying about it.
He looked over at her again for about the fifty millionth time. A small smile played on his lips as he thought that he was finally taller than her. Maybe only a few inches, but definetly taller. "Mimi, you're so quiet, what's wrong?" He couldn't help but remember the loud Mimi that shared her views and opinions whenever she wanted, whether you wanted it or not.
"Oh, nothing. I was just thinking..... thinking that I need to swing by Matt's and pick up my stuff." She paused at Matt's name. A name to painful to say, let alone be in the same room with it's owner.
He saw this was painful for her. Putting a friendly arm around her shoulder, he hugged her close. "Mimi, you can talk to me. Please, talk to me. There are so many questions that you didn't answer, and I know I am prying, but Mimi, please."
She held back tears and looked over at Izzy. "Do you want me to go through it again?"
Feeling a blush come rushing to his cheeks, he nodded, "It's the only way I can help."
She nodded in agreement, feeling the tears subside a little. "Your right." Taking a deep breath she looked him in the eyes, and began her story...
"I was out with Matt the other night, and we were having a great time. He took me to a fancy resturaunt, and everything was going my way. I started to notice the time, and it was getting really late. He agreed and took me back to our place." She took another deep breath, and forced herself to speak, her voice shaky, "I didn't think he was going to try to make a move on me, but he did. I told him that I didn't want to, but he wouldn't listen. So... I slapped him." Pausing again, she let a single tear fall down her face. "He got really angry, and said some stuff I don't want to mention... but most of it was that he should get a new girlfriend. One that could..." She broke off there, and burst into tears. Her knees buckled under her, and she felt Izzy's arms catch her as she was falling. She leaned agianst him. She needed him so.
He held her close. He was afraid if he didn't, she would collapse again. Soothing words came from him, like, "Don't worry, it'll be okay, I shouldn't have asked, It's not your fault." It was all he could do. He shouldn't have asked. It should have occured to him that this would happen.
Leaning against him, she half-walked half-stumbled to his car and climbed into the passenger seat. She brought her knees to her chest, and burrowed her head into her skirt. She didn't look up at all the rest of the car ride home.
They soon arrived at Izzy's apartment, and it as all Mimi could do to keep from falling over when stepping out of the car. She took a deep breath and leaned against Izzy's car, staring intently at her temporary home, trying to figure out what was what. It was like most Japanese apartments. A large bulding that touched the sky with huge windeows that looked out to the street. She couldn't help thinking about Matt. This was the exact type of place he lived in. Her heart ached, and she broke away from the care. Then started running, trying to catch up to Izzy.
Her heels cloncked against the concrete of the sidewalk, causing him to turn and look over his shoulder. He motioned for her to hurry. He wanted her to see his place. He couldn't even believe she had actually accepted his offer. They had never hated each other, but they had virtually nothing in common, and she had ignored him most of the time they had spent together with the other Digidestined. Her empty-headed materialism hadn't been a big attractor to him, but she seemed so changed now. It was like he ALMOST kind of liked her. ALMOST more then a friend. But then again, you couldn't know after one night.... could you?
"Hey, Izzy, slow down, will you?" she sounded tired. It was understandble, she was running in heels.
"Sure," he stopped and waited for her to catch up, then started walking agian, slower this time.
"Izzy," her words were softer now...
He looked over at her.... a little unsure...."Yes...?"
"I want to thank you..."
Giving her a questioning look, he asked, "What?"
She sighed and looked into his eyes. They had stopped walking, and she grabbed his hand. "For being there for me."
"Aw, Mimi, it was no..." But he didn't finish. Mimi had leaned over and kissed him softly on the lips.
She pulled away and smiled at him innocently, though the look in her eye gave her away. Winking, she turned around and started walking again, but this time with a little more bounce in her step. This was too perfect, too perfect.
He stood there, as if glued to the pavement, watching her walk away. Thought reaced through his mind, and he shook his head, trying to clear it. He may have been a genious, but girl's didn't come in his IQ. Exspecially the abrupt change in Mimi's mood. One minute you could barely say the letter "M" without her going berserk with grief, and now, out of nowhere she kissed him on the lips. Only one word came to mind. "Prodigous."
The sound of the fimiliar word echoed in her ears, and she turned around to see him walking towards her. She smiled one of her big smiles, and silently slapped herself in her mind. 'I shouldn't do this, this is wrong.' the thought bounced around in her head. 'I can't use Izzy to get Matt back.' She glanced towards the ground and thought with all her might. Her plan was to perfect. All she had to was use Izzy until Matt totally regreted making moves on her, then came crawling back. It would hurt Izzy, but he would get over it. He said "Prodigous" alot. Maybe the kiss had meant nothing to him...
He raised one of his perfectly arched eyebrows and looked at her. For no apparent reason, she had begun to stare at the ground. "Mimi...?"
Jolted back to reality, Mimi flung her head up. "Yes?"
He shrugged. "What were you staring at?"
Remembering that she had to act all gaga for him, she turned on another of her smiles. "Oh, nothing Izzy!"
Shaking his head, he started to walk towards the building again. Mimi sure had been acting strange. Opening the door for the trailing Mimi, he walked inside of the apartment building.
Mimi felt horrible. She felt worse then horrible she felt so low. She was betraying someone's feelings and trust for her own, and yet, the picture of Matt lingered in the back of her mind. How she missed him. Sighing, she pushed open the stepped into the building. Her selfishness had won this battle.
Mimi sighed for the second time in a minute, then looked to Izzy, hoping he hadn't noticed. She had to watch herself. She had to be cheery and peppy. She couldn't let him or anyone know she was just pretending. Putting on her best smile, she took Izzy's arm. "Which one is your apartment?"
He nodded towards the elevator. "D 45. C'mon, I'll show you." Unhooking his arm, he grasped her hand and brought her to the elevator.
She let herself be dragged to the elevator, and waited patiently for it to arrive and take them to her temporary home. 'I am in no hurry.' She thought to herself, silently hoping the elevator would get stuck. Just then the doors opened, and a small, carpeted room appered. Stepping inside, she leaned against the wall.
He strode in after her, watching her every move. There was something so awkward about their situation. She had practically admitted that she loved him, but yet, she seemed so unhappy. Despite the smiles, he sensed something wrong. Trying to make it less uncomfortable, he smiled and tried to make conversation. "So, how did you like America. I haven't talked to you since before you moved there.'
She looked up to the sound of his voice, but her brain didn't register what he was saying. 'Something about America...' It was all that she had heard. Taking a guess at it, she replied. "I loved it there. I made lots of friends, and they have the coolest clothes, but I like Japan better." She looked away, in case she hadn't answered what he had asked.
Blinking a few times, he looked at her with raised eyebrows. Why did she sound like a machine? He opened his mouth to question her, when a little ding indicated that they had gotten to the right floor. Shrugging it off, he pushed the thought to the back of his mind.
No longer staring at the floor, she put on a smile and joined Izzy halfway down the corridor.
This was probably going to be her only chance to get Matt back, and she wasn't going to blow it. No sir. She was going to get with the program and stop letting her concious get the best of her.
He looked over at her. Mimi, this amazing woman, was there, hanging on him, acting totally in love with him. Normally he would be flattered, but there seemed something so fake... so untrue, about what she was doing. It actually made him question her. Feeling guilty, he tried to smile. 'She isn't faking, she loves me.' was his only console. Repeating it over and over again, he slowly began to feel better. More relaxed. It had to be true, it just had to be...
Mimi smiled another amazing smile. She found herself talking, laughing, and flirting, without even thinking. 'My body doesn't need me...' she thought. 'It can work without me...' Thoughts like this came and went, but nothing was sinking in. Was this how she was supposed to act...? She shook her head. This was her chance. Returning her thoughts to their current conversation, she hoped they would come to his room soon.
Approaching his apartment, he fingered the junk in his pocket, trying to find his keys. Grasping them, he brought them out of his pocket. Quickly fiddling with this lock, the door swung open, and a small, quaint apartment was revealed. He smiled proudly at himself, and glanced down at Mimi, trying to see her reaction. She looked the same as she had for the last five minutes, cheery and bright with an air of fakeness, which disappointed him. He was hoping she would have least had SOME opinion on his apartment, whether it be good or not. Realizing that that was petty, he grinned at her and led her inside for the grand tour.
Feeling Izzy's hand hold hers, she felt a surge of something running through her body. A relaxing warmth came over her, and for the first time in the last hour, she truly smiled. She began to act more like herself, still playing the part of being in love with Izzy, but with a less fake way. Towards the end of the tour, she began to enjoy herself. His apartment was small, but cozy and welcoming. He showed her everything, and she told him some stories of America.
* * *
As the day began to meet the night, Mimi and Izzy sat down for their first real dinner together. At first it had seen like no big deal, but the closer Izzy got to being done heating up their frozen dinners, the more nervous she became. She had no clue why, though. She was only PRETENDING to like him, she didn't really have to be afraid of him. But for some reason, this didn't soothe her and she the butterflies in her stomach began to grow.
He arrived with their dinners on plates, to make it look more like a meal, and not just a TV dinner. All afternoon he had had a great time with Mimi. They had swapped stories, and she had seemed to lose all that fakeness that had made him wonder. She seemed to be just, well, Mimi. Setting her plate in front of her, he smiled warmly.
Taking her fork in her hand, she began to pick at her food. It smelled good, but she had lost her appetite. What was making her so nervous around Izzy?
Seeing her not eating, he leaned over and lightly touched her hand, "Are you okay?"
Again, that relaxing feeling of warmth combed through her body. Looking up at him, her heart fluttered. Tears of anger began to fill her eyes. She didn't love Izzy, she couldn't. She was only pretending... wasn't she?
Her stomach flip-flopped, and she held it, praying that she would not throw up. She did love Matt, but for some reason, this strange thought crept into her mind....'Do I love Izzy, too?'
His question still unanswered, he got up and walked to her side. Picking up her hand, that seemed to lay lifelessly on the table, he kissed it softly. "Mimi, tell me, what's wrong."
She had been at her game with this man for only a few hours, and she had already fallen in love with him. What was she going to do? Her lip quivering, she spoke for the first time. "I...I was using you."
He dropped her hand. Watching it fall to her side, he looked up to her face, staring. "But..."
She interuppted before he could get any farther. She had to tell him. And she had to tell him before she broke down crying. "I only pretended to love you to make Matt jealous, then forgive me. Then I was going to break up with you and ask him back out." She winced and broke down, heaving great sobs. She tried with all her might to say 'I love you', but she couldn't do it, his eyes were glaring at her, and she couldn't bring herself to say it.
His eyes fell to her face, stained with fresh tears, and he couldn't help but glare. What had given this girl the right to play with his emotioins like that? Nothing, that's what. He had given her a place to say, support, and he had loved her. Sure, it had only been a few hours, but it had overcome him and taken him by suprise. He walked away from her slowly, and went to the door. Opening it, he pointed into the hall. His own tears were falling down his cheeks now, and he stared at the floor. It took all his strength to mutter those two fatal words... "Get out."
She stood up out of her seat, and began to walk slowly towards the door, her eyes only daring to look up at him once. Why had she done something so stupid? How could she? Was she so inhuman? Approaching the corricdor, she turned to say goodbye, only to get the door slammed in her face. Walking slowly down the hall, she got into the elevator and pressed the first floor button. Then, collecting her thoughts, she began to realize how stupid she was.
Walking to the doors in the lobby, she noticed a phone on the way out. Digging into her purse she looked for spare change. If she could call Matt.. he would fix this. She could get on in life without Koushiro Izumi... she didn't need him. Reaching for the phone, she dropped in the money and dialed Matt's number.
His familiar voice echoed through her ears, and she held back the tears that threatened to gush down her cheeks... again. "Matt, this is Mimi. I am sorry.... forgive me... please. I love you." Those three words came out so easily, yet they made her feel uncomfortable. His reassurance that it was okay made her feel better though, and she hung up.
After their conversation, she began to walk swiftly through the doors, and out onto the sidewalk. The wind blew through her glorious hair, and she looked impatiently from side to side. Suddenly, she heard the sound of his car approaching. She turned, happy to finally see Matt.... and some other girl...
Her eyes widened as she realized that he was still mad at her. The other girl, the one with spiky red hair, that had to be his new girlfriend. Those reassurances, those kind words, they were nothing but a plan to hurt her. She turned away, left with no one and nothing to care for her, she began to run away, from everyone and everything.
The next day, after she had cried her heart about losing two men in one night, Mimi leaned against the side of a building, watching as Izzy entered the Burger Bar, and a smile played on her lips. This was to perfect.
Walking inside the Burger Bar causually, she strolled to the counter. The messy red-head was bent over the cash register, not looking up, and she cleared her throat once to get his attention. His head whipped up. He turned away from her, his eyes full of hurt, but she didn't play that game. "Can I get some service?"
Turning and glaring at her furiously, he foucus back to the register. "Yes, please place your order."
Her hand grabbed his chin, and she forced his face upword. "One kiss to go please." Then quickly, she leaned over and kissed him on his lips. For real.
He wanted to pull away, he almost did, but there was something in this kiss that hadn't been in the last one. Love. She truly loved him. Relaxing into her kiss, he began to laugh.
Pulling away, she gave him a funny look. "What's so funny...?"
"Do you realize, that this began and ended in a burger bar?"
She leaned close to his face, and smiled. "No, it didn't. It's more like it had two beginnings." She leaned in another inch, and their lips touched again
The sound of Matt's car came sputtering down the road. She looked down the road, praying that it wasn't his car, but of course, it was. You could hear it from a mile away it was so loud. She sighed and felt a tear come to her eye. She loved Matt, but she could tell that it wasn't meant to be. Why was it so hard for her to accept? Would it be easy for him? Her mind was racing as Matt's car pulled in front of her and he leaned over, opening the door for her. Taking a deep breath, she climbed in, not bothering to fasten her seatbelt.
They had traveled about a mile when Matt pulled the car over to the side of the street. He turned towards her, his eyes serious, and said, "Mimi, about last night, I am so sor-"
She cut him off. "Matt, about last night....I am sorry, but," she paused, "I can't see you anymore."
Tears welled up in her eyes, and one escaped, gliding down her cheek. She brushed it away and looked at him, waiting for his reaction. His eyes showed no feeling. Without a word, he leaned over her lap and opened the door. Making sure she was wearing no seatbelt, he pushed her out of the car onto the pavement, then not bothering to check to see if she was out of the way, sped off.
Her tears were flowing freely now. No matter how much of a jerk he had been, she still loved him, and she didn't know why...
She stood up and whipped the tears of her cheeks. She was going to get through this. With a sigh, she checked out her surrondings. Nothing special. A mall, a deserted burger place, and a few random buildings. She walked towards the burger place, figuring she would drown her sorrows in food. Not even shopping would help this.
Entering the Burger place, she looked around. No one was there, only the employees. It was pretty shabby inside, and she didn't know what to do, so she just sat down and waited for someone to come to her. A cute red-headed boy behind the counter noticed and her and smiled, but she made no effort to smile back, she wasn't in the mood to be friendly. His smiled faded, and he came out from behind the counter. Walking over to her, he studied her, wondering what he should do. Her tears had been aborted momentairly, but no she felt them springing back up into her eyes. She looked away, and as he approached, said, "I will take a plain cheeseburger."
He noticed her eyes glistening with tears, and was overwhelmed with pity, he shouted to the back, "I am going on break!'
She looked up at him, puzzled to why he was doing this for her, but didn't say anything. She heard a voice in the back yell for him. "Break from what?"
Looking around again, she saw the place was still deserted, and knew what the guy meant.
She felt his hand on her shoulder and looked up to him. The tears sprang through her eyes and started rolling down her cheeks. It was no use hiding them anymore. She couldn't have willed herself to anyway.
A comforting arm wrapped around her shoulder, and she leaned into him. A sharp pain sprang to her head, and she sat back. What had been digging into her head? She looked at his shirt, and saw his name tag. Wiping the tears away from her eyes so everything was less fuzzy, she read it. KOUSHIRO IZUMI Her mouth opened wide and she started staring at his name tag.
Wondering why she was staring st his chest, he asked, "Is there something fascinating about my name tag?"
She didn't even feel any tears anymore. She couldn't get over the shock that this man, may well be Izzy. A thought then struck her. Izzy had been so smart. Why would he work in a Burger place? She looked away and muttered something, a fresh set of tears beginning to roll down her face. He didn't know what to do, she seemed fine one minute, and totally hysterical the next. All he could think to do was wrap her in another hug, careful not to get her head on the nametag this time.
After about five minutes he pulled away. "Now, tell me, what's this all about?"
There was something familar and soothing about his words. She looked up at him, her eyes filled with distrust. But somehow, they also had an innocent look that made him think of someone he used to know.... "Are you Izzy?"
Her forwardness also made him think. A little unsure, he nodded.
Her eyes widened. She stumbled over her words, but got them out. "Really... I mean, Tent, I mean, um," she looked at him catiously, "Tentomon?"
It was now his turn to be speechless. No one had spoken of his digimon for years. Heck, he hadn't seen the Digidestined for years. But this girl, this upset girl could only be one person...
"Mimi?"
Their eyes met, and she nodded, smiling brightly. All of her troubles washed away, and she totally forgot about Matt. With all the excitement, she even forgot the fight, and all her other problems, nothing else seemed important. "Izzy! How have you been? Why are you working here? Aren't you still smart?"
He laughed at her questions and shook his head. "I haven't been to good. I got fired from my old job and now I have to work here temporarily."
She looked down at her feet and sighed. She was no longer smiling, his troubles making her think back to her own. He saw the hurt overcome her smiling face, and questioned it. "Mimi, I know somethings wrong." He took her hand in his and lifted her chin to meet his eyes, "You can tell me. I am trustworthy."
A silent tear rolled down her face. 'Great,' she thought, 'He's going to think that I have mood-swings and that I am all wishy washy.' Wiping the tear away, she escaped his gaze. "I have been seeing Matt... and I just broke up wit him." Another tear rolled down her face, then another and another.
His hand glided across her cheek and wiped the tears away. Pulling her close, he let her cry herself to sleep in his arms, in a destered burger bar, for most of the night.
Her eyes fluttered open, and Mimi felt an immediate jolt of pain travel up her back. Biting her lip, she tried to remember what had happened before she had falled alseep. Izzy... Matt... the fight, memories came back to her slowly. She looked up at Izzy, who was still holding her, and half-smiled. 'He looks to cute when he snores!' she thought. Carefully removing herself from his lap, she stood up. The dawn was breaking outside, and a yawn escaped her mouth. Streching her stiff back, she walked over to the counter. All she could do was wait for Izzy to wake up. He had been so kind and understanding, he deserved the rest.
Mimi wandered about the resturaunt, looking at various things, but soon became bored with it. It was all she could do to go back to Izzy and wake him up. Clutching her grumbling stomach, she walked across the room to the table where Izzy still slept, and sat down facing him. He awoke by the sound on her heels walking across the room, and she silently smacked herself for forgetting to tiptoe.
"Hey," Izzy said groggily, "When did you get up?"
"About thirty minutes ago. I didn't want to wake you." She stared at the ground and then looked back up at him.
Feeling her gaze upon him, he cocked his head to one side. "How long have you been in Japan."
Only for a few months, she said, sighing. "I was living with Matt..." he voice trailed off.
Izzy looked at her with sympathy, and leaned across the table, catching her hand. "Would you like to stay with me until you find a place of your own?"
Mimi was sort of flattered and sort of irritated. Was he hitting on her at a weak moment... or was he just being a friend? She looked at the ground again, playing with the ideas in her head, flip-flopping her decision. She was silent for a few minutes, but shook her head. Of course he wasn't taking advantage of her. Izzy was her friend, he wouldn't do that to her. She managed a smile, though fake and unsure as it was, and nodded. "Yes, Izzy, I will."
Izzy gave her one of his smiles, which she rarely saw in the digiworld for his head was always behind that computer. "Great! My car is right out front, come on!"
Mimi sighed and followed Izzy out the front door. This was going to be interesting....
She glanced nervously over at him as they walked down the street. Izzy, the boy whom she hadn't really thought about when they were in the Digiworld, was now offering to let her live with him... alone.... in a house.... together? She did her best to conceal a shudder. 'Maybe I should reconsider...' she told herself, but then shook her head. This was IZZY, responsible old Izzy who couldn't hurt a fly, she pushed any doubts to the back of her mind, and just kept walking. There was no sense in worrying about it.
He looked over at her again for about the fifty millionth time. A small smile played on his lips as he thought that he was finally taller than her. Maybe only a few inches, but definetly taller. "Mimi, you're so quiet, what's wrong?" He couldn't help but remember the loud Mimi that shared her views and opinions whenever she wanted, whether you wanted it or not.
"Oh, nothing. I was just thinking..... thinking that I need to swing by Matt's and pick up my stuff." She paused at Matt's name. A name to painful to say, let alone be in the same room with it's owner.
He saw this was painful for her. Putting a friendly arm around her shoulder, he hugged her close. "Mimi, you can talk to me. Please, talk to me. There are so many questions that you didn't answer, and I know I am prying, but Mimi, please."
She held back tears and looked over at Izzy. "Do you want me to go through it again?"
Feeling a blush come rushing to his cheeks, he nodded, "It's the only way I can help."
She nodded in agreement, feeling the tears subside a little. "Your right." Taking a deep breath she looked him in the eyes, and began her story...
"I was out with Matt the other night, and we were having a great time. He took me to a fancy resturaunt, and everything was going my way. I started to notice the time, and it was getting really late. He agreed and took me back to our place." She took another deep breath, and forced herself to speak, her voice shaky, "I didn't think he was going to try to make a move on me, but he did. I told him that I didn't want to, but he wouldn't listen. So... I slapped him." Pausing again, she let a single tear fall down her face. "He got really angry, and said some stuff I don't want to mention... but most of it was that he should get a new girlfriend. One that could..." She broke off there, and burst into tears. Her knees buckled under her, and she felt Izzy's arms catch her as she was falling. She leaned agianst him. She needed him so.
He held her close. He was afraid if he didn't, she would collapse again. Soothing words came from him, like, "Don't worry, it'll be okay, I shouldn't have asked, It's not your fault." It was all he could do. He shouldn't have asked. It should have occured to him that this would happen.
Leaning against him, she half-walked half-stumbled to his car and climbed into the passenger seat. She brought her knees to her chest, and burrowed her head into her skirt. She didn't look up at all the rest of the car ride home.
They soon arrived at Izzy's apartment, and it as all Mimi could do to keep from falling over when stepping out of the car. She took a deep breath and leaned against Izzy's car, staring intently at her temporary home, trying to figure out what was what. It was like most Japanese apartments. A large bulding that touched the sky with huge windeows that looked out to the street. She couldn't help thinking about Matt. This was the exact type of place he lived in. Her heart ached, and she broke away from the care. Then started running, trying to catch up to Izzy.
Her heels cloncked against the concrete of the sidewalk, causing him to turn and look over his shoulder. He motioned for her to hurry. He wanted her to see his place. He couldn't even believe she had actually accepted his offer. They had never hated each other, but they had virtually nothing in common, and she had ignored him most of the time they had spent together with the other Digidestined. Her empty-headed materialism hadn't been a big attractor to him, but she seemed so changed now. It was like he ALMOST kind of liked her. ALMOST more then a friend. But then again, you couldn't know after one night.... could you?
"Hey, Izzy, slow down, will you?" she sounded tired. It was understandble, she was running in heels.
"Sure," he stopped and waited for her to catch up, then started walking agian, slower this time.
"Izzy," her words were softer now...
He looked over at her.... a little unsure...."Yes...?"
"I want to thank you..."
Giving her a questioning look, he asked, "What?"
She sighed and looked into his eyes. They had stopped walking, and she grabbed his hand. "For being there for me."
"Aw, Mimi, it was no..." But he didn't finish. Mimi had leaned over and kissed him softly on the lips.
She pulled away and smiled at him innocently, though the look in her eye gave her away. Winking, she turned around and started walking again, but this time with a little more bounce in her step. This was too perfect, too perfect.
He stood there, as if glued to the pavement, watching her walk away. Thought reaced through his mind, and he shook his head, trying to clear it. He may have been a genious, but girl's didn't come in his IQ. Exspecially the abrupt change in Mimi's mood. One minute you could barely say the letter "M" without her going berserk with grief, and now, out of nowhere she kissed him on the lips. Only one word came to mind. "Prodigous."
The sound of the fimiliar word echoed in her ears, and she turned around to see him walking towards her. She smiled one of her big smiles, and silently slapped herself in her mind. 'I shouldn't do this, this is wrong.' the thought bounced around in her head. 'I can't use Izzy to get Matt back.' She glanced towards the ground and thought with all her might. Her plan was to perfect. All she had to was use Izzy until Matt totally regreted making moves on her, then came crawling back. It would hurt Izzy, but he would get over it. He said "Prodigous" alot. Maybe the kiss had meant nothing to him...
He raised one of his perfectly arched eyebrows and looked at her. For no apparent reason, she had begun to stare at the ground. "Mimi...?"
Jolted back to reality, Mimi flung her head up. "Yes?"
He shrugged. "What were you staring at?"
Remembering that she had to act all gaga for him, she turned on another of her smiles. "Oh, nothing Izzy!"
Shaking his head, he started to walk towards the building again. Mimi sure had been acting strange. Opening the door for the trailing Mimi, he walked inside of the apartment building.
Mimi felt horrible. She felt worse then horrible she felt so low. She was betraying someone's feelings and trust for her own, and yet, the picture of Matt lingered in the back of her mind. How she missed him. Sighing, she pushed open the stepped into the building. Her selfishness had won this battle.
Mimi sighed for the second time in a minute, then looked to Izzy, hoping he hadn't noticed. She had to watch herself. She had to be cheery and peppy. She couldn't let him or anyone know she was just pretending. Putting on her best smile, she took Izzy's arm. "Which one is your apartment?"
He nodded towards the elevator. "D 45. C'mon, I'll show you." Unhooking his arm, he grasped her hand and brought her to the elevator.
She let herself be dragged to the elevator, and waited patiently for it to arrive and take them to her temporary home. 'I am in no hurry.' She thought to herself, silently hoping the elevator would get stuck. Just then the doors opened, and a small, carpeted room appered. Stepping inside, she leaned against the wall.
He strode in after her, watching her every move. There was something so awkward about their situation. She had practically admitted that she loved him, but yet, she seemed so unhappy. Despite the smiles, he sensed something wrong. Trying to make it less uncomfortable, he smiled and tried to make conversation. "So, how did you like America. I haven't talked to you since before you moved there.'
She looked up to the sound of his voice, but her brain didn't register what he was saying. 'Something about America...' It was all that she had heard. Taking a guess at it, she replied. "I loved it there. I made lots of friends, and they have the coolest clothes, but I like Japan better." She looked away, in case she hadn't answered what he had asked.
Blinking a few times, he looked at her with raised eyebrows. Why did she sound like a machine? He opened his mouth to question her, when a little ding indicated that they had gotten to the right floor. Shrugging it off, he pushed the thought to the back of his mind.
No longer staring at the floor, she put on a smile and joined Izzy halfway down the corridor.
This was probably going to be her only chance to get Matt back, and she wasn't going to blow it. No sir. She was going to get with the program and stop letting her concious get the best of her.
He looked over at her. Mimi, this amazing woman, was there, hanging on him, acting totally in love with him. Normally he would be flattered, but there seemed something so fake... so untrue, about what she was doing. It actually made him question her. Feeling guilty, he tried to smile. 'She isn't faking, she loves me.' was his only console. Repeating it over and over again, he slowly began to feel better. More relaxed. It had to be true, it just had to be...
Mimi smiled another amazing smile. She found herself talking, laughing, and flirting, without even thinking. 'My body doesn't need me...' she thought. 'It can work without me...' Thoughts like this came and went, but nothing was sinking in. Was this how she was supposed to act...? She shook her head. This was her chance. Returning her thoughts to their current conversation, she hoped they would come to his room soon.
Approaching his apartment, he fingered the junk in his pocket, trying to find his keys. Grasping them, he brought them out of his pocket. Quickly fiddling with this lock, the door swung open, and a small, quaint apartment was revealed. He smiled proudly at himself, and glanced down at Mimi, trying to see her reaction. She looked the same as she had for the last five minutes, cheery and bright with an air of fakeness, which disappointed him. He was hoping she would have least had SOME opinion on his apartment, whether it be good or not. Realizing that that was petty, he grinned at her and led her inside for the grand tour.
Feeling Izzy's hand hold hers, she felt a surge of something running through her body. A relaxing warmth came over her, and for the first time in the last hour, she truly smiled. She began to act more like herself, still playing the part of being in love with Izzy, but with a less fake way. Towards the end of the tour, she began to enjoy herself. His apartment was small, but cozy and welcoming. He showed her everything, and she told him some stories of America.
* * *
As the day began to meet the night, Mimi and Izzy sat down for their first real dinner together. At first it had seen like no big deal, but the closer Izzy got to being done heating up their frozen dinners, the more nervous she became. She had no clue why, though. She was only PRETENDING to like him, she didn't really have to be afraid of him. But for some reason, this didn't soothe her and she the butterflies in her stomach began to grow.
He arrived with their dinners on plates, to make it look more like a meal, and not just a TV dinner. All afternoon he had had a great time with Mimi. They had swapped stories, and she had seemed to lose all that fakeness that had made him wonder. She seemed to be just, well, Mimi. Setting her plate in front of her, he smiled warmly.
Taking her fork in her hand, she began to pick at her food. It smelled good, but she had lost her appetite. What was making her so nervous around Izzy?
Seeing her not eating, he leaned over and lightly touched her hand, "Are you okay?"
Again, that relaxing feeling of warmth combed through her body. Looking up at him, her heart fluttered. Tears of anger began to fill her eyes. She didn't love Izzy, she couldn't. She was only pretending... wasn't she?
Her stomach flip-flopped, and she held it, praying that she would not throw up. She did love Matt, but for some reason, this strange thought crept into her mind....'Do I love Izzy, too?'
His question still unanswered, he got up and walked to her side. Picking up her hand, that seemed to lay lifelessly on the table, he kissed it softly. "Mimi, tell me, what's wrong."
She had been at her game with this man for only a few hours, and she had already fallen in love with him. What was she going to do? Her lip quivering, she spoke for the first time. "I...I was using you."
He dropped her hand. Watching it fall to her side, he looked up to her face, staring. "But..."
She interuppted before he could get any farther. She had to tell him. And she had to tell him before she broke down crying. "I only pretended to love you to make Matt jealous, then forgive me. Then I was going to break up with you and ask him back out." She winced and broke down, heaving great sobs. She tried with all her might to say 'I love you', but she couldn't do it, his eyes were glaring at her, and she couldn't bring herself to say it.
His eyes fell to her face, stained with fresh tears, and he couldn't help but glare. What had given this girl the right to play with his emotioins like that? Nothing, that's what. He had given her a place to say, support, and he had loved her. Sure, it had only been a few hours, but it had overcome him and taken him by suprise. He walked away from her slowly, and went to the door. Opening it, he pointed into the hall. His own tears were falling down his cheeks now, and he stared at the floor. It took all his strength to mutter those two fatal words... "Get out."
She stood up out of her seat, and began to walk slowly towards the door, her eyes only daring to look up at him once. Why had she done something so stupid? How could she? Was she so inhuman? Approaching the corricdor, she turned to say goodbye, only to get the door slammed in her face. Walking slowly down the hall, she got into the elevator and pressed the first floor button. Then, collecting her thoughts, she began to realize how stupid she was.
Walking to the doors in the lobby, she noticed a phone on the way out. Digging into her purse she looked for spare change. If she could call Matt.. he would fix this. She could get on in life without Koushiro Izumi... she didn't need him. Reaching for the phone, she dropped in the money and dialed Matt's number.
His familiar voice echoed through her ears, and she held back the tears that threatened to gush down her cheeks... again. "Matt, this is Mimi. I am sorry.... forgive me... please. I love you." Those three words came out so easily, yet they made her feel uncomfortable. His reassurance that it was okay made her feel better though, and she hung up.
After their conversation, she began to walk swiftly through the doors, and out onto the sidewalk. The wind blew through her glorious hair, and she looked impatiently from side to side. Suddenly, she heard the sound of his car approaching. She turned, happy to finally see Matt.... and some other girl...
Her eyes widened as she realized that he was still mad at her. The other girl, the one with spiky red hair, that had to be his new girlfriend. Those reassurances, those kind words, they were nothing but a plan to hurt her. She turned away, left with no one and nothing to care for her, she began to run away, from everyone and everything.
The next day, after she had cried her heart about losing two men in one night, Mimi leaned against the side of a building, watching as Izzy entered the Burger Bar, and a smile played on her lips. This was to perfect.
Walking inside the Burger Bar causually, she strolled to the counter. The messy red-head was bent over the cash register, not looking up, and she cleared her throat once to get his attention. His head whipped up. He turned away from her, his eyes full of hurt, but she didn't play that game. "Can I get some service?"
Turning and glaring at her furiously, he foucus back to the register. "Yes, please place your order."
Her hand grabbed his chin, and she forced his face upword. "One kiss to go please." Then quickly, she leaned over and kissed him on his lips. For real.
He wanted to pull away, he almost did, but there was something in this kiss that hadn't been in the last one. Love. She truly loved him. Relaxing into her kiss, he began to laugh.
Pulling away, she gave him a funny look. "What's so funny...?"
"Do you realize, that this began and ended in a burger bar?"
She leaned close to his face, and smiled. "No, it didn't. It's more like it had two beginnings." She leaned in another inch, and their lips touched again