Disclaimer: I don't own Digimon.
Sora cupped her gloved hands over her mouth and exhaled in it, trying to bring some warmth to her fingers. The wind was chilly and her legs felt like a pair of sticks as she forced them to move forwards. Her cap kept threatening to fly away with every gust of wind and her coat flapped around her knees noisily.
It should snow already, she found herself thinking remorsefully as she yanked her coat about her once again, her other hand reaching up to secure the cap on her head.
"Sora! Hey, Sora!"
The loud, familiar voice brought a smile on her dried lips, her cheeks flushing with cold. She turned around.
"Hurry up!" she called out to her friend who had already started jogging towards her, "We're gonna be late!"
Taichi joined her shortly, a scarf wrapped around his neck, his hands stuffed in his jacket. He panted loudly as Sora started to walk again, at a much slower pace now to give him time to catch his breath.
"Ugh, I hate this weather!" Taichi grumbled as he rubbed his gloved hands vigorously. Sora nodded.
"Yeah, me too." she smiled. It felt better to walk with Taichi than going alone; for one, they both were protecting the other from the chilly wind from at least one side and two, they both can complain about the weather together.
"Why did Yamato have to drag us out of our houses in such a terrible weather?" Taichi complained.
Sora shook her head, "Taichi, it's Christmas. His dad is gonna be busy at the TV station so he just wanted to enjoy Christmas with his friends."
"By dragging them out of their houses in such a, such a bad weather." Taichi said sarcastically.
"Would you want to spend the holiday alone at your home?" Sora reprimanded, "I think it's great that he has invited us to lunch. You love his cooking."
"And you love him." Taichi wiggled his eyebrows at Sora. The flush on Sora's cheeks was not entirely from cold this time. Taichi grinned mischievously, a satisfied look on his face, "I'm warning you, though!" He raised his finger then put it back immediately in the pocket as the cold wind passed a chill through his arm, "The moment you two start making out, I'm outta there!"
Sora sighed, shaking her head, "No one is gonna make out, Taichi."
Taichi stuck his nose in the air, "We'll see." Sora chuckled at his reaction.
"I told you, he just wants to spend Christmas with us."
Taichi huffed, "He really has changed, don't you think? I mean, this is Yamato, the kid who left the whole group to go alone. If he wants to have people over for Christmas then he really has changed."
Sora smiled, pressing her lips together, "Not just anyone, his friends only." Though she knew exactly how much Yamato had changed, more than anyone else, she also knew that Yamato don't like his friends to discuss his past mistakes. Not behind his back, anyway.
"You mean friend?"
"Huh?" Sora came out of her thoughts.
"Friend, right? Not friends. You're not counting yourself as his friend, of course?" Taichi was deadpan serious, "You better not be."
Sora sighed in irritation, "What does it matter? I'm still his -"
"No, you're not." Taichi bristled, "Keep it separate! I am his friend. You are his girlfriend."
"Is it such a big deal?" Sora asked, puzzled.
"Of course it is!" Taichi threw his hands in the air, "You can't make out with your friend." he stated obviously.
Sora elbowed him hard, "Stupid! Didn't I say no one's gonna make out?" she glared at him.
Taichi laughed, "We'll see."
They both sped up to get out of the wind.
Yamato quickly placed the last bit of tape and sighed, sitting back in his chair.
Finally, both of them are wrapped, he thought, looking at the two wrapped boxes in front of him. He always suck at making things formal, but ever since he started going out with Sora, his appreciation of formal occasions started to grow. He realized the importance of certain gestures on certain occasions only. The show of formality on special events was a whole different way of expressing one's thoughts about the person they were giving the gift to, without speaking it out. Yamato realized he, who is terrible at speaking words aloud, could make use of this language.
A smile came to his lips at the thought of Sora. Starting to like the formal occassions was not the only way Sora had changed him. Her empathy and kindness had made Yamato think of others and their lives and the motives behind their actions. Her infinite patience with Taichi had made Yamato feel closer to Taichi by displaying only a fraction of her patience. But more importantly, Sora had brought a sense of duty, an ambition to his life. He no longer wanted to let himself be guided by time. He started making hard choice for the sake of his future - his and Sora's both - that's the way he likes to think of it, anyway.
Leaving the band was one of the hardest decisions he had made but he did so once he realized his professional studies to be an astronaut, that will be starting soon now that he had been accepted in his desired college, required much more time. Sora had supported his decision and helped him through it.
Yamato stood up and stretched, pulling down his folded sleeves. It was about time for Sora and Taichi to come. He walked out of his room, heading for the kitchen.
As if on cue, the door bell rang just then. Quickly buttoning his sleeves, he opened the door.
"Hi Yamato." Sora smiled, her face flushed with cold, her hands stuffed deep in her coat pockets, "Merry Christmas."
"And thanks for freezing us to death." Taichi gave a frown, his facial muscle stiff with cold.
"Merry Christmas, guys." he smiled back, "Come in."
The two of them shuffled in as quickly as they could. Yamato closed the door behind them.
Sora and Taichi threw their backpacks in the lounge and ran to the kitchen where the warmth of the burning stove made them sigh happily.
"Ahh, my fingers feel alive again!" Sora murmured, bending her fingers.
"I know what you mean," Taichi said, rubbing his nose, "I thought my nose had dropped somewhere on the way. It seems it's still in the place!"
"If you guys are trying to make me feel bad about inviting you over, you are succeeding." Yamato said sheepishly from the kitchen door.
Sora waved a placating hand, "It's nice of you to offer lunch. We will be warm in no time."
"Yeah, and of course we are gonna be hungrier than usual so you better finish making that steak and meat balls."
"If you haven't noticed yet, you are hogging the stove right now." Yamato said drily, leaning against the door frame.
"Well, you should have a proper fireplace at least. You don't expect us to - uh?"
Sora had fisted the back of his jacket in her hand and was dragging him out of the kitchen, "We are gonna leave you to prepare lunch." she said pleasantly to Yamato who pressed his lips to stop his laughter from spilling out, and bowed graciously.
Taichi sank in the living room sofa, his legs sprawled out. Sora sat beside him, stretching her arms in front of her and yawning.
"Haah, it sure does feel great to get warm again." she commented lightly, the warmth making her drowsy.
"Don't doze off now, or I can't guarentee there would be anything left for you to eat." Taichi warned.
"And you call yourself my best friend!" Sora accused.
"Hey, our friendship has its boundaries, of course." Taichi shrugged.
Sora hit him on head, "And that boundary is food?!"
Taichi winced and scooted a safe distance away from her, "You get violent when you are sleepy."
Sora decided to ignore him. She looked around Yamato's house which was surprisingly not messy. He must have cleaned up for the occassion. The thought made Sora smile. Yamato sure have changed.
Aside from the orderliness, however, there were no signs of any sort of Christmas decorations, if you ignore the green floor cushions, which, Sora was sure, was pure coincidence.
Maybe he haven't changed that much after all, she found herself thinking in amusement.
"The lunch will be ready in half an hour. I hope you two aren't too hungry." Yamato announced, freeing himself from apron.
"No way! That's taking too mmmfff-"
"It's fine, Yamato," Sora smiled, slamming her hand over Taichi's mouth firmly, "It's just a little after noon anyway." She glared at Taichi, "And you had a late breakfast, didn't you?"
Taichi frowned, "But -"
"Didn't you?" Sora pressed.
"Yes." Taichi murmured, looking cowed under Sora's glare. Yamato chuckled and took a seat opposite to them.
"So? What should we do now?" he asked.
Sora eyed her bag, "Is it okay if I give you guys' presents now?"
Taichi perked up, "Oh yeah, I forgot about that." he snatched up his bag and opened it.
Sora protested, "Hey, I will give first."
"Fine. Whatever. You can go first." Taichi waved a hand, giving her the signal to go ahead.
Sora glanced at Yamato who smiled back. Taking a deep breath, she opened her bag.
"Mm, Taichi . . . " she pulled out a small square box, all wrapped with a ribbon tied over it. Taichi made a face as he reached for it. He hate unwrapping the presents; specially if they were wrapped so nicely.
"Can I open it right now?" he asked, curiously eyeing the package.
Sora bit her lower lip nervously and nodded quietly. She pulled out another box; a much larger one this time and handed it to Yamato. Yamato felt the weight of it in his hand and looked at her questioningly.
"Go ahead." Sora nodded.
Taichi had unwrapped his gift and was now looking at a DVD case closely, "Top fifty matches of soccer history? Ten best goals scored?" he looked up at Sora, now grinning, "Woo hoo, thanks!"
Sora smiled back and shifted her gaze to Yamato who was unwrapping much more carefully. His present turned out to be white HD headphones. He looked visibly impressed.
"Wow, Sora, these must cost a fortune."
Sora shook her head, "I forgot to tell you guys. I got a raise at flower shop." she looked much relieved now, knowing they both liked her choices.
Taichi snorted, "It's your mother's shop. You should have gotten a raise years ago."
"But really," Yamato insisted, "Thanks a lot for these." Sora blushed this time.
"Okay, Yamato? You wanna go next?" Taichi asked, ignoring Sora's flushed face.
"Yeah, let me get the presents." Yamato returned few seconds later with two packages.
"Ooh, you even wrapped them." Taichi exclaimed. Yamato flushed.
"Not as good as Sora's. I really suck at wrapping them up. But here you go." he handed the presents out.
"No worries, I will feel less bad tearing it open." Taichi said cheerfully.
Sora's gift was a slim rectangular box. Taichi eyed it suspiciously.
"What did you give Sora? A pencil set?" he asked mockingly.
"No." Yamato replied shortly as he watched Sora opening the present. He had chosen it after surveying the market for a long time and he really, really hoped she likes it.
"Woah, nice." Taichi exclaimed as he tore the wrapping apart and found a leather wallet in it, "I needed this thing. Thanks Yamato." he stuffed the wallet quickly in his back pocket.
Yamato raised his eyebrows, "Glad you liked it."
Sora was still removing little bits of tape from the wrapping when Taichi threw his present in her lap. As usual, he hadn't bothered with wrapping them up.
"So you gave her pencils?" Yamato accused, smirking, as he eyed the art pencil set. Sora was already pulling out the pencils, her eyes wide with excitement.
"She likes to draw, doesn't she?" Taichi asked rhetorically, "I just didn't want our presents to be same."
"Ah-huh." Yamato pulled out a dark grey watch from its case, "Cool watch, by the way, thanks." he strapped it on his wrist, appreciating its style.
"You're welcome as long as those steaks taste fine."
Yamato threw a cushion at his face, grinning, "Idiot."
"Oh, Taichi, these are great!" Sora exclaimed, examining the pencils from up close, "Perfect for shading. Good lead quality. A range of different point sizes. This is simply great."
Taichi scratched his ear, "I don't speak pencil, but you're welcome." he raised his eyebrows pointedly at Yamato's gift still half wrapped in her lap, "You want me to open it for you?"
"No thanks." Sora said stubbornly as she resumed unpacking it, "I'm almost done."
They both watched as she finally unwrapped it to find a picture frame box inside. Sora's curiosity grew as she carefully opened it from the side and slipped the frame out carefully.
"Oh." she exclaimed quietly as she stared at it. Yamato looked at her anxiously, expectantly.
"Mm, Sora? Do you like it?" Yamato asked, after she didn't respond for few seconds, feeling his heart sank at the lack of response from her.
"Yamato . . . " Sora whispered as she stared at the frame, "This is . . . beautiful." she breathed, as she traced her fingers on the sides of the frame, still protected in a plastic covering.
The frame was a dull golden metallic thing with black ornate design of flying birds on it. It was both antique and stylish at the same time. Sora loved it instantly.
"I finally found the right thing to place this in." Sora said, smiling up at Yamato who was grinning back, his blue eyes shining. She reached in her bag and pulled out an envelope, "This came yesterday. Finally." she announced. Taichi and Yamato both came over to her eagerly at the sight of the envelope.
"Open it." Taichi said eagerly.
"Is it good?" Yamato asked.
"I didn't see it yet. I thought we could see it together." Sora said quietly as she carefully extracted the thing from its envelope.
It was their graduation picture; just the three of them, in their graduation gowns and caps, smiling proudly at the camera. Sora's mother had driven the three of them to a studio after the ceremony was over at their school, to capture the big moment of their lives in a more personal way. They had been waiting eagerly for the picture to come.
The three of them stared at it, speechless and reliving the moment. They remembered how excited they were that day; the end of their school lives, the end of another adventure. Looking at their faces from a few months earlier didn't make them quite as excited now. Instead, it created a turmoil of both sadness and happiness.
The boys looked on as Sora slid the frame out of its plastic and smoothly slid the picture in it. It was a standard frame size and the picture fit in perfectly.
And it looked good.
Staring at the now-framed picture, Sora placed her arms around both boys' shoulders, sudden tears springing to her eyes. She was they will never go to the same instituition again. It was impossible; considering their diverse fields of interest and the loss felt too great. She was once again reminded, as she was on her graduation day, that she will no longer share the same classroom with them, nor will they argue about their homework, or waste time on school's lawn by simply talking the time away, or will walk home together after school, or copy each others' assignments, or chatter all through the cafeteria lunch line, or complain about their teachers, or prepare for a test together, or call late at night to ask for help just before the exam day. It was at the school that she started liking Yamato. The school grounds held memories of their various awkward conversations right after the confession. Their trio, that had survived the digital world and countless dangers, will not survive their graduation.
Swallowing down her tears, Sora pulled both boys unexpectedly into a hug, knowing they might not get many chances to get together again.
"Thank you so much," she murmured, "For the best presents."
The boys patted her awkwardly, sharing perplexed expressions with each other over her shoulders. Yamato broke away first, worried.
"Are you crying?" he asked, alarmed at seeing her slightly red rimmed eyes.
"No." Sora hid her eyes, rubbing them fiercely.
"She is crying." Taichi confirmed, "She thinks we will get separated now that our school life has ended." his accuracy was deadly.
Sora looked at Yamato, ignoring Taichi, "Shouldn't you check on those steaks?"
"Oh, right." Yamato stood up, "They should be done by now."
"Finally! I'm starving." Taichi exclaimed, completely forgetting the previous topic. Sora sighed in relief.
Few minutes later, they were enjoying the meal, Sora feeling slightly better. She had handed them their copy of the graduation picture right before they sat for lunch and was thinking of a nice place in her room for her frame.
As they cleaned up after lunch, Sora offered to make tea to which they agreed heartily. Taichi relaxed on a couch in front of the TV and Yamato sat on the other sofa, enjoying a comedy show.
Sora had been working in the kitchen, taking out sugar from the cabnet and arranging cups when someone spoke up behind her.
"I'm disappointed in you, Takenouchi-san."
Sora smiled as she turned to face Yamato standing in the doorway then returned to the water boiling on the stove.
"How so, Ishida-kun?" she asked airily, equally formal.
"You hugged me." Yamato stepped inside the kitchen.
"I shouldn't have?" Sora asked in confusion, still fidgeting with the flame.
"You hugged Taichi, too."
"Mm, your concern is?" Sora was still perplexed, still adjusting the flame.
"I should get a different treatment." Yamato insisted, looking over her shoulder to see what was troubling her, "Don't you think?"
Sora turned around, finally satisfied with the flame, to find Yamato standing much too close to her surprise. She flushed but kept her voice steady.
"How so?"
"Like this." Yamato whispered as he bent over to press his lips to hers. Sora made a surprised noise but didn't move away. Instead, she stepped closer to him, the feeling of having not much time with him intensifying. Who knows how much time they have before they leave for different colleges. She didn't want to take any regrets with her.
Yamato pulled away briefly, kissing her softly on forehead, "Tell me, why were you crying before?" he asked, cupping her face in his hands. Sora shook her head.
"It's nothing."
"Please?" Yamato insisted.
Sora sighed, "It's as Taichi said, I'm afraid we won't be together anymore. All three of us. And me and you."
"You think we can't make it work long distance?" Yamato asked, his azure eyes full of intense emotion as he stared at her.
Sora looked up at him, her eyes desperate, "I want to. I want to believe that we can. But I don't see a way, Yamato. So many people . . . I have seen so many people and groups splitting up after graduation. I don't want it to happen to us." she reached up to touch her fingers to his face.
"Then it won't." Yamato said simply, his hands coming down to rest on her shoulders, "As long as you want, we will, all three of us, and you and me, we will stay together." Sora bit her lip in disbelief. Yamato went on, "Besides, you really think anyone, besides us, can tolerate Taichi for more than a week? He's bound to come whining to us about how strict, sad, pathetic his teachers are. Not to mention the fact that he won't be able to digest his food if he hasn't eaten our ears with the Tales of Taichi the Great Soccer Player."
Sora laughed now, calming down, feeling hopeful. Yamato squeezed her shoulder.
"And of course, I can't think of anyone as you, or even close to what you are to me. But I think you already know that." he grinned confidently. Sora realized he had never looked so beautiful and amazing before; his smile radiant, his eyes shining.
"Thanks for the pep talk." Sora smiled back as she pulled him down for another kiss.
"I knew you two were gonna make out!" the loud exclamation from the lounge made them sigh in unison as they move apart, "Fine! I'm outta here!"
"Maybe not having him close won't be so bad after all." Yamato complained. Sora punched him in the shoulder playfully and turned to pour the tea out.
"Get him back. The tea is ready."
Yamato sighed and went out the kitchen, calling out apologies loudly. Sora chuckled, realizing that the best place for her frame would be no other than her bedside table.
Where I can keep an eye on them at all times, she thought happily.
x-x-x
A/N: I don't know how and when it ran wild and turned into a sad story when it was supposed to be about christmas presents only. My stories NEVER listen to me. They are like moody teenagers!
Please like it! Please review it!
Also, for my story "Wet, Cold and Fun", one of the readers pointed out that in Japan, Christmas is not white. So this time I searched the weather sites for weather in Tokyo for December. I hope I got it right this time.
Also, good news, I found myself a beta so there might not be that many grammatical errors in my future stories. Not for this one, though, since I just wanted to upload it as near to Christmas as possible. Once again, please review.
Have a wonderful day!