Bouquet Of Truth
By: Valentine Taylor
A/N:
This story was a request from Sora Kinemoto. I haven't posted in a while, and I'm not going to bore you with
excuses. I was home sick today so I had
lots of time to write. Hope you enjoy
this story! Don't forget to R/R!
Disclaimer:
I don't own the characters or the lyrics to the song. The characters belong to Toei or Saban or somebody and the lyrics
are the song "Hanging By A Moment" by Lifehouse. It's a really good song. (Thanks Steph!)
"Hey
Tai," a girl's voice called from behind the brown haired boy. He had been waiting for her only a few
minutes.
"Hi,
Sora! Are you coming to my game this
afternoon?"
"Wouldn't
miss it for the world!"
"Good! I'll score lots of goals just for you!"
"You'd
better." She smiled. "Did you take the History test yet?"
"No,"
Tai replied.
"It's
really hard."
"It
is? Will you help me study?" He asked
throwing her his best smile.
She
grabbed his hand. "Sure, let's
go!" She started toward the library,
dragging the larger boy with her.
Down
the hall a little ways, yet within earshot, Matt sat with some friends watching
and listening to his best friend talk with the girl. What was he feeling? What
was this rising anger due to? He didn't
know, couldn't put his finger on it. Was it sadness? Rage? Nervousness…
Jealousy.
That's
what it was. He couldn't understand
it. Sure Matt had been jealous of Tai
before, but there was no reason for him to be jealous of his best friend now. All their disputes were settled. 'This is ridiculous. Why would I be jealous of Tai now? All he was doing was standing there talking
to his girlfriend Sora,' Matt thought to himself. 'I bet that's it. I just
wish I had girlfriend like Sora.' Then
the thought struck him like a punch to the gut. 'Maybe I don't want a girl like Sora…'
"Yo,
Ishida, you alive?"
"Huh?" He looked at his friend who had just called
him. "Oh sorry dude, off in another
world."
"Really? Couldn't tell," his friends voice was heavy
with sarcasm.
"Anyway,
what were you saying?"
"I
was asking you who you're going out with on Valentines Day."
"Oh,
I don't know."
"You
don't have a date yet?! It's less than
a week away! Geez Matt. OK, here's the plan. We'll make a game of it. I set you up on a date and if you have fun,
you owe me fifty bucks."
"And
if I don't have fun?" Matt didn't
really like the idea of betting on his love life.
"You
can set me up on a crappy date. How
does that sound?"
"Whatever. Set me up if you want. I gotta go." He stood up and headed in the direction of the library.
"We're
losing you man. Bye."
Matt
gave his friends a quick wave and kept walking.
When
he got to the library, he looked around for Tai and Sora. He saw them at a table on the far left
sitting across from one another with history notes and books everywhere.
"Tai,
concentrate! You don't want to fail do
you?" Sora was scolding Tai for making
paper cranes out of her notes. He
stopped mid-crane.
"Sorry
Miss Takenouchi," he said like a little boy who had gotten in trouble for
feeding the family fish to the family cat. (A/N: Random I know). He lowered his head and pouted.
Sora
felt bad. She picked up one of the many
cranes littering the table. "It's
OK. I actually kind of like the
cranes." She smiled at her boyfriend.
"Really? Yay!" Tai said, beaming.
Matt
sighed. 'They look so perfect
together.' Then he put on a happy
façade and walked casually over to the table. "Nice to see you two so hard at work." The study partners blushed.
"Hi
Matt."
"Hey
Matt."
"Hi
Sora. Hey Tai." He looked at his best friend. "Can I talk to you for a sec?"
"Sure." The two young men asked Sora to excuse them
and they walked over to another section of the library.
"Have
you made plans with Sora yet?"
"Plans?"
"For
Valentines Day?"
"Oh! Umm, well, I thought I would invite her to
my house and make her a nice dinner. My
parents will be out, and Kari wants to go somewhere with TK, so no one will be
home."
'Tai,
make dinner? Is this some sort of joke?' "Were you going to ask me for my help?"
"No! I know I'm not a great cook, but I've never
actually tried before."
"What
if you end up screwing the whole thing over?"
"There's
always take out."
"Right. OK I guess that's all I wanted to
know." The boys walked back over to the
table where Sora was now doing her homework. "Well, I'd better leave you two to studying." They said their good-byes and Matt left the library. He walked down the hall and out of the
school. He had to go home and come up
with a plan.
On
Valentines Day, during his lunch hours, Matt went to the Takenouchi's flower
shop. "Hi Mrs. Takenouchi," Matt
greeted his friend's mother.
"Hello
Yamato! What can I get for you?"
"I
need a dozen assorted roses."
"OK,
I have red, pink, yellow and white. Does that sound good?"
"Sounds
great, thanks."
"I'll
assemble, you pick wrapping and ribbon." Matt obediently went to the accessory counter. He picked out the wrappings and brought them to the back of the
store where Mrs. Takenouchi was adding the finishing touches. She finished with the elegant bouquet and
the two walked back to the front of the store.
"This
is you're best work yet!" The flower
arrangement was the most magnificent he had ever seen. It was bursting with reds, pinks, yellows,
and whites. The woman had added sprigs
of baby's breath and dainty leaves to the roses. Matt had picked special Valentine's paper that was red with a
scalloped top made by the rounded parts of white hearts, and finished it off
with a one inch wide metallic pink ribbon, curled at the ends and several other
thin ribbons also curled at the end.
"I
must say: this is more than you usually buy. You must really like whoever these are for." Matt was one of the flower shops regulars, buying flowers every
weekend for a new date.
"She's
just a friend. As of now I mean."
"Ooh,
sounds like you have a thing for this friend!"
"Maybe
I do, maybe I don't!" He smiled
mischievously at the woman. "Thanks for
the flowers Mrs. T. How much do I owe
you?"
"You're
welcome Matt. They're on me this
time. Let's just say I'm in the holiday
spirit. I hope she falls for you." All of a sudden Matt felt bad.
'If
only you knew who the person was,' he thought. But all he said was: "Thanks! See you later!"
"Bye!" Matt waved and walked out of the shop. As he turned the corner to start the walk to
school, he ran right into...
"Tai! Uh, hi." He shoved the flowers behind his back.
"Hi! Ooh, you bought flowers for me? How sweet," Tai joked. Matt let out a fake laugh. "That's where I'm headed too. I want to buy Sora some flowers."
"Well,
umm, have fun!" Matt stepped around his
friend and started towards the school. Tai shook his head once and walked into the store.
He
had to hurry now. Tai might come at any
time. He stuck the small card into the
flowers. 'Where are you Sora?' As if to answer his thoughts, he heard
Sora's sweet voice float to his ears.
"Hi
Matt! That's quite the bouquet. Who's it for?" He whipped around and came face to face with Sora.
"Hi
Sora. These are actually for you." He put on his cool exterior and handed her
the flowers. Being a rat was easier
than he thought it would be.
"For
me? Thanks! Won't your girlfriends be mad?" she joked. She thought of it as just a friendly
gesture. Good, this is just what he
thought she would react like. Oh,
thanks Matt. You're a great
friend. There's nothing weird about
this. It's totally in your character to
be so sweet and remember your friends. He knew her too well.
"Ah,
they'll get over it," he joked back. "Do you like the flowers?"
"They
are gorgeous! Oh, there is a
card." That was his cue to exit.
"Hey,
I have to go. Glad you like the
flowers!" He waved to his friend and
walked away. 'This could go either
way. She's either going to love me, or
she'll hate me,' he thought.
--
Sora,
Ever since
the D.W I've had you as a friend
But with
these next few words that might come to an end
Whatever
emotions my words bring
Please let
them not sting
My body,
mind and soul belong with you forever
I want
more than anything for us to be together
I know
this might take some time to sink in
But please
think about it
Don't
leave it on the skin
I want to
talk to you about this, please meet me in the park after your dinner with
Tai. I'll be waiting.
Love
Always and Forever,
Yamato
By
the time Sora finished reading the small card, she had shock written all over
her face.
"Wow,
where's Datamon?" She heard a voice
behind her say. She crammed the card
into her bag, just gently enough not to bend it.
"What?"
"Well,
the look on your face was the same one you had when you got taken away by
Datamon: pure horror," Tai said putting his hand on her shoulder. "I got you these." He handed her a bouquet that was identical to the one Matt had
given her a few minutes earlier, except it was twice as big. "Looks like I stole someone's idea. Those look like the flowers Matt just bought."
"They
are. He gave them to me. Sort of a friendly gesture I guess," she
said with a nervous laugh. "I gotta
go. Thanks for the flowers. I'll see you tonight!" She had to find Matt. This couldn't wait until tonight. 'Let's see. Wednesday, he has band practice.' She ran in the direction of the concert hall.
When
she got there she followed the sound to the stage where the band was
practicing. Something was missing from
the sound though. There was no bass and
no voice. Where was he? Sora stood just inside the doorway until the
music stopped, then she proceeded to the edge of the stage.
"Hey
Sora," she was greeted warmly by the drummer.
"Hi. Do you know where Matt is?"
"He
just got a call. He should be in the
office."
"Thanks."
"No
problem." She walked down the
hall. "Okay, lets try that again!"
She
got to the office and opened the door. There he was. He was talking on
his cell phone so she didn't want to interrupt. He looked her way. She
waved sheepishly. He waved back. When
he was done on the phone, he put it away and turned to her.
"So,"
he said slowly. "What's up?"
That
one little comment made an anger rise inside her. By just being here she was putting her relationship with Tai, the
love of her life, in jeopardy. All he
had to say was 'What's up'? "I'll tell
you what's up," She said hostilely. "You just gave me a dozen roses made with my mother's own two hands, put
my relationship in jeopardy, and then just act casual?"
Matt
put his hands on her shoulders. "I'm
not being casual! I'm nervous as
hell! I'm putting my love on the line
here," he said in the same tone.
She
calmed down. There was no reason to be
a jerk. That wasn't her intention. "OK, if I don't say this quick, I might lose
my nerves and never be able to, and that wouldn't be good. OK, here goes." Matt stared straight into her eyes as she explained what she was
feeling. "I think it's very flattering,
and I am going to use this as a test. It will be the ultimate relationship test. That is, if you're willing to risk your friendship with Tai. I need you to kiss me." This is not what he had expected. This was just strange. But he was getting an open invitation to do
what he had wanted to do for so long. Could he pass it up? Was it
worth it? What would happen if- his
last thought was cut off by the shock his body felt.
Sora's
warm lips pressed against his. He
didn't know what to do. Hadn't she
asked him to kiss her? He
did the only thing he could think of to do, he wrapped her in his arms and let
the moment last.
The
door slowly opened behind the two, but neither noticed a thing until they heard
Tai's enraged voice scream, "What in Hell are you doing?!" Matt and Sora split apart as quickly as they
could.
"Uh,
T-T-Tai," Matt stammered. "This isn't
what it looks like."
"Oh
really? Because it looked like my
girlfriend was just wrapped in your arms. If that's not what it was, then please tell me, what was it?"
"Tai,
leave him alone," Sora said quietly. "I
need to talk to you. Matt, leave." Matt wasn't about to question. He left the office, closing the door behind
him.
"Tai,
this was my fault. I got a rush of
adrenaline and I kissed him. I want you
to know that-"
"Damnit
Sora, I trusted you! I loved you! I don't want to hear your excuses. I don't want to hear his excuses. All I know is I don't want to be in love
with you anymore."
"You
don't want to be?"
"I
still love you, but it's fading fast. I
don't want to have a relationship with someone where this happens even
once. You knew I had zero tolerance and
you did it anyway."
"I
know. I'm sorry our relationship has to
end, but I'm willing to take my punishment."
"Broken
up?"
"I
guess so."
Tai
smiled. "So what was the kiss
like?"
"You
sound like Mimi," Sora said smiling back.
"Hey
they are the tiniest big shoes I've ever had to fill, but I'll try my best!"
"You
sure recover fast. You do understand
that you just broke up with me right?"
"Hey,
why dwell on things? We're still the
best of friends right?"
"Of
course."
"Then
I'm happy for you and Matt. We don't
need to be a couple. We're close enough
already! Now tell me, what was it
like?"
"It
was great, I guess. That is until you
came in."
"Yeah
well, you can try again later! I gotta
go. I'll talk to you tomorrow."
"See
ya Tai," Sora said to the departing young man. She followed a short time later, going to the auditorium and sitting to
listen to the rest of the rehearsal. Matt voice floated to her.
Desperate for changing
Starving for truth
I'm closer to where I started
I'm chasing after you
I'm falling even more in love with you
Letting go of all I've held onto
I'm standing here until you make me move
I'm hanging by a moment here with you
Forgetting all I'm lacking
Completely incomplete
I'll take your invitation
You take all of me now
I'm falling even more in love with you
Letting go of all I've held onto
I'm standing here until you make me move
I'm hanging by a moment here with you
I'm living for the only thing I know
I'm running and not quite sure where to go
And I don't know what I'm diving into
Just hanging by a moment here with you
There is nothing else to lose
There is nothing else to find
There is nothing in the world
That can change my mind
There is nothing else
There is nothing else
Desperate for changing
Starving for truth
I'm closer to where I started
Chasing after you
I'm falling even more in love with you
Letting go of all I've held onto
I'm standing here until you make me move
I'm hanging by a moment here with you
I'm living for the only thing I know
I'm running and not quite sure where to go
And I don't know what I'm diving into
Just hanging by a moment here with you
Just hanging by a moment
At
the end of the practice Matt and Sora went for a walk in the park. "Is Tai going to kick my ass the next time
we see each other?"
"No. Actually, he's cool with the idea. It's actually sort of scary."
"Hmm. That just goes to show that a strong
friendship can live through anything, even more than the strongest relationship
in the world."
"I'm
glad we can all still be friends. We
have a special bond that can never be broken."
"For
sure," Matt said, as they sat on a bench to watch the sun set. This had been one strange Valentine's
Day. But the end was perfect. The perfect first date. But surely not the last date this couple
will ever have…
"Hey
Ishida, there you are! I've been
looking all over for-oh heh-heh, sorry. I guess you won't be needing that date. Deals off. See you later." The boy ran off.
"What
was that about Matt?" Sora inquired.
"Oh
nothing much. He wanted to set me up
because I told him a little less than a week ago I didn't have a date. Whatever." He smiled down at the girl. She
stared into his sapphire eyes. 'This is
the best Valentine's Day ever!'
THE END
A/N:
Well, after reading through this, there are some corny parts. It's pretty good though. I don't want to take my own word for it
though (Hint Hint!) Well I guess that's
all from me. ^_~
Valentine