Trust

Summary: Yamato reflects on his friendship with Koushiro. May be some slight shonen-ai hints, but mentions a YamatoxJyou pairing.

Rating: PG-13 for content.

Warnings: Yaoi reference. Incest reference.

"I've never believed in the red thread.
I thought fate was something to grab.
At an incredible speed it winds around.
I've become tired of this world..."

- Ayumi Hamasaki

It had been another long day of practice, but with my guitar over my shoulder I didn't look back. I had a lot on my mind recently. Seeing the three new Chosen Children, my brother, and Hikari... reminded me of the times the others and I spent in the Digital World. I can say openly it was a hard time for me, but I can't say openly why. I'm sure you know the story anyway. I don't need to explain that. There's a few details you may have missed, but I don't have to discuss them.

I had been looking forward to this afternoon. At our last meeting the group decided we would pick someone to pair up with and just reminisce. Don't look at me, it was Sora's idea, but at least she had a point. Despite the meetings, which were becoming less and less frequent, we hardly saw each other. Too busy moving on with our lives like nothing ever happened, especially me. That was a part of my life I didn't want to forget, but there were things I dealt with that I did want to forget. I was a walking contradiction as I got closer to the beach. I expected to have Gabumon at my side and see those insane phone booths.

This number exists only in your imagination.

Might as well have, back then. My Dad worked a lot, and when I tried to call, it was usually busy or just plain disconnected. I think the TV Station had faulty wiring. Now that I was old enough to have a job, I got to see my Dad a lot more. It was a nice change. There were many nice changes over the years, I guess. I had made a whole new group of friends when before, I was the popular outcast. I had a boyfriend, Jyou, which only made the fangirls worse. Okay, so that was somewhat negative. Nonetheless, I didn't have to see my Mom very much at all, old enough to take care of myself, and Takeru was around more now that he went to school with the other kids.

But I've totally been avoiding the whole reason I am at the beach this day. Not to just reminisce by myself. You would have thought I picked Jyou, but we see each other too much as it is. I had to pick someone I hadn't talked to in a long time. There's always that one friend you have that you fear you'll loose touch with, yet somehow, you manage to keep in touch just enough like you're both hanging by a thread.

I chose Koushiro. Why the little brained genius? I guess we just became good friends. I wasn't exactly a computer nerd, but I felt a certain social acceptance while having some form of freedom since no one knew who I was. I could just be Yamato, the kid that lurks around forums, or I could be the Yamato that everyone knew on the outside as the rockstar, or I could be Yamato the Chosen Child. I could be anything. However, if Koushiro hadn't offered up his old computer in the first place... ;

I think our friendship started back when we found our crests. I think we were on totally two different planets back then. One on each side of the social spectrum. Somehow fate had thrown us into the desert with only a little glowing light to guide us to our destinies. Too cheesy? Yeah, I guess so. But we got to know eachother a little as we wandered that desert. We had a few things in common. Koushiro, for some reason, managed to open up to me, and for some reason, I did the same. I think we were both desperate for someone to talk to, and we were both very observant people.

"Yamato, this will sound strange, but are your parents good parents?"

"Maybe, why?"

"I guess I've missed mine a lot lately. I wonder if they know we're gone. My... well, they aren't really my parents. Sometimes I wonder what my real parents would think. I wonder if they were as nice as I imagine."

"I'm sure they are," I replied.

"You don't miss your parents?" This caught me off guard.

"I miss my Dad, I guess."

He was really hesitant to ask about the next obvious choice, but I guess Koushiro inherited Taichi's crest for two seconds, "Not your Mother?"

I stopped walking. I realized then I had left Takeru alone with the others. I had to trust they would take care of him, but I wanted to find my crest and get this whole mess over with, yet I didn't want to leave the Digital World at all. I missed a few things, but nothing nearly as important as everyone else. "Let's get going."

"Yamato. I've talked to Jyou a few times. You two are alike in the way you both bottle up things. I guess everyone does. Maybe I'm just a hypocrite. You know how devastating it is to not be of the same blood."

I laughed inside. I didn't want to be related to that thing they call Mother.

"I've been lucky," Koushiro continued. "My parents have always let me be myself. I think they may have even been weak in the boundary department, but... I think I've turned out okay."

"Do they know... Koushiro? That you know the truth?"

Koushiro looked around. The light was getting stronger. I looked down at my chest and removed the crest from underneath my shirt. It was a very bright blue. It reminded me of my mother's eyes. We had the same eyes. Hers were just a lighter shade.

"No... they don't," the boy replied finally. "What about you...?"

"I can't say, Koushiro."

"You don't trust me?"

"I do. I trust everyone here. It's just not something you come out and say into the open."

"I can tell you're worried about your brother right now. You always have that look on your face."

"We're almost there. The sooner we get there the sooner we can return to Pixiemon's place." I was becoming agitated a little. I knew Koushiro could sense everything. I wondered sometimes why he didn't become a psychologist, but then, he wasn't exactly good at talking to people. We all knew he prefered a computer, but...

"Why are you always pushing us away?"

"Did Taichi put you up to this?"

"No!" Koushiro urged, hurrying to stand in front of me. "This is just a friend, concerned, who wants to help you."

I turned away a little. I didn't want to talk about it. I couldn't talk about it, but I was stuck. "Koushiro, my mother... she wasn't a very good mother to me. I will just say that. I overprotect my brother because I'm scared something will happen to him. He lives with her."

Koushiro probably wasn't expecting that, but he was quick to compose himself, "Maybe you're right. We should hurry back. Let's go get our crests." He turned around, following my gaze. "There's a well."

I was approaching the docks now. They were worn to the brim, but Koushiro and I knew well that the boards were stable underneath our feet. We knew well enough that if one of us fell, we'd catch the other. We knew if we ever had problems with nowhere else to go, we could turn to eachother. I watched as he typed away at the computer and then the clicking stopped when he heard my boots on the deck. I sat next to him, pulled out my harmonica for old time's sake. And then he began to type away.