Hikari stared at the clock on her bedroom wall in anticipation. The digidestineds were coming over, and this time it wasn't for a mission, but a party. It was 30 minutes until her friends arrived and she could hardly stay still.
Hikari walked into the kitchen to see Taichi and Yamato eating the pizza and cola for her party. Hikari felt jealous about her brother's and Yamato's relationship. They had been boyfriends for one month and they were the happiest she had ever saw them.
"Hey Hikari!" Yamato greeted. "When's the party?"
"At eight," Taichi answered for his sister.
"Takeru wanted to tell you he'll be a little late," he said apologetically. "Sorry."
Hikari felt her heart sink. Today she was going to ask the question. She was going to ask Takeru out on there first real date. It's okay, Hikari thought, he's still going to come.
Hikari reached past her brother and grabbed a piece of pizza.
"Save some for the party," she ordered the two older boys. Who nodded well stuffing pizza into their open mouths.
Suddenly the doorbell rang and Hikari raced to get it. Even though it was 30 minutes before the party, she was sure it was one of her friends. Once she was at the door she threw it open.
"Hello!" She said before noticing who it was.
Daisuke was standing in the doorway with a bunch of flowers. Hikari let out a sigh. It's not that she didn't like Daisuke, she liked him a lot, as a friend. He was just making his hits on her even more obvious (if that was possible). He held out some long stem roses which Daisuke would have to have spent two weeks allowance on.
'Thanks Daisuke," Hikari moved to let him in. Hikari pricked herself on the roses but didn't say anything in fear of hurting Daisuke's feelings.
"Yamato and Taichi are in the kitchen." After Hikari had said this Daisuke made no movement towards the kitchen.
"Where's your room?" Daisuke asked and before Hikari could answer, Yamato and Taichi, who were listening rather closely, burst out laughing.
"Calm down there tiger," Yamato laughed. Hikari and Daisuke both blushed a deep red to match the roses.
"Let's go," Hikari mumbled. She went in the direction of her room well Daisuke followed.
* * *
Hikari patience with Daisuke was warring down quickly. It was one hour into the party and Daisuke was not leaving her alone. Worse yet, Takeru had not shown up yet. Neither was Ken, but that didn't bother her as much.
"Hey! Hikari! Want to dance?" Hikari turned towards Daisuke. She didn't want to hurt Daisuke but what if Takeru walked in on her and Daisuke dancing? If she said no would Daisuke ever talk to her again?
"Sorry Daisuke. I was just about to do something," Hikari said with guilt. "Maybe later if I'm not busy?"
Daisuke looked heart broken. "Yeah, sure," he sighed. "Thanks anyway."
Even after the next hour Takeru hadn't shown up. To add to that, Daisuke wasn't talking to her. Daisuke wasn't talking to anybody. All he did was stay in the darkest corner and stuffed he's face with Barbecue chips. He just looked at her and a wave of depression crossed his face.
Hikari felt the need to comfort him. She walked over to him and opened her mouth to speak.
"Dais-" Hikari was cut short by Daisuke walking past her and knocking her shoulder. She watch as he disappeared into the crowd.
Daisuke fought towards the door of the Kamiya's porch. When he finally got there he slide open the door and stepped into the cool air. He took a deep breath and chilled air filled his lungs to their capacity.
He felt a tear roll down his face. Hikari had no idea how much he loved her. She just thought it was a stupid crush that would be over by now. She thought his love was just a way to have a conflict with Takeru. She had no idea. His love was not a crush. It was a love more then anyone could understand. Even the empathetic Hikari. He just wanted her to care! To show something other then friendship.
He wiped the tear away and looked at the city. He imagined what their lives were like. Some with families. Some with a nice, wonderful home and wife or husband to walk to. Some with no home at all, just a little cardboard box to sleep in. His heart wept for them all. They had never had Hikari there to comfort them when they thought like life had no meaning, no hope.
But Hikari spends so much time with other people's problems that she ignores her own. Keeps them bottled up until she was so much secrets that she'd drown in them if she didn't have any friends.
Daisuke's eyes followed teenage a couple up the street. The girl had long blond hair that fell down her back. The boy had mushroom black hair and a sturdy build. They laughed as the boy chased his girlfriend down the street. Her blond hair was like a river of gold flowing behind her.
Daisuke felt new wave of tears fold his eyes. Why? Why can't she see how much I love her? How much I need her?
Hikari pushed though people in search for Daisuke. So far she had no sight of him and she was worried.
Hikari bumped into Jun Motomiya, who she invited just for the sake of having another person here. When she asked where Daisuke was Jun just looked at Yamato. She didn't know that him and Taichi were a couple. She thought that since he wasn't with Sora, he must be free.
Hikari walked away without asking the zoned out Jun again. She finally decided to give up. Daisuke probably left. She leaned against the glass and sighed. Taichi came up to talk to her an him noticed him looking passed her to the porch. She turned to see Daisuke leaning over the rail.
Taichi looked back at her. "Takeru phoned," Taichi yelled over the music. This grabbed Hikari attention. "He said he'd be here in 20 minutes."
"But it's 10:30 already!" Hikari shouted back. Taichi shrugged.
Hikari sighed and turned to face the glass. She heard he brother walk away. Her arm reached out and opened the door. She stepped on to the smooth cement and closed the door silently. She could see Daisuke's shoulders shaking. She walked up to him and leaned on the rail next to his elbow.
"Daisuke. Are you okay?" He looked up with his tear streaked face. "Daisuke what's wrong?"
"Like you care," He said as he buried his face into his arms. "You never cared before. You never even understood."
"Understood what?"
He stood up straight and looked her in the eye. "Do you know how hard that was? Asking you to dance? It took every bit of a courage I had. Every little thing I do takes more courage then you can imagine. For Takeru it's easy. He just naturally shows he cares. It's harder for me. Even when I show it, it's always obnoxious and stupid! I care. And it's not a crush, whatever you say. It's not some stupid thing I'll get over!" Daisuke began shaking and buried his head in his hands. "Everyday I say 'today I'll tell her' again and again. But it never happens. I'm too scared. You care so much yet you can't see how much I love you. Yes, love. I LOVE YOU HIKARI!!" He turned and shouted over the rail. He looked at her with eyes that displayed every possible emotion. "Now you know. Hope you understand."
It took a moment to get what Daisuke was saying. And saying it was tarring him apart. He loved her, but she didn't love him. "Daisuke I'm sorry"
Daisuke turned to the door and looked at Hikari. "Takeru's here," he said with no emotion.
He slid open the door and walked out. Hikari watched him go to the door and walk out of her apartment. She noticed Taichi point Takeru in the direction of the porch. She went to the rail and shivered as her bare arms touched the cold metal. Something was wrong.
Takeru went to the door. He paused before he moved to open it. What he did wasn't wrong, he told himself. We aren't dating or anything. Sure we kissed, but that didn't mean anything, did it?
It took a minute for Takeru to convince what he did was okay before he opened the sliding door that lead to where Hikari was leaning on the rail.
"Hey, Hikari!" He said cheerfully, which he had every right to be. "What's up? Sorry I'm late."
She smiled her heart melting smile. "No problem."
Takeru walked up and leaned against the bars beside her. They stayed like that for a while until Hikari asked the question Takeru had been dreading to answer.
"So where were you?" she turned to look at me.
"Um... With Ken," he couldn't believe he was telling her this. Not only did he date someone when Hikari still thought they were a unofficial couple, but he was dating a guy. "We went for dinner."
"But we have pizza here." Takeru couldn't believe she didn't get it. "What? Did you think I would starve you?"
Takeru wanted to get out here as fast as he could. "Listen Hikari. Ken and I are dating. We love each other."
Hikari didn't understand at first. She just stared at him. Then, after around ten seconds her eyes started to water. Tears rolled down her face and made her mascara run in black lines down the side of her face, making a highway for the other tears. She sucked in a deep breath and ran towards the door.
She pushed though people until she got to her room. Her and Taichi finally got separate rooms when she and her friends walked in on Taichi and Yamato, not making out, but pretty close to it. They were about to move so in there new apartment they got separate rooms.
Hikari collapsed onto her pillow and cried. She cried for ten minutes until she actually started thinking. She stared at the ceiling and thought. She tried to block the Ken and Takeru thing from her head, so all the was left was Daisuke.
Daisuke's sad, lonely face entered her head. She hadn't noticed then but the more she thought about it, the more likely it seemed. She was feeling his love. Begging her to understand and to love back. Daisuke was right he did love her... and she loved him too. She didn't know how she didn't know sooner. Daisuke's tears must have brought it out. He was right, though, she did think it was a stupid crush and that might be why she didn't notice before.
"Sorry Daisuke," she whispered. Hikari closed her eyes and started to fall asleep.
Hikari dreamed that night. She was running blindly though the flashing lights of the night. Each one a firefly mocking her. She was pushing past people who just laughed at her.
A voice in her head started talking. A boy. Daisuke.
"How could she not see! I told her I loved her and she did nothing. No one cares about me. Why am I here? Why did god fuck my life up like this!"
Hikari realized what was happening. She was in Daisuke's head. She was right, something was going to happen... to Daisuke because she didn't understand him. Daisuke's voice started talking again.
"Hikari! I need you more then anything. I can not live without you." All of a sudden he stopped running and screamed out loud.
"HIKARI! I NEED YOU! MY LIFE IS NOTHING WITHOUT YOU!"
Daisuke looked around at the people on the street who were staring in fear at him. He began to cry. People just stared at him and moved by without a word of comfort. Hikari wanted to help him more then anything ever.
"I CAN'T TAKE IT ANYMORE!!" Daisuke screamed. He turned and ran towards the street and a blare of horns rose from the streaks of red and yellow. A prick of pain filled Hikari's body and she jumped out of bed.
"Daisuke. No. I love you!"
Hikari jumped out of bed and ran to the door. She flew through the house and down the street. She heard the police sirens and followed them to where she thought her injured friend lay.
Daisuke heard the commotion around him. Police asking people what happened. They wouldn't know. No one know the truth but Hikari. Sweet, beautiful, intelligent Hikari. Just thinking about her made everything fine. He could barely hear the comments from the ambulance people and the police. They said something about a hospital. Daisuke could feel himself being lifted into an ambulance and he heard the door slam. Thank you, he thought to himself as the hum of the engine grew. My life is nothing without Hikari.
To be continued...