A/N: Rated T for dark themes and references to alcohol.
In video games, you were always told what to do-- always sure of your purpose. You fought the bad guys and always won, and even if you didn't win, you got a second chance. And, at the end of the game, the heroic guy gets the girl and they live happily ever after.
But life isn't like a video game. In life, there are no signs that point you in the right direction, no one to tell you what you're meant to do. Sometimes you lose to the bad guy, and sometimes you're not even sure who the bad guy really is. And at the end of your adventure, there isn't a pretty princess waiting to be swept off her feet; instead, you are awarded with the mesmerizing goddess of death who waits to seduce even the strongest of heroes.
Life is harder than a video game.
TK watched the words "GAME OVER" flash on the TV screen. The options "START OVER OR QUIT" flickered up under the depressing message, and TK sighed. There was no start over in life. It was a pass-or-fail kind of course.
TK reached over and turned his TV off, immediately sending his room into darkness. After adjusting his eyes to the sudden lack of light, he pushed himself off the floor and moved towards the kitchen. Glancing at the microwave clock, he made a face at the green glow of 1:30. It was late, and Matt wasn't home. He'd always came home late ever since he started getting more and more band gigs, but that didn't stop TK from worrying.
With a shake of his head, TK moseyed over to the refrigerator and poked around its shelves, unimpressed with their lack of food supplies.
After peeking at the clock for a second time, TK tapped his nails on the refrigerator door. Maybe he's stuck in traffic, TK thought, reassuring himself. There was an ominous feeling in the air; he shivered. Everything was fine. Matt was fine.
His concert probably lasted a bit longer than expected. Either that or he's picking up some chicks.
TK chuckled to himself and shook his head. Matt had always been popular with the ladies, and when he became lead singer in his band, his number of fans skyrocketed.
That's my brother. Memories washed into TK's head fresh and welcome like a cool wave on a hot summer's day. Thoughts of all of the concerts he'd been to, all the of the people screaming to get his brother's attention, all of the recording studios begging to get Matt to sign a contract with them weaved through his brain. All of the people who envied him, looking up at him on the stage, a halo of light around his joyous singing face, and saying, "I wish I was as cool as him."
That's my brother.
TK closed the fridge and wandered over to his apartment's balcony. He slid the screen door open as silently as possible and walked out into the cool night air. Leaning up against the railing, he watched the teaming streets of Tokyo dance with the headlights of people driving much too fast to get to somewhere where time was meaningless. Matt was part of that crowd, driving too reckless in his Jaguar he was oh-so proud of. He would fly down the highway, impulsive, free, without a care in the world. He would get himself killed one day, that's what TK always told him.
TK looked at the star-speckled sky and smiled. He was closer to Matt than he had been in a long time. It's hard not to come out of something as crazy as the DigiWorld and not be able to form lasting bonds with the people who experienced it with you, even if one of those people is your moody older brother who once thought you were nothing more than a nuisance. TK studied the stars with bright eyes. He and Matt felt like brothers again. They were an unstoppable force, taking on everything in their path. There was nothing the two of them couldn't handle.
A cluster of lights caught TK's eye, pulling him away from his musings. TK had a bird's eye view of an accident on the side of the highway. Lights of ambulances and fire trucks rapidly blinked on and off in a sickening manner. It was hard to make out anything besides the nauseating light display, but TK could see a faint silhouette of a blazing red Jaguar.
No.
The thought bounced around in his empty head, causing his blood to freeze and his muscles to shut down.
NO!
There was no way. What were the odds? There were plenty of blazing red Jaguars in Tokyo. It was Tokyo. Everyone had the need for speed and desire to impress here. Everyone needed to stand out, to make people take a second glance at them. Everyone needed to be worth a second glance. In a nightlife central such as Tokyo, vivid colors of expensive sports cars were a must to get your name known and known fast.
These thoughts pierced TK's brain like a needle, trying to inject him with a drug that would make his heart slow and his breathing steady itself. But the drug only made him feel more dreamlike, more disoriented, and more scared.
That is not my brother.
It wasn't. He was sure of it. He's probably with one of his band mates, hanging out, kicking back a few beers, laughing. Not even looking at the time. That's it! He'll call him now and ask him to hurry home.
Shaky fingers dialed a code of numbers. TK put the phone to his ear.
Ring.
Ring.
Ring.
"Hello?"
"Matt!" Relief flooded his body, greasing his joints like the tin man who had just been oiled up by Dorothy. "Oh, Matt, I was so worried! I see this bad car crash on the highway and I swear I thought it was you, but everything's okay now, everything's fine. Come home right away, and be careful on the roads and..."
There was a beat of eerie silence. A sigh that was not his brother's filled TK's ears. "I'm sorry, son. It seems like your friend is dead."
THAT IS NOT MY BROTHER.
The phone slipped from TK's fingers, falling off the side of the balcony and clattering all the way down to the sidewalk.
This was a dream.
That was the conclusion TK came up with. It was the only rational explanation his brain could muster. Ever so slowly, he straightened up and moved back inside, locking the door behind him. He floated like a ghost to his bed and smothered himself under the covers, using them as a barrier between him and the world.
TK clenched his wet eyes closed and breathed in and out, matching the rhythm to his bedside clock.
Tick.
Tock.
Tick.
Tock.
Breathe in.
Breathe out.
Breathe in.
Breathe out.
Life is not a video game. There is no start over button, no second chance rewarded when you mess up. No one tells you what decisions to make, what path you must choose-- you are left alone, with no manual, no guide to walk you through the steps of how to beat this game.
Life is not a video game. Life is life. Heartless and cold, warm and sweet. And in a summer morning at 1:59 AM, TK figured out there was nothing you could do to change that.
A/N: Hello. I feel like I haven't uploaded in such a long time. Miss me?
Sorry for the long period between stories. AP exams are coming up, and I've devoted all of my free time to memorizing everything I possibly about world history. Fun stuff, I know.
Anyway, this is a story that I'd started back in January and never got around finishing because I thought it would go nowhere. It was basically me just rambling on about depressing stuff like I always do, and I thought nothing more of it. I decided to blow the cobwebs off this story after recently finishing the 2nd season of Digimon. Now, I know this Digimon season was better than the newer seasons, but it was still painful to watch all the way to the end. I think I glorified it more in my childhood memories because this season just made me depressed. I'll admit it was a good spin-off season, but after bringing back characters from the original season, it made me crave the 1st season to an unhealthy degree. I mean seriously, between new kids who whine about killing off evil Digimon (and whine about everything else, for that matter) or kids who know how to kick some major tush without going on a major killing spree, it's hands-down going to be the latter. But back to the main topic, what really fueled this story was the fact that there were hardly scenes between Matt and TK in the 2nd season and as a die-hard fan of those two, that was just unacceptable in my book. So I had to do the only thing I knew how to do and write some good old fashion TK/Matt FanFiction.
As always, review, review, review!
P.S. I'll be starting the 3rd season of Digimon in the next couple days or so. Anyone have any suggestions of what I should be prepared for? Wish me luck! ^^