Note: I really kind of like this one. This is my first fic for the 28 Days of Love Challenge on the Digimon Fanfiction Challenges forum, and my registration piece for remi's Becoming the Tamer King Challenge. Tai/Sora was my first ever OTP for ANY fandom, actually, way back when I was like, ten or something xD
SHE'S A GIRL
I remember the exact moment I realized that my best friend was a girl. Someone might ask, Taichi, how do you not know a girl when you see one? I'm not stupid, I knew she was a girl! I'd known her for years, since we first started elementary school; since we were in the same soccer club. If I didn't know she was a girl I'd be a pretty sorry excuse for a friend. It's just that, well, knowing someone is a girl and knowing she's a girl are two different things, you know? Of course, I didn't realize that until later. I guess you could say I thought of Sora as more of a confused boy. It sounds, bad, I know, but it's the sad truth.
It was middle school. We had always walked to school together, and middle school was no exception, especially since we were both attending the same school again. It felt weird because just two weeks ago we wore our day clothes, but now we had uniforms. I can't say that I felt more grown-up - just awkward. I'm pretty sure I'm still not trying my necktie properly.
I'm also pretty sure that it had been rather cloudy and on the verge of raining that day, as I waited for her at the bus stop. So why was it that the sun suddenly shined bright and the grey turned to bright brilliant blue the moment Sora turned the corner and came running up to me? I had been waiting for a few minutes, just leaning against the bus shelter, but suddenly my heart thud in my chest and my blood seemed to burn slightly.
"Sorry I'm late!" Sora called from a distance. Unsurprisingly the first thing I realized was the lack of headgear - no helmet, hat or bandana to cover her hair, which bounced around her head as she ran. I'd seen it do so before, during soccer, but for some reason, this time, it was mesmerizing, beautiful, maybe even poetic... eh, probably not 'poetic,' I should leave that sort of thing to other friends who could make the tip of a pencil seem like a cool and beautiful thing. But still, it was... different. A good different. An amazingly good different. And the way the sun touched it, I saw a dozen different reds and golds shimmering like fire... I really should leave the poetry thing to other people.
Then she stopped in front of me and I got my first good look at her in the school uniform, a forest green color that really did not work for anyone, but Sora somehow managed to look alright. It was the first time I'd seen her in a skirt, the first time I'd seen her look so feminine. The first time I'd thought to myself, wow, Sora is really pretty. The first time I started to consider that dude, she really is a girl.
And that maybe I really, really like Sora as a more than my best friend.