A/N: Lo and behold, a NEW TAITO FIC! Further proving that my love for Taito has recently been rekindled! The first new fic in… five years, if the dates on my files are correct. Wow.

Anyway, I was waiting for my grandfather at the airport and noticed these two guys acting really touchy-feely with each other in front of me, and then I saw people reuniting happily and people looking really anxious for their friend/relative/significant other to arrive, and then this fic sprouted in my brain! And it continued to blossom as I sat in the back seat on the way home, pretending to listen to my mother & grandfather's conversation. And now that I'm home, even though I should be working on one of the three essays I have due within the next week, I'm going to start writing this fic before it escapes me!

Also, I have recently realized/remembered (because I would have had to know this at one point, seeing as I watched every episode of Digimon when I was younger) that Mimi isn't the same age as Tai, Matt, and Sora, but actually is the same age as Koushiro! I guess I decided at some point to ignore that, haha. But now I'm going to make her the appropriate age in relation to them.

Oh, p.s.—Tai, Yamato, & Sora are 21; Kari, TK, Daisuke & Ken are 18; Joe is 22; Koushiro & Mimi are 20.

DISCLAIMER: Don't own Digimon. The end.

Untitled
a.k.a. The Airport Fic
Chapter 1
by: neo-chan

Tai could feel his heart pounding with anticipation as he walked down the ramp, dragging his luggage behind him. He couldn't believe it had been an entire year. Although at times he had been homesick enough to nearly sink him into depression, he had to admit that the days had passed by quickly while he was gone, and he had thoroughly enjoyed the experience. The only thing that he had felt missing, on a daily basis, had been the presence of his best friend—which was also the reason that his heart was currently doing backflips.

Tai's heart fluttered at just the thought of seeing Yamato again. The hardest part of being away had been parting from him and although they had talked rather frequently over phone and by video chat, it was nothing compared to experiencing Yamato in the flesh. The turmoil his heart had suffered during the past year had been enough for Tai to finally gather the courage to do what he should have done long ago, and he planned to do it as soon as possible after reuniting with Yamato. Tai needed to express it now, lest something should take the opportunity from him. He knew that nothing could ever tear him and Yamato apart emotionally, but he was fully aware now of the possibilities of them being physically apart, so he needed to take the chance now. Even if Yamato didn't return his feelings, Yamato deserved to know how much he truly meant to Tai, and Tai knew that the blonde would respect his feelings and refuse to let it affect their friendship. He shook his head at himself, wondering why he hadn't confessed sooner. It had taken a year-long absence for him to come to his senses. Well, better now than never.

As Tai walked out of the gate, he scanned the crowd quickly with his eyes, his heart beating even faster as he searched for the familiar blonde head. Within seconds, he heard an excited shout of "Tai!", and his eyes tried to zero in on the location of the sound, but all he could see was a flash of blonde speeding through the crowd toward him. Within seconds, his arms were full of Yamato, and he held the boy tight, overwhelmed with emotion.

"Yama," Tai uttered, nestling his cheek against the boy's hair and breathing in his scent. A wave of serenity washed over him, calming his pounding heart and making it swell with unadulterated love. When they parted and Tai found himself staring into the sparkling blue eyes, he fell impossibly harder.

"If you ever have to leave again, I'm going to have to get Koushiro and Joe to build a cloning device," Yamato declared, and Tai laughed.

It was then that Tai noticed someone standing rather close to them—too close to be a stranger—and looking somewhat awkward. When Yamato noticed Tai's gaze, he stepped slightly away from Tai and placed a hand on the person's shoulder, smiling.

"Tai, this is Shinji."

Shinji had a long dark ponytail, grey eyes, and a pleasant countenance. His shoulders were broad and his stature was quite impressive, but he had a mild nature about him that rendered him less than intimidating. Shinji clearly already knew who Tai was, because he was smiling warmly and sticking his hand out. "Good to finally meet you," he said, and then added with a laugh, "I feel like I already know you, having heard so much about you."

Tai still had no idea who this person was supposed to be, but smiled and shook his hand anyway. The handshake was strong, and Tai wasn't surprised—he could tell that Shinji was composed entirely of firm muscle, even through his clothing.

"Nice to meet you, too," Tai said, and racked his brain trying to think of whether Yamato had mentioned a person named Shinji. The name sounded familiar, but only in a passive way; he could vaguely recall a passing remark from Mimi which went something like "I saw a shirt that just screamed your name, so I sent Matt a picture to ask him if you'd like it, but he didn't respond because he was at the movies with Shinji so I bought it anyway!". But why would Yamato have brought Shinji to the airport with him when Tai didn't even know him?

"I'll go get the car," Shinji said to Yamato, placing a hand on Yamato's arm. Yamato nodded and uttered a "Thanks", and it was the way Shinji's hand rested so casually on Yamato's arm that brought Tai to the startling realization; Shinji was Yamato's boyfriend.

Yamato had a boyfriend.

Fuck. It was already too late.

"So what do you think of Shinji?" Yamato asked eagerly once Shinji was out of earshot, searching Tai's eyes for a reaction.

Tai hesitated, still shell-shocked from the realization. He opened his mouth. "I…"

Yamato's face fell. "You don't like him?"

"It's not that," Tai protested. "I mean, he seems like a nice guy. It's just…" 'You should be with me', Tai completed mentally, but of course he couldn't actually say this to the blonde and expose his selfishness. He was aware that he should be happy for Yamato; after all, he was the one who had waited too long to confess his feelings. So instead he settled for a slightly milder version of the truth; "I've really missed you, Yama," Tai said, which was true. "The first thing I thought when I got off of that plane was 'finally, I can spend some time with my best friend again'. So it's not that I don't like him; it's just that I was really looking forward to spending some time with you, just you and me."

Yamato looked relieved. "Is that all you're worried about?" He laughed. "Don't worry, Tai, Shinji knows how important you are to me. He knows to expect that I'll be MIA for probably about a week while we try to make up for all the Taichi-Yamato time we lost over the past year." Yamato grinned.

Tai's heart melted—not just because Yamato had basically told his boyfriend that he came second to Tai (for now, at least), but because he had forgotten how beautiful his full name sounded coming from Yamato's lips. For this reason, he moved forward abruptly and wrapped his arms around Yamato, squeezing.

Yamato squeezed back, laughing lightly—another sound Tai had missed. Yamato's laughter sounded like an angel's flute to him.

"I missed you too, Tai," Yamato said softly in Tai's ear, and Tai closed his eyes, nearly shivering. "You have no idea how happy I am to have my best friend back."

"I think I have some idea," Tai said with a half-tearful laugh as they parted. Yamato smiled gently at the moistness of Tai's eyes, and Tai couldn't help but raise his hands to Yamato's face, stroking his thumbs over the blonde's cheeks. "I feel like part of my soul's been missing for a year."

Yamato's eyes were beginning to get a little moist now, too. "Tai… you're such a sap," he said, grinning, but gave Tai a look that said he felt the same.

The moment was perfect. So perfect that it made Tai's heart twist painfully, realizing that this would have been his opportunity. He could have closed the gap between them and kissed Yamato, not having to say a word and knowing that Yamato would understand perfectly. And now he couldn't. Because he had been stupid enough to leave the way open for someone else.

Tai tried to remind himself that there was no guarantee Yamato would have returned his feelings anyway, and cleared his throat, grabbing his luggage again. "So I guess we should go to the car?"

Yamato nodded and as they walked, Yamato chatted idly about insignificant things that had happened since Tai had left. Tai half-heartedly listened, his spirits sinking more and more with every step they took. He tried to tell himself that he was being ridiculous—that he should be happy regardless to be back home with his friends and family—but he still couldn't help but feel a little glum. All he had been thinking lately about was the possibility that he and Yamato could finally be more than friends, and now that was down the drain.

"Kari's living on residence," Yamato mentioned to Tai as they got into the car, and Tai's mood brightened slightly when Yamato hopped into the back seat with him instead of sitting in the front with Shinji. "But you know that, right? I can't believe they're all in university now—God, I feel so old. Anyway, she wanted to come to the airport but she has class until four o'clock today, so she couldn't. And your parents both tried to get the day off of work, but they couldn't. I'm sure you'll see all of them tonight, though—Kari's definitely going to head over after she finishes school. Oh, and Daisuke said to call him once you get unpacked. And I'm supposed to call Sora to let her know that you got here safely. We can do all that when we get to your place, though," he said, waving his hand.

Tai couldn't help but laugh, because his friend was rarely this talkative. "Have you been hanging out around Mimi a lot lately?" he teased.

Yamato laughed. "Shut up," he said with a grin, punching Tai lightly in the shoulder. "I'm just excited to see you. How the hell am I supposed to catch you up on an entire year?"

"Well, I have been talking to you guys consistently," Tai pointed out. "So I think I'm pretty up-to-date."

"I know, but it's not the same," Yamato said, making a face. Tai silently agreed.

The ride to Tai's place consisted of Yamato and Tai talking almost nonstop, and Shinji tolerated it good-humoredly, not seeming bothered at all by the fact that his boyfriend hadn't said one word to him the entire time. This made it that much harder for Tai to feel any type of dislike toward Shinji and he was forced to acknowledge that Yamato and Shinji were probably very happy together if Shinji was comfortable enough to let Yamato prioritize Tai over him, even after seeing their display of obvious affection in the airport.

Tai was so distracted by Yamato's uncharacteristic non-stop chatter that he failed to realize upon unlocking his front door that the lack of light was a little suspicious. Despite it being daytime still, it was nearly pitch black inside; the curtains were drawn and not a single light was on—even the light over the oven in the kitchen, which was always on, was off. By the time he would have realized how strange this was, however, Yamato flicked on the light next to the door and a chorus of "Surprise!" sounded.

Tai laughed in pleasant surprise at the sight of all of his friends and family gathered in the living room, bright smiles on their faces. He looked at Yamato, who was beaming at the fact that he had managed to pull it all off, and pulled the boy in for a brief hug, then proceeded forward into the apartment and began hugging each and every person there.

"Did you really think I wouldn't make it home for your arrival?" Kari teased him. She then hugged him tightly. "I missed you, big brother."

Tai's parents joined the hug and everyone "aww"-ed at the display of familial affection. Tai was so touched by the fact that every single friend had managed to make it out that he was visibly teary-eyed by the time he had finished thanking everyone for coming, and everyone continued in a sentimental haze for about ten minutes before the happiness of being reunited kicked in and elation reigned instead.

Tai's happiness to be back amongst his family and friends overwhelmed any disappointment he had been feeling regarding the situation with Yamato, enough to make him forget about the issue momentarily—although it flashed in the back of his mind for a few seconds when he saw Shinji's arms around Yamato at one point. It was too happy of an occasion to let that bring him down, though, and it was the best welcome-home Tai could have asked for.

Tai's friends stayed until late in the evening and when they all eventually headed home, Kari and Yamato stayed behind. Tai wisely averted his eyes when Yamato bid Shinji goodbye, not ready yet to deal with the possibility of having to watch them kiss, and instead began helping his parents and Kari clean up, ignoring their protests.

Yamato came back into the living room a minute later and also began helping with the clean-up efforts. "So," he said to Tai, "I think you should leave the unpacking for another day and have an all-night movie marathon with me and Kari. We already decided what movies we should watch."

Kari nodded in confirmation, and Tai laughed. "Did it ever occur to you two that I might be tired?" he teased.

"You'll have plenty of time to sleep later," was Yamato's reply, and Tai snorted.

"Alright, movie marathon it is," he said, shaking his head affectionately at his sister and his friend. "I want to take a shower and stuff first, though."

"Okay, so go!" Kari said, practically pushing him toward the hallway. "We'll finish cleaning up in the meantime and when you come out, Matt and I will be in our pyjamas and have popcorn popped and everything!"

Tai chuckled at his sister's eagerness and obediently headed down the hallway toward the bathroom, smiling and shaking his head.

He was glad to be home.

Yamato and Kari hadn't been kidding about being ready when Tai was finished; when he came back out to the living room, showered and in a pair of comfortable pyjamas, they were sitting on the couch in their own pyjamas with the lights off, a big bowl of popcorn sitting on the coffee table, and a movie queued on the screen. Tai laughed and took his place in the empty spot on the couch between them.

"Have I mentioned that I missed you guys?" he said with a smile, and received a response in the form of Kari and Yamato hugging him from each side.

"Just wait," Tai joked as they started up the movie, "you guys will be sick of me in a few days."

"Nope; I'm only here for the weekend," Kari said cheekily, and Tai attacked her with tickles. Yamato wisely chose not to intervene, knowing he would also become a victim if he did, and instead watched the two siblings with amusement. Once Tai was finished tickling Kari, they all settled back and began watching the first movie on their lineup.

By the time they were halfway into their second movie, Kari had fallen asleep. When the movie ended, Tai carefully scooped her up and carried her to the room which was still hers. Yamato pulled back the covers so that Tai could lay her down, and then Tai tucked her in. He smiled fondly and then whispered a "Good night, Kari" before the two boys crept out of the room.

"It seems like just yesterday she was eight years old," Tai said, shaking his head. "Now she's in university. Shit, time flies."

"Tell me about it," Yamato agreed as they sat back down on the couch. "When I moved out, it really hit me. I'm supposed to be an adult now. It's crazy."

"How's that going, by the way? Aren't you afraid of the boogeyman coming to get you at night in your lonely apartment?" Tai joked.

A sheepish look spread across Yamato's face. "Actually, um… Shinji and I are kind of living together."

Something inside of Tai shattered. Likely his heart.

At Tai's stunned silence, Yamato rushed on. "I mean, I know it's kind of quick, but we had both decided to move out at the same time, and it seemed logical to move in together, and we've been getting along so well…"

"You guys are living together?" Tai said belatedly, astonished.

"Do you think it's a mistake?" Yamato asked worriedly, chewing on his lip.

"No, I mean… not if you don't. I mean…" Tai shook his head. "Shit, Yama, up until today I didn't even know you had a boyfriend, let alone that you were living with him. How long have you two even been going out for?"

"We met a couple of weeks after you left, actually," Yamato revealed. "He asked me out and we started dating regularly, and then we became exclusive, and… yeah. We've been living together for a few months now."

"Wow." Tai tried to take it all in while ignoring the pieces of his heart which were still sinking to the bottom of his stomach. "This is… big." Tai then frowned, because there was something that had been nagging at him since being introduced to Shinji in the first place. "Yama… why didn't you tell me you had a boyfriend? I mean, you managed to tell me everything else that was going on… how could you pass over something so important? You never even mentioned him to me once."

"I know," Yamato said guiltily. "I was hoping you wouldn't be mad about that."

"I'm not mad; I just… don't get it."

"There's isn't really anything to get," Yamato said, shrugging. "I mean… I thought about telling you, but I know you're protective over me—over us, all of us—and if things didn't work out or I was upset because of a fight or something, I didn't want it to become your problem. I knew you would worry if I told you I was having boyfriend trouble—not that there's been any real trouble with Shinji—and I wanted to avoid that. I figured that if Shinji and I were still dating when you came home—which obviously we are—then you would meet him then and that would be that. It was hard not to talk to you about him, though," Yamato admitted. "I'm used to telling you everything."

"I'm used to you telling me everything too," Tai said, accidentally letting a little bitterness slip out in his tone.

Yamato took it as disappointment in him and gave Tai an apologetic look. "I know. I'm sorry. I know it must seem like I excluded you from something important in my life. But I didn't mean to. Oh, and, um… Shinji kind of doesn't know that I didn't tell you about him," he added guiltily, "so if you could not mention it and pretend you knew all along… that would be great."

Tai guessed that Shinji would be pretty pissed if he knew Yamato hadn't told Tai about him, so he nodded. "Yeah. Of course." He paused, and then added, "You know… if I'm protective over you guys, it's only because I care about you so much."

"I know, Tai," Yamato said, reaching out and squeezing his hand. "And I love that about you. I just didn't want you to worry; not while you were hundreds of miles away and supposed to be having the experience of your life. Well, not that I want you to worry here, either," he said with a little laugh. "I just know it's unavoidable."

Tai nodded, and although he still felt a little hurt, he understood where Yamato was coming from. It did seem a little odd that the blonde would go so far out of his way to hide Shinji from him, though. If Yamato had just started dating Shinji, he would believe it more, but Yamato had hidden an almost year-long relationship from him! There had to be more to it than being concerned that Tai would occasionally worry.

"That's not the whole truth, is it, Yama?" he asked, looking straight into Yamato's eyes. The blonde seemed a little caught off-guard by the sudden question and when his cheeks flushed slightly, Tai knew he had been right.

"Okay, well… I was also worried that you might think I was trying to replace you," Yamato admitted.

Tai opened his mouth to argue, but then shut it, because in hindsight, he probably would have thought as much, regardless of whether Shinji was just a friend or Yamato's boyfriend. He would have been jealous that the blonde was spending so much time with someone that wasn't him, even though he wasn't there to spend time with, and he would have worried that Yamato had found a surrogate for him and that Yamato wouldn't abandon the surrogate once Tai actually returned, and… well, when he thought about it like that, Yamato had spared him a lot of heartache. More than he knew.

"But, as I hope you can see by the fact that I'm totally ditching him to hang out with you," Yamato said more light-heartedly, nudging Tai, "I think you can safely realize that there's no such thing as replacing you."

It did help. In fact, Tai found that he was harbouring no fear at all of his and Yamato's friendship being put on the backburner. The only thing he was really worried about was the fact that Shinji would be the one kissing Yamato instead of him, and there was nothing he could do about that. So he tugged the blonde closer and wrapped an arm around him, hugging him to his side.

"Well, of course I'm irreplaceable," he joked, and Yamato snorted, but smiled. "But, hey, is he really alright with it?" Tai asked, referring to Shinji. "I mean, you ditching him for me?"

"He kind of has to be. I mean, if he wasn't, there would be an issue. I basically told him that we're one person living in separate bodies. And talked about you so much that he asked at one point whether he should feel threatened or not."

'Damn right he should feel threatened,' Tai's mind said, but his mouth said, "And you said?"

"That he could feel threatened if he wanted, but it wouldn't change my relationship with you."

Tai laughed—he couldn't help it. "Seriously?"

Yamato laughed, too. "Thinking about it now, that was probably a little insensitive. But he accepted it and realized that if he wanted to be with me, it meant dealing with the fact that I have a best friend that comes first. Although I of course didn't use the word 'first'. But anyway, that's what makes him so great. I know you're going to like him once you two get to know each other."

"Well, if he makes you happy, that's enough for me," Tai said, and wanted to mean it.

Yamato wrapped both arms around Tai and squeezed. He murmured something into Tai's shoulder, but Tai couldn't decipher the words.

"I'm sorry, what?"

Yamato repeated the words a little louder and Tai caught them this time but, grinning widely, said again innocently; "What? I can't hear you, Yama."

Yamato lifted his head and, upon seeing the grin on Tai's face, glared half-heartedly at his friend. "You heard me, asshole."

Tai threw his head back and laughed, then crushed Yamato to him in a tight hug. "Maybe I should go away for a year more often, if it turns you all sappy," he teased.

"Oh, shut up," Yamato mumbled, embarrassed. "You love me too."

Tai ignored the pain in his heart as he thought of just how much he truly loved the boy, and he pressed a kiss to the top of Yamato's head. "'Course I do. Which is why I'll kick Shinji's ass if he hurts you."

Yamato snuggled further into the brunette. "I know."

A/N: I wrote this chapter yesterday, so hopefully chapter two will be coming out of me soon! Thanks for reading!