Title: Regrets and Romance

Chapter: 1

Author: Sacrifices-4-Luv

I bit my bottom lip, popping out a cigarette nervously as I removed myself and my purse from the yellow taxi and got my dark red duffle bags from the back of the taxi. Thoughts circled my mind and I could barely concentrate on the road. For, I felt betrayed. By the one guy that I had given my love away. It was something that I could have never dreamed. Sure, my mother had warned me- more than once. I just didn't listen. I guess that I was just a little too engulfed in my relationship with a dark haired mysterious rock star.

That was definitely one mistake that I was never going to make again.

I couldn't live, knowing that everything that I owned reminded me of my worst nightmare. Sure, I used to be able to tolerate that. I used to be so strong minded, able to handle with my mistakes. But, after my mother's fourth marriage, I suppose that I couldn't stand to be around love- stricken people. For, I had to be somewhere- anywhere that took my mind off of love, and guys, and any sort of anything that reminded me of him. . . My mind had to be cleared up once again, finally finding my serenity. Finally finding my home.

With this in mind, I knew that I had no other choice, except to call my best friend, Mimi Tachikawa. She was always there for me, even through my times of trouble- though she moved away. So, I knew- even before calling her- that when I requested to stay with her, she would answer with a yes.

I had been flying in the air for hours, driving for minutes, and after all that time wasted. . . here I was. For, I was finally standing at the house of Mimi Tachikawa, and I didn't exactly feel like the brightest crayon in the box. Out of all the Gang, I was the only one that didn't 'make' something of myself. Well, aside from being rock star Hiro Miyazaki's girlfriend.

Other than that, I was just a loser. There was nothing that I could feel more ashamed of- literally. Being here, at Mimi's house truly made me think of how much I wished that I hadn't dropped out of high school to move away with Hiro. Even Mimi, who was boy crazy and would have done anything for someone that she loved, didn't do that. So, I suppose that when Mimi heard about the situation, she was rather surprised. Actually, I was surprised. Even the goofy Taichi made something out of himself!

By now, Taichi was one of Japan's best soccer players. He has been living in some large house, and obviously was getting paid a lot of money for something that seemed to come natural to him. Taichi was one of my best friends, and despite the screw ups in his life, he didn't drop out of high school for someone that he had feelings for. Or slack off in school. Instead, he's already made it to the top and into the finals.

I knew that I had to return to reality. When I did, I couldn't help but stare in awe at the sight of Mimi's large wooden cabin. It consisted of two floors, with large windows that gave the perfect view of the front yard. The roof was gorgeously made with three normal window sized angles in front of one giant angle. The house was absolutely gorgeous- like something that you would only find in movies. But it was real.

The front yard was no different than the house. The grass was the most vibrant shade of green. It was spread all around flawlessly. And I could see miniature flowers that sprung from the ground, which added finishing touches- beautiful shades of a pure white, a cute and lively yellow, with some pinks in between all of that.

Inhaling the fresh garden air, I took a puff of my cigarette- the last one that I would be smoking before I gave up the habit. Finally, I threw the cigarette down, and stepped on it. With one step closer, I found myself walking up to her stony driveway. It felt bumpy under my shoes, and it looked as if it would be coarse. Yet, I ignored this thought as I soon came to her stone walkway.

Mimi was naturally rich as a kid, with dreams of becoming a model. And as I looked at this house- at her doorway- I knew that she had made her dreams come true. It was a reflection of her determination. . .

I sighed, feeling down, as my lips lingered for another puff of my Virginia Slim cigarette that I had recently given up- or so I claimed to have. Finally, I licked my lips, and knocked on the door, leaning on the side of the house. My legs felt tired, and I knew that I would probably barely be able to stand when I walked in the house. Then again, I had to fight the feeling.

After a while, I began to hear a noise. I sounded like someone stumbling over themselves. I knew that Mimi was a clumsy. But that clumsy? I laughed to myself and straightened up, putting a smile on, trying not to look so down.

Pretty soon, the door cracked open, and brown orbs stared at me. Then, as the door opened wider, I sawa girl with long blonde hair with little star clips holding back hair from her face, wearing a pink tank top, and blue jeans with rips at her knees, with pink flip flops. First, she stood there just staring at me. However, with a few thoughts stirring up, she said, "Sora?" I let out a nervous smile as I remembered that high pitch squeaky voice.

I watched as she was a little hesitant, taking in my appearance most likely, and biting her lip. A smile came upon her lips as she swung her arms around me. I was happy that she didn't completely toss me aside. However, I was shocked when she grabbed my hand and said, "Come on! I'll get you settled in!"

I was literally dragged in by Mimi, who surprised me by how strong she was. I finally stopped once I was good enough in she let me look around at the room. It was marvelous, let me tell you! For, the floor was made of wood with exception of a few little spots where rugs were. The room that I was in now had to be at least twice that size of our living room. White couches were neatly placed up against the wall- one on the back next to the window, and one on the side wall where the door was. The walls were elegantly painted white with angels painted on- like a professional was here. A fireplace was at the end of the room, in front of the couch on the side. Then, a table was paced in between the couches, to fill the space that the couches left, along with another table- a longer one- that was set out in front of the two couches.

"Mimi?" I said, still trying to take in all of the information.

She smiled at me, taking a hint that I needed an explanation. So, she cleared her throat, and began, "Sora, do you remember during our summer at the beach house- that night that we all said we were going to do something for ourselves?" I knew what she was talking about. I was determined that after that night, I was going to do something with my life, even though I wasn't quite sure what. My head nodded, letting her continue. "Well, if you remember, I said that I wanted to be a model." Mimi took a picture off the wall and placed it into my hands.

My eyes scanned it carefully. It was a picture of her, obviously professionally done in black and white film. The most noticeable part was her eye makeup. She had on an excessive amount of eyeliner, dark eye shadow- the complete opposite of her usually. Her apparel was a halter top dress with a skirt that flared out excessively. Her hair was tied up in a bun and she was looking out from underneath a hat. She looked mysterious, sort of gothic. But on the other hand, you could definitely tell it was her. She had some sort of defining beauty. We all knew she did. She was sort of like a pop queen or something. Definitely something like a superstar.

I looked up at her and said, "That's you?" I smiled and ran my fingers over the frame. She had so much to be proud of. . .

She nodded and smiled at me; taking the pictured out of my hands and hanging it back up. "Are you hungry? I could make us dinner!" Mimi suggested. "While I'm doing that, you could get your room settled in." Then, she paused. Staring down at the ground, she bit her lip.

I sensed this awkward silence. There were two options. One: I could accept her offer, although we wouldn't get to spend time with each other today. Two: I could suggest that we order in, which would end up as us forking out some money. However, we would be able to spend time together like that. For a while, I pondered on those two options. Then, I didn't need to ponder anymore. I was the first one to speak. So, I said, "We could order in?"

After a few minutes of silence, she said, "I like that idea." She chuckled and began to walk up the stairs. "I'll show you to your room!" Without any hesitation, I followed her.

As we walked up the stairs, I saw a many doors, and two halls: one going left, and one leading right, which were connected in the middle. Either way you went, both of them were infested with doors. However, in the middle of the right side of the hall, I saw a door that seemed to be secluded. It made me wonder what sort of room it was. On the other hand, I figured that I would find out later. Besides, it was enough that she was letting me invade her home.

We took a left and I noticed that there was another hall- shorter- that was in the place where the left hall and right hall joined. A small door was placed at the end. I figured that this was her room because I could see something looking like a small pink pillow with words on it. Yet, I couldn't read the words. They were too small and written in cursive.

I guess that I was a little too quiet because she began talking to me. "I was so excited when you mentioned that you were coming. And when I called the other DigiDestined, they were very excited too, but they were all out of town. So, they couldn't make it here today. They promise that tomorrow they'll be here though- even Yama. You remember him right?" My memory drew a blank and then, I could remember. In my head, I saw the serious- looking blond haired boy that always used to play his guitar, and acted isolated. The guy that my friend Taichi couldn't help but hate. A smile came upon my face, and she knew that I was remembering. "Taichi was the most ecstatic though. He called me and kept asking me if you were here yet!"

"The gang truly has changed since I was gone. Are Kari and Takeru going out yet?" I asked. Those two were the youngest of our maingroup. Theyhad always liked each other though,and didn't really hold it back. I mean, Kari was constantly talking about Takeru, saying how cute he was, how sweet he was, and how much she liked him. She and Mimi were like that. While she talked about Takeru and Mimi talked about Yamato Ishida; Ion the other hand was so much different than them. Emotions weren't as easily displayed for me.

I looked back up at Mimi, who had been staring at me for who knows how long. She chuckled to herself. "You were beginning to worry me there for a minute. I thought that I had lost you!" She said, jokingly. However, I just shook my head. As we walked through the estranged hall, I could feel curiosity beaming at the secluded door. I wanted to go in that direction, but it was in the opposite direction.

As we directed through the hall, I couldn't help but feel a strange sense of curiosity. It was probably due to my habit of having to feel absolutely secure, which occurred shortly after I was left by Hiro. Then again, a lot of feelings became a part of me as soon as Hiro left me.

When we came to a stop, I looked up at the top of the door and scanned it to the bottom. She smirked at me, and I knew that this was my room. "I hope that you will like it. It was the only thing that I could fix up in such a short time." As she slowly opened the door, I could see the walls. They were white with a light blue trim. However, when the door opened, I could see the whole design.

It had a gigantic full- sized bed with a jean- like material comforter and white sheets, with matching pillows. Two white ones were placed in the back- next to the head board- and two matching jean ones in the front. There was a window- a bit one that took up about half of the room on the opposite wall of the bed. Even that had matching curtains-jean material in the front, with white sheer in the back that was pulled back all the way to the side. On the wall- in between the window and the door- was a slide door closet. And on the side closest was a wash room with a folding door.

I was left wide- eyed, staring at the room. This was too much for her to do. I mean, I was expecting something with old sheets and blankets- about one- fourth of how good this room looked! "Are you kidding me? This is incredible!" I dropped my bags- everything that I was carrying- and I swung my arms around her neck. I felt a smile form on her face, as she hugged me back.

Mimi was just like a sister to me. She was sweet, caring, and would do anything for me. I felt like I could trust her with all of my secrets. Of course, I suppose that now since we have grown up, we all felt that way about her. She was practically the mother in the group.

I could feel tears stream down my cheeks. That was something that I had felt so often lately. There was so much that I wanted to say, so much that I wanted to do. But I couldn't do anything. There was nothing that I could do, besides present my appreciation to her at all times. And I doubt I could do that. I was never all that good at showing emotion, unlike her.

As we pulled away, I couldn't help but feel guilty. She could give me a place to live and all that I could give her was an invasion of privacy and a hug? A tear formed in my eye, so I wiped it away with my hand. However, she just smiled at me and said, "Do you still like cheese pizza?" I nodded, and she walked off, heading in the direction that I had seen the miniature hall that led to a door. I smiled to myself, knowing that I was right about that being her room. Then again, it was rather obvious. . .

Looking around in the room, I realized that I probably had a rough appearance; she was just too nice to say anything about it. So, I picked up my black butterfly purse, and headed for the wash room. I pulled back the folding door and stepped in. Even the washroom looked new! It was done in a black and white scheme. The walls were painted mostly white, with thin black stripes. And as for the little accessories, there were pictures of the Eiffel Tower hung up here and there, with pictures of enlarged eyes, mouths, and half of a face. It sort of creped me out. Yet, I knew that I had to appreciate this.

As I looked in the mirror, a girl with long and stringy black hair and big dark brown eyes, with little streaks of mascara running down my cheeks. But, they didn't show that much. I looked down at what I was wearing: jeans and a tank top, which were wrinkled. I accepted that this was me, and took Kleenex tissues from a box, wiping off my make- up. Then, I turned on the hot water, cupping my hands. I was ready to capture the water.

When I thought that the water was suitable, I finally swooped down, and splashed the water on my face. I received a sudden chill that ran down my back; it gave me a cold feeling. However, I shrugged it off and reached for the white towel that was hanging on a ring. Once I was finished drying my face off, I heard Mimi entering to room. I didn't bother putting my make- up back on since there was no reason to dress up. Frankly, I was too tired, and none of my old friends were coming over today.

When I walked out of the wash room, I saw Mimi sitting on the bed and laughing-that sweet flirtatious giggle- with the phone glued to her ear. I listened and tried to figure out who it was by maybe catching little streams of the person's voice, but I couldn't really tell. All I knew is that it was a guy because she only giggled like that if she was talking to some guy. Silently, I lip- synched to her, "Who is it?" Instead of answering me, she laughed.

Now, that was peculiar. I knew that even though she was talking to a guy, she would answer me. I waited to hear some sort of answer from her, but she said nothing. I suppose that she was listening intently, because her face sort of turned to a serious twitch. Nothing cold, just a knowing look. However, I was relieved when she giggled and said, "Okay, well, here she is! Bye!"

The next thing that I knew, I was holding the phone up to my ear and she was staring at me smiling. I had to admit that I was completely confused at what was going on. Boy- that was such a surprise! Sarcasm. . . Somehow, I found myself completely confused all my life. This was another addition to my confused memories. Yet, instead of asking her anything else, I accepted the phone.

"Hello?" I said. There was a curiosity in my voice that I tried to hide. I mean, it could be anyone on the phone! It could be Hiro. . . even though it was highly doubtful. Or it could be my mother. . . Instead of questioning myself who it was, I asked, "Umm. . . who is this?"

I could hear someone laugh- like a guy's laugh- and then, "Hey, Sora. So, you really did come back? Welcome to the real world! I didn't believe Mimi at first, but now that I'm hearing from you. . . How are you?"

My mind was still spinning with answers. It didn't sound like it would be Hiro. He always had a seemingly different voice than anyone else. Like he thought that he could do anything that he wanted. Then again, I guess he could. . . And it didn't sound like it would be Takeru or Taichi. They were all different. Takeru and Taichi's voices weren't as deep, and this. So, I suppose that I could take a small guess. "Yama?" I said, trying to guess right.

"Hey, I'm glad that you remember me! I thought that you forgot all about us!" Yama chuckled lightly enough for me to hear him. "Sorry I couldn't be there today. I had a concert today. So, my boss told me that I had to be here."

I laughed, sitting down on the bed as I watched Mimi following me around. She smiled at me the entire time and I could help but laugh. "So, you are in a band?" I asked. I couldn't help but be curious. I never imagined one of my best friends being a musician. But, he was very talented.

"Yeah. Tomorrow I'll come over there. Tonight the band will want to have a little party," Yama answered. I could hear his heavy breathing, and could tell that he was in a car. There were horns going off, screeching of tires, and God knows what else! "I'm almost at the club. So, I'll see you tomorrow, okay?"

I sighed and said, "Okay." After that, he said 'bye'. And I waited a while before responding. There was so much that I had to take in. Lately everything seemed to be so. . . hectic! Like the fact that my best friend was becoming my worst enemy? Then, I responded with, "Bye!"

When I hung up the phone, Mimi squealed. She laid on the bed, staring at the ceiling. I rolled my eyes. "God! He is so cute, Sora! I can't wait until he comes over," She said.

"Yama?" I asked. He couldn't be that cute. It was Yama we were talking about. I mean, Yama was always the little punk rocker in my memory. He always spiked his hair, and had to act suave. I mean, I had a crush on him when we were about ten, but that lasted for, like, a week. He was always the one that was rocking out to MxPx, The Ataris, Rancid, and only God knows what else! "What do you mean?"

"Sora, he's cute! Well, not nearly as cute as Taichi, but he is still so cute! Cute and single. . ." Mimi responded. Then, she sat up, smirking. "Oh, Sora. . ." She said in a sing- song voice.

I got up off of the bed. That meant 'danger', no matter what the circumstances were. It was something that we had determined over the years with being friends with her. That was something that would never change. "Whatever it is, no," I said, crossing my arms, staring down at her.

Then, she stood up. Compared to her, I looked like an ant. I didn't scrunch down though. Instead, I stood up taller. "Fine!" She said, rolling her eyes. It wasn't in an angry manner. Just more like a pout. I smiled, satisfied at myself. I knew that she was being a softie. She shrugged, changing the subject, "So, do you want to watch a movie? I could get the car started up, and we could just spend the day watching movies and getting you unpacked!"

I smiled. That was exactly what I wanted to hear. What girl wouldn't want to set up her new room?

Finally, after hours, I could restart my entire life. I could make something of myself. Starting today, I was a new Sora Takenouchi. I was confident, positive; I was tough, and would not go out with a musician!