So my original plan with this story was to finish the whole thing before uploading at all, that way I don't start posting and never finish. Unfortunately, without posting I don't get any feedback from nice reviewers and therefore have no motivation to write. My point is that your guys' feedback means a lot, so keep it coming and I'll do my best to stick with this.

Aveza: I'm glad you enjoyed! Thanks for being this story's first review!

Thundermuffin: Same here! This fandom has been so lacking that I've started to go back and reread old ones.

blueberrrykisses: I just about fangirled when I saw you reviewed this. It's nice to have the author of one of my favorite stories reviewing mine. As far as the cast goes I'm doing my best to at least have cameos by everyone (by everyone I mean the 01 cast), but the main set of side characters are Tai, Mimi, TK and Kari.

fantasyguardian & mahwish1: Thank you! :D

And of course thanks to the unsigned reviews as well!

As a side note to anyone wondering, yes the chapters will get longer. With my multi-chapter fics, the first few are always shorter than I like them to be, but they lengthen out eventually.


2

... ...

"Desperate and hardened

Seeking a momentary fix"

- Mercy, OneRepublic

... ...

"Did she have to pick this place?" Mimi scowled, wrinkling her nose as she followed Sora into the café that was undoubtedly older than both their grandparents.

Sora hushed her friend. "Don't talk so loud if you aren't saying something nice."

"Like I'll take that advice, coming from Miss Cynical herself."

Ignoring her, Sora gazed over the room until she spotted Kari in a booth near the back of the café. She led the way with Mimi shortly behind her until they joined the younger girl.

"Hey, Kari."

The younger brunette looked up to them as they slid into the other side of the booth and offered her signature warm smile. "Thanks for meeting me."

"No problem! We love this place!" Mimi said in a volume louder than necessary. It garnered the attention of several other patrons and she cast Sora a proud, mocking sort of look.

Sora didn't hesitate to roll her eyes and turn her attention to Kari. "So? What's up?"

"Yeah," Mimi added. "Your text was so mysterious that I just knew there had to be something juicy going on."

Kari gave them a secretive type of smile, but didn't give anything away just yet. Instead, she looked to Sora. "I heard you were at Catherine's wedding."

"Yeah. I was a little surprised you weren't TK's date."

"I was supposed to go, but something came up."

"What's more important than a wedding?" Mimi asked, sounding all too serious and slightly horrified.

Used to this sort of behavior, and actually now accustomed to it, Sora couldn't help but laugh at Mimi. She looked to Kari, seeing that the girl was naturally smiling along as well, not offended in the least.

Once their giggles toned down to a minimum, Kari continued. "I was offered a job to photograph for a movie in France. TK's Grandfather had connections and they like my work. I'm leaving in three weeks for a month."

"No. Way!" Mimi gasped, sounding out of breath. "Oh, yay! Kari, I can't even believe it!"

"Congratulations!" Sora grinned, resisting the urge to join Mimi in a squealing fit. Kari deserved this opportunity more than anyone else she knew.

"What about TK? Is he going with you? That'd be so romantic!" Mimi chimed.

Kari shook her head. "No, he's staying here, but I'll be back before you know it." Then, in a motion completely uncalled for, Kari's wide grin fell to a much softer smile. Her eyes were serious, but behind that they beamed with a genuine happiness. All that alone helped Sora realize that Paris wasn't the real reason she and Mimi were called here. She'd known Kari too long, and the look on her face now had to do with so much more.

"Kari…what's going on?"

At that, Mimi's smile fell and she turned to Kari too, concern written over her face. "There's more?"

Now, Kari was not one to show off. She was incredibly humble and modest, but no woman could resist the urge to make a big deal out of the following. Removing her hands from her lap, she held out the left to reveal a small diamond twinkling on her ring finger.

Sora's mouth dropped and her eyes widened, as did Mimi's. For a few seconds, all remained silent as the pair gaped at the diamond.

Mimi looked to Kari first, and asked what Sora was thinking but couldn't organize into words. "Are you pregnant?"

Again, Kari didn't take offence. She simply giggled and shook her head. "No! Why would you think that?"

Sora shook her head in disbelief, and finally removed her gaze from the ring. "It's just…you two are so young."

"I know." She said, and drew her hand back gently. "But I want this, and TK wants this. We're going to get married anyways, so why not when I get back from France?"

"That soon?"

"Well, no. We've been planning this for a while, to be honest. We've just kept it quiet. It wasn't even official until last week."

Sora frowned at the fact that this sounded nothing like Kari. The girl she knew would be perfectly comfortable waiting a few more years because they were bound to wed eventually. Rushing wasn't even a word in Kari's vocabulary. Sora couldn't help the concern she was quite suddenly overwhelmed with for her friend.

"Who else knows?" Mimi asked, eyes still lingering on the ring. Her eyes shined with a glee that almost contended with Kari's. Almost.

"Just you two, Tai and my parents. Oh, and TK's brother."

"And how'd they react?"

She shrugged nonchalantly. Once Kari got an idea in her head, there was little you could do to change her mind, and her relaxed behavior was a result of that. Whether their families accepted or not, this marriage was going to happen, so why stress? In a way, Kari's philosophy made Sora sort of envious.

"TK actually asked for my parents' blessing, so they're all for the idea. Tai doesn't like it though. He likes TK, but you know his big brother instinct always kicks in when it's least wanted. And Matt supports TK through everything, so that worked out well too. As for TK's parents, we're telling them tonight."

"Well I'm happy for you!" Mimi declared, and in unison both girls eyed Sora.

She knew what they had hoped to hear from her, but what you wanted to hear and what you expected to hear were two different things. Sora liked to think of herself as accepting, understanding, but it was moments like this that she knew she could never be either of those things.

"You don't have to say anything." Kari said. "I know how skeptical you are, and all I ask is that you please-"

"TK's a good guy, Kari. And although I can't say I agree with this, I really am happy for you." Sora heard the words felt herself say them, but was still surprised that they came from her considering how honest they were.

Part of her expected Kari to be completely unsatisfied with her. After all, who was she to not support her friend through this.

But Kari did nothing Sora expected. Instead, she smiled. "I was hoping you'd say that. It's important that my Maid of Honor is happy for me."

Beside Sora, Mimi squealed in absolute excitement. Sora, on the other hand, felt she probably looked stupid with the dumbfounded look plastered on her face. "Y-you want me?"

Grinning, Kari nodded. "It's a lot of work, so you don't have to say yes, but it would mean-"

"I just thought you would ask Yolei…"

"Yolei's great, but Sora, you've been like an older sister to me for as long as I can remember. You deserve this." Kari continued, unaware of just how touching those words were to Sora. "I understand if you don't want to-"

"I'll do it."

Kari stopped, eyes wide. "Really?"

"Sure."

"Are you positive? Because I don't want you doing something you don't want to do."

"I'm sure. Now let's drop this before I change my mind."

Kari nodded, beaming at Sora, and followed suit. She dropped the subject and this time faced Mimi. "And of course, I want you as one of my bridesmaids."

"Ohh, I was hoping you would say that!" Mimi gushed, grinning wildly.

Kari went on to explain several more things - possible dates for the wedding, events leading up to it, the fact that she and TK agreed on an average-sized guest list composed of family and close friends. "I'd like to find a dress before I leave for France." She noted as well, so the three of them set a date to shop and Kari promised to run it by Yolei so she could join also.

Sora offered her assistance with all the traditional duties of the Maid of Honor, an action Mimi also insisted on helping with.

"You can't expect me to let Sora have all the fun, do you?" She asked.

"You two don't have to do all this," Kari told them. "All the work, I mean. I'm the bride so I can take most of the-"

"Don't be silly." Sora interrupted. "You're getting married and we want to help lighten the load since you'll be gone for the next month. Besides, it's in the job description, right?"

The young brunette continued to wear an unsure look, lightly touched with concern. However she pressed no more on the subject. They lingered in the café a while longer, idle conversation taking place until Kari announced she had other places to be. What with everything happening lately - the wedding and photography project - it was no surprise she was running around the city.

"Oh my GOD!" Mimi exclaimed suddenly, just seconds after she and Sora exited the café.

Sora circled around her car and fired Mimi a strange look. "What?"

Climbing into their respective seats, Mimi continued without missing a beat. "I just realized how awkward this wedding is going to be."

Sora raised a single eyebrow, rather excited to hear about this theory. What ran through Mimi's mind never failed to be interesting. "How so?"

Eyes wide, the brunette responded. "Well, you're the Maid of Honor, and being TK's brother, doesn't that entitle Matt to being Best Man? Last time I checked, you two hated each other."

A laugh escaped Sora's lips before she could stop herself. The last time she had ever spoken - more like ranted - to Mimi about Matt Ishida was so long ago she could barely remember it.

"We never hated each other."

"Well you didn't get along, that's for sure. You were always bickering with each other." She paused, pondering on something for a brief moment. "You know, he was really attractive. And come to think of it, you're right. It was always a one-sided hatred because he was so into you."

Sora's scoff came a little too quickly and a little too unnaturally. She pressed her lips together, hoping Mimi didn't catch it. "He was not into me."

"No? I beg to differ. Honestly, I don't know why you never gave him a chance."

It was difficult not to slip up in front of Mimi. That girl talked and talked and sometimes, Sora just wanted to fire back with the first thought that came into her mind. Of course, if she did, everything she had worked to keep hidden would be exposed.

Her eyes never left the road as her friend spoke, and that was the giveaway Mimi managed to catch. She was hiding something and judging by her friend's look, she had figured that out. Mimi was not stupid, especially when it came to her best friend. Sora felt her do a double take of her stony expression, and through the corner of her eyes watched as Mimi's mouth dropped open.

"No! Sora, you rotten sneak!"

"W-what?" A stutter. Great defense mechanism.

"You two hooked up!"

Keep your cool. "What? Why would you even think that?"

"Don't play dumb with me!" She was practically bouncing in her seat. "But Sora, you hated him!"

"I-"

"Oh my God. It was one of those hot, sexual tension hook-ups, wasn't it? You just couldn't resist."

Sora was ready to defend herself, but had no words to. Because what Mimi said was one hundred percent true. Granted there was still a lot more to it than was being said.

Finally realizing there really was no way out of this, Sora sighed and momentarily took her eyes off the road. "It was a huge mistake. I'm not like that, and you know it."

"Why didn't you tell me when it happened?"

"Because…" She started, but found she couldn't explain. Shaking her head, she ignored Mimi's question and proceeded to defend herself. "Nothing ever happened afterwards. The first time I'd seen him since then was at the wedding I performed at last week."

Mimi's eyes widened even more than they already had, and she shook her head in utter disbelief. "Where? When? Sora, you need to fill me in because I'm so lost!"

It took a moment to respond, not because she had to think to find her answer – all the facts were still fresh in her memory, much to her dismay. No, she paused to collect herself and tell this in the most casual way possible. It wasn't a big deal, so why make it one, right?

"It was almost a year ago, last November. It was right after Mom…" Her voice betrayed her and faltered before she could finish. She really had meant to say it: 'Right after Mom died.' But even after all this time, Sora found the words were difficult to say aloud. So she carried on, knowing Mimi caught on anyway. "I hadn't really been out in the past few weeks so Tai insisted I spend some time with him. I didn't realize we were going to Matt's-"

"Get on with it! The suspense is killing me!"

"Okay, okay! So we were at Matt's for this stupid party and Tai, well, you know how he gets at those things. I was by myself when I ran into Matt and amidst our usual bickering he just…kissed me." She said, her lips twitching upwards at the thought of her reaction. "So I slapped him."

Engrossed expression not faltering for even a second, Mimi continued to gaze expectantly. "That's it? Sora, there has to be more!"

"There isn't."

"You liar! Finish the story!"

It drove Sora mad that Mimi could sniff out the truth so easily when she wanted to. Reluctantly she continued. "It was a case of misplaced judgment, Meems-"

"Sora!"

"Okay! He apologized to me after that and at first I didn't want to hear it. Then he…I don't know. He was so much nicer about it the second time. He was gentler, more serious…" She glanced at Mimi, whose eyebrows were raised, and she shook her head hopelessly. "And so I kissed him back."

For a long moment Mimi stared at Sora, eyes wide and mouth agape. When she finally broke out of the spell, her declaration was dramatic to say the least. "Oh my God! He took advantage of your weakened mind!"

"It wasn't like that, Mimi. I had had one drink. It was just as much my fault as it was his."

"Anything else?" She groaned. "Sora! You're leaving out so much! I know it!"

Biting her bottom lip, Sora knew she had to continue. There was no use avoiding anything with Mimi. Taking in a breath, she responded, "I left after that."

It didn't take long for Mimi to absorb the remainder of it, and when she did, she smiled coyly at Sora. "The dreaded walk of shame! Sora, this is so scandalous!"

"I was under the influence."

"That doesn't matter!"

Sora shrugged, eyes now fully focused back on the road.

"And you never called? Did he even try calling?"

Sora ignored her, but Mimi didn't seem to mind. She went on, excited with this new revelation. "So you never really hated him! Man, this is juicy. So, tell me how awkward that wedding was!"

It was only a small shift in the conversation, but Sora was grateful for it nonetheless. "It wasn't, actually."

"No?"

"I've done a lot of thinking about it since then, and a lot of growing up." Sora explained. "I'm not living my life bitter because of my past anymore, and starting over with Matt was like, the symbolic first step for me. And it went pretty well, if you ask me."

Silence descended over them for a minute or so before Mimi asked in a soft, sincere voice that she rarely ever used. "Are you okay?" That was it. All jokes were aside now and Mimi was playing her role as the caring, compassionate best friend that she was whenever the situation called for it. And for that, Sora was not thankful. Talking about 'how she was feeling' wasn't something she wanted to do. Hell, sincere talks like this had never worked for her.

So in her best attempt to avoid dragging out this conversation, she answered with a simple "I'm fine."

Either Mimi caught the message, or she believed her. Something told Sora it wasn't the latter, but she really didn't care.

Because either way, she got what she wanted: The topic was done with.


Yeah, total lack of Sora/Matt interaction, I know. But it shall be made up for in the coming chapters.

Also, I just want to stress that while TK and Kari are getting married in this fic, this will not turn into a Takari. I have seen too many stories claim to be about one couple and then they end up focusing on another. The TK/Kari engagement is simply something that is necessary for the story to progress the way it does.