Disclaimer: I do not own Digimon, Digimon Tamers, Ryo Akiyama or Shinjuku, yet….
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Chapter 2: Daily Life
"Hey Ryo! How do you read this sentence?"
Ryo looked up from his coursework and saw Suzie sitting across from him working on her own. In front of her was an English short story that she needed to translate. The Digimon King let out a sigh. Who in their right mind would assign that much work to third year High School students?
"Here, let me see it," he responded, grabbing her book and flipping it to read it. She had made it to the end with only needing to ask him a few times (three to be exact, counting this most recent time) for help on translating the story. He looked at the sentence she was struggling with and read it aloud. "As he is about to clasp her he feels a stunning blow upon the back of the neck; a blinding white light blazes all about him with a sound like the shock of a cannon-then all is darkness and silence!" Then, not one to give help without explanation, Ryo flipped the book back around and started explaining to her why it translated to that.
It had been about 13 months since he and Henry had moved into an apartment together. They had divided the chores between them, Ryo handling the food since he got home from classes before Henry got back from work at Hypnos. Anyways, he was also the better cook. He also did the shopping, that way there was never any confusion as to what was needed for meals. In exchange, Henry handled cleaning the apartment and doing the laundry.
Ryo had to admit that he enjoyed having a roommate. Henry wasn't exactly the most talkative person, but neither was Ryo really. They kept to their own devices most of the time, but just the act of sharing a space meant interactions occurred quite frequently. Conversation would happen naturally and spontaneously, and Ryo enjoyed talking about both the intellectual and mundane.
Of course they would play the Digimon card game every so often. Ryo won most of the time, but Henry always managed to get a win here and there. He wasn't a bad player, and if Ryo and Rika hadn't been so active of players and he had actually felt like applying himself he could have done very well when he had been younger, probably even won a tournament or two.
An unexpected effect of sharing an apartment with Henry meant that Suzie would come over at least once a week, sometimes more often if an exam was approaching or she had a project to work on. The energetic teenage girl would ask Ryo's advice and get help on her work. Not that she needed it though. She was bright, and while maybe not as brainy as her brother, she could still manage most assignments on her own with little trouble.
Ryo guessed that she just wasn't used to not seeing Henry or at least feeling his presence around her home. He had thought in the beginning that her visits would decrease with time, but keeping a log in his head he realized that they actually increased. Suzie would even occasionally eat meals with them and play some games of Digimon. She wasn't quite as good as her brother and ended up beating Henry just twice and Ryo not even once. Despite these losses she seemed to enjoy every minute and Ryo couldn't help but feel his own spirits lifted in the presence of the girl.
Done with the explanation, Ryo went back to his own work as Suzie took out her math coursework. Ryo had been back at school for the last year on an accelerated course. He had already finished all of the basic courses when he had completed his degree in Classic Literature before, which meant that he had the advantage of going straight to the courses he needed with only a few tests to show he still remembered the material. He was almost done with the in school work needed for his teaching license, though he made sure not to mention to most people, especially others aiming for the same goal, how quickly and easily he was doing so.
As Ryo finished up his assignment he looked up and saw that the light drifting through the window was tinged orange as the day approached sundown. He could see Suzie sitting across from him, still working diligently on her math assignment. Her hair glowed purple in the light as very dark hair seemed to do when viewed at the right angle. He had managed to see Henry's hair in the same type of situation before but it seemed to glow blue instead of purple.
"Thinking about something?"
Ryo had been too busy pondering the mystery behind how really dark hair could seem to glow different colors to realize that Suzie had stopped writing and was looking at him, a puzzled expression on her face. He refocused on the world outside of his mind and answered her.
"Your hair," he answered honestly. "If viewed from the right lighting your hair seems to be purple, even though I know it's just a really dark black. Henry's hair is the same, except his seems blue."
"That's a weird thing to be thinking about."
Ryo just shrugged.
"I've accomplished most mundane activities so far, all I have left to do are weird ones.
"How's work at the convenience store going? I'm surprised that you're not tired from going to school during the day and working a shift at night."
"It's a pretty easy job, and I had less sleep when I worked on a crab boat or when I was taming Cyberdramon, now those were tough jobs." He let loose a little laugh, but it seemed to disappear into the silence of the room as the teenager just stared at him, a look of curiosity on her face.
"Do you miss him?" she asked.
"Cyberdramon? Yeah, all the time. It's been ten years, but I still find myself remembering all of our adventures together." Ryo let go a tired sigh as he felt himself being drawn back into old memories. "It wasn't always fun, and it was usually dangerous, but never do I find myself regretting it. They were the greatest times of my life. He was and will probably always be my best friend."
They were quiet for a few minutes as Suzie took in his words. Ryo broke the silence this time.
"What about you? Do you miss Lopmon?"
"Everyday," she said, her usually smiling face downcast. "I only knew him for a fraction of the time you knew Cyberdramon, but he quickly became an important friend to me. I find myself thinking what life would be like if he was still here with me. Would he enjoy himself? Is he safe and sound right now in the digital world? I worry about him constantly. What about if I had never met him? Would I still be the same I am today?"
Silence settled between them as they both contemplated what the other had said. Suzie went back to working on her Math assignment and Ryo leaned back in his chair, closing his eyes.
If I had never met Cyberdramon, would I be the same I same today? He wondered. My adventures in the Digital world shaped me more than any other event in my life. If I had experienced it with another partner, like Renamon, I don't think it would have been the same. I probably wouldn't be the same. I'm glad Cyberdramon was with me. I'm also pleased with how I am today, wouldn't want to change that.
A buzzing sound knocked Ryo out of his thoughts and he opened his eyes. Checking his phone he saw that Henry had texted him.
'On way home,' it read on the screen. Ryo stood up and stretched briefly after not having moved for a while. He looked at Suzie who was still concentrating on her coursework.
"Hey Suzie, are you staying for dinner or heading home to eat with your parents?"
"Can I eat here?" she asked, looking up at him from her work. "Don't tell my mother, but you're a better cook. Not that she's bad at cooking, your food is just really good."
"Sucking up to get a meal huh? Sure, just call your parents and ask them if it's ok." Ryo moved into the apartment's small kitchen and started taking out food from the fridge. "Honestly, we should start charging you for all the food you eat. I thought teenage girls weren't supposed to eat this much. Where do you keep it all?"
He eyed her curiously, as if looking for a secret compartment. Suzie made the most indignant looking face she could manage.
"You're not supposed to tell a girl she eats a lot you know. You might hurt my feelings." The girl made the saddest face she could, faking hurt feelings, but had to fight from smiling.
"Girl?" Ryo asked, taking down some pots and pans. "I thought I was talking to a black hole."
Suzie just stuck her tongue out at him for a moment and then returned to her coursework. Ryo concentrated on making dinner and within the next half hour he was just finishing up as Henry walked through the front door.
"Smells good," he said, walking over to the couch and sitting down, his stuff falling in a heap next to him. "What did you make?"
"Lemon pepper catfish," said Ryo, holding up a plate with large pieces of the breaded fish. "I also made some corn muffins, which are just finishing. Oh, and some salad to round out the meal."
Henry briefly looked up from where he was resting and raised an eyebrow at Ryo.
"That's a very…weird meal."
"I'm working through a list of world recipes, just to keep things interesting."
"Is that why we can't seem to have the same meal twice?"
"Yep. Do you want the same meal twice?" asked Ryo.
"This is fine, I was just curious."
"I've been doing this for a year and you're only finding it weird now?"
"Fried catfish isn't traditional Japanese or Chinese food to my knowledge."
"Pretty sure it's American actually."
"Yeah, that would make sense."
Suzie looked up from her coursework and finally commented.
"You two sound like an old married couple, did you know that?"
"And what would that make you?" asked Ryo, clearing off the table for the food and plates.
"The sweet princess who needs to be rescued from your abusive clutches."
"Abusive?" asked Henry, walking over and helping Ryo set the table. "How many meals have you eaten here? Honestly, you should be paying us for the food."
"Ryo said the same thing," said Suzie, sitting back down at the table after moving her stuff onto the couch. "Now let's eat!"
They all sat down, put food on their plates and started to eat.
"Hey, this is pretty good," said Henry, taking another bite of fish.
"You should make this more often," said Suzie.
"You wouldn't say that as quickly if you just took a look at the mess in the kitchen," responded Ryo with a smile. "Not exactly my cleanest meal."
"Hey, I'm not the one who has to do the dishes," Suzie said with a grin.
"You get free tutoring and meals, you're helping me with those dishes," replied Henry.
"I'd like to see you make me."
"I'll deal with you after I'm done eating."
"You're just afraid."
"Yeah, that my meal will go cold."
They went back to eating in silence for a few minutes. Ryo had just sat and observed the exchange between the siblings. He always found it interesting how they could banter like that.
He briefly wondered about how his own sister was doing. The last time he had talked to Yuri had been during a brief visit to Kyushu about five years previously. They had exchanged pleasantries and Ryo had then gone to talk to his dad. During dinner that night they had sat in uncomfortable silence throughout the whole meal.
Henry and Suzie's relationship seemed so natural. They never needed to force out conversation, and even though they always threw insults at each other, it was always in fun. Ryo sometimes felt like an outsider intruding, but only for a brief moment. The siblings had made him feel like a part of their family, and they would probably never know how much that really meant to him.
Ryo was knocked out of his reverie when Henry turned and asked him a question.
"Hey, do you have plans this Friday night?"
"Just work at the store from 6 to 10 that night. Any reason?"
"Did you finally realize your love for Ryo and you're inviting him on a date?" asked Suzie, a mischievous smile on her face. "I'd love to have him as a brother in-law."
"No," replied Henry, glaring at Suzie in a futile attempt to keep her quiet. "A co-worker came up to me today and asked if I'd be willing to go on a group date with her Friday."
"Is she cuter than me?"
"Yes," said Henry instantly, causing Suzie to frown. Ryo had to fight back a laugh. "I've been informed by a laughing Shibumi that she apparently spent the last week staring at me trying to work up the courage to talk to me."
"So, I'm assuming you said yes to a group date?" asked Ryo.
"Yes, she's bringing two friends and I'm supposed to also."
"What about asking Kazu, Kenta or Takato?"
"Kenta has a girlfriend, Shinobu, one of his coworkers at the hospital."
"Right, forgot about that for a moment. I don't remember hearing about Kazu or Takato having girlfriends currently though."
"Wasn't Takato dating Jeri?" asked Suzie, reminding them she was still there.
"Briefly, seven years ago," responded Henry. "They broke up though."
"Too bad. I always thought they made a cute couple," replied Suzie.
"There was too much baggage between them with Leomon's death and the D-Reaper," said Henry sadly. "As I was saying, Kazu's in Hong Kong for a business trip. Takato said he'd be up for it, but we still need a third person."
Ryo sat and thought about it for a few minutes, and then made a decision.
"I'll go, but I need to check with my boss first and see if I can switch shifts with Shigure."
"Thank you for this. I'm not even sure the last time I was on a date…"
"Probably never," said Suzie, finishing the last of her food.
"Shouldn't you be doing the dishes instead of bothering me?"
"I thought we agreed earlier that you would do the dishes alone and not bother your sweet and beautiful sister with them."
Ryo finished up the rest of his meal than looked at the clock. He stood up and looked at the squabbling siblings.
"Well, I've got to head to work. I'll check about swapping my shift for the week, just make sure the dishes are done and the kitchen clean before I get back," he said with a cheerful smile.
"Don't worry I'll make sure Henry gets them done," replied a smiling Suzie. Henry just growled at her and started clearing off the table.
As Ryo was leaving the apartment, Suzie was in the kitchen assisting her brother with clean up. With a smile on his face at the sight, Ryo walked out of the apartment and closed the door behind him.