A/N: Not a single review :'(, it's okay I'm keeping my chin up. Just FYI this story is totally AU, and my OC, Emily, is going to be Yolie's sister. Yolie has yet to make an appearance, but she will eventually. Please, review, it motivates me to continue :) Now on to the story...

Chapter II: Behind Inspiration and Secrets

She peered over the edge of the bed, her eyes landing upon the pad of paper he was so indolently decorating with his scrawl. The moment he felt the presence of her eyes, the rhythm of pen against paper ceased, and his arm covered the scarce words she caught sight of. Mimi's hazel orbs narrowed slightly, but the moment a question ignited in her brain, she left all thoughts of discovering what he'd been writing. She rolled over onto her back, staring up at the high ceiling of her bubblegum-pink painted bedroom. "How does the inspiration of writing a song strike?"

He arched a blonde brow with inquisitiveness, wondering what struck the curiosity of finding undiscovered lyrics. Matt was no fool, she knew he had caught the few words written across the sheet of paper. The blonde sat up, from his position of lying on his stomach, upon her plush white carpet, with a pad of paper and pen before him. He hadn't come across a new song in awhile. For some reason, the inspiration had been sparse. He rolled his blue orbs. He would have thought the summer held a truck load of inspiration. However, much of his summer had been spent with him and TK in front of the television watching whatever was on, most of which included interior design shows. Those interior designers would be proud of Miss. Tachikawa's bedroom, which in his opinion, had been skillfully decorated. He hated to admit it, but the pink worked, and it wasn't overwhelming. "With inspiration."

She rolled back over onto her stomach, meeting his eyes, and picking up her game of swinging her legs back and forth in an absent fashion. "How does inspiration strike?"

"Planning on writing music anytime soon?" he asked teasingly.

"No," she replied. "Just curious."

"Yeah, well it killed the cat."

The brunette rolled her eyes, combing her fingers through a few silky tresses of honey. "Grouchy aren't we? Not much inspiration?"
Shaking his head, Matt stood up and folded the notebook to a close. The notebook, which Mimi recalled seeing him writing away in with lyrics to the songs students loved to hear Matt and his band mates sing. He treasured that notebook, the cover of which was now ratty and tattered. She sat up as he opted to take a seat beside her.

"So what are you working on?"

"The guest list for my birthday party."

He grabbed her Hello Kitty pen and tapped it against her head. "Mimi, your birthday isn't for another couple of weeks."

"I'm just preparing. The caterers want to know how much food they'll need to make."

He sent her a smile, one which she gladly returned. The blonde shook his head, her smile was really something. Sweet and innocent, it not only had the ability of lighting up her eyes but an entire room. It pulled him in, and when it disappeared, he found himself longing for it to return. "I hope I'm number on one that guest list."

She didn't say a word, but held up her index and middle finger.

"Two?!"

"Sorry, love, but Sora's number one."

"Going British?"

She let out a chuckle. "Maybe?"

He was going to tickle her, but due to his attention of the time, the girl was spared. A sigh escaped his lips as he said, "I have to get to work."

Mimi pouted. "But school starts the day after tomorrow."

"I'm sorry. The band's playing tonight, stop by."

She felt his lips press into her forehead that for a fleeting moment caused a breeze of warmth to swoop through her insides. Mimi nodded.

xoxoxox

Mimi took a seat upon the ledge of the fountain, the steadily flowing water beating against her ears with a soothing rhythm. She watched as Sora tossed a coin into the base of the fountain, the copper item sinking to the tiled bottom. She never understood the concept of wishing on an inanimate object. How could such a thing grant a wish anyhow? It lacked any physical ability after all.

Sora caught the girl's thoughtful expression, and after placing a hand to her hip, she stated, "Don't worry, what was I going to do with a penny anyhow?"

"They could add up," Mimi sighed.

She stared at her best friend, her mind, she figured was elsewhere. Mimi tended to fantasize a lot, and Sora had come to notice that the day dreaming had become more frequent.

"I'm not day dreaming," the girl stated, turning to the auburn haired girl.

Skeptically, Sora raised a brow. "And what are you doing then?"

"I'm depressed."

Her eyes traveled to the windows of the building she was just in yesterday. Just beyond the paneled glass, spaced by peanut butter colored stucco, she could make out Matt cleaning off an empty table. She never noticed it before, but the collared shirt suited him rather well. "He gets off soon, you know," Sora whispered, turning her attention back to Mimi "And then we can watch him play."

"I'm not talking about Matt," the girl revealed. She paused for a brief moment, her shoulders slumping before she held up the paper bag in her hand containing the logo of her favorite store. "What's the point of a back to school sale if we wear the same thing every day?"

Sora smacked her forehead. So that was what was plaguing the brunette's mind? A meaningless sale? "Oh, Mimi."

"I don't know, Mimi," another girl spoke up, one who had been accompanying the pair on this little shopping trip, "we still get to buy new school supplies. There's just something about the smell of new notebooks and pens…"

"I didn't know they had a distinct smell," Mimi muttered, shattering the girl's dream-like state. She frowned, rubbing her index under her nose. Mimi noticed that she tended to do that every time she was agitated or annoyed. She wondered if Joe noticed.

"To me they do."

"Emily is a bit dramatic," Sora chuckled.

Scoffing in her direction, Emily gathered her brown locks and pulled them into an intricate twist.

"So what colleges have you applied to?" Sora asked, changing the subject.

"I'm leaning towards Brown, the campus is rather quaint."

Mimi shook her head. "Joe's all for Harvard."

"I know," Emily sighed.

Sora placed a comforting hand to the girl's back after seating herself beside her. "What are you going to do?"

"I have no idea."

xoxoxox

The sunlight was beginning to fade when he entered the café behind his mother, tinting the sky with a breath of glowing pink shaded in regions with orange to give it more of a breathtaking quality. At the tingle of the bell, the young man behind the counter looked up. TK had to admit, he was surprised to see him up front. Wasn't Maggie letting him cook now?

"Still working?"

It was his mother who had spoken, carrying a laptop with her. So, she had come here to work? Matt felt himself slightly retreat before he was able to stop himself. "No," he whispered, shaking his head as the pair approached the counter. "It's quitting time." His eyes fell from his younger brother to his mother and then back again. It amazed him how much they looked alike. Did he and his father carry just as much of a resemblance?

TK tugged at his mother's trench coat, just as he used to do when he wanted to attain her attention at a younger age. "Matt's playing tonight."

A smile formed across her lips. "I'll be looking forward to it."

He sent her a small nod before pulling the apron over his head, but then remembered who was standing before him. "Can I get you anything? It's on the house."

Their mother shook their head, although TK looked rather disappointed of having such an offer thrown away. Who didn't love free food? "I can't let you do that. If anyone wants to see you succeed, it's me. I'll have a medium sized regular coffee with two sugars and some skim milk, plus a sandwich." She turned to her other son, the one standing beside her, but he was too busy gazing at the blackboards behind his older brother with a large smile.

"Oh," TK stated after feeling the presence of his mother's eyes. "I'll have a cup of soup, a glass of iced tea, and a brownie."

"This ain't free, little brother," Matt grinned, jotting his order down.

TK shook his head. With a fold of his arms, he said, "Well, technically for me it is, Mom's paying. Throw in some fries with that."

Matt rolled his eyes before placing the torn off piece of paper on the ledge of the window that lead to the kitchen in the back. "Someone will bring your food to you. I have to go…to go get ready."

"Good luck," TK shouted as the older blonde disappeared. "Break a leg."

"TK!"

"Aww, mom," the blonde stated, scratching the back of his head. "I didn't mean it literally…"

She glared at him, continually glared at him until he was forced to give in.

"Okay, so maybe I did. He needs to lighten up a little."

"He's just like your father."

"Speaking of dad, is he coming?"

"I think so."

He led his mother to a table, ignoring the pings that indicated the arrival of more customers. The bell was rather annoying in his opinion. She took a seat upon the table he picked out across from him, opening her laptop the moment her bottom touched the chair. When his parents were still together, she would complain how consumed his father was with his work, but these days, it seemed she was doing the same. "What's your column?"

She looked up from the machine, tucking a strand of blonde hair behind her ear. Her oldest son may have resembled his father, but the hair coloration of both her sons came from her. She could argue the eye color came from her as well, but the blue of Matt's eyes had turned out darker, belonging neither to his mother or father. "I'm doing a piece on historical architecture in this town."

TK frowned slightly. "Sounds interesting."

"It really is fascinating."

xoxoxox

He stepped out into the night from the back doors of La Café Latte, smelling of coffee. A sigh escaped his lips as he took a seat upon the bottom most step, staring up at the darkening sky from which he could make out a few faint glinting stars.

"Penny for your thoughts?"

He looked up to her smiling face. Her soft short locks of auburn hair gently swayed with the light early September breeze. Matt shook his head as she opted to take the seat beside him. "You're wearing a dress," he acknowledged with a light chuckle.

Sora frowned, crossing one slender leg over the other. "This one isn't all that girly." He watched her pocket the penny, and when she caught him staring at the copper object, she blushed, although due to the darkening sky, he didn't notice. "It's the one I tossed into the fountain earlier."

"I'm not much of a well wisher."

Her brows crinkled before a chuckle escaped her lips. Funny he should say that. Funny how he and Mimi could be miles apart and yet have things that looped them together even if they were small and insignificant. "What's on your mind?"

"Usually, Mimi's pestering me if I'm down."

"Which is a lot," she added, and she was surprised to hear him laugh. It was different from Tai's guffaws, which were loud and rung against the ears even a few seconds after the laughter had faded, but Matt's were more of a chuckle, a rumble from the throat.

"My mom came."

"Ah, a topic I understand rather well."

He turned to face her, her tanned face shadowed by the night.

"You know I didn't have the best relationship with her."

"Alas, we have something in common."

Sora gave him a playful shove with the elbows; as if he didn't know about her "mom situation". "You have things in common with Mimi, don't you?"

Matt nodded. That much was true, and back when he'd first met the both of them, he was able to tolerate Sora more. "She surprised me," he whispered.

"I know it's awkward. The whole mom thing, but she just wants your happiness. Let her be a part of your life and you'll find that it's a place you've wanted all along."

The blonde looked up, giving her a short nod. Sora gave excellent advice, which probably came from her motherly persona. She was one of the most caring people he had ever met. He'd wanted the presence of his mother in his life for a long time, but somewhere down the road, he'd given up on that dream. He'd grown up, letting go of the fairytale world…something Mimi still held onto. He just wasn't about to let Sora know that. After all, weren't something's better left clandestine?

Standing up, he dusted off his pants. "I should go, it's almost show time."

Sora nodded, standing up as well. "Break a leg, Matt."

Smiling, he uttered, "Thanks."

xoxoxox

Taking her seat beside TK as she watched Matt strap the guitar over his shoulder, Mimi smiled.

"He isn't that cute."

Turning to TK, Mimi giggled, reaching over and mussing his hair. "Not as you. But I can't deny that your brother has looks."

Miss. Takashi laughed, causing Mimi to blush. She didn't want Matt's mother to think she was into him like that, which she wasn't. Matt and she were best friends like Tai and Sora, and that was all they'd ever be. Anything else would be highly complicated.

"I have some great news," TK continued, his eyes barely watching his brother's band set up.

Mimi turned away from the raised platform used as a stage and towards the younger blonde. "What's that?"

"My mom and dad are getting back together."

Squinting her eyes, Mimi's face brushed with confusion. Looking to Miss. Takashi for confirmation, she was surprised to see the woman nod. "Really?" the girl continued as she raised a brow. "Matt's never once mentioned this." Her eyes trailed back to the blonde stepping towards the microphone, which he tapped with his finger once, then twice.

"He doesn't know," TK answered, looking from his mom to Mimi. "Not yet anyway."

"Don't you think he deserves to know before he finds out himself?" She hadn't directed the question specifically at TK or his mother, but she knew how Matt felt about the entire situation. He had lost all hope of his parent's reunion long ago, and probably felt that a reunion was likely to end in disaster as it had at first. No wonder he always frowned upon her love of fairy tales and such, often telling her they would never come true. His words were often harsh, void of hope, but she understood his situation. TK, however, still hoped, and it looked like for him, at least, that hope had paid off.

"We'll let him know soon," Miss. Takashi answered, shutting down her laptop so she could give her son and his band's performance her full attention.

When she laid her hands flat against the table, it was then Mimi noticed the glint of the diamond adorning her finger. "Things are that serious?" Her eyes were wide as she looked to the woman.

"We didn't want to tell them unless things were serious, and things are working out great."

Mimi smiled. "Congrats, I'm really happy for you."

"I just hope Matt will be too."

Swallowing the lump in her throat, Mimi hoped that was true.