Memories of You

Ch. 10

"W-What do you mean?" he asked the young girl as she stood there. "It's exactly as I said. All your memories are here. All of them." She said as she put emphasis on the word. "W-Wait does that mean I have a memory of how I ended up in the hospital. She remained silent. "H-how do you even know all of this?" His voice dripping with skepticism. He wasn't sure if his eyes were playing tricks on him or not, but he swore he saw a smirk dancing on her lips. Before he had a chance to dwell on it, however, the girl was leisurely skipping around him playfully. "Hmm… you've got a point…" She murmured. "Better yet, why don't I just show you?"

"W-What?" were the only word that would leave his mouth as he felt her dainty fingers grasped onto his frail ones and began to pull him along. He felt like a big brother taking a stroll with their little sister. "Heh, it's as if you're like my little sister or something…" he joked. His brown orbs glancing down at the tiny girl in front of them. Unbeknownst to him, those were the words she wanted to hear. She looked up at him, the tiniest hint of a smirk on her lips. "Really? You don't say…"

As if on cue, she watched his body go limp, life in his brown orbs began to dim. "W-What's…. happening…to me..." his voice barely a whisper as he could faintly see the whiteness of his mind fading around him as he fell away. The girl staring down him, smiling. He found he wanted nothing more than to reach for her, but something told him that it was useless. And, if to affirm that, he swore that he could faintly make out words forming on her lips.

Let go… it'll be okay…. trust me…

Even with fear gripping at his heart, he found himself listening to the girl's words and letting himself drift away.

"Hey, sleepyhead, do you want to be late?"

As if he'd forgotten how to breathe, his body forced air back into his lungs forcing him to give a sharp breath and his eyes to jolt open in response. "Jesus, are you trying to scare the shit out of me?" his ears instinctively picking up on a female voice. His body was racing to play catch up as he didn't move or respond. Much to the growing annoyance of whomever, the voice belonged to. It was then that he felt a semi-cold hand grasp onto his ankle and began tugging him sideways. "C'mon…little brother…. This isn't…funny!" she grunted, as before he could truly process what had just happened, he was sent sprawling to the cold wooden floor.

"O-Ow," he murmured rubbing the back of his head in hopes to numb the throbbing pain that had now been inflicted upon him by this unknown intruder. "You're a piece of work, you know that?" he opened his eyes to see a girl with deep brown eyes who looked be two years older, rather lanky and have bushier hair than any girl should reasonable have was currently give him the unadulterated stink-eye. "You can be the worst little brother sometimes, you know that?" she snapped, "I swear this is the last time I'm waking you up, got it?"

Little Brother? This girl was his… It was then that something struck him like a cord. Wait, he'd seen her before. She'd come in to talk to him that day, just as Kari had. Her face looked chubbier now, but there was something in his heart that told him he was right.

It was then that he realized he'd let his silence go on too long, it was probably creeping his sister out. "Sorry," he said.

"Yeah, well, hurry up and get dressed mom's almost done with breakfast," she replied. He watched her get up and leave his room. Even though clearly pressed for time, he decided to relish the quiet and take in everything around him.

He would be lying if he said he didn't feel odd. Like a man placed out of time like in a sci-fi flick. His room was rather small, not to mention messy; messy to the point as if a tornado had run through it. Clothes, piled in a small corner, papers littered about here and there, it was honestly a wonder how he managed to find anything. Something deep in his bones told him, this was a memory, one of who knew how many he'd carelessly forgotten. 'Some brother I him, huh?'

"I should probably get a move on," he muttered as he didn't want his sister coming back to chew him out. He got up. "Hello, again!" the voice hit him faster than her presence. He jumped noticing the small girl. "Jesus, are you trying to give me a heart attack?" he questioned. The girl only smiled.

"How'd you get here, anyway?"

"I'm part of your subconscious, wherever you go, I go," she stated as if it were the simplest thing in the world to understand.

"Oh… I guess that's reassuring. So, this is a memory, isn't it?"

"Yes."

"That's good, right? Does that mean I can wake up, now?"

"Sadly, no. For you to fully recover the memory you must let it play out entirely. If, however, the pain proves to become too much, it is possible 'shatter,' and 'erase,' the memory altogether.

"You can wipe a memory entirely?"

"Yes, but only if you so desperately will it."

"Well, you won't have to worry about that, because I want all my memories!"

As the young girl heard the declaration, a smile tugged at her lips as she admired the boys resolve being part of his subconscious she knew that his resolve would be tested sooner or later.

For now, she'd watch over him, happy that even if it was one step at time one of the chains that weighed heavy on his mind and heart was going to be lifted.

T.K.'s mind was a jumble of thoughts as he and Kari had sat down on one of the chair resting a few feet for Davis' room. "T.K. what happened?" she questioned noticing his sudden change in demeanor as soon as Davis had spoken those words to him. Thankfully, Tai could gauge the atmosphere rather well and decided to excuse himself by decided to go get them all drinks while the two of them had time to themselves.

"I-I know it wasn't much, but Kari… he… the dark look in his eyes, it was as if… he blamed me. Not to mention I was there that day. I was there the day…" T.K. swallowed hard. "T.K. you're not to blame you didn't know what was going to happen, you were only trying to—"

"I know, but… if only I had…"

Kari looked at her boyfriend with saddened eyes. She understood the self-loathing that T.K. expressing. She'd been privy to for three years. Unlike her, who had her brother and family to help with the building of emotions. And yes, while it was true that T.K. had Matt if he really needed it, but know how T.K. and by extension Matt could be. They were both good at masking pain, not only for their sake but for the people around them.

T.K.'s eyes were downcast as he fiddled with his thumbs. "T.K. look at me," Kari said in a reassuring tone as she placed a warm hand on his cheek and guided his attention to her. "I know it's been hard believe me. There were times where I thought the pain of it would never go away… funny enough, a part of me was willing to accept the pain, it was my way for atoning… but I realized ever since Davis awoke. We can't let the past as painful as it was holding us back, we have to move forward. Not just you and me, but Davis, too. It going to hard one for sure, but as long as we're in it together…" Kari smiled warmly at T.K.

He found himself smiling back. Kari, no matter the situation always knew what to say when the overwhelming doubts wanted to set in. "Thanks, Kari. I mean it." With that, he gave her a chaste kiss on the lips. T.K.'s head resting comfortably against Kari's as he smiled at her. The two separated as Kari felt a vibration coming from her phone. She pulled the phone out of her jean's pocket.

It was a text from Takuya.

[From Takuya Kanbara]

[Subject: Work….]

Takuya: Hey Kari, I know this probably seems out of the blue, but the boss wanted to know if you could work tomorrow. Apparently, we're having some important business tycoon coming in and the boss said he needs as many people as he can to help.

Kari: Yeah. I can work. I probably won't be able to come in until noon. I've got prep-school for my college entrance exams in the morning. Is that alright with the boss?

To Kari's surprise, the wait for a response was quite quick.

Takuya: I told him and he said, 'that's fine.' and 'thank you.'

Kari: Tell him I said it's' no problem. See you tomorrow!

"What's up, Kari?" T.K. asked as he noticed the pensive look decorating her face. "Oh, Takuya sent me a text wondering if I was free to work tomorrow. Apparently, there's an important person coming and our boss needs lots of help, " she replied.

"Oh, I guess we should get going then, huh?" T.K. said. At the same moment, Tai was walking back toward them, three sodas snug in his arms. "I'm back, and I bought some drinks," Tai announced handing drinks to Kari and T.K. before opening the last drink for himself.

"Thanks," T.K. replied relishing the cold drink in his hand. "So, what going on?" Tai asked.

"Oh, I've got to head to work tomorrow so, we were thinking it was best to head out. Besides, I'm sure our time with Davis has been enough for him to mentally process for one day.

"Yeah…" T.K.'s voice distant.

Tai nodded. "I've got work to finish up before I head to bed, anyway."

"Okay, I'm going to go let Davis know we're leaving," Kari said.

Both boys nodded. "Alright, we'll see you outside," Tai replied. Kari nodded before making her way to Davis' door and quietly making her way inside. T.K. and Tai stood there silently for a couple minutes before making their trek out the seemingly long hospital corridor to the exit.

As Kari stepped back into Davis' hospital room she found herself greet with a rather calming silence. "Um… H-hey…" she said hoping to get some sort of response but found herself secret scared when she didn't. Her soft brown orbs were intently fixated on the still mass that currently occupied the bed as she slowly began to make her way over. 'Please don't tell me I'll have to call a nurse! What if this was a bad idea and we over stimulated—' her nagging worries were instantly cut short as her ears instinctively picked up on the light sound of snoring. A sigh of relief passed through her lips.

'Thank goodness, he's just sleeping.'

As her eyes stayed glued on Davis' sleeping form, she couldn't stop the small smile forming on her mouth. He looked so peaceful. She also noted that the ghastly pale color that once decorated his face was slowly beginning to flush with color. 'Your hair's gotten longer, too.' (Think Minato's hair from Naruto.) Kari brushed a stray piece of hair stuck to his face.

"Our visit tuckered you out, huh? Sorry about that. We'll be back soon, promise," Kari smiled softly as she slowly gave Davis a chaste kiss on the forehead. With that, Kari left the room. Surprisingly, at the same time, the doctor was making his way toward Davis' room.

"Ah, Ms. Kamiya, leaving?"

"Oh, Hi, Dr. Mori. Yeah, something came up. Plus, Davis is kinda of sleep right now." Dr. Mori raised an eyebrow. "Really?"

"Yeah," she giggled, "Meeting us must've tired him out."

Dr. Mori gave a laugh as well.

"I would be more concerned if he wasn't. Kari, again. Thank you. I know it may not seem like a lot, but you'd be surprised how once some people are admitted visitors are either one or two or sometimes none at all. So, knowing you and your friends care to come at every turn says so much."

"No, Thank you, Dr. Mori. You're letting us know what's happening to Davis no matter how small. We would be in the dark without you."

Dr. Mori smiled at the young girl. "Thank you, Kari."

Kari nodded smiling. "Well, I'll come back again, soon. Goodbye Doctor."

"Goodbye, Kari. See you soon."

As Kari walked out of the hospital doors, she instantly noticed T.K. and Tai leaning against the wall chatting with each other. When they saw her, however, they stopped and walked toward her. "Ready to head home?" Tai asked.

Kari nodded. In turn, T.K. intertwined his fingers hers, swinging them back and forth like a child would do causing her to giggle. "T.K. stop!" She chided playfully.

He didn't though, not until they'd reached both Tai and Kari's apartment complex that even now, they both still lived in with their parents. Not that anyone blamed them, living on your own was a big comment and if you aren't ready for it, well…

Not to mention, Tai was still in college and Kari was taking entrance exams to go to college, too.

"See ya around, T.K."

"Yeah, see ya," he waved back.

Tai headed inside almost immediately most like to get finish up that homework he had talked about earlier. Leaving T.K. and Kari alone outside the complex not that they minded, of course.

T.K. brought his lips to meet Kari's. It was a light kiss, but with T.K. they always were. The care and love behind the kiss was what got Kari every time, no matter how many times they kissed.

Eventually, they broke apart their hands instantly joined together. "I'll see you tomorrow for class?" He said.

"Yeah," she replied.

"Kari, do you think we'll eventually be able to tell the others?"

Kari would be lying if she'd said this was something she hadn't wondered herself but was honestly still shocked by Davis' awakening to feel it was best to bring it up. "I'm sure we will, but it'll be up to the doctor to see how Davis has fared after just getting to see you and Tai."

"Yeah, you're right." T.K. gave Kari one last chaste kiss on the lips before pulling their hands apart. "Bye," he waved before walking away. "Bye," she called back.

Kari watched T.K.'s back get smaller and smaller eventually until he was nothing but a little speck.

Remembering she had work to get ready for, she headed inside the apartment complex.

He knew he should be eating breakfast, but he found himself sitting in his tornado of a bedroom at a loss. Why? Well, for whatever reason he couldn't shake the feeling that something; no someone was missing. That his room used to occupy more than just himself.

His brown eyes scanned his cluttered room for any source to this nagging feeling, only to seemingly come up empty-handed, until… it was then that he spotted it, he shot up from his bed and shuffled over to it. It was a little basket with a blue blanket sprawled inside.

On instinct, he picked up the blanket. The soft fabric running leisurely through his fingers. The sudden feeling that ran through him was heartache, pure and unrelenting heartache. So much so, he hadn't even realized he'd been crying until the lukewarm droplets hit his skin.

He instinctively tried his best to stop the tears, but they refused to let up. To add insult to injury, a voice dripping with sadness hit his ears as if they were behind him.

"Why did you forget about me? I thought we were best friends?"

He turned around without pause. Only for an endless sea of white to blanket his vision once more. It didn't stay this way for long, however, as a bluish outline of what seemed like a creature rested firmly in the middle.

"W—" He took a step forward without hesitation. Only for the translucent creature to scamper off. "Wait! Please! Please don't go!" He cried, feverishly running after them.

"You said we'd be together forever! You LIED!" The voice roared sending what felt like strikes of venom deep into his heart only make the current never-ending pain that was coursing through him all the more apparent.

"N-No! I-I…" but the words refused to leave. His throat felt as if it had been packed with chalk. "Davis the LIAR! That what you are."

"Davis…" the name fell from his lips. The puzzle piece he'd been wanting to finally be able to put into place he knew it. Felt it. This was his name. Davis. So why in learning something's so integral to what made him—him, did he manage to feel so empty.

He dropped to his knees. He didn't bother to stop the tears as they came full force. Instead, all he found he could do was clutch his chest as if he were trying to grab his heart in hopes to numb the pain he was experiencing.

This was the harsh reality of what he was going to have to go through. All just be a semblance of who he once was? He sounded so sure before, but now?

Before he had a chance to wallow in his suffering. He felt something nudging his side.

Through the endless flow of tears, he noticed the translucent creature. He slowly began to reach out in hopes of offering some sort of comfort, but it shrunk back in fear, only for it to quickly lung and sink its teeth into Davis' hand in retaliation."You don't care. You don't even remember who I am!" The voice growled as it's sharp canines only dug in deeper.

Davis flinched as the blood flowed down his hand and dripped into nothingness.

"You're right… Forgetting my best friend. What kind of friend am I? You're the last person I'd want to forget. If I'm being honest I hate that I've forgotten anything at all. To see everyone come into the hospital and treat me like a stranger. I know they don't mean to, but…" his voice soft.

The creature hearing the sorrow-filled words slowly began to retract his canines from Davis' hand.

"I know my words won't changed what's happened. But, I want you to know I'd never want to forget someone I care for so much. You will always and forever be my best friend, Veemon!" Davis without pause grabbed the translucent creature and embraced it with the biggest hug he could muster.

At the same time, the creature began to slowly but surely began to become visible and retain a blue dinosaurish like form. It's red eyes leaking tears. The memories they shared flooding the once white space like and newly white canvas being painted with an endless sea of color.

While this was happening the little girl's smile remained ever-bright. She had no doubt that Davis could do the impossible and get his memories back.