"Lock these chains, throw away the key
Tried to stay away, but you grab a hold of me
She said "Keep walking, sleepwalker, keep walking"

Sleepwalker – Logan Henderson

"TK, I still don't think this is a good idea," Kari said, stepping out of the car.

"Oh, come on, Kari," TK laughed, taking her hand as he shut the door behind her. "The sun is shining; the birds are singing." He hopped onto the sidewalk and threw his arms out. "The world is ours to conquer!"

Kari stared at her best friend, refusing to move from the side of Matt's car. Her face scrunched up in concern as an embarrassed blush spread across her cheeks. "Are you okay? Are you drunk?" She reached the backside of her hand out and walked over to him. "You sure you aren't sick? Here, let me see if you're running a fever."

TK playfully slapped Kari's hand away. "Okay, okay, I get it," he laughed. "I'm going a little overboard. But come on, it really is a nice day out."

"It's a little chilly," Kari noted.

"Well, then, what a better day to try out your new scarf," TK mentioned, flicking the bottom edge of the scarf Kari was wearing. "And it looks good with your dress."

Kari let out a small laugh. "Thanks for the fashion advice, TK."

She turned her head around the downtown road they were on. Small hometown shops lined the one-way roads as people meandered down the sidewalk, taking their time deciding which stores to go to. The store windows were beginning to be decorated for the Halloween season, with little ghosts and pumpkins drawn on with window paint. Leaves littered the ground from the trees planted every couple meters, reminding the patrons that it autumn was upon them. Kari turned around to face the street again. Her eyes followed a row of outdoor string lights zig-zagging across the road, strung from columns holding decorative flags about the town.

Kari sighed happily, taking in her surroundings. "This is a quaint little place, isn't it? I haven't been downtown in years."

"Why don't you show me around?" TK asked, placing a hand on Kari's shoulder. She turned around to be met with his gentle smile. "Last night when I made these plans, I didn't know where we were going to go. But your grandmother told me this morning how you and Tai loved coming here when you were younger." He shrugged, releasing her shoulder before putting his hands in his pockets. "I just thought maybe coming back here would cheer you up, at least for the day."

Kari smiled back, feeling her cheeks turn pink at the embarrassment of her grandmother and TK talking about her as a child. Regardless, she was happy that TK had put some thought into where he was taking her. She couldn't remember the last time the two of them spent the day together without getting drunk that same night.

She grabbed his wrist and started down the sidewalk. "Come on," she beamed, looking back at her best friend with another huge smile. "I know a really good coffeeshop, and I know you need a coffee."

TK let out a nervous laugh as he combed his fingers through his hair. "Yeah, no offense to your grandmother, but her morning tea did not do it for me."

TK and Kari sat at a table in the coffeeshop, people-watching while they waited for their drinks. They watched as old men sat in the corner, all talking about the latest political scandal. A group of moms in bright track suits sat at the other end after unleashing their children to the downtown shops. The two teenagers tried to sit in the middle of the shop to balance out the variety of customers.

"Look on the bright side," TK said, interrupting Kari's thoughts. He pointed over to the group of moms. "At least you're not them yet."

Kari rolled her eyes and smirked as TK laughed. "Hey, look on the bright side." She pointed over the old men, half of who had their face in the newspaper and the other half who were arguing amongst each other. "At least you're not them yet."

TK nudged her with his elbow as the barista brought their drinks to them. Kari had ordered a pink fruit smoothie while TK had a large coffee. They thanked him, and TK immediately dived for the cream and sugar.

"My brother drinks it black, but I don't know how," he laughed, pouring two hazelnut creamers into his drink. "I need at least four creamers for it to resemble something I want to drink."

"Why don't you just drink the creamer?" Kari joked, taking a sip of her smoothie.

TK glared playfully at Kari over his cup while he added in two more. "You wanna criticize anything else I do?"

Kari shrugged. "What have you got?"

TK tasted his drink and decided to add one more packet of hazelnut creamer. He decided to ignore her comment, treating her only to an eyeroll and a fake laugh, followed by a real one. The banter between them felt natural, and that natural feeling felt nice.

TK looked around the shop again, noticing the handwritten signs and the colorful art pieces on the walls. "So, tell me about this place."

Kari sighed, setting down her drink. "Our parents would always bring us here before we left town to go back home. It'd be the first stop of the trip." She pointed to the counter, lined with muffins and bagels. "Our parents would get coffee while Tai and I got to pick something to eat. Tai always loved to try their new seasonal muffins, but I was traditionalist."

As Kari spoke, the barista brought a plate with a giant chocolate chip muffin to their table. He sat it down in front of Kari. She thanked him as he walked away.

"This place has the best chocolate chip muffins," she moaned, taking a bite from her fork. "A trip to Grandma's was never complete without them." She stuck her fork into the muffin and pulled out some, holding it up to TK. "Try it."

TK leaned over the table and took a bite. His eyes widened as the melted chocolate melted even further in his mouth. "Wow, that is good," he agreed, surprised by how appetizing he thought it.

Kari smiled and took another bite. She pointed behind her. "They have a kids' station in the back, set up with coloring books and building blocks. Tai and I spent so much time back there, it was hard to get us back into the car to head home."

TK smiled, listening to Kari go on about old memories with her family. They had been friends for over a decade, but there was still so many things he didn't know about her. The smile on her face was genuine as she pointed out place in the shop that held different stories about her as a child.

It was nice to heard Kari be happy talking about something. Everything they had discussed recently had been serious and sad. Listening to Kari reminiscence made him remember how much he actually missed just being with her, not drunk, not planning to get drunk; just being with her.

Kari had finished her muffin, letting TK swipe a few bites here and there. Kari got up, taking the plate back to the counter. She stood at the table, waiting for TK to get up. "Where to next?"

"I think that's up to you," TK reminded her, getting up from the table. He grabbed both of their drinks and handed Kari hers. "I have no idea where I am."

"There's this bookstore on the other street?" Kari suggested as she led him out of the coffeeshop. "It's got this old-timey vibe to it, and they have the cutest notebooks."

TK laughed at how excited she was about a bookstore. He followed her down the street, keeping a hand in his pockets and a smile on his face.

Kari pointed to a tall tree in the middle of a roundabout at the end of the street. "They decorate that tree for Christmas every year. My grandmother insists we take a family picture there every Christmas." Her hand moved slightly to the left side of the tree. "And that's the branch Tai tried to climb when he was seven, and he fell and broke his arm."

"How festive," TK laughed.

"Tai was crying a lot, but we still took the picture," Kari continued, stopping at the end of the street to look at the tree. "I don't know how I remember that. I was only three."

"There's a lot of things I don't know how I remember," TK agreed, stopping beside her. He looked between the tree and Kari's smiling face. An idea popped into his head.

He grabbed her hand and took off across the street. "Come on!"

"TK, wait!" she exclaimed, following behind him. "You didn't even check for traffic."

TK stopped once he got to the tree and reached into his back pocket. "It's small town. There was nothing coming," he justified as he set down his coffee cup on a bench at the edge of the roundabout. He held onto his cell phone and opened up the camera setting. "I know it's not Christmas, but we can always pretend?"

Kari's face fell into an awkward stare. "TK, I don't know. I really don't wanna document this," she said, alluding to their situation.

"We're not documenting that," TK replied, smiling to try to calm her down. "We're just two friends out having fun."

"I can take the picture for you," an elderly woman sitting on one of the benches said, catching the teenagers' attention. She stood up and walked over to them. "I love seeing a wholesome family photo."

"Oh, ma'am, we aren't–" Kari tried to respond.

"Thank you so much," TK interrupted her, giving her his phone. He came back and put his arm behind Kari's back. "Smile, babe."

"TK, I don't–"

"One, two, three," the woman counted down before a flash went off. Kari had quickly given the camera a soft smile before falling back to her awkward face.

TK thanked the woman and grabbed his phone. He looked at the picture and turned it around to Kari. "Not a bad one, I'd say."

"TK, delete it," Kari pleaded.

TK shoved his phone back in his pocket and took her hand. "Nope, not a chance," he smirked, checking the traffic before crossing the road. "So where is this bookstore?"

Kari huffed and rolled her eyes. "Down the corner," she answered, relenting to TK's stubborn choice for now. TK smirked and followed the direction Kari told him to go, not letting go of her hand. Kari barely noticed, still mad about the picture.

TK turned the corner and saw a sign for the book store. He opened the door for Kari, letting her go in first. The annoyed look on her face melted as she looked around the cramped store. There were several aisles crossing the floor: some with books, some with records and albums. The outer walls held large posters of famous book covers and album art. The whole store smelled like a new book.

TK caught her attention as he walked over the posters on the wall. "Read that one, that one, that one," he listed, pointing to the different books. He stopped at one poster and shuddered. "I've read too much of that one."

Kari followed and read the title. "David Copperfield? Isn't he a magician?"

"And a poor British bastard. Surprised I'm the one with the drinking problem and not him." TK added, shaking his head and he turned around the selves in the aisle. He skimmed through some of the book covers, quickly reading over the titles.

Kari went on ahead to the notebook section. She skimmed through a few beautiful covers, looking over the day planners. She reminded herself that she would have to get a new one once she returned to school.

"Kari, look what I found," TK exclaimed, rushing over to her with a book in his hand. "This was my favorite book when I was a child. My mom read it to me so many times, I had it memorized." He laughed, flipping through the pages. "She thought I knew how to read when I was three because of this book."

Kari tilted the book to see the cover and smiled brightly. "Goodnight Moon," she reminisced. "This was one of my favorites, too."

TK stood beside her and flipped through to the last pages. "Goodnight stars. Goodnight air," he read aloud. "Goodnight noises everywhere."

Kari let out a small laugh. "You know, this is probably the book that got you into reading. You wouldn't be who you are without this."

TK smirked down at her, closing the book. "I don't think Goodnight Moon made me an alcoholic teenager."

Rolling her eyes, Kari playfully shoved TK away from her and walked over to the music section.

TK continued to laugh as Kari walked away from him. His laughter died down as he looked down at the cover of the children's book. He remembered sitting on his mother's lap, ready for bed as she read the book to him. Matt would always be in the doorway, not wanting be the seven-year-old who liked to read little kid books, but wanting to hear his mother's voice.

It was the year before the divorce, and most likely the jumping point of TK's problems. While the trauma from the Digital World was his main focus, there were a lot of unresolved issues he knew he had with this parents' divorce. Any memory he had of when his family was together, like his mother reading him the book in his hand, punched him in the gut.

TK looked up from the book and over at Kari, thumbing through some CDs. He knew they could be a family. Being with Kari would be easy. She was someone he could trust, someone he could confide in. She always had his back and he always had hers. They could raise their child together and be the family he didn't have.

He shook his head again and sighed. He knew they couldn't. They were still teenagers and he wasn't even sure of his own romantic feelings towards her. Regardless, he knew he couldn't put their child through whatever dysfunctional family life TK and Kari would give them.

He looked down at the copy of Goodnight Moon in his hand. He didn't think. He walked over the counter and paid for it.

Kari came up behind him, noticing he was buying something. She leaned over his arm and looked at the book. "You're really buying that?"

"Yeah," TK answered, getting his change back. "I don't know why, but I am."

Kari just smiled as TK thanked the man at the counter. She grabbed onto the back of his elbow as the two left the shop. TK looked down in his bag, staring at the cover while letting Kari lead him down the sidewalk. He took another drink of his coffee, finishing it and throwing it away in the nearest garbage can. Kari did the same with her drink.

"It's about noon," Kari informed him, stopping them along the edge of the street. "There's normally some musicians in the park by now. And there's a pretty pond in the center where Tai and I would feed ducks."

TK turned his attention away from the book and back to Kari. "That sounds like fun. But it is around lunchtime. You wanna get something to eat first?"

"TK, I just had a huge muffin like an hour ago," she reminded him.

He blushed, embarrassed. "Yeah, but I don't know how the, uh… the baby throws off your eating patterns." He knew he had to phrase any concern he had about her pregnancy carefully. She wasn't as open about it as he was about his addiction, even with one of the few people who knew.

Kari imitated his embarrassed blush and placed her hand on her stomach for a moment. "I think we're fine," she answered.

TK tried to hide his shock about her phrasing. Kari very rarely ever mentioned anything about the baby in any context other than professional. Instead of questioning her response, he laughed it off. "Okay, just thought I'd ask."

"How considerate," Kari sarcastically snickered. She grabbed his hand and led him through the small crowd of people. "The park's in the center of town, just up ahead."

TK followed her, holding onto her hand to not lose her in the crowd. Once they made it to the park, Kari began pointing out various areas with memories attached to them. TK listened as she remembered family reunions under the pavilion by the playground, flipping a small paddleboat in the pond, and a date she had with a local boy when she was still too young to be dating.

"Wait, he took you to a park on the first date?" TK asked, laughing at the idea.

"Shut up, it was really sweet, considering we were like ten," Kari reprimanded him, still smiling. "That was my first date. He was my grandmother's neighbor."

"I guess when you're ten, there's not really much else you can do," TK joked, throwing his hands behind his head. "Did he take you the candy store, too? You split one of those giant swirly lollipops?"

Kari huffed and smirked, turning around from TK to face the pond, puffing out her chest. "Someone sounds jealous."

"Me? Jealous of him?" TK stopped and turned around, catching her attention. "Kari, he took you out on a park date. I got to fuck you."

Kari blushed and turned back from the pond to him. "One: I don't think that was his objective at the age of ten. Two: you see where that got us." She pointed down to her stomach. "And don't talk so bluntly about it," she joked, walking towards the pond and leaving TK on the sidewalk.

TK scoffed and followed her. "Yeah, like that was my plan."

Kari giggled as she sat down on a bench near the edge of the pond. TK sat down beside her and threw his arms over the back of the bench. "And how do you want me to say it? 'The room was filled with the scent of beer and teenage vomit. Your lips tasted like vodka as I pinned you against the wall, dizzy and disoriented. I held on to your wrists as you planned our escape–'"

"Enough, enough," Kari begged, interrupting his dramatic monologue. "It'd be best if you just didn't say it."

The two laughed as the sound of a saxophone player down the sidewalk from them played. The two were comfortably silent, staring out at the pond.

"TK, can I ask you a question?" Kari said, interrupting the silence. "I've had a great time with you today, and I don't want my question to ruin that."

TK mentally buckled himself in for whatever loaded question he knew Kari was going to throw her way. "Yeah, go on."

"Why were you so adamant about doing this?" Kari asked, returning her gaze back to the pond. "I don't like talking about the baby because it's part of my life that I just want to go away. But whenever I'm with you, you always want to talk about it like it's a lighthearted thing."

TK sighed and stared back out at the pond. "I don't know, Kari. I guess it's because I'm used to talking about hard things now. It helps me process what's going on with me instead of bottling them up like I used to."

Kari was silent for a moment before speaking again. "You would tell me if you relapsed, wouldn't you?"

TK didn't answer. He felt his heart race as his mind tried to piece together how Kari had found out.

When he didn't answer right away, Kari continued, "I appreciate that you care so much about me, but I don't want you to use me as a reason to bottle up something bad you might have done." She faced him, her face stoic. "Did you relapse?"

TK shook his head. "No." He turned to look at her, completely serious. "No, I didn't." He felt bad about lying to her, but he knew that he couldn't tell her. He couldn't make the weekend about him. He drove three hours to comfort her. She needed him to be there for her, not the other way around.

Kari sighed and faced the pond again. "Okay," she responded.

The two remained quiet as they watched the ducks swim in the pond. The sound of little kids running towards the animals on the other side rang out, as their parents followed behind to make sure they stayed out of trouble. People were starting to fill the park as the chilly October noon hit. TK felt a shiver run down Kari's body as she sat next to him. Instinctively, he took his jacket off and place it on her lap.

"You don't have to," Kari said, pushing the jacket off.

"Yeah, I do," TK answered, throwing an arm around her shoulder and pulling her closer. He continued to watch the children across the pond throw bread at the ducks. "Don't want these people in the park thinking I'm a deadbeat baby daddy."

Kari responded with a sigh before resting her head on TK's shoulder. "Thank you for doing this today. I had a lot of fun," she thanked. "Maybe this what we needed to do instead of binge drinking."

TK couldn't help but smile at her comparison. "Probably would have avoided a lot of our problems that way."

Kari laughed, removing her head from TK's shoulder. He looked down to make sure everything was okay and was greeted by her friendly smile. "I mean it. This really made me happy," she said. "But can we cut it short? My feet really hurt and I have to pee so bad."

TK looked at her confused for a second before bursting into laughter. "Sounds like a reasonable excuse. Come on, let's go." He stood up, giving her a hand to help her off the bench. "How about we order pizza and watch a movie tonight?"

"Now you're speaking my language."

TK took a final long drag before putting out his cigarette on the back porch. Night had settled in and the sound of crickets took over. TK was alone, getting his fix on another bad habit of his before going to bed. He was leaving early in the morning to beat Matt home, remembering how he didn't tell his brother he was taking his car.

Making sure the cigarette was completely put out, TK stuck it in the garbage can outside, not wanting Kari nor her grandmother to find it. He wasn't worried about the smell; he needed to take a shower anyway. The October night was chilly as the wind ran passed his bare chest. He knew not to smoke in the only night shirt he had brought with him.

TK turned towards the door, taking in the cold air one last time. The chill felt nice after the anxious day he had with Kari. She kept insisting that she had fun, but something had felt off the whole day. He shook his head of the thought and walked into the house, locking the back door behind him.

He made his way upstairs and to the bathroom. He had already set some soap and shampoo by the shower. He noticed Kari had placed a fresh towel on the sink for him with a small post-it note.

"You smell," he read the note aloud, laughing and rolling his eyes.

TK turned the shower on, remembering how Kari taught him to work it that morning. He moved his hand under the faucet, feeling for the right temperature before turning the shower head on. He stripped the rest of his clothes off and got in, letting the hot water rush over his face.

TK had always been a fan of showers. They made me feel better after a stressful basketball game and helped sober him up the morning after a party. A shower let him be alone with his thoughts, which wasn't always a good thing.

He thought back on his day with Kari. It was fun and he smiled at the thought of the genuine smiles that crossed her face. But something didn't add up to him. Something didn't feel right.

As he rinsed the shampoo from his hair, a knock came from the bathroom door. "TK?" Kari's voice rang out sheepishly.

"Yeah?" TK answered, equally as shy.

"I hate to bother you, but..." Kari started, as TK heard the door shut behind her. He heard the clank of the toilet lid hitting the back before a heaving noise replaced the sound of Kari talking.

"Oh, god," TK shouted as he quickly shut off the water. He jumped out of the shower and grabbed the towel off the sink, quickly wrapping it around his waist. He dived down behind Kari, taking her hair from her hand and holding it back for her.

Kari tried to swat his hand away before she vomited again. "Stop that; I'm fine," she insisted angrily.

"Aren't you, like, twenty-six weeks? Shouldn't morning sickness be over by now?" TK asked, putting his free wet hand on her back.

"It's not morning sickness," Kari huffed, reaching up for the handle. She turned herself around, leaning against the sink cabinet. "It's just nausea. It happens sometimes."

"Great timing," TK groaned, trying to laugh to lighten the mood. "Couldn't you have vomited when I wasn't naked?"

"Trust me; this isn't what I wanted either," Kari huffed back. She reached for the edge of the sink, trying to hoist herself back up. TK grabbed her other hand, pulling her onto her feet. "Sorry I interrupted your shower," Kari apologized, cupping some water in her hand from the sink to rinse out her mouth.

"It's whatever. I was pretty much done," TK said, feeling his hair for any more shampoo residue.

Kari rinsed out her mouth and reached for the door handle. "Well, uh, goodnight," she said, leaving TK wet and naked again.

"Night," TK responded. He picked his clothes up off the floor and reminded himself to get the rest of his shower stuff in the morning. He shook his head, shaking some water from his blond hair, secured his towel around his waist, and went to the guest room he was staying in.

Once in his room, TK quickly dried off and put on a pair of sweatpants. He opted to remain shirtless for a bit, letting the heat from the shower dissipate from his body, but also remembering that he only brought one shirt he could actually sleep in.

He lay down in bed and grabbed David Copperfield from the side table, skimming over the page he had bookmarked. His eyes glanced over the words, but didn't take anything in.

He was worried about Kari.

TK checked the time on his phone. It was about ten. He had a text from Kami, a short message saying she missed him. TK opened the message and positioned his thumbs to respond, but he didn't move. He couldn't respond to her, not while Kari was in the next room.

He groaned, sitting up in bed. He slid his phone into his pocket and walked back over to his bag. His hand searched in the small pocket for his pill bottle. Grabbing it, he realized he didn't have anything to take it with. He groaned again, tightening his grip on the orange bottle, and walked out of the room and towards the kitchen.

TK filled up a glass with water and instinctually grabbed another glass. He knew that throwing up caused dehydration and Kari could use a glass of water herself. He put his pill bottle in his other pocket before returning back upstairs with the two glasses.

He used his foot to knock on her door. "Hey, come let me in. My hands are full."

Kari quickly opened the door, confused as to why TK was knocking. He held a glass out towards her with a friendly smile. "Drink," he insisted. "You need it after vomiting."

Kari blushed, but took the glass anyway. "I'll just be up peeing half the night, you know?" she said, moving from the door to let him in.

"Better than being dehydrated," TK reminded, setting his own glass down to reach his pill bottle from his pocket.

Kari sat back down on her bed and stared at his bottle. "If you say so." Neither spoke as she watched TK take his pill like it was nothing. "So those are what keep the nightmares away?"

"Huh?" TK asked, turning around to face her. He looked at the orange bottle in his hands and turned it to read the label. "Yeah, these are them. They're supposed to be for blood pressure or something, but doctors say they help with PTSD stuff, too."

Kari took a drink from her glass and sat it on her bedside. "What else do you have to do?" she sheepishly asked, not wanting to prod into dangerous territory.

TK shrugged and set the bottle top of her dresser drawers. "Well, I have this pill at night, anxiety meds for the morning, therapy twice a week; although that should be reduce to once a week soon." He leaned against the dresser, counting off the list with his fingers. "I have to go back to the rehab center once a month for an evaluation so I can get my prescriptions. I wasn't allowed to go anywhere without my mom or Matt, but that was just my mom's rule."

"That sounds like a lot," Kari said.

"Ehh, it's not too bad," TK waved off, taking another drink. "It kinda sucked in the beginning, but you just get used to it, I guess. And my mom started trusting me to be on my own a bit more, but that's probably over now." He remembered the fight he had with his mother and quickly tried to get it out of his head.

"TK, talk to me about it," Kari asked, patting a seat next to her on her bed.

"It's pretty boring, Kari," TK replied, unsure. He knew exactly what she meant by it, and he wasn't sure whether their drinking days and the aftermath were topics that they should go down. "I don't think you'll wanna know."

"I wanna know everything," she insisted, patting her bed again. "Please? I may have been there with you for some of it, but I have no idea what went on. All I know is from your intervention."

TK cringed, remembering the day Matt had gathered the DigiDestined together to confront TK on his problem. He and Kari had fought that day after she told them all that they had been sleeping together when they got drunk. He hadn't spoken to most of them since then, and neither had Kari.

Sighing, he moved over to her bed and sat down next to her, holding his glass between his knees. He looked over at her anxious face with a soft smile. "Where do you want me to start: the cocaine, the first drink, Angemon's death, or my parents' divorce?"

Kari's eyes widened. "This goes back to when you were four?"

"Well, I mean, not really," TK answered, shaking his head. "But it didn't help either. You know most my issues about my parents' divorce, so it wasn't really even worth mentioning."

"Tell me about it anyway," Kari insisted.

TK sighed. "Well, my therapist thinks it's a deep-rooted part of my anxiety issues, because half of my family was torn away from me before I could even start school. I'm apparently consistently looking for a family structure to provide stability in my life." He turned towards her with a smug smile. "That's one of the reasons the Digimon and you guys mean so much to me, especially Patamon. You guys provided me with the familial bonds that were severed at too young an age."

Kari stared back at him wide-eyed. "You said that so... medically."

TK shrugged, setting his water glass on her night stand behind her. "Ehh, when you hear the same thing twice a week, the wording gets stuck in your head."

Kari nodded and stared down at her lap. "I guess that's why losing Angemon affected you so much."

TK sighed and threw himself back on her bed, laying down with his hands behind his head. "It was that and not really understanding what had happened to me. I immediately got his DigiEgg back and things felt fine. I knew Patamon was fine, but I still had to watch him die, ya know? I mean, I was only eight." TK turned his head towards her, locking eyes with neutral look on his face. "You should know, with Wizardmon and all."

Kari flinched at the mention of her old friend. "I guess, but I don't think that's the same as losing your partner."

TK turned away to face the ceiling again. "Perhaps," he gave in, still neutral about the whole subject. "After our first adventure was done, I still really couldn't talk about it. Everyone thought we weren't going to see our Digimon again, so I couldn't really talk to you guys. My mom flat-out refused to acknowledge what had happened, so I couldn't talk to her. And I was only eight. I wasn't really sure what I was feeling or how to approach it. Even if I did have the support I needed, I didn't have the ability to comprehend that I was traumatized."

Kari looked over at her friend laying horizontally on her bed. His legs hung over the edge and his feet touched the floor, but his back lay straight across, looking up at her ceiling. His face remained calm, but not emotionless. She didn't understand how he could be so calm about the worst things that had happened to him.

"When did the nightmares start?" Kari shyly asked.

"Probably around our second adventure," TK answered, still calm about the topic that he was medicated for. "I had bad dreams about it up until then, but they were few and far between. It was about the time the Digimon Emperor showed up that they came pretty consistent. And well, you know what I did about that."

Kari nodded again, vaguely remembering their nights spent together blackout drunk. "I do. I was there for most of it."

TK snorted, looking over at her with a smirk. "Physically, but mentally, I don't know where we were."

Kari rolled her eyes. "Whatever. At least we have that excuse." Her smile at TK's response faded. "So I get why you drank, but why the fuck would you do cocaine?"

TK's smirk fell back to his neutral stare at the ceiling. "I don't know. I was mad. I knew what was going to happen in the morning, so I tried to make the most of what time I had left. I didn't plan on overdosing. But did I die? No."

"Thank god you didn't," Kari huffed, crossing her arms at how nonchalant TK talked about his overdose. "That would have made my adoption decision a lot harder."

TK turned over on his side, holding his head up in his hand. He raised an eyebrow questioningly at her. "So you would have kept our baby if I had died?"

Kari blushed angrily. "I don't know!" she exclaimed, grabbing the pillow next to her and wrapping her arms around it. "Maybe we'd need it for a new Crest of Hope or something."

"Or you would have missed me and you wouldn't have been able to give up someone who looked like me," TK teased.

Kari hit TK's side with the pillow in her arms. "Of course, I'd miss you, you idiot," Kari defended. "Now, can we stop talking about if you were dead? It's bumming me out."

TK laughed and flopped back down on his back. "Fine, fine," he conceded, grabbing the pillow from her and putting it under his head. "That's just real backwards reasoning for keeping this baby, that's all."

Kari exhaled loudly, enough for TK to hear a distraught tone. "Okay, I've asked you enough questions. Now it's your turn."

TK turned back to face her. "What do you mean?"

Kari reached over for her water, not wanting to look at her best friend. "You said last night that you wanted to talk about the baby. Well, I'm giving you a chance. You can ask anything you want; no holding back. But when you're done, I have something I have to say."

TK finally sat up. He pushed himself back against the wall and positioned his hands in his lap. "Okay," he conceded, still confused. "I really hadn't prepared any questions. I just figured we'd talk about it."

"Well, you certainly felt the need to acknowledge this pregnancy any chance you got today, so I'm sure you have some opinions you'd like to share."

TK flinched at the harsh nature of her comment. He felt his cheeks get hot. "Look, I'm sorry if I got a little out of hand. I just don't think this is the end of the world, and I don't think it's something we should necessarily hide from those who care about us, or complete strangers in a town we don't even live in."

"I told you last night how I feel about that," Kari reminded him.

TK rubbed his eyes with his palms. "I know, I know," he groaned before sighing again. "I just don't think we should be sulking about something we can't change."

Kari paused, waiting to see if TK had anything else to say. "Okay, noted," she conceded. Her nails clinked against her glass in thought. "I'll make you a deal."

TK raised an eyebrow again. "Okay?"

"We'll tell the DigiDestined before we graduate, but only after it's born," Kari planned, holding out her hand towards TK. "Deal?"

TK took her hand and firmly shook it. "I can live with that. Does that mean I get to keep the tree picture as proof?"

Kari rolled her eyes and took her hand back. "I guess, but only if you keep it super sealed and protected." She paused for a moment, taking a drink from her water and setting it on her nightstand again. Her lips formed a tight line as she eyes stared down at the blanket over her legs. "Can I, uh… can I see that picture?"

"Uh, yeah, sure," TK stammered as he fumbled his hand inside his sweatpants pocket. He set the pillow he had up by Kari and moved to sit next to her. His fingers stumbled to open the picture as fast as he could.

Once the picture was on his phone screen, Kari let out a small laugh. "God, we actually look like a couple."

TK snorted. "At least you smiled in it instead of that nasty look I got from you after." His eyes left the screen to look at Kari, who was staring down at the picture with a faint smile on her face. Despite knowing her for years, he couldn't place what she was feeling by her smile. He looked over at her nightstand and her barely drunken water.

He nudged her lightly with his elbow. "Drink," he demanded, nodding his head towards her water.

Kari did as she was told, grabbing the glass. "What a caring husband you are," she joked, taking another drink.

"If all it takes to be your husband is to hold your hair back when you puke and keep you hydrated after, we've been married for years now," TK laughed.

"You do know how to take care of hungover me."

"Which I guess is pretty much the same as pregnant you."

"Ehh, you're not wrong," Kari shrugged, taking one more drink before putting her glass back down. She turned back over and took TK's phone from his hand. He didn't protest. He really didn't care about Kari having his phone. She looked over the picture again in silence.

"Do you think we could have done it?" TK asked.

Kari faced him, confused. "Done what?"

A rush of heat ran across TK's face. "Let's just say this happened to us later. Like when we're out of school and have careers and shit." He looked up from the picture to Kari's confused face. "Do you think we could have raised this baby?"

Kari felt her cheeks get hot to match her best friend's. Her gaze darted away from his and she shoved his phone back at him. "I don't know," she quickly answered, obvious flustered by the question. "I think that would depend a lot on where we were, like if we were in love or something."

TK shook his head, trying to throw the red from his face. "Sorry, that was a dumb question."

"It's whatever," Kari said, curling herself up in her blanket. "Any more questions?"

TK sighed, putting his phone beside him on the bed. "I guess I have one more," he replied. "Do you think it's going to have Digimon partner? Or a crest?"

Kari looked over at him confused. "I don't know. Why would it?"

"Well, I think this kind of a special case," TK answered, shrugging uneasily at his explanation. "This isn't like if Joe and his girlfriend had a child. This child is a mixture of two DigiDestined; one-hundred percent DigiDestined, not mention the child of two crests that are heavily intertwined."

"That is kind of suspicious," Kari agreed.

"Do you think there's another prophecy out there about our crests that has to deal with this?" TK asked. "Maybe there's a DigiEgg already waiting for whatever combination of Hope and Light this child is."

"Then I guess that's a question for Gennai, or Elecmon, or anyone from the Digital World," Kari answered curtly.

"If our child does have a Digimon partner and a crest, I feel like it's our duty to make sure it knows about the Digital World."

"TK, do you want us to keep this baby?"

The blonde's eyes shot wide open. The blush he had gotten rid of came back at full force. He hadn't expected that question. Ever since she had told him, everything she had done had never given him the choice on what to do about their child. The bluntness of the question took him aback.

"I-I don't know," he stammered quickly. "I mean, like, I think we're doing the right thing in the end. I'm an alcoholic little prick who wants to study literature for a living. I'm not going to be able to provide for myself, much less you and a baby. A-And if you don't want to raise it, then I don't want to force you into that. But I don't know, some part of me just thinks that maybe we could do it, ya know? I want to be a good dad and not let my child go through what I did with my parents, which kinda seems like a reason to go through the adoption in this case. I just–"

"Shut up," Kari interrupted. She grabbed his hand and placed it on her stomach, immediately stopping his rambling. "It was a yes or no question."

TK didn't speak. Under his hand, he felt a slight movement. "It's moving. Is it kicking? I feel a kick," he whispered. "That's a real baby."

"Yeah," Kari replied, holding his hand still. "That could be our real baby, if you want."

TK's eyes remained glued to his hand. "What are you saying?"

Kari sighed, remaining as serious as she had been when she originally asked the question. "TK, ever since you found out, I haven't been able to tell if this is what you really want. At first, you were really clingy and wanted to know everything. Then you backed off for a little bit and that was fine until recently. And then today in town, you acted like we were a family and that we planned this baby and nothing was wrong."

She moved TK's chin to look at her. Their eyes locked, Kari's serious stare looking at TK's scared and confused blue pair. "Do you want us to be a family? Do you want to raise this baby?"

TK's heart pounded in his chest. It was a loaded question. He knew his simple yes or no answer could change his life forever. He had never even given him a straight forward answer on what he wanted to do. He looked into her eyes, noting how critical they looked staring back at him. He had the power to change both of their lives more than he already had.

He couldn't do that to her.

"No," he whispered, taking his hand from her stomach. "I can't do that you. I can't that to this child. Whatever you want to do, I'll do with you."

Kari stared at him for another few seconds before breathing a sigh of relief. "Oh, thank god," she sighed, leaning back down on her pillow. "I thought for a moment you were going to say yes."

"Then why did you give me the option?" TK argued.

Kari shrugged. "Because I didn't before."

TK huffed, throwing himself down onto his pillow beside her. The two sat in silence for a few moments, letting their eyes flutter with sleepiness.

"Okay, I'm falling asleep and I think I'm out of questions," TK spoke up, catching Kari's attention. "Now what was that thing you wanted to tell me?"

TK heard a faint exhale come from Kari as she stared up at her ceiling. "Stay here with me tonight," she said. "I want one more night with you."

"What do you mean, one more?" TK asked, knowing he was going to stay with her no matter what.

"Can you turn off the light?" Kari asked, crawling further under her blanket as she turned on her side away from TK. "I'd get it but I'm almost twenty-seven weeks pregnant and getting out of bed isn't fun."

TK didn't argue with her. He jumped over her out of bed and turned the light off, remembering to pick up his prescription bottle in the morning.

As he crawled back into bed with her, he lifted up the blanket on his side. "I hope you're okay with me being shirtless. My other sleeping shirt is dirty."

"TK, I've woken up next to you, both of us completely naked," Kari reminded him, not turning around to look at him. "You only wearing pants doesn't bother me."

"Point taken," TK whispered, laying down on his back. He stared up at the ceiling, looking at the light entering from the window. "Now what did you mean by one more night?"

"Do you honestly think things are going to go back to normal?" Kari bluntly asked, tugging on the blanket she was sharing with him. "Because nothing is ever going to be how it was. I'm always going to look at you as the guy who got me pregnant, and you're always going to look at me as the girl you got pregnant."

"Kari, you were my friend before all this," TK reminded, offended that she would even suggest that.

"Friend or not, this changes everything about us," Kari said, her stern voice cracking a little. "We're never going to be able to go back to a time before I had your child. That's an awkward relationship to have with anyone, let alone your best friend."

TK heard a cry in her voice and didn't respond. He didn't know what to say. He knew things were different between them, but he never thought about it to the extent Kari obviously had. Were things never going to be how they were? TK had thought the joking and fun they had that day had been a perfect example of normality between them. But he also knew she was right in her own way. They would always have this awkward experience between them.

"Kari, I don't know what to say," TK admitted, defeated.

"Say that this is normal," Kari asked, feeling a tear fall down her cheek to her pillow. "For tonight, say that the partying or drinking or fucking we did was normal. Say this pregnancy is normal. I just want one normal night of being with my best friend."

TK sighed, trying to put on a comforting smile that he knew she wouldn't see. "Well, for one thing, guy and girl best friend normally don't sleep together."

"Then don't be my best friend," she quickly pleaded. "Be my lover, the father of my child. Just be something to make this seem normal. If only for one night."

TK blinked a few times, listening to Kari try to hold in some tears. "This is really contradictory towards everything you've done to me this whole pregnancy," he pointed out.

"I know," Kari lightly cried. "I'm sorry."

TK wanted things to go back to how they were before they got into the mess they were in. Kari meant a lot to him, as a DigiDestined and as a friend. The thought of having an awkward relationship with her forever didn't sit well with him. She had been forcing him out of her life the whole pregnancy, just to tell him that things weren't going to be fine afterward. He felt weird and mad. But hearing a soft sniffle from her best friend let him know that he couldn't disappoint her any further.

He reminded himself to get a drink with Kami when he got home the next night.

He turned over on his side and threw an arm over Kari and the blanket they shared. He moved a piece of her hair behind her ear as he softly shushed her. "It's okay; don't cry," he whispered, rubbing her arm. "I'm a horrible husband, I know."

"You'll be a great husband someday," Kari said through a light sniffle. "Some lady out there is going to be really lucky to have you."

"I'll be sure to find a lucky lady in my next group therapy session," TK joked, pulling her in closer to him. "This brings back memories, huh?"

"They were drunken memories, so I don't know how much there is to bring back," Kari pointed out, still quietly laughing at his joke.

The two lay in comfortable silence. Kari felt TK's chest breathing into her back as TK waited for Kari's body to stop shaking from her crying. They knew it wasn't the first time they were in that position, but it was the first time they weren't drunk or hungover. TK couldn't quite place a finger on it, but nothing felt off about the arrangement, probably because he had done it before. He knew he wanted to make Kari happy, and he also wanted to spend one last time with her before things went downhill between them again. He wasn't complaining about the situation.

TK and Kari had always melded together somehow. The thought of him and Kari not being able to be friends like they were didn't sit well in his stomach. He wanted her in his life no matter what. But he knew Kari had made up her mind, and she knew she was never going to be able to see TK the same way. He didn't know what he would have to do to change that, or if he could at all. But being with her there felt right, under the circumstances. He still didn't know whether his feelings towards her were platonic or romantic, and maybe he would never know. But whatever they were doing that night felt reasonable to TK's emotions towards her.

"Hey, Kari?" he whispered, hoping she wasn't asleep yet.

"Yeah?" Kari answered back sleepily.

"I'm leaving Goodnight Moon here," he said, grabbing onto her hand. "I want you to give it the adoptive parents for the baby to have from us."

Kari gave his hand a squeeze. "So that's why you bought it?"

"Maybe subconsciously; I don't know," he admitted, snaking his arm under her side.

Kari lifted her body up and turned to face TK, pushing him off her. TK stayed on his side, facing her. Her eyes weren't open, but a small smile was resting on her face, along with the water stains of the tears that had fallen down her cheek. "That's kind-hearted man that knocked me up," she joked.

TK smiled with her and brushed another strain of hair behind her ear. She looked so peaceful falling asleep beside him. She was comfortable, TK could tell. She never had to worry when TK was around. He was going to miss that dynamic of theirs.

Just when he had thought that he had move on, she roped him back in, only to send him on his way again.

"Marry me, Kari."

"You're an idiot."

AN: This is the longest chapter update so far at 32 pages and 9,367 words. I hope I did it justice and didn't fill it horribly. I've been looking forward to writing this section, because it gives TK a lot of closure about his situation with Kari, but also opens up some problems that he has about it as well. And as someone who ships Takari, it's kinda fun to write them not really knowing how they feel about each other and having to work it out under stressful circumstances. To be honest, a possible Takari romantic plotline is the only thing I don't have quite figured out yet. We'll see, I guess.

Also, updates will be coming slower again, as I start my new job in two days. I absolutely plan on getting this story done before school starts back, however, because I do not want to take this into a new school year with me. That did not go over well the last time.

That behind said, I should have around three or four more chapters left, with perhaps two epilogues to this story. Everything has pretty much been charted out. I can't wait to finish this story for you.