Only Hope Chapter 10: Unfamiliar, a digimon fanfic

Hey, guys. Before we begin, I'd like to thank Tai-for-you, Birdboy, and Adam for faithfully reviewing. You'll be glad to hear that this story is definitely approaching a turning point. You see, a very surprising development is about to take place—one which may wrap things up rather…unexpectedly. Read on, and you'll see what I mean. --Sacred Dust

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CHAPTER TEN: Unfamiliar

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Beeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeep.

Sora opened her eyes and immediately felt like groaning. She'd always hated that alarm with a passion. Her arm groped out from under thin bedsheets, searching blindly for the clock on her nightstand. She found herself wishing that Biyomon could still be with her; if anything deserved a Wing Blade attack, it was this horrible alarm clock.

Glancing down, Sora spotted her tennis racket on the floor and had a bright idea. Casually, she snatched it up and lashed out in the clock's vicinity with deadly precision. After a few vicious attacks, the evil Clockmon was silenced forever.

"That's better," she smiled, stifling a yawn as she sat up in bed. Her bedroom was flooded with so much sunlight that it appeared magical, which reminded her of today's plan: she was going to the beach, where she could swim and laugh and get a tan (or at least try to) and…see T.K. Not that she was looking forward to that most of all…T.K. was just nice. That was it.

It was only 9 a.m. now, but Sora knew the value of getting an early start. It was one of the few appealing traits she'd gotten from her mother, in her humble opinion.

Quickly selecting some clothes from her closet, as well as a fresh bra and panties from the dresser, she stepped out of her bedroom into the hall and made a beeline for the shower. She could hear it going already—someone was in there. But who was it? Both of her parents should be out of the house by now. Her father usually left at around six, and her mother around seven-thirty.

Frowning, Sora barged into the bathroom and threw open the shower curtain to reveal T.K. Takaishi, casually standing there with a washcloth in his hands, probably using up what was left of the hot water.

"Good morning," he greeted her with an innocent smile.

Sora gaped at him, her peach-red eyes as wide as saucers. "Wh-what…are you…doing here?"

"Well, I am your husband, you know," T.K. answered, raising a blonde eyebrow.

"What?"

"Come on, don't tell me you've forgotten already. Heck, we've been married for six months Although you were saying a lot of weird things in your sleep last night, so I can hardly blame you for being out of it this morning." T.K. reasoned, looking very calm and very naked.

"I…was dreaming?"

Sora couldn't believe it. The realization hit her like a ton of bricks. The last "few days" she'd thought she was experiencing had all been a dream. In real life, the puzzle was already put together—she and T.K. were married!

"So…it was all a dream." She said, blinking, amazed.

"I'd say so," said T.K. "Now that that's cleared up, would you mind closing the curtain?"

Sora went red as a tomato, trying unsuccessfully to look away from him.

"Unless, of course, you'd like to join me?"

…Oh, well.

She opened her mouth to answer.

--THE END

Beeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeep.

Sora jerked upright in bed, breathing hard, staring wildly at her surroundings. The room now appeared less surreal, and her tennis racket was in the closet where she'd put it last night.

"Wait…that was all a dream." She sighed with relief, rubbing the sleep out of her eyes and shutting off the maddening alarm with trembling hands. Although the idea of T.K. showering in front of her was not all that bad in itself…the rest was just too bizarre, and she was very glad it hadn't been real.

Still, she sat there for about ten minutes, trying to make sense of the crazy dream. When she finally summoned the courage to leave her bed, she selected her clothes more slowly than before (a blue tank top and jean shorts) and padded cautiously down the hall, praying she wouldn't hear the shower going again. Thankfully, the bathroom was silent.

She pushed the door open, switched on the light, and very slowly drew back the shower curtain. The bathtub was empty.

Sora breathed easier now, and reached out to turn on the faucet. Yep; there was still some hot water left. Good.

Trying to focus on the real world now, Sora shed her clothes and turned on the shower. Upon stepping inside, that unusually vivid image of T.K. flashed through her mind, and she immediately shoved her face into the hot water to drive it out. She stepped back, gasping, and waited a few cautious moments. Thankfully, the thought didn't return. That's better.

She lathered a cloth with soap and began to wash, being sure to think only wholesome, innocent thoughts—about puppies, kittens, ducklings, and chirping birds. Clichéd, perhaps, but as long as she could keep herself from thinking…thoughts like that about a sixteen-year-old boy who was only supposed to be a friend—well, anything else would do. She smiled as she covered herself in soapsuds, envisioning all the happy little animals in The Valley of Duckies and Bunnies. Awww…how cute. She found the bunnies' ears particularly amusing; all white and floppy, rather like a white fisherman's hat. Which, come to think of it, reminded her of T.K

Sora jumped under the showerhead again, staying there even longer this time. It was going to be a very long day.

Joe Kido looked carefully through his bag to make sure he had everything he needed. Even if his purposes today were merely recreational, he always took it upon himself to be prepared.

"Let's see," he muttered, checking off the items he'd packed on a rather long list. "Extra pair of swimming trunks, just in case of emergency…one regular towel, one extra towel…one spare pair of glasses…the first aid kit, of course…one plastic bag so we'll have a place to put the broken glass and syringes sticking out of the sand…disposable plastic gloves to pick them up with…sunscreen, sunblock, and sun lotion—I think they're the same thing, but I'll take all three just in case…a camera, since I know nobody else will remember to bring one…sunglasses…bottled water…"

"Emergency rations, fire extinguisher, inflatable life raft, shark poison…" his older brother added, poking his head in the doorway.

"Oh! I forgot those." Joe said, jumping up from the bed and looking through his closet.

"Joe, I was being sarcastic," Jim rolled his eyes.

"…Oh."

"Really, you've got a full-blown survival kit in there. Why can't you just bring trunks, a towel, and flip-flops like everyone else?"

"Because something could happen!" Joe replied, crossing his arms. "If I don't think of these things, who will?"

"Probably the lifeguards. Really, the whole reason they have them there is so we don't have to worry about all this stuff."

Joe smoothed down his Hawaiian shirt and wiped his glasses with it. "Yeah, well. Just in case."

Jim suppressed a heavy sigh and continued down the hall.

Davis Motomiya rubbed the sleep out of his eyes, yawned loudly, and struggled with the sheet that was wrapped around his leg. Well, it was a brand new day; what was he going to do with it?

Oh, yeah. The beach. Maybe.

As soon as he felt ready to move, he reached for the cell phone on his desk, intending to pick it up…but instead his hand hovered in midair for what seemed like forever. All of a sudden, yesterday was rushing back to him: the park, the rain, and Ken.

"Davis…I'm not running away."

He bit his lip, and finally picked up the phone. His fingers dialed Ken's number so easily, it seemed natural. Struggling to think of what he was going to say, Davis held his breath and waited.

Ken was walking up from the laundry room, freshly dressed, his hair still damp from the shower. The phone rang on its small stand in a corner of the living room; he glanced at the caller ID and, after a second of nervous hesitation, answered. "Hi, Davis."

"…Hey."

Ken walked up to his room, waiting for his friend to say something. Davis, of course, was waiting for him to say something. You couldn't shut the guy up on most days, but…well, there was yesterday to think about.

Ken had thought about it as hard as he could, had lain awake and repeated what Davis said over and over in his mind. Even now, he still wasn't certain what it meant for them. It wasn't exactly an idea he preferred to dwell on, because that meant he would have to ask himself some tough questions; why he never found himself checking out girls in school, why he was so attached to Davis, why every day spent without him had felt like a month…

"You still there, Ken?" Davis asked him.

"Yeah…sorry."

"I just wanted to know if T.K. called you about the beach yesterday."

Oh, that. "Yes, he did. He called you, too?"

"Uh-huh. I told him I'd think about it."

"I told him I wasn't sure."

Another silence, but this one wasn't nearly as long as the first.

"So do you want to go?" Davis asked.

"Do you?"

"…Yeah. It's been a while."

"I suppose so," Ken agreed. He sat stiffly in his desk chair, waiting for Davis to say something else. But he didn't, so Ken brought it up instead. "Davis."

"Yeah?"

"Are we going to talk about this?"

Yet another silence.

Then, in a rush, "It's not that I don't want to. But I just don't know what to think about it."

"…Neither do I," Ken answered. "At least you're not insulting me anymore."

Davis laughed, sadly. "I'm really sorry about that, Ken. It wasn't you. It was me."

"I know."

"…So T.K. said one o'clock, right?"

"Yes."

"I guess I'll call him back. You do want to go, don't you?"

"Of course."

"Okay. Do you want to…come over, then?"

Ken's death grip on the phone relaxed, somewhat. "Sure, Davis."

"T.K.?" Mrs. Takaishi called.

He opened his bedroom door. "Yeah, Mom."

"Are you having lunch at the beach, or before you leave?"

"To be honest, I'm not sure," he admitted. "I can wait."

T.K. hadn't wasted any time getting ready; after all, this was an important day. Now he just had to occupy himself until it was time to pick up Yolei and go to the beach. He stepped into his mother's room and switched on the computer, remembering that he hadn't checked his email in several days. As he waited for the ancient machine to power up, his cell phone buzzed in his pocket.

He took it out and answered. "Hello?"

"Hey, T.S."

He rolled his eyes. "How's it going, Davis?"

"Peachy. Just called about the beach."

"Oh, so you're coming?"

"You kidding? You couldn't go without me if you tried. I got Ken to come along, too. We'll both be at my house, so if you could pick us up…"

Neither of them could drive, T.K. remembered; Ken was waiting another year to take driving lessons, and Davis' parents wanted him to wait even longer. He tried to imagine Davis behind the wheel of a car, and winced. "No problem. Glad you're coming. Just to let you know, I'll be picking Yolei up, too."

"Aw, gees."

"Hey. What's wrong with Yolei?"

"Don't make me answer that," said Davis. "See you later, T.M."

"Davis, you know what my name is," T.K. said, finally showing a trace of irritation. "Are you ever going to…"

Davis had already hung up. Shaking his head, T.K. turned the phone off and logged on to the computer.

As he'd predicted, he didn't have any exciting new emails. Aside from the spam, there were a few casual messages from online acquaintances he'd never met, people who would never truly know him. He replied to them quickly, briefly checking out the headlines on a news site. The economy was improving. A new anime that harshly criticized Japanese society was causing loads of controversy. A new allergy medicine with some nasty side effects was being recalled. The government was planning a massive digging operation that might allow for badly needed housing developments in certain mountainous areas.

Inevitably, T.K. found himself thinking of the Digital World. There had been lots of problems over there, but land space wasn't one of them. Neither was pollution or overpopulation. Even Machinedramon's giant city had never been as confusing as Tokyo, where you had grocery stores next to gymnasiums, next to nightclubs, next to playgrounds, next to adult video stores, next to pharmacies, in a smorgasbord of urban chaos.

Maybe the reluctance to move on with life stemmed from nostalgia. He hadn't quite grown out of his desire to be back in the Digiworld, back where things were exciting and easy to grasp, where he knew he could do his best and it would always make a difference, where he was the Child of Hope and not some naïve kid with a broken family.

But he wasn't in the Digiworld anymore; this was the real world, and it was time he found something to appreciate about it. He didn't want to sleepwalk through another day. He wanted to feel like his life meant something again. He wanted to be honest with his own feelings, and whether he felt like admitting it or not, he had feelings for Sora Takenouchi. It wasn't just physical attraction, because he noticed more about her than just her looks—and besides, his interest in her had started before she'd even come back. It was more than a desire for friendship; the contrast between how he felt about Kari and how he felt about Sora was proof of that.

T.K. leaned back in his chair and gazed up at the ceiling, oblivious to the colorful screen saver that had long since popped up. Was it right to have feelings for a girl who was three years older than him? He wasn't sure. Relationships were not his forte.

One way or the other, he had to tell her. He couldn't just hide it all summer until she went back to school. Somehow, he would have to face this.

"T.K.?" Mrs. Takaishi leaned into the room. "It's about 12:30. You should probably pick up your friends and get going. And drive carefully, okay?"

"Oh. Thanks." He said, finally jolting himself out of his thoughts and shutting down the computer.

"What time will you be back by, again?"

"We're not sure. Could be there a few hours, could be there all day. I'll give you a call." T.K. got up from the chair.

"Okay. Have fun."

"I might." He ducked quickly into his room to change into blue swimming trunks and a pair of sandals, leaving his gray t-shirt on. He tossed a towel, sunscreen, his cell phone, and his hat into a backpack. With that in one hand and his keys in the other, he strolled out of the apartment and down to the garage, whistling. He was in the mood to enjoy life again, and this was a great time to start.

Cody's grandfather waved to the kids as he drove away from Davis' house. Cody and the others waved back.

"Well," Cody remarked, turning to his friends with a smile, "This was definitely a surprise. Grandpa and I had barely finished unpacking the car when you called me about the beach, Davis. I wish every summer could be like this."

At thirteen years old, Cody Hida still looked a lot like the quiet, courageous kid from the second Digi-destined. A little taller, perhaps, with a slightly improved fashion sense, but he was the same unique combination of soft-spoken and strong-willed, observant and unusually mature for someone his age. He still spent plenty of time with his grandfather and practiced kendo, but he had also taken an unexpected interest in swimming and learned to play chess, often beating many of his older opponents. The recent chess games between Cody and Ken had been some of the most intense their friends had ever seen.

"Hey, don't mention it," Davis shrugged. "I figured you'd want to go, since you like swimming now. Heck, Ken here would have forgotten all about you if I hadn't reminded him."

Ken glanced sideways at him, but this remark lacked the scornful edge of the earlier ones, and when Davis' eyes met his for a split second, he knew it had been a good-natured joke.

"Are you sure you don't have that backwards, Davis?" Cody asked, knowing full well that Davis forgot everything, while Ken had a mind like a steel trap.

"Like your shirt?" Ken added helpfully.

"What?! No, I don't!" Davis looked down at his collar, and saw that he was in fact wearing his tank top backwards. "Oh, whatever." He quickly fixed it as the others tried to keep from laughing. "I've still got the best trunks."

Indeed, Davis' swimwear was dark blue with flames, much like his jacket (which he wasn't wearing today, for once). Ken's olive green and Cody's black trunks looked dull in comparison.

"There he is." Ken said, pointing down the street. Everyone turned to see the navy blue sports sedan pulling up next to the curb. He waved to them, and they started toward the car. One of Davis' flip-flops slid off, and he turned irritably to put it back on.

"What's up, guys?" Yolei asked cheerfully, already in the front passenger's seat.

"Great to see you again," Cody said, as he and Ken jumped into the back.

"The beach, that's what's up," T.K. answered as he high-fived Cody. "Good to see you too, man. Hey, Davis! You coming?"

"Yeah, yeah," he grumbled, walking toward the car. As he reached for the door handle, T.K.'s foot mysteriously slipped off the brake. The car jumped forward before Davis could get in. "Hey!"

"Sorry, Davis. My mistake." T.K. said sheepishly.

Davis rolled his eyes and walked up towards the car. Somehow, it rolled forward once again.

"Whoops," said T.K.

"Quit doing that!" whined Davis, running after him this time.

The car moved and stopped, moved and stopped along the street with a frustrated Davis chasing after it. T.K. finally waited for him at a stop sign. "Come on, Davis, You're holding us up."

"I'm gonna kill you, T.V.!" Davis shouted over the raucous laughter of the others.

"Sorry about that. I'm still not used to the clutch."

"This car doesn't have a freaking clutch," Davis muttered, buckling his seat belt.

T.K. sighed. "Wait, wait. I'll get it."

The car proceeded steadily down the road.

"So how'd your camping trip go, Cody?" T.K. asked.

"Very well, thank you. I think I caught more fish than my grandpa did, for once. He showed me how to carve my own kendo stick out of a tree branch, and we even photographed some deer from only twelve feet away." Cody said pleasantly, his hands crossed behind his head on the seat.

Yolei smiled. "That sounds awesome, Cody. I haven't done stuff like that since the Digiworld."

"Yeah? Well, I saw some deer at the zoo once. Ha!" Davis snapped.

"Those were American bison, Davis." Ken said helpfully.

"They looked like deer to me."

"Deer are much smaller and have shorter fur. Also, they have antlers, not horns. Those were bison."

"You're a bison!"

T.K. glanced back at them as they reached another stop sign. "Guys, don't make me come back there."

After ten more minutes of driving and arguing, the car finally reached the parking lot. T.K. and his friends piled out, and a short walk across a lakeside trail led them to Makino Beach. Plenty of blankets, umbrellas, and chairs decorated the pale brown expanse of sand, and quite a few people were already jumping and splashing in the glittering water beyond.

"Wow," Cody breathed. "Anyone bring a camera?"

"Nah. Joe probably will." T.K. chuckled, also appreciating the view.

Yolei frowned. "Grrr. All those people, stealing our beach like that! We're child celebrities, for crying out loud!"

"Relax, Yolei. We'll just set up further down the beach. See? There's hardly anybody down there." T.K. pointed a little to the right.

"Last one there's a rotten Digi-egg!" Davis cried, dashing past them.

"…That's just wrong, Davis." Cody remarked, walking with T.K. and Yolei at a normal pace.

Davis had at least paid attention to where T.K. was pointing; as soon as he reached it, he spread out his towel and stepped forward to test the water. There was still a little of the spring chill in it, but the warmth of the sun definitely helped. Makino Lake was a popular place to swim for everyone in Odaiba and Highton View Terrace; it was a good thing the beach was so large. Even if more people came along, they'd still have plenty of space over here. The biggest crowds usually came in July and August. At least the wooden concession stands were open already; he hadn't eaten lunch yet.

Davis looked over his shoulder at his friends, who were just approaching the beach, and kicked at the water absent-mindedly. He reflected briefly on this morning's phone conversation with Ken. He'd asked if they were going to talk about yesterday, and Davis wasn't sure how to answer. He only wished it were that easy. It had taken all of his courage just to say how he really felt.

Still, as uncomfortable as this whole thing was for him, he owed Ken a better explanation.

He beckoned to his friends impatiently. "Hey! Could you guys walk any slower?"

"Hey, Sor," Tai asked from the backseat. "Could you drive any slower?"

Sora Takenouchi smiled at the remark, but kept her eyes safely on the road. "Yes, I could, Tai. Would you like me to?"

Izzy and Joe, who were also in the backseat, struggled to cover Tai's mouth and keep him from answering. Kari and Mimi glanced back at them and burst into a fit of giggles.

Tai shoved his friends' hands away. "You know what you can do?! You can—"

"Hey, Tai. What did you say about Matt not being able to make it?" Sora asked him, keeping the car directly between the white and yellow lines as they approached the beach.

His rant abruptly cut off, Tai paused, frowning at his shoes. "Uh…well, he called me just a few hours ago, and that's all he said. That he couldn't make it."

"What, you didn't ask him why?"

"Of course I asked him why, Sora. But he just said that something came up. He sounded like he hadn't slept all night."

"So that was it, huh?" Joe asked.

"Yep. He hung up pretty quick."

"That's kind of strange," Mimi found her sunglasses in her bag and put them on. "You think something's going on with him?"

"Maybe. But what could have happened between two nights ago and this morning?" Tai leaned back, absent-mindedly kicking the middle front seat.

"Tai? You're kicking me." Kari said, glancing back at him in the rearview mirror.

"No idea…but maybe I can find out." Mimi decided. "If he didn't tell you why he couldn't come, maybe something is wrong."

Tai put his feet down again, and shifted uncomfortably. "Well, actually…we haven't talked that much lately."

Everyone glanced at him in surprise, except for Sora, who was driving.

"Why not?" Kari broke the silence.

"You'll have to ask him, not me," Tai shook his head. "I just don't know. He's been like that ever since we started college. Doesn't hang out with me, doesn't return my emails…and I don't think I'm the only one."

There was another silence, as each of them silently wondered what was amiss. Matt had been perfectly sociable at the party—well, sociable for Matt, at least. Had he really been so busy in college that he couldn't even keep in touch with Tai?

The dark red station wagon pulled into the beach parking lot, and as they climbed out, Mimi spotted T.K.'s navy blue car one row across from them. Joe had his duffel bag packed full with supplies, in case some beach-related emergency should occur; Izzy of course brought a large backpack, but that was only because he needed room for his laptop. Kari, Sora, and Mimi had their things in medium-sized shopping bags, while Tai brought only a towel.

Normally Tai would have run ahead of everyone else, but today he merely jogged. The weird phone call from Matt was bugging him. He still considered him a friend, regardless of how rarely they had talked to each other this year, but it wouldn't do any good to call Matt again and grill him for answers. Tai knew that was probably what he would end up doing; he wasn't the most patient guy in the world. For that reason, it was probably better to let Mimi talk to Matt instead and see if she had any luck. She'd always been easy to talk to, especially when you were feeling down about something.

"There they are," Joe pointed out to the somewhat isolated row of blankets and bags in the sand. "On the far end of the beach."

Walking briskly, they followed Tai over and waved to the other kids, who took a break from the water to greet them.

"Wazzaaaaaap?!" Davis yelled at them, making a funny face.

Yolei shoved him. "Sorry about him, guys. He didn't take his meds."

Davis shoved her back. "Real funny, Yolei."

"Morning, everyone," Ken waved.

Cody nodded respectfully. "Good to see you guys! I'm sorry I couldn't make that party, though. Grandpa and I just got back from camping this morning."

"No prob. Good to see you too, Cody." Mimi replied, cheerful as always.

"How was your flight over?"

"Please don't ask," she said, even more cheerfully. "Anything but that. Tell you later."

"Hey, guys," T.K. walked up next to Cody and the others. "Anyone have lunch yet?"

Tai snapped to attention. "Actually, no. Mimi convinced us not to. And, you know, she can be pretty persuasive…"

"What exactly is that supposed to mean, Taichi?" she asked sweetly.

He drew back at the use of his full name, ready to bolt if necessary. "Uh…uh, well, you…I mean…bye!"

He made a beeline for the water. Mimi chased after him. Everyone else followed her to see what would happen if she caught him…that is, everyone except for Sora and T.K.

"So…what's up?" she managed to ask him.

She'd already stared at him once, as he was coming out of the lake. She didn't want it to happen again, now that he was right in front of her. With his hair and skin already dripping wet, he looked quite a bit like he had in the dream. Better, in fact; larger biceps, more defined abdomen, even some hair shining on his forearms.

Definitely not a kid anymore.

"Nothing much," he shrugged. "How'd you sleep?"

It took her a moment to realize he was answering her question. How did I sleep? Oh, just fine. Didn't have any dreams, either; nope, nope, nope.

"Pretty good. You?"

Wonderful, T.K. thought. At least, I would have if I could stop thinking about you. Ha ha.

"Great," he said, scratching the back of his head. Even though she was just wearing a tank top, he kept his eyes carefully on her face…but he was slightly curious about whether she was wearing the suit she'd bought at the mall yesterday. In fact, he was more than slightly curious.

Easy, T.K. Just keep looking at her face and you'll survive. Maybe.

The dream wouldn't go away. It was still taunting her, even now, flashing behind her eyes every few seconds. She felt like running away from him and shoving her head underneath the water to get rid of it, but that might look kind of weird.

"…Great." She said, too casually. Smile at him. Just keep smiling. That should do it. Duckies and bunnies. Et cetera.

But the false expression faded all too quickly, and that just left them staring at each other. She struggled to think of something else to say, but it was useless. His eyes held her prisoner, the same eyes she'd lost herself in at the mall.

Does he know what I'm thinking?

Does she know what I'm thinking about? T.K. wondered. This wasn't just some casual eye contact between friends. She was looking at him like he was the only person on the beach, the only thing that interested her in this beautiful world of sand and water and sunshine and multicolored beach umbrellas.

It wasn't just her. He was looking at her the same way, almost as if he'd been hypnotized. And for the first time he felt something real between them, some understanding or connection that was finally complete, something neither one of them could ignore. Suddenly the silence wasn't as uncomfortable. Now he felt a strange mixture of apprehension and elation, saw it reflected in her eyes, echoing back and forth endlessly between them. He longed for the moment to go on forever, because somehow this was one of the best things he had ever felt.

And she was feeling it with him.

But, in the back of his mind, he figured they should snap out of it already, because if one of their friends had noticed them, and happened to walk over and say—

"Everything okay, guys?" Kari asked from out of nowhere, leaning into the conversation with an innocent expression. Or, rather, the conversation that had ended thirty seconds ago.

To Sora's surprise, she didn't feel embarrassed by the interruption. Bring your fanny pack today?, she felt like asking. But she wasn't that rude, and besides, it was obvious that Kari hadn't.

"Fine, Kari. How are you?" Sora replied, just as innocently.

T.K.'s eyes shifted back and forth between the two girls as he tried to calm his nerves. He wished it had been anyone other than Kari—even Davis, for crying out loud—but what could he say about it? There was some obvious tension going on here, and for good reason. Kari had all but admitted to him that Sora was the reason for her strange behavior lately, and after their talk on the balcony last night, he'd been unable to deny that he liked her.

Then, of course, there was that incredible feeling between them…just before Kari had helpfully stepped in.

In any case, he couldn't just stand there. He pleasantly joined in the act. "So…you guys know where Matt is?"

--END OF CHAPTER TEN

Oh, MAN…I'm sorry, but I was just laughing my ass off when I wrote up that fake ending. Hope I didn't scare any of you guys too badly. Just chalk it up to my occasional appetite for practical jokes. You may recognize the "it was all a dream" shower scene from part two of The Simpsons' "Who Shot Mr. Burns?" But actually, that was a parody of a similar scene from a soap opera called Dallas, which was on during your parents' time. Also, "The Valley of Duckies and Bunnies" is a Digimon: Season 2 reference. Makino Beach is from Season 3, sort of; Makino was Rika's last name in the Japanese version.