A/N: So, here's the next chapter! I had a lot of fun writing this one, so I hope you all enjoy it. Thanks for all the reviews, they really make my day. :) Ah, one more thing I wanted to say! So, my whole point with this story is that I'm trying to show the reality of social relationships. I think I like exploring people's actions and consequences, so I really strive to be as realistic as I can with some of their choices (based on their actual characteristics from the show, and with the things that have happened to them in my story). So before you start to despise anyone (coughSORAcough) try to remember that they're human and still at a more naive age than you would think, haha. But, I love hearing opinions so don't hesitate to leave yours in a review! Okay, sorry for the obnoxiously long Author's Note. Enjoy :)
Despite the growing sadness resting over Mimi's heart, the young waitress realized something very important: it had been a long time since everyone had come over for dinner. The last time the whole gang sat at a table together was Mimi's birthday...and to put it blatantly, Mimi doesn't remember most of the awful night. It was three months ago!
So, Mimi decided that it was time for a big family dinner, and she went to the grocery store after her shift at the restaurant to pick up some items for the grand feast. As Mimi walked through her apartment door, she sighed and dropped off her grocery bags in the kitchen. It didn't seem like anyone else was home.
Mimi's thoughts started to trail to Taichi, and her heart clenched as she imagined the bushy-haired man. She'd been beating herself up for waiting so long to tell Taichi the truth, and now she'd lost him. Everyone was right, but she'd been too big of a coward to do anything about it.
Mimi quickly shook her head and tried to rid herself of her thoughts. She wasn't going to keep bumming around because of it. She either had to move on...or have hope; have hope that he wouldn't last with whoever he's with now. Mimi mulled over those two choices for a few seconds before grinning in determination. She was going to keep hope.
As Mimi started to wash vegetables, she quickly realized that she hadn't informed everyone about her idea for tonight. She dried her hands on her apron before exiting the kitchen through the swinging door. She almost jumped in surprise when she saw Hikari sitting at the round dining table.
"Hikari! When did you get here?"
"I just walked in a few minutes ago," she explained with a chuckle, straightening out her school-appropriate attire, "Sorry I scared you."
Mimi waved it off and smiled. She must have been too deep into her thoughts to have noticed the sound of the door opening.
"You know, Hikari, I was thinking. We haven't had a big family dinner in a while. I was thinking of having one tonight."
Hikari beamed, "I think that's a wonderful idea, Mimi. Did you invite everyone over yet?"
"No, I'm about to right now."
Hikari nodded, "Do you need help with anything? Cooking?"
"No, I'm fine for now," Mimi stated with a smile, "I'm going to the boys' apartments to invite them over. I'll be back in a second."
With that, Mimi exited her apartment and closed the door behind. Before she could proceed, she realized that she didn't want to knock on Taichi's apartment door. What if he was home? She couldn't face him. Mimi shook her head and glared at the door across the hall. She had to stop being a scared. Being a coward was how she lost Taichi in the first place.
She marched right up to his apartment door and knocked loudly; much louder than she'd initially wanted to. She heard footsteps scurrying on the other side, and within a few seconds, Koushiro opened it. Mimi tried not to sigh of relief.
"Hi, Mimi. What can I do for you?" he asked, inviting her into the apartment with a warm smile. Mimi's tension immediately relaxed when she looked around the apartment and found no trace of Taichi. Hopefully she wouldn't have to face him until dinner.
"Taichi's not home yet. He's going to be at his office for a couple more hours," Koushiro explained knowingly, sitting down on a stool by the counter. Mimi blushed and turned to look back at him.
"T-That's not why I came."
Koushiro smiled and waited politely for her to continue. Mimi sighed and made her way over to the stool across from Koushiro on the counter. She rested her elbows on the tabletop and placed her chin on top of her hands.
"Do you have any plans tonight?"
Koushiro chuckled, "Even though it's Friday night and I should have plans...no, sadly, I don't."
Mimi grinned, "Well now you do! Come over tonight for dinner. I was thinking of having a big family meal since we all haven't had one in so long."
"Sounds like a great idea. Are you cooking?"
"Of course! Who else would?"
"Then, of course I'll be there," he affirmed, trying not to blush as he spoke. This made Mimi beam, and notice his attire. Koushiro was wearing a button down grey shirt with black dress pants. Mimi remembered how Koushiro had changed his style a couple months back, and smiled warmly.
"We haven't talked in a while, Koushiro, I miss you. You're too busy for me now!"
"I've always been right here," he chuckled, "You're the one in your own world."
"Yeah, that's true..."Mimi sighed and tried not to think about Taichi, "So, how's Keiko doing? I haven't seen her since the last time we went to that club."
"She's doing well," he stated brightly. Keiko had really grown on Koushiro. He never thought that he'd actually develop feelings for her, especially because he'd harbored feelings for the girl sitting across from him for a year.
"That's wonderful. You can invite her to dinner tonight, if you'd like," Mimi offered kindly. Koushiro smiled at this. She had such a sincere heart. Some people might of thought of her as a spoiled brat, but Koushiro never considered her one. Mimi had a knack for proving people wrong.
"That's nice of you, Mimi, but I think it would be better if we just kept it with our friends. We all have a lot of catching up to do."
Mimi nodded profusely, "We do! I barely know what's going in your life, Koushiro, and I haven't talked to Jyou in a week. Iori's always at the library, and I only see Takeru when he comes to the apartment to see Hikari. It's so sad how distant we've all become."
"Yeah, everyones immersed in their own lives. So, how are your culinary classes going at the university?"
Mimi sighed and slouched forward, running a few fingers through her hair. Koushiro tried not to stare at the top portion of her body as she changed her posture. Her waitress uniform was conservative, but Mimi always found it necessary to keep some of the top buttons of her dress open. It made Koushiro sweat.
"It isn't how I imagined it to be at all. I thought classes would be exciting and fun...but what actually happens is they lecture us for two hours, and then let us cook basic things for only an hour. Some of the instructors are overly-critical and stuck up, too...I just can't stand miserable people. If you want to be miserable, then fine, be miserable, but don't try to take me down with you!"
Koushiro chuckled as she finished her rant and gave her a reassuring nod.
"Well, you've only had a couple of classes so far, right? Wait a few months, I'm sure it will pick up."
Mimi pouted, "I hope so. I'm really tired of being a waitress."
"You'll be out of there in no time."
Before either could say anything more, Daisuke trudged into the apartment and greeted both individuals warmly. Koushiro tried not to sigh with disappointment now that his chat with Mimi was over.
"How was work, Daisuke?" Mimi asked the young boy. Daisuke shrugged.
"Nothing special. Bianca came to have lunch again-"
"That's great, so want to come over for dinner tonight? Family dinner?" Mimi asked with a sheepish smile, not wanting to hear about Bianca. The whole gang had met her on the many occasions she came to see Daisuke, and no one could stand the girl. How Daisuke tolerated her was a mystery to everyone.
"Uh, yeah, I have nothing to do tonight," Daisuke responded with a grin, "Should I go buy us some liquor?"
Mimi rolled her eyes, "No, we're not drinking tonight, Daisuke. It's going to be a nice, peaceful dinner."
"That sounds boring," Daisuke retorted with another grin.
"Well, too bad, the only thing I'll allow is wine," Mimi paused to smile slyly, "and since you offered to buy us liquor, I'm sure you won't mind pitching in to buy the wine."
Daisuke groaned and trudged to his room, mumbling something as he spoke. Koushiro couldn't help but smile at Mimi's melodious laugh.
"Hey, Sora, you have a visitor," Noriko stated as she walked back to her desk across from Sora's, packing up her things for the end of the day. Sora raised a brow and turned around to see her best friend leaning against the door frame, smiling at her.
Something fluttered in her stomach.
"What're you doing here?" Sora asked with a grin. Taichi laughed and shrugged his shoulders, shoving his hands in his pockets.
"I felt like taking you home."
"And how do you plan on doing that when I'm the one with the car," Sora asked with a playful smirk. Taichi offered a lop-sided grin and she tried not to laugh.
"Well, if you let me drive your car, I would technically be taking you home, wouldn't I?"
Sora couldn't hold in a chuckle, "My building is completely out of your way, Taichi, you didn't have to come all the way over here to take me home." This caused him to roll his eyes.
"Would you just finish gathering your things? Sheesh."
Noriko watched their exchange and cleared her throat to get Sora's attention. Sora turned to glance at the younger girl and quickly tried to suppress a blush as she straightened out her new business dress.
"Oh, sorry, Noriko. This is Taichi, he lives in my building."
Noriko smiled brightly and introduced herself to him. Taichi chuckled as he walked up to her, and shook her hand politely.
"You know, I'm also Sora's best friend, but I guess she forgets that sometimes," Taichi added with a smirk in Sora's direction. The red-head just rolled her eyes.
"Well, it's nice to meet you. Sora's been telling me all about you."
Sora blushed and Taichi grinned playfully.
"Oh, she's been talking about me? That's nice to know."
"Okay, Noriko, we're gonna head out. I'll see you on Monday," Sora interrupted, pulling Taichi away as Noriko giggled and waved to the both of them. When Sora closed the door behind them, she hit Taichi with her small stack of folders.
"Ow!"
Sora smiled, "Serves you right."
"Why, what did I do?" he asked with a laugh as they walked out of the building and towards Sora's car. She dug into her purse and threw him the keys, careful not to drop her folders.
"I don't talk about you all the time, you know. I mention everyone to Noriko," Sora explained as she sat down in the passenger seat. Taichi chuckled as he strapped on his seat belt and turned on the engine. She noticed how handsome he looked in his button down shirt and dark dress pants. She tried not to stare.
"You don't have to be embarrassed about it, Sor, I was just teasing."
She blushed, "I-I know that."
Taichi glanced at her out of the corner of his eye and smiled.
"Did you really have to wear that dress today?"
Sora turned and gazed at him with a brow raised.
"What's wrong with it?" she asked as she quickly examined the printed material and straightened it out. Taichi grinned.
"Nothing. It's just a little inappropriate to wear to work, don't you think?"
Sora scoffed, "Why, because it's a dress?"
"No, because it's skin tight," he stated with over-exaggeration as he made a sharp turn which caused Sora to gasp, and grab onto his hand that was placed on the gear shift. Sora scolded him, but didn't move her hand off of his. When Taichi noticed this, his grin widened. Sora blushed and pulled her hand away.
"It's not that tight," she fought, bringing back the other topic as she cleared her throat. Taichi laughed.
"Remember when you hated wearing dresses? God, I miss those days. I wouldn't have to worry about guys looking at you."
"That was in middle school, Tai! That was ages ago," she paused to smile as she realized the last part of his sentence, "and you don't have to worry about anyone looking at me in my office. Most of the guys that work there are gay, anyway."
Taichi laughed as he skillfully pulled into their apartment complex's parking lot. He pulled the keys out of the ignition and handed them to Sora. When Sora went to take them from his hands, Taichi pulled her to him and kissed her perfectly on the lips. When they pulled away, Sora was blushing ferociously.
"...Stop doing that," she scowled playfully, pushing him back as he chuckled again. Why did he have to be such a good kisser?
"So, did you find out about your promotion yet?"
Taichi groaned as they both got out of the car and walked towards their building.
"I have no idea when we're going to find out. My boss is taking way to long to make a decision."
Sora bumped into him reassuringly and smiled, "You're worrying too much, and that worries me. You were never one to stress out about anything."
Taichi grinned knowingly, "Well, things change."
As they walked up the stairs, Sora thanked Taichi for coming home with her and walked into her apartment as he went to unlock his. When Sora entered the room, she smiled at the smell of food. Mimi was cooking something amazing, for sure.
Sora put her folders on the small dining table and pushed the swinging door to enter the kitchen. Mimi was wearing a pink apron over a pair of jeans and a fancy pink cardigan.
"What's the special occasion?" Sora asked as she put a hand on Mimi shoulder and glanced at what she was cooking on the stove. Mimi turned with a grin and hugged her before going back to her food.
"I thought it was time for a well deserved family dinner, so I've been cooking up a huge meal for all of us," she explained, pushing some stray cinnamon hair behind her ear as the stove sizzled.
"That's a great idea!"
"Yup, I haven't told everyone, though, but I'm sure the news will pass along. It's a Friday night, so hopefully no one's made plans," Mimi explained with a smile. Sora crossed her arms and rolled her eyes.
"We're a pretty lame group of people, I'm sure no one has any real plans...except maybe Daisuke with Bianca," Sora explained as she stuck out her tongue in disgust. Mimi laughed.
"Yeah, I made sure with Miyako, too. We all know how much she likes to stay over Ken's place on Fridays," Mimi explained with a wink which made Sora laugh, "But, she's free tonight. Apparently Ken's working the night shift at his department."
"Good, I'm sure if Miyako's free tonight, then everyone's free."
People started shuffling into the girls' apartment around seven-thirty. Takeru was the first to walk in with platter of cookies that he picked up on his way back from the Tokyo Press building. He pecked Hikari on the lips before hugging each girl individually, complimenting them sweetly.
Daisuke, Koushiro, and Taichi all came in next, and the whole room suddenly became very loud. It was probably because Daisuke and Taichi were in the same area, greeting everyone and fooling around as they did so. Mimi awkwardly hugged Taichi as he came to the kitchen to greet her, but tried very hard not to make eye contact. Taichi noticed this and looked down with guilt.
"Yo, Meems! I got the wine, where do you want me to put it," Daisuke asked with a grin as he also hugged Mimi. Mimi let out a sigh of relief. She was glad that Daisuke came to greet her with Taichi so she wouldn't have to awkwardly stand next to him alone.
"You can just put it on small dining table for now, Daisuke. Sora went to her room to grab the larger table, and when that's assembled, you can just put the wine on there," Mimi explained. The girls had a disassembled dining table that was boxed under Sora's bed. They put the table together whenever they had events with a lot of people attending. It wasn't anything fancy, but it sufficed once it was put together.
"We should probably help her put it together, Daisuke, there's not much we can do in the kitchen," Taichi explained with a chuckle. Daisuke agreed and both men went through the swinging door, leaving Mimi by herself. She wasn't going to complain, though. It was better than having Taichi near her. When Koushiro walked into the kitchen as they exited, Mimi sighed in relief again and grinned as they hugged.
"You always know exactly when to make an entrance," Mimi explained as she stirred the contents in the pot. Koushiro knew she was referring to the awkwardness of Taichi being in the kitchen moments before, and smiled.
"I guess I just have a knack for it."
Outside in the living room, Jyou and Iori finally walked in, both with tired looks on their faces. Everyone greeted the two warmly, knowing that Jyou and Iori had it the worst when it came to their careers.
A couple minutes passed and everyone had split into little groups. Hikari was talking to Iori, asking him about his classes as they sat on the couch, and Jyou was in the kitchen with Mimi and Koushiro, trying to help out best as he could. Mimi found it entertaining to watch Koushiro and Jyou trying to work simple tasks in the kitchen. Koushiro was uncomfortable as he used a big knife to cut some vegetables, and Jyou was just a klutz, dropping everything all over the place. Mimi laughed at the whole sight.
Takeru watched in amusement as Sora, Taichi, Daisuke, and Miyako tried to put together the long, makeshift dining table. Even though they'd put the table together so many times in the past, chaos always ensued when people tried to reassemble it. Takeru figured it was because the instructions were so complex, and a few nails and screws were definitely missing from the set.
"No, you're using the wrong screw, Sora, how many times do I have to tell you!"
"Look, if you think you know what you're doing, then give me the instructions, and you put it together!" she retorted with a glare in Taichi's direction. Taichi returned it and handed her the paper before snatching the screw driver from Sora's hands.
"Ouch, Daisuke, you're such an idiot!" Miyako screamed as she held her toe in pain. Daisuke rolled his eyes as he picked up the table's plastic leg that he accidently dropped on her foot.
"Calm down, this thing weighs like half a pound. Stop being a baby!"
Miyako scoffed exaggeratedly, "Well, then why don't you see how it feels!"
She grabbed the leg from his hands and threw it onto his foot, which made Daisuke curse in pain.
"You're crazy!" he wailed with a glare, sitting on the floor as he nursed his foot.
"And you're an insensitive jerk!" she insulted as she crossed her arms stubbornly.
At all yelling from the four individuals, Hikari and Iori stood up from the couch and walked over to Takeru. The three of them watched as the other four constantly bickered with each other to assemble the table.
"...should we help them?" Iori asked softly to Hikari and Takeru.
"I don't know about you guys, but I'm not trying to get involved in that mess," Takeru explained sheepishly, grinning at his girlfriend and roommate. Hikari laughed in agreement.
"Yeah, why don't we move the couch, TV, and coffee tables to make room for the table, whenever it gets assembled."
The two men nodded and the three of them walked back to the couch to move it against the wall in the corner. By some miracle, the table was finally assembled and Taichi grinned in triumph.
"See, now if Sora was assembling it like she was before, it would have never been standing."
Sora glared and punched his shoulder. This caused Daisuke to grin and nudge Miyako.
"Well, if Miyako wasn't such a baby, whining about her toe, we could have assembled this thing without a headache."
Taichi laughed at Daisuke's remark when Miyako also glared, "Yeah, girls, seriously. Just go in the kitchen and help Mimi."
"Shut up, Taichi, stop being such a jerk," Sora stated, marching away from him. Miyako agreed and stuck her tongue out to both men as they laughed even more, following Sora.
Another half hour passed by as Mimi finished up the preparations on the meal, bringing it out to the long table which was placed in the center of the room as Sora, Miyako, and Hikari set the plates and utensils. All of the boys went to bring in some chairs from their own apartments, since the girls only had the four chairs that were a part of their small dining table.
Soon, everyone was sitting around the long table, chatting happily with whoever they sat next to. An air of comfort flooded the room, and even though so many of them had things to worry about, whether it be relationships, jobs, or family, they all forgot all their worries and tried to enjoy their night.
Taichi opened the bottles of wine and went around the table pouring everyone a glass. After they were all filled, Mimi smiled as an idea came to her. She motioned for everyone to quiet down, and when the room silenced, she smiled beautifully to all of them.
"I just wanted to thank you all for being there for me. I know I've only lived here for a little over a year, now, but you've all welcomed me in as if I was a good friend...and I really do consider each and every one of you my family now," Mimi paused to raise her glass, "So, I wanna make a toast to us. No matter how tough this year is, and no matter what gets thrown at any of us, I want us all to stay together forever. So...here's to best friends."
Daisuke grinned and raised his glass higher, "And here's to finding a place in the world."
"To love," Takeru added, glancing fondly at Hikari.
Hikari laughed at this and raised her glass, "To stupid secrets."
"To letting loose," Jyou stated with a grin. Everyone chuckled at this before Miyako raised her glass.
"To overcoming insecurities," she said adamantly with a smile. Sora nodded in agreement and followed.
"Here's to reality," she stated. Koushiro chuckled to himself and also raised his glass to Sora's statment with an, "Amen."
Taichi grinned and raised his glass, "Well, here's to getting that promotion!"
Some people laughed and others groaned at Taichi's inability to say something serious. Iori smiled from his seat and raised his glass to that.
"Yeah, here's to passing law school."
Another fit of laughter rang throughout the room before Mimi stood up with a smile.
"Here's to being a family!"
They all cheered and clanged their glasses with as many people as they could before taking sips of their wine. It had been far too long since they all felt connected. For people like Iori and Koushiro, this dinner helped them rediscover that they weren't as lonely in their homes as they thought they were. For people like Miyako and Hikari, this dinner helped them rediscover the friends they had besides their significant others. Mimi decided that this was one of the best dinners to date.
As everyone finished up their meals, and finished their last glasses of wine, all the girls got up to start cleaning. The whole gang helped to clean up in their own way. Koushiro and Iori wiped and disassembled the table as Daisuke and Taichi started moving the couch and tables back to where they originally belonged. The girls were with Takeru and Jyou doing dishes and putting away extra food.
People started piling into the living room as they finished their jobs. Taichi, Daisuke, Koushiro, and Iori sat on the couch as everyone else came and sat on the floor. Mimi handed mugs of coffee and bowls of ice-cream to whoever wanted before grinning.
"Guys, I have an idea! Let's play a game."
Most of the group groaned and shook their heads.
"Come on!" Mimi exclaimed, "It'll be fun. Ooh, let's play spin the bottle!"
The room groaned yet again.
"Mimi, we aren't thirteen year olds!" Jyou exclaimed with a chuckle. Mimi rolled her eyes.
"You know there's a different way to play, right? Whoever spins the bottle can ask the person it lands on any question they want, which that person must answer truthfully! Come on, it'll be fun."
Everyone glanced at each other, but stayed silent until Daisuke spoke up.
"I don't mind playing," he stated nonchalantly, taking in a spoonful of ice cream. Hikari and Miyako agreed, shrugging their shoulders.
"You know, there are things I've been wanting to know about some of you," Taichi explained with a mischievous smile that made some people uncomfortable.
Takeru laughed, "I think it sounds like fun."
Mimi grinned excitedly as she ran to the kitchen and grabbed the closest thing she could find that was a bottle: a bottle of soy sauce. She walked back into the living room and told everyone to get into a circle. Taichi and Jyou moved the coffee table out of the way as everyone started forming a circle on the floor.
"Well, I guess I'll go first since this was my idea," Mimi stated with a sly smile. She spun the soy sauce bottle in the middle of the circle. Everyone stayed awkwardly silent until it came to a stop and pointed to...Jyou.
Jyou's face reddened and he sighed, crossing his arms as people laughed. Mimi put a finger to her face and thought of what she wanted to ask. When she made up her mind, she grinned at the older boy.
"Tell me something about yourself that you're too embarrassed to tell anyone!"
Jyou scoffed, "No! I'm not telling you anything."
"You have to! Come on, it won't leave our circle," Mimi stated, winking suggestively. Jyou's face reddened even more and glared at the floor. The last thing he wanted was for anything to get back to Jun.
"Oh, come on, Jyou, stop being such a wuss," Taichi snorted from next to him, hitting Jyou's back with a grin. Jyou glowered at him.
"Okay, fine! But...this doesn't leave any of us, okay?"
"Alright, Jyou, fine. I promise I won't tell Jun," Daisuke stated as he bobbed his brows. A few people chuckled as Jyou's blush deepened.
"Okay...so, the most embarrassing thing that I can think of is...the fact that I slept with a night-light in my room until I graduated high school."
A few people bust out into laughter, including Daisuke, Taichi, and Takeru.
"That's it?" Mimi asked with a pout.
"What do you mean, 'that's it'? That's pretty embarrassing!" Jyou spoke loudly, glaring at Taichi who was next to him, trying to hold in another laugh after he made a comment about 'monsters coming out at night.'
"Okay, now it's my turn," Jyou snapped, planning to get revenge. He spun the bottle and everyones laughter died down as it spun. When it landed on Daisuke, Jyou grinned and pushed up his glasses. Daisuke cursed.
"So, Daisuke, tell me something in your life that you regret."
Everyone got a little awkward when they realized that the question was a bit personal, but Jyou knew that Daisuke was too simple minded to think of anything deep. Daisuke thought about it for a while then blushed, looking down at the floor.
"You guys are gonna think I'm the biggest asshole!"
"No, we won't, this is a 'non-judging circle,'" Sora added, smiling to Daisuke from across the circle. Daisuke sighed.
"Alright, so in college, I was taking this business class that was impossible. The night before one of my exams, I realized how screwed I was for it, and this one exam determined my grade for the semester," Daisuke stopped and noticed how everyone was listening intently now, "Well, there was this nerdy girl who was in my class, and she lived in the room right next to me in our dorm building. I kind of...seduced her and slept with her so I could cheat off of her during our exam."
Daisuke said the last part quickly, but everyone heard it and stayed silent for a couple of seconds. Soon, half the group was dying of laughter while the other looked at Daisuke disapprovingly.
"Oh, Daisuke..." Koushiro stated with a roll of his eyes.
"You're a pig!" Miyako added.
"You go, man, that's what I would've done, too!" Taichi added, crawling across the circle to share a high five with his roommate. Takeru was laughing profusely next to Daisuke and shoved him a little bit, tears filling his blue eyes.
"Daisuke, I asked for something you regret, not something you're proud of!" Jyou glowered.
"I do regret it! I regret it because I ended up failing the exam anyway because she had a different version than I did. I had sex with her for nothing!"
This statement had Takeru almost on the floor, clutching his stomach, while Sora and Hikari grinned wildly. Iori and Koushiro looked at each other since they were sitting next to one another, and rolled their eyes. Typical Daisuke.
Daisuke grinned and spun the bottle next. He beamed when it landed on Miyako, who quickly moaned and hit her head.
"I would have to answer a question from you. Alright, lay it on me," Miyako ordered with a sigh, mentally preparing herself for whatever Daisuke was going to throw at her. He grinned and scratched his chin thoughtfully.
"So, how many boyfriends have you actually had?"
"You're such a jackass!" she yelled, turning red.
Daisuke put his hands up in defense, "I've always wanted to know."
Miyako crossed her arms and glared at him.
"...seven. I've had seven failed relationships, okay?"
"Woah...really?" Jyou asked cautiously. Miyako glared.
"No, I made it up just to embarrass myself," Miyako stated sarcastically. Sora quickly went to her defense.
"It's alright, Miyako, sometimes you have to dig deep to strike gold," she stated with a wink. Mimi laughed and nodded her head.
"It's true! I mean, I'm pretty jealous of the relationship you have with Ken now, so who cares about all the other guys that didn't work out!"
Miyako smiled at them and sighed, "Yeah, Ken's a great guy."
The whole circle seemed to nod with agreement. Miyako glared at Daisuke and mouthed, 'I'm gonna get you,' as she spun the bottle. Daisuke gulped, not wanting to answer another question.
The bottle spun and landed on Iori. Iori sighed and shook his head. Back in the day, Miyako and Iori were pretty good friends, but since he started law school, they both had lost touch. That meant one thing...Miyako was very curious about Iori's life and was going to ask a personal question.
Miyako clapped her hands together excitedly.
"So, I've been dying to know! Are you and that Noriko girl official yet?"
Iori blushed, "...no, we're not. I just started seeing her, Miyako..."
"You should just ask her out, Iori, what do you have to lose?" Takeru stated with a grin. Iori glanced at the floor awkwardly.
"I agree with Takeru," Jyou added quickly, looking at Iori with a strange hint in his eyes. Iori glanced at the man he looked up to and blushed under Jyou's scrutiny. He almost forgot that Jyou was the only one who knew about his affair with Akina.
"She's been interested in you for a while, Iori. Trust me, I know," Sora explained with a laugh that instantly caused Taichi to look up and smile. Iori blushed and cleared his throat.
"I guess I'll have to think about it..." he stated before reaching for the bottle and spinning it, trying to get the attention off of him. The bottle stopped and pointed to Sora. Sora moaned in response and waited for Iori to ask a question.
"Um...what's the most dangerous thing you've ever done?"
Sora bit her lip and looked at the ceiling as she raked her mind of anything that would fit Iori's question.
"Well, the only thing I can think of is the time I skipped school with Yamato and Taichi for a whole week my senior year of high school."
Taichi scoffed, "Come on, that's the most dangerous thing you've ever done? That's not even close to being badass."
"Well, sorry, I don't like getting in trouble," she explained as she crossed her arms. Hikari laughed and poked her brother on the shoulder next to her.
"Not everyone's as bad as you are, Taichi. I was terrified to skip school when I was in high school."
"Good," Taichi stated as he crossed his arms over protectively, "I wouldn't let you skip school, anyway."
Hikari sighed, used to the double standard that Taichi put on her. A few people chuckled at their conversation.
The game continued for a while longer. Secrets came out quickly, and most of them were laughable. The group had found out that Takeru had a big crush on Hikari in high school, but never said anything because he didn't want to step on Daisuke's toes. Everyone laughed and didn't notice the awkward glance between Hikari and Daisuke.
Koushiro, who had been a star student throughout his years in school, had failed gym class when he was in high school due to the fact that he never participated and was terrible at sports. A few people teased Koushiro innocently, but he was quick to notice how Mimi grinned and found it adorable. He tried not to blush at her comment.
A couple more spins went by. Everyone learned that Taichi almost got kicked off his college campus after pulling the fire alarm in his dorm building as a prank, Iori used to have a blanket that he carried around with him till grade school, and Miyako had once followed one of her boyfriends home whens she suspected him of cheating on her.
To some people's surprise, Hikari had never dated anyone until after she graduated college. She explained that a couple of men were always interested, but she didn't feel that any were right to keep as a boy friend. Takeru grinned at this and crawled over to kiss her on the cheek.
Now it was Hikari's turn to spin, and everyone whooped when it landed on Mimi. She hadn't had to answer a question all night because she was lucky enough to never to have the bottle land on her. Everyone urged Hikari to ask Mimi something good.
"You always tell me that you were spoiled when you lived with your parents, but you never explain how 'spoiled' you actually were. So, explain!"
Everyone agreed and waited for Mimi to answer. She blushed and fidgeted with her long hair.
"Well, I used to spend...about, um, a couple thousand dollars every week?" she thought, asking herself. Everyones eyes bulged and she blushed when she noticed.
"Damn, Mimi, I think it's great that you're living your own life now, but I would have never left my parents place if they were that rich!" Daisuke explained. Mimi fidgeted some more with her hair and looked down. The rest of the girls got quiet since they knew the reason why Mimi had left. Mimi still wasn't ready to tell everyone, though...she never wanted to bring up her past.
"Daisuke, you're parents own a noodle company, they're just as rich," Taichi pointed out, rolling his eyes.
"Yeah, but they wouldn't let spend any of their money like that! Don't you think I thought about that already? They wanted me to make my own money, or work for the business."
"So, what did you buy with all that money?" Jyou asked curiously, changing the topic back to Mimi. Mimi shrugged
"I don't know...clothes and shoes, mostly. Okay, I don't wanna talk about it anymore! I'm a changed girl," she stated with a smile before grabbing the bottle and spinning it. She watched the bottle revolve until it came to a stop...in front of Taichi. Her heart skipped a beat. Everyone in the room became silent.
"Why does that bottle always point to me! This is the fifth time," Taichi explained sourly, trying to cut the tension as a few people chuckled to help him. Mimi bit her lip and looked at the carpet. There was so much she wanted to ask him, but she didn't know what would be appropriate. She so badly wanted to ask about the girl Taichi was dating from work...but he had told her that he didn't want everyone to know about her just yet. Well, since everyone was mostly talking about their pasts, Mimi decided she wanted to know some of Taichi's.
"So...who was your first kiss?"
Ten pairs of eyes looked at Taichi and waited for him to answer. Sora was particularly interested in this question, and she analyzed her best friend as a blush formed on his cheeks. This made everyone curious, because Taichi was never one to blush.
"Wow, come to think of it, I don't even know who the girl is," Daisuke explained, rubbing his chin. Koushiro nodded in agreement and raised a brow in Taichi's direction.
Taichi cleared his throat and thought to himself for a couple more seconds, staring at the floor. Everyone waited eagerly.
"It was Sora."
The whole room turned to the red-head in shock and Sora quickly stiffened. Had she heard it correctly? Was Taichi lying?
"No way!" Daisuke screamed.
"When did it happen?" Jyou asked.
"Sora? Why didn't you ever tell me?" Miyako queried as her mouth hung agape.
All Sora could do was glance at Taichi and then at Mimi as everyone asked their questions. Mimi looked hurt and Sora quickly turned to glare at Taichi. She didn't know why she was so angry with him.
"What are you talking about, Taichi? How could I be your first kiss, that doesn't make sense."
Taichi continued to stare at the ground before shaking his head.
"Woah, dude, you have to tell us the story now," Daisuke stated with a grin. Miyako agreed eagerly, sitting up on her knees to listen. The room got silent as everyone waited for Taichi or Sora to explain. Sora noticed the sour look on Mimi's face and bit the insides of her mouth. Why would Taichi say this in front of everyone?
"Well, I don't know what he's talking about, so I guess he'll have to explain," Sora stated spitefully. Taichi looked up at her and glared. Sora's heart fell. Taichi rarely looked at her like that.
"We were only six years old. It was during Christmas, and my mom decided to throw a family party, remember? Your family was invited because my mom considered you guys a part of our family. We were running around the living room, pretending to play soccer because my mom wouldn't actually let us play in the house. I don't remember exactly what happened, but somehow, me and you were stuck standing under mistletoe, and our mothers and fathers kept nagging at us to kiss. So, yeah, we did. Do you remember now?"
The room was silent yet again, until Miyako burst out with an 'aw!' After that, everyone started clamoring.
"That's so sweet!" Hikari teased, poking her brother's ribs.
"Damn, Taichi, getting girls at the age of six? You're my hero," Daisuke announced, which earned him a shove from Miyako and another session of rolled eyes from Koushiro and Iori.
"Guys, calm down, please. It's not that big of a deal, they were only six," Jyou defended, noticing the awkwardness between Taichi and Sora that he guessed was happening because the two were close friends, and the idea of them doing anything physical like that was uncomfortable. If only Jyou knew the truth...
"Yeah, it's really not," Taichi added, clearing his throat, "I was just answering the question. It really didn't mean anything, and we both were disgusted by it, anyway."
Everyone laughed.
Mimi glanced at Sora and then back at the floor, "So, you don't remember it at all?"
Sora looked at Mimi's face and answered her truthfully, "No, I don't."
Sora guessed that the answer was enough to make Mimi feel a little better, because she smiled genuinely at her. Sora then realized that she was digging herself into a big hole...
Sora glanced at Taichi and noticed the stiff look on his face. He was not happy. Sora wasn't happy about the situation, either. Why would he mention that story with everything that was going on between them? Especially because they were so young when it happened and Sora didn't even remember the story. This situation could have easily been avoided.
Taichi sighed and quickly spun the bottle, trying to get the focus off that topic. When the bottle landed on Daisuke, Taichi's face instantly lit up.
"Yes! I was hoping it would land on you."
Daisuke looked at him warily.
"So, remember my 21st birthday party? You disappeared for the whole second part of the night. I was looking around for you, I can't remember why, but I couldn't find you anywhere. So tell me, where were you?"
Daisuke's eyes widened and he stuttered, not knowing what to say. He looked in every direction except in Hikari's.
"I-I was in the bathroom...you know-"
"Oh no, don't lie to me. I know you were with a girl, who was it? She must have been special for you to have missed my party," Taichi added with a grin. Daisuke started sweating, and he didn't know what to do.
Hikari sat in her spot, but her heart was beating wildly. She knew Daisuke wasn't stupid enough to say anything...he wouldn't dare. Hikari looked at Takeru's face, who was sitting right next to Daisuke. He was smiling, amused by the whole situation. Hikari prayed that the truth wouldn't come out.
"It was some random girl, Tai, seriously. I don't remember," Daisuke stated, scratching the back of his head. Taichi rolled his eyes.
"I can tell when you're lying, Daisuke, and you wouldn't have missed my birthday just for some random girl. You're a pig, but you're not a bad friend," Taichi paused to grin, "And I think you drunkenly told Yamato at some point that you spent the night with some 'special' girl, and Yamato, of course, came and told me."
This made Daisuke feel incredibly guilty, and he tried not to look Taichi in the eye.
"Wait, Taichi, you're 21st birthday party? The one you had at one of you're teammate's house?" Miyako asked. Taichi nodded his head.
"Oh my god, that night was crazy! Don't you remember, Hikari?" Miyako asked with an oblivious smile. Hikari sat straighter, faking a smile.
"Yeah, it was so crazy."
Then, Miyako scrunched her brows and looked at the floor with her arms crossed. Hikari hoped she wasn't putting the pieces together.
"Come to think of it...Hikari, you were missing most of the night, too! I was looking all over for you, and started freaking out when you were no where to be found. Wow, that's so ironic, both you and Daisuke were missing-"
Miyako cut herself off as her eyes widened, realization hitting her. The room became silent as everyone put the pieces together. Daisuke hit his head and tried not to shove Miyako as Hikari sat speechless. Hikari didn't know what to say. She knew she had to say something quick. She watched as Takeru's look of confusion turned to realization.
"Oh, I had gone back to our dorm, Miyako, don't you remember?" Hikari asked lamely. Miyako was stunned and didn't say anything. When she noticed the pleading look on her best friend's face, however, Miyako cleared her throat and tried to cover for her.
"Oh yeah, how silly of me to forget. You went back to-"
"You were with my sister?" Taichi yelled aggressively, glaring daggers at Daisuke and putting the truth out in the open. The whole room became silent and Hikari's eyes quickly filled with tears as she watched Takeru's head snap in Hikari's direction. The only word to describe the look on his face was pain.
"Taichi, I-" Daisuke started.
"What the hell were you thinking? Sneaking off with my sister on my birthday!"
Daisuke was about to reply in defense until another voice spoke up.
"Is it true?"
Everyone turned to Takeru, who was gazing at Hikari with anger. A tear rolled down her face and for the first time in his life, Takeru didn't want to wipe it away.
"Takeru, I'm-"
That's all he needed to hear. There was no denial in her voice. God, how could she not tell him? Now, he looked like such an idiot in front of everyone. With that, Takeru stood up forcefully from his spot on the floor, not even acknowledging Daisuke who was right next to him. He marched out the door and slammed it behind him. Hikari sat in her spot for a second before wiping her eyes and running after him.
As the door closed a second time, everyone looked awkwardly at each other. Taichi, on the other hand, was giving Daisuke the look of death, which the younger boy couldn't ignore.
"Tai, just let me explain-" Daisuke stated as he stood, holding his hands up in defense. Taichi shook his head and got up, as well.
"You're dead."
With that, Daisuke jetted out of the apartment, as Taichi chased after him. Koushiro and Jyou moaned, knowing that they would have to be the ones to pull Taichi away from Daisuke.
After all that, it seemed that the perfect family dinner had definitely come to an end.