A/N: Welcome one and all to the sequel to I Saw You Dancing. If you haven't read the first part, no big deal - this one can just about stand alone (kind of) but it'd certainly make a lot more sense if you go and read the prequel first.
Anyway, as per usual I don't own Digimon, I just steal the characters for a while. I'll put them back after, honest...
No time for a long A/N this time round, as it's quarter to 11 and I promised to have this fic up by the weekend :) Still 1 and a quarter hours left!




Does your right hand know what your left hand's doing?

Well, currently my left hand is slowly stroking my koi's soft golden hair. He looks so incredibly beautiful at the moment, stretched out and sleeping. His chest rises and falls rhythmically, and the expression on his face is one of complete serenity.
Of course, that will dissipate the instant he wakes up. Lovely as he is, fantastic person that he is, he is not a morning person. Never has been, never will be. Mornings to him are the worst part of the day - he calls them 'a terrible way to spend half your life'.
He shifts and mumbles unintelligibly, and I shift my hand to his forehead, soothing him gently. Don't wake up just yet, darling. You look so cute when you're asleep.
Some sixth sense tingles through me - you know that one you get when someone's staring at the back of your head? Yeah, that one. I instinctively swing round, expecting TK in the doorway, some sly comment on his lips. Instead, I come face to face with a rather incensed-looking Mr Ishida.
Eep.
His arms are folded, his brows drawn together. My brain starts freewheeling through a whole list of excuses, ranging from 'well, you see, we were both really really tired' all the way through to the old classic, 'it's not what it looks like'. Unfortunately, it is exactly what it looks like - and after he'd told us not to as well.
Frantic for some sort of support, I nudge Matt's arm. He murmurs and turns over, and I elbow him viciously in the back, praying for forgiveness. Sorry, koi, but the situation's desperate...
He comes fully awake inside a second, a talent I envy him for. The words 'what the hell' are already forming on his lips, but he freezes when he catches sight of his father.
"Um...morning?"
Mr Ishida scowls even more, and we both eep as we realise a) how little we're both wearing and b) how far the sheet has slipped. Any further and this scene would go straight to X-rated.
Matt grabs the sheet and drags it back up over both of us, till we're covered to our shoulders. Mr Ishida opens his mouth to speak, and I wince.
"Tai, would you excuse us for a moment?" His voice holds that special tone that parents use, the fake-honey one which says 'I'm about to have a good yell but I want any outsiders out of the way before I do'.
Matt pushes me behind him protectively, facing his father in defiance. "No, Dad, Tai
stays. Anything you say, you say to both of us."
"Fine." He reaches into his pocket and pulls out a familiar scrap of paper. Uh oh. The note he left for us last night.
"I laid down a few ground rules in this," he flourishes it at us, "and you appear to have broken one of them." He lifts a finger, cutting Matt off before he can speak. "No, don't bother. I know that it's precisely what it looks like. Now, what do you think a suitable punishment would be?"
Matt looks hopeful. "Erm...being forced against my will to stay in bed for the rest of the day?"
Despite himself, I can see a faint smile twitch Mr Ishida's cheek. "Try again, Matt."
"Um...how about making me cook dinner tonight?" This time Mr Ishida's not the only one to smile. I know as well as they both do that Matt cooks dinner every night -cooking's his passion.
"Hmm...I don't think so. I was thinking more along the lines of you doing all of TK's chores for today."
Matt brightens up. "Hey, that doesn't sound so bad!"
His father grins. "I'm glad we agree. Here's the list."
Matt's face falls as his eyes travel down the piece of paper. "You have GOT to be joking!"
I crane my neck to peer over his shoulder, and my mouth drops open at the list. For such a small piece of paper it doesn't half have a lot of things written on it...
A sentiment Matt obviously shares, because he glares indignantly at his father. "Hey, you didn't tell me TK did this many chores!"
Mr Ishida looks like a cat who's got several pints of cream and a few canaries into the bargain. "Well, you see, I was talking to him this morning and he was in an exceptionally helpful mood. He actually volunteered to do all these things. But, since you've been so considerate, he'll be spending the morning with his friends just like he planned."
Matt growls and looks like he's about to spring at his father - which would be a really bad idea, considering how little he's currently wearing. "You sneaky... You set me up, didn't you?"
His dad smirks. "Of course. It's nice to get one over on my son occasionally."
"I'll get you for this."
"Not before noon, from the looks of things. You've too much else to do."
"Do we get paid?"
Mr Ishida raises an eyebrow. "Tai might, if I'm feeling generous. You're family, and as such I'm free to use you as slave labour. Now get up - I want to see you halfway down the list before you get any lunch."
"Slave-driver."
He chuckles, and walks out.

Matt slumps back down onto the bed. "God, he can be such a - "
Sometimes I'm so glad that my reflexes are so good. I slam a hand over his mouth before he can get any further, cutting off the obscenity before he can utter it.
We lie there in silence for a second or two, then I breathe a sigh of relief as footsteps retreat from the door.
"You're not good at reading people, are you, koi?" I ask him, and he shakes his head mutely, my hand still preventing him from speaking. "I thought not, because otherwise you'd've worked out exactly how devious your father is. Now I know where TK gets it from."
He raises an eyebrow quizzically at me, and I sigh. "Next time, just wait until he's out of earshot before you start swearing at him."
I start to pull my hand away, but he grabs it, draws it back to his mouth, and starts gently kissing it. Front and back, then he trails a line of kisses down my wrist, up my arm, over my shoulder and along my collarbone, where he eventually captures my lips in a slow kiss. I mmph into his mouth as his lips part, making way for his tongue to slide through and twirl around mine.
Abruptly, he pulls away, leaving me bereft. "C'mon, we need to be getting up," he says reluctantly. "You heard my dad - if we want any lunch we have to get halfway down the list."
Loath to let such perfection go, I wrap my arms around his deliciously warm body and press my lips to his briefly. "He's such a spoilsport."
He smiles, his breath tickling my face. "That wasn't quite the word I had in mind."
"At least mine wasn't obscene."
He ruffles my hair lovingly as he chuckles at me. "Come on. Finding out what we did with our clothes is number 1 on the list."
"I think I threw your boxers out of the window..." He facefaults, and I laugh. "Joking! They'll be around here somewhere."
"They'd better."

* * * * *

Ugh. My back is killing me, my legs ache, and I have scratches in at least a dozen places. Which sadist decided that this house would look nice with a climbing rose over the front of it?
I know which sadist decided it'd be nice if we pruned it. The same sadist who thought we'd enjoy cleaning out the attic (I'm so covered in dust that the slightest movement makes me sneeze), who chose economy over convenience when it came to lawn mowers (that push-mower was a nightmare - I have aches in places I never even knew I had), and who decided that today was a good day to vacuum the entire house. I swear, if I ever so much as see another vacuum cleaner in my life I'll scream.
Of course, a lot of it is made up for by the fact that I've been near Matt all day. Although we're both bone-weary and about ready to drop, he still manages to look stunning, seem cheerful and be absolutely wonderful. He's been doing little things all day that just make my heart melt - like giving me the only pair of thick gloves in the house while we were pruning the roses, or doing more than his fair share of the mowing so I can take an extra-long break. I only noticed after the event, though - I'd never have let him do that if I'd realised what was going on. He's sweet, but I've made up my mind to put my foot down. We're in this together, and I'm supposed to be doing just as much work as he is - after all, it's not like it didn't take two to...break the rules in the first place.
However, I don't mind all the other things he's been doing all day - pressing a soft kiss to my lips every time we pass each other, or taking five minutes out just to take me in his arms and hold me close. Those I wouldn't give up for the world.

Surprisingly enough, the jobs have gone a lot faster than we expected - we grabbed a hasty lunch halfway through, then realised that it was only just gone half eleven. Now we're on the very last job of all, and we're planning an extended lunch break with extra snuggling.
Washing the car. How difficult does that sound? Not very, but everyone's favourite sadist has managed to make even that a major chore. Why does he have to have such a damn big car? I swear he bought it just to spite us.
Luckily, this time we have a hose to help us. It's certainly useful - the car's so tall that not even Matt can reach the roof. We've had to make do with squirting soap onto the roof and hosing it off again. I hope it's good enough.
It's pretty backbreaking work, though - soaping it up and rinsing it over and over and over. I don't know what he's been driving this thing through, but it sure as hell sticks. I've washed the same place three times over and it still doesn't look clean.
I jump and squeak in surprise as two warm - and somewhat wet - hands glide up my back, underneath my shirt.
"Guess who?"
Well, two can play at that game. "Wow, TK, I never knew you felt that way about me!"
A chuckle, and then the hands are turning me round and a pair of warm lips press up against my own. "Go and have a rest, love," Matt murmurs when he finally lets me go. "You look absolutely shattered."
Oh no you don't. I said I was going to put my foot down, didn't I? "Not a chance, Yama-chan," I inform him, folding my arms and putting on my best 'stubborn' look.
He twists his washcloth round in his hands, looking distinctly uncomfortable. "I wish you would. It's all my fault that you're having to do this, after all."
"No it isn't," I tell him. "Don't say that. It's just as much my fault as it is yours."
"Is not."
"Is too!" I quickly hold up a hand before this can turn into a childish argument. "Look, there were two of us in that bed, OK? Therefore both of us are to blame."
A wicked smile curves his lips. "Does that mean that you're less guilty because you were on the bottom?"
I sweatdrop - I can't believe he just said that out loud! I hurl my wash cloth and him and follow up by hurling myself at him, throwing him off balance. He staggers, then retaliates by shoving me off. Grabbing the hose, he turns it on me, soaking me instantly from head to foot.
I sputter with rage, ducking and weaving to avoid the spray. Eventually I get close enough to him to launch myself at him, wrenching the hose from his grasp. He reads the intent in my eyes and backs away, throwing up his hands protectively.
"No...not the hair! You wouldn't dare!"
I twist the nozzle, narrowing the spray into a single stream of water, and flick it in his direction. He cowers, both arms over his head, protecting his precious locks, and I chuckle at him.
"Not so playful now, are we?"
His head comes up, that mischievous glint back in his eyes, and suddenly he jumps at me. Before I can blink, we're on the ground, rolling over and over as we fight for control of the hose, laughing hysterically.
There's a clatter from somewhere near my head, and then my vision's obscured as hot soapy water deluges both of us. I can't see a thing - we must've knocked the bucket over. Matt's still shouting with laughter, and it's infectious - within seconds we're both paralytic.
After a few seconds, he stops laughing abruptly and goes all serious. He brushes my wet hair out of my eyes, and I'm suddenly aware of how close we are - he's lying full-length on top of me with our faces barely inches apart. The hose continues to stream, lying forgotten mere feet away, as he slowly closes the distance between us. We've kissed so many times before, but the anticipation's still there, still as fresh as the first time. Familiarity hasn't bred contempt, just a lack of apprehension.
Moreover, when his lips finally touch mine the first-kiss thrill is still as strong as ever. I shiver pleasurably as he sucks gently on my bottom lip, feeling a tingle down my spine when he slides his tongue deep into my mouth. He presses his whole body into mine, intensifying the kiss until my head spins.
Eventually, of course, the oxygen runs out, and we come up gasping for air. He rests his chin on my chest and I tangle my fingers in his damp hair.
"I love you." It doesn't matter how many times I hear those words from him - they'll always make me feel incredible.
"I love you more."
"Do not."
"Do too."

"Now, children, don't fight!"
I blink at the new voice, and then I cringe as I realise Matt's dad is standing over us. Matt rolls off me and scrambles quickly to his feet, blushing.
"Um...we're done."
Grinning to himself, Mr Ishida walks carefully round all four sides of his car, then comes back over to us. By this time Matt's helped me up and switched the hose off -wow, it looks like someone dropped the mother of all water bombs in the driveway.
"No you're not." Our faces fall simultaneously, and he chuckles. "Still needs another rinse. Then come inside and have some proper lunch."
There's something in the way that he says that that makes our faces light up. Matt rushes for the hose as I grab for the rinsing bucket, and we drench that car from hubcaps to roof as quickly as we can, then rush inside.
What meets our eyes is about as unexpected as finding Davis doing homework (or Izzy not doing homework). Two pizzas sit side by side on the table, steaming gently. On top of each box sits a goodly wad of cash - enough to make my eyebrows rise. I didn't think we'd worked that hard...
However, as many people have observed, my stomach comes before my brain. I plonk myself down in a chair, open one pizza...
...and recoil in horror. It has sweetcorn on it!
I can't restrain a quiet 'ugh', and Matt grins as he leans gracefully past me to take his pizza. "Sweetcorn! Fantastic! Thanks, Dad!"
Mr Ishida smiles as he slides into his seat across the table, cup of steaming coffee in one hand. My brain notes the careful arrangement of the chairs - placed at exactly even intervals around the table - bare seconds before Matt spoils it by dragging his chair over next to me. It could just be my imagination, but I swear Mr Ishida's face darkens ever so slightly as his elder son sits down and puts his arm round me.
I dismiss the thought, preferring instead to open what has now been confirmed as my pizza. My mouth drops open for the second time in as many minutes as I see anchovies, pepperoni and extra cheese!
Mr Ishida chuckles at my expression. "I did a little espionage work to get that for you, Tai. Your mother said you liked pepperoni, TK remembered Kari saying something about your obsession with anchovies, and the extra cheese just sort of fitted."
I can't think of anything to say. This is totally at odds with his near-catastrophic reaction this morning (only saved by Matt's quick wit and his dad's sense of humour) and the slight animosity I spotted (or thought I spotted) a few seconds ago.
"T...thanks." I clear my throat. "Thank-you very much."
"Don't mention it." He sips his coffee slowly, looking over the rim of his cup at Matt and I with an enigmatic expression on his face. I wonder idly if this family will conspire to drive me mad - a wonderful boyfriend who's beautiful enough to render me speechless, his aggravatingly knowing little brother and their impenetrable father.
However, stomach first. As always. I dig heartily into the pizza, snuggling up to Matt; he tightens his arm around me in response. We munch in silence until we each only have one piece left, then pause.
Matt sighs exaggeratedly. "Well, I guess I'd better get used to you and your strange eating habits. Want to swap?"
I smack him on the arm. "I'm strange? Like sweetcorn on a pizza isn't bizarre!"
He grins. "Are we swapping or not?"
I resist the urge to kiss him. "Oh, go on, then. If you must."
He bites tentatively into my last slice of pizza, then chews thoughtfully. "Hn. Not quite as bad as I expected." He takes another bite, then polishes off the last of the slice.
Closing my eyes and apologising inwardly to my tastebuds, I take the smallest bite possible from the sweetcorn-covered mess in front of me and munch with all the caution of a bomb-disposal squad in an explosives factory. I force down any gag reaction, urge to vomit, or instinctive choke reflex, and shift it to the back of my throat.
Matt grins at me as I swallow. "See? Nothing wrong with sweetcorn on a pizza!"
I nod weakly, just glad it's over.
"Aren't you going to finish the piece?"
"Um...no, thanks. I'm...full."
Matt's chuckling openly by this time. "Don't worry. It's...an acquired taste."
I can't resist the urge to rush to the bathroom and scrub my whole mouth out with toothpaste. "Acquired by who? Serial masochists?"
He punches me lightly on the arm, then hugs me firmly, and again there's that little slip in Mr Ishida's eyes. He coughs, and we both look up. Matt's arms loosen from around me for a second, then tighten again in unconscious rebellion.
"Matt..." My heart sinks. No-one's father ever started a good sentence in that tone of voice.
He continues. "While I don't disapprove of your choice - I mean," he says with an attempt at levity, "I think there are a thousand good habits you could learn from Tai, I have a few...reservations."
My heart sinks even further, but some small part of me can appreciate the irony. My mother said that she thought it was wonderful that I'd found someone, and then went on to say how 'exemplary' she thought Matt was. Mr Ishida's starting from the other end, which can't be good.
Hold on. Maybe it's not as bad as I thought. He's still talking:
"The...rule that you broke last night," he looks distinctly uncomfortable at having to mention it again, "still stands, and I don't want you...influencing TK in any way." He holds up a finger just as Matt starts to reply. "Yes, I know it's unfair, but - "
"But you want at least one son who isn't queer, is that it?" I wince at Matt's outburst - he never was the most subtle of speakers. I just hope he doesn't blurt out what we both know - or rather, suspect.
"No, that's not it at all." Mr Ishida now looks like he wishes he'd never started this. "I...just don't want him getting any ideas." He looks pleadingly at Matt before he can yell again. "Please? He looks up to you so much, Matt, and I don't want him to feel he has to...be like you to fit in. You understand that, don't you?"
I flinch again, waiting for Matt to yell, but he doesn't. His voice is calm.
"Of course, Dad. I promise I won't...flaunt it...around TK."
His dad relaxes with an audible sigh. "Thankyou. Thanks, Matt." He reaches across the table and takes Matt's free hand, looking at both of us. "Matt, you know I love you, and all I want is to see you happy. If that means being with Tai," he smiles, "and I can tell by the look on your face that it does, then I'm fine with that. And," he switches his gaze onto me, and I try not to squirm, "I honestly can't think of anyone who'd be better for you. You two have been friends for years - I'm sure you'll make each other very happy."
Matt smiles back. "Thanks, Dad."
On impulse, I reach over and add my hand to the other two on the table. I feel intensely self-conscious, but somehow it feels like the right thing to do. Matt squeezes me encouragingly.
"Thanks, Mr Ishida. We won't let you down."
He manages another smile, this one a little watery. "I hope not. Don't expect me to pick up the pieces every time you have a fight."
"Fight? Us?" Twin expressions of indignation make him chuckle.
"So what d'you call that little 'altercation' outside earlier?"
Matt finds his voice first. "You mean you never had a waterfight when you were little?"
He smiles at us again, and Matt pulls me a little closer. "I don't think I ever kissed my best friend at the end of one."
Matt grins. "Then you've never lived."
His dad shakes his head and walks out.

The instant he leaves, Matt turns to me with a thoughtful expression. "So what do we do about TK now?"
I shrug. "Looks like we're barred from helping. Nature will just have to take its course."
He pouts adorably. "Ugh. Nature's so damn slow. Sure we can't help things along a little?"
"Well," I say tentatively, "you only said you wouldn't flaunt us around TK. That leaves us free to approach Ken, and we can work on TK individually. We don't have to both be there when we try and get the truth out of him."
He grins. "Koi, you have a devious mind."
I kiss his forehead. "But you still love me, right?"
His expression is deadly serious. "Always, Tai. Always."




A/N: I don't like this chapter. But still, that's my own personal opinion, and I'm a pessimist. Although I'm often right.
Still, tell me what you think, and whether it's worth my continuing. There will be lemon and more (and better) angst in later chapters.
Suki da.
CS xx