Konnichiwa minna-san! Thank you so much for the feedback! Anyway, just insert your standard disclaimer right here. I borrowed all these characters from Toei, blah blah blah. They have a lot of lawyers and I don't, blah blah blah. Please don't kill me, or worse, take away my Yamaguchi Kappei CDs! I'll be good, I swear!
And just to make sure I don't get picked at, I KNOW Jyou is on a first name basis with all the guys in the series. The "kun" suffixes are there for a REASON. You'll find out why later. Oh! And uh, time frame! About three to four years after the end of Digimon 01. It's AU, 'cause Digimon 02 doesn't exist in this fic.
Paper Moon, Part Two
By: Musouka
Say it's only a paper moon
Sailing over a cardboard sea
But it wouldn't be make believe
If you believed in me
Well, this is terrific! And yes, I AM being sarcastic! I can't seem to stop staring at Yamato-kun as if another head is going to sprout between his shoulder blades. Although, on second thought, perhaps if he did grow another one we'd actually have something to talk about! Or, if worse came to worse, perhaps OTHER head wouldn't be so conversationally challenged. I know I'm not my best on ships, paddle boats shaped like swans excluded; usually I prefer to take the subway back home, but since juku ran so late I thought I should probably get home as soon as possible.
So here I am, my stomach doing its best impression of the "Amazing Mexican Jumping Bean Dance" (TM) as the ship valiantly rides the waves up and down, up and down, up and – urgh... Why is the harbor so choppy in the first place?! You'd think we were in the middle of a hurricane.
"Hey."
I'm unsure as to whether that was a greeting or a way of getting my attention, but Yamato-kun has apparently left his meditative state and has decided to join the world yet again. It's a good thing too, I was about to tell the captain that we had a corpse onboard.
"I was thinking," Yamato-kun finally continues.
I can't help myself. "Has anyone ever told you that you have an excellent grasp of the obvious?" I'm fully expecting Yamato-kun to do what he usually does when I make a wisecrack, which is roll his eyes and sigh in exasperation. Instead, I'm pleasantly surprised to see a ghost of a grin quickly flit across his face before he swats it down like an irritating fly. Maybe he's just humoring me.
"Anyway," Yamato-kun continues, "I was wondering if the two of us should go to a movie or something...If we're going to do this convincingly we should probably figure out how to act in public..."
Is he asking me out?
The only other time I've ever been on something slightly like a date was a year ago. It was the most uncomfortable experience of my life. The guy, who for some bizarre reason had been able to tell I was gay (and, I suppose, simultaneously proved the existence of "gay-dar" do me…) , was almost as shy as I was. We had spent most of the time staring at a fascinating little space located right past the left side of our respective heads and making odd joinings of words that were, in retrospect, supposed to be sentences. At the very end of the date, he finally dredged up enough courage to try to go for a kiss, only to miss me entirely as I turned around to unlock the front door, my mind too busy praying that my father was working late again to pay attention to his body language. For some odd reason he never called again.
My brain saves me from an overheating blush by careful recalling the last part of his sentence...yeah, sure he's asking me out – for acting lessons! I will my voice not to crack as I open my mouth to answer him.
"Yeah, sure. What did you have in mind?" There is a God; for once the most embarrassing thing possible in a situation didn't happen to me! "Well, let's see. I have juku all week after school...the only day I'm free is Sunday. Of course, that's the only day I EVER have free..."
"Sunday... Isn't that the day we're supposed to meet the others?" Yamato-kun muses, before shooting me a devilish grin. "Well, it won't hurt us to play hooky from a meeting just this once."
I'm a little surprised. Actually, that's an understatement. I would have been less shocked to see Yamato-kun pull down his pants and moon the sour-faced little old lady sitting across from us. Yamato-kun is probably the most responsible of us all when it comes to group activities. When we were in the digiworld, he NEVER wanted us to split up. Taichi-kun usually had to bully him into agreeing to it. And now he wants to blow off a meeting just to go to a movie.
I open my mouth to remind him of our obligations, but snap it shut so quickly my teeth rattle as a thought worms its way into my consciousness. Maybe Yamato-kun is sick of it all. Maybe he wants to just be free from everything for a day. Maybe he needs a break from sitting through meetings that just relive the past over and over again.
Just like sometimes I want to scream when my parents start comparing me to Shin-niichan again. I want to say "forget med school, I want to do what I want to do!". The difference between us is that Yamato-kun can say it, and I just bury it down deep within myself. That subtle, slight difference. Courage.
***
"Moshi-moshi! Kamiya residence!" Taichi-kun answers, in that ever-cheerful energetic way of his. I feel tired just listening to it.
"Taichi-kun? It's me, Jyou."
"Hey Jyou. Kinda late to be calling…is something wrong?"
"No.." Oh, nothing at all. Just that I'm tired, crabby, and the last thing I want to be doing at one o'clock in the morning is calling you to make lame excuses about why I can't be at the meeting tomorrow. "I just wanted to tell you that I can't come to the meeting on Sunday."
Wait for it, wait for it…
"Why?"
Boom. What a surprise. Maybe I should have called Sora-kun…she's probably the least prying of the others.
There are many ways I could answer. I could tell him I'm planning on getting abducted by space aliens; I'm getting a lobotomy; or the truth. Now all I need is to figure out which one is the most believable.
"I'm getting a lobotomy."
"Wha-What did you just say?!?!"
"Nothing. I've got a date."
"Ohhh." A quiet pause as that sinks in before the next question. "So who's the lucky…uh…guy?"
"No-one you know…" …very well. Otherwise you'd be the one blowing off plans to go out with him…
"Well, okay then. I'll tell the others. It's strange though, Yamato called up earlier to tell me the same thing…hehehe…YOU two aren't ditching us to go to some cool place together, are you?" The tone is teasing, leaving no space for thought to its perhaps truthfulness. Jyou and Yamato. Ridiculous. Impossible.
"No. We'd at least take you with us." The lie slips out of my mouth surprisingly easily.
"Okay then." I can almost hear the smile in his voice. And something else. Relief? "See ya next time."
***
"C'mon! Jyou, that's not fair!" Yamato-kun's voice has a lightness to it I've never heard before as he grabs my arm in an attempt to pull me back and make me adjust my walking pace to his. As I fall in step he lets go to shield his eyes from his hair as the wind assaults us as we step out the doors of the theater. "You have to tell me! How'd you figure it out before he did?!"
I laugh with a freeness that surprises me even as the melodious sound bubbles past my lips. It shocks Yamato-kun too I can tell, because he pauses ever-so-briefly and glances at me curiously before mirroring the smile on my face. "Well, I'll tell you…" I lean down to impart the secret of my knowledge. "Shinjitsu wa itsu mo hitotsu!" [1]
He shoves me back playfully. "What are you trying to tell me? That you're related to Conan? Actually…now that you mention it…I think I can see a resemblance, right HERE!" With that he snatches off my glasses triumphantly, briefly inspecting them before plopping them on his own face. "Uuugh." He looks like he's about to stumble backwards into the street so I quickly grab him and yank him to safety. "How can you see with those things?!" He asks, chagrinned, as he hands them back. Meanwhile I'm wondering what exactly they put in the popcorn to make Yamato-kun act like this…
Actually, forget Yamato-kun, I want to know like I'm acting the way I am. I don't think I've ever had so much fun going to a movie before. Sure we've done things like this in the group before, but by the time all eight of us have sat down Mimi-kun is complaining she has to use the restroom; (and of COURSE she has to sit the farthest in…) Koushirou-kun turns on the laptop with terse warnings to everyone that if anyone spills anything on it, well, by the time he's done with them they'll wish they were dead. (is that deep of an attachment to a computer natural? And what about bringing it to the theater in the first place?) About that time Takeru-kun is back from the refreshment stand and manages to trip over my feet (are my feet really THAT bi? What a scary thought…), while his drink barely manages to miss Koushirou-kun's laptop and deposits itself on Sora-kun's lap. Then while I'm trying to help him up and Hikari-chan is helping Sora-kun, I usually go down for the count in a tangle of limbs, nearly suffocating poor Takeru-kun. I'm sure Yamato-kun would be insanely worried about the near death of his little brother, except for the fact that he's arguing with Taichi-kun, (oh no. No repressed feelings there…) who's managed to eat two buckets of popcorn by the time the trailers start.
Ahh, memories. Privately, I think memories like these are the leading cause in stomach ulcers, well, at least where I'm concerned…
"Actually, if you want to know the truth…" I reply as we scout the area for somewhere to eat. "I guessed."
Yamato-kun groans. "Remind me not to take you to another murder mystery…"
"So where do you want to eat?" I ask, all out of ideas as each place in the area looks a bit tight on the pocketbooks.
"Some place cheap. Unless you're paying…"
"Yeah right. I'm a bit old for pocket money, and all my studying doesn't exactly leave me a lot of part-time job opportunities. Unless you have a place where we can get a high-class meal for about," I quickly check my pockets, "750 en apiece."
"Okay, then! Beef Bowl it is! I think I know where there's one a couple of blocks from here."
We cut through a nice park on the way, the darkness making our surroundings look strangely surreal and amazing. The moon is up and for once you can see the stars; they're so clear that they're almost painful to gaze at. Avoiding amorous couples around us, sometimes awkwardly, we finally make it to the park's entrance.
Unconsciously his hand enfolds mine in a gentle grip as we jog across an intersection. I stiffen and quash the irrational urge to yank it away. My family isn't really the touchy-feely type; any physical contact tends to put me on edge and make me extremely uncomfortable. Yamato-kun doesn't seem to notice however, because even when we're on the on the other side, he makes no move to let go.
A quick, strangely familiar inhalation of air from behind us draws our attention. Taichi-kun and the rest are in a group, staring at us with their mouths open wide enough to drive a large vehicle through them. A quick inspection of the ice-cream cones in their hands answers any questions I had about what they were doing here. Not to mention, this section of town is near where Sora-kun lives. And they were holding the meeting at her house tonight.
I panic. My heart tries to make a break for it by ramming through my chest. Sorry. I think dimly. But we're all in this together.
Taichi-kun looks like he's about to say something, but chokes it back in a strangled gasp. I'm only vaguely aware of a slight touch on my cheek as Yamato-kun gently turns my head to face his. His face is getting closer, I note distantly, feeling like my mind has been disconnected from my body. Until suddenly I'm jerked painfully back to the realm of the living as Yamato-kun's lips lightly meet mine.
"So…did you two enjoy the movie?" Takeru finally asks, shattering the deafening silence.
tsuzuku (to be continued)
Part Two Notes:
[1] Sorry ^_^;; I just had to make a mention of Meitantei Conan, esp. since the fourth movie is coming out soon! "Shinjitsu wa itsu mo hitotsu!" is, I suppose, the closest thing "Conan" has to a catchphrase. It loosely translates out to "There is always just one truth!"
And for those of you who now are absolutely sure that this is a Jyou/Yamato fic…well, all I can say is that it's not that simple. After all, I do have at least four more parts coming…if there's any interest, that is…(yes, that is a not-so-subtle hint! ^_^ C&C is GREATLY appreciated!!) And one kiss doesn't necessarily equal love…especially when the motives are a bit…well…how should I put it? Clouded?