The story is the same as before except I fixed various errors and mistakes.
Disclaimer thing: Same as everyone else: I don't own Digimon.
Lessons: A Junori Story
He didn't know why he had done it, but he could make a good guess. It was probably because of the people he hung out with. He had seen it happening all around him, with each of his friends. He'd seen the looks of joy on their faces. He'd caught the secret looks they passed each other, the words they whispered in each other's ears. He'd seen them sneak off whenever they had the chance. He'd heard them talk about events that had happened the night before in the vague terms that people use when they talk about a secret.
Cody was sick of it. All of his friends was doing it but him, and he couldn't take it. He wanted to get in on the action, to experience what they were experiencing. He wanted to know what it felt like. He wanted to be able to talk in veiled words of secrecy about clandestine meetings with someone. It would have been peer pressure had his friends pressured him, but they didn't, well not directly anyway. The fact that he was the only one not doing what they were doing made him feel left out, so, in order to fit in, he felt that he would have to do it too. He was on the proverbial bridge and all his friends had jumped; now it was his turn. So he had made his decision and gone and jumped along with them. He had decided he would start dating.
It was all around Cody, everywhere he looked he saw young love. There was TK and Kari, Kari and Davis, Davis and Yolei, Yolei and Ken, Ken and Davis, Ken, and Yolei and Davis. All of Cody's friends were falling for each other and Cody was the only one left standing. So he decided to fall as well. He went and asked a girl out.
Now some would have argued that Cody was too young to date, he probably would have agreed, but he felt that he was mature enough to count a couple years older than he was. Besides, he was old enough to be in Grade Six, and would have been if his birthday had been on a different day. Anyway, he felt he was "old" enough to handle this thing people called love. So he went and asked a girl out.
Cody's class was more of a "traditional" fifth grade class. Sure, when Tk, Kari, and Davis had been in grade five, there had been signs of romance, but Cody's present class was one where kids thought that members of the opposite sex were "icky." If Cody was to get a date he would need to move up a few grade levels in his search for a girl. The girls in grade six were at the stage where dating was seen as cool, but still no one was quite ready to do it. So Cody moved up to grade seven in his search. There he found girls who were dating. He settled on one and went and asked her out.
Her name was Cassandra and she was a member of what might be considered the "in" crowd. She had long, brown hair and blue eyes. While not beautiful like Kari, she would be considered "pretty." She was probably a teen wannabe; wearing tank tops, spaghetti straps, and shirts that read "Princess." She read all the teen magazines and went to all the parties. She went through guys like the Digimon Emperor had gone through Digimon, getting rid of them whenever they became boring.
Cassandra was probably a bad choice for Cody, but it just went to show how immature he was. He walked up to her one day during recess and simply asked her if she would like to go out and see a movie with him. This seemed to shock her because she didn't answer immediately. But Cassandra did answer, and the answer that she gave Cody was the one he wanted: she agreed. She told him to meet her in the park at 7:00, a half-hour before the movie. She said it would be nice to spend some time with Cody before they went to the movie. This suited Cody just fine, in fact it suited him better than fine; it suited him perfectly. So Cody said he'd meet her later that night and went on to class, the beginning of which was heralded by the sound of the bell.
If only Cody had had a clue what he was getting himself into.
He arrived at the park fifteen minutes early. It was his first date, and he didn't want to be late. He just waited there, a smile on his face and flowers held tightly in his hands. He was somewhat dressed up, nothing all that fancy, but he had put on a nice shirt and a good pair of pants. His hair was slightly wet from a shower he had had earlier, and his breath smelled of mint. His face beamed with pride and joy; this was his first date after all. His entire being radiated excitement and enthusiasm, and it continued to do so for five minutes after the appointed meeting time. Cassandra hadn't shown up yet, and Cody was beginning to feel a little nervous, but nothing serious, he just reasoned that she must have been running a little late.
Five minutes later Cody began to get a little worried, but he was still certain that Cassandra would be there.
After five more minutes there was still sign of Cassandra, and he was getting more worried, but he still believed she'd show.
Twenty minutes after the appointed meeting time Cody decided it was time to face facts. Cassandra wasn't going to show. She stood him up. He never should have asked her out. He never should have thought about dating. He wasn't old enough. With these thoughts in his mind, Cody turned and headed for home.
He walked slowly, shuffling his feet. His hands were at his sides and the flowers that he had once so tightly held out of anticipation now barely stayed in his loose grasp. His shoulders were slouched and his head was slumped forward, his eyes downcast. Every now and then he'd give a little sniffle and rub his empty hand across his face, wiping away the tears that were slowly running down his cheeks.
As it so happened, Cody's anguish did not go unnoticed. Jun was on her way home from work when she spotted Cody walking sadly along the sidewalk ahead of her.
"Isn't that one of Davis' friends?" she said, thinking aloud. As she slowly caught up with Cody, she noticed the sad way he walked and the flowers loosely grasped in his hand. It didn't take Jun too long to figure out what had happened to Cody. There was something about the sight of the dejected little boy walking down the street with flowers held loosely in hand that tugged at Jun's heart. As she watched, she saw the flowers fall from Cody's hand; the boy no longer caring to be burdened by their weight, both physical and mental. As Cody walked on, the flowers were left to lie on the sidewalk, alone and forgotten. Or they would have been if Jun had not picked them up. Looking at them, she realized how much they were like the boy who had dropped them. They were fragile and young, freshly cut by the looks of their stems. They had been meant for someone, just like the boy's love. But they had been refused as the boy had. Left behind; discarded like something of no worth. As she looked at the flowers Jun made a decision.
She hurried her pace and caught up to Cody. He didn't hear her coming or he didn't care, because he didn't look up when she came up alongside him. "You dropped these," she said, extending the flowers to Cody.
He stopped and looked up at Jun, and she saw the tears on his cheeks and the sorrow in his eyes. "You keep them," he mumbled, his voice somewhat lifeless. "They're no good to me," he added as he lowered his head again and resumed walking.
Jun followed along in silence, her heart going out to the boy, until she could take it no longer. Reaching out she grabbed his shoulder, stopping him. He looked up at her once more with his sad eyes. "Looks like your date stood you up," she said lightly; Cody just stared at her blankly. "And since you don't have anybody to go on your date, and I happen to have some time to spare, I was wondering if I could be your date instead?" she asked casually.
Cody just looked at her, but, as the meaning of what she had said sunk in, the expression on his face went from one of grief to one of surprise. "B- But I," he began, his voice stuttering, but Jun cut him off.
"I'd say you have no choice. You already gave me the flowers and that means I'm your date," she explained, stopping the stunned boy's feeble protests.
Cody gave a sigh and dropped his head in surrender. "All right," he said, his voice impassive.
"Buck up kiddo," she said patting him on the back. "If you're going to be my date, you're going to have to be more cheerful." Cody didn't reply to this, but Jun caught the beginnings of a smile. Sticking out her arm she asked, "So where are you going to take me on our date?"
Cody looked up at her and smiled. "To see a movie," he answered as he took her arm in his. Remembering that the movie started at 7:30 he added, "we should hurry or we'll be late."
"What time does it start?" asked Jun as she and Cody began walking back the way they had come.
"7:30," replied Cody simply.
"7:30!" exclaimed Jun. "It's 7:25 right now!" With that, she broke Cody's hold on her wrist and started running, dragging Cody behind her. As they ran, Cody managed to catch the window display of a clock store across the street. Jun was right; it was 7:25 and they only had five minutes to make it to the theatre. "We'll take a short cut," explained Jun as she turned off the sidewalk and into the bushes bordering the park, dragging Cody through a mess of branches and leaves. As soon as they made it out, they started running again. Despite the fact that Jun had longer legs than Cody, he managed to keep up with her and stay on his feet; it was either that or be dragged along behind. They ran like the wind and finally made it to the theatre. Huffing and panting, Cody asked the ticket guy for two tickets to the movie. The ticket guy looked at Cody funny as he gave him the tickets and said "third theatre on the right."
Cody huffed out a "thank you" and paid the guy, then went into the theatre with Jun, grabbing some popcorn on the way in.
Slowly and perilously, they made their way through the crowd, and, after many murmured "Sorry's" and "Excuse me's," they found their seats. Settling down, they turned their attention to the screen and the previews that were being shown there. The movie was one of those teen flicks that everyone seemed to rave about. It wasn't exactly a movie Cody would normally have gone to, but he realized that to make a good impression he might have to do something that he wouldn't exactly be thrilled about.
In the seats ahead of them an interesting conversation was happening.
"...And then the little kid comes up to her and asks her out," says one, a girl, judging by the hair and voice.
"What'd she do?" asked the girl's companion, a boy.
"She said yes," the girl answered.
"You're kidding," the boy said in disbelief.
"No I'm not, she actually said yes," repeated the girl. "But the thing is that she's going to stand him up."
"Oh that is so evil," said the boy, his voice excited.
"I know. The poor kid is probably standing all alone in the park with some flowers and candy, looking all adorable in a little suit that his mommy got him," the girl said in a mock child voice and made a sad face. Her antics were causing her companion to laugh and it wasn't long before she joined him. The people around them looked at them strangely, not having heard the conversation and not seeing the joke.
But, in the seats behind them, the conversation had not gone unnoticed. From what she had heard, Jun was able to make an educated guess about who the boy they were talking about was, and a quick glance to her left confirmed her suspicions. Cody had heard the whole conversation as well, and he looked like he was about to burst into tears, again. "Do you want to go?" whispered Jun as she leaned over and put her hand on Cody's shoulder to comfort him. "No, I'm fine," he replied, his voice steady.
But Jun wasn't fooled. "Come on, let's split," she said, standing up.
"But what about the movie?" asked Cody meekly.
"I've seen this movie before and it isn't worth the time," she explained pulling Cody to his feet. "We'll just go sneak into one of the other theatres and watch a different movie."
Cody got out of his seat slowly, making it seem as if he didn't really want to go, but Jun saw right through this. She gave him a little push towards the exit and told him that she wasn't getting any younger. He smiled and began heading for the exit at a normal pace. As she was following Cody, Jun gave a little yelp and dropped her popcorn on the people in front of them.
The boy who had found Cody's misfortune so hilarious didn't find his own misfortune as funny. "What do you think you're doing?" he demanded indignantly, rubbing the spot on his head where the popcorn bucket had hit him on its fall from Jun's hands.
"Yeah, watch it," added the girl as she pulled popcorn from her hair.
"Oh! I'm so sorry. The bucket was all buttery and it just slipped out of my hands," explained Jun with false sincerity. She continued to give apologies as she made her way through the seats and out of the theatre.
She found Cody waiting for her outside of the theatre. "You did that on purpose," he said accusingly.
"No I didn't! It was an actual accident," Jun protested. Cody looked unconvinced. "Alright so it may not have been entirely an accident. I might have let go of the bucket some, but you have to admit they looked funny covered in popcorn."
"Yeah they did," said Cody smiling at the memory. "But I don't need you to stand up for me," Cody added dourly.
"Sorry," apologized Jun, "but who says I was standing up for you? Because of them we have to go sneak into another theatre." Before Cody could comment or protest, she grabbed Cody's wrist and led him over to the nearest theatre and snuck inside.
"Is this legal?" asked Cody as they found some seats and settled in to watch the movie.
"I don't see why not. We paid to see a movie, and we're going to see one. It's just a different one than the one we had intended to see," Jun reasoned. This was enough for Cody and he settled in to watch the movie.
Later, when they walked back out of the theatre, they were chatting back and forth about the movie, which had turned out to be a martial arts flick. "Nobody can do jumps like that. They're impossible," stated Cody, who, despite his disbelief, had enjoyed the movie.
"True, but you have to look past the totally unrealistic fighting and see the story underneath," explained Jun, who had enjoyed the movie as well.
"Which was?" asked Cody. "I honestly don't know," answered Jun after a moment of thought. She started laughing and Cody joined her. As their laughter quieted down, Jun glanced at her watch. "9:45, I guess we should call it a night."
"Yeah, it is kind of late and I've got an early kendo practice tomorrow," agreed Cody. "Thank you for taking me to the movie."
"You took me, remember? We were on a date," Jun explained. "And now that the date is over, it would be proper for you to ask if you could walk me home."
Cody balked for a moment, then managed to stammer out, "um, I was wondering if I could walk you home?"
Jun smiled and extended her arm. "Of course you may." Cody took her arm and she nodded. They walked together, making idle chit-chat until they reached Jun's apartment building. Cody moved to leave, but Jun held onto his arm. "Your new at this aren't you?" Cody opened his mouth to respond but Jun cut him off. "You should always ask your date if she would like you to walk her all the way up to her apartment; that way she doesn't feel that you're in a hurry to leave her."
"May I walk you up to your apartment?" asked Cody, deciding that it would be easier to just do what Jun suggested rather than protest. He reasoned that he'd have as much success defeating Black War Greymon in a one-on-one fight as he would protesting against Jun. Probably less.
"Yes you may" said Jun, walking up the stairs to the apartment building's door. Cody beat her there and held the door open for her. "You're learning," said Jun as she passed.
And apparently Cody was, for he held the elevator open for Jun and let her get off first. He walked her to the door and then wished her a good night as she opened the door to her apartment. She was just about to step through the door before she spun on her foot and gave Cody a kiss.
It was a quick peck on the cheek, but it hit Cody more strongly than any blow he had felt in kendo. He stepped back, his eyes wide in shock. He tried to say something, but his mouth didn't seem to be working.
"Get used to it. I see many more in your future" said Jun with a sly smile. Cody just stared at her, his eyes widening even more. Jun studied him for a minute and then gave a short laugh. "From other girls, not from me," she explained, much to the boy's relief. "Though if you were maybe a little older and about two feet taller," said Jun thoughtfully, putting her hand on her chin and scrutinizing Cody. "And if we did something with your hair," she added, mussing up Cody's hair.
Cody just stared at her as if she was nuts and then burst out laughing. Jun smiled and patted his head. "You're a good kid and I'm sure that you'll meet lots of other girls, but I advise you to wait until your older."
Cody got a sour look on his face at this.
"You didn't do anything wrong," amended Jun, "it's just that you should enjoy being young. As soon as you start dating, your life will become more complicated than you could think. And don't let your negative experiences ruin your outlook on love. Instead, use them to learn from your mistakes." With that she said "good night" and stepped into the apartment. As she closed the door, she blew Cody another small kiss.
Cody made a little catching motion with his left hand and gave a little wave with his right. He stood alone outside the door for a moment and then gave a little jump and began to walk home, his stride cheery and filled with the springing step of one who can barely contain his own joy.
Despite the disastrous beginning, the evening had turned out to be one of the best of Cody's life. He rubbed his cheek where Jun had kissed him and smiled at the memory. This would be a night he would not soon forgot, nor would he forget the lessons he had learned. 'Maybe I will wait a couple more years before I start dating again,' he reasoned as he stepped into the elevator.
A/N: And so it ends. Wasn't really all that romantic because if it had been it would have been just plain wrong . Thanks for reading.
Special thanks now goes to Aaron, David, and my English teacher for their corrections to the mistakes I made the first time around.
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