Always a Hero
A giant wave of ocean water crashed over Taichi and Koushiro's body. They were instantly swept away from each other, parting in separate ways, being forced to be alone. Koushiro frantically waved his good arm, trying to get back to the brunette. His cheeks already began to turn red from lack of oxygen. Begging himself not to gasp in a large amount of water, he began to swim upwards, trying clumsily and loosely like a child would.
Taichi hadn't given up as easily as Koushiro had. His eyes trailed the redhead even though his body was being pulled the opposite direction by the current. Struggling against it, his arms flung out in front of him, trying to push himself the other way. The power of the water stung his eyes but he ignored it, knowing that things wouldn't get any better until he had his hold on his best friend. He would never forgive himself if something else happened to him.
Surfacing himself, Koushiro gasped for air and raised his left arm as if someone was reaching out to pull him up. It dropped back into the water as another surge catastrophically pushed him back down into the water. His clothes that were once red were now a faint brown. The water around him was red and the wounds on his body bit into his mind with pain. As he was shoved deeper into the water, his mind began to yearn for oxygen. Discomfort filled the conscious side of his mind and soon began to fold.
Blackness surrounded his mind and Koushiro could no longer see the water, the waves; he couldn't see anything but his own darkness. Within a matter of seconds, his mind completely collapsed from the need of air, leaving the frightened child in a world of nothingness; leaving him in a world of danger.
Taichi pushed his head through the surface of water and took in a much-needed breath. His lungs burned from the torture they were being put under and his heart was racing faster than he could imagine. When he brought himself into an easy tread, he searched for the redhead… He panted heavily, twisting and turning in the water in search of him, needing to see any sign to save him.
In the distance, little fireballs streaked against the dark sky. Taichi wondered if they would all land in the ocean. Sometimes he would hear a loud crash signifying one had crashed into the mountains or any other piece of solid ground. Other times he could actually see one of those deadly things fly into the water. When this happened, he jerked his head to look for Koushiro again, knowing that he had to find him.
Taichi inhaled a large amount of air and dove into the chilly waters. His eyes probed each movement in the ocean, waiting for Koushiro, wishing for Koushiro. The dark, shaded areas of the undersea maze didn't help him with his search. He swam swiftly, keeping his eyes open for that familiar little redhead that seemed to disappear so often. His mind began to tell him that he needed air--but he couldn't give up just yet! Those things were causing the waves. If he took too much time… Koushiro could be swept further away and…
Stop it Taichi, he demanded to himself. Those thoughts are useless in the real world! You either think positive or you don't think at all. Friendship can't last with this kind of attitude…
The brunette pushed himself under the water, feeling faint waves that had crashed on the surface. He pushed himself down further, hoping that his doubts wouldn't get the best of him. Exhaling just a small amount of air, he felt his lungs ease for only a moment. He was fighting with himself mentally, telling him that he didn't need air, that he could go just a little farther, that he had to find Koushiro before it was too late.
It reached the point to when Taichi began to feel pain in his stomach and his head. His eyes were straining to get a hold of anything but spots. He once heard that it could be easier to convince yourself if you had a strong motive. The thought of Hikari was set in his mind. If he didn't make it out of this, Hikari would be alone. She wouldn't know what to do; wouldn't know how to wake up in the morning without a brother. And on the flip side, he wouldn't know what to do if he ever lost his baby sister.
Koushiro settled down on one side of his mind, too. This brainy little computer whiz had been his best friend for a long time. If he didn't know any better, he could call Koushiro his brother. He would be letting him down if he hadn't pushed on... It would be as if he actually killed Koushiro... just because he couldn't make it on time.
Sora and Mimi were two of his good friends, too. Especially Sora… He wished that he knew what kind of state they were in. Daisuke, though following in his footsteps, was a whole different youth than he was. Taichi just knew that Daisuke wouldn't see him as the great role-model soccer player if he let someone he cared for slip out of his reach.
Yamato's pale face, blonde hair, and bright blue eyes came across his mind. Taichi clenched his hands into fists when he remembered how he and Yamato used to argue over things. He had taken the friendship for granted… If he knew that this would have happened, he wouldn't have been so cruel to one of his best friends. What would Yamato say if he saw him now? Your hair's too big… it's absorbing all the water, you idiot. You'll sink to the bottom of the ocean. …But don't give up.
Ah… Takeru… the boy who stole his sister's heart in a flash… The kid who will probably someday end up taking Hikari out to a dinner and a movie. And then away from her home… away from her family. The kid he wanted to pulverize. That was Takeru… But despite how many times he could threaten and frighten the poor youth, he knew that no matter what, this kid loved his sister--even if he couldn't admit it. After all, he had blushed over the fact of Hikari's pink angel rabbit pajamas and the cream-colored towel.
Taichi squeezed his last ounce of energy to reach out for something he thought was Koushiro. His fingers entwined in a type of cloth and he immediately lunged forward to get a better hold. It was Koushiro, all right. The redhead's eyes were closed and his facial expression was in pain. Burning lungs and all, Taichi took the friend into his arms and propelled himself towards the surface.
Just as his brown head broke out from the water, a floating log was seen nearby. It had a piece of Koushiro's shirt material trapped within its bark. He found the irony easily. Something that had caused great pain to his friend was going to become his savior. Taichi paddled his way through the rough waters, trying his best to keep both his and Koushiro's head above water. Never once did his hand leave the grip of his.
Once he reached the log, he began to push Koushiro onto it. It was rather hard when one half of the job was lying limp with jagged breathing patterns. But at least he had started to breathe again. Taichi threw his arms over the side of the dead tree and took a couple breaths of air to ease the pain in his lungs. There weren't any major waves for a long while. Taichi wondered if it was ready to consider it safe.
On a couple swells of water, the log kind of tipped to the side, causing the unconscious Koushiro begin to slide. Taichi, already a little jumpy from the water, struggled to keep him on without pulling him off and without releasing his own grip from it. Moments passed where it was just dead silence. Taichi was too exhausted to move, to think, to do anything but breath. Even keeping Koushiro on the log was a difficult task.
And then without notice… he started to cry.
The older of the two set his forehead against Koushiro's body and sobbed. He cried for many reasons; he cried because he was scared and wanted to go home and he cried because he was glad that Koushiro was still alive---that he hadn't failed him--which he had lived through a traumatizing moment in his life. His eyes released the warm tears because he was worried for the friends that he couldn't touch right now; the friends that he couldn't imagine what they were going through. Broken sobs of confusion were thrown into the silence because he was in pain and his mind just couldn't take any more of it. But most of all, he cried because he thought the worst of life had passed.
"Koushiro," Taichi laced his left hand with the other's, his right arm wrapped around his body to keep him secure. "Promise me," he said between quivering sniffles, "promise me that you won't do this to me again." He tried to laugh, but he couldn't, he just buried his face in the youth's arm. "I don't want to see you all silent and motionless and… and I don't want to see you away from your laptop."
He forced another choked laugh. "I thought you'd go insane without it by now. But I guess we're all kind of going insane from this." He rubbed his eyes against the wet cloth of Koushiro's sleeve and set his forehead on his shoulder. "Promise me that if we get home--" He caught his words and quickly changed them, "When we get home, everything will be back to normal. Right? You'll be surfing on your laptop--not a log. And me… well… I'm just--"
"Always a hero."
Taichi raised his head up thinking his exhausted mind was playing games on him. His eyes locked on Koushiro's closed eyelids. A kind of sorrowful pain lurched within his stomach, making him feel sick. There was a moment of silence where Taichi just stared at Koushiro, wishing/hoping/pleading. He couldn't tell whether Koushiro really did say those words or if he had been under water too long. The ripples in the water kept them moving up and down; he didn't know if Koushiro was still breathing--still living. He didn't want to find out if he wasn't. When his final ray of hope faded within the debris in the sky, Taichi lowered his head in defeat/pain.
"Did you hear me?" Koushiro's voice drifted again. It sounded angelic, innocent, gentle, and far away. Taichi swore to himself that he was imagining it all and kept his head down.
"I said you're always a hero." The voice seemed girlish in a way--but only because it was quivering and cracking whenever possible. Taichi clenched his eyes shut and wished the voice would just leave him alone. It was haunting.
"I promise, Taichi."
The brunette sniffed roughly and lifted his head again. Instead of seeing closed eyes, he stared into the dark pools of Koushiro. At first, he didn't know what to do; didn't know whether to be overwhelmed with joy or relief. Or what was he supposed to do? Was he supposed to laugh or embrace the friend? Cry again or just remain silent?
Well, Taichi did everything.
He flung his arms around the youth; their hands locked together like a handshake. Tears slipped from the corners of the boys' eyes while Taichi began to laugh hysterically, telling Koushiro that he thought he was hearing things in his own mind. For minutes, they talked about the fear of water that they were developing. Koushiro claimed to never set foot in anything deeper than two feet. Taichi said that he'd only touch water if it were in a shower. They laughed at each other when they told their doubts.
The redheaded child remained on the log; the right side of his body was numb from earlier, and now it was against damp clothing, stinging it whenever a slight breeze swept across. He trembled every so often as if someone had dumped a cold bucket of water over him. Taichi understood how cold he was; he too was freezing in the water.
He was treading the water, hanging onto the log with his arms and setting his chin on the bark. Though he was cold, he was content. His eyes study the facial expressions that Koushiro made as they talked. The youth would scrunch his nose when he was describing something that freaked him out--but didn't want it to seem like he was scared. When he was joking, his smile slanted up a little more on one side. His eyes shifted hastily whenever he mentioned how scared he was.
Taichi watched how he used his hands to describe things. Well, he used his left hand, his right was holding onto the brunette's like he was going to suddenly sink or something. Koushiro would silence himself every so often to bite on his bottom lip. Finally, he turned to look down at Taichi and said, "Are you okay?"
"Sure I am," Taichi said, his purple lips telling the other a different story.
"Why haven't we tried to go back yet?"
"I'm just… tired," Taichi craned his neck to look behind them. The sight of the land looked far away. Neither of them knew that they had been just bobbing up and down in the water for a long while. Everything had been strangely calm. There weren't any flaming fireballs pelting the ground; wasn't any waves pushing or pulling… It was calm.
"Taichi," Koushiro whispered, looking away childishly. "Why does this silence make me so uncomfortable?"
The Yagami bit his lip to keep it from quivering. "I don't know." But he did know… It was quiet when they were resting underneath the trees. It was quiet when they were sitting in the sand. And now it was quiet again…
"Taichi," the redhead whispered, his weak hand gripping as hard as it could to Taichi's.
"Huh?" he asked turning his attention back on the boy.
Koushiro's eyes were staring at the ruined sky; the sky that was once a vivid blue, now a darkening gray. "Please don't let go."
The words echoed in his mind… like they were a cue for someone, or something. And surprisingly, something did happen.
A pulse of waves moved underneath them, causing the log that Koushiro was holding onto to bob up and down. Koushiro sat up and looked around themselves. The water looked serene again. That was before they saw a wave of no more than three feet in the distance. As it neared, it began to grow, larger and larger, as did the two boys' eyes.
The wave surged across the used-to-be calm waters, pulling the log away. Koushiro fell off of it before the wave hit its prey. Breaking from the pressure, the log was engulfed by the waves, taken into the tremendous power of the tsunami. Both Taichi and Koushiro were dragged into the power, but no matter what happened, Taichi never let go of his friend--not like he had before. This time he was going to be a true hero. He was going protect Koushiro instead of waiting until he was in danger.
But how could he do such a task when he was trying to save himself, too?
Taichi held the other close as the wave pushed them as if they were a log. He clenched his eyes shut; the water was painful, it was pushing against him in so many different ways, it was hard to even think of it. Despite his effort of trying to keep his head above water, he failed. Just as he had before, he was sucked into a world of water, pressure, and fear.
He felt Koushiro frantically holding onto his arm, gripping it tightly with both hands. The redhead was scared for his life--like Taichi--but didn't know how to show it without looking like he was having a seizure. Koushiro scanned the fast-pasted wave with wide-eyes. His right hand, the weaker of the two, lost grip of Taichi's arm and was jerked away from it from the flow of the water.
Taichi felt this turned his head as fast as he could. But everything began to slow down immensely. His brown eyes studied the movements and grew wide with fear and disbelief. Koushiro's left hand was beginning to easily lose its grip and the boy himself looked like he was about to give up. And he did. The redhead suddenly jerked within the water like something hit his back and his grip automatically released.
This happened in slow motion; Taichi turning his head and watching his friend get hit by the log, then lose his grip completely. Then he had to watch his friend drift away because he couldn't help. He had to watch his friend be pulled away… and he couldn't do anything about it--for he was going the opposite way Koushiro was.
Some hero I turned out to be… Taichi clenched his hand shut; feeling falsely titled when Koushiro called him a hero. Just as he was pulled to the surface of the water, he saw Koushiro; behind him, caught on the jagged edges of the log. Taichi called out his name and reached out to him, but everything was drowned out by the crashed of water, the sound of colliding rocks with solids; and the sound that hit Taichi made when he himself crashed into the rocks.
Please don't let go… Always a hero… I promise, Taichi…
Eh, another chapter that I was hoping to be better. Ah… but what about poor little Iori and Yamato? Well guess what--you have to wait. ^-^ I'm going one step up at a time… no one's going to finish before all the others. In other words, yup, you do have to wait. ^-^
Also, somebody asked me if the way I separated the groups into pairs meant they were couples. Nope. The only couple I'm going to have is Takari. But it'll be so friendship-ish that you wouldn't even realize it. Aside from the little pink pajamas. Mmkay.
So, with that settles and said… you can go review about this semi-pathetic chapter. Now I need to know who to do next… Ken and Daisuke, Sora and Jyou, Mimi and Miyako, or Takeru and Hikari… Humm… Thanks for reading and all that jazz.