Well, like I said before, I'm your narrator. Just just I, however, cannot tell this story. I cannot see EVERYTHING, so I'll see you in a while.
Excerpt from:
The Ishida Diaries: Saturday, November 7, 2001:
Amanda (P) on surveillance at Odiaba Terrace Apts. 9:05 am:
PHAT Matt's light came on just after I got here, and this is very out of the ordinary. If one notes previous entries for Saturdays record our lovely subject waking near 11 or 11:30, perhaps he's on the move today.
No gigs booked for the T.W's. One has to assume he's going to see one of his friends, hopefully not that hussy, Sora.
Amanda (P) 10:13 am:
Meter checks at 9:25 suggest he was showering. If you figure in the estimated 20 minutes for hair-gel-ing, 15 minutes to get dressed...he should be leaving the nest any minute.
Amanda (P) 10:37 am:
We got Ishida on the move. Tina (9R) has been notified and is in pursuit. Latest report indicates he took a route through the Apt. parking lot and is now heading south on Homesly street. Possible destinations: The Kamiya Residence, The Park, Rehearsal Hall, The Takenouchi hovel, or The Takaishi Residence.
South side Y's on standby, no codes declared.
Tina (9R) reports Yamato looks "fetching." Rondayvu point still undecided, changing surveillance position
Amanda (P) on surveillance at Petey's Coffee, 1432 Johnson street, 11:02 am:
Met Tina (9R). Matt is here for coffee. We decided to go incognito because backups are limited today, more posts are scarce. Code Green declared: Yamato near the Takenouchi place. Sole backup on Spears St. Patricia (M#9284671) called to arms. Interference will be used if necessary, because Patricia (M#9284671) has not been booked.
Matt is leaving____________
Matt walked slowly towards Sora's house.
He knew he'd told her about the plan, and she'd agreed to it, but it felt, wrong. She had also said yes a little too quickly for his taste. He had NO feelings "like that" for her and he had made that clear, but he was putting a tremendous amount of pressure on their friendship for doing this.
He hadn't seen her face to face since he'd told her about it either, although he was glad he'd explained it on the phone. He paused a couple of houses away. Technically, they were a couple. Ew. Not Sora, not him, ew, but he doubted Mimi would do it. Sora was a good friend. That was unquestionable. He was going to see his girlfriend. His girlfriend for crying out loud, Yamato Ishida had never been tied down. Matt da Man was not that type of guy, but he was now, and soon his days of being watched and getting groped during school assemblies would be over. He had to thank Sora for THAT.
As he stood there lost in his mental rambling, which must have looked quite strange, a girl very suddenly appeared from behind an oak tree in a yard a few lots over. She haphazardly threw a dog treat at Yamato's feet. A little terrier burst out from behind the tree, leaping onto the dog treat and after lapping it up started slobbering on the blonde's shoes. Matt looked down, bewildered.
"Grayson! Grayson stop that! You're going to ruin M- this guy's shoes," she ran to the dog, her palms turned down for a feminine appearance, gazing at Yamato as she spoke.
He stared at her. She was tall and lanky with brown hair. She pushed her glasses up on her nose as she apologized.
"I'm so sorry. He has a mind of his own sometimes," her voice trembled as she hurriedly recited the words.
"S'okay," Matt eagerly stepped ahead, now ready to continue to Sora's.
The girl stepped in front of him quickly, making him stop short.
"My names Patricia. What's yours?" She knew perfectly well what it was, but she had orders to play dumb.
Matt gave her a second look; she wasn't too bad on the eyes, but ACK! He now had a girl friend; he would do well to remember that.
"It's Matt, um, I really have to go."
"Okay...Matt," she paused, savoring the name, "but where are you hurrying off to?"
He was about to start walking again but he eyed her suspiciously and thought better of telling her.
"To a friend's, see you," he tried to walk past her.
She caught up once again, "Why don't you come to my house for a drink? You must be so hot!"
"It's November. It's like, 68 degrees out here."
"Yea, but you walked all that way. I mean you did walk here from your house, not that I know where your house is..."
His paranoia signaled him to get to Sora's ASAP, so he did the only thing he could think of, he ran.
He left Patricia standing in the middle of the sidewalk calling after him, and he ran the next block to Sora's house. He rang the bell and tried to recover his breath. He knew that running away wasn't his style and it must have looked painfully uncool, but he had panicked. The stuff with Sora had added a whole other dimension to his cat and mouse game with the Y's. He had no idea how handle that type stuff now.
The door opened and he wheezilly asked Mrs. Takenouchi if Sora was home. She led him into the living room and he made himself comfortable as Mrs. Takenouchi went to notify Sora of his arrival.
Sora appeared a few minutes later, her face radiant at the sight of him. He shuddered and hoped yet again that this little scheme didn't give her any ideas about them being more than friends. She sat next to him and playfully put an arm around his shoulders.
"Hey, lover..."
He jumped from the couch and she saw he had turned an alarming shade of red. She burst out laughing.
"This isn't game Sora! You know I only did this because I'm under a lot of stress. I don't need you adding to the confusion!"
"Sor-ry! Can't I touch my own boyfriend?"
He grimaced at her and she had to drop her eyes from his gaze. It was official. She felt bad.
"I'm sorry, I know you've been through a lot. I'll try to cooperate with you."
"Good," he sat by her on the couch, "now, let's lay down some ground rules."
"Shoot. This is your sick and twisted little plan..."
He rolled his eyes, "Rule one: We must spend as much time as possible together at school."
"Hooray," she said monotonously, "I get to put my entire life on hold."
"Hey, you're the one who agreed to this, so if you want to complain I can find myself another girl friend."
"Okay..." she crossed her arms at her chest and leaned back on the sofa, "Go on, Mr. Grouchy."
He let out a sigh of relief, he couldn't think of another friend who would do this for him. It would be way too dangerous; those fan girls were rabid. He was a little put off by her sarcasm; he WAS NOT being grouchy.
"Like I was saying, we have to look authentic at school. Arm around each other between classes, love notes, and sitting together at lunch. The whole schemer."
"Yeah, okay."
"Second, you have to go to my concerts, ALL of THEM."
"When I don't have tennis, or family stuff. Will do."
"Fair enough. Third, we can't tell any one we're faking, not even the gang."
She sat up and looked at him.
"No! It's bad enough we're lying to the entire school, but I will not lie to our friends!"
"But there could be leakage, I mean none of them sympathize with my situation. I know Tai will tell the first Y he meets..."
"Are you implying Tai is jealous of you?"
"Well, yeah...I guess I am."
"UH! Matt Ishida! You are the most self-centered guy on the planet!"
"I am not! You have to admit Tai IS jealous of me sometimes! He has to be! I mean I understand that perfectly! Lots of guys are jealous of me!"
"When did you become such a jerk?!? For three or four months you've been on this ego trip, and no one has been good enough to even talk to you!"
Yamato looked at his shoes, still wet with dog slobber, and thought about this. He had noticed he was on edge the last couple of months, and every body seemed to be avoiding him. He kept looking at the floor for what seemed like an hour. The words sank and sank deeper into his mind and he was ashamed. Ashamed of how he'd been treating his friends.
"I'm sorry Matt, it's just that..."
"No, Sora, I needed that."
He continued to stare down, not wanting to see the empathetic look in her eyes. He could just imagine her face.
"Look, you can tell Tai, if you want."
"No, we'll compromise, I'll just tell Mimi. She's going to see right through this anyway. I'll make her promise to keep it a secret."
He looked up at her, smiling brightly. "I sure have good taste in women."
She giggled, "That's my Matt."
"Why don't we get back to work?"
"O, all right," she sighed.
"Um, fourth, I think, we must go on two dates a week."
"Deal, you pay though..."
"Um, okay, 1 date a week. But we must call each other once a day, in front of someone, if possible," Sora nodded, "That's about it!"
"Mr. Ishida, you have yourself a deal. Now how about some lunch?"
Excerpt from:
The Ishida Diaries: Saturday, November, 7, 2001:
Amanda (P) and Tina (9R) on surveillance at the corner of Spears and Archer 12:34 pm:
Matt stayed at the Takenouchi's for about an hour. Last seen heading North of Archer to Johnson, and then presumably, to the main drag. Matt looks lovely in khaki shorts and a navy tee shirt. Sora is accompaning him. Code RED declared: all members are to look for signs of friendship and god forbid, PDA's...interference from un-marked members will be commended.
You may see the 11:59 am entry for details on Patricia's (M# 9284671) attempt to avert non- Y feminine contact. One further note on that subject, medal of Yamater is in question for her performance. Details to be discussed at officer's meeting this evening.
Amanda (P) on watch McDonalds, 6754 Plaza 12:57 PM:
Matt and Sora are having lunch. The horror. They might as well be feeding each other French fries for all the flirting. Plan of action to be drawn up ASAP. Presented to officers tonight, and operation "HoraBGone," as we've dubbed it just now, will have 2 objectives:
1. Learn the severity of Sora and PHAT Matt's relationship
2. Destroy ANY romantic intention between them.
Amanda (P) out.
Under stressful situations most creatures adapt to there surroundings. It's safe to say Matt had evolved. He had gained radar that let him know when he was being watched, and now that he had this little plan cooking, he'd have to be "on" all the time. Giggling like an idiot, flirting like crazy, doing all those little "couple-y" things he hated. It would be hell for the next month or even longer. How long before the Y's lost interest?
He was the first to admit it wasn't a full proof plan. There were tons of problems with it, but he had gone ahead with it anyway. He sat staring at Sora while she ate, trying to figure out how he had gotten this idea in the first place.
"Are you going to eat Matt?"
He snapped out of his trance for a moment. "Um, yea. I was thinking we should really turn on the sappy-ness right about now. I think we're being watched."
"Are you sure Matt? Can't we start being a couple on Monday? I mean, whose here anyway?"
"Believe me, there's ALWAYS someone around."
He decided it was now or never, so he casually scooted his chair toward her, and slid his arm around her waste. He leaned in toward her and whispered through her hair to play along.
She flirtatiously gazed at him, a soft smile tugging on her lips. It scared her that she didn't have to do much acting, but she had sort of expected as much. This would be a good way to test her feelings for him with little damage to the friendship; it was quite a stroke of luck.
She was a little surprised at how Matt knew so much about couple protocol. He had never had a steady relationship.
He fed her a few French fries; she lovingly stroked his cheek. To lookers on it seemed they were another pair of lovesick teenagers, talking of an eternity together over greasy fast food. In reality they were chatting about the weather, local gossip, and ways to look more realistic.
After about an hour they decided they'd put on enough of a show. Matt mumbled something about it being a good start.
Sora was optimistic that somehow he would fall in love with her, although she's not sure that was what she wanted. She wanted him to make up her mind for her. Either he would ask her out for real, or... not. She wasn't sure what she cared either way, but if he asked, she would say yes.
She was trying to gather her thoughts and figure out want she wanted on their way back to her house.
He was looking at her quizzically as they approached her front door. She seemed to be in another world. He could see she was concentrating hard. They stood there for a few moments and finally he got restless.
"Sora?"
She snapped her head up, "Yes Matt? Yes?"
"I've gotta go, I'll call you tomorrow."
"Yea, okay..."
He didn't start to walk away, and for a moment, they both just stood there, feeling awkward.
"So...um, bye?"
"Yea, bye,"
When Matt got home, his head hurt terribly. Why had he done this?
This plan would never work.
There could only be one explanation for him rushing into this.
"Oh god," he said, "I like Sora."
Excerpt from:
The Ishida Diaries: Saturday, November 7, 2001:
Amanda (P) on surveillance at Odiaba Terrace Apts. 9:05 am:
PHAT Matt's light came on just after I got here, and this is very out of the ordinary. If one notes previous entries for Saturdays record our lovely subject waking near 11 or 11:30, perhaps he's on the move today.
No gigs booked for the T.W's. One has to assume he's going to see one of his friends, hopefully not that hussy, Sora.
Amanda (P) 10:13 am:
Meter checks at 9:25 suggest he was showering. If you figure in the estimated 20 minutes for hair-gel-ing, 15 minutes to get dressed...he should be leaving the nest any minute.
Amanda (P) 10:37 am:
We got Ishida on the move. Tina (9R) has been notified and is in pursuit. Latest report indicates he took a route through the Apt. parking lot and is now heading south on Homesly street. Possible destinations: The Kamiya Residence, The Park, Rehearsal Hall, The Takenouchi hovel, or The Takaishi Residence.
South side Y's on standby, no codes declared.
Tina (9R) reports Yamato looks "fetching." Rondayvu point still undecided, changing surveillance position
Amanda (P) on surveillance at Petey's Coffee, 1432 Johnson street, 11:02 am:
Met Tina (9R). Matt is here for coffee. We decided to go incognito because backups are limited today, more posts are scarce. Code Green declared: Yamato near the Takenouchi place. Sole backup on Spears St. Patricia (M#9284671) called to arms. Interference will be used if necessary, because Patricia (M#9284671) has not been booked.
Matt is leaving____________
Matt walked slowly towards Sora's house.
He knew he'd told her about the plan, and she'd agreed to it, but it felt, wrong. She had also said yes a little too quickly for his taste. He had NO feelings "like that" for her and he had made that clear, but he was putting a tremendous amount of pressure on their friendship for doing this.
He hadn't seen her face to face since he'd told her about it either, although he was glad he'd explained it on the phone. He paused a couple of houses away. Technically, they were a couple. Ew. Not Sora, not him, ew, but he doubted Mimi would do it. Sora was a good friend. That was unquestionable. He was going to see his girlfriend. His girlfriend for crying out loud, Yamato Ishida had never been tied down. Matt da Man was not that type of guy, but he was now, and soon his days of being watched and getting groped during school assemblies would be over. He had to thank Sora for THAT.
As he stood there lost in his mental rambling, which must have looked quite strange, a girl very suddenly appeared from behind an oak tree in a yard a few lots over. She haphazardly threw a dog treat at Yamato's feet. A little terrier burst out from behind the tree, leaping onto the dog treat and after lapping it up started slobbering on the blonde's shoes. Matt looked down, bewildered.
"Grayson! Grayson stop that! You're going to ruin M- this guy's shoes," she ran to the dog, her palms turned down for a feminine appearance, gazing at Yamato as she spoke.
He stared at her. She was tall and lanky with brown hair. She pushed her glasses up on her nose as she apologized.
"I'm so sorry. He has a mind of his own sometimes," her voice trembled as she hurriedly recited the words.
"S'okay," Matt eagerly stepped ahead, now ready to continue to Sora's.
The girl stepped in front of him quickly, making him stop short.
"My names Patricia. What's yours?" She knew perfectly well what it was, but she had orders to play dumb.
Matt gave her a second look; she wasn't too bad on the eyes, but ACK! He now had a girl friend; he would do well to remember that.
"It's Matt, um, I really have to go."
"Okay...Matt," she paused, savoring the name, "but where are you hurrying off to?"
He was about to start walking again but he eyed her suspiciously and thought better of telling her.
"To a friend's, see you," he tried to walk past her.
She caught up once again, "Why don't you come to my house for a drink? You must be so hot!"
"It's November. It's like, 68 degrees out here."
"Yea, but you walked all that way. I mean you did walk here from your house, not that I know where your house is..."
His paranoia signaled him to get to Sora's ASAP, so he did the only thing he could think of, he ran.
He left Patricia standing in the middle of the sidewalk calling after him, and he ran the next block to Sora's house. He rang the bell and tried to recover his breath. He knew that running away wasn't his style and it must have looked painfully uncool, but he had panicked. The stuff with Sora had added a whole other dimension to his cat and mouse game with the Y's. He had no idea how handle that type stuff now.
The door opened and he wheezilly asked Mrs. Takenouchi if Sora was home. She led him into the living room and he made himself comfortable as Mrs. Takenouchi went to notify Sora of his arrival.
Sora appeared a few minutes later, her face radiant at the sight of him. He shuddered and hoped yet again that this little scheme didn't give her any ideas about them being more than friends. She sat next to him and playfully put an arm around his shoulders.
"Hey, lover..."
He jumped from the couch and she saw he had turned an alarming shade of red. She burst out laughing.
"This isn't game Sora! You know I only did this because I'm under a lot of stress. I don't need you adding to the confusion!"
"Sor-ry! Can't I touch my own boyfriend?"
He grimaced at her and she had to drop her eyes from his gaze. It was official. She felt bad.
"I'm sorry, I know you've been through a lot. I'll try to cooperate with you."
"Good," he sat by her on the couch, "now, let's lay down some ground rules."
"Shoot. This is your sick and twisted little plan..."
He rolled his eyes, "Rule one: We must spend as much time as possible together at school."
"Hooray," she said monotonously, "I get to put my entire life on hold."
"Hey, you're the one who agreed to this, so if you want to complain I can find myself another girl friend."
"Okay..." she crossed her arms at her chest and leaned back on the sofa, "Go on, Mr. Grouchy."
He let out a sigh of relief, he couldn't think of another friend who would do this for him. It would be way too dangerous; those fan girls were rabid. He was a little put off by her sarcasm; he WAS NOT being grouchy.
"Like I was saying, we have to look authentic at school. Arm around each other between classes, love notes, and sitting together at lunch. The whole schemer."
"Yeah, okay."
"Second, you have to go to my concerts, ALL of THEM."
"When I don't have tennis, or family stuff. Will do."
"Fair enough. Third, we can't tell any one we're faking, not even the gang."
She sat up and looked at him.
"No! It's bad enough we're lying to the entire school, but I will not lie to our friends!"
"But there could be leakage, I mean none of them sympathize with my situation. I know Tai will tell the first Y he meets..."
"Are you implying Tai is jealous of you?"
"Well, yeah...I guess I am."
"UH! Matt Ishida! You are the most self-centered guy on the planet!"
"I am not! You have to admit Tai IS jealous of me sometimes! He has to be! I mean I understand that perfectly! Lots of guys are jealous of me!"
"When did you become such a jerk?!? For three or four months you've been on this ego trip, and no one has been good enough to even talk to you!"
Yamato looked at his shoes, still wet with dog slobber, and thought about this. He had noticed he was on edge the last couple of months, and every body seemed to be avoiding him. He kept looking at the floor for what seemed like an hour. The words sank and sank deeper into his mind and he was ashamed. Ashamed of how he'd been treating his friends.
"I'm sorry Matt, it's just that..."
"No, Sora, I needed that."
He continued to stare down, not wanting to see the empathetic look in her eyes. He could just imagine her face.
"Look, you can tell Tai, if you want."
"No, we'll compromise, I'll just tell Mimi. She's going to see right through this anyway. I'll make her promise to keep it a secret."
He looked up at her, smiling brightly. "I sure have good taste in women."
She giggled, "That's my Matt."
"Why don't we get back to work?"
"O, all right," she sighed.
"Um, fourth, I think, we must go on two dates a week."
"Deal, you pay though..."
"Um, okay, 1 date a week. But we must call each other once a day, in front of someone, if possible," Sora nodded, "That's about it!"
"Mr. Ishida, you have yourself a deal. Now how about some lunch?"
Excerpt from:
The Ishida Diaries: Saturday, November, 7, 2001:
Amanda (P) and Tina (9R) on surveillance at the corner of Spears and Archer 12:34 pm:
Matt stayed at the Takenouchi's for about an hour. Last seen heading North of Archer to Johnson, and then presumably, to the main drag. Matt looks lovely in khaki shorts and a navy tee shirt. Sora is accompaning him. Code RED declared: all members are to look for signs of friendship and god forbid, PDA's...interference from un-marked members will be commended.
You may see the 11:59 am entry for details on Patricia's (M# 9284671) attempt to avert non- Y feminine contact. One further note on that subject, medal of Yamater is in question for her performance. Details to be discussed at officer's meeting this evening.
Amanda (P) on watch McDonalds, 6754 Plaza 12:57 PM:
Matt and Sora are having lunch. The horror. They might as well be feeding each other French fries for all the flirting. Plan of action to be drawn up ASAP. Presented to officers tonight, and operation "HoraBGone," as we've dubbed it just now, will have 2 objectives:
1. Learn the severity of Sora and PHAT Matt's relationship
2. Destroy ANY romantic intention between them.
Amanda (P) out.
Under stressful situations most creatures adapt to there surroundings. It's safe to say Matt had evolved. He had gained radar that let him know when he was being watched, and now that he had this little plan cooking, he'd have to be "on" all the time. Giggling like an idiot, flirting like crazy, doing all those little "couple-y" things he hated. It would be hell for the next month or even longer. How long before the Y's lost interest?
He was the first to admit it wasn't a full proof plan. There were tons of problems with it, but he had gone ahead with it anyway. He sat staring at Sora while she ate, trying to figure out how he had gotten this idea in the first place.
"Are you going to eat Matt?"
He snapped out of his trance for a moment. "Um, yea. I was thinking we should really turn on the sappy-ness right about now. I think we're being watched."
"Are you sure Matt? Can't we start being a couple on Monday? I mean, whose here anyway?"
"Believe me, there's ALWAYS someone around."
He decided it was now or never, so he casually scooted his chair toward her, and slid his arm around her waste. He leaned in toward her and whispered through her hair to play along.
She flirtatiously gazed at him, a soft smile tugging on her lips. It scared her that she didn't have to do much acting, but she had sort of expected as much. This would be a good way to test her feelings for him with little damage to the friendship; it was quite a stroke of luck.
She was a little surprised at how Matt knew so much about couple protocol. He had never had a steady relationship.
He fed her a few French fries; she lovingly stroked his cheek. To lookers on it seemed they were another pair of lovesick teenagers, talking of an eternity together over greasy fast food. In reality they were chatting about the weather, local gossip, and ways to look more realistic.
After about an hour they decided they'd put on enough of a show. Matt mumbled something about it being a good start.
Sora was optimistic that somehow he would fall in love with her, although she's not sure that was what she wanted. She wanted him to make up her mind for her. Either he would ask her out for real, or... not. She wasn't sure what she cared either way, but if he asked, she would say yes.
She was trying to gather her thoughts and figure out want she wanted on their way back to her house.
He was looking at her quizzically as they approached her front door. She seemed to be in another world. He could see she was concentrating hard. They stood there for a few moments and finally he got restless.
"Sora?"
She snapped her head up, "Yes Matt? Yes?"
"I've gotta go, I'll call you tomorrow."
"Yea, okay..."
He didn't start to walk away, and for a moment, they both just stood there, feeling awkward.
"So...um, bye?"
"Yea, bye,"
When Matt got home, his head hurt terribly. Why had he done this?
This plan would never work.
There could only be one explanation for him rushing into this.
"Oh god," he said, "I like Sora."