"So, how is it going with that girl of yours, Taichi?" Yamato asked him sometime the next week. They stood around the school yard at lunch time."I've noticed you hanging around her a lot."
He shrugged. "Yeah, I really like her."
"Does she trust you yet?"
"A bit."
"Damn – so you haven't been getting lucky yet?" Yamato said, laughing his ass off.
Taichi punched Yamato (again) in the arm, and either of them didn't doubt that it hurt. "Fuck off, Yamato," he growled, looking at him. "Don't talk about her like that."
Yamato clutched his arm (again) in pain and said carefully, "You really like her."
"What have I been telling you for the last three weeks?"
"I've listened to you tell me, but I never believed it. It's one of those things – I had to see it to believe it."
"Thanks a lot."
"Oh, here she comes now." Yamato indicated to the copper haired girl coming their way.
"Sora!" Taichi called, grinning at her. She smiled shyly back, and looked carefully at Yamato.
"Hi, Taichi." She said, walking to his side. He grasped her hand, and laced together their fingers in response, as she blushed. Was that meant the way she thought it was supposed to be meant?
"Wow, you weren't joking when you said she was shy." Yamato commented, brushing his blonde hair out of the way. "I'll see you guys later."
"I'm not that shy," Sora stated stubbornly.
"No, but you're pretty close." Taichi said, and then seeing her amused face, he added, "I think it's cute though."
- - -
"Mama?" Sora called, as she put on her coat, "I'm leaving for Taichi's now."
A faint, voice filtered its way through the apartment, "You seem to be spending a lot of time with him."
"He's my friend."
Her mother came out of her room and looked at her daughter funny. "Are you sure?"
Sora felt her face flush, and quickly hid her face behind a couple of locks of her copper hair. "I'm going to be late if I don't leave now."
Her mother smirked.
"When do I get to meet him?" She called after her, but Sora had already left.
- - -
"So, how is Sora?" Mrs. Yagami asked her teenage son, once he got home from school. "You haven't mentioned much about her since she came over for dinner."
Taichi grinned at his mother. "I'm almost there, mom. She's coming over right now to work on some homework with me."
His mother smiled at him, just as someone knocked on the door. "I'm glad, she seems like a very nice girl."
"She is, mom, she is."
Taichi opened the door, to find Sora, her cheeks red from the cold wind. "Hey, Sora."
"Hi," She breathed, putting a hand to her chest. And then, indicating why she had run from her apartment, "It's kind of scary when it's dark."
Taichi laughed. "I'll walk you home when you have to leave, then."
"I'll see you later, then Taichi," Mrs. Yagami said, grabbing her purse. "Nice to see you again, Sora."
"Later, mom," Taichi said cheerfully, stopping to grin and then wink at Sora.
She raised her eyebrows in question, and then said politely, "You too, Mrs. Yagami."
Taichi's mother left, and Taichi said easily, "So, we're all alone. Is that okay with you?"
She nodded.
"So, you've let yourself trust me?"
She nodded again. "I like hanging out with you, Taichi."
He was flattered as she had proved that it had took some work to gain her trust and friendship, but he marveled at how close they had become. He was used to getting his way with girls whenever he wanted, but in this case it didn't matter, because it was Sora, and Sora was worth waiting for.
Half an hour later, Taichi threw down his protractor in frustration. He stated, "It's Friday night."
She nodded, biting on the end of her ruler, continuing on with her math.
"We're sitting here doing homework," he continued as if she cared.
She looked up at him. "Well, what do you want to do instead?"
"Let's go out. Catch a movie, go for something to eat, anything."
"I don't have any money, though," She said, casting her gaze downwards. "Can I pay you back later?"
"You don't have to pay me back. It's my treat." Taichi said, grinning at her. "Let's go! I'm not used to staying home on Friday nights."
She looked surprised, but obliged.
- - -
She was happy. She had become a friend with an amazing person, and she liked everything about him. Except the way he seemed to have a lot of female followers.
"Hey, Takenouchi." A female voice spat. Standing in the schoolyard by herself, Sora suddenly felt very small and vulnerable. This wouldn't be her first run in with these girls…
She slowly turned around, to find a pack of five or more girls, their hands on their hips.
"Rumor has it, you've been seeing a lot of Yagami Taichi lately."
She said nothing, thinking she would lose whether or not she nodded or shook her head.
"Yeah," the leader of the girls drawled, "We don't like it."
Two arms slid around Sora's waist, and she recognized the immediately.
"Sora-chan!" A male voice said, "I've missed you."
Taichi kissed her cheek lightly, to the surprise of all of the girls. He tightened his hold on her. "What's going on here?"
The girl spat, "I don't know what you're doing with her, Taichi-san, when you could have been with one, or more, of us. Your prime opportunity could be the upcoming dance this Wednesday."
He rolled his eyes. "Get out of here, I have a date already."
The scampered away, but not before eyeing Sora evilly. She twisted out of his grasp when they were gone.
"What are you trying to do? Get me killed?" Sora practically shouted, with her hands on her hips. "This will just make them more jealous. You had better attend my funeral, Taichi."
"I'm showing them that if they mess with you, they mess with me. You can't go around just letting them push you around. I've seen them around you before, Sora, and it won't be happening any longer."
"I'm not your average 'damsel in distress', Taichi. I could have handled it."
"I'm sure you could have," he said confidently, a slight smirk on his face.
"I could have," she said stubbornly.
"Next time I'll let you handle it. In the meantime, how would you like to go to the dance with me?" He asked, sticking his hands in his pockets. "You never know, it could be fun."
"I don't go to dances. I don't dance."
"Please? We don't have to dance. We can sit at a table the entire night if you want."
"Why me? You just saw that you had girls waiting to be asked out by you."
"Because, I want to go with you."
"Oh, fine." Sora responded exasperatedly.
- - -
He appeared on her doorstep dressed in black dress pants and a collared blue shirt. He tugged at a couple pieces of his hair nervously before ringing the bell.
She opened the door, dressed in a knee-length skirt and red tank shirt. "Don't laugh, Taichi. This will probably be the last time you see me in a dress until my wedding."
He did laugh, but not because of what she wore. "Why would I laugh at you? You look great."
She felt her face flush, and he laughed again as he reached for her hand. "Let's go."
The gym was full of people, and the music was loud. The first thing that Taichi did was lead her onto the dance floor, despite her whining and pleading.
They danced a couple of times that night, most fast dancing, but Taichi sucked her in for one slow dance. It was nice. He smelled good, and it felt good to be leaning against him at such a close level.
They saw the girls from the week before a couple times dressed quite inappropriately. Sora and Taichi laughed and continued dancing.
When Taichi walked her home that night, she felt really awkward. She had enjoyed herself thoroughly, and even though they were holding each other's hands, there was no final commitment.
They stood on her doorstep, Taichi still holding her hand, the other one in his pocket. "Thanks for coming with me, Sora."
She laughed. "You're right, it wasn't that bad."
They were silent for a minute, before Taichi pulled her closer and dipped his mouth down on hers. Her arms wound their way up around his neck, and her hands found their way tangled into his hair.
They pulled away, quite breathless.
Taichi grinned, and Sora blushed.
- - -
Disclaimer: I don't own Digimon.
Notes: I think this was the end. I liked how it turned out, so read and review, please. Thanks to those who reviewed my last chapter!