Disclaimer: I do not own Digimon or Tera or Adrian.
Jenashu: YAY!!! Ball time!!! Yama: .... Izzy: ... Jenashu: ERGH! Guys ruin the mood every time! Anyway, onto chapter 15! Wow! 15 chapters! Be proud, be very proud! **************************************************************************** **** Fairy Tale Night
"Does my hair look good?"
"You don't think I look fat in this, do you?"
"Is this a good shade for me?"
"Do you think this necklace is too gaudy?"
Needless to say, Sora, Lulu, and Jen were fussing over themselves, trying to look as beautiful as possible for the ball, along with every other girl from the WSC.
"How's my hair?"
"Is my tie straight?"
"Oops, I think I've grown since the last time I wore this!"
What do you know! The guys are worried, too!
(A/N: Normally I don't go into detail about what the DDs are wearing, but today I'm going all out!)
Lulu revovled slowly to be critiqued by Jen and Sora. Her dress was extremely frilly and girl-ish, and it was a deep shade of green to match her hair. Jen thought that she looked like a little kid going to church, but she kept it to herself.
Sora's dress was exactly opposite of Lulu's. It was sleek, black, and didn't have much back. She looked to Jen like a teenager on prom night.
Jen sighed. She was the only one who had tried for the 'ballroom' look. Perhaps she dreamed too much, but she had wanted to look like a princess. Her dress was a cheerful shade of lavender, and it was a mixture of naughty and nice with a low collar and princessy frills. She even had a little purple parasel.
"Alright, girls! Let's go get 'em!" Lulu cried. Sora and Jen shared glances and shrugged, deciding not to ask for the specific meaning of that. ****************
"Yama-kun, that's even more hair gel than usual."
"Shut up, Taichi!"
"Excuse me...? Umm, Matt, you're getting hair gel in my comb..."
"This is yours? Eck, do I have red hair mixed with my blonde?"
"No, but can I have my comb?"
"Fine, Koushiro, go do something to impress Jen."
Izzy was a little annoyed with Tai and Matt by the time they were all ready. He didn't think that guys were supposed to be so engrossed with their appearance. All three of them were wearing suits and ties. Izzy looked at his camera, sighed, and put it in his pocket. His mother had asked him to take a picture of him and Jen at the ball. Izzy took a deep breath. He couldn't wait to see his goddess! ***********
When the girls walked down the hallway of the west wing, they meet Tera. She was surronded by her friends. They all stood in a group, chatting excitedly. Jen walked up to her.
"Tera! Oh my gosh! You look SO good!" Jen cried when she saw her friend. "And we both have excellent taste, if I do say so myself," she added when she realized that Tera also had a purple dress. Tera did a quick spin to show off her dark violet, silky dress.
"Yes, we do! It must run in your family," Tera replied with a giggle.
"Does that mean that Tai asked you to the ball?! That's why he was so nervous this morning! That's great!"
"Isn't it? I'm so excited! Do you think Tai will like this?" Tera asked, sounding a little worried.
"You're gorgeous, dahling," Jen said with fervor and a fake Russian accent.
"Thanks. You look good, too. I bet Izzy will die when he sees you!" Tera teased.
"Don't say that!" Jen cried, even though she knew Tera was joking.
"Okay, okay. Look! We're moving!" Tera replied. The long line of girls in the hallway suddenly started to move. *********
"Somehow I feel that we should be going in horse-drawn carriages, not a bus," Jen said with a small frown after about 15 minutes of driving. Thankfully, everyone was too nervous and excited to sing.
"Come on, just see this as the carriage of the 21st century," Sora said from the seat behind her. "Well, jeez, this all couldn't be directly from a story book. Just be glad that your prince is waiting at the castle!"
"You're picking on me," Jen realized. Sora laughed and pointed out the window.
"Check it out! That was quick!" she said. Jen gasped. Sure, the place was more like a mansion than a castle, but still, it was fit for a princess! The peacocks are a nice touch...she thought. The waterfall's pretty cool, too...
It took about 20 buses to get everyone to the mansion, but they all fit comfortably on the parking lot. When Jen finally stepped out of the bus, she felt the night wrap its magic around her, inviting her to discover what fairy tales are made of.
Jen saw a bunch of people coming in on the other side of the building, and she knew that they were the guys. She couldn't make out any faces, though; they were far away and it was getting increasingly dark out. But, she thought to herself, I'll see him soon enough...
As they walked through the marble hallway, the girl's shoes clicked ominously and echoed throughout the mansion. At first, Jen was a little worried. The place was poorly lit, just like the haunted houses they showed on TV. But Jen's fears vanished when two giant doors slowly swung open, revealing a humoungous room.
It was the most beautiful place Jen had ever seen. It was cheerfully lit, and decorated lavishly. The food looked good enough to satisfy even Yaten, the pickiest eater ever. Right in the middle of the dinner sat a golden punch bowl. It was covered with all kinds of imaginary creatures.
Jen stood in the doorway, completely shocked. "Get a move on, Jen! You're blocking everyone!" Mimi hissed in her ear. Jen jumped and hastilly walked away from the door. She looked around for Izzy, but couldn't find him anywhere.
After searching for ten minutes (and watching everyone dancing-Jen was trying to pick up fast so she wouldn't have to admit that she had no clue how to waltz), Jen felt someone grab her arm. Before she even knew who it was, she was being led into the dance.
"Kakeyu! What are you doing?!" Jen demanded when she got a look at her partner. He was expertly manuvering himself so that Jen was forced to follow his movments or trip.
"I just wanted to warn you, bro. Listen up! Don't drink the punch from the golden bowl," he whispered.
"Don't call me bro! I'm not even a guy. And why shouldn't I drink the punch? Is it bad?" Jen asked, feeling very confused. She was getting dizzy from all the spinning.
"Oh, no. It's good. Very, very good," Kakeyu replied, ignoring Jen's first statement.
"Then why shouldn't I-Oh, no Kakeyu, please don't tell me you did what I think you did!" Jen hissed.
"Shh! Do you want us to get kicked out of the WSC?" Kakeyu whispered.
"Hey, you're the one who spiked the punch!" Jen replied quietly.
"Whatever. I did what I was supposed to. See ya. By the way, learn how to dance!" Kakeyu said before releasing Jen's hand and dissapearing into the crowd. Jen stood there in disbelief until she felt a hand on her shoulder. She turned around to see Garu.
"Hey, I was watching you waltz. You dance very...ah, interestingly. I thought I'd show you how to do it properly," Garu offered. After a moment of consideration, Jen nodded. Well, how can I dance with Izzy if I don't even know how? she asked herself.
"Alright, it's like this," Garu said, leading her in the waltz as Kakeyu had. Even though Garu had claimed that this was a friendly, tutorial dance, Jen knew that he was holding her just a little closer than a stranger or friend would have.
"Garu," Jen scolded gently. She felt his body tensen a little.
"I know. I'm trying. But, it's just one dance," he replied with a sad look in his eyes. By the time the song ended, Jen was moving on her own. She released Garu's hand and smiled at him. She nodded in the direction of a bunch of girls who were staring at Garu, pratically drooling.
"Make their day, Garu," she said, patting his uninjured shoulder. Then she ducked into the crowd and continued to search for Izzy. *************
"Tai! Tai!" a feminie voice called. Tai gave a quizical frown and looked around. Suddenly he spotted Tera coming towards him.
"Hello!" he said with a smile. He handed her the cup of punch that he was about to drink. Luckily, he had decided to avoid the crowd around the golden bowl by drinking from a plainer one. She smiled and drained it in two gulps.
"Phew! It's so hot in here!" Tera complained, pulling the collar of her dress a little.
"I know," Tai agreed, looking her over with a smile. Suddenly Tera caught his meaning and turned red.
"You know, I think I saw some balconies around here when we drove past. Let's see if we can find one," Tera said.
"Don't you want to dance?" Tai asked. Tera blushed.
"Well, the truth is...I can't. I don't know how."
"It's alright, I've been watching everyone waltz this whole time! We'll figure it out. And if we don't, I can teach you how the couples at the school dances dance," Tai offered. Tera blushed even more.
"Okay," she agreed, allowing herself to be led into the waltz. **********
"Lulu...? Is...is that you?" Lulu heard someone say from behind her. She spun around so quickly that she tripped in her high heels and crashed against the person's chest.
"Oh! Oh, I'm such a clutz, I'm so sorr-Drellus?!" she said. Sure enough, she found heself staring up into Drell's dark, blue eyes.
"Yeah...You, uh, look nice..." Drellus said, trying not to stumble over his words. "I wanted to know if you'd want to dance..."
"Sure! Yeah! Let's dance! I mean, we are going together, right? Let's show them how it's done!" Lulu cried happily. Drell blushed dark red as he led Lulu into the crowd of dancing couples. **********
Where is he? Jen asked herself with a frown. She had watched all of her friends dancing together. Matt and Sora, Tai and Tera, Lulu and Drellus, and occasionally Garu and a girl. Garu didn't look very happy about the arrangements; most of the girls clung to Garu's injured shoulder, causing him to grimace constantly. Suddenly Jen realized how hot it was, so, with a sigh, she wandered to a door and pulled it open. As she had guessed, it led to a large balcony. Jen turned and locked he doors behind her. She gasped when she realized that a guy was leaning against the railing.
"Oh, I'm so sorry, I didn't mean to intrude!" Jen cried, turning around to leave. The boy turned around quickly when he heard her voice. A cloud rolled by and uncovered the moon, lighting up his face. Jen gasped again. "Izzy?! I was looking all over for you!"
"Sorry," Izzy mumbled as Jen came close and leaned next to him.
"What were you doing out here?" Jen asked.
"Well...it was scorching inside because of all the movement and the number of people," Izzy replied. Jen realized that he wasn't meeting her eyes.
"Izzy, is something wrong?" Jen inquired.
"No." Izzy mumbled quickly.
"Koushiro Izumi, you're lying to me," Jen declaired. Izzy made a small noise that was somewhere between sad and disgruntled. "Izzy, tell me what's wrong," Jen insisted. "I want to help you."
Izzy gave her an extremely hurt look, and it clicked in Jen's mind. "Izzy, are you concerned because Garu and I were dancing?"
"...Yes." Izzy replied after a moment of silence. To his great surprise, Jen's face relaxed and she gave a relieved sigh.
"Oh, good. I thought it was something serious," she said with a smile. Izzy gawked at her.
"This is serious," he said firmly. Jen looked surprised.
"No, it isn't. He was teaching me how to dance because he knows I can't. I didn't want to mess up when I danced with you," she said honestly.
"Really?" Izzy asked hopefully. He wanted to be firmer, but he admitted to himself that he wanted Jen to deny that the dance had had any meaning.
"Yes, really, so you don't have to get all bent out of shape." Jen said, staring intently into Izzy's eyes. She knew that Izzy would be able to see the that she wasn't lying if he looked there.
"...You're right. I'm sorry to have doubted you," Izzy said, sounding ashamed.
"It's alright. I'm sorry I worried you," Jen replied. Izzy looked at her and then at the door.
"Ahh...should we go back?" he asked. Jen gawked at him.
"How come you always want to go into a crowd when we're all alone?" she inquired. Izzy blushed.
"Well, umm, it doesn feel better out here..." he admitted.
"And we can still hear the music," Jen added.
"Umm, I can't waltz," Izzy said. Jen smiled happily.
"See? Now aren't you glad that I learned?" Jen asked. She gently grasped Izzy's hand and stepped away from the railing. She led Izzy into an extremely clumsy waltz. Eventually, they gave up and started slow dancing (A/N: That's the only name I know for it *sweatdrop* I know nothing about dancing). After a while, they gave that up too and gazed at the sky together.
A comfortable silence formed between Jen and Izzy while they huddled together against the cold breeze. Eventually Izzy realized that he had given up on the stars and was looking instead at Jen. He smiled when he thought about how lucky he was to have her pressed against his chest and wrapped up in his arms. Izzy never had any interest in girls until only a year before when Jen had embraced him tightly, thinking that Diaboromon was going to blow them up with a missile. Something just felt so...so right about it, Izzy thought to himself. He chuckled when when he remembered the awkwardness when Jen realized that she was still alive and hugging him.
"What's so funny?" Jen asked, turning her attention to him.
"Remember the time we fought Diaboromon at Tai's house?"
"Yes."
"You thought you were going to die, so you hugged me, and we were so embarrassed when we realized that we were alive!" Izzy said with a laugh. Jen smiled, but shook her head.
"That's not what I was thinking," she said. Izzy gave her a quizical look.
"I thought that you might be safer if I could shield you," Jen confessed, sounding embarrassed. Izzy blinked at her.
"Thank you," he said after a silence. Jen shook her head.
"Nah, forget about it. It was a long time ago..." Jen said, trailing off.
"You miss being an active Digidestined, don't you? We don't get much action anymore," Izzy realized.
"Yeah, I do miss it..." Jen said with a sad smile. "I guess I should be glad that I got to be a DD at all...But I wish we still got to go into the Digiworld. Now we have to get one of the younger kids to take us with them."
"Speaking of which, I wonder how everyone's faring back in Japan?" Izzy mused.
"The girls were so mad when they found out that I was going!" Jen said with a laugh, referring to the other three Otaku Girls. "I bet Lily and our little Goggle Boy have watched a million videos by now...I think Lily mentioned something about how all the movies Davis picks are stupid, and Davis said most of Lily's are chick flicks. Indy and Ryn probably had a party to make themselves feel better."
"That's a good idea. We'll have to have some kind of party with everyone when we get home."
"Any excuse to have a party is a good one!" Jen agreed. "But let's not worry about that just now. Right now we're in Paris, and we're living a fairy tale. And, we haven't been alone for almost a week now."
Izzy metally counted the days since he and Jen had been on the beach. It had been six days ago...That was a while. "It's alright. I imagine that when we get home, we'll be alone together more frequently," he said.
"I hope so," Jen replied, turning around in Izzy's arms to face him. She rested her head against his shoulder. Izzy smiled and gently stroked her long hair, starting from her head and working his way down her back. "You like to play with my hair, don't you?" Jen asked, sounding amused.
"It's obvious, isn't it?" Izzy replied. He blushed when he felt Jen's lips and toungue brush against his neck.
"You taste very clean. Kind of like soap," Jen mused.
"Is...is that good?" Izzy asked.
"I like it." Jen replied, sounding lazy and happy. She continued her little quest to find the tasts of Izzy's skin until she reached his lips. Izzy was pleased to respond to her passionate kiss with one of his own. ************ "Tai, I really don't think we're doing this right....And I think I need to stop for a minute anyway," Tera said as she and Tai danced. "I'm dizzy."
"Alright," Tai agreed. They worked their way through the crowd and stood next to an open window. "Whew, that breeze feels good."
"It does," Tera said, leaning against the window sill. Her high heels twisted below her feet, causing her to lose her balace. "Yeek!"
"Gotcha!" Tai exclaimed, grabbing Tera's shoulder to keep her from falling through the window. "High heels are dangerous, huh?" he said with a relieved laugh when he was sure that Tera was safe.
"Yeah...thanks, Tai," Tera said.
"Ah, no biggie," Tai replied offhandedly. After a moment of silence, he spoke up again. "So, I guess you're going back to America when this is over, huh?"
"Yes...I do live there, after all..." Tera said, looking depressed.
"So...I guess I'll never see you again..." Tai replied. Are there tears in his eyes? Tera wondered.
"Well...you never know..." Tera said. "This is going to sound crazy, but...I can go to another dimension and come out anywhere I want! As long as there's a computer, that is." Tai gawked at her before slowly pulling his Digivice out of his pocket.
"Does this look familiar?" he asked. Tera's eyes popped.
"Yes! I have one of those!" she exclaimed.
"You're a DD too! That's great! That means I can see you in the Digiworld!" Tai said, sounding euphoric. "I was worried that I would never be able to do this again."
"Do what?" Tera asked curiously. Tai leaned forward and gently kissed her in reply.
"Listen, Tera...I know we haven't been together long, but...I think I'm in love with you," Tai confessed. Tera blinked at him.
"Really?" she asked, reaching up to touch her lips. They were warm from Tai's breath.
"Yeah," Tai replied, looking embarrassed.
"I...I'm glad. Because I think...no, I know...that I'm in love with you, too," Tera replied. Taichi looked like he had just been made president.
"You know...this whole DD thing has even more perks than I thought," he said, reaching up to touch Tera's red face.
(A/N: Awww...isn't dat cuuute?) *********************
When everyone was out of their dresses and siuts and in their pajamas, they were supposed to sleep. However, they were all gossiping.
"I can't wait to see the pcitures that Izzy took," Jen said.
"I've got a boyfriend! I've got a boyfriend!" Lulu cried happily.
Sora just hiccuped. Jen realized that Kakeyu must not have warned her about the punch. Suddenly the phone rang, and Jen picked it up.
"Hello? Oh, hi Tera! Tell me all about what happened..." ****************
"Tai? What do you look so pleased about?" Matt asked while he stared at the ceiling from his bed.
"Nothing, nothing," Tai said happily.
"I don't believe you," Izzy stated sleepily.
"Fine. Tera's a DD, so I can see her in the Digiworld!" Tai exclaimed.
"Which means that she's your girlfriend now," Matt concluded. Tai sighed happily.
"That's about the size of it, Yama. Good night," he said, pulling up the covers. He drifted into sleep as soon as hit head hit the pillow. **************************************************************************** * Jenashu: YAY!!!! CUTENESS!!!! Izzy: Calm down... Jenashu: Uh oh... Izzy: What's wrong? Jenashu: What's the next chapter going to be about? Yama: ... ... Jenashu: Eek! Help me!
Jenashu: YAY!!! Ball time!!! Yama: .... Izzy: ... Jenashu: ERGH! Guys ruin the mood every time! Anyway, onto chapter 15! Wow! 15 chapters! Be proud, be very proud! **************************************************************************** **** Fairy Tale Night
"Does my hair look good?"
"You don't think I look fat in this, do you?"
"Is this a good shade for me?"
"Do you think this necklace is too gaudy?"
Needless to say, Sora, Lulu, and Jen were fussing over themselves, trying to look as beautiful as possible for the ball, along with every other girl from the WSC.
"How's my hair?"
"Is my tie straight?"
"Oops, I think I've grown since the last time I wore this!"
What do you know! The guys are worried, too!
(A/N: Normally I don't go into detail about what the DDs are wearing, but today I'm going all out!)
Lulu revovled slowly to be critiqued by Jen and Sora. Her dress was extremely frilly and girl-ish, and it was a deep shade of green to match her hair. Jen thought that she looked like a little kid going to church, but she kept it to herself.
Sora's dress was exactly opposite of Lulu's. It was sleek, black, and didn't have much back. She looked to Jen like a teenager on prom night.
Jen sighed. She was the only one who had tried for the 'ballroom' look. Perhaps she dreamed too much, but she had wanted to look like a princess. Her dress was a cheerful shade of lavender, and it was a mixture of naughty and nice with a low collar and princessy frills. She even had a little purple parasel.
"Alright, girls! Let's go get 'em!" Lulu cried. Sora and Jen shared glances and shrugged, deciding not to ask for the specific meaning of that. ****************
"Yama-kun, that's even more hair gel than usual."
"Shut up, Taichi!"
"Excuse me...? Umm, Matt, you're getting hair gel in my comb..."
"This is yours? Eck, do I have red hair mixed with my blonde?"
"No, but can I have my comb?"
"Fine, Koushiro, go do something to impress Jen."
Izzy was a little annoyed with Tai and Matt by the time they were all ready. He didn't think that guys were supposed to be so engrossed with their appearance. All three of them were wearing suits and ties. Izzy looked at his camera, sighed, and put it in his pocket. His mother had asked him to take a picture of him and Jen at the ball. Izzy took a deep breath. He couldn't wait to see his goddess! ***********
When the girls walked down the hallway of the west wing, they meet Tera. She was surronded by her friends. They all stood in a group, chatting excitedly. Jen walked up to her.
"Tera! Oh my gosh! You look SO good!" Jen cried when she saw her friend. "And we both have excellent taste, if I do say so myself," she added when she realized that Tera also had a purple dress. Tera did a quick spin to show off her dark violet, silky dress.
"Yes, we do! It must run in your family," Tera replied with a giggle.
"Does that mean that Tai asked you to the ball?! That's why he was so nervous this morning! That's great!"
"Isn't it? I'm so excited! Do you think Tai will like this?" Tera asked, sounding a little worried.
"You're gorgeous, dahling," Jen said with fervor and a fake Russian accent.
"Thanks. You look good, too. I bet Izzy will die when he sees you!" Tera teased.
"Don't say that!" Jen cried, even though she knew Tera was joking.
"Okay, okay. Look! We're moving!" Tera replied. The long line of girls in the hallway suddenly started to move. *********
"Somehow I feel that we should be going in horse-drawn carriages, not a bus," Jen said with a small frown after about 15 minutes of driving. Thankfully, everyone was too nervous and excited to sing.
"Come on, just see this as the carriage of the 21st century," Sora said from the seat behind her. "Well, jeez, this all couldn't be directly from a story book. Just be glad that your prince is waiting at the castle!"
"You're picking on me," Jen realized. Sora laughed and pointed out the window.
"Check it out! That was quick!" she said. Jen gasped. Sure, the place was more like a mansion than a castle, but still, it was fit for a princess! The peacocks are a nice touch...she thought. The waterfall's pretty cool, too...
It took about 20 buses to get everyone to the mansion, but they all fit comfortably on the parking lot. When Jen finally stepped out of the bus, she felt the night wrap its magic around her, inviting her to discover what fairy tales are made of.
Jen saw a bunch of people coming in on the other side of the building, and she knew that they were the guys. She couldn't make out any faces, though; they were far away and it was getting increasingly dark out. But, she thought to herself, I'll see him soon enough...
As they walked through the marble hallway, the girl's shoes clicked ominously and echoed throughout the mansion. At first, Jen was a little worried. The place was poorly lit, just like the haunted houses they showed on TV. But Jen's fears vanished when two giant doors slowly swung open, revealing a humoungous room.
It was the most beautiful place Jen had ever seen. It was cheerfully lit, and decorated lavishly. The food looked good enough to satisfy even Yaten, the pickiest eater ever. Right in the middle of the dinner sat a golden punch bowl. It was covered with all kinds of imaginary creatures.
Jen stood in the doorway, completely shocked. "Get a move on, Jen! You're blocking everyone!" Mimi hissed in her ear. Jen jumped and hastilly walked away from the door. She looked around for Izzy, but couldn't find him anywhere.
After searching for ten minutes (and watching everyone dancing-Jen was trying to pick up fast so she wouldn't have to admit that she had no clue how to waltz), Jen felt someone grab her arm. Before she even knew who it was, she was being led into the dance.
"Kakeyu! What are you doing?!" Jen demanded when she got a look at her partner. He was expertly manuvering himself so that Jen was forced to follow his movments or trip.
"I just wanted to warn you, bro. Listen up! Don't drink the punch from the golden bowl," he whispered.
"Don't call me bro! I'm not even a guy. And why shouldn't I drink the punch? Is it bad?" Jen asked, feeling very confused. She was getting dizzy from all the spinning.
"Oh, no. It's good. Very, very good," Kakeyu replied, ignoring Jen's first statement.
"Then why shouldn't I-Oh, no Kakeyu, please don't tell me you did what I think you did!" Jen hissed.
"Shh! Do you want us to get kicked out of the WSC?" Kakeyu whispered.
"Hey, you're the one who spiked the punch!" Jen replied quietly.
"Whatever. I did what I was supposed to. See ya. By the way, learn how to dance!" Kakeyu said before releasing Jen's hand and dissapearing into the crowd. Jen stood there in disbelief until she felt a hand on her shoulder. She turned around to see Garu.
"Hey, I was watching you waltz. You dance very...ah, interestingly. I thought I'd show you how to do it properly," Garu offered. After a moment of consideration, Jen nodded. Well, how can I dance with Izzy if I don't even know how? she asked herself.
"Alright, it's like this," Garu said, leading her in the waltz as Kakeyu had. Even though Garu had claimed that this was a friendly, tutorial dance, Jen knew that he was holding her just a little closer than a stranger or friend would have.
"Garu," Jen scolded gently. She felt his body tensen a little.
"I know. I'm trying. But, it's just one dance," he replied with a sad look in his eyes. By the time the song ended, Jen was moving on her own. She released Garu's hand and smiled at him. She nodded in the direction of a bunch of girls who were staring at Garu, pratically drooling.
"Make their day, Garu," she said, patting his uninjured shoulder. Then she ducked into the crowd and continued to search for Izzy. *************
"Tai! Tai!" a feminie voice called. Tai gave a quizical frown and looked around. Suddenly he spotted Tera coming towards him.
"Hello!" he said with a smile. He handed her the cup of punch that he was about to drink. Luckily, he had decided to avoid the crowd around the golden bowl by drinking from a plainer one. She smiled and drained it in two gulps.
"Phew! It's so hot in here!" Tera complained, pulling the collar of her dress a little.
"I know," Tai agreed, looking her over with a smile. Suddenly Tera caught his meaning and turned red.
"You know, I think I saw some balconies around here when we drove past. Let's see if we can find one," Tera said.
"Don't you want to dance?" Tai asked. Tera blushed.
"Well, the truth is...I can't. I don't know how."
"It's alright, I've been watching everyone waltz this whole time! We'll figure it out. And if we don't, I can teach you how the couples at the school dances dance," Tai offered. Tera blushed even more.
"Okay," she agreed, allowing herself to be led into the waltz. **********
"Lulu...? Is...is that you?" Lulu heard someone say from behind her. She spun around so quickly that she tripped in her high heels and crashed against the person's chest.
"Oh! Oh, I'm such a clutz, I'm so sorr-Drellus?!" she said. Sure enough, she found heself staring up into Drell's dark, blue eyes.
"Yeah...You, uh, look nice..." Drellus said, trying not to stumble over his words. "I wanted to know if you'd want to dance..."
"Sure! Yeah! Let's dance! I mean, we are going together, right? Let's show them how it's done!" Lulu cried happily. Drell blushed dark red as he led Lulu into the crowd of dancing couples. **********
Where is he? Jen asked herself with a frown. She had watched all of her friends dancing together. Matt and Sora, Tai and Tera, Lulu and Drellus, and occasionally Garu and a girl. Garu didn't look very happy about the arrangements; most of the girls clung to Garu's injured shoulder, causing him to grimace constantly. Suddenly Jen realized how hot it was, so, with a sigh, she wandered to a door and pulled it open. As she had guessed, it led to a large balcony. Jen turned and locked he doors behind her. She gasped when she realized that a guy was leaning against the railing.
"Oh, I'm so sorry, I didn't mean to intrude!" Jen cried, turning around to leave. The boy turned around quickly when he heard her voice. A cloud rolled by and uncovered the moon, lighting up his face. Jen gasped again. "Izzy?! I was looking all over for you!"
"Sorry," Izzy mumbled as Jen came close and leaned next to him.
"What were you doing out here?" Jen asked.
"Well...it was scorching inside because of all the movement and the number of people," Izzy replied. Jen realized that he wasn't meeting her eyes.
"Izzy, is something wrong?" Jen inquired.
"No." Izzy mumbled quickly.
"Koushiro Izumi, you're lying to me," Jen declaired. Izzy made a small noise that was somewhere between sad and disgruntled. "Izzy, tell me what's wrong," Jen insisted. "I want to help you."
Izzy gave her an extremely hurt look, and it clicked in Jen's mind. "Izzy, are you concerned because Garu and I were dancing?"
"...Yes." Izzy replied after a moment of silence. To his great surprise, Jen's face relaxed and she gave a relieved sigh.
"Oh, good. I thought it was something serious," she said with a smile. Izzy gawked at her.
"This is serious," he said firmly. Jen looked surprised.
"No, it isn't. He was teaching me how to dance because he knows I can't. I didn't want to mess up when I danced with you," she said honestly.
"Really?" Izzy asked hopefully. He wanted to be firmer, but he admitted to himself that he wanted Jen to deny that the dance had had any meaning.
"Yes, really, so you don't have to get all bent out of shape." Jen said, staring intently into Izzy's eyes. She knew that Izzy would be able to see the that she wasn't lying if he looked there.
"...You're right. I'm sorry to have doubted you," Izzy said, sounding ashamed.
"It's alright. I'm sorry I worried you," Jen replied. Izzy looked at her and then at the door.
"Ahh...should we go back?" he asked. Jen gawked at him.
"How come you always want to go into a crowd when we're all alone?" she inquired. Izzy blushed.
"Well, umm, it doesn feel better out here..." he admitted.
"And we can still hear the music," Jen added.
"Umm, I can't waltz," Izzy said. Jen smiled happily.
"See? Now aren't you glad that I learned?" Jen asked. She gently grasped Izzy's hand and stepped away from the railing. She led Izzy into an extremely clumsy waltz. Eventually, they gave up and started slow dancing (A/N: That's the only name I know for it *sweatdrop* I know nothing about dancing). After a while, they gave that up too and gazed at the sky together.
A comfortable silence formed between Jen and Izzy while they huddled together against the cold breeze. Eventually Izzy realized that he had given up on the stars and was looking instead at Jen. He smiled when he thought about how lucky he was to have her pressed against his chest and wrapped up in his arms. Izzy never had any interest in girls until only a year before when Jen had embraced him tightly, thinking that Diaboromon was going to blow them up with a missile. Something just felt so...so right about it, Izzy thought to himself. He chuckled when when he remembered the awkwardness when Jen realized that she was still alive and hugging him.
"What's so funny?" Jen asked, turning her attention to him.
"Remember the time we fought Diaboromon at Tai's house?"
"Yes."
"You thought you were going to die, so you hugged me, and we were so embarrassed when we realized that we were alive!" Izzy said with a laugh. Jen smiled, but shook her head.
"That's not what I was thinking," she said. Izzy gave her a quizical look.
"I thought that you might be safer if I could shield you," Jen confessed, sounding embarrassed. Izzy blinked at her.
"Thank you," he said after a silence. Jen shook her head.
"Nah, forget about it. It was a long time ago..." Jen said, trailing off.
"You miss being an active Digidestined, don't you? We don't get much action anymore," Izzy realized.
"Yeah, I do miss it..." Jen said with a sad smile. "I guess I should be glad that I got to be a DD at all...But I wish we still got to go into the Digiworld. Now we have to get one of the younger kids to take us with them."
"Speaking of which, I wonder how everyone's faring back in Japan?" Izzy mused.
"The girls were so mad when they found out that I was going!" Jen said with a laugh, referring to the other three Otaku Girls. "I bet Lily and our little Goggle Boy have watched a million videos by now...I think Lily mentioned something about how all the movies Davis picks are stupid, and Davis said most of Lily's are chick flicks. Indy and Ryn probably had a party to make themselves feel better."
"That's a good idea. We'll have to have some kind of party with everyone when we get home."
"Any excuse to have a party is a good one!" Jen agreed. "But let's not worry about that just now. Right now we're in Paris, and we're living a fairy tale. And, we haven't been alone for almost a week now."
Izzy metally counted the days since he and Jen had been on the beach. It had been six days ago...That was a while. "It's alright. I imagine that when we get home, we'll be alone together more frequently," he said.
"I hope so," Jen replied, turning around in Izzy's arms to face him. She rested her head against his shoulder. Izzy smiled and gently stroked her long hair, starting from her head and working his way down her back. "You like to play with my hair, don't you?" Jen asked, sounding amused.
"It's obvious, isn't it?" Izzy replied. He blushed when he felt Jen's lips and toungue brush against his neck.
"You taste very clean. Kind of like soap," Jen mused.
"Is...is that good?" Izzy asked.
"I like it." Jen replied, sounding lazy and happy. She continued her little quest to find the tasts of Izzy's skin until she reached his lips. Izzy was pleased to respond to her passionate kiss with one of his own. ************ "Tai, I really don't think we're doing this right....And I think I need to stop for a minute anyway," Tera said as she and Tai danced. "I'm dizzy."
"Alright," Tai agreed. They worked their way through the crowd and stood next to an open window. "Whew, that breeze feels good."
"It does," Tera said, leaning against the window sill. Her high heels twisted below her feet, causing her to lose her balace. "Yeek!"
"Gotcha!" Tai exclaimed, grabbing Tera's shoulder to keep her from falling through the window. "High heels are dangerous, huh?" he said with a relieved laugh when he was sure that Tera was safe.
"Yeah...thanks, Tai," Tera said.
"Ah, no biggie," Tai replied offhandedly. After a moment of silence, he spoke up again. "So, I guess you're going back to America when this is over, huh?"
"Yes...I do live there, after all..." Tera said, looking depressed.
"So...I guess I'll never see you again..." Tai replied. Are there tears in his eyes? Tera wondered.
"Well...you never know..." Tera said. "This is going to sound crazy, but...I can go to another dimension and come out anywhere I want! As long as there's a computer, that is." Tai gawked at her before slowly pulling his Digivice out of his pocket.
"Does this look familiar?" he asked. Tera's eyes popped.
"Yes! I have one of those!" she exclaimed.
"You're a DD too! That's great! That means I can see you in the Digiworld!" Tai said, sounding euphoric. "I was worried that I would never be able to do this again."
"Do what?" Tera asked curiously. Tai leaned forward and gently kissed her in reply.
"Listen, Tera...I know we haven't been together long, but...I think I'm in love with you," Tai confessed. Tera blinked at him.
"Really?" she asked, reaching up to touch her lips. They were warm from Tai's breath.
"Yeah," Tai replied, looking embarrassed.
"I...I'm glad. Because I think...no, I know...that I'm in love with you, too," Tera replied. Taichi looked like he had just been made president.
"You know...this whole DD thing has even more perks than I thought," he said, reaching up to touch Tera's red face.
(A/N: Awww...isn't dat cuuute?) *********************
When everyone was out of their dresses and siuts and in their pajamas, they were supposed to sleep. However, they were all gossiping.
"I can't wait to see the pcitures that Izzy took," Jen said.
"I've got a boyfriend! I've got a boyfriend!" Lulu cried happily.
Sora just hiccuped. Jen realized that Kakeyu must not have warned her about the punch. Suddenly the phone rang, and Jen picked it up.
"Hello? Oh, hi Tera! Tell me all about what happened..." ****************
"Tai? What do you look so pleased about?" Matt asked while he stared at the ceiling from his bed.
"Nothing, nothing," Tai said happily.
"I don't believe you," Izzy stated sleepily.
"Fine. Tera's a DD, so I can see her in the Digiworld!" Tai exclaimed.
"Which means that she's your girlfriend now," Matt concluded. Tai sighed happily.
"That's about the size of it, Yama. Good night," he said, pulling up the covers. He drifted into sleep as soon as hit head hit the pillow. **************************************************************************** * Jenashu: YAY!!!! CUTENESS!!!! Izzy: Calm down... Jenashu: Uh oh... Izzy: What's wrong? Jenashu: What's the next chapter going to be about? Yama: ... ... Jenashu: Eek! Help me!