The Story of Us
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by summer dragonfly


Chapter IV
"It's About Time!"


A/N: Hello everyone! So glad you liked the last chapter. I'm making a concious effort to write
as often as I can. Something I forgot to mention in the previous chapters: disclaimers! Well, it's
obvious, really, that I don't own Digimon or any of its characters, plots, blah blah blah. So here
it is: chapter four! Have fun reading!

P.S. Because of the last chapter, I've made this chapter and the next to be short.


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Rika was walking at a bit of a happy stride. Her heart was light, her mind was free. It was a
great talk she had had with Ryo last night. And she couldn't wait to see him in person.

As she entered the school gates, he was already standing there, waiting for her. He smiled as
he saw her. "Hey,"

"Hi!" she said ecstatically, hugging him right away.

"What was that for?" He asked.

"For being wonderful."

He grinned wider. "Some talk we had last night."

"Yeah. I hope you can forgive me, though."

"For what?"

"For being such a jerk to you. I must've hurt your feelings."

"A little." Ryo teased, and she laughed. "So what does this mean?"

"What do you think it means?"

"I really don't know."

Rika started to blush. "I've never had a boyfriend before." she admitted.

Ryo laughed.

"What? It's not funny! I haven't. I'm not like you. You must've had a bunch of girlfriends by
now."

"Actually, I haven't. I've never dated anyone." Ryo admitted shamlessly.

Rika smiled her biggest smile and truest smile in the last week. "I'm glad."

She took his hand in hers and they both blushed.

"Did I miss something?" said a voice behind them. "Or are you two an item now?"

It was Kazu who had spoken, and he had the others with him. They all laughed sheepishly.
Rika quickly let go of Ryo's hand.

"Um---"

"You don't have to deny it, Rika." Jeri said. "We all saw you and Ryo talking. We were---er---kinda
spying on you."

Instead of getting mad, Rika just laughed. "Oh, you guys."

"Well, I gotta say," said Henry, patting Ryo's back. "It's about time!"

Ryo and Rika blushed even more.

"Yeah, I was starting to get a bit annoyed," Kenta chipped in. "All this running around, pretending
you don't like each other!"

"Ok, that's enough people," Takato said. "So, Rika, aren't you going to ask us what we're doing
here?"

"Oh yeah." Rika said. "What ARE you people doing here? Don't you have school?"

"Well, we kinda ditched." Henry said.

"YOU? Ditch?" Ryo said, surprised.

"Um, yeah."

"And we've come to take you with us, Ryo and Rika!" Jeri said excitedly.

Rika and Ryo both laughed. "Sorry guys," said Rika. "But we've got major tests today."

"Aww, come on!" Kazu whined. "I prepared this entire itinerary!" he took out a long piece of paper
as they all laughed.

"Well, maybe one day wouldn't hurt." Rika said.

"Rika---" Ryo began, but then she started putting on a kiddy face.

"Pwease?" she said.

"Aww, not the puppy dog face!" Ryo groaned, but eventually he gave in. "Oh, all right."

"Yay!" Jeri laughed.

"Now that you're a couple, you have to do more couple-ly things." Kazu said matter-of-factly.

"How would you know, Kazu?" Kenta said. "You've never had a girlfr---"

"I know 'cause I know." Kazu snapped. He took Rika's and Ryo's hand and put them in each other,
making both Ryo and Rika blush furiously.

The entire group laughed.

* * *

Ryo walked Rika to her door step.

"Did you have fun today?" he asked her.

"Yeah, I had lots of fun." Rika giggled. "Especially when Takato fell into the duck pond!"

Ryo laughed, too. "I just thought you'd oughta know..."

"Know what?"

"I--it wasn't a lie, Rika-chan. I do love you."

Rika looked down. "I know you do."

"Then why so glum?"

"Ryo-kun...I wanna ask you a question."

"What's that?"

"What does 'I love you' mean?"

Ryo took a breath. "Well, it means exactly what it sounds like. If someone says I love you to another
person, it means that...well...they're in love with them. You always have to remember, Rika-chan.
There's nothing I wouldn't do for you. I love being around you, just talking to you...and...I guess
that if you were ever to be sad, I would be too."

Rika smiled and hugged him. "Really?"

"Really. I love everything about you. And I mean it when I said that I'd do anything for you."

"Even jump off a cliff?" Rika teased.

"Um...yeah...but I'm thinking you're not going to make me do that, are you?"

Rika laughed. "No, I'm not gonna." she kissed him on the cheek.

"Well...g'night." Ryo said, starting to turn around and leave.

Rika hesitated. "Ryo?"

He turned around to look at her. "Yeah?"

"Is that what 'I love you' means?"

Ryo shrugged. "Pretty much."

"Then...I love you too, Ryo-kun."

Ryo grinned. "I was hoping you would."

He turned and walked, and Rika watched him disappear into the night before going inside.

*What a great day. Ryo. What an awesome guy.* Rika hopped all the way to her room.

"Oh Rika, is that you?" Rumiko called from the kitchen.

"Yeah, Mom, it's me!"

"Want some dinner, honey?"

"No thanks, Mom, I had dinner with some friends." Rika went into the kitchen. "I just want to say
arigatou for that little explanation you gave me yesterday. It really helped."

"Oh, did it really?" Rumiko smiled. "I'm glad it did, dear."

"...and I thought you should know."

"Know what?"

"I--I--I told him."

"Who? The boy you liked?"

Rika nodded, and Rumiko went over-the-rainbow with it. "Oh! And what did he say?! Who is this boy?"

"Um, Mom, first you need to calm down."

"Of-of course, dear, terribly sorry. Now who is he?"

"Do you remember the boy that came here for Christmas dinner last year? Brown hair?"

"The Matsuki boy? Takato?"

"No, no, no. The OTHER brown haired boy."

Rumiko gave it some thought. "Oh yes! I remember now. He's that handsome young man with the blue
eyes, right?"

"I remember him." her grandmother had entered.

"See? Grandma remembers him." Rika said.

"Such a gentleman." her grandmother said, sitting down at the table. "He was so polite."

"Is that him, Rika?" Rumiko asked.

"That's him."

Rumiko screamed with excitement. She looked at her own mother, Rika's grandmother. "Oh, Mom, isn't
it great? Rika's got herself a little boyfriend now!"

Rika blushed. "Mom---"

"Is he not your boyfriend? Because in my day, if a boy and girl like each other---"

"It's more than that, I suspect." Rika's grandmother cut in.

"What?" Rika said.

"I caught a glimpse of him saying goodbye to her on the doorstep. Real kawaii, they looked."

"Grandma!" Rika said. *She saw me with Ryo!*

"I think it's really sweet, Rika." Rumiko said. "Invite him over for dinner sometime."

"Um---sure, why not?" Rika laughed nervously. "Well---" she faked a yawn. "So sleepy, got to go
to bed! Good night!"

And she ran to her room.

Rumiko smiled at her own mother. "My little Rika is growing up so fast."



Rika shut the screendoor to her room. She opened her backpack and took out a stack of pictures they
had taken that day. "Wow, these turned out great!"

There was a picture of her and Ryo, with her kissing his cheek while he blushed. She smiled at it.

"Oh, Jeri, is there anything you missed?" she said, remembering that Jeri took the picture.

She took out an empty frame and put the picture in it. She stared at it for a while until changing
into her pajamas and going to sleep.

*This whole thing is going so fast. I...I...I got a boyfriend now. Soon I'll be brave enough to
REALLY kiss Ryo.*

And with that, she drifted off to sleep thinking that tomorrow could only get better.



...end of Chapter IV!



A/N: There! It finally happened! Sorry if I delayed it. Chapter V'll be up soon.