Chapter 4
~~~~~~~ ~~~~~~~
(Phone ringing)
"Phone! Takeru! Phone!" Patamon yells, waking his sleeping partner.
"Ok, ok. Jeez."
(Takeru picks up the phone.)
"Hello? .What? . Slow down . ok, yeah . wow . don't worry, just let me get dressed . Patamon and I will be there . just give us five minutes . oh . well, ok . uh-huh . sure . yeah . see you then . bye."
"Who was it? What happened?" Patamon asks quickly as Takeru puts down the phone.
"Wow." He says, getting up off his bed and walking over to his closet.
"It was Hikari."
"Why did she call at five in the morning?"
"She . um . her parents left a um . a note ."
"Note? What happened? Did someone die?"
"No, but her parents packed suitcases, and up and left for Hawaii."
"Over by America?"
"In a matter of speaking."
"So, they just . left?"
"I guess." Takeru answers, slipping on his shoes and walking out to the living room. He plops himself down on the couch, and Patamon flies over and lands on the couch next to his partner.
In a matter of minutes, there's a knock on their door. Takeru gets up quickly to go answer the door. As he opens it, Hikari falls into his arms.
"I can't believe it! They're gone!" she says, sobbing.
"It's ok, everything will be fine." Takeru reassures her, walking to the couch with his arm around her waist. They sit down, and she leans against him.
"I don't get it." Gatomon says to Patamon. "Just last night she was wishing their death, but when they actually leave, she cries her heart out."
"What's going on out here?" Matt asks half-awake, stumbling over everything in the room. "Hikari? What are you doing here so early? Whoa, what's wrong? What happened? Why are you crying?"
Takeru and Hikari explain what happened slowly, with Gatomon adding comments every once in a while.
"Wow." Matt says. "Well, if you need someplace to stay, remember that you're always welcome here, ok?" he asks, giving Hikari a comforting hug.
"Ok, thank you." Hikari answers.
Matt stands up and stretches. "Well, I'm going back to bed." He says with a yawn. "Maybe I'll see you in the morning, Hikari. G'night."
"G'night." Takeru, Hikari, Patamon and Gatomon say in unison.
"Matt had a good point." Takeru states.
"To go back to bed?"
"No, not that. Well, maybe a little bit, but my point was that you can stay here with us. That would really be nice. You know, there's a rollout sleeper under my bunk bed. Nemoriku could sleep on that, and you can have the top bunk."
"Nemoriku?"
"Oh, that's right. You don't know her. Well, apparently Matt and I have a little sister that we didn't know about until she found me in the Digital World the other day, came to stay with us, and dad confessed."
"Wow. That's extreme." Kari says in shock. "How old is she?"
"Five."
"Wow. Then she was born a long time after your parents divorced."
"Uh, yeah. How about details later, sleep now?"
"Sure."
~~~~~~ ~~~~~~~ ~~~~~~~ ~~~~~
"Kari, Kari wake up!" Taichi shouts at the top of his lungs.
"Huh?" she asks sleepily.
"Where's mom and dad? What happened? Where did they go?"
"They went to Hawaii." Gatomon answered.
"Hawaii?"
"Yeah." Kari says, sitting up. "Dad was going on about Gatomon and the Digital World again last night, and this morning both him and mom were gone."
"When this morning?"
"At five. And they left a not, too."
"Where is it?"
"Here."
Hikari pulls the note out of her pant pocket and gives it to Taichi.
"What's going on in here?" Niku asks, rubbing her eyes.
"Our parents left home." Hikari answers, referring to Taichi and herself. "You must be Nemoriku."
"Yeah. Who are you?"
"I'm Hikari, and he's my brother, Taichi."
"Oh wow. You two are Destend, aren't you?" Nemoriku asks. Hikari nods. "So am I! And Takeru and Matt are my brothers!"
"I heard this morning when I got here." Hikari says with a smile. "How do you like it here?"
"It's wonderful!"
"That's great. It's nice to hear some good news with everything going on these days."
"Yeah." Nemoriku says. "Why did your parents leave home?"
"It's a long story."
"Come on guys. We can hear the story over eggs and bacon, k?" Matt asks, walking into the bedroom.
"Yeah. I'm starved." Hikari answers.
As they eat, Hikari explains everything that happened the night before, and told everyone about all of the fights that have been breaking out at their apartment lately.
"Jeez Kari, why didn't you say anything about this to me earlier?" Taichi asks.
"That wouldn't have changed anything. They've always hated me. They just never said anything about it until you left for college, that's all."
"Still, you should've told someone." Matt says.
"If you would've told me, I would've moved back in." Taichi adds.
"I didn't want to be a problem."
"You aren't a problem. Just tell me though Hikari, was it ever more than an argument?" Taichi asked.
"Well . uh, yeah. Sometimes. Not often though."
"What happened?" Takeru asks, quite worried.
"Well, dad hit me once. Then I hit him back to defend myself, but he got angrier and kicked me."
"Then both of us got out of there. We had to." Gatomon added. "I really didn't want to have to hurt him. At the first chance, he'd have me killed."
"Oh my God."
"Really, Taichi, I'm ok, everything's fine now. Don't worry about it."
"It's best that they're out of my sight, too. Next time I see them, I can't promise anything." Gatomon says, enraged.
"Calm down. It's over. You'll never see them again." Patamon says.
"Yeah. It's over. Thank God. to a point." Kari says, somewhat disappointed in the way both she and her father had acted the night before. If only she would've told someone before it got that bad. But there's no going back now, what's done is done, so she'll have to deal with it, as well as Taichi and their friends and families.
~~~~~~~ ~~~~~~~
(Phone ringing)
"Phone! Takeru! Phone!" Patamon yells, waking his sleeping partner.
"Ok, ok. Jeez."
(Takeru picks up the phone.)
"Hello? .What? . Slow down . ok, yeah . wow . don't worry, just let me get dressed . Patamon and I will be there . just give us five minutes . oh . well, ok . uh-huh . sure . yeah . see you then . bye."
"Who was it? What happened?" Patamon asks quickly as Takeru puts down the phone.
"Wow." He says, getting up off his bed and walking over to his closet.
"It was Hikari."
"Why did she call at five in the morning?"
"She . um . her parents left a um . a note ."
"Note? What happened? Did someone die?"
"No, but her parents packed suitcases, and up and left for Hawaii."
"Over by America?"
"In a matter of speaking."
"So, they just . left?"
"I guess." Takeru answers, slipping on his shoes and walking out to the living room. He plops himself down on the couch, and Patamon flies over and lands on the couch next to his partner.
In a matter of minutes, there's a knock on their door. Takeru gets up quickly to go answer the door. As he opens it, Hikari falls into his arms.
"I can't believe it! They're gone!" she says, sobbing.
"It's ok, everything will be fine." Takeru reassures her, walking to the couch with his arm around her waist. They sit down, and she leans against him.
"I don't get it." Gatomon says to Patamon. "Just last night she was wishing their death, but when they actually leave, she cries her heart out."
"What's going on out here?" Matt asks half-awake, stumbling over everything in the room. "Hikari? What are you doing here so early? Whoa, what's wrong? What happened? Why are you crying?"
Takeru and Hikari explain what happened slowly, with Gatomon adding comments every once in a while.
"Wow." Matt says. "Well, if you need someplace to stay, remember that you're always welcome here, ok?" he asks, giving Hikari a comforting hug.
"Ok, thank you." Hikari answers.
Matt stands up and stretches. "Well, I'm going back to bed." He says with a yawn. "Maybe I'll see you in the morning, Hikari. G'night."
"G'night." Takeru, Hikari, Patamon and Gatomon say in unison.
"Matt had a good point." Takeru states.
"To go back to bed?"
"No, not that. Well, maybe a little bit, but my point was that you can stay here with us. That would really be nice. You know, there's a rollout sleeper under my bunk bed. Nemoriku could sleep on that, and you can have the top bunk."
"Nemoriku?"
"Oh, that's right. You don't know her. Well, apparently Matt and I have a little sister that we didn't know about until she found me in the Digital World the other day, came to stay with us, and dad confessed."
"Wow. That's extreme." Kari says in shock. "How old is she?"
"Five."
"Wow. Then she was born a long time after your parents divorced."
"Uh, yeah. How about details later, sleep now?"
"Sure."
~~~~~~ ~~~~~~~ ~~~~~~~ ~~~~~
"Kari, Kari wake up!" Taichi shouts at the top of his lungs.
"Huh?" she asks sleepily.
"Where's mom and dad? What happened? Where did they go?"
"They went to Hawaii." Gatomon answered.
"Hawaii?"
"Yeah." Kari says, sitting up. "Dad was going on about Gatomon and the Digital World again last night, and this morning both him and mom were gone."
"When this morning?"
"At five. And they left a not, too."
"Where is it?"
"Here."
Hikari pulls the note out of her pant pocket and gives it to Taichi.
"What's going on in here?" Niku asks, rubbing her eyes.
"Our parents left home." Hikari answers, referring to Taichi and herself. "You must be Nemoriku."
"Yeah. Who are you?"
"I'm Hikari, and he's my brother, Taichi."
"Oh wow. You two are Destend, aren't you?" Nemoriku asks. Hikari nods. "So am I! And Takeru and Matt are my brothers!"
"I heard this morning when I got here." Hikari says with a smile. "How do you like it here?"
"It's wonderful!"
"That's great. It's nice to hear some good news with everything going on these days."
"Yeah." Nemoriku says. "Why did your parents leave home?"
"It's a long story."
"Come on guys. We can hear the story over eggs and bacon, k?" Matt asks, walking into the bedroom.
"Yeah. I'm starved." Hikari answers.
As they eat, Hikari explains everything that happened the night before, and told everyone about all of the fights that have been breaking out at their apartment lately.
"Jeez Kari, why didn't you say anything about this to me earlier?" Taichi asks.
"That wouldn't have changed anything. They've always hated me. They just never said anything about it until you left for college, that's all."
"Still, you should've told someone." Matt says.
"If you would've told me, I would've moved back in." Taichi adds.
"I didn't want to be a problem."
"You aren't a problem. Just tell me though Hikari, was it ever more than an argument?" Taichi asked.
"Well . uh, yeah. Sometimes. Not often though."
"What happened?" Takeru asks, quite worried.
"Well, dad hit me once. Then I hit him back to defend myself, but he got angrier and kicked me."
"Then both of us got out of there. We had to." Gatomon added. "I really didn't want to have to hurt him. At the first chance, he'd have me killed."
"Oh my God."
"Really, Taichi, I'm ok, everything's fine now. Don't worry about it."
"It's best that they're out of my sight, too. Next time I see them, I can't promise anything." Gatomon says, enraged.
"Calm down. It's over. You'll never see them again." Patamon says.
"Yeah. It's over. Thank God. to a point." Kari says, somewhat disappointed in the way both she and her father had acted the night before. If only she would've told someone before it got that bad. But there's no going back now, what's done is done, so she'll have to deal with it, as well as Taichi and their friends and families.
