All's Fair in Love…
Cager: So, you liked the last chapter, eh? Well, if you think things are bad for Matt now, just wait and see....
Angi: Gee, Cager, I've never seen you write stuff like this before o_o;;; It's not like you.
Gilthanas: So, it's a little Angsty. Big deal *rolls eyes*
Cager: Oh! And I just figured out how the whole 'html document' thing works, so bear with me as I try to figure it all out ^_^;;;
Rastlin: Cager does not own Digimon, the Anime Kitties or any Characters from the Dragonlance Chronicles. They already have owners and such, she's just borrowing them for the... reader's pleasure.
Anto: She may not own all that but she owns the plot of this fanfic, Haruka and the Anti-Clones. ^_^
Bakura Kitty: Please, do read and remew!
Cager: In this fanfic, Odaiba High has a nursery for children like some of those REALLY BIG High Schools I hear about. If the rumors about how nice, big High Schools have nurseries are not true, then that's alright. *shrugs* I live in a town with a population of 1700. The elementary (grades PK-6) has 500 students and the High School (grades 7-12, we have no middle school) has about 300 students. I'm just assuming Odaiba is big enough to have a nursery in the High School. I'll tell you one thing is for sure, my school doesn't :P.
Chapter 2
"Sorry, I'm late," mumbled Matt as he stumbled into his Calculus class and nearly fell into his teacher doing so. His teacher, Mr. Sakomizu, made an impatient noise as he watched his student fumble around with his books, sharpen his pencils and try to get into his seat at the same time. Matt's clothes were de-shelved and his hair was oily and mussed as if he had been too busy to wash it that morning and give it a proper combing out.
"And what is your excuse this time, Mr. Ishihida?" demanded Sakomizu-san folding his arms in front of his chest. Why he put up with these unpunctual and immature seniors, Mr. Sakomizu didn't know.
"Well, sir," gasped Matt as he quickly flipped to the page everyone else was on in their Calculus text books, "Haruka's been sick lately and hasn't really been sleeping well and my mom called in early and told me she couldn't baby-sit her today so I had to take her down to the school nursery and they made me sign her in and fill-out a little sheet to let them know if she had any genetic disorders or allergies (which she doesn't) and then I—"
"Alright, Mr. Ishihida!" shouted Mr. Sakomizu as he slammed his fist down on the table, a sure sign that Sakomizu-san was wrestling between up-holding School Policy or his own morals. The other boys snickered around the room while the girls gasped and whispered about how adorable it was that how a guy like Matt would sacrifice anything for his daughter. Matt couldn't help but blush under all the attention. He thought he would be used to it by now.
"Fine, then, Mr. Ishihida," sighed Sakomizu-san as he rubbed his forehead with his fingers. "I'll let you go this time, but don't be late again." Matt let out a sigh of relief and then thanked his teacher profusely. Sakomizu-san took deep breaths for a few moments before starting on into the lesson as if Matt had never been late to class at all and it was just a regular day.
As the class wore on, Matt's mind began to wander. Not that Sakomizu-san was a bad teacher or boring. Actually, Matt respected him a lot more than most of his other teachers. Matt just had a lot on his mind. He had only had Haruka for about two months and it seemed as if it had been years. The day Matt had left home to buy an apartment for himself and his daughter seemed like ages ago. Matt may only have been seventeen, but in his mind he was in his late-twenties. His thoughts tended to wander to many places and to many things, most of the time those things revolving around Haruka or money.
'Let's see,' thought Matt as he absently began to doodle on his notebook, 'if I drop Haruka off at Chizu's right after school, I can get to work at fifteen till the hour and can work until band practice, then after practice, pick up Haruka then I'll have just enough time to go home and made some rice-balls for tomorrow's breakfast... Wait! With Haruka here at school, I can just hand her over to Yolie or Chizu and that'll knock off an entire fifteen minutes! Yes! That'll add more to my hours worked for sure!'
Matt smiled as he added detail to the guitar he was sketching. 'Hmm, maybe I should knock off practice tomorrow and work an extra hour, then spend the rest of the day with Haruka. I don't get to see her very often, except on shopping days and Sundays.' Matt's smile faded and he sighed. Money was getting too tight! Even concert money went quickly nowadays. Working at the store wasn't bringing in much money either.
'You know, maybe I should find a better job... but then what better job could I get without a degree?' Matt sighed and slumped down in his chair. 'I guess I'm going to have to start rationing again. Maybe if I just eat one meal a day I could save up enough money to get Haruka some new clothes....' Lately, his mother had been buying most of the things Haruka needed, even though Matt wanted to be the soul provider. Sometimes, he just needed the help of others but he often thought he was just being a burden.
* * *
"Alright, guys, that's enough for tonight!" called out Matt as he made his way to his guitar case.
"What? We've only been practicing for half an hour!" groaned Kanji as he threw his hands down on the electric keyboard.
"Sorry, but I need to pick up Haruka. She doesn't like it when I'm away for a long time," explained Matt as he gently set his guitar into the case.
"Personally, I don't see why you didn't stick her up for adoption when you had the chance, Matt," sighed Jotaro with a wave of his hand. Matt felt a slight trickle of irritation creep through him at the drummer's statement. "Kids are a waste of time. You should've put the kid up for adoption and then kept the girl (Mimi, wasn't it?) Then, at least, you would still be living in a home instead of that dirty cubical you call an 'apartment.' "
"IS THAT WHAT YOU'D'VE DONE, JO?!" demanded Matt spinning around on his heels and glaring at the slightly smaller drum player.
"Well,... I-I don't... know," muttered Jotaro looking down at the ground. "Th-that's never h-happened to... me before."
"Then don't start saying things you'd never do yourself."
"I never said I wouldn't do it, Matt, I'm just not sure what I would do if the circumstances ever came up." Jotaro's face was now expressionless. "Though, unlike you, I plan on getting married before I have kids."
"Alright, that's it!" growled Matt as he began to make his way towards Jotaro.
"Come on, guys," laughed Keisuke, the bass player, nervously as he tried to hold Matt back, "there's no need to fight."
"Yeah, just chill for a while," murmured Kanji soothingly as he tried to hold back Jotaro. Ishihida Yamato and Kusaka Jotaro glared each other down for a few minutes in silence before Matt finally shrugged Keisuke off and began to head back towards his guitar.
"Not worth my time, anyway," muttered Jotaro as he went back to his trap set.
"I need to get Haruka soon, anyway," mumbled Matt as he closed the case and swung it up on his back. Matt began to make his way towards the door but just before he left, Keisuke caught up with him and asked if he could have a word. Matt obliged. Keisuke looked up to see if either Jotaro or Kanji could hear them before saying what was on his mind.
"Yamato, Jotaro has been getting really moody lately and I don't think it's healthy for our band if we have any sour members," whispered Keisuke looking into Matt's eyes. Matt looking back coolly waiting for Keisuke to continue. Keisuke swallowed a few times before adding, "I was wondering if you wanted us to drop him?" Matt blinked a few times before shaking his head.
"But, Matt, if he keeps acting like this the whole band will fall apart!" moaned Keisuke, looking up at Matt pleadingly.
"No, you can't find a better drummer than Jotaro," replied Matt as he looked into the direction of their drum player. "... but I bet you can find a better electric guitar. And I know you can find a better singer, too." Keisuke stared up at Matt with his mouth gaping open. He was about to say something else but Matt stopped him with a glare. "Keisuke, I hereby relinquish my place as band leader to you. You... were meant to be the leader, because I know Jo is irrational and Kanji just can't lead. Had you not tried to stop me from fighting, Kanji wouldn't have held back Jotaro."
"Matt, I can't-"
"Yes, you can. Keisuke, you're a much better musician than I. Just try your best to find the best replacement. I'm not leaving only because of Jo. Partially, it's because of Haruka, another part is because of school and another is because of money. Don't take it personally."
"... Alright, Yamato," said Keisuke after a moment of silence. His face looked solemn for a while before giving Matt a friendly smile and opening the door. "Alright, Matt, but make sure you come by once or twice during practice and get tickets for a concert once in a while. You're always welcome company with the Teen-Age Wolves."
* * *
"Daddy is going to take you home earlier from now on, Ruke," said Matt as he carefully lathered Haruka's hair with the baby shampoo. He often talked to her like this whenever they were alone at home. He knew she didn't really comprehend what he said but he wanted her to know his voice; to be able to relate to his voice. He smiled as she splashed around the water with her feet and giggled. "Now Daddy's going to get to spend more time with you. You'd like that, wouldn't you?"
Matt carefully rinsed her hair then pulled her out of the tub with a towel. He dried her off gently but to much protest when he brushed the towel against her face. He then took her into the bedroom and began to dress her into some of the soft cotton pajamas his mother had bought for his daughter. Finally, after much squirming and wiggling, Matt finally had her all dressed for bed.
"You know, you're such a wiggle-worm when it comes to getting on clothes," chuckled Matt as he took her into the kitchen. He already had a blanket laid out on the floor for her to lie on while he was fixing tomorrow's breakfast and finishing his homework. He placed her down on her back and gave her the pacifier to suck on.
"Alright-y, then," muttered Matt as he opened the pantry and pulled out a big bag of rice. He grimaced at the thought of having to eat rice... again. That seemed to be all he ate nowadays. But, then again, rice was cheap and he didn't have enough money for more attractive or tasty foods.
As he worked to fix his food for the next morning Haruka made small gurgling noises as she kicked her feet. He head was turned towards him and she was watching him intently as if she knew what he was doing.
"As I said before," said Matt looking down at her with a smile, "You are a wiggle-worm!" He chuckled and she smiled back up at him. Smiling, he went back to his work. 'At least I get my pay-check tomorrow! Then I'll be able to buy some new toys for Haruka and some cheddar cheese to melt on these rice-balls.' Matt had weird tastes.
"Wanna see what's happening on in the world, 'Ruka?" asked Matt as he flipped on the television set after putting away the rice-balls and washing his hands.
'Our top story for tonight: A young girl is saved in an avalanche by a wild Frigimon--Experts baffled!'
"Experts... whatever!" sniffed Matt as he switched off the television in irritation. Ever since the defeat of MaloMyotismon many people had been receiving partner Digimon at random. Now it was just an everyday occurance and the original Digidestined, Matt along with the rest of his friends, were no longer thought to be significant, even though they had saved the Real World and Digital World countless times. A few of the older adults to get Digimon had thought that gave them the right to call themselves 'experts' but truly they knew nothing about what it meant to be a Digidestined.
"It's a life-time commitment and responsibility to both worlds," was what Tai had said to them but why listen to a kid? They had Digimon and they were older. What did a little kid, now only nearing adulthood, know about anything? Especially about the Digimon? That kind of attitude ticked all the Digidestined off. No one but their own parents, relatives and close friends would hear them out; even Ken's statements on Digimon were ignored!
The Experts believe that only Digimon that follow a partner are able to comprehend the meaning of emotions, such as fear, love, friendship, happiness and sorrow. The Experts believe Digimon fighting was barbaric, even playful punches were seen as a direct attempt of violence, so fighting was completely banned. The Experts believed all Digimon were a priveilage and if you didn't have one you just weren't good enough for one.
The worse part about this all was, most people believed the Experts because that was all they were allowed to hear. This drove to the suicide of many adults and children alike who were told they just weren't good enough for a Digimon. After hearing this multiple times, many of them just figured they weren't good enough for life either and put an end to it. The Experts, of course, said it was only due to the loneliness of not having a Digimon of their own.
"It just wasn't fair, Haruka," sighed Matt as he buried his face in his hands. "If only the school wasn't so far from here...." The 'school' Matt was referring to was the Digimon Academy. Every Digidestined's Digimon, once they hit Rookie-level, were sent to the school to learn the basics. They had classes that ranged from first-grader comprehension to college graduate. Gabumon was learning at a very fast rate, like the other original Digidestined's Digimon, and would graduate around the same time Matt would. They were both heading towards technology classes so they could both take jobs that were the same and work together.
Digimon were treated as equals. They were not pets or play things, they were living beings and were now being brought up like humans were brought up. They used money to buy things for their own needs and lived in homes like people did. Some were even rich enough to live in large mansions on the slopes of Mt. Fugi, but thoes Digimon were usually only rich because they were owned by Experts or they were war veterans.
'It's not fair! Our Digimon deserve much more than the Digimon of the Experts.
Some of our Digimon have even seen more and fought more than the veterans!' thought Matt irritantly rubbing his forehead. 'At least we original Digidestined love our Digimon. The Experts only love the money their Digimon bring in with them!'
Suddenly, the sound of Haruka whinning made Matt snap out of his small depression. He knew she wasn't hungry, since he had just fed her not long ago, and he knew she didn't need a new diaper. She was just being fussy and wanted to be held and rocked. He carefully took her in his arms and he walked around the house, rocking her gently.
"Shhhh. Shhhhh," hushed Matt soothingly. "I know, Ruke. I don't like it either. I don't like it either. Shhhhh." She calmed down a little but she was still upset. Matt took her into the bedroom and placed her in the crib his mother had given him to let Haruka use. "How about some music, than?"
Matt went to the guitar case he had placed down on the bed and took out his beautiful electric guitar. It wasn't loud at all without the amp so it was perfect for using around the apartment. He went back to the crib and strummed up a slow tune. The music quieted her and soon she was listening and watching Matt contentedly. Before Matt even knew it, he was singing softly to her one of his own songs but not quite as fast as the original version. He sang softly to her until she gently fell into a deep sleep.
"...Oh, keep on running, keep on running,
"Find out your reality..."
To be continued...