"Hi, there.... My... my name's Angela...." Angel-Chan batted her eyes as she bent closer to the poor, scared-half-to-death boy. He was so cute when he acted that way! Holding in the urge to squeal and glomp him, she went on: "What's your name...?"

Kazu gulped and laughed nervously. God-- why was this happening to him...? Some strange girl he didn't even know-- well, he knew her name now-- had the hots for him?! What happened to whole 'get to know someone before you decide if you like them' idea that most girls followed? And Takato... was this all a part of his stupid revenge...? Stuttering, he answered, "K-Kazu...." Man-- she was giving him the creeps!

That was it! She couldn't take it any more! A high-pitched shriek escaped her clenched teeth as the blond flung herself toward the boy! After all, it was guy-- something that many in her school did not see often. What else was she supposed to do? Get to know him better?

HAH-- like that would work!!

As she watched her older sister make new friends... poor, little Andria slumped weakly and groaned. Food... she needed food.... School was over for the day; she usually ran home to a fridge full of it. But, at the moment....

Cri... crunch.

What... was that? Did she just hear someone open up a paper sack?! Snapping her head up instantly, the child discovered that one of the boys still had some food! Oh, glorious day! She would just pop up and... WAIT! No drooling! Just casually ask to share his meal! That's right! Angel-Chan would kill her if she acted normally...!

"Heh...!" Kenta, trying not to snort at Kazu's hilarious attempts to pry the girl from him, pulled out his sandwich. Man-- he was hungry! Good thing his mom packed a lot of food, right? He opened his mouth, and... stopped. The other girl who had come with 'Teko' was giving him a freaky look.... And what...? Was she drooling...?! Good Lord!

Suddenly... her stomach cried out as if creating an explanation for her actions. The boy looked over the rims of his glasses and chuckled nervously. Well... that told him a LOT! Asked he, "Hungry...?"

School Day Blues

Part Five: A Night on the Town (Part One)

Takato fell face-first onto his bed. He... was pooped. Sure, it was a great day and all, but.... Well, running for everything didn't help. Heck-- they even ran in gym!! Either he was imagining things, or there was some sort of conspiracy going on.... Yeah, one against 'Teko.'

All in all, Kazu had gotten his fare share of Takato's revenge. Heh... sending a boy-deprived girl after him was a freakin' work of genius! And when the other one begged Kenta for his food-- simply brilliant! The boy lifted his head, yanked off his wig and began to chortle.... Not just any kind of chortling, either....

Malicious chortling....

The only hard part about the entire day was the explaining he had to do.... Yup-- Jeri was now officially a part of his 'supporters.' Heh... while the boys were busy, she had called him over. Yes, curious Jeri had to know what was going on. Laughing, the poor cross-dresser told of his... 'attempts.' What did his friend think? Why... what else? "Oh, Takato! How romantic-- trying to get to know her like that!"

Oh, yeah.... if you call impersonating a girl and pretty much stalking your crush romantic. Still, he felt pleased with himself... until she pulled out her puppet and began to start a conversation using it. Let's just say... that it was a little nerve-wracking. Especially when it kept on telling him that Jeri was 'gonna spill the beans!' What if she did? God, he'd probably keel over and die before Rika could kill him! Then again... Jeri barely knew who Rika was, anyway! Yeah...! So... she wouldn't say anything... would she?

Wait a sec. Not once... he hadn't talked to Rika at all today! It was like he had completely ignored her! Why the heck was he doing this if he didn't even pay attention to her?!

The easily depressed child plopped his head back down.

Man... he had to learn how to think....

~*~

It was going to be a bad day.... How could she tell...? Easy-- her mother had asked her to try out a 'simple little photo shoot.' Of course, the redhead had declined (with some anger and attitude) and stated that she needed to leave for school. Heck, she even brushed Renamon aside!

Yes... a VERY bad day....

Contemplating about what she would be doing later-- mostly because of the morning's events-- she barely noticed a hand reach out from behind her.... Just as it brushed against her shoulder, the child spun around in her assigned seat and knocked the hand aside. No one... could touch her...! And yet... as she saw the person, the anger in her face faded.

"What?" she snapped as gently as she could.

Hoo-boy... things were looking tough! And she looked ticked, too! Attempting a giggle, Takato muttered, "Oh... nothing, really...." Rika's eyebrows moved upward, forming the accursed 'like-I'd-believe-that-line-of-crap' stare. Mentally pounding himself, the boy (in girl's clothing) glanced to the side. "J-Just wanted to apologize for pretty much ignoring you yesterday!" he finally stammered out. Great job! Now, let her scowl and turn around! Looks like he'd be banging his head off something again! Whoopee!

Gee... was that all? Like she noticed! "Whatever...," the redhead muttered. As bad of a mood she was in, she could've easily taken out a lot of her anger on that girl. Why she didn't... was a mystery-- even to the fireball herself!

God... life sucked. Why the heck was he doing this if he ended up making a fool of himself?! Half-tempted to run out the door screaming and yanking his wig off, Takato looked out the window. Freedom.... Man, that sounded so good right about then! He seriously thought about that one for a while. Sure, there were some rough consequences, but.... A tap on his shoulder brought him back to the living world.

Angel-Chan winked and whispered, "Hey, Teko, wanna go to the mall after school? It IS Friday, right? We can go see a movie and shop around!" Actually... she just wanted to see Kazu again. She'd overheard him talking to his friends (well... the other people who were with him yesterday) about going to the mall to buy... cards or something. Imagine 'bumping' into him! If she could do that, a date could be set it no time! She suddenly chuckled rather loudly and ignored the stares from her classmates.

Mall? Tonight? But.... "Right after school? I... I dunno...." What was he gonna do? That girl was a little zany, and she'd probably find out where he lived-- and worse! Takato shuddered at the thought of Angel knowing his secret. With a mouth like hers, it would be all over the WORLD in less than a day!

"Nah... around five or so." Waving her hand, the girl pointed to the school uniform she was wearing. "I don't know 'bout you, but I'd rather go in civies." Ahh... the dreaded uniform.... How she longed to BURN it!

Five...? But... he wouldn't be with Rika, would he...? That was the whole reason he was doing this stupid thing! Why wear a dress if he wasn't going to follow the plan?! Right before he opened his mouth to protest... an idea came to his mind. Ooh... what a good one it was, too! Grinning, he squeaked out, "Maybe... I'll have to ask my Mom, though. Five, right?" The blond nodded; Mrs. Akino came in right afterwards, thus ending the conversation.

Takato groaned and pulled out his math book. It was going to be another long, long day....

~*~

Today... a certain boy, whom we all know and love, learned what the true meaning of 'hell' is. Oh, yes... it wasn't a fun day for him. There had been a pop quiz in reading over a book that he hadn't taken the time to read; he was almost positive he'd flunked it. During gym the 'popular' girls decided to hide all of his clothes; he'd spent ten minutes trying to find them (they were jammed in various nooks and crannies) and was punished by the teacher. After his ten laps, he was finally able to join everyone in the gym assignment for the day: archery. He was currently thanking God that they hadn't used sharp arrows. During lunch he'd tripped over some milk box lying on the floor; his uniform was stained quite badly from that experience. And now... he was anxiously waiting for a certain bell to ring.

He wanted to go home!

RIIINNG!

WOO-HOO! After that heavenly sound echoed out, 'Teko' flew out the classroom door, down the stairs and straight out of the school. Home! That's where he wanted to be! He just wanted to plop into his bed and sleep forever! Why, he felt like--

"Teko-- don't forget about the mall!"

Aww... CRAP! He'd forgotten all about that!! With a strained smile, the boy turned and waved. 'I'm gonna be dead by next week,' he muttered within his head. Cursing silently, he searched for a certain redhead as the blond disappeared. Great... now where was she? She... she didn't leave yet, right? Please, God... no! But, if not, then... then where was Rika?!

Wait! THERE! C'mon! Gotta catch up to her-- NOW! "Rika!" he called, running as fast as his legs would carry him. (Man, this boy does a LOT of running, eh?) "Wait a sec!"

The girl stopped and turned, a scowl apparent. Great. She didn't want to deal with anyone at the moment.... Snorting to herself, Rika waited for her schoolmate to catch up. Geeze... the girls from her school really were weaklings! I mean, the way this one acted after running only a short distance proved it! She waited patiently for the Teko girl to get a breather, then demanded, "What?"

Caught her.... Good. "I... I was wondering... if you'd come to the mall with me tonight...," he rasped out. See now, it wasn't too hard to ask! Yeah! Maybe he'd gotten braver after seeing her more often and stuff! Or... maybe it was just because he was so pooped that he didn't care what happened anyway. Oh, well... at least he tried, eh?

What in the world...? Why would someone want to... take her to the mall?! Rika smirked and looked out to the sky; it was still blue-- no clouds whatsoever. A nice day to just sit on the porch and sort out cards. Besides... wasn't that she going to the mall with the annoying, blond girl? "Why...?"

"Well... Angel-Chan invited me, but... she just wants to buy clothes and stuff. It's... not really my thing," he answered. It WAS true. No lies this time! He didn't want to spend his money on girly clothes!! His mom already did that-- and even then, he'd protested! "I'd rather buy some Digimon cards," he added, trying to keep his voice low.

Digimon cards? "You... play Digimon?" Okay... that was different. None of the girls in her school played card games! She was often the source of rumors and jokes because she enjoyed them. 'Look at her-- hey, Rika, go home and play with your stupid cards!' or 'Gee, I wish I could be like you: a freaky, card-loving loser!' Afterwards, she'd usually pound them to the ground. If Teko liked the cards... perhaps she WOULD be a good person to become friends with.... At least they'd understand each other....

YES! He'd gotten her attention! "Yeah... but I'm not very good." Now what should he do...? DARNIT! He didn't know how to act like a girl at all! Finally, after tossing a variety of ideas on what to do out the window, he clasped his hands together and gave Rika the most pathetic-looking puppy dog face ever (gee, I thought only GIRLS could do that!). "So... will you go? Please? I don't wanna buy dresses!" After a moment of thought, he added, "And I don't wanna be alone with Angel-Chan, either! She can get pretty scary, if ya know what I mean!"

Aurgh.... Tossing her hands in the air, Rika groaned. "Fine.... Dumb whiner...." That latter was muttered so low that the 'girl' beside her couldn't hear it. Never in her life had she heard someone complain and whine so much...! She'd go... but if it was some kind of sick joke or something, she'd pulverize all in her way! "What time...?"

Really...? Then that meant... she'd go! SWEET!! "Five!" he replied, skipping down the sidewalk happily. Things were starting to take a turn for the better! "Don't forget!" With that said and done with, the boy hopped away, humming something to himself and pretty much acting like an actual girl (and to think... he thought he didn't know how to!).

Rika stood there and watched her... supposed 'friend' bounce off. For a moment, she'd thought it was... naw.... Her imagination was playing such strange tricks of her nowadays. Turning sharply, she glared at the person closest to her before treading on. Only one thing was on the redhead's mind:

What had she gotten herself into...?!

~*~

Takato paced impatiently outside the mall. It was five already-- where was everyone?! Glancing down at himself and making sure his wig was on right, he sighed. Maybe they were just going to be 'fashionably late,' whatever that meant. Heh... that made him think of his little clothing predicament he'd had when he'd gotten home.

*You are now going back in time... (swings her wristwatch back and forth)*

"Oh, man! What am I gonna wear?! Everything Mom bought is too frilly and shiny!!" He pulled up a soft pink skirt and felt something nasty-tasting rise in his throat. "My life sucks soooo bad right now!"

Mrs. Matsuki just happened to be walking up the steps at that very moment. So...her baby was having clothing problems? But... what was he talking about? Too 'frilly and shiny?' She thought they were lovely! Maybe her child just needed some convincing. "Do you need some help with your clothes, honey? I think I bought you a more casual dre--"

"NO!! NOT A DRESS!"

And with that... he slammed the door in her face. So much for parental help. Miffed, the woman stormed back downstairs to take out her anger on her husband.

*(the watch is still spinning) Back... back... back... (Blinks) Oh! Umm, returning to present!*

"Teko!"

Finally! It was almost five after, now! Yeah, he was a worrywart. "Where have you been?!" he raged, suddenly noticing that Angel's little sister had tagged along. Huh...? Oh, great-- just peachy! With a groan, he wished he was back home at that moment. With those two together... he could only imagine what kind of a riot they'd probably cause....

Angel-Chan sniffled loudly and eyed her sister. "It's all her fault!" hissed she, pointing an accusing finger toward her 'pain-in-the-rear' sister. "She decided-- at the last minute, of course-- that she wanted to come, too! I told her not to, but she wouldn't listen!" It wasn't fair! Stupid, dumb-butted...! Why did she have to babysit her all the time? The brat NEVER listened to a word she said, anyway!

"HEY! I'm here to get a DVD!" little Squirtle-girl insisted. Like she would want to hang out with her sister all day! That was just plain idiotic! With a huge grin, she turned to Teko. "I'm gettin' the Blue Seed Beyond DVD!"

Nodding weakly, the boy... er girl... eh-- who-knows-what glanced around for a spiked ponytail. God... where was Rika? She said she'd come...! His breath caught in his throat as he made a terrifying realization:

What if she DIDN'T come?!

Noo!! He'd rather be at that all-girl school than put up with those two for a couple hours! Man, oh, man! Someone needed to shoot him... or hit him... or do something that would take him home..... If he had to--

"Oi!"

Huh? Angel-Chan trailed her hazel eyes to the voice. What the...? Nonaka the Hellbent Demon? What the heck was she doing here? Maybe... no... that couldn't be it! Why would Rika be there to buy clothes? Besides... wasn't there a rumor going around that Rika NEVER left her house, except to go to school?

This... was going to be interesting. Her mom had put her in an even worse mood when she went home. It was so bad that she could still hear their fight ringing in her ears. 'Why don't you do anything with me, Rika?' Keh... like she didn't know! She hated it-- how her mother didn't seem to listen to a word she said! Tossing what had happened into an unknown closet inside her brain, she muttered, "Are we gonna just stand here? I'd like to at least walk around, if you don't mind...."

The girl-- whoops, my mistake! The B-O-Y stammered, "Uhh... sure." With that... they started for the entrance, Angel-Chan giving him looks of question; he sighed and mouthed, 'Don't ask.' The day was not over-- not by a long shot.... Hmm.... Where was the bathroom? He needed something hard to hit his head off of....

"Can we go to Suncoast first?"

"NO! We're going to Raves!"

"WHY???"

"BECAUSE I SAID SO!!!"

"Gee... I'm having fun already...."

"You and me both...."

~*~

A/N: Wow... it's been a while, eh? *bows* Gomen ne, minna-chan, for not working on this story. I hope you'll forgive me! I promise NEVER to slack off again! (People in the background walk away disbelievingly.) HEY!!! GET BACK HERE!

Anyway... what do you guys wanna see in the next chappy? What should happen at the mall? Anything... 'interesting?' TELL MEE!!!! I need your advice! I have some ideas... but I want to know what YOU want!! Also... 'Fated' is finished ('cept for the epilogue)!!!! GO READ IT AND REVIEW! Por favor...? Until next time... ja!-Angel-Chan (*Susie skips out* Hi weaders!! Angel-Chan says you wiked me!!! *pulls out a dressed up Terriermon and Lopmon* So... Pwease weview! Bunny Wunny and Pwincess Pwetty Pants order you to! *giggles and skips away*)