Wednesday, 21st December
Cody looked at the three faces around him and noticed the tension breeding in the air. Something was going on and he didn't appreciate being left out of it, yet he knew that whatever it was... it was BIG.
"What presents were you thinking of getting Matt?" he asked the slightly taller man beside him. A thoughtful expression crossed his face as he shrugged his shoulders,
"I have absolutely no idea. What do you think Joe?"
"What are you asking me for? You should know T.K. better than me." their friend replied, a small smile on his face. He had to admit that he was a bit worried about Matt at the moment, he didn't seem to be moving as well as he should be. That meant that the virus was starting to win. The phone call that he had received last night as well had almost broken his heart when he heard the small and upset voice on the other end.
**************************
"Hello, Joe speaking." he answered after picking up the phone. He hoped that this was worth it as he was desperately trying to study for the exam that he was going to have when they got back to Uni.
"Joe, it's Sora. How are you?"
There was something in Sora's voice that made Joe sit up and take notice. Something was wrong and he was praying that nothing had happened to Matt yet, he would never forgive himself if he passed away before Christmas.
"I'm O.K. Just studying my ass off." he heard her chuckle slightly at that, "What's up?"
"There's something going on with Matt isn't there?"
Well, at least she didn't waste any time in getting to it.
"What do you mean?" he replied, just wondering how much she actually knew.
"When Diablomon stabbed him... it's killing him isn't it?" her voice was more demanding this time. Joe's sigh rang down the line and Sora pounced on him,
"What did Jim tell you when he took you aside Joe? We have a right to know if anything's wrong with Matt."
"I know Sora, it's just that... Oh man." there was a long pause before Joe made up his mind, "Yes, when Diablomon stabbed Matt, there was something on his knife. Jim found that it was a virus but unfortunately there's nothing he or any of the other doctors can do about it."
"And it's killing him?"
Joe was surprised at how she wanted a straight answer, although he knew that there was an answer for that too.
"Yes. Jim doesn't seem to think he'll last longer than Christmas."
There, he had said it. Whether Sora really wanted to hear it or not, he had told her the truth... but it didn't make him feel any better.
"Look Sora, Jim's doing everything that he can to try and figure out how to treat this thing. I know Matt has seemed to accept this but if you ever feel the need to talk, I'm right here."
He could hear Sora sniffing on the other end of the phone and could hear her quiet sobs.
"I know Joe. Thank you very much. I don't think we should tell the others until Matt's ready to tell them."
"You a mind reader or something?" he joked before continuing, "I know. Matt's the one who's got to face everyone else. I think the best thing we can do is support him in his decisions."
"I agree. Thanks again Joe and I'll see you later on."
"Alright Sora, have a good night."
"What? With mister Too Cool himself here? You've got to be joking?" Joe heard her reply and chuckled in spite of himself. It was good to hear her like that again. He just wondered how she was going to go on after Matt had left them.
"Night Joe." she said and hung up the phone. The holder of reliability shook his head as he placed the receiver back and set about concentrating on his books in front of him
*************************
"Why did I have to get stuck with you guys for Christmas shopping?" came Mimi's voice from the entrance to the mall. She had a grin on her face as she walked over to them and gave everyone a hug.
"That's because I wanted you to keep me company." answered Yolei as she and Mimi hugged each other.
"Good enough answer." and the two walked ahead of the three guys.
"Where do you think the others are shopping?" Matt asked as he shoved his hands in his pockets.
"I told Sora to go check out the mall on the other side of town, so don't worry about us running into them Matt." Yolei replied and smiled at him. There was something about her smile that was disconcerting to him.
"Uh, O.K." he replied, an extremely confused look on his face. His face went from confused to intrigue when Yolei asked what was going on between her and Tai. Matt almost cracked up laughing at the sight of Mimi's face when she was trying to explain the situation, she ended up twisting it around,
"How do you know if there's something going on Yolei?" she asked, not expecting her to have any foundations.
"Kari told me that she saw you and Tai playing soccer with some kids yesterday at the park." the younger woman answered, an evil smirk on her face.
"You're picking up too many bad habits from Ken, Yolei." Cody replied as he remembered the smirk from Ken's Digimon Emperor days. However for Matt and Joe they shouted their surprise simultaneously,
"WHAT!? YOU were playing SOCCER!!????"
"Man, you must really like him Mimi." Matt joked and nudged her with his elbow.
"Matt Ishida, you of all people know how long I've been in love with Tai." Mimi blurted out and caught the other 3 members of the DD off guard.
"That I do Mimi but I thought you said it was just a crush." Matt retorted and regretted it when Mimi pushed him away, injuring his side.
She realized her mistake when he started groaning in pain, drawing not only Mimi's attention but that of Cody and Yolei as well.
"What's wrong Matt?" Cody asked as he ran over to help his friend stand. Yolei turned to Mimi with a slightly miffed look on her face, "What did you do to him Mimi?"
Mimi looked over at Matt in horror but then remembered what had happened two nights ago. He must not have recovered fully from when he got back.
"Are you O.K. Matt?" she asked him worried and was only slightly relieved when he nodded.
"Matt, this is getting serious." Joe muttered to him, "I think you should tell everyone when you get the chance."
Joe almost took a half step backwards at Matt's glare,
"There is no way I'm ruining everyone's Christmas with this." He hissed and pulled away from him and Cody, "And there is no way in hell that I'm going to tell T.K. and Sora."
Joe's jaw clenched as he shook his head, "What if Sora already knows Matt?" he called after his friend and watched as he stopped dead in his tracks. The look of hopelessness and defeat that he could see on the holder of friendship's face, he knew, would haunt him for the rest of his days before Matt turned back around and walked into the department store.
Cody looked up at his 'mentor' and saw the worry on his face, that something big must be to do with Matt… but what? For the umpteenth time in his life, Cody wished that he could do more at that point than just stand and watch.
"What's going on Joe." He asked the older man with all seriousness. Joe looked down at the kendoist and sighed heavily,
"I can't tell you that Cody. Only Matt can, and he's not willing to accept the truth yet."
"What do you mean by that Joe?" Yolei questioned as she and Mimi walked up to them. Mimi noticed the look on his face and remembered a similar look when he had been helpless to save Leomon all those years ago and she gasped. Joe heard this and when he turned to look at her, a small tear rolled down his cheek as he nodded his head at her unspoken question. Yolei and Cody noticed this exchange and looked at each other, something was going on with Matt and whatever it was it was not good.
"What present did you get me Sora?" Tai asked innocently with a mischievous twinkle in his eye. The holder of love picked up on this and grinned,
"Wouldn't you like to know?"
"Yes, I would." Came the honest reply. T.K. grinned and rolled his eyes, elicting a chuckle from Kari, Ken and Izzy. Davis just stood there looking at him like he had a third eye growing.
"What's wrong with wanting to know what your presents are?" he demanded as the other 3 walked towards the nearest clothing store.
"That ruins the whole fun of Christmas Davis." Kari told him and rushed off to a rack and pulled out a jacket for T.K. that wouldn't look the best on him.
"How do you do it?" Izzy asked the younger man who simply smiled,
"I forget about all the trivial stuff and just focus on the time that we spend together as no one knows how long we have." He told Izzy, almost repeating Kari's words from the previous day. T.K. had a feeling that Kari knew something was going on but when he asked her about it, she had told him that she didn't know but she just had a gut feeling that something was going on.
"Good philosophy T.K." Izzy commented, "I must remember that one and tell it to Joe."
The two shared a laugh before T.K. wandered off to Kari, who was motioning to him.
"I hate to admit it but I think that the two of them will last." Davis said as he walked over to Izzy, who nodded.
"That's the first time I've heard you say something nice about them." The younger leader of the DD's just shrugged, "Yeah, well T.K. isn't such a bad guy. I mean, he did introduce me to Catherine and all."
Izzy chuckled and looked at Davis knowingly,
"Does that mean I'm going to get a wedding invitation soon?"
The horrified look on Davis' face was almost worth the beating he was preparing himself for.
Cody looked at the three faces around him and noticed the tension breeding in the air. Something was going on and he didn't appreciate being left out of it, yet he knew that whatever it was... it was BIG.
"What presents were you thinking of getting Matt?" he asked the slightly taller man beside him. A thoughtful expression crossed his face as he shrugged his shoulders,
"I have absolutely no idea. What do you think Joe?"
"What are you asking me for? You should know T.K. better than me." their friend replied, a small smile on his face. He had to admit that he was a bit worried about Matt at the moment, he didn't seem to be moving as well as he should be. That meant that the virus was starting to win. The phone call that he had received last night as well had almost broken his heart when he heard the small and upset voice on the other end.
**************************
"Hello, Joe speaking." he answered after picking up the phone. He hoped that this was worth it as he was desperately trying to study for the exam that he was going to have when they got back to Uni.
"Joe, it's Sora. How are you?"
There was something in Sora's voice that made Joe sit up and take notice. Something was wrong and he was praying that nothing had happened to Matt yet, he would never forgive himself if he passed away before Christmas.
"I'm O.K. Just studying my ass off." he heard her chuckle slightly at that, "What's up?"
"There's something going on with Matt isn't there?"
Well, at least she didn't waste any time in getting to it.
"What do you mean?" he replied, just wondering how much she actually knew.
"When Diablomon stabbed him... it's killing him isn't it?" her voice was more demanding this time. Joe's sigh rang down the line and Sora pounced on him,
"What did Jim tell you when he took you aside Joe? We have a right to know if anything's wrong with Matt."
"I know Sora, it's just that... Oh man." there was a long pause before Joe made up his mind, "Yes, when Diablomon stabbed Matt, there was something on his knife. Jim found that it was a virus but unfortunately there's nothing he or any of the other doctors can do about it."
"And it's killing him?"
Joe was surprised at how she wanted a straight answer, although he knew that there was an answer for that too.
"Yes. Jim doesn't seem to think he'll last longer than Christmas."
There, he had said it. Whether Sora really wanted to hear it or not, he had told her the truth... but it didn't make him feel any better.
"Look Sora, Jim's doing everything that he can to try and figure out how to treat this thing. I know Matt has seemed to accept this but if you ever feel the need to talk, I'm right here."
He could hear Sora sniffing on the other end of the phone and could hear her quiet sobs.
"I know Joe. Thank you very much. I don't think we should tell the others until Matt's ready to tell them."
"You a mind reader or something?" he joked before continuing, "I know. Matt's the one who's got to face everyone else. I think the best thing we can do is support him in his decisions."
"I agree. Thanks again Joe and I'll see you later on."
"Alright Sora, have a good night."
"What? With mister Too Cool himself here? You've got to be joking?" Joe heard her reply and chuckled in spite of himself. It was good to hear her like that again. He just wondered how she was going to go on after Matt had left them.
"Night Joe." she said and hung up the phone. The holder of reliability shook his head as he placed the receiver back and set about concentrating on his books in front of him
*************************
"Why did I have to get stuck with you guys for Christmas shopping?" came Mimi's voice from the entrance to the mall. She had a grin on her face as she walked over to them and gave everyone a hug.
"That's because I wanted you to keep me company." answered Yolei as she and Mimi hugged each other.
"Good enough answer." and the two walked ahead of the three guys.
"Where do you think the others are shopping?" Matt asked as he shoved his hands in his pockets.
"I told Sora to go check out the mall on the other side of town, so don't worry about us running into them Matt." Yolei replied and smiled at him. There was something about her smile that was disconcerting to him.
"Uh, O.K." he replied, an extremely confused look on his face. His face went from confused to intrigue when Yolei asked what was going on between her and Tai. Matt almost cracked up laughing at the sight of Mimi's face when she was trying to explain the situation, she ended up twisting it around,
"How do you know if there's something going on Yolei?" she asked, not expecting her to have any foundations.
"Kari told me that she saw you and Tai playing soccer with some kids yesterday at the park." the younger woman answered, an evil smirk on her face.
"You're picking up too many bad habits from Ken, Yolei." Cody replied as he remembered the smirk from Ken's Digimon Emperor days. However for Matt and Joe they shouted their surprise simultaneously,
"WHAT!? YOU were playing SOCCER!!????"
"Man, you must really like him Mimi." Matt joked and nudged her with his elbow.
"Matt Ishida, you of all people know how long I've been in love with Tai." Mimi blurted out and caught the other 3 members of the DD off guard.
"That I do Mimi but I thought you said it was just a crush." Matt retorted and regretted it when Mimi pushed him away, injuring his side.
She realized her mistake when he started groaning in pain, drawing not only Mimi's attention but that of Cody and Yolei as well.
"What's wrong Matt?" Cody asked as he ran over to help his friend stand. Yolei turned to Mimi with a slightly miffed look on her face, "What did you do to him Mimi?"
Mimi looked over at Matt in horror but then remembered what had happened two nights ago. He must not have recovered fully from when he got back.
"Are you O.K. Matt?" she asked him worried and was only slightly relieved when he nodded.
"Matt, this is getting serious." Joe muttered to him, "I think you should tell everyone when you get the chance."
Joe almost took a half step backwards at Matt's glare,
"There is no way I'm ruining everyone's Christmas with this." He hissed and pulled away from him and Cody, "And there is no way in hell that I'm going to tell T.K. and Sora."
Joe's jaw clenched as he shook his head, "What if Sora already knows Matt?" he called after his friend and watched as he stopped dead in his tracks. The look of hopelessness and defeat that he could see on the holder of friendship's face, he knew, would haunt him for the rest of his days before Matt turned back around and walked into the department store.
Cody looked up at his 'mentor' and saw the worry on his face, that something big must be to do with Matt… but what? For the umpteenth time in his life, Cody wished that he could do more at that point than just stand and watch.
"What's going on Joe." He asked the older man with all seriousness. Joe looked down at the kendoist and sighed heavily,
"I can't tell you that Cody. Only Matt can, and he's not willing to accept the truth yet."
"What do you mean by that Joe?" Yolei questioned as she and Mimi walked up to them. Mimi noticed the look on his face and remembered a similar look when he had been helpless to save Leomon all those years ago and she gasped. Joe heard this and when he turned to look at her, a small tear rolled down his cheek as he nodded his head at her unspoken question. Yolei and Cody noticed this exchange and looked at each other, something was going on with Matt and whatever it was it was not good.
"What present did you get me Sora?" Tai asked innocently with a mischievous twinkle in his eye. The holder of love picked up on this and grinned,
"Wouldn't you like to know?"
"Yes, I would." Came the honest reply. T.K. grinned and rolled his eyes, elicting a chuckle from Kari, Ken and Izzy. Davis just stood there looking at him like he had a third eye growing.
"What's wrong with wanting to know what your presents are?" he demanded as the other 3 walked towards the nearest clothing store.
"That ruins the whole fun of Christmas Davis." Kari told him and rushed off to a rack and pulled out a jacket for T.K. that wouldn't look the best on him.
"How do you do it?" Izzy asked the younger man who simply smiled,
"I forget about all the trivial stuff and just focus on the time that we spend together as no one knows how long we have." He told Izzy, almost repeating Kari's words from the previous day. T.K. had a feeling that Kari knew something was going on but when he asked her about it, she had told him that she didn't know but she just had a gut feeling that something was going on.
"Good philosophy T.K." Izzy commented, "I must remember that one and tell it to Joe."
The two shared a laugh before T.K. wandered off to Kari, who was motioning to him.
"I hate to admit it but I think that the two of them will last." Davis said as he walked over to Izzy, who nodded.
"That's the first time I've heard you say something nice about them." The younger leader of the DD's just shrugged, "Yeah, well T.K. isn't such a bad guy. I mean, he did introduce me to Catherine and all."
Izzy chuckled and looked at Davis knowingly,
"Does that mean I'm going to get a wedding invitation soon?"
The horrified look on Davis' face was almost worth the beating he was preparing himself for.