The song in this chapter is property of Elton John, whom I adore for some reason. I'm sure most people have heard it because it is indeed the song Ewan McGregor sings on Moulin Rouge. But me, I prefer the initial Elton John-ness of the first song. Originally, the song was supposed to be this awesome song by the Spill Canvas, whom I also adore, but last minute, I changed it. Because this fits a lot better.
This first bit may be a little out of place, but I decided I had to add it. This entire chapter was supposed to have taken place one week after Yolei started all the rumors, but the blurb before the 'One Week Later' takes place the same day as chapter four left off. It made me laugh to write it, and reread it, so I just kept it.
Digimon doesn't belong to me, neither does "Your Song", which is property of one Sir Elton John.
I Melt With You
The smile on Kari's face still hadn't completely worn off when Tai came to pick her up from cheerleading practice. She was a little shocked to see her brother drive up, especially because he didn't have his own car. Also because he hadn't said anything about picking her up that morning. And partly because he was doing about 80mph in the high school parking lot. Puzzled, she turned and waved to Mimi as she opened the door of her parents' car.
"Hi Tai," she said brightly, "What's this all about?"
Without a word, he stepped on the accelerator and peeled out of the parking lot; Kari barely even had time to fasten her seatbelt. She pressed herself against the window, staring wide-eyed as he turned in the opposite direction of their apartment, "Tai… where are we going?" she breathed, slightly terrified.
He turned the wheel like a madman. "I told mom I had to take you to buy supplies for a science project."
She giggled, "But I don't even have a science project due."
"I know."
Fear crept up into her voice, "Where are you taking me?" The light ahead turned yellow, then red. Tai slammed on the brakes, sending the car to a screeching halt. He drummed his fingers nervously on the steering wheel, waiting for the light to change. "Where are you taking me?" she asked again.
"Planned parenthood," he muttered.
Kari burst out laughing, "What?"
No longer watching the road, he turned to her, a fierce look in his eyes, "You're not having that baby, Kari, I don't care what he says. You're fifteen, for God's sake!" At this point, she was laughing too hard to respond. Not noticing the light had turned green, Tai grasped his sister's shoulders and shook them firmly, "This is not a joke, Kari!" Unable to stop laughing, tears began to trickle out of her eyes. "OhmiGod, I'm sorry, Kar. I didn't mean to hurt you… to hurt it." He eyed her still-flat stomach miserably.
"Just drive!" Kari finally managed.
Regaining control of himself, her brother nodded and finally took his foot off of the brake. There was a celebratory honk behind them as the cars that had piled up behind them prepared to follow them through the light. Unfortunately for them, at this time, the light was now red again.
"Pull over here," she ordered, motioning to an almost-empty supermarket parking lot.
He complied, parking near the far end to prevent being disturbed. "Come on, Kari, it makes sense. You're not even showing yet… No one can tell or anything," he looked at her sternly, "Think of your future."
She rested her hands on her hips, meeting his stare. "I am not pregnant, Tai."
"That's not what… well, the entire school says."
"You're going to believe the entire school over me?"
"Is he beating you?"
"What?"
"You heard me. Maki told me that he was hitting you in the hallway today. She also said that he mentioned a Matt Jr. And people - lots of people - were saying you two are engaged."
She crossed her arms irritably, "You know me better than that, Taichi. I'd like to think you know Matt better than that, too."
"So you're not pregnant?" he asked hopefully.
"No," she replied.
He shifted back into drive, making his way out of the parking lot, "And you're not engaged?"
"Again, no."
There was total seriousness in his eyes as he looked at her, "Has he ever hit you?"
Kari couldn't help but laugh, "No! We were just playing... er, a little joke on Maki and her friends. You can even ask Yolei. She was in on it, too."
At the mention of Yolei's name, he smiled. Her face fell, Gross, gross, gross! "Alright, we're just gonna tell mom your science project got postponed, okay?"
"Um… yeah," Kari said nervously, "About that… you're gonna have to tell the story solo tonight. I've gotta meet… Mimi. Can you just drop me off at that karaoke bar on Third Street instead?"
One Week Later…
"You hang up first." Matt murmured lovingly into the phone.
Kari laughed, "Alright." There was a click as she hung up. A little embarrassed, Matt placed the phone back on the cradle in Izzy's garage. Realizing what happened, the other members of the band burst into laughter. Almost immediately, their chuckles were cut short by the phone ringing again.
Shooting them a smug glare, Matt reached for the phone, "Hello?"
"You didn't really think I'd hang up on you, did you?"
He laughed, still looking at the others, "Of course not."
"I just called to say goodbye," Kari said meekly.
"Bye," He smiled, then hastily added, "See you tonight at the concert." Now it was his turn to put the phone down. The others were still gazing, open mouthed at their reformed lead singer.
TK was the first to speak, "And you make fun of us."
"What's that supposed to mean?"
"Matt," Tai said with a mocking smile, "You're whipped."
There was a sharp intake of breath as Matt's temper flared, but a moment later, he had regained his composure. He stooped down to pick up his guitar and plugged it swiftly into his amp. "I am not whipped."
His brother laughed, doing the same with his bass, "I beg to differ." The others joined in, laughing in agreement.
"Shut up, you idiots. Can we just play? We've got a show tonight," Matt said crossly.
Tai swung his guitar strap over his shoulder. "Come off of it, Ishida, you just wanna impress my sister."
Ever the one with a conscience, Izzy spoke up, "Leave Matt alone. You're as bad as he was. I think he's right. We need the practice."
"Guys," Matt said, his voice lacking the cocky undertone he usually possessed, "I've got a new song here. So, uh, do you think I could have the stage for the last couple minutes or so?"
"Kari! Are you in there?" Tai's voice yelled from outside her bedroom door; he pounded harder, shaking the doorframe, "You'd better not be sleeping, Yagami Hikari, or I'll leave without you!"
Groaning, Kari rolled over. She had been sleeping. What was Tai so excited about anyway? Just then, she caught sight of the digital clock sitting on her nightstand and realized what he was yelling about. Squalor was scheduled to be onstage in twenty minutes!
Trying not to panic, she clambered out of bed. It was supposed to have just been a little nap, but Kari had accidentally slept for about three hours longer than she had planned. "You can leave without me, Tai, I'll be there soon!" she called, wanting to make sure he wasn't late.
"Are you sure?" he shouted, "Because Matt really wants you to be there!"
"Why?" she yelled back, hopping on one foot as she slid her leg into a pair of tight jeans.
Tai sounded flustered, "Erm… uh… he just does. Make sure you don't miss the end."
She masked her confusion with sisterly love, "I won't. Don't worry. Love you Tai."
"Er… love you, too. See ya there."
Deciding to opt for a more casual wardrobe this time, Kari wore a pair of dark blue jeans and a plain black tank top, paired with a pair of black platform sandals Mimi had leant her that probably cost more than the rest of the outfit combined. Perfect, she thought, watching her reflection in the mirror as she grabbed her purse off the bathroom counter, Not too formal, but not too informal, either.
She bade her parents goodbye and headed out the door to the club where Squalor was performing. But no sooner than she had placed one immeasurably expensive platform sandal-adorned foot onto the sidewalk, had Davis descended upon her like a hawk.
"Kari!" he cried, as if it had been two years since the last time he set eyes upon her, instead of only two weeks. He pulled her into a warm, loving, but almost completely unreciprocated embrace. "Didja miss me?"
She smiled kindly, "Actually, I did. How was your trip?" She stole a glance at her watch; the set started in five minutes. Hurry up, Davis…
"I'm so glad you asked! All my cousins were there, so we played a lot of soccer. And my cousin Soeki still thinks he's, like, way better than me. Which he isn't. So we were both opposite captains and, you know, I have a lot, of cousins, so…" Four minutes. Cut it short, Davis, come on! "And there was this one girl, she was pretty ugly, but I didn't wanna be mean, so I was like…" Please, Davis! I'm begging you! Stop… talking…. "But then my dad bought us watermelon instead! So my grandpa…" Must… get… to… show… two… minutes… left… "And of course, Jun was all 'Oh yes I did!' but I knew better."
He stopped to take another deep breath and Kari knew it was her last chance for quite some time, "Listen, Davis. I'm real sorry, but I've got somewhere I'm supposed to be."
"Where?" he demanded somewhat impatiently.
Best to come out with it now, "Matt's concert."
He nodded, "You mean Tai's concert."
"No," she corrected, "Matt's concert. My… boyfriend's concert." It was the first time she'd really used the phrasing and was still unsure if it even applied. She kept her tone gentle, not wanting to hurt Davis's feelings, but still wanting to get the hell out of there.
"Your what?" he asked in disbelief.
Kari looked down shyly, "My boyfriend."
Davis looked stunned. He stammered for a few moments, then finally found words, "When did this happen?"
She paused, thinking back. "Um… about a week ago."
"Is he a better kisser than me?"
Her eyes widened, "What? Davis… We… I've never kissed you."
Bad thing to say.
Right there on the street, as Squalor was playing the opening chords of their first song about a half mile away, Davis kissed her. Don't pull away too fast, she told herself, It will only make it harder. After about fifteen seconds, he pulled back, grinning ear to ear. "Do I measure up?"
"Well," she said, embarrassed, "Matt and I haven't kissed either." This was, of course, a lie. But the only kiss they had shared had been over a year ago, anyways. She still hadn't told anyone about this, so as far as she was concerned, it didn't even count.
"Yeah," Davis said, shrugging, "I figured that."
Kari's jaw fell open, "What?"
"I figured that."
"Then what was that for?"
"Getting in my last kicks while you'll still let me," Davis said, amidst laughter. He had known all along that Kari wouldn't let anyone, yet alone a playboy like Matt, kiss her too quickly. And he had counted on her kindness to prevent her from pushing him off like a slithering worm. However, he hadn't planned for the violent beating he would receive with Kari's handbag.
"Where are you going anyways?" Kari asked, trying to avoid laughing herself.
Davis shrugged, "I was heading over to your place to see what you were doing. Would it be terribly rude if I followed you to that concert? My parents and Jun are gonna be unpacking for a good three days, so I thought I'd sneak out and try to find some fun."
Smiling at the creativeness of her friend, she nodded. "Be my guest, the concert starts in…" she glanced at her watch, "Oh my God! The concert started ten minutes ago!"
"So?"
She grabbed Davis's wrist and began running down the sidewalk, stringing him along, " 'So?' They only play twenty minute sets! And we're about five minutes away!" And then, Davis is tow, Kari made a beeline for the tiny club.
Matt looked around anxiously as Tai held out the last chord of their fifth song. Squalor had exactly four minutes before they had to be offstage and out of there. And at the particular place they were playing, a trendy little coffee shop full of beatniks sipping lattes, the managers were especially strict about not going over time limit. Especially on Interpretive Reading Wednesday, which this was. But Kari was nowhere to be found.
"Are we still gonna play the song?" TK whispered. Matt shrugged, still looking out over the crowd.
Just then, Izzy stood up, pointing to the side entrance with his drumstick. "There." Kari stood next to Davis, eyes looking anxiously up at the stage.
Well, Matt thought, Here goes nothing…
He stepped back up to the microphone as Tai, Izzy, and TK walked offstage, leaving Matt alone with his acoustic guitar, "This will be our… my last song of the evening," he started. To his surprise, the crowd booed disappointedly. "And I'd like to dedicate this song to…" he looked at Kari, "Someone special. I hope you all like it." Looking at her again, he smiled, "Especially you." He took a deep breath, strummed the first couple chords on his guitar, and began singing:
/It's a little bit funny this feeling inside/
/I'm not one of those who can easily hide/
/I don't have much money, but boy if I did/
/I'd buy a big house where we both could live/
/If I was a sculptor, but then again, no/
/Or a man who makes potions in a traveling show/
/I know it's not much but it's the best I can do/
/My gift is my song and this one's for you/
/And you can tell everybody this is your song/
/It may be quite simple, but now that it's done/
/I hope you don't mind/
/I hope you don't mind/
/That I put down in words/
/How wonderful life is while you're in the world/
/I sat on the roof and kicked off the moss/
/Well a few of the verses well they've got me quite cross/
/But the sun's been quite kind while I wrote this song/
/It's for people like you that keep it turned on/
/So excuse me forgetting, but these things I do/
/You see I've forgotten if they're green or they're blue/
/Anyway the thing is… what I really mean/
/Yours are the sweetest eyes I've ever seen/
/And you can tell everybody this is your song/
/It may be quite simple but now that it's done/
/I hope you don't mind/
/I hope you don't mind/
/That I put down in words/
/How wonderful life is while you're in the world/
There was a stunned silence following the last chord, and then the coffeehouse erupted into applause. Even the previously angry-looking interpretive readers whose show time was being eaten up clapped wildly. "Thanks," he said humbly, exiting stage left and taking his guitar with him.
As Matt descended down the stairs, he was greeted by several pats on the back and congratulating words, both from his friends and rabid fangirls who hoped the song was about them. Brushing them all off gently, he made his way over to Kari, leaning against a wall, an astonished smile on her face, "I need to talk to you outside," he said shakily.
"Okay," she replied, color beginning to rise in her cheeks.
Kari could feel every eye in the room turning to them as Matt held the side door open for her. And as they disappeared out of it, Davis gave an obnoxious whoop, making Kari blush deeper. "Where are we going?" she asked as Matt lead her down the side of the building.
"Just follow me," he answered, helping her step up onto the metal fire escape. The coffeehouse building was about nine stories tall, doubling as an apartment building filled with the depressed poet types who didn't mind the ramshackle state of their flats, since they spent most of their time sipping cappuccino at the shop downstairs anyways.
They climbed to the top of the rickety metal structure and crossed over onto the cement roof of the building. "Look at the view," Matt said wistfully, looking out over the city… or at least some of it, spread below them.
Kari leaned against him, "I really liked the song."
He looked down at her, "Really?"
"Really." she laughed, "How could I not? I think Davis started crying."
Chuckling softly, he rested his arm on her shoulder, "I think I could see that."
"I've got something for you," she whispered, sliding free of his embrace yet again.
Trying to hide his disappointment, he nodded. At first the fact that Kari was so different than the other girls he'd dated was what appealed to him about her. She wasn't the type to make out with him on the first date or fall all over herself when he smiled, but they had been a 'couple' for about a week now and still she shrunk away every time he touched her.
And what a coincidence it was that he was thinking about this, because as he was lost in thought, Kari stood on her tiptoes, took his face in her hands, and planted a long kiss on his lips.
"How was that?" she asked, cheeks a dark shade of scarlet.
He grinned, "Great."
"Can we forget about that first kiss then?" she asked meekly, her face turning a deep shade of scarlet, "I'd like to start over."
He smiled, giving her a short peck on the cheek, "What first kiss?"
Eik. No one can deny that this is sappy. Very sappy indeed.
First Davis appearance, hehe. Originally, he was supposed to have been really jealous, but I wanna try and keep this slightly in character. And it's not like he'd get all homicidal or anything, so I just threw in his little joke. Awww…
But the best part of this story is most undeniably the beginning with Tai trying to take Kari to Planned Parenthood, hah.
I think this story's gonna have only about two or three chapters left. Possibly four. The next of which will hopefully be up sometime next week. It's gonna get a little weird after this, because the way that I see this is with a lot of time passing. So, even if it sucks, be nice. Or don't. Whichever you prefer.