Disclaimer: I do not own Digimon.
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Don't Look Now
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Distracted
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"Earth to Tai! Earth to Tai!" Kari Kamiya repeated as she waved her hand in front of her brother's spaced-out face.
Taichi Kamiya regarded his little sister with a mindless nod.
"Are you okay? You've been quiet ever since we got on the bus. And whenever you're quiet, it means you're thinking…" Kari paused and blinked her ruby-colored eyes at her beloved older brother. "You normally don't think… Okay, you're kind of scaring me. This bus ride isn't killing you slowly, is it?"
When Tai gave her another mindless nod, she bonked him on the side of his head.
Tai snapped back to reality. "Kari! What was that for?!"
His beloved little sister smiled innocently at him. "Well, you didn't answer me. I asked if you were okay."
"Oh… Yeah, I'm fine…"
Kari looked at him skeptically. "If there's something bugging you, I'll listen."
"Thanks, Kari." The bushy-haired teenager mustered up what he hoped was a convincing smile. Yup, she was right on the dot; there was something bugging him. Well, more like intriguing him.
Just a half hour ago he had been kissed by a total stranger.
Tai closed his eyes to recall her face. That girl had amazing sunset-colored eyes and pretty red hair. She said he was a good kisser.
Matt would be so envious if he ever shared this little escapade with his best friend. 'Ladies' man? Hah! I bet he's never even kissed a girl before.'
A smirk graced his lips. 'Ah, but why did she do that and then run away so suddenly?' he wondered. 'More importantly…why does her kiss feel so natural?'
"Tai, we're here." Kari nudged him gently.
"Oh, cool," he said rather absent-mindedly. Again, Kari wondered what was on his mind.
"Are you sure you don't want to talk about whatever's bugging you?" she asked him again as they hopped off the bus and started walking toward a quaint countryside residence.
Tai nodded. "Yes, Kari. Don't worry. I'm fine, really. Just a little...er…distracted…"
Kari sighed and decided to drop the topic for good.
The siblings walked along in silence until they reached a pale yellow house.
"I haven't seen Grandma Ishida in years," Tai commented. Kari nodded.
They rung the doorbell, which was answered by both TK and Matt Ishida. The spikey-haired brothers regarded their friends with warm smiles.
"Hey, welcome! TK and I got here just five minutes ago," said Matt.
"Grandma's in the living room. Come on in!" TK said energetically as he ushered everybody inside.
Grandma Ishida was sitting in a comfortable cushy chair in the living room with a cup of tea in her hands. When the group entered the living room, she set down her cup, wound her black scarf more securely around her neck and greeted him heartily. Unlike others their age, these kids were sweet and she adored them.
Tai twitched when he recognized the black scarf. Luckily, no one noticed.
"Welcome, kids! Take a seat and let me pour you some tea!" she said merrily and proceeded to roll up her sleeves. It was then that the four teens saw a long, nasty cut on her right wrist. It looked like a recent wound. The four teens gasped and exchanged nervous glances.
Grandma Ishida mechanically set down the tea kettle and pulled down her sleeves.
"Let me get you a band-aid," TK said quietly.
"I'll help," said Kari. The two of them left the room.
Meanwhile, Tai continued to gaze at the old woman a bit uneasily. "So..." he began slowly, "…what happened?"
"Yeah, I didn't know you got hurt," Matt said sharply. His ocean-blue eyes were narrowed and his fists were clenched. He was getting angry at the person who dared to hurt his beloved grandmother.
"It's no big deal, really, seeing how most young people behave these days..." Grandma Ishida let out a long sigh. "I went to do a little bit of grocery shopping earlier because I was expecting you kids today. On my way home, a rude little twit tried to steal my purse!"
"What?!" Matt and Tai exclaimed in unison.
"Fortunately for me, I'm still as strong as a mule for someone my age. She couldn't snag my purse, but she made away with my grocery! I chased after her, but she somehow got away."
"Grandma, seriously. Risking your life over a bag of groceries," TK said disapprovingly as he reentered the living room with Kari.
"I told you! I'm still as strong as a mule for someone my age," the old woman replied with a dignified huff.
"What did that girl look like?" Matt still had his fists clenched
Grandma Ishida furrowed her brows. "Well, I'm strong and tough old woman, but my memory isn't so wonderful. She had either brown or red hair. I think it was red... Oh, I honestly don't remember..."
The woman tugged hopelessly on her black scarf.
Tai felt his stomach twist itself into knots.
"You've run out of band-aids, Grandma Ishida," Kari said softly. "Tai, do you have one in any of your pockets?"
"Let me check…" Tai nervously patted his cargo shorts.
Suddenly, he froze his moments.
"Oh no…"
"If you don't have one, it's perfectly alright," Grandma Ishida told him. "This cut will deal soon anywa—"
"I LOST MY WALLET!"
"What?!" sputtered Kari. "Are you sure? Did you accidentally drop it somewhere on the bus?"
"Probably…" Tai sighed heavily. So that pretty girl had robbed him as well.
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Sora Takenouchi was alone on the shore beneath Odaiba's majestic Rainbow Bridge. She watched the crimson sun fade into the sapphire ocean waters as she finished eating her dinner—the stolen edibles.
Sora swallowed the last morsel of food and then sighed.
'Stupid drugstore…they remembered my face and kicked me out. I guess I should be glad that at least they didn't call the police on me, but still…I couldn't get any medicine for Mom today…"
She let out another sigh and then proceeded to re-examine the stolen wallet. She picked up the wallet and admired the orange sun symbol that was engraved in the corner. A slight smile graced her lips. She enjoyed looking at the symbol, and for some reason, it looked very familiar.
Inside the wallet was a decent amount of cash—which pleased her greatly—along with an ID and a photo.
She traced the name on the ID. "Taichi Kamiya," she murmured.
Even his name was cute. Sora Takenouchi harbored no regrets about giving up her first kiss to a completely handsome stranger.
'But was he a stranger? Why did he look so familiar? And why did kissing him feel so natural…? Eh, who knows…'
Sora shrugged and waved those thoughts aside. She then examined his photo, which featured himself and his sister.
"I love you, Tai. You're the best brother in the world. Love, Kari," Sora read on the back of the photo and then grinned. 'Seems like a sweet girl. Must be nice to have a little sister…'
Sora carefully slid the ID and photo back into their respective slots and tucked the wallet away into the front pocket of her sweater.
"Huh?" There was another item in her pocket. "I don't remember stealing this…"
Sora turned over in her hands a strange silver-blue digital device. The same orange sun symbol was etched into the back of the device. Although it was her first time handling, she felt like she had always known how to use it.
She touched the blank screen. She felt some static, but it did not turn on. 'I guess it only works for the owner… I wonder if I'll ever see him again? I wonder if—'
Suddenly, all the lights from Rainbow Bridge flickered on. Sora snapped out of her thoughts.
It was time to go home.
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How do you like Grandma Ishida? In stark contrast to the movie version, I've recreated TK and Matt's grandmother as a spunky character.