31 reviews. I'm always so satisfied with myself when I get feedback. And so, I give you my own feedback in response to your feedback.
LadyK Na-No-Da: LK! –glomps- You are always the first to review lately. I'm glad I won too…that feels SO weird saying that since the competition was about three months ago. Yea, Mattie's gonna be a somewhat good guy…he might be rude later though so don't get TOO used to it. –steals Matt's candy- I'll be taking that, thank you muchly. Everyone seems to love Arial. Pizzablast was just something REALLY random but I had to weasel Teenage Wolves in there. This isn't soon but…oh hell you know! YOU THOUGH! You need to update Popular!
KraziKrysti: Aw, I won't stop! I'm just glad you like it.
inu400: Glad you love it. I try to make the chapters good. Anyways, here's an update just for you!
LAZ-AZZ: Well, thank you so much. I continued!
Melissa-T: Yes! The first of many gigs for the boys. Matt's just semi-nice for the time being. Of course Dais thought and had a good idea! He's my Dai-Dai. Backwards Jeans…somebody I know has a band and they were trying to think of a name one time and his sister suggested that name. Mud-colored! I think every fic I've read described Tai's eyes as chocolate-brown…maybe reddish-brown. Matt's all about being professional, but nobody listens to him. It's just natural for everybody to like the canon characters of Digimon. But almost everybody likes Arial the best. Hmm…and yes, green and black look the best together.
Yamachi Water Violet: Not Taito! Yamachi! Ha, sorry. Anyways, here's some more for ya.
SnakeMistress: Thank you very much. Glad you enjoyed this last chapter. Detail will be added, sorry about that.
Shadow-Seraph: SHADOW! –glomps- I'm so glad that you liked that it was long…and that it was good. So sorry I didn't update much sooner. Thanks…that looks so weird reading reviews saying congrats on my competition when it was SO long ago! YES UPDATE WOMAN! Just kidding, but please update soon, ok? See ya!
Tsuki no Lomelinde: Glad you think it's awesome! Here's my next update!
nEo: I know, I know. I AM THE BEST QUEEN OF PYSCHOS! Ahem, anyway. I remember you're in dance, lol. I've bitten so many people who have said bite me, it's just so fun! Yep, I had to have SOME reason why he had natural blue hair. That book was weird though…anyway, I love that look too! It's just so casual, yet sophisticated. Stop drooling! I love Simple Plan and Blink! I kind of like Sum 41, but not as much as the other two. A few people knew Mattie was lying, he sucks at lying. Thank you, I know I rock. Kidding. Anyways, here's the continuation. Now…I'm still waiting for an update on Kukachi!
crazyamzy: Glad you like it.
PrincessSwifty: Arial says that that's not what he was referring to, but it's ok. Everybody suddenly is all, yay Yamachi-ness is here! But it's really not, lol. You people should know how I work by now! Anyway, Tai, Matt, go take that somewhere else, jeeze. LK should update and I already bugged her about it. This isn't soon, but here's an update!
Sillie: Yeah, but we love Matt as a sneaky bastard don't we? I continued!
ILK: I refuse to type out your entire name. It takes for freakin' ever! Tai was just visiting your planet, calm down. And of course Akira agrees with Arial. He's whipped! -throws lettuce- GO LETTUCE! Obviously you liked it! Kidding. Yes, we know Ryan is your favorite OC. He's kind of watching me and now he's grinning like an idiot. You blew up Rei's car? Good job! I'll be asking him about you two later. Have fun in Faerie Land!
Redvind: Don't apologize hun, I get confused easily. Tai's past will be delved into as the fic rolls on, along with the rest of them. Glad you like the fic though!
Mrs. Passionate: Haha, I know. Tai had a solo! And it probably won't be the last. I continued!
Sen-Tay: YES, I UPDATED! Ah, not that close to Yamachi I'm afraid. Be patient with me! Wow…no that didn't make sense but I get the drift. Thanks! He's not gonna admit it for a long time…first he actually has to fall for Tai-Tai. Don't hurt me. I'm surprised you didn't scream and jump with joy. –big grin- Thank you muchly. Here's an update just for you! Oh man, I still hope you can read and somehow find a way to write and post on Willow (aka: Admiral2: Glad you like the story. And that you love my ideas. That makes me happy. Yea, Mattie did that on purpose…sly bitch –big grin-. I updated as soon as I could!
tomoko: Hey, not much. Thank you so much for dropping by and letting me know what you thought of the fic. Sorry for the wait! How many chapters to finish the fic? Um, at least 15…maybe 20. This one will be long. I'm sorry. I'm like that too though. Wow, I guess you are crazy for the fic, but that's a good thing! I think…anyway. I'm not going to quit, not on this fic anyway! Glad you're enjoying yourself. Um, angst will occur, how much I'm not quite aware…as for the two guys going after Tai or Matt part…maybe, maybe not. Not necessarily going after them, but you'll see. No Taito, just Yamachi! And fluff, fluff isn't the main part of this particular story, but it will occur! Trust me. Wow…that is a long review, thanks.
DawnAurilain: Thank you greatly. And yea…not much else to say but thanks!
Darla-La Mosca Tete: I never said I didn't want to update it. But here's an update, for you to read more!
Mimi-102: This isn't soon, but…yea, you know. I'm glad you like the story. And yes, he is quite adorable, isn't he?
Lil Gold Fishie: Fish! Wow, I didn't even realize that you didn't review chapter 3. Hmm…anyways! That doesn't surprise me that you almost squealed yourself to death. I would too! I get the point, it was awesome. –cheesy grin-. Yeah, somebody else mentioned that the chemical thing was weird, I think it was Neo, and you guys are right, it IS weird. Everybody loves Ari for some reason. Even though HE'S to blame for my long periods between updates. Stupid fool. His good part won't be for a while, but he's satisfied. I love all of the songs I used. And yes, Simple Plan all the way! I loved writing that part about Tai's solo. It was just so clear in my mind, and I have a picture of him playing guitar with Matt too! I can't remember if you've seen it but ask me later and I can show you. I'll clue you in on his past, eventually. Give me time! You know me, I build up lots of plot! But yeah, I agree with you, he does deserve to be having fun on stage. I know, not a soon update, but you still love me right? …right? AND! You should update on SMCC. Hint hint.
Kaizeress: Hey there! I'm so glad you like it that much. You got your account deleted? Bummer! Here's some more of the fic, yay!
puppy-eyes58: Glad you found it interesting. Although, is that a good interesting or a kind of what-the-hell-happened interesting? Anyway, here's the next update!
HIKED: Hi! Yes, I updated. And yes, you can say that this is your all time favorite fic. It makes me feel all warm and fuzzy inside. This isn't soon, but…oh hell you know! Yamachi won't happen until at LEAST chapter 9…maybe later…no guarantees! Anyway, nope, not telling THAT much. Matt is just so fun to write. Mr. High-and-all-mighty. I updated! Annnnnnnnnnd, why haven't you updated your fic? I really liked it and you just kind of stopped!
Burning Angemon: Yep, but we all love a sneaky Yama, now don't we? Glad you love it!
Lugga: Wow, I guess you do love it. Makes me happy! Here's more of it!
Kelset: Jooooooohn. You're still a bum. And I figured that you've used that trick before, slacker. Kidding. Why no more big reviews for me? WHY, MAN, WHY?
Silver-Wood-GG: Thanks a lot. Here's another chapter for you to read!
Meri-chan: Yes, only four! So sorry. NO! BREATHE I SAY! Anyways, I like that extended version.
Ok that's everybody! Thanks a bunch you guys, it really means a lot. Ok, yes, enough notes, here we go!
"Wake up!" Daisuke exclaimed as he flung himself onto Tai's bed. Tai groaned and buried his head under one of his pillows.
"Get up already, damnit!" Daisuke yelled again.
"Go. Away," Tai grunted and smacked Daisuke in the face with his other pillow. Daisuke scowled and grabbed at the first pillow, proceeding to tug at it.
"Okay, first of all, we have school," he reminded his cousin.
"Well eff school," the younger brunet mumbled.
"If you're going to say the word, say it right at least," the older clicked his tongue. Tai sighed in response, causing the burgundy-haired boy to roll his eyes.
"Secondly," he continued, yanking on the pillow some more. "We got the paper for today." Tai's head shot up and he let go of the pillow he had clutched over his head. Daisuke, who wasn't prepared for the sudden alertness of his cousin ended up falling backwards, landing on his rear with the pillow still in his clutches.
"Are you serious! Where is it?" Tai scrambled out of his bed, not paying attention to the fact that the older boy was on the floor under his foot.
"Matt's got it in the living room," Daisuke squeaked and pushed Tai's foot off of his chest.
"Maaaaaaaatttttttt!" Tai bellowed and raced out to the living room. Daisuke shook his head and got to his feet.
"I'm related to the village idiot," he announced as he stepped into the room the others were in and sat on the floor.
"More like the village psycho," Ryan corrected him from his position on the couch.
"Gee, thanks," Tai retorted as he dropped himself down on the couch on the other side Arial. In return, Arial mumbled something incoherent and flopped his head onto Tai's shoulder.
"Yuck, get off!" Tai whined as he pushed Arial's head away from him and wiped up some drool. Arial remained in his half-asleep phase and nuzzled his head into Ryan's lap instead.
"Friendly-much?" Tai raised an eyebrow.
"Don't worry about him, if you don't want him hitting on you, just firmly say no and tell him to sit." Ryan shifted his body so that Arial's head was now sprawled across his chest instead of his lap.
"Huh?" The brunette's eyes widened in shock and his face revealed confusion.
"No need to be surprised. We all got used to it, you will too." Daisuke shrugged.
"No, I mean, what in the hell are you talking about?" Tai folded his arms across his chest.
"Well, once upon a time, there was a young boy with blue hair. One day, he turned 14 and discovered that he was bisexual," Ryan replied airily.
"…are you serious?" The other eyebrow was quirked.
"Got a problem with it?" Arial mumbled without opening his eyes.
"Well no, not really. I mean, it's just…" the younger boy trailed off.
"It's just…" Arial repeated and cracked an eye open.
"I don't know…never mind, it's not important anyway," Tai insisted.
"Why wouldn't it be important? Now I'm rather curious." Arial sat up, fully awake at this point.
"Hello! You two can argue over Arial's sexuality later. We have more important things to take care of!" Matt broke into the tension. Arial sighed and laid his head on Ryan's chest again and Tai focused his gaze on Matt. Once the attention was back on him, Matt cleared his throat and opened the newspaper.
"Okay, as you all are aware of, everybody who plays at '91 gets reviewed in the next day's paper. So, here it is, obviously," Matt announced and turned to the right page. He spread the paper out on the coffee table and sat on the other side.
"This week's hot picks were three local bands from the area. The first group went by the name The Teenage Wolves, and let's just say, they were a tough act to follow. The band played three songs for the evening and really gave the audience a new view on bands. There appears to be two lead singers for the group, along with two lead guitarists. The style of music they played was a pop, rock, and punk mix all blended nicely together.
The star of the evening for this band was the second lead guitarist, Yagami Taichi, who at age 16 can keep up with the big dogs with ease. During their last song of the evening, the young brunette wowed the crowds by playing a solo that could easily rival that of some of the best in the industry.
The sensuous voice of Ishida Yamato wooed many a girl as his tone changed from punk to mellow. The blonde managed to multitask between singing and playing the guitar, both talents he excelled at.
Combined with the almost angelic tone of the blue-wonder Natsaki Arial and Yagami's voice, the band had a unique sound that kept the audience humming all night. Let's not forget the dark bassist Kinomita Jetaryane and the quick-skilled drummer Motamiya Daisuke. These two put the icing on the cake that is the band. Clearly these boys will make it far," Matt finished reading the article to the rest of the group. A silence fell amongst the room as the words sunk in. Ryan was the first to speak.
"Angelic tone?" he snickered. Arial shot his best friend an offended look and reached up, grabbing onto Ryan's left nipple and giving it a sharp twist.
"Shit!" Ryan yelped, swatting Arial's hand away from him.
"That's what you get for making fun of me, Dark-Boy." Arial smirked in triumph.
"Bitch."
"Thank you. Anyways, sounds like we really were a good show last night," Arial directed his comment to the whole group.
"Think they'll ask us to come back and play some other time?" Tai questioned, stretching his arms behind his head.
"They won't, because it's an application policy, but some other clubs might," Matt replied thoughtfully.
"We've played at other places before you know…maybe they will let us come back," Daisuke reminded Matt.
"Who knows?" Matt shrugged and folded up the newspaper, placing it back on the table. "The point being, we rocked, we got a bit of publicity, and we're all going to be late if we don't get a move on," he finished off, glancing up at the clock.
"We? Late?" Ryan questioned.
"Well not you, since you're a lazy prick," Matt retorted.
"I resent that!"
"You should."
"What?" Arial burst into the discussion.
"Never mind, we all need to get dressed and just go." Daisuke rolled his eyes and stood up, turning on his heel and walking into his bedroom.
"I don't wanna go!" Tai and Arial whined simultaneously. The pair of boys blinked at each other and raised an eyebrow.
"Jinx!" they shouted together. Two frowns formed.
"Double Jinx!" The frowns got deeper.
"Tripl-" One hand slapped over each mouth before the phrase could be finished.
"Look, we know you two could continue doing that for who knows how long, but some of us have lives!" Ryan interrupted, keeping a firm hand over Arial's mouth.
"You two are immature brats," Matt added in while trying not to have his hand too close to Tai's mouth. Tai and Arial both nodded and pushed the offending hands away.
"We get it, we'll stop." Arial grinned. Tai shrugged his shoulders and headed towards his own bedroom, closing the door behind him.
"Whatever, I'm running late." Matt shook his head and retreated to his room, re-appearing five minutes later with a book bag and a thick textbook.
"You have a class today?" Arial questioned the obvious.
"They changed my schedule. Again," Matt replied flatly, slipping his shoes on his feet.
"When are you gonna be back?" Ryan tilted his head sideways.
"I only have two classes today, so I should be back about 2:00pm." Matt opened the door and shifted the book in his arm.
"Okay, I'll take messages and crap." Ryan waved the blonde off. Matt nodded in reply and stepped out the door, shutting it quietly behind him.
"And you, you have to go in today as well, don't you?" The black-haired boy turned back to Arial.
"Yeah, it sucks. I don't get off until about 4:00pm." Arial pouted and slumped his shoulders.
"Get over it and go get dressed. Slacker," he added in, earning a deeper pout from the bluenette.
"Look who's talking. You don't have a job, you aren't taking any college classes," Arial ranted, listing off things on his fingers.
"Hey, hey, hey, I do plenty around here. I cook damnit! Isn't that enough?" Ryan defended himself immediately.
"Nope."
"Okay, I also clean, do laundry, handle the business calls for the band," the other continued firing excuse after excuse.
"Whatever. Not all of us are spoiled little rich boys like you."
"You could have been too, y'know."
"But I chose not to because I am independent, smart, and capable!" Arial announced proudly.
"Doesn't make you any less of a slacker."
"You two are so stupid sometimes. It's like you're married." Daisuke rolled his eyes and he strolled into the living room, pulling Tai along behind him.
"I think you guys already compared us to a married couple before," Arial said thoughtfully.
"Quit stalling!" Ryan sighed in exasperation and dragged Arial towards his bedroom. "By the way, have a nice day guys!" he shouted over his shoulder to the two cousins in the living room.
"Those two are so weird," Tai commented as the two boys left the apartment and walked towards the lift. They stepped inside and pressed the button to go down to the main floor.
"Yep. Not much we can do about it either. But it all evens out because we have Matt the moody one, me the smooth one, Arial the humorous naïve one, Ryan the dark one, and you the young one!" Daisuke gave Tai a cheeky grin and stepped out of the lift, turning towards the parking lot.
"Yeah…hey what do you mean young one?" Tai raced after the elder.
"Just saying. It's the truth, isn't it?"
"I suppose…" Tai trailed off as the approached Daisuke's car. Daisuke stuck his key in the lock on his side, slid into the driver's seat, and reached over to unlock the door for Tai.
"Why do you guys have three cars?" Tai asked as he climbed into the car.
"Because Matt takes his to college, I take mine to high school, and Ryan uses his to run errands around town."
"Why not just take the subway or the regular bus or a cab or something?"
"Because we enjoy flaunting."
"Oh." Daisuke nodded and put the key in the ignition, backing out of his parking space and merging with traffic. The ride was mostly silence, save for the occasional catty remark from Daisuke about other drivers. Tai looked around the car and wrinkled his nose.
"Ugh." Daisuke looked over at Tai briefly and then back at the road.
"What?" he questioned.
"Ari was right, you do have a lot of crap in here that needs to be cleaned out." In result, a crumpled fast-food bag was tossed at his head.
After Daisuke parked, he mentioned something about meeting a friend at the other entrance of the school and left Tai by himself at the front entrance. Not that it mattered to the brunet since he had his own people to find. He stepped into the building and walked to the staircase where he knew he would find his friends. Sitting on the bottom step were two teenagers, a girl with mid-back-length lavender hair and glasses and a boy with chin-length blackish violet hair and blue-violet eyes.
"Morning, Tai!" the girl chirped with a cheerful grin.
"Ngh," Tai grunted and sank down onto the steps next to his friends.
"I believe that translates to 'Good Morning, Miyako.'" the boy smirked.
"Shut up, Ken," Tai yawned and leaned his head against Miyako's shoulder.
"Long night?" she questioned.
"Uh-huh. Didn't get to bed until about midnight." Tai nodded.
"Why?" Ken joined the conversation.
"We had a gig last night at this club at like 9pm. Matt made us stay and watch the other two bands so that took us until about 10pm. And then we decided we were hungry so we were going to go out for food but this big group of people basically mobbed us because we were so good playing." Tai gave a cocky grin.
"Ken, do you have a pin to pop his giant ego?" Miyako asked her boyfriend.
"Hey, shut up!" Tai protested. Ken laughed at his friends' antics and shook his head.
"As you were saying, Tai?" he urged on.
"Anyways, so by the time we escaped it was 10:30pm and we walked down to McDonalds and I ordered a teriyaki burger and let's just say those things are so tasty I love them but that's not the point so after we ate and stuff and got home again it was about 11pm and Arial and I were really hyper so we played a few games on the PS2 and at about 11:30pm Matt came out into the living room and yelled at us to go to bed because we were making too much noise so we both went into out separate rooms and I was about to fall asleep when I remembered I had to do my history homework so I got up and walked into our practice room because that's where the computer is so I logged onto the internet and researched and answered the questions and stuff and so by the time I was done and back in my bed it was midnight," Tai explained in one breath. Miyako and Ken blinked at the brunet for a few moments, trying to comprehend what he just babbled about.
"Well…that's nice Tai," Miyako replied slowly, head spinning from Tai's long rant.
"I know huh? But now I'm so tired I'm just gonna fall asleep right here…" Tai trailed off, allowing his eyes to close briefly. Suddenly the bell rang, startling the young boy from his slumber.
"Damn!" he exclaimed, shooting straight up into a sitting position.
"The bell dislikes you, Tai," Ken teased his brunet friend.
"Bitttttttttteeeeeee meeeeeeeeeeeee," Tai drawled out and got to his feet, swinging his bag over his shoulder.
"That's what I have Miyako for." the other boy shrugged. He was rewarded with a swift punch to the gut by said Miyako.
"I feel so loved." she rolled her eyes and started to walk ahead of the two boys.
"Miya, wait for me!" Ken called out after her, racing to catch up with her.
"You two are sad!" Tai yelled at the retreating forms of his friends. With a sigh, he turned around and started heading the other direction towards his locker.
"This is bad…very bad," he muttered to himself as he fiddled with the lock.
"The locker's beating you, Taichi," a feminine voice spoke from his right side.
"I noticed," Tai growled as he gave his locker a swift bang with his fist. The locker door bounced open and swung closed again.
"Rawr!" Tai yelled, pounding on his locker viciously. The girl next to him giggled and shook her head.
"Y'know instead of laughing at me you could help," Tai scolded. She stopped laughing and tilted her head to the side.
"I could…but this is really amusing to me." she grinned again.
"Sora, there are days that I hate you." Tai slammed his head against his locker. Once again, the locker popped open.
"Way to use your head," Sora commented.
"Shut up!" Tai rubbed his head and opened the locker door a tad further. He pulled out his Algebra book and binder, slamming the door with all his might.
"Take that, evil metal-man of doom!" he announced loudly, sticking his tongue out. Several students turned around to look for the cause of all the commotion and ignored it once they realized 'it was just Yagami Taichi, again.'
"Tai, people are staring. And you're being weird." Sora tucked a piece of her auburn hair behind her ear.
"I'm not sure how many people have told me the same thing. Nor do I care." Tai shrugged and shouldered his bag as the two teens started walking towards class. "Besides, people stare at me all the time, why should today be any different?" he flashed another grin to the eleventh year girl.
"I suppose that's true…but still, don't you ever feel embarrassed about what you do?" Sora answered with a question.
"No not really. I don't care what people think or say about me because as soon as I'm famous, all they'll be saying is, 'Gee, I wish I hadn't treated Taichi like a loser.' Yep, that's what they'll be saying." Tai nodded to himself.
"However, you're the one who goes around proclaiming that you're a loser to begin with."
"Shut up!"
The two kids walked into their first class of the day which happened to be Algebra. It also happened to be Tai's least favorite subject. After all, it required for him to sit still and stare at a book for a long period of time. Yagami Taichi cannot handle sitting still and staring at a book for a long period of time. However, today was his lucky day.
"Hey," Sora whispered to him, tapping him on the elbow. Tai jumped in his seat and turned his head slightly to look at the girl. In her hand she held her cell phone and on her face she held a smirk.
"Message for Yagami," she whispered again, setting the phone on his desk. Tai pulled the phone closer and opened the text message.
'Tai, wanna go to lunch today? I really don't feel like going to my afternoon classes.'
A grin crossed Tai's face and he suppressed a laugh at his cousin's logic. He looked at Sora for permission to use her phone to text him back. The girl rolled her eyes but nodded in response. Eagerly, Tai held the phone down in his lap to hide it from the teacher and began texting back.
'Yeah sounds great. Where to?'
Tai sent the message and waited for the reply. He looked up in attempt to pay attention to the teacher but was failing miserably. Domain and range just weren't as appealing to him as an afternoon out with Daisuke. While they were family, they rarely had time to see each other, let alone spend time together. Now things were different since Tai moved in with the band. There was a certain atmosphere around those boys that made Tai feel more at ease and comfortable. Comfortable was something Tai preferred over everything else. Comfortable and casual.
Sora's phone beeped once, alerting Tai that he had a new message. It also alerted the entire class, drawing more attention to the brunet. The teacher looked at Tai suspiciously, waiting for an explanation.
"Uh, I accidentally hit the play button of my CD player while looking for a new pencil," he offered a feeble excuse. The teacher merely grunted and turned around to begin teaching again.
"Smooth, Yagami. Real smooth," Sora teased the boy.
"Shut up, Takenouchi," Tai grumbled and turned his attention back to Sora's phone to read Daisuke's reply.
'Awesome. Meet me out front by the car then, I know the perfect place to go.'
Tai closed the message and passed the phone back to Sora, who was busying herself by taking notes from the black board.
"How does he know that you sit close enough to me so he can text me?" Tai asked the girl with the amber-red eyes.
"I do talk to him, you know. He and I have the same drawing class. We talk about you from time to time," she replied, not looking up from her notebook.
"That's reassuring." he rolled his eyes. Since when did his friends and his cousin socialize? That was something that Tai would have never guessed happening: ever. Things were changing more then he thought. There was no doubt in his mind that his entire life was about to change, and it all started the moment he walked into the band's apartment.
"Class dismissed!" Interrupted his bubble of thought. Tai grabbed his bag from the floor and rose to his feet quickly, bolting out of the classroom at top-speed.
"Sora, I'm going to have to-"
"Borrow my notes and/or copy my homework tomorrow," she finished for him.
"Thanks a ton, see ya later!" the mud-eyed boy hollered over his shoulder as he dashed down the hall to his next class. The red-head sighed and massaged her temples.
"I need to learn to say no to him," she grumbled to herself and turned to walk the opposite way.
Tai entered his next class just as the bell rang, which was a rare occurrence in most cases. But this class wasn't just a normal class for the 16-year-old boy. Biology: the only class Tai could succeed in without putting in a maximal amount of effort. He bounced over to his lab station that he shared with Miyako and Ken and plopped down in his chair.
"Hello!" h beamed at his two friends. Said friends looked at Tai, gave each other a look, and then settled their gaze back on Tai. Miyako decided to speak first.
"Who are you and what did you do to Taichi?" she asked slowly.
"What's that suppose to mean?" Tai raised a fine eyebrow.
"She means you're never this perky in the morning, even during biology," Ken explained.
"Which means that something good must have happened during first lesson?" Miyako concluded, pushing her glasses up the bridge of her nose.
"Hmm. I suppose you could say that." the flamboyant male grinned widely.
"Who did you do and what did you talk to?" Violet-blue eyes blinked at him curiously. The lavender-haired girl and the olive-toned boy rewarded the eyes with looks of confusion and hinted amusement.
"Should that be the other way around?" Miyako questioned rhetorically.
"Possibly. But knowing Tai..." Ken trailed off.
"I resent that!" Tai broke into the conversation.
"Do you even know what you're resenting?" Ken retorted.
"...well no, not exactly. It sounds like you're implying that I am a whore."
"Where did you get that idea?"
"I don't know, you asked who I did. That usually implies who did you have sex with which implies that you have sex a lot which in terms means that you are a prostitute and if you use street-slang it's whore!" The last line was shouted at the top of his lungs. The other 28 students turned around in their seats to stare at the boy who was standing in front of Ken Ichijouji's desk, yelling in his face. The biology teacher gave off a half-smile and chuckled.
"Something you would like to elaborate on, Yagami?" she asked him as she folded her arms over her chest.
"No, not exactly." Tai let go of the sides of Ken's desk to face the teacher. The teacher continued to look at the boy who was beginning to feel more sheepish as time drew on.
"I think I'll just sit down now..." the brunet trailed off.
"Yes, that would be wise of you," the teacher replied with another smile. Tai nodded and sat in his chair, facing the front of the room where the instructor stood.
"I have two words to say to you today," the older woman began as she strolled across the room. The three friends at station four exchanged glances and returned their eyes to the teacher.
"Movie day." Were the words that left her lips.
"Right on!" Tai cheered as he dropped his textbook on the ground next to him.
"What's the movie?" Miyako questioned.
"It's called Gattaca. I thought it would be good to watch while we learn about DNA," the green-eyed woman replied as she stopped in front of the TV, popping a video cassette into the VCR.
"Satoshi can you please hit the lights?" she asked the boy who sat closest to the door. The young boy rose from his seat and flipped the light switch, plunging the classroom into darkness, save for the light from the TV screen. The teacher pressed play and returned to her own seat to watch the movie and all was quiet. Mostly.
"So what got you so happy?" Miyako whispered.
"Dais and I are going to lunch. He also mentioned he didn't feel like going to his afternoon classes, which I assume means we're going to ditch," Tai whispered back.
"Tai, you do realize you can't afford to ditch any more classes," Ken joined in the conversation.
"Why?"
"Because you're failing them, bonehead." Miyako rolled her eyes.
"Exactly. So if I'm failing them, there's really no sense in going to begin with." Tai shrugged and pulled his arms inside his sweatshirt, lifting the garment off above his head.
"Hey, now that shirt can actually be true!" Ken poked Tai in the chest.
"Knock it off!" Tai protested and shoved Ken away from him. The boy was wearing a black t-shirt with white letters that read 'No Job, No Money, No Car. But I'm In A Band' outlined in red and a small red and white hand in a rock-on formation under the last line. Miyako nodded in agreement and grinned.
"He does a have a point," she concluded.
"So? That doesn't mean that you can poke me for crying out loud!" Tai all but shouted.
"Yagami, am I going to have to send you outside?" the teacher appeared at the side of his desk.
"Uh…maybe?" Tai gave her a sheepish grin. The teacher rolled her eyes and shook her head.
"Outside, Yagami. And I better not see you at school for the rest of the day." she winked and nodded towards the door.
"Wha-"
"I've been standing here the entire time. He's waiting for you outside," she explained. Tai stared at her in awe before it finally sank in. A grin split his face and he quickly shoved his books into his bag.
"Have I ever mentioned that you are the best teacher here?" Tai questioned.
"A few times."
"Cool, just checking. You still rock." Tai sprang up from his chair. "See ya later!" He waved and raced towards the door. He grabbed a hold of the handle and flung the door open, crashing right into Daisuke and knocking him to the floor.
"Oh gosh! Dai, are you okay?" Tai panicked and knelt down next to his cousin. Daisuke opened his eyes and glared at Tai momentarily.
"You ever do that again, I will kill you with something from my car," The mahogany-haired boy warned the younger.
"Kay. So why are we leaving early?"
"Because I have no class this period and the restaurant I want to go to gets busy right during our lunch time. So we're going to jump the gun."
"It's only 11am though," Tai protested as the two boys headed out to the parking lot.
"So? It's still about lunch time," Daisuke argued as they walked up to his car. He pulled out his keys and unlocked the car doors, throwing his book bag into the back seat. Tai followed his example and dropped himself into the passenger seat, waiting for Daisuke to start the car. Daisuke turned the key in the ignition and put the car in reverse, driving out of the parking space and onto the open road.
"So what's so special about this place?" Tai asked as he leaned back in the seat.
"Well, you'll see for yourself. And besides, it's got excellent food so you can't really complain," Daisuke retorted as he drove down the busy street. The rest of the ride was in silence as they made a few turns and pulled up in front of a restaurant.
"And here we are!" Daisuke announced proudly and stepped out of his car. Tai followed the older boy and looked up to read the sign on top of the small building.
"Bouken Sutairu?" Tai spoke in question.
"Yep, it's totally awesome. Come on!" Daisuke exclaimed and grabbed Tai's hand, dragging the bewildered boy into the restaurant. It was slightly dark on the inside with disco lights and reading lamps being the only source of light. The windows had the blinds pulled down so no one could see in and no light could come in. Loud rock music blared and bounced off every wall in the building and posters and memorials of bands hung on every available space. Tables were set up in little groups, some meant for two people and others meant for parties of at least twenty, all set with silverware, napkins, and water pitchers.
"Wow..." Was all that managed to escape Tai's mouth.
"Yeah, isn't it great? We come down here at least once a week," Daisuke replied as he headed towards the host's podium.
"Why? That great?"
"That, and well, you'll see." Daisuke beamed and hit the miniature gong that was on top of the stand. The gong echoed in the front room and from behind the podium a young male rose to his full height.
"Welcome to Bouken Sutairu, how many?" he asked with a yawn.
"Wonderful to see you too, Blue." Daisuke poked the boy on the top of the head. Said boy looked up slowly and his blue eyes widened in surprise.
"Hey there! Shouldn't you guys be in class?" Arial raised an eyebrow thoughtfully.
"Maybe, but this just seemed like a better idea. And besides, we get to beat the rush, and on top of that, Tai's never been here before to begin with," Daisuke gave a lengthy explanation. Arial craned his neck to look behind Daisuke and smiled when he spotted the other boy.
"Didn't even see ya back there, Tai. Dais talk you into this?"
"For the most part." Tai nodded in agreement.
"Well, either way, you're in for a treat." Arial winked at the brunet and grabbed a few menus.
"Okay, Motomiya, party of three, right this way!" Arial turned on his heel and led the cousins to a back room.
"Shouldn't you be working and not dining?" Daisuke nodded towards the podium they had left behind.
"Nah, I'm on my break." Arial waved a hand in the air casually.
"Since when?"
"Since just now." The host dropped the menus on a purple and black table and stood back with his hands in his pockets.
"But I suppose if I don't do my job, I shall be fired. So what would you guys like to drink?" Arial tilted his head to the side.
"Can I get a margarita?"
"No, Daisuke. Not a real one at any rate."
"I'm waiting for one of these days that you'll slip up and let me have one anyway. But until that day comes, I'll take a Coke." Daisuke rolled his eyes and leaned back into the booth. Arial nodded and turned to Tai.
"And what about you, brown-eyes?" Tai looked at the drink menu and bit his lower lip in concentration.
"Um...Sprite sounds good I guess," he replied hesitantly.
"Oh come on, at least try to sound more sure of yourself." Arial crouched down next to the table so that he was eyelevel with Tai. "Or are you just shy?" he said coyly, leaning his face closer to Tai's. Tai blinked rapidly as he tried to put some more distance between himself and Arial.
"Um...well, I don't know?" Tai squeaked.
"Hmm...maybe we should figure out a way to make you bolder." The blue-eyed demon smirked.
"And what do you suggest?" Tai swallowed to try and rid his throat of the lump that had been formed.
"Well, I do have one idea..." Arial trailed off. Slowly, he leaned in further and gently pressed his lips to Tai's. He pulled away from the brunet and looked at him through half-lidded eyes. "Now, did it work?" he blinked once. Tai on the other hand was blinking at the rapid pace again, trying to comprehend what had just happened and why he suddenly...
'Didn't mind?' He shook his head furiously to rid himself of any thoughts he was having and looked Arial in the eye.
"Just go get me my damn Sprite okay?" he demanded roughly.
"Ooh, so it did work. One Sprite, one Coke, and one Diet Coke coming up!" The blue-haired boy winked and bounced away, heading for the kitchen. He reappeared a few moments later holding a tray with three glasses of soda on it. He dropped the tray on the table and placed the drinks in their respected places. Tai studied the boy in front of him in pure confusion. This most certainly was not the same boy that Tai had been living with for the last week. This boy was different. The boy he had been living with wore baggy jeans with holes in the knees and rear area and sarcastic-yet-amusing t-shirts. But this boy who stood before him was wearing a pair of black slacks and a long-sleeved black dress shirt left unbuttoned. Under that shirt he wore a black t-shirt that was printed to look like a tuxedo. In fact…
"Dude, is that suppose to be like Jack Skellington's tux?" Tai exclaimed, poking the bluenette in the stomach. Arial's face split into another grin and nodded enthusiastically.
"Yep! I love it so much!" he chirped, smoothing out the spot that became crinkled when Tai poked him.
"Jack Skellington?" Daisuke cut into the conversation, obviously quite unaware of what his two friends were talking about.
"…hello, Nightmare Before Christmas!" both boys exclaimed, rolling their eyes simultaneously. Daisuke blinked at the reaction and quietly hid his face inside the menu once more, muttering something about immature clones.
"I love that movie. It's like my favorite," Tai babbled on, examining Arial's shirt closer.
"Ditto to that. Jack is awesome. I mean, check out my tie!" Arial pointed to his neck. The tie itself was undone so that each end was hanging on either side of him neck. It was a black tie with a red outline that had a picture of the pumpkin graveyard and Jack standing on Moonlight Hill printed on it. The moon shone behind Jack as he stood at the edge of Moonlight Hill, right before it curved down. The pumpkins were a bright orange and the grounds were a purplish-black, just like the table they were sitting at. The picture part of the tie hung on the right side and the smaller, plain black part was on the left with Arial's nametag pinned to it.
"That is so cool. Where'd you get that?" Tai asked in awe, feeling the tie between his fingers.
"I can't really remember," Arial replied in a thoughtful tone. His face contorted into a look of concentration before he shook his head and took out a pad of paper, reaching for the pencil behind his ear.
"Soooooo, what's for lunch?" he asked, flipping the notepad to a clean sheet of paper. Tai reached over and opened a menu, searching its contents for something that he recognized.
"Dai, why don't you order first?" Tai suggested as more question marks formed over his head.
"Okay…whatever you say. Ari, put me down for a Yukkan Spice." Daisuke told his friend and handed him the menu.
"You're nuts." Arial's eyes widened and he shook his head as he wrote down the order. "Do you want teriyaki sauce or barbeque sauce?" he added on to his sentence.
"Teriyaki."
"Okay then." Arial wrote down the order and looked at Tai once more. The boy was still staring at the menu in silence, not quite sure what to order.
"Daisuke, what'd you get?" he asked his cousin.
"It's a dish with chicken, hamburger, carrots, cabbage, and noodles blended with lots of spices. It's really good." Daisuke nodded in assurance. Tai looked over to Arial to be certain and saw that the other boy was shaking his head and mouthing the word 'no'.
"Sorry Dai, I think we're going to have to trust somebody besides you..." Arial smirked and Daisuke rolled his eyes.
"Oh, and I suppose you'll trust the demon-child." Daisuke frowned slightly.
"Demon-child? He doesn't look like a demon-child."
"Yeah, I don't look like a demon-child. So there!" Arial stuck his tongue out at the cinnamon-eyed boy.
"No but you are! You are I say!" Daisuke pounded his fist on the table and pointed one finger at Arial.
"...well then. Somebody just want to help me pick something?" Tai interrupted. Arial nodded, glared at Daisuke once more, and headed over to Tai's side of the table, positioning himself in his lap. Arial took the menu from Tai's grasp and started looking over it.
"Hmm...this is pretty good." he pointed at an item named Housaku Shuukaku.
"What is it?"
"It's kind of like a fruit salad with different sweeteners mixed into it. Strawberries, cantaloupe, oranges, honeydew, apples, bananas, and coconut shavings," Arial explained to the younger.
"Um…allergic to coconut," Tai said doubtfully.
"Well, I can have the chefs make it without," Arial assured him.
"Hmm…sure then, sounds great." Tai gave Arial a smile grin and handed him the menu. Arial got out of Tai's lap and collected the menus, tucking the pencil back behind his ear.
"I'll be right back," he called over his shoulder as he jogged back to the kitchen. Tai stared at the other's retreating form and slowly drew his eyes away.
"I can't believe he did that," Daisuke muttered to himself. Tai's ears perked up and he raised his eyes to meet Daisuke's.
"What?"
"He kissed you. And then he sits in your lap. I don't think he even realizes that you're straight! And he hasn't even known you for that long!" Daisuke ranted on as Tai listened with one ear, not really caring much about what Daisuke had to say.
'He should trust me to make my own decisions. I should be able to make my own assumptions about Arial. And besides…maybe I'm not so straight after all.' Tai thought idly as he played with the straw in his soda. Soon, Arial came back with two plates, one with a tangy smell and the other with a sweet smell. The tangy plate was sizzling and a drop of oil would bounce off every now and again. Arial dropped the plates before the correct boy and sat in Tai's lap again.
"Dig in." he grinned and leaned his head against Tai's shoulder. Daisuke immediately drove his fork into his meal, shoveling large amounts at a time into his mouth. Tai on the other hand wasn't as eager. Sure it smelled and looked great, but who was he to trust someone else's judgment?
"Something wrong?" Arial blinked curiously at the mud-eyed boy.
"No, just thinking," Tai replied as he stabbed a strawberry with his fork. He lifted the berry to his mouth and popped it in, chewing on it thoughtfully. Flavor burst into his mouth and his eyes lit up in delight. He swallowed the strawberry and started to copy Daisuke's actions.
"Tastes good, no?" Arial prodded the young boy.
"Excellent." Was the word said around a mouth of food. Arial nodded proudly and stole a piece of apple from Tai's dish. Suddenly his cell phone rang, causing all three of the boys to jump. Arial reached into his pocket and pulled out a small silver phone, flipping it open to answer the call.
"Natsaki," he spoke. Silence fell amongst the group as Arial listened intently to whoever was on the other end of the line. He nodded once and began to speak once more. "Okay, I'll see what we can do. Yeah, I've got Daisuke and Tai with me right here. Can Matt get out of class? I see. Okay we're on the way. Convention center right? Okay, meet you out front," Arial finished his call and snapped the phone shut, lifting himself off of Tai's lap.
"That was Ryan. He has some interesting news for us," he announced to the other two boys.
"What is it?" Tai asked as he continued eating his fruit salad.
"Well, apparently, somebody saw us play at Fahrenheit 91 last night."
"Well duh, a lot of people saw us play," Daisuke snorted and reached for his Coke.
"No, I mean somebody big. Anyway, so this person, whoever, asked the people who own Fahrenheit for a way to reach us. They were given our home phone number and they called Ryan. They want to have a meeting with us," Arial retold the message Ryan gave him. Tai had no idea what they were talking about, but at those words, Daisuke's eyes widened and his mouth hung open.
"It's finally happening?" he spoke in a hushed tone. Arial nodded solemnly and unclipped his name tag from his shirt.
"It's happening. And we need to be at the convention center in 15 minutes," Arial informed the boys.
"Dude, can't we finish eating first?" Tai protested.
"No, just take the plates with you. I'll drive, you two can eat," Arial replied and dashed over to a girl with shoulder-length auburn hair and green eyes.
"Autumn, I have to leave. Meeting in 15 minutes that I can not miss," he explained in a rushed voice.
"Ri-ight. I believe ya. Just like that last meeting you 'could not miss' that turned out to be you going to the mall for video games." The girl rolled her eyes and continued clearing off the pink and orange table in front of her.
"Auttie, I'm serious. It's for the band!" Arial whined. Autumn sighed and looked at Arial who was sporting a good pair of puppy-eyes.
"Fine, whatever. I'll cover for you. Again," she replied in what was suppose to be a grumpy tone but came out more as a teasing voice. Arial squeaked slightly and threw his arms around her neck.
"Thank you thank you thank you! Gotta run, see ya later!" he spoke in one breath as he ran back to the other boys and proceeded to drag them out of the restaurant, leaving behind a bewildered Autumn. She closed her eyes briefly and let out a deep breath.
"I need to learn how to resist the eyes," she groaned and continued to mop the table.
The boys piled into Daisuke's car with Arial in the driver's seat and the two cousins in the back.
"Okay, seriously, we're running late so if you see a cop chasing us, let me know so I can go faster," Arial explained as he pulled out and merged with traffic. He slammed his foot on the gas pedal and passed the car in front of them, jumping from a speed of 20 m/p/h to 60 m/p/h.
"Ari! You're going to kill us before we get to the center!" Daisuke yelped as he spilt part of his lunch on the floor of his car.
"Trust me," Arial said nonchalantly as he pulled into the other lane, cutting off a large bus that in turn started to honk.
"Ari, chill, we have five minutes!" Tai informed the driver.
"So? This is just kind of amusing," Arial chuckled and slammed on the brakes as the approached a red stoplight. The boys in the backseat lunged forward and flopped back against the seats. Arial tapped the wheel agitatedly and checked the clock for time.
"We only have three minutes left," he growled, glaring at the light above him. "Change you damn light!" he bellowed. As if on command, the light changed to green and traffic began to move again. Once more, the gas pedal was pressed and the car sped up. As Daisuke watched the speedometer rise with every building they passed, a thought occurred to him.
"Arial…"
"What?" Arial replied as he pulled into another lane, swerving to avoid hitting a limo.
"You don't have a license!"
"So?"
"You can't be driving!"
"Yeah I can, watch me."
"Ari, look out for that street light!"
"You hit a street lamp." Ryan folded his arms over his chest. "You're telling me that you're late because you hit a street lamp?" he shouted in their faces.
"I didn't hit a street lamp. Arial hit a street lamp," Daisuke argued back.
"Well, you know Arial's stupid and can't drive!"
"I am not stupid!" Arial cut in.
"Well either way you shouldn't be driving. Why did you let him drive?" Ryan continued to yell.
"Because we wanted to finish our lunches," Tai replied. Ryan blinked momentarily and covered his eyes with his hand.
"God help us…look, Matt's already inside and we should be too," he sighed and uncovered his face.
"What about my car?" Daisuke whimpered, pointing at his smashed car that was a few blocks down the road.
"It's a piece of crap and I hope you have everything important out of it," Ryan retorted and opened the door to the convention center.
"My car is not a piece of crap!"
"Just shut up, Dai." Tai grabbed the other boy's wrist and pulled him into the center, following Ryan and Arial who were standing by the elevator. Ryan pushed the up button and the four boys stepped inside the moving box.
"Which floor?" Tai stared at all of the buttons in front of him.
"Ninth," Ryan said curtly, still sending little glares at Daisuke and Arial. Tai sighed and hit the '9' button, bringing the lift to life. The ride up was silent aside from the little 'ding' that occurred as the lift passed each floor. Finally a louder ding sounded off and the elevator doors opened widely. Standing on the other side was a very pissed-off blonde.
"You can explain this to me later," he growled and stalked back into the meeting room. The four other boys exchanged dazed looks and shrugged, following their leader into the conference room. Tai shut the door behind him and they turned to look at a man sitting at the head of the table. He wore his blonde hair down, revealing that it came to about his shoulders. His steel-gray eyes peered out at them over the dark sunglasses and he clicked a pen in his right hand.
"I presume that this is the rest of your band, Ishida-san?" the other blonde man raised an elegant eyebrow.
"Yes. They are idiots, but they play music well." Matt nodded.
"We are not idiots!" Tai hissed. Daisuke slapped a hand over his mouth and gave Matt a cheesy grin. The blonde man raised the other eyebrow and removed his sunglasses, motioning for the boys to sit. Everyone sat at the table and waited for the meeting to begin. The older blonde cleared his throat and drank a bit of water.
"You can call me S."
"Hello, S!" Arial chirped.
"Shush!" Ryan whispered and hit his best friend in the arm. S rolled his eyes and nodded.
"As you may know, I saw you play at Fahrenheit 91 last night." S pushed himself out of his chair and began to pace around the room.
"I was pleasantly surprised by your technique and style, not to mention your audience appeal. Naturally, I wanted to learn more about you. So I began asking around. Was told that you were good. Took a sample of your music to my boss, decided we liked ya," S gave them the low-down. He slammed his fist on the table, causing all five to jump and turn their attention to him. "We would like to cut you a record deal with Trinket Sounds Records," he dropped the final bomb. Five pairs of eyes widened and four jaws dropped. "I suggest you don't hesitate, Wolves. There are other buckets full of talent out there just waiting to be given an opportunity like this." S walked around the table again.
Silence fell among the room, all eyes darting back and forward. Matt's eyes caught Tai's. Somewhere in his mind, the brunette knew that he was being asked what they should do. He nodded briefly and cast his eyes downward. Matt nodded sharply and put up a hand to stop S.
"Yes," he spoke. S smirked and laid a piece of paper on the table in front of Matt.
"All you have to do is sign that and I can guarantee that you'll be stars." S nodded once. Matt glanced at his band and seized the pen from S's hand, not hesitating for a moment as he scrawled his signature onto the sheet. The contract was passed around to the other four members and handed back to S. S's eyes scanned over the contract briefly and a wry smile crossed his face as he shoved the paper into his coat. He stuck out a hand and slid his sunglasses back on.
"Welcome to the real world boys. It's your time to shine."
Daisuke's dish translates to Courageous Spice and Tai's is Fruitful Harvest. Let's see, what else? Yes, I'm sure most of you are going to be like, 'what the hell!' after you read the Tai and Arial part. Hey, I never guaranteed that it'd be STRICTLY Yamachi. But rest assure, it will turn to Yamachi. Um, I can't think of anything else. Oh, don't own Gattaca. Later.