Never Take A Dare Because Life's Too Short

Chapter 7: Broken Smiles and Skeptical Bonds

DF103: A note to "i'll tease you in school". Thanks for calling me a loserface in the other review, really, really appreciated it! And…don't approach me at school about this fic cuz I'll freakin' knock you out. Anyway, HURRICANE! My parents did nothing to prepare so I'm gonna lose both computers and die, BUT I decided to write another chapter before I die. I assure you…everything will turn out the way a Ryuki is supposed to. With that having been said…I dun own Digimon. Enjoy this semi-evil-less chapter.


"Takato!" Jeri cried out, rushing to the window. Her hair swooped forward as she peered down the building from the window. Tears fell from her frail eyes as her knees weakened.

Rika walked up to Jeri and put a friendly hand on her shoulder. She bit her lip unsure of what to say during the situation they were in. The men muttered to themselves as they searched the room for either Takato or 'Henry'. Kazu and Kenta sat on the bed, for the first time in a long time, speechless.

"Do you think Takato survived that?" Kenta asked, picking up the small IV tubes on the floor. Absent-mindedly, he ran his fingers along the tubes, tangling it around his fingers. He held it up. "Aren't these things supposed to go into the arm?"

One of the hospital officials nodded. "If he was hanging by his arm, he should surely be alive."

"That's funny. Takato was hanging like a lynched guy, sort of like this," Kazu explained, as he raised an arm and drooped his head slightly, his tongue hanging out and his eyes rolled back. "And those things were wrapped all over him."

"His eyes weren't rolled back and his tongue wasn't sticking out. It was too far away to actually see his face," Kenta rectified.

Jeri trembled, clenching her fists. "Stop it! Just stop it!" Jeri shouted, flailing toward Kazu with Rika holding her back before falling to her knees and sobbing. "Stop…" she whispered.

"Sorry…" the two blinked and gasped.

"So, Ryo's missing and Henry is somewhere with Takato. It's weird how all this happened after Ryo spent the night in that house," Kenta thought aloud. "Maybe it was wrong of me to dare him to go into that house."

Kazu knocked on Kenta's head. "Ryo is missing because of that house! I told you that house is haunted!" The others' faces faltered as Kazu pointed to each of the tamers. "Because Ryo disturbed whatever presence is in that house, we're all paying for it!"

"Actually, Ryo was just at my house, remember Kazu? And left through a window. I think he came and threw Takato out the window." Rika shook her head and turned to Jeri, who turned out to be standing on the edge of the window. "Holy crap, Jeri!" Rika grabbed Jeri's arm as Kazu and Kenta hopped off the bed stumbling to help Jeri down. "Are you insane?" Rika yelled out.

"Let go of me, Rika!" Jeri demanded shaking off Rika's arm from hers.

As told Rika let go, but sat Jeri down on the bed away from the window. "Hang in there, Jeri."

"Hang in there? I've been holding out. Takato was always there for me when I was in trouble, but where was I when he was in trouble?" Jeri asked, her tears streamed and her nose ran. She backed up toward the window again, away from everyone else.

"You were outside with us, watching?" Kenta answered.

"Kenta, that was a rhetorical question…" Rika commented.

"That's right. I was outside…" Jeri affirmed sadly, burying her face into her hands. "I'm never going to forgive Henry. And if you are right Kazu, then I won't forgive Ryo for threatening me and going into that house, and—and I won't forgive any of you for encouraging him!" She sat down on the windowsill and sobbed. "Goodbye…" she whispered, blinking the last of her tears out of her eyes.

It took a moment for the three to realize what Jeri had said before they watched her slowly fall backwards. "Jeri!" Kazu ran to the window and shot his hand out the window in hopes of grabbing something.

Time seemed to slow down at that moment. Everyone in the room held their breaths as Kazu slowly peered out the window. He breathed heavily as he looked down at Jeri, her saddened eyes staring back up at him. The wind blew again as Jeri's hair clung to her face and in the midst of her hair, a weakened smile appeared. With much help from the hospital workers, Kenta and Rika, Kazu was able to get Jeri back on her two feet.

A man from the hospital approached Jeri. "You need to find yourself some help," a man advised Jeri, leading her out the door. "But first, let's call your parents."

"I'm sorry, kids. All we can do is hope that Takato is okay, whoever he's with." The man in white with two other men walked out of the room muttering sarcastically, "This is going to make the hospital look real good…"

Kazu collapsed on the bed. "That's enough excitement for one day…" Echoing in the hallway, the three teens heard Takato's name being yelled out.

"Spoke too soon, visor-dork," Rika retorted. "I have a feeling Gogglehead's parents aren't going to take this very well…"

- - -

Ryo sat under a tree in the park, picking the small rocks, thorns, and splinters he's stepped on out of the sole of his feet. "Lucky for you, Ryo buddy, you wore socks," Envymon laughed, still in Ryo's body, peering at the bloodied socks a couple of inches away from his feet. "You'll have your dear sweet Rika before you know it. Just two more of the wretched kids you call friends."

"She'll never forgive me, even when she finds out it was you who decided to take over my body and whatnot."

"Ah, then you must force her to like you. You mustn't let the inferior of your species manipulate you."

"What the hell! You are wrong. We're all equal. How the hell would you know, anyhow? Digimon don't have gender!" Ryo grunted and sputtered, "You're sick. Just f-ing sick! You're taking everything I've held so dear away from me. You've taken my body, my voice, my friends—all this for a girl who doesn't even know I like her!"

"Ryo, Ryo, Ryo…" Envymon's deep voice sounded. "First of all, you shouldn't yell. People will see you talking to yourself, even though you are talking to me. Second, I know how you foolish humans function. I, too, was a loyal digimon to a nice tamer—"

"Loyal? What, did you kill 'em off, too?"

Envymon hissed, "Shut up, you—"

"I don't care about your stupid past or how you came about. I don't need your assistance, so get out of me!"

"Don't need my services? That hurts, Ryo…" Envymon muttered. He raised his voice. "If you think you can do better, then prove it! Let's see if that hypothesis will be supported by how you approach her."

"You better believe it!" Ryo yelled out and paused. A black mist overran Ryo's sight and abruptly disappeared. "Do I have my life back?" He paused again before cheering and jumping up. He winced at the pain in his feet. "I guess I have to retrieve my shoes." He grabbed his socks and ventured to Rika's.

Ryo slowly and gently lifted his feet, leaving a trail of blood. He headed, in this way, to Rika's house, hobbling as if he were walking on fire. Often at times, Ryo stumbled along the roadside as he passed the hospital. Someone ran up to him from behind and picked him up by his shirt collar.

"What did you do with Takato!" Takato's dad demanded furrowing his eyebrows. "Where is he!" He shook him vigorously, angrily staring at him.

"I-I didn't do anything," Ryo stuttered in fear, keeping eye contact.

"Oh! Oh really? Let's just ask the receptionist to identify you, huh? Let's just go do that," Takato's dad assertively suggested, grabbing Ryo's arm and leading him to the hospital doors.

As the doors slid open and Takato's dad and Ryo rushed in, Rika walked out, causing them to collide. Rika glanced at the two of them, observing that Takato's dad was grasping onto Ryo's shirt cuff. "What are you doing, Mr. Matsuki?" Rika asked.

"Checking Ryo's alibi…"

"Have you not heard? Henry was the last person in Takato's room today, just a few minutes before the incident," Rika informed.

Takato's dad unleashed Ryo, gaping at Rika in embarrassment. He turned to apologize to Ryo, but he had fled. The two watched him run away, heading for the residential area. "Hey Rika. If you see Ryo, apologize to him for me. I can't believe I wrongly accused him."

"I wouldn't blame you…" Rika commented absent-mindedly, viewing Ryo turn a corner. "I'll see you later, Mr. Matsuki," Rika said, sprinting in the same direction as Ryo.

When Rika turned the corner to what she thought would be an empty street, she spotted Ryo sprawled out on his back in the middle of the road. Rika approached him slowly and noticed his feet were bloody red and inflamed. Crossing her arms and asking herself why she had to go this particular way, Rika clicked her tongue and said, "That's what you get for leaving your shoes at my house…"

Ryo's head shot up and glanced at Rika before falling back down. "Can I get those back, by the way?"

"I don't know. You haven't quite been yourself…" Rika declared. "…Swinging off of Takato's leg, coming to my house for breakfast, leaving the house through a bathroom window. What gives, Akiyama? Or should I say 'Henry'?" Rika asked, using the infamous quote-unquote gesture when she named 'Henry'.

Ryo didn't even twitch, as he thought of something on a whim. "I left your house through that window because…I heard Henry's voice. And then, I actually saw him and I knew you guys were looking for him so I went after him…"

At the spur of the moment, Rika's qualms disappeared. "So, it really was Henry? I thought it was you who signed in as Henry and threw Takato out the hospital window…but it really was Henry."

Still lying on the ground, Ryo looked skyward, widening his eyes and sighing in relief thinking, I can't believe she bought that story. He sat up. "Takato was thrown out the window?" Ryo asked in a seemingly incredulous tone.

"Yeah…and for the while, I thought it was you. I still think it's you."

"I wouldn't blame your for accusing me and I don't blame Takato's dad or anyone else either. I was an ass." Ryo got up and staggered. "Um, can I get my shoes back now, please?"

"Yeah, sure…" Rika replied, taking Ryo's arm and holding it around her neck and slightly over her shoulder. Ryo's blue eyes lightened. "Don't think anything of this. I'm just helping you because you're hurt."

"Thanks Rika," Ryo said, limping. Not another word was spoken afterward.

Reaching Rika's house, Rika walked into the bathroom as Ryo grabbed his shoes and turned around to leave, still shambling. "Wait Ryo." Rika came out of the bathroom with some medical tape, gauze, a bag cotton balls, and a bottle of rubbing alcohol. "We should get your feet wrapped up or else it'll hurt like hell when you put your feet into those sneakers."

Turning back around, Ryo nodded. He plopped himself on the wooden floor and dusted the soles of his feet over the concrete floor. Rika took some cotton balls and put some on alcohol on it. Then, she applied it onto Ryo's foot where he jumped at the stinging sensation. "Don't be such a baby," Rika replied, throwing the bloody cotton balls to the side and following the same procedures again with the other foot.

"I would have never thought you would do this kind of thing for me," Ryo said, leaning back against the wall. Rika wound Ryo's wounds with gauze and looked up. "I don't remember the last time someone's done this for me."

"Well, you're hurt. And, I'm not always bitchy, you know. I have a heart," Rika replied, wrapping both feet with tape to hold the gauze. "There…" She closed the bottle of alcohol and cleaned up around her.

Ryo smiled. "Thanks again, Rika." Ryo got up with the help of Rika and put his shoes on. He embraced Rika in a short hug before leaving the house.

Rika stared out her door, even though she couldn't see him. "If only I could believe everything you say…" she said, a broken smile etched on her face.


DF103: HURRICANE! CATEGORY 4! I had to update before the power went out for a week or so. So, here's a chapter. If I die, at least I left y'all with a no-kill chapter. If I live, I'll be back again later. Thanks for all the reviews up to this point. I'll see you all later. Hopefully, I'll survive Charley's wrath. L8terZ.