AN- AWWWW! You reviewers are so adorable! Thanks to everyone who threw in some suggestions. I tried to use as many of them as I could. I hope that I can make this a funny chapter, like a happy tribute to Tai's times with his powers. And there is romance in this chapter, unlike last chapter. I'm really starting to worry that a riot is going to break out once I tell you who the couple is. Maybe that is why I am procrastinating… Anywho, I hope you enjoy this chapter!
The Feminine Side
"Mmm, kay! List three guys you know. And one of them can't be Tai," Sora said, leaning over a piece of paper.
"TK, Davis and Ken," Kari replied. She kicked her feet back and forth in the air as she lay on her stomach.
"Okay, now three jobs you are considering in the future," Yolie asked from her position next to Sora on the big, fluffy bed.
"Teacher, Nurse and a…Secretary?"
"I keep telling you that you can't predict the future! You can't do it using a computer, and you can't do it with a stupid piece of paper," Mimi complained from her closet where she was digging around.
"Stop being such a downer," Yolie called out.
"Yeah, Mimi, stop being a spoil-sport. We have faith in the almighty power of…um…" Tai trailed off and then turned to the girls sitting on the bed with him. "What is the name of this game again?"
"It's called MASH, Tai. It stands for Mansion, Apartment, Shack or House. Those are the kinds of houses you can get when you grow up. This is used to predict your future."
"Okay," Tai said, rolling his eyes and smirking at the girls. The things they came up with.
Mimi's arm emerged from the closet, a blue shoe in her hand. "Girls? These?"
Sora considered them. "They don't look expensive enough."
Mimi made a muffled noise and pulled the shoe back into the closet with her. Tai heard her digging around again.
Oddly enough, Tai was enjoying his day with the girls. They were strangely upbeat around each other, and were always saying what they were thinking. They were so honest with each other. Tai would not have believed it a month ago if he was told he would come to prefer the company of girls over a baseball game being watched over a Ken's, but here he was.
"Okay, here we are," Sora said, reading off of the paper. "You will be a teacher, have two kids, one pet, a minivan, and live in a house."
"You left out who she's gonna marry!" Yolie complained, grabbing the paper. "AWWWWW! It's TK!"
The girls laughed happily. Kari looked confused but then let a light smile come to her lips.
TK…
Tai considered his sister for a while till Mimi interrupted again.
"These?" She held up a pair of strappy golden high heels.
"Too flashy," Yolie commented.
Mimi looked despairingly at the shoes and nodded her head in agreement. She trudged back into the closet.
Sora glanced at her watch. "Guys, I need to leave. I promised my mother I would work at the flower shop today."
"Yeah, Kari and I have to go over and meet Davis for a project. We'll walk with you," Yolie added, grabbing her coat.
"Mimi, will you be okay with Tai?" Kari asked, as more rustling was heard in the closet.
"Yeah, he has GREAT fashion sense," Mimi said irritably.
The three girls shared a look.
She's so worried about this…I wish I could do something, Sora thought.
"Mimi?" Yolie asked.
Mimi stepped out of the closet at the sound of concern in her friend's voice.
"I'll be fine," She said convincingly and smiling softly at them.
I don't want them to worry about me like this. I'll just have to act happier around them…
The girls waved goodbye to Tai and Mimi, Sora holding her gaze with Tai's a little longer than normal and giving a secret little smile.
Once they had left, Mimi continued searching through her closet. She came out a few seconds later.
"Okay, here we go. What do you think of these?" Mimi asked Tai, who was sitting on the edge of her bed again.
She held a pair of off white pumps with small heels. Tai thought that they looked rather boring, but he didn't think that was the answer Mimi wanted.
"I don't know. What are you looking for?" Tai asked, confused as to why Mimi even needed the shoes.
"Just tell me your first impression of them," Mimi explained.
Sophisticated, expensive and feminine… she thought.
"Uh, I guess they look sophisticated, expensive and, feminine," Tai concluded, trying to keep laughter out of his voice and a smile off his face.
Mimi looked surprised, but then smiled and nodded her head.
"Yeah, you are right. These are perfect. I know what outfit will work with them too…" Mimi said laying the shoes on a shelf in the closet. She left the closet and plopped down next to Tai. She sighed and let her self fall back, her long brown wavy hair fanning out around her on the bed.
Now, Tai's original intention was to only look at her face, but his eyes seemed to have another plan as they trailed up her body from her feet to her head. Her feet were bare, and Tai noticed that she had painted her toes with metallic purple nail polish. She wore a pair of dark blue jeans that she had rolled up to mid calf. His eyes stopped at her waist, where her mid drift was exposed. He felt his face heat up, even though he had seen Mimi's stomach before. Shaking himself mentally, he continued upward to see the hem of a light blue shirt, then since he already felt like a pervert, continued quickly straight up to her neck where a silver necklace with her crest symbol on it rested. His eyes finally flicked to her face, just as her's did the same to him. Both looked away quickly.
Oh no! Tai just caught me checking him out! This is so embarrassing. What will I say? I- wait, was he checking me out too?
Mimi looked suspiciously at him, as Tai tried his best to look as guilt free as possible. Mimi was still pink in embarrassment.
Say something to explain yourself, Mimi!
"I like your shirt today…" she tried.
Tai looked down at his simple blue t-shirt.
"Thanks. I like your toes," Tai said, grinning teasingly at her.
Mimi realized his joking mood and that he wasn't going to embarrass her any further, and laughed.
"Shouldn't we go soon if we are going to help TK set up for tonight?" Mimi asked.
"Yeah, but," Tai trailed off as his eyes rested on her waist again, "Shouldn't you put on something warmer?"
'And something that won't have all those guys checking you out?' Tai added mentally.
Mimi rolled her eyes. "I'll be fine, thanks for asking though, DAD."
Tai rolled his eyes right back and stood up. He started walking toward her closet.
"What are you doing?"
"Finding you a coat or something so you don't freeze to death!" Tai answered, and he could imagine Mimi shaking her head at him.
What a weirdo!
"I heard that!" Tai said, wincing as he realized too late that she had been thinking it.
"I didn't say anything!" Mimi protested.
Tai just walked into the closet without answering her. He was shocked. Her closet was divided into two sides. On his right were the clothes that he saw Mimi wear everyday: jeans, t-shirts, and other things normal high schoolers wore. On his left were dresses upon dresses. Some of them looked like they cost more than his parents made in a year. On the floor were hundreds of different dress shoes, where on the right side there had only been a few different pairs of tennis shoes and casual shoes.
"What is up with your closet?" Tai called out to her.
Mimi sighed. "The clothes on the right side are ones I like. The left are clothes that I wear to events my parents make me go to. I'm eating with some of my dad's clients next week, so that's why I needed to find those shoes earlier. My parents are all about the right impression," Mimi said in an annoyed voice.
"So they wanted you to look sophisticated, expensive and feminine?"
"That was their exact words. I once got a lecture because the bracelet I wore didn't have enough jewels on it."
Tai stopped for a second, wondering what it would be like to live like that. His parents weren't rich, but they never put pressure on Tai to conform to anything. They always supported him to be what ever he wanted to be. Tai felt sorry for the sweet girl sitting out there.
"What's taking you so long? I thought you were going to just grab a jacket!" Mimi complained.
Maybe not always sweet.
Tai walked out with a devilish grin on his face. He ran over to Mimi and threw something over her. Mimi laughed when she had disentangled herself and saw what he had grabbed.
"My bunny sweatshirt?" She said as she pulled it on and zipped it up.
Tai laughed at her, not because she looked bad, but so adorable. The hoodie was a pale yellow and on the hood was a pair of long bunny ears. Two buttons had been sewn on the hood as well for eyes. Tai smiled as Mimi smiled happily back at him, her brown eyes looking big and innocent.
Mimi unzipped it and shrugged it off. Tai looked confused.
"Aren't you going to wear it?"
"Tai! I can't wear this out in public. People will think I'm crazy!"
"Mimi, come on! I picked it out-"
"-Which doesn't mean I have to wear it," she countered.
Tai pouted, then tried throwing it over her again. Mimi laughed at hit him playfully with one of her pillows. Tai took that as a challenge and grabbed another pillow and hit her back. They fought briefly until Tai got Mimi in the face and she fell back, crying "Mercy!"
Tai grinned down at her. "You'll wear it?"
Mimi pouted but said, "Yes, I'll wear it. You know Tai, you really hurt me."
Tai snorted in disbelief.
"Really, you did! Everything hurts! My head, my chin, my shoulder, no my whole arm! Including my hand and-" Mimi continued, knowing that Tai hated it when she complained.
Tai was watching her with a new emotion on his face that Mimi failed to see, and then suddenly he shut her up by burying his face in her hair and kissing her temple gently. She remained perfectly still as he continued to kiss her chin, then her shoulder, then all the way down her arm. When he reached her wrist, he took her hand and flipped it over, kissing where he could feel her pulse pounding. He flipped her hand over again and kissed her on the back of her hand, looking her in the eye as he did so.
Mimi stared back at him with something he couldn't identify.
Why does he do this to me? Especially when he likes Sora? Why?
Tai pulled Mimi into a hug as he answered her in his head. 'Because, Mimi, I just realized I like you too.'
Out loud, he said, "You're so cute when you try to annoy me by complaining."
Tai's mind wasn't racing and he wasn't confused. Maybe it was that subconsiciously he had come to realize a long time ago that he liked Mimi. He just never admitted to himself. But it made sense, why he was always jealous, why her smile seemed to brighten him up instantly. But, even though he liked Mimi, he still like Sora too…
Tai pulled back and smiled hesitantly at Mimi, who still looked confused. Till she noticed that Tai had placed the Bunny Hoodie around her again. She hit Tai playfully on the shoulder, but pulled it on.
As they left her apartment, Tai knew Mimi was trying to ignore what happened earlier. Tai knew, however, that this was something that couldn't be ignored for him. Somehow, after years of nothing, he had two girls he liked, and liked him back. Nothing seemed like heaven now, especially since he was going to have to choose one, leaving the other alone. That was a choice he didn't know how he was going to make.
"Aw, they are so cute!" Sora cooed, peaking out of the door.
"Sora, don't let them see you. You'll ruin it!" Mimi hissed quietly.
"We should have left once we helped set up," Matt said from his spot against the wall where he was leaning.
"Don't you want to see your brother get the girl he's always wanted?" Tai asked from his bed, where he was throwing his soccer ball up and down in the air.
"I could have just asked him about it later," Matt argued. He glanced at Tai. "Aren't you worried you are going to hit the bookshelf doing that?"
Tai was about to throw up the ball again, but looked fearfully at the shelf and decided against it. He glanced around at his three friends and smiled. They had helped TK orchestrate a date for him and Kari (technically, Kari didn't know she was on a date) so that he could tell her that he liked her. Matt had cooked the meal, Sora had brought flowers from her mom's shop and Mimi had 'set a romantic atmosphere' in the dining room and prepped TK for an hour on what to say. Tai…well, he had the key to the house, so that was why he was there. Oh, and he had made sure that everyone was out of the way so that when Kari arrived, she only thought Tai was there and that TK was just having a friendly dinner with him.
Tai, now that he thought about it, had to agree with Matt's earlier statement about them leaving. Having the four of them in the same room was beyond awkward. Sora kept wondering if Matt knew about her and Tai, Mimi kept wondering how close Sora and Tai were and Matt looked like he was considering jumping out the window.
Tai sighed, trying to find something to break the tension when Sora whispered excitedly, "Look! I think he's doing it!"
Everyone snuck over to the door and watched.
"Er, Kari?" The tall blonde asked tentatively.
"Yeah?"
"Well, you see, we've known each other for a while. And during this time, I've come to see that there is no one as kind or smart or as beautiful as you. Kari, I want to tell you that, that…" TK trailed off as he looked down at the table, flushing. He couldn't see Kari's face of horror. "I like y-"
TK was cut off by a crashing as Kari 'accidentally' knocked a bowl the ground. TK started helping her clean up as Tai walked out of his room, motioning for the others to stay hidden.
"What happened?" Tai asked, pretending he hadn't seen what had been going on.
"I accidentally broke the bowl," Kari said.
"Its fine, Mom won't care," Tai assured her. He looked at TK and said, "You got some of the sauce on you. Go to the bathroom and try rinsing it out while Kari and me clean up."
TK nodded and headed to the bathroom. Tai finished picking up the shattered pieces and dragged Kari into the kitchen with him, where the others couldn't hear them.
"What is wrong with you?" Tai hissed.
"He was going to say he likes me!" Kari exclaimed.
"So?"
"So? I don't like him like that!"
"Kari, stop trying to fool yourself. You can tell me that you like Ken or that you and TK are just friends, but I know that you are lying. You won't admit it, but I hear the debate always going in your head. You like him, but you are scared."
Kari didn't try to deny it. Her face looked worried. "Tai, TK is my best friend. What if I go out with him, and then we break up? I could not live with myself if weren't friends after that. I don't want to take that risk."
Tai hugged his sister, patting her on the head. "Silly Kari. TK wouldn't hate you, ever. And what about Matt and Sora? They broke up, but they are still friends."
Kari nodded, thinking that over.
"And, I have it on good knowledge that women are always looking to fall in love," Tai added, as Kari grinned at him. "So, why don't you give that a try?"
Kari smiled.
Thank you, Tai. I'll trust TK and I won't be afraid anymore.
Kari walked back out to the dining room, to the thing she wanted most- TK.
"So what did you say to Kari back in the kitchen yesterday?" Sora asked as she and Tai walked down a path to the mall.
"Just told her to trust TK. She was worried that when they broke up that they wouldn't be friends anymore. I pointed out that you and Matt still get along."
"You are such a good brother," Sora said, smiling brightly at Tai.
Matt is so kind to me still. That is just the kind of guy he is though. He acts reserved, but he cares deeply for those around him.
Sora stared off into space as Tai tried to ignore her thoughts. As they entered the mall, Sora suddenly tugged on his arm and dragged him into a big crowd gathered around a stage.
"What is this?" Tai asked a girl around his age who was next to him.
"It's a contest being sponsored by the mall! It's a trivia type game, I think. Guys go up and are asked questions, and the winner gets a prize!" The girl explained to Tai and Sora, while her friends around her nodded in agreement, obviously excited.
"Tai, you should do it," Sora insisted.
"Me? I'm not Izzy or Ken, Sora. I'm not good at this "infinite knowledge stored in my brain" thing," Tai replied, looking skeptically at the stage.
"Oh, come on! For me?" Sora asked.
Ten minutes later, Tai was registered and sitting at a table with five other men, a big red button in front of him. Two of the men looked scholarly and preppy, another two looked like they could bench press Tai's car, and the one last looked rather nervous, and kept glancing at a formidable looking woman in the crowd who also looked like she could bench press his car.
'I can't do this!' Tai thought, panicking. 'Those smart guys will know the intellectual questions, those monsters will know all of those sports and car statistics and that guy is running on pure fear and adrenaline not to get beat up by his girlfriend. But I guess I try my hardest, for Sora.'
"All right gentleman, are you ready? We wanted to make this challenging, so our questions aren't going to be about books, politics or sports, but something men are truly clueless about- WOMEN!"
The crowd laughed, and Tai sat up a little straighter.
"Okay, question #1: What is the number one reason women call in sick to work?"
Tai hit his buzzer.
"Yes?"
"According to them, 'these god awful cramps;"
The host laughed. "Close enough. Menstrual cramps are the answer."
"Question #2: According to a February survey, what is the number one conversation topic in women's bathrooms?"
Tai hit his buzzer again, and all the men at the table looked at him, amazed.
"Work related gossip."
"Correct again."
Tai sat back in his seat, grinning from ear to ear.
"I can't believe you got every single question right!" Sora exclaimed, hugging Tai after it was over.
"Well, you know, I was lucky," Tai said, flushing a little.
"Don't be so modest, Tai! You are one sensitive guy. That's why we hang out," came a voice from behind him. Tai turned to see Davis there, with his arm around…Violet?
"Oh, hi Davis! I didn't know you two were dating!" Sora greeted.
"Violet appreciates sweet guys like me and Tai. It was only natural for us to get together."
Violet smiled up at him and nodded. "I was so grateful to Tai for sticking up for me, and Davis always idolized Tai, so I figured they were alike, and I was right," She smiled and hugged Davis' arm to her. "My prince charming!"
Tai pulled Davis to the side as Sora and Violet started talking.
"What is going on?" Tai hissed, confused.
"Tai, I did what you told me to. I tried seeing life like a chick- I mean woman's- point of view, and things were a lot clearer. And it led me to Violet, who adores me like Kari never did! Thank you, Tai!" Davis exclaimed, clapping Tai on the shoulder.
"No…problem?" Tai responded, still a little freaked out by the new Davis.
"Well, we got to go now. Talk to you guys later!" Davis said, pulling Violet into the crowd with him. He walked a ways away and then turned to Tai again. "AND POWER TO THE FEMININE SIDE!" he yelled across the busy mall.
"Yeah," Tai responded, sweat-dropping.
"You know Tai, Davis is right. I like this new, sensitive you," Sora said, linking her arm with his as they started walking through the mall again.
Tai slipped his prize, a gift card, into his pocket and then grinned at Sora. "I like it too. I have a feeling it won't be going away for a long time, either."
Two days later Tai would look back at that conversation and realize how wrong he was.
AN- Okay, so a little longer than usual. Sorry that the Michi out weighed the Taiora in this chapter, I just needed that realization to happen, and it ended up taking a long time. I'm sorry if I didn't use your suggestions, they were all great! I hope you stay tuned for the next chapter as Tai breaks the curse (you guys are going to hate me, I just know it…)
And if any of you were wondering, the bunny hoodie came from the idea of the bunny hood from the legend of Zelda :)
Keep reading and reviewing! You guys are great!
Vigatus- I guess he could turn pro after college is he wanted to still, but the important thing was that he didn't want that right now. I'm biased, because I'm in college myself, but it is an experience unlike any other. Thanks for the suggestion. Yeah, Tai doesn't seem to mind the powers so much anymore, does he? But all good things must come to an end…
Digilover- 1) Check, sort of 2) Check, sort of 3) Sorry. But it's funny you mention a situation like that... since it happens later in the story with different people.
miss.tohru- Favorites? AWWWW! Thank you!
Mrs.Ishida-to-you- Do rent it. Parts of it are hilarious! Thanks for reviewing!
BrnttsDoItBest- Hook ups. Right. They are coming, really. There are some in this chapter! Although, the secondary characters are the ones hooking up…
fanfic maniac- Updated:)
laughingcow- Maybe...
Sevetenks the Ultimate F- Woot! Maybe...
ghiki-j- Hey! Tai thinks. Sometimes. Thanks for your review!
SoratoFan- I'll try not to let you down ;)
Emerald-eclipse- Thanks for the review and suggestion!
Luinas- I'm glad this makes you laugh. I have a great time writing it. Thanks for the review!
KAI- Check, sort of
Psyclone- Thanks, and I did! ;)
The true Tai Kamiya- Thanks for the suggestion and the review!
