Disclaimer: I do not own this wonderful franchise. That is it.
Lessons In Friendship
Chapter 9: What Matters Most
Davis watched silently as T.K. strolled towards Kari and the others with his head down and his eyes focused on the pavement. With every step, the sun glinted off the blond's golden head, making him plainly visible, even from a distance.
I can do this, I know I can. I have too...
Kari and the rest of the Digidestined waved to him, but luckily T.K. hadn't spotted him yet. The golden-haired Digidestined was too busy staring glumly at his feet, making Davis feel somewhat guilty, since he knew it was probably his fault.
Though why he should care doesn't make any sense to me, especially after the way he acted at lunch today...Well, it's now or never I guess.
Davis took a deep breath to calm himself, and he slowly continued towards T.K. and the rest of his friends with Ken on his heels, his heart pounding anxiously in his chest.
What if T.K. doesn't even want to talk to me? I can't blame him if he doesn't want to...
"Davis!" Yolei suddenly shouted, making the goggle-headed leader wince.
Great, the last thing I need is an argument with Yolei. Maybe I can get Ken to distract her for me while I talk to T.K.
There was no turning back now. The group had spotted him, and T.K.'s sparkling blue eyes were fixed upon his face. It was hard to determine exactly what the blond was thinking, but his gaze appeared to be uneasy.
"Look what you did to my skirt!" Yolei cried, pointing to the muddy stain on her clothing and glaring fiercely at him for added effect.
Davis made a face at his female friend, and crossing his arms over his chest, he snorted, "It's not my fault you were in the way!"
Yolei looked ready to shout a nasty retort, but Kari put a hand on the lavender-haired Digidestined's arm, preventing another angry outburst. Not wanting to upset Kari, instead Yolei fell into a sullen silence and continued to glare at him, her eyes narrowing into angry slits.
Davis, in turn, promptly began to ignore the lavender-haired Digidestined, and instead of rising to her bait he turned his attention to T.K., a frown on his normally cheerful face. T.K. had seated himself next to Kari and the blond was staring back at him silently, as if waiting for him to be the first to speak.
"Why didn't you say anything?" Davis asked quietly, staring directly into the blond's eyes.
I'm tired of beating around the bush. I'm not going to give him time to make any more excuses. I want the truth, and the sooner, the better!
T.K.'s stared at him, and he flinched at the golden-haired Digidestined's sad blue gaze, which was studying him intently. Davis was surprised to find that T.K. looked genuinely upset, his long golden lashes glittering in the sunshine and his sapphire eyes sparkling with some kind of emotion the goggle-headed leader couldn't immediately recognize. "I did," T.K. murmured, turning his face away.
Davis felt his mouth fell open in shock, and for a moment all he could do was stare at the blond in utter disbelief.
Lying jerk! I can't believe him! He knows very well I heard every word, or lack of words, he said! I only shouted about it for fifteen minutes after the final bell rang!
He was so hurt, he couldn't even look at T.K. Instead, he turned to walk away, but Ken grabbed him by his shirt and pulled him back into the circle, preventing him from making his escape.
I can't believe this!
When it became apparent that he wasn't going to get out of speaking to T.K., his hurt turned to anger instead. "So, now you're a liar too, on top of everything else!"
"Davis-"
Davis clenched his hands into fists, and he glared at the blond, his dark eyes blazing. "I guess I don't know you as well as I thought I did!"
T.K. stood up to face him, which made Davis even more angry. The blond happened to be several inches taller than him, and it was a constant annoyance. Whenever they faced each other, he was the one who had to look up to T.K., never the other way around, and if there was one thing he hated, it was being looked down upon. T.K. had a tendency to play upon that particular pet peeve of his, sometimes without even knowing, and it never failed to make him mad, though it wasn't technically T.K.'s fault. He knew the golden-haired Digidestined didn't do it on purpose, but because of the unfortunate height difference between them, it could sometimes create the wrong impression, without T.K. even being consciously aware of it.
"I did," T.K. said, more firmly this time.
Davis struggled to find a rude reply, but before he could open his mouth, Kari gave him a pleading look and said softly,"Davis, please let him explain. It's important."
"Why should I? Nothing he has to say is worth listening to!"
"Ugh, boys," Yolei muttered. "Utterly hopeless!"
Kari turned her face away, hiding a smile, and Davis gave his female friend a dirty look, feeling slightly annoyed by her attitude.
This is not a time for making jokes! For once in my life I'm trying to be serious, and still no one will take me seriously!
"Please, Davis?" T.K. asked quietly. "I'm only asking for a few minutes."
Davis glared at his golden-haired friend, but T.K. didn't elaborate. Instead, the golden-haired Digidestined merely waited patiently for him to respond, his sapphire eyes sparkling with sorrow. Finally, Davis sighed and reluctantly nodded, though he felt like kicking himself for agreeing to T.K.'s request. "Fine, a few minutes, but nothing you can say is going to make me change my mind."
Why did I just agree to listen to him? I'm such a softy, it's pathetic. Well, maybe if he wouldn't look at me like that. It's enough to get anybody blabbing. I guess I should just be grateful I didn't lay my whole heart out on the table for him to stomp on!
"Thank you," T.K. said, and quietly began to explain...
Flashback
"I could tell him for you, if you want."
T.K. froze at Domu's words, and he stared down at the table in shock, unable to even lift his head to stare at the boy who had spoken such terrible words to him. He was so horrified by the garbage he had just heard, he couldn't seem to form a single coherent thought, let alone a decent sentence in response to the blatant attack on Davis. A surge of disgust filled him, but he was careful not to let the expression show on his face.
At least, not yet.
He just couldn't believe what he was hearing. He had always known that Domu and the others weren't too fond of Davis, but they had never openly made fun of the goggle-headed leader in front of him before, though it made him sick to his stomach to think about what they might have been saying about Davis behind his back. He had never thought about it much before, but now that Domu had shown his true colours, he had no choice but to accept the situation as it was, regardless of how much he wished he could be wrong.
If they're not afraid to say stuff like this to me, then...what do they say to Davis when I'm not around?
The thought sickened him so much he quickly pushed it aside for the moment, doing his best to focus on the problem at hand.
Why all of a sudden have they decided to make fun of Davis in my presence? I don't get it...What exactly is Domu up to?
T.K. had never fully trusted Domu since joining the basketball team. There was just something about the other boy that made him uneasy. To top it off, Domu was a terrible team player, which his good skills in basketball failed to make up for. Unfortunately, though, Domu was already co-captain when T.K. had been named captain, which had happened just after their old captain had moved off to high school. There was nothing he could do about Domu's position short of kicking the other boy off the team, and that had never been his style. There were better ways to deal with your problems.
At least, that's what I've always told myself, but with Domu I'm not so sure...
Ever since the day he had moved to Odaiba, he had had the sneaking suspicion that Domu resented him. T.K. was sure it was because he had taken the position Domu would have obtained if he had not moved to the island, though he had no proof to back up his claim.
If it wasn't for me moving to Odaiba, he would have been captain for sure...
T.K. looked up, glaring at his co-captain, and he found Domu staring over his shoulder at something. There was a wicked smile on the other boy's face, and T.K. didn't like it one little bit.
Giving Domu a suspicious look, he said, "What are you looking at?"
Domu's face immediately went blank, and he shrugged his shoulders, looking much too innocent for T.K.'s liking. "Nothing."
T.K. didn't believe him for a second. He turned to look in his seat, hoping to spot a glimpse of whatever Domu had been staring at, but there was nothing to see. All around them, students were chattering loudly, but that was it. Then he noticed Kari and Yolei. The two girls were staring at the lunchroom doors with their mouths hanging open and a look of horror in their eyes.
T.K.'s frown deepened.
What in the Digiworld are they looking at?
Before he could even try to come up with an explanation for the strange bahviour of his female friends, Domu's voice startled him out of his thoughts. "Do you want me to go tell Davis to get lost? I can do it right now. The sooner he's away from you, the better."
"No!" T.K. snapped, his anger finally exploding.
How dare he talk about one of my friends like that, especially right in front of me! He has no right to say those things about Davis!
T.K. was so angry, he had to clamp his hands together to keep himself from punching Domu in the face. His own reaction surprised him. Normally he was pretty laid back. Violence had never been his way of dealing with things.
"Why not?" Domu asked, staring at him in confusion. "Hey, if you want to do it later that's fine with me, too. We don't need that loser ruining our lunch break."
"No," T.K. said quietly. "I don't want you to do it later either. In fact, I never want you to do it!"
Two of his other teammates, Naoko and Eisaku, exchanged uneasy looks. Naoko's dark blue eyes appeared worried, and Eisaku stared at Domu with an anxious expression.
Domu's, for his part, looked completely shocked, as if he couldn't believe what he was hearing. The sandy-haired boy didn't even seem to notice the expressions of the other two sitting across from him, which didn't surprise T.K. in the slightest considering how completely self-centered Domu was. "You don't really like Davis, do you? I mean, seriously, he's an idiot! Having someone like that around you is going to ruin your image."
"Do you honestly think I care about things like that?" T.K. shouted, glaring at his co-captain. "If you do, then I think maybe we had better keep our socializing strictly to basketball."
"What exactly are you trying to say?" Domu demanded, narrowing his eyes in anger.
"I'm saying, I don't want to hang out with someone who doesn't respect my friends."
Domu quickly plastered an innocent expression on his face, and smiling in return, he said, "Look, T.K., I'm only trying to help you by stopping you from doing something stupid. You could do much better if you would stick with us and forget those losers you call friends, especially Davis. I know you like helping people and all, but that doesn't mean you have to take every piece of rift raft you find under your wing."
T.K. was so outraged over Domu's words, he couldn't even speak. The look on his face must have been unsettling because Riku glanced nervously at him and nudged Domu's arm, an anxious look on his face. "I think you'd better give it a rest," he mumbled in his co-captain's ear.
In response to Riku's warning, Domu pushed the other boy away, ignoring him completely. Instead, he turned back to T.K., who refused to back down. "You have to admit, what I said is true."
"Will you please stop?" T.K. shouted, shooting to his feet and glaring fiercely at Domu. "If you think I'm going to sit here and listen to you bad mouth Davis, forget it!"
On the outside, his voice, though filled with anger, was relatively calm, but on the inside he was seething with anger.
Domu and the others are supposed to be my teammates! How can they just sit here and talk about my friends as if they're nothing but a load of excess baggage!
"I don't believe it, you really do like Davis!" Domu stuttered, gaping at him in utter disbelief.
T.K. stared back at the other boy, resisting a rather tempting urge to roll his eyes.
How can anyone be so self-absorbed? Yolei's always saying Davis is, but he's got nothing on Domu!
"Domu, maybe we should change the subject," Naoko mumbled.
"Of course I like Davis," T.K. interrupted, daring the other boy to contradict him. "Would I have stuck by his side this long if I didn't?"
Domu snorted loudly in response, a smirk on his young face. "T.K., don't be stupid. Davis is nothing but a leech who's trying to feed off your popularity."
"Excuse me? Being a basketball player doesn't make you popular. If I recall, Davis has tons of friends, and last time I checked, he wasn't on the basketball team. Lots of people like him, including me, and nothing you say is going to make me change my mind about him."
"You've got to be kidding me! The other kids in this school...liking Davis? If that's the case then they're all losers, too. They're not like us, T.K. Unlike them, we actually have good taste in friends. Besides, I bet all those other kids don't even really like him. Most of them probably only put up with him because he's on the soccer team. I bet, on the inside, they all think he's an annoying losing, just like I do."
"That's not true!"
"Come on T.K., you know you agree with me. Just admit it already. I admire your act, but enough is enough. You can be straight with me. We 're all friends here. There's no need for lies."
"I'm not like you!"
Of all the things to say!
T.K. had never felt so insulted in his life.
I can't listen to this anymore. I just...I can't.
And he wasn't going to. Davis deserved better than that.
"You really don't knew me that well at all, do you, Domu."
"Huh? What's that supposed to mean?"
"You and I are very different. You'll do anything to be popular, and to you, basket ball is everything. You'll do whatever it takes to get to the top no matter how many people you have to step on along the way. I'm not like that. To me, my friends are the most important thing, not basketball and not the need to be popular, or to fit in with everyone else. If sticking up for my friends meant giving up basketball, I would do it in a second! That's the difference between you and me, and...that's why you and I can't ever be friends until you learn to respect the people I care about."
"What is wrong with you? Seriously, what does Davis have that I don't have?" Domu snapped, climbing slowly to his feet and glaring daggers at him.
"Huh, let me think about that one for a minute. If I was in trouble, Davis would move heaven and earth to help me," he replied, his voice barely above a whisper. "You, on the other hand, would leave me to my fate and focus on saving yourself. Davis puts his friends first. You put yourself first. That's the difference between you and Davis! And that's why you could never even begin to compare yourself to him!"
I know Davis and I don't always get along, but that doesn't change the fact that we're still friends. I know deep down he cares about me and I'm not going to let Domu tell me any different!
"You don't actually believe that, do you?" Domu smirked, rolling his eyes.
T.K. stood up straight and staring defiantly at the other boy, he said without hesitation, "With all of my heart."
Domu's mouth fell open. "Wait a minute...you're saying you'd rather be friends with Davis than me?"
Not exactly a genius, is he. Took him long enough to get the hint.
T.K. slowly backed away from the table, and staring directly into Domu's eyes he gave the other boy a regretful smile. "When you put it that way, there's no competition. Ever since the very first day I met Davis on the soccer field, I knew. There was just something about him that told me he would be important in my life. If you think I'm going to let you ruin that, forget it, Domu. Popularity means nothing to mean, and let's face it, that's the only reason you even wanted to hang around me in the first place. You weren't describing Davis earlier, you were describing yourself."
I don't even know why I bother. No matter how much I try to explain it, Domu will never understand. Davis is just that special kind of person you meet once in a lifetime, and if I had chosen to pass up the chance to be friends with him, I know I would have regretted it for the rest of my life. I didn't, though, and I have no regrets. I hope...Davis feels the same way...
T.K. sighed softly and stepping away from the table, he said, "If you decide to change your mind about my friends, let me know. Until then, you and I are nothing but acquaintances."
Domu tried to protest, but T.K. cut him off. "My friends and I are a packaged deal. You want to be friends with me, then you have to learn to respect them and prove to me that you actually care about my feelings. Now, if you'll excuse me, I have somewhere else to be."
Turning, T.K. walked away, leaving Domu and the others staring after him. He spotted Kari and Yolei beaming at him, and he smiled at them in return. Obviously thay had overheard the entire conversation, but surprisingly, when he approached them, Kari's face fell.
"T.K., I think you'd better go talk to Davis," she said quietly, a haunted look in her eyes.
Huh?
T.K. stared at his female friend in confusion, uncertain of how to respond. "Huh? Why?"
Suddenly the earlier looks on their faces when Domu had been insulting Davis came back to him, and his heart sank so fast he almost heard it hit the cafeteria floor.
Closing his eyes in horror, he whispered, "He was there, wasn't he?"
Yolei nodded, a sympathetic look on her face. "Go find him, T.K.," she said with encouragement. "Maybe it's not as bad as we think."
You're wrong, Yolei, it's worse. I bet he only heard Domu, not me, and that's why he left the cafeteria. What am I going to do? He's never going to believe me now...
With a hasty wave, T.K. hurried out of the lunchroom to find Davis, his heart racing in his chest.
He has to believe me! He has too! I know he cares about me, even if he won't admit it. At least, he used to...but after today... Oh no...What...what if I've ruined everything...
End Flashback
