I don't own digimon

Beaten and Bruised

A large tanned hand cupped my right one, held it firmly and shook it twice. "Nice to meet you, Yamato." Mr. Yagami spoke in a deep husky voice. He was a tall man, clean shaven and well groomed, even though the tie that hung around his neck wasn't holding up to it's name.

His facial features were of a childlike manner. A large boyish grin painted his lips, his eyes held a childish mischief to them, and his forehead remained uncreased as though he had never known a troublesome day.

"Nice firm grip." Taichi's father said in way of a compliment. He retracted his arm and looped it around his wife's waist. Mrs. Yagami was fairer then her husband, though still darker then I. Her features were ones of maturity. Her eyes even displayed glimpses of wisdom. I knew when I first met her that she was the one who dealt with the family dramas.

"It really is nice to meet you." She spoke with delight. "It's good to finally have a face to go with a name."

The comment had surprised me some but I had chosen to ignore it for the time, so instead I decided to go with something else to say. A 'nice to meet you, too' perhaps it was going to be or something, maybe, not so generic. I'm not sure exactly what I had been planning, just that I wasn't given the time to say it.

"So, where's 'Kari?" Taichi said while clapping his hands together and keeping them clasped in front of him.

I glanced at him out of the corner of my eye and noticed he did the same while looking more nervous then I. He probably thought I was about to question his mother about her nonchalant comment and was trying to change the subject before it was brought up.

"Here!" A third voice joined the short conversion of words.

The Yagami apartment wasn't all that large. The majority of Japan's apartments weren't that large, in fact, so really the Yagami apartment was pretty average in size.

When we first entered the apartment we had entered into a short hall that kept us separated from the rest of the residence. It was the only hall in the home, in fact. It had taken about five steps to walk out of the hall and meet my companion's parents.

To my left had been the kitchen. On the far left of the kitchen, if you're facing the door, was a rather large fridge. The counter beside the fridge circled the kitchen and had become the thing that separated that room from the dining room. A stove was placed on the far wall between two segments of counter.

The 'dining room' was just past the counter with a small circular table and four chairs. Carpet started just past that which indicated the living room. The living room held a large soft grey couch, a small soft grey love seat, and a lazy boy of the same color scheme. They all faced a large screen television.

On the right side of the apartment were three doors. When we had first entered the apartment all three had been shut but when Taichi had asked about his sister the middle one had opened and standing in the door way was, who I had rightfully assumed at the time, Hikari.

She offered me a wave and a smile as though she already knew me. It might not have been the most proper way to introduce someone into you're home, at least that's what her mother thought, I could tell when the women rolled her eyes while her daughter began to question Taichi about his punctuality, but I preferred the casualness of it.

"I just lost track of time." Taichi defended, a scowl upon his face while both arms crossed over his chest.

"Like usual." She said. "You know, people are starting to know you as 'Taichi The Late'. In fact, they already started shortening it to 'The Late'. People asking 'Is 'The Late' coming' and I have to say don't know where Taich is." She smiled teasingly at her brother as she gently closed her bedroom door behind her. She was a very pretty girl, with skin the same shade as her mother's and maturing looks.

Taichi's eyes had narrowed at his sibling while displaying both denial and irritation. He opened his mouth to say something but his father had halted any words that had lain upon the tip of the brunettes tongue.

"Tai, let it go. I don't want you two fighting." That was when they started moving into the living room. I felt Taichi place his hand on the small of my back to lead me in that direction as well.

Small goose bumps appeared on my arms at the intimate touch. Well, maybe it wasn't intimate. Maybe I was only romanticizing the action but none-the-less I felt a blush spread across my cheeks.

It was partly out of curiosity and partly to distract myself from the heat Taichi's hand had offered, that had me asking, "So, what movies are we going to watch."

Mrs. Yagami smiled at me warmly as she took a seat on the couch. Her husband was at the DVD player. "One's a comedy and one's a horror. I'm not sure what movies they are myself since my secretive husband wants it to be a surprise."

"Movies are better when you don't know what's going to happen. Advertisements give away too much." Mr. Yagami said while glancing at Taichi and I over his shoulder.

Taichi and I took a seat on the love couch, which was across from the lazy boy where Hikari sat. I watched as she pushed the button on the side of the seat so she could out stretch her legs. A second later I felt hot air on my ear and a voice whisper, "You don't have a problem with scary movies, do you?"

I turned my head to look at the brunette. "No, of course not." I lied

"Good," Taichi said and leaned back again, "'Cause I know what movie my dad got and it sure is scary."

I raised an eye brow at him while leaning back into the cushions of the couch. "You already saw it?"

He nodded. "Yeah. Dad and I saw it in theaters and it had me jumping out of my seat." Suddenly my throat seemed dry. I remember wanting to trade seats with Taichi since he was sitting slightly further from the TV then I, but not wanting to pose the question 'wanna trade seats' I stayed put.

"Really?" I said, trying to sound skeptical though I'm not sure if that was how it came out. He just smiled and nodded

Just then the TV came to life, the movie began to play and Hikari shut off the lights.

"Okay," Taichi whispered into my ear, "now." At the request I closed my eyes and listened to the deathly scream and Taichi's heartless chuckle at whatever was happening on screen.

At first, I admit, I was irritated by the brunette. I was watching the screen. A dark figure was stalking a man as he took his shortcut home through a park. It was dark out, probably past midnight. The man was drunk and was staggering more then he was walking. A shadow in the back kept two blue glass eyes watching his promising victim. It stretched out its hand to scratch the bark of a tree with its long nails. The skin upon its hand was decaying, muscle and bone had shown vividly.

The drunkard tripped over his own two feet and cursed his limbs for their incompetence. He struggled to his feet, failing twice, as the figure behind him grew closer. A deafening silence hung in the air. Raspy breathing could only be heard. The man finally was able to stand and stretched his hand out to a tree, expecting to feel rough cold bark against his skin but instead…

"Close your eyes." Came the demand, and I had, since my heart was already pumping my veins with fear. Just as I did, the agonizing screams of a man in pain echoed through the small home joined by a shocked gasp from the younger of the two females.

"It's okay now." Taichi said with a small laugh and I opened my eyes to learn that the gruesome scene was now done with.

I had then turned my gaze to the brunette and gave him a glare. I noticed the grin upon his face. "I didn't need a warning," I said hotly.

"It wasn't a warning, it was a suggestion. You didn't need to listen to it if you weren't scared." I turned around and glared at the television.

The next frightening spot there was, I had chosen not to heed his warning and watched instead. I screamed. Luckily it was muffled behind the brunette's large tanned hand. Tai had saved me from embarrassment and after that I grew grateful for his 'suggestions'.

The movie that had followed was pretty funny and gave my heart a break while exercising my stomach muscles. Also, no one watched that movie as intensely as they had watched the horror flick and spent a lot of the movie talking with each other as well.

Hikari had talked quite a bit about projects she was receiving in her classes and about teachers she thought acted weird, at least weirder then her high school teachers had been. Mr. Yagami and Taichi spoke enthusiastically about sports.

The close bond was obvious between the two which only had me yearning for a second chance with my father. When ever I started thinking about that sore subject Mrs. Yagami would butt in with a cute story of Taichi's childhood, or even of the clumsy things he did when he got his first place. Tai would whine a bit and protest some but I don't think he was really embarrassed about it.

A smile laced my lips as I watched the four, as if in slow motion, dispute with each other about certain happenings of an event. Hikari, across from me, laughed while shouting 'no, no. That's not what happened' over top of her father. The man in question was leaning forward in his seat while trying to offer the true events of that mentioned day. He glanced from me to his wife as she tapped him on his arm demanding he got the story right.

An affectionate smile was shared between the couple before offerings of a kiss. Protests from the siblings filled the air with Hikari shouting 'get a room'. I laughed and turned my attention to the brunette beside me.

He must have known my eyes were upon him because I found myself being held in his gaze not a second later. His eyes shimmered in the television light while he smiled that smile of his.

And like that, the world melted away and I swore it were only the two of us.

And I swore his leg moved that extra fraction of an inch closer to touch mine.

And I swore that his eyes displayed affection that I had never seen before, which made my stomach flutter and my heart melt.

It was wrong, I knew that. I shouldn't be having these feelings… I just couldn't remember why.

The night had drawn to an end a little after midnight and, after our farewells, Taichi and I were on our way.

The night was dark. Clouds covered the heavens and street lights did little to help my sight. I rested my head against the seat as I felt drowsiness kicking in and stared quietly out the window. The drive would be long and staying awake, I knew, would be a struggle.

I tried to focus my attention on objects past the window but couldn't make out anything through the darkness. I turned my head lazily to see if anything in the car would grab my attention but to no success. Finally I considered the harm of just resting my eyes for a second. Only for a second, I remember telling myself.

It was the jerking of the car that had me opening my eyes again. The first thing I noticed was that the car had stopped. The second was that I was home.

I straightened my posture in my seat and yawned. "Fell to sleep, did you?" Tai asked with a lop-sided grin on his face.

I shook my head sleepily. "No… Just," I yawned again, unable to stop myself, "shut my eyes for a second."

He gave a light hearted chuckle. "Sure."

I shook my head and looked at my house while trying to orientate myself. The house was rather lit up on the inside, something I wasn't expecting. "Yukio must be home." I stated before yawning again.

The cheerful expression Taichi held seemed to vanish from his face and was replaced with something else. Though I can't say for sure what it had been replaced with since I had only been just barely alert enough to notice a change at all. "Well, he must be waiting for you then."

I snorted. "I'm always waiting for him so it's about time he waits for me." I sigh and unbuckled my seat belt. "Tai… I had fun tonight. Thanks for inviting me. Your folks are great."

A wide smile spread across his face as his cheerful demeanor came back. "Glad you had fun, though you have to admit the scary movie really got to you."

I laughed lightly and turned to open the door while I hid the small smile that had come to my lips. "Good night, Taichi."

He clicked the lock button and said, "You can't leave till you admit it."

I shook my head and opened the door, the door unlocking the moment I pulled the handle. "'Night Tai."

I shut the door firmly and started heading across the lawn towards the house. I glanced back at the brunette and smiled at him. He smiled back but almost as fast as the smile had appeared it was gone and his eyes went wide. I stopped, wondering where the reaction was coming from and noticed he was looking past me.

I turned my attention ahead but the moment I had the front of my shirt was grabbed and I was jerked forward. I lost my balance and almost fell. I wish I had but instead I found myself dangling from the hand that held my shirt.

I heard the ripping of fabric and was jerked up right till I was on my feet an inch away from Yukio's face. One intake of breath and I found myself choking on the stench of alcohol. I placed my hands on his chest and tried to pull away but I couldn't.

"Where the fuck do you think you've been all night?" I knew Yukio must have been rather drunk that night since he hardly ever swore. He thought swearing was demeaning to his intelligence.

I found myself stuttering out excuses while still trying to pull away but I didn't really know what to say. Now I didn't only feel guilty for taking Taichi up on his offer but I also felt scared of the consequences.

Movement out of the corner of my eye grabbed my attention and I turned to notice Taichi was now standing next to me. He placed his hand on Yukio's, the one that held my shirt, and glared at my boyfriend with ice in his eyes.

"Don't do something stupid," Taichi said, his voice low and dangerous, "Let him go."

On request Yukio had… and turned his fury to the brunette. "You." Venom was laced in his voice. Loathing was evident in every letter of that simple word.

I took a shaky step back, still frightened of the anger I had heard in Yukio's voice and now shocked by Taichi's as well. I lifted my hand and placed it against my chest to try and calm my speeding heart.

"You think you can come to my house and touch my things," Yukio spat and gestured with his head to me. At first I wasn't sure what Yukio was talking about. I figured that Yukio must have seen all the empty food boxes and knew I hadn't eaten alone but I wasn't sure what he meant by touching 'his things'. Nothing was broken and they were my things as well… Of course, at the time, I wasn't thinking straight.

"Your things!" Tai exclaimed. The chill in his eyes grew colder. He balled his fists and I hitched my breath waiting for Taichi to throw the first punch. "I knew you were no good the moment I met you. Hypocrite." The words slithered out through clenched teeth and were meant to bite.

I must have blinked. It must have happened so fast. I'm not sure what happened… not true. I know what happened; I just want to say it didn't because the next thing I remember was Tai on the ground with a bleeding lip.

My hands were at my lips; my brain was shouting to go over and see if he was alright but it was like my feet were tied to the ground. I couldn't move…

Tai brought his hand to his lip and wiped the blood away. It smeared across his cheek. He knew he was bleeding. He could feel it. I knew he could. He narrowed his eyes on the other who held not the slightest bit of remorse.

In one swift move Tai was on his feet, swinging his right fist then his left. The right fist collided with Yukio's left cheek bone, his head snapped back, and he fell off balance and onto the grass. The left fist missed its target and brought Taichi forward and onto his knees.

Anger still powered the brunette while I stood there like a statue and watched as he walked on his knees to the other man. Yukio sat up, blood covered his left cheek, and reached out to Tai's neck as the brunette got close. Hands encircled Tai's throat and pushed him back until he was against the cold hard ground.

Taichi struggled against his oppressor, his tan hands pulling at the fingers restricting his air flow. A flash of light lit in the clouded sky, casting shadows upon the two men in front of me. Shadows that lit all the wrong places on each of the men's faces. Shadows that made them look mad.

Many miles above the ground a drop of water formed and grew far too heavy to remain levitated, so it fell. It passed through freezing air; a layer of ice began to form but as winds began to blow more warmly the bit of ice that was there vanished. The water it was made from expanded as the drop grew heavier and, actually, split in two.

Closer to the ground they came, dropping faster and faster again. Still cold, they splattered against my forehead, one after the next, which woke me from my shocked trance.

"STOP!" I shouted. My feet were freed from their invisible restraints and I ran forward to pull my boyfriend away from the one he was killing.

Porch lights from the houses along the block lit as the neighbors woke and came to see what the hassle was.

"STOP IT!" I shouted again. "You're killing him!" Yukio fell off balance as I pulled at his shirt which gave Taichi a chance to catch a breath, a ragged breath that made him cough, but a breath none-the-less.

A growl game from Yukio's throat as he glanced at me over his shoulder while I was trying to pull him off of Tai. Yukio's one hand went back to Taichi's throat while the other was placed against my stomach while he pushed as hard as he could to get me away.

I fell back as it began to rain harder. "STOP IT!" I screamed, panic taking hold of my insides, twisting my stomach and making me feel sick. Forward, again, I went and wrapped my arms around Yukio's throat and pulled him back. My boyfriend finally let go of Tai and tried to free himself from me.

His hands grabbed my forearms and pulled them away from his neck. He held onto them so firmly I knew they'd be bruised. He kept my arms in his clasp as he turned and stood over me while I kneeled in the mud.

I heard Tai coughing and wheezing and glanced past Yukio to see the other kneeling and trying to regain his breath. The rain was matting all that brown hair to his head and his shirt was clinging to his torso.

Yukio began gripping my forearms harder which brought me back to my predicament. I squeezed my eyes shut as tears stung at the corners of them. "Please, Yukio?" I pleaded quietly. "Tai and I… we didn't do anything. I went to his parents. We watched a movie. That was it." I took a breath as I felt a knot forming in my throat when I heard my boyfriend snort. "I was lonely and just wanted to be with someone… nothing happened."

I felt Yukio lowering my arms and opened my eyes to see him crouching in front of me. "Do you know what time it is?" He said in a rough whisper. "How do you expect me to believe that?"

"You're always back later then this." I said to try and show the fault in his reasons but instead his face grew stern and he let one of my arms go and slapped me. My face turned with the impact and stung furiously.

I raised a hand and touched the sore side lightly with the tips of my fingers while the earlier shock returned. I knew he couldn't have meant that. I knew that he must feel awful for hitting me. I mean, Yukio was just drunk and angry. He's not thinking.

I slowly dared myself to look at him, knowing I'd see sorrow and guilt plastered upon his tanned face… Hoping I'd see sorrow and guilt, but when I found myself staring upon the face of my partner, I was surprised to see he wasn't staring back. In stead his attention was drawn behind him.

"No. Tai." I said as I saw what he was going to do, though my voice was hitched and the words came out so softly that I barely heard them myself. Tai grabbed Yukio's shirt and pulled so roughly that the material was ripped and the sleeve had nearly torn off.

Yukio fell back, letting me go in the process, and was dragged across the lawn by his shirt and away from me. Mud covered his white dress shirt that he wore to the office and I found it odd to see him in such dishevel.

Tai wasn't in any better of shape; with mud covering his clothing, blood streaking his cheek though now being washed away by the rain, and bruises along his neck dark enough for me to see with the dim light coming through the windows of the house and from the open door.

My sore arms encircled my mid section and the acid in my stomach burned and I could almost feel it trying to rise though my throat as the night grew worse.

Yukio reached for the arm holding his shirt and squeezed it, while digging his short nails into the other man's skin until Taichi was forced to let go. Yukio wasted no time getting to his feet and faced the other, though was brought to his knees as soon as he had.

Tai had aimed an uppercut punch into Yukio's stomach and when the other fell to his knees Tai kneed him in the face.

I'm not so sure what happened then. I know they fought some more. Tai fought for me while Yukio fought out of pure rage and drunken stupidity, but I couldn't describe anymore of the violence, though I'm sure you probably don't want to know any more details then you already do.

I do remember how they looked when they were done, beaten and bruised, nothing serious I'm sure, since the police would have called an ambulance.

I assume one of the watching neighbors had called the police, and in a way I'm glad since I'm not sure how bad it could have gotten if someone didn't stop it. Still I hated watching my boyfriend and Taichi being put in two separate cars, bloodied and bruised, the way they were. Neither of the men looked at me. They were both avoiding it. I could tell.

The police had asked me if I was alright and, when I nodded, they left. I remained on my front lawn for a while after that, listening to the sirens fading into the distance and watching as the rain removed any of the evidence that such a night had happened.

One or two of the neighbors had come to ask if I was alright as well but besides from that I was left to myself outside. Lights from the surrounding houses turned off and I was left in the glow of my own home.

I never felt so alone as I did then.

A/N: Okay… so that didn't take too long to get out, did it? ; Sorry for the delay. I couldn't figure out how to have Yamato meet the parents. I tried over and over again and each time I grew bored just writing it so I gave up. Recently, though, I read a review and inspiration came to me and I thought about it. I realized the best way to make the 'meet the parents' scene not so boring is to have a few areas skip in time. It worked and I like it better this way now. So, really the only reason why I continued writing was because of a review I got recently.