Hidden Love Chapter 6

Ken Ichijouji sighed with embarrassment as his mother scowled at the scale below his feet. Ken closed his eyes, wishing he were somewhere else. With...Yolei perhaps. This thought made Ken smile. Though Ken was brought out of his thoughts by his mother's whining.
"Oh Ken dear! You told me you were eating more!" she cried. Ken opened his eyes and faced his mother. He was wearing his light green pajamas and currently had no hat on. The only time he didn't was when he was at home.
It has been a total of six days since the incident and his hair was finally coming. It was no resembling Cody's only slightly longer. It was growing incredibly quickly to Ken's happiness.
"I am eating more" Ken was currently protesting gently.
"then how come you weigh a pound less than last week!" squealed Mrs. Ichijouji with worry. Ken shrugged. He didn't know why he was losing weight. The only possible reason would to be the fact that he has small meals. But Ken was never the person to eat much to begin with. He had a very small stomach some would say.
"Well, I do play soccer mama" Ken tried again. Mrs. Ichijouji was about to start complaining again when the doorbell rang. Ken jumped off the scale and ran to the door. "I'll get it!"
He already knew who it was. His happiness, his dream girl, his angel.
Yolei. She was meeting him tonight and they were going to watch a movie in his living room. His parents had promised not to get in the way. Though Ken had an idea that his mom would be sneaking around trying to listen in on any conversation they may have.
ken opened the door and smiled at a beaming Yolei. "Hi Yolei."
"Hi Ken! Look! I brought some popcorn and pop for us to drink during the movie from my dad's grocery store!" said Yolei, holding up a bag of food.
Ken sweat dropped. "That's great Yolei, just don't show my mom, she was kind of hoping she could make us this giant feast by the looks of it in the kitchen" Ken joked. Yolei giggled. "Hurry, go to my room. Oh, hi Hawkmon. Sorry, didn't see you."
"Quite alright Ken. Is Wormmon in your room?" Ken nodded. Hawkmon followed Yolei into his room while ken went to see if his mom was around. Seeing that she wasn't Ken walked off into his room.
Due to the fact that Ken and Yolei hung around each other so much, Wormmon and Hawkmon had created a friendly friendship. The two of them seemed to be the best of friends just like their partners.
Yolei smiled when she saw Ken walk into the room. However, her smile did not last very long. She suddenly saw in her mind's eyes, Ken getting out his whip and cackling as he pushed on his old yellow sunglasses, as though he was still the emperor.
Ken looked at Yolei with worry. She was looking at him as though she feared him.
"Yolei? Are you okay?" he asked, titling his head to one side. Yolei snapped out of it and shook her head.
"No, I'm okay. I just kind of dazed there for a moment. I'm fine really" she answered. Ken smiled. One of his hands was currently behind his back.
"I have a surprise for you" he said. Yolei gulped.
"Is it a whip?" asked Yolei without realizing it. Ken furrowed his brow in confusion.
"No!" he let it go though and smiled. He held out his hand and let Yolei see what he had. He was holding a beautiful red rose.
Yolei beamed with delight, taking the flower as Ken sat himself beside her. "Today is our one-week anniversary!" Ken was saying. "I thought that you should get something special."
Ken and Yolei smiled at each other and looked into each other's eyes. "That was really sweet of you Ken" she said. Ken nodded slowly. Ken shyly pushed himself closer to her and put an arm around her shoulder. They were really close. Their lips were almost touching.
They kissed.
Yolei was screaming on the inside during the kiss. All those images of Ken as the emperor suddenly flooded her mind.
'You are kissing the Digimon Emperor!' one part of her mind was saying. 'The guy who tortured poor Digimon for the fun of it! The guy who was trying to kill you and the others!'
'No...this is Ken. Not the emperor' another part of her was saying. The sweet kind Ken you fell in love with.'
Listening to her first thoughts, Yolei pulled away, making Ken sit there, confused.
"What's wrong?" Ken asked, worried. His heart was thumping hard in his chest. 'I knew it! She doesn't like me! I'm not good enough! I'm worthless!' he thought to himself.
"I'm sorry. I just can't help but see you as the emperor" whispered Yolei.
Ken's heart seemed to stop right there and then. He could feel his heart being torn into two. She could only see him as the emperor, and not as his true self. Ken.
"But, Yolei. I'm not him anymore. I changed. I thought you understood that" he choked, trying not let the tears come.
Yolei was trying to hold back her own tears. "I know. But I can't stop thinking that your still him and, I think that maybe...this won't work out. I'm sorry. I'll go now. I'll leave you alone. I'm sorry Ken."
With that, Yolei stood and picked up Hawkmon, who was sitting on the floor next to Wormmon, both of them watching with tears in their eyes. The two Digimon said goodbye as Yolei walked out of the room.
Wormmon looked up to see that Ken had crawled up into his bed and was lying down, his face turned the other way.
"Ken?" Wormmon called to his partner. "Ken? Are you going to be okay?"
After several moments of no sound, save for Ken's soft and faint sobs, Ken finally answered. "I don't think so Wormmon."
These words broke the little worm's heart.

Several days had past since the break-up and Yolei had been spending as much time as she could with Kari and the others as she could to help get her mind off Ken. It wasn't really working but it helped. She was going with Kari and the others to watch Davis play at his soccer game. The only problem about that, was that it was Ken's team that they were playing against. This made Yolei really nervous, because she didn't know how he would react to seeing her again. Yolei wouldn't be surprised if he would hate her and treat her cruelly or just ignore her altogether, for she was the one who left him and broke his heart.
Yolei sat down on the stands between Cody and Kari. Although Cody had disliked the idea of Ken and Yolei going out, he had been really supportive the last few days and had been there for Yolei while she was depressed about the break-up.
Their Digimon sat in their laps as they waited for the game to start. TK was currently down on the field with Davis and Tai encouraging him to do well.
"Good luck Davis" said TK.
"Yeah. Something tells me that Ken won't be much of an issue this time. He's probably not in a very soccer game mood and won't do as good today" said Tai.
Davis thought other words. "I don't know you guys. He'll be wanting to vent out his anger on Yolei. So he'll probably be ready to play hard. But I can beat him! That guy hasn't a chance!"
TK and Tai said good luck and sat back up in the stands.
Yolei didn't see ken at first. She didn't really think he'd show. But that was when she saw her raven haired ex.
he was standing in the out part of the huddle for the Tamachi team. His face was neutral. It looked as though he was no longer captain of the team and was listening to his orders on how to play. The coach was telling them to try their best and win.
Davis and the Tamachi captain shook hands and the game began. Everything was running smoothly. It didn't look as though Ken had seen Yolei sitting up in the stands yet.
It wasn't until Ken's eighth score did Ken seem to notice Yolei. He had just gotten possession of the ball when he looked up and froze. Time seemed to have stopped for the both of them. Everyone on the felid was confused by Ken's sudden stop.
Then, without warning, Ken began to run again. He ignored Davis' blocks and kicked the ball as hard as he could into the goal. He scored, but he had hit the ball so hard that the ball went and poked a hole in the white net. This surprised everyone. But when they went to look back at ken, he was running in the other direction and off the field.

"Wow! Did you see that! ken had kicked the ball so hard it caused the net to break!" Davis was saying in awe after the game. After the incident, Ken had fled. No one knew where he was know, but they all assumed he went home. And it was because he saw Yolei. This made Yolei shiver.
"He ran away right after he saw me" Yolei whispered to Kari.
"I'm sure he was just surprised in seeing you. He hadn't seen you since...you know...and it probably just brought back some unhappy emotions and memories. He probably couldn't face it right then" explained Kari. Yolei nodded.
"Yeah, you're right" nodded Yolei. "I just feel so guilty. I did the right thing right Kari?"
Kari shrugged. "I really don't know Yolei. You said that you still thought of him as the emperor right? Well, are you okay with that? Or does it bother you so much that you can't stand to be in the same room with him?"
Yolei shrugged. "I don't know. I supposed I could give it another try, I mean, I do really miss him. And he did make me happy..."
"The you should do it Yolei" encouraged Kari. If he makes you happy then you should do it. Don't be miserable just because of something that happened in the past. Ken is sorry for what he did. he's trying to make up for his mistakes as the emperor and its time you realize, that's not who he is anymore."
Yolei nodded unsurely. "Yeah. I guess your right. I guess I could give it another try. But the question is...will he forgive me?"

Mr. and Mrs. Ichijouji were both worried about their son. He spent all day in his room either crying or sleeping and he was really depressed. They knew why. Ken had told them the next day through his tears. Mrs. Ichijouji had made sure that she was there for her son and hated Yolei for doing this to him. Mr. Ichijouji kept trying to tell him that there would be others.
"Don't worry son. Before you know you'll have to use a stick to keep back all the ladies". Then he's add. "Just like your old dad!"
Ken didn't eat, to the great disappointment of his mother. No matter what Wormmon did, he couldn't make his partner do anything. He tried taking him to the Digital World, but as soon as Ken saw a control spire he went back home and cried some more. Guilt over top of guilt.
There was only one thing that was good about all this. His hair was getting longer and longer with each day. His hair was no down to the tips of his ears. It was thick and curled at the end. Down along the back of his neck hair was growing as well. It was the day after the soccer game Ken seemed to finally revert back to his normal self. he woke up and ate a decent sized meal for breakfast, to the content of Mrs. Ichijouji and Wormmon could finally tell that he was over Yolei. Someone could actually say her name without him going all silent and teary eyed.
That was the day, Yolei stopped by.

The doorbell rang.
"Ken dear! Could you get that?" asked his mother. Ken went to answer the door. When he did, his heart stopped.
Ken and Yolei stared at each other for several minutes before Yolei invited herself in.
"Hey Ken. We need to talk" she said. Ken nodded, not really listening. He was still in too big of shock.
"Ken? Who is it- You! get out of my house! You broke my boy's heart and I don't ever want to see you here again! You leave him alone!" cried Ken's mother.
"Please Mrs. Ichijouji. I just need to talk with ken for am few minutes" said Yolei.
Ken and Yolei walked into Ken's room and sat down on the floor. That was Ken finally got his voice back.
"Yolei...what are you doing here?" he asked.
"Well, I know the last few days have been really hard for you, and they have for me too. And I've been thinking about it lot the last few days and I'm sorry. I think I went a little overboard the other day" she began.
Wormmon watched from the bed. He smiled. He knew the two of them would try again.
"I think we should start over. It was very unfair of me to do that to you. You're no longer the emperor. I know that now" Ken smiled at these words. He couldn't believe his ears. "What I'm trying to say is...will you go out with me again. I really think we can make this work."
Instead of answering, ken kissed her. On the lips. Yolei's eyes went wide with surprise at first, but then she returned the kiss. When they parted, ken answered.
"Of course. This can work. We'll make it work. I know we can" he said. They kissed again. Wormmon was bouncing with joy on the bed. And outside the door was Mr. and Mrs. Ichijouji, spying. They smiled at the two.

It was official. Ken and Yolei were back on. Everyone was happy again. Everyone was currently in the digital world. They were destroying control spires. Stingmon and Halsemon you working together to destroy them, both thrilled for their partners.
Ken and Yolei sat next to each other, wide grins on their faces.
"Look Ken. One by one they are being destroyed. Before you know it, their won't be anymore" said Yolei. Ken beamed at this. He no longer felt guilty for what he had done in the past, because he knew he was making up for it and that the didgidestined forgave him. Except for Cody, but Ken knew he would come around.
That was when ken felt someone touch him on the back. Armidillomon sat behind him. He had de-digivolved like everyone else. They were now taking a break.
"Yes?" asked ken.
"Hi. Um...Cody has something he would like to say to you. He's just too shy to say it" said the mon.
Ken looked over at Cody, who was scowling at his partner.
"Well, Ken. I just want to say that...I forgive you. But that doesn't mean I'm not going to watch you. I trust you, but I'll still be keeping my eye on you" With that Cody held out his hand. Ken shook it.
"Thanks Cody, you don't know how much that means to me" said ken. Cody then walked away.
"See ken. I knew this would work out. It took me a while to realize it but, I no longer think of you as the Kaiser" said Yolei.
"Kaiser? Now I'm known as the Kaiser?"
"The name is just easier to say" shrugged Yolei. Ken nodded. With one last kiss on the cheek, Yolei leaned herself against ken.