Last Edited - 15.12.o5

A/n The previous chapter, I said Daisuke retrieved TK's address from Yolei or Ken…but I decided to change it to Mimi in this chapter. Sorry for in the inconvenience --"

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OFFICIALLY MISSING YOU

Chapter Nine

(By Flipstahhz)

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Daisuke stuffed his hands into his pockets, walking silently along with a broad grin tugging his lips. Everything was going well, everything was close enough to perfect. Not like how it had been going for the past years..

It was such a coincidence that Kari found Takeru. And it was about time too. He had made the correct decision to finally divorce Kari. Not that she didn't make as a good wife…it was just that they never had that special 'connection' nor intimacy a normal wedded couple had. He had so many arguments with Kari over so many years because she simply could never get over TK. Daisuke was relieved that it was all over now. But he sighed, knowing that there was still a lot left to be done. He was satisfied though. There was no more guilt stalked him anymore. There were still regrets tied to his past, but now everything seemed the close to perfect it had ever been for so many years.

He paced out to the street ignorantly, and before he knew it he was on the hard cement ground, groaning in pain.

He had bumped into someone…

"I-I'm really sorry," he muttered in embarrassment trying not to look at the person's eyes.

"Daisuke. What are you doing here"

"Oh, hey Sora! I didn't expect you'd be here of all places," he exclaimed hesitantly as he scratched his forehead feeling rather uncomfortable.

"Yeah, I happen to be here because I lost Ms. Little Kamiya! I've been looking for her for ages…you don't happen to know where she is?" questioned Sora as she tried to control herself from fuming up.

She had been walking around the specific street for almost two hours and she completely restless and exhausted from the scorching heat and not to mention the rushing crowd that had made her trip over a number of times. Her cursed feet were literally killing her for walking about with heels on.

"Kari?" Daisuke laughed his reply, " She's upstairs talking to Takeru!"

"SHE'S WHAT?" Sora let out a strangled growl, " And she told me if she saw Takeru she'd tell me, not leave me stranded out here! Jeeez..After I've been searching around the city for nothing she's been playing Mrs. TAKAISHI!."

"Relax Sor, she wasn't actually playing Mrs. Takaishi, she was just listening to Takeru and my conversation," Daisuke corrected, " So she's not Mrs. Takaishi...maybe soon-to-be."

"So you," her eyes fluttered directly at Daisuke dangerously, eyeing her prey, " Why are you here and talking to Takeru in the first place? HUH?"

"Apologizing Mam," Daisuke replied with his eyebrow arched at the rather scary auburn headed woman.

Sora calmed down. "That's good. And about time you did, Daisuke!"

Daisuke sighed in relief, knowing that she was back to her good side and tried not to put her on her bad side when he asked… " So are you going to wait down here for her or wait outside Takeru's door or something?"

"NO!" her voice exploded sternly. "You're taking me to them right NOW!"

She was definitely a mental case. He didn't know how Yamato could cope with her…

Not knowing whether he had the choice or not, he led her inside the building and up the few flights of stairs.

Suddenly, his cell phone started vibrating in his hands. He pulled out the phone it out, answering the call.

"Dasuike Motomiya speakin-."

"About time you picked up your lousy useless phone! Why ELSE do you reckon a phone is used for, Daisuke?" interrupted an irritated voice on the other line, " So what happened? Don't just stand there and not talk at all, Mr. Motomiya! I didn't give you Takeru's home address for any reason, you know? You should be thankful and show courtesy!"

"I would be thanking you right now, Mimi, if you had given me a chance to talk!" screamed into the phone before Mimi could proceed in jabbering on.

Sora mimicked impatiently to the brunette, "Mimi's on the other line?"

"Alright," Mimi's excited voice settled down on the other line, " So what happened? Are you guys friends now?"

"Yeah, I guess you could say that," Daisuke shrugged, " We simply talked things out and then when I was about leave you won't believe what happened…"

"WHAT?" queried Mimi's loud voice that Sora could hear clearly what her friend was actually saying, " Out with it Daisuke!"

"I was going too say it…" Daisuke rolled his eyes. He had enough two moody girls for the day. " Hikari was listening to our conversation the whole time. She was right behind the door of the apartment!"

"WHAT!" Mimi shouted repeatedly once again, making poor Daisuke force his hand over the cell phone. "I want to congratulate the two right now!"

"But they…"

"No buts, let's go!"

Daisuke immediately obeyed the person on the mobile with Sora left in confusion, but to follow.

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She couldn't help but let a small smile escape her pressed cherry-red lips as her eyes were droning into his.

"So?" he questioned with an equal secretive grin.

"Taker-"

"TK."

"All right…Teekay," she emphasized mockingly then continued shyly, "Do you remember when we were best friends, we were almost inseparable. "

"I don't think I'll ever forget.." nodded Takeru as he motioned her to proceed.

" I always knew or thought of how we were going to grow and be together at the end. But when we both turned into teenagers…I became scared," she frowned. " I was afraid. Why? Because I was afraid you wouldn't share the same feelings I shared for you, the feeling that made me unbelievably warm inside. But I was really afraid and scared of love. I tried running away from it, but it kept coming back and making me rather emotional. If I hadn't been weak, we would have been together after the challenges Daisuke and Taichi put us through."

" Same I…I was afraid. I would think to myself, how could I fall in love at a young age? If I had courage, I would have asked you out earlier," Takeru started blaming himself. " It was my fault too."

Kari leaned forward and held his chin so that he was looking directly at her, " It was no one's fault. What happened, is what happened. You can never change that, but accept it."

As a soft blush began to appear on her soft cheeks, she pulled back her hand.

" Knowing, well believing, that you didn't love me I decided to date Daisuke. I also thought I had no other choice because Tai had told me if I went near you, he'd get people to beat you up. I thought of Tai, in a brotherly way, knew what he was doing and did it for my own good. But deep inside my heart was yearning, knowing he was some how wrong. I definitely didn't want you to get hurt, so I made that decision," she confessed. "So I thought it was time to move on…and not follow my heart."

"And that was wrong. We both did mistakes in our own ways. I almost gave up on you," TK admitted, "And what I did was wrong as too. Dating Catherine was a mistake from the start. I forced myself to love her, yet love is never about force. I'm sorry I didn't believe you about what Catherine was doing behind my back. I took your words for granted, Kari..."

Kari winced, she hadn't been called by her name from him in a long time, but recovered, " There's nothing to be sorry about TK, I would understand for you not to trust me after all that has happened. But TK… quit blaming yourself already!"

"How'd you find me anyway?" TK responded back as he walked out to the porch, with Kari closely behind him.

Next to him, the girl pointed down to the dead petals below, " I saw you here, dropping the petals. I had a hunch…and I followed it."

"Just like that?"

"Yeah.." she replied simply.

Silence leapt upon them both so Kari got up from her chair, her face was drawn with nothing but uncertainty. She pushed herself towards Takeru for an unsure kiss.

TK withdrew back.

"Why?…" She stammered, " I thought you loved me…it's Catherine isn't it?"

Takeru shook his head then reasoned waving his palms about, " I do love you Kari, as much as I'll ever know...but"

"Why?" she repeated again. " But what?"

TK reassured the brunette as he saw tears blur in her eyes, making his heart wrench in horrible pain.

" I just find it not right that you should press yourself onto me when I know you and I are not ready yet to start this relationship. We've both changed a whole lot and we need to get to know each other once again before becoming serious…but I am certain this is the correct path if we do this. We don't want to screw up again. Let's just take this one step at a time. I don't want us to do anything that we are to regret. We've both been through enough to witness more unwanted drama."

" You're right," Kari resisted the tears and nodded in agreement with a brave smile, hiding her embarrassment, " Sorry for being a bit aggressive. But I thought you wouldn't want me if I didn't give you a hint or something…"

TK grinned, the same cheesy grin she had seen a lot of times. He slowly placed his lover's head on his lap and began stoking his fingers through her hair affectionately. Kari was finally with him, and that was all that mattered.

"When the time comes," he whispered in her ear making her serious face beam, " We've still got years to catch upon. When we are ready Hikari Kamiya. Let's not rush this. You're worth more than that…"

They both huddled up next to each other in the sofa, enjoying every second with each other until there was a sudden knock on the door.

Kari shook her head with an irritated moan, " Coincidence or is this a jinx, Takeru?"

"TK," he smirked correcting her as he got up, making Kari's head drop onto the cushion, " Or Teekay. Never call me Takeru."

Rolling his bright astonishing eyes, he thrust the door open to see an auburn headed woman and a rather troubled looking Daisuke with his cell phone shaking in his hands.

"Daisuke…Sora?" he groaned yet observed them eagerly to know what was going on. He raised his eyebrow and still welcomed them to his apartment, " Come in…I don't think my fellow neighbors will be pleased with all the people coming in and out of this building all the time!"

He waited as the two came in and shut the door quietly behind him.

Sora's eyes were transfixed at Kari, not even noticing the surroundings, for ditching her in the streets and not telling her where she had been the whole time. She looked as if she could kill with the evil glare she had plastered on her face, but her lopsided smile escaped her for she couldn't resist it, knowing that both TK and she were finally together at last.

Daisuke on the other hand, pushed the phone towards the blond boy in the room whom still had his eyebrow raised in suspicion.

"Who's this?" queried Takeru as he placed the phone to his ear. Even though he didn't know who it was, he was rather hesitant.

Daisuke was about to reply, "It's Mi-"

"DAISUKE PUT TAKERU OR HIKARI ON THE LINE THIS INSTANT!"

TK's hand, that was not holding the phone, flung over his ear for it was throbbing with the loud squeaky noise that had entered his poorly damaged ear.

He answered back quietly, "It's me, Mimi. Takeru. And I beg you to please speak a ounce quieter for I'm getting a headache."

Kari gazed at him in wonder.

"Soo TK!" the other line spoke, "What's happening…are you two getting married already? I knew that you'd two would finally get togethe-"

"Mimi, we're not getting married…I think that's a bit to rash, and way to quick…"

Kari mimicked to him with a questioning look that obviously showed the astounded gesture of…MARRIED? Seriously...where did Mimi come up stuff like... LIKE THIS?

Takeru shrugged as Mimi continued to blabber on about their 'future' wedding arrangements. The blond haired man, still holding the phone, dropped onto the sofa next to Hikari so they both could hear what she was going on about.

Daisuke gave a laugh every time Takeru would give a bewildered expression of awe while Sora on the other hand would shake her head. And that's how it went for the hour…

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NEXT CHAPTERS: A few months have passed. And they are completely certain. Takeru confronts with Kari's parents about some arrangements…then Tai storms in…