Disclaimer-This is Kouichi…with Tomoki right beside me. Tomoki decided he didn't get enough recognition. I have to agree with him. So he's gonna take over for me!
.:Tomoki:. No way, Kouichi! I wanna co-star with you!
.: Kouichi:. …this isn't a movie, Tomoki. I'm not famous, and…go co-star with Takuya!
.:Tomoki:. Anyway! Kaea doesn't own Digimon!
The Competition Begins. How Can They STILL Make Good Food Taste Bad?
"In other words, the entire class can make whatever they want, so we can all cook. If that's okay with R-er…I mean, Ms. Kawai," Kako said hastily as they all walked next door into the cooking room.
Both Takuya and Kouji had been the first to race out of the classroom, with the entire class behind them, following with anticipation.
"What are you going to make, Kouichi?" Kako asked as they entered the cooking room.
Kouichi snorted and replied, "Burgers. Someone has to save people from Kouji and Takuya."
She laughed. "Too true…"
"What should we do, Kako?" Izumi asked with a sigh as she seated herself at a table with her cousin across from her.
"Wait?" Kako suggested. "Oh, yeah, you dumped Junpei, right?"
"Yeah…Takuya's smarter than I thought. Either that or he's dense."
"Dense," Kako laughed. "Otherwise, I'm sure your plan would have worked."
Izumi sighed again. "So what do I do?" she asked.
Kako grinned. "Be the burger tester and say Kouji's burger is better." After a pause, she added, "I was kidding."
"No…that just might work. I suppose I can't be so picky, can I?" mumbled Izumi. "I'll just lie and say Takuya's burger tastes good."
There was a yell from near the stove, "STOP STEALING MY RECIPE, KOUJI!"
Kouji whined back, "But Kouichi! I need help!"
The older twin growled, "Yeah, you do. MENTAL help! Honestly! How can you take perfectly good food and make it taste bad!"
"FINE! I'LL SHOW YOU I CAN MAKE A BURGER!"
Takuya let out a cry of triumph. "I FINISHED! PRESENTING…" Everyone crowded around as Takuya continued, "The Mystery Meat burger! The ingredients are a mystery, but no worries! It's positively delicious."
Kako and Izumi exchanged glances before getting up and picking up a burger.
"I'll see you if we survive," Kako muttered, making a face at the burger.
Gulping, Izumi nodded and murmured to herself, "We can't always get what we want, can we?"
Both girls took a bite, squeezing their eyes shut.
Everyone watched silently, the anticipation rising.
"It's edible!" Kako exclaimed happily, finishing off the rest of the burger as everyone rushed past her to taste some.
Izumi stared at the burger in her hands. "Wow, Takuya, that's a big improvement from four years ago," she commented.
Before she could continue her compliment, Takuya snorted and snapped, "Yeah? Well I can make it better! Just you wait!" Angrily, he stomped back to the stove, determined to make a better burger.
Sighing, Izumi sat down at the table she had previously occupied. "I'll never love again," she moaned to herself. And I definitely won't be eating onions, either. That entire burger was practically pure onions!
"Hah! Takuya's just stupid, impatient, stubborn and dense. Uh…oh…Kouji finished. I'll test this. We can't have you suffering any more than you have," Kako muttered quickly as Kouji ran towards her with two plates stacked with burgers.
"Presenting! Minamoto Family Special!" he exclaimed, placing the plates on the table. "Since it's special, so are the ingredients. Thus, I don't have to tell you what's in it!"
Kouichi walked over carrying a large plate of his own burgers. "I think I stole the 'good cook' genes. Either that, or living with Dad has ruined Kouji's potential. Anyway, after you try the 'Minamoto Family Special,' whatever it may be, make sure to eat one of mine if you start choking," he told everyone else, then went back to make more food.
Kako squealed and dove for the burgers Kouichi made. Just as she grabbed one, Kouji snatched it out of her hands.
"MINE FIRST," he warned her with a glare.
Picking up Kouji's burger with a sigh, Kako eyed Kouichi's burgers. "This sucks," she grumbled, taking a bite and swallowing. The girl stood there for a while before brushing her black hair out of the way. "Kouji, it has no taste," she told him, finishing the rest of the burger. "But it's edible. Takuya's, on the other hand, tasted like onions."
"Oh. Mine was pretty much made up of onions," Takuya notified her. "Onion in the beef, onion in the sauce, onion bread, onion ketchup and mustard…yeah. Everything."
As Kako's hand flew to her mouth to prevent her from gagging, Kouji scrunched up his nose and informed everyone, "Mine was made from smoked fish."
"I think I'm gonna puke," croaked Kako, grabbing one of Kouichi's burgers and stuffing it in her mouth.
"Anybody thirsty?" Kouichi asked, coming to the table with a pitcher of juice, sighing. I have no life. I'm cooking…at school, he thought, suddenly feeling depressed. I should cook some more. I feel depressed…
As fast as she could, Kako snatched the pitcher and ran to get a cup, quickly pouring the juice in the cup and drinking it, coughing for several seconds afterward. After that, she whacked Kouji and Takuya over the head. "YOU TWO SUCK! Why are you still cooking, Kouichi?"
"I was bored," came Kouichi's bland reply. And I'm depressed. That's so stupid.
Ms. Kawai was seated next to Izumi and quietly eating one of Kouichi's burgers. "You were right, Kako. No wonder your brother hates his guts. He's jealous," she mused aloud.
"I know! Hideki can be such a jerk! Why are you still dating him!" Kako huffed in return.
"Hah, what, are you kidding? Ogata's got his eye on me. That means death. Plus, your brother has his good qualities…"
"Like what? Being jealous?"
"He's cute."
Kako stuck her tongue out in disgust. "Ewww…"
"I'M CONFUSED!" Kouji yelled, annoyed by the lack of attention he was getting.
"Let's explain this," Kako sighed, sitting down on a nearby stool. "Izumi's my cousin. Mr. Aizawa's my grandpa. And Ms. Kawai is my brother's girlfriend."
"HOW OLD IS YOUR BROTHER!" Takuya asked in shock.
"Twenty-five? Or…no, wait-yeah, twenty-five. And he doesn't like Kouichi, because Kouichi can cook and sing ten times better than he can!" Kako said, smirking victoriously.
Kouichi through her a glare. "NO. FOGET IT. I ALREADY COOKED."
"Singing and cooking are two different things," she sang.
"NO WAY!"
Kouji cackled. "Hey, Kako, wanna know how to make him sing?"
Tilting her head to the side, Kako walked over to Kouji and nodded as he whispered in her ear. Suddenly grinning, she pointed to Kouichi and yelled, "I KNOW YOUR SECRET!"
"That I'm not related to Kouji? Of course I'm not. Everyone knows that. And he's not really my brother," Kouichi snorted smoothly.
Ms. Kawai laughed. "You two would make a great couple, you know, Kako."
Kako's jaw dropped and Kouichi dashed out of the room. "WHO ARE YOU KIDDING!" Kako squeaked loudly. "BOYS ARE STUPID, DENSE, STUBBORN, IDIOTS!"
"He ran away," Takuya murmured with wide eyes. "We've done the impossible!"
"AAAH! NO WAY!" Kako yelled, running out of the room and bumping into Kouichi on the way out.
As he walked in, Kouichi cleared his throat and headed to the stove without a word.
"Kouichi's not talking! Ms. Kawai is amazing!" Takuya yelled in amazement.
Kouji snorted. "You don't need to do play-by-play's. We know what's going on," he told the goggle-head.
Before Kouji could whack Takuya over the head for his stupidity, Izumi ran in between them, a determined look on her face. "Uhm, Takuya? C-can I talk to you?" she asked nervously.
Cluelessly, Takuya nodded, looking to his left. He followed Izumi out of the room and into the empty hallway.
Out in the hallway, Izumi turned to Takuya, more determined than before. "Takuya, what do you think about me?"
"What?" Takuya asked, completely taken aback. "Izumi, what…whaddya mean?"
"When you see me, what do you think?" Izumi repeated impatiently.
"You're a great friend! And…uh…well…"
"Well?"
Before she could see him blush, Takuya turned around and mumbled something.
Izumi stared at him, confused. "I didn't hear."
"I AM GOING TO MURDER HIDEKI!" Kako screamed, running past them and into the cooking room.
Seconds later, Ms. Kawai came out. "Takuya, Izumi, we have to get back to class, now," she told them, walking into their classroom.
Takuya nodded and followed, leaving Izumi behind, wondering. "What's he hiding? Does he hate me that much?" she mumbled to herself as she followed Takuya into the classroom, feeling miserable.
"SHE ISN'T MY GIRLFRIEND, YOU IDIOT!" Kouichi yelled, chasing his twin out of the room. "You even know I'm…uh…"
"You're what?" Kouji asked tauntingly, grinning at the doorway to their classroom. Torturing his twin was amusing. The Master Plan will form a week after our birthday! Just you wait, Kouichi, just you wait, Kouji thought, grinning widely now.
"YOU KNOW EXACTLY WHAT I'M TALKING ABOUT!" Kouichi yelled, chasing his twin into the classroom. If only he hadn't ripped up the contract…
This isn't over. Just you wait, Kouji. Just you wait, Kouichi promised silently as Ms. Kawai announced that Mr. Ogata would know be teaching them Math as soon as she wrapped up her Biology lesson.
After three more fights with Mr. Ogata, avoiding Kako all throughout the day, and nearly ripping and cutting up Kouji's bandana, Kouichi walked home ahead of his friends, his only company the sulking Izumi.
"Hey, Izumi, are you sure you're alright?" he asked for the eighth time after school.
"How come you don't talk to girls?" Izumi inquired curiously.
Kouichi swallowed. "Other than the fact that I find them complex and confusingly hard to decipher?"
Izumi nodded.
"Uh…promise you won't tell anyone?"
Once more, Izumi nodded.
"I'm…afraid of girls."
Izumi's hand flew to her mouth to stifle a laugh. "YOU? AFRAID OF GIRLS!"
Wincing, Kouichi nodded, turning red and looking at his shoes, too embarrassed to face Izumi.
"So…you're afraid of girls. What about Takuya and Kouji? And why are you afraid of girls? Why aren't you afraid of me?" asked Izumi, with many more questions waiting to be answered.
"One at a time!" Kouichi exclaimed, laughing uneasily. "Takuya and Kouji are immature…and…well, at least Kouji is. Takuya is…just…he gets embarrassed, I guess. I just find girls scary. It's my natural reaction at first. But, since I got to know you, you're an exception. Another fact is that I wasn't scared of girls until seventh grade. Up till then, I'd be ignored. Maybe I'm talking too much, now."
Izumi decided to test her luck. "Does Takuya mention me…at all?" she asked, biting her bottom lip.
"Yeah. He says a lot about you. In fact, he never shuts up. Which is why we never pay attention to him. Plus, we don't understand half of what he says, anyway. He talks that fast," Kouichi continued, stopping to tie his shoe. "Why are you asking, anyway?"
"I…no reason."
"You should tell him, you know."
Pretending to be surprised, Izumi looked at Kouichi, who had continued walking and asked, "What are you talking about?"
Kouichi smiled at her. "It's obvious you like him."
"What about you and Kako?" In all honesty, she was curious about their friendship.
Kouichi's smile faded and he shivered. "I told you. I'm afraid of girls…"
"But you like Kako!" Izumi sang, smiling.
He turned red and looked away. "N-no, I don't. She scares me. I could be allergic to girls, I guess. Just like that guy in Zodiac P.I. But I've known Kako since fourth grade, and she's tortured me every single day of my life."
Izumi laughed. "Sometimes, I wonder. Is it that you're too mature, or that you never grew up?"
Shrugging, Kouichi looked behind him. "You think the rest of them went to the arcade?"
"Dare we check?"
The two exchanged looks before grinning as they chorused, "NAH!"
"How about I treat you to ice cream?" Kouichi laughed, reaching in his pocket for his wallet.
That was, until, he realized his wallet was missing.
"On second thought…KOUJI GET BACK HERE WITH MY WALLET!" he yelled, racing in the direction of the arcade.
Izumi winced. "They never learn," she sighed, walking after Kouichi. "Makes me wonder why I still like Takuya. Then again, maybe that is why…"
A/N-
(I AM SO SORRY! I POSTED CH. 2 OF OF BROKEN HEARTS AND JEALOUSY HERE YESTERDAY! I AM SO SO SO SO SORRY!)
.:Tomoki:. She finished Chapter Seven! A miracle!
.:Kouichi:. While Tomoki makes confetti and Kaea figures out why MS Word is saying that 'A' is spelled wrong, I'll go on to say that Kaea only has a page's worth of chapter eight done. How pathetic. Then again, it is her mom's fault. And her own fault. Finish your math homework, Kaea. You have all the assignments till February!
.:Kaea:. SHUT UP Mr. Eyeball head.
.:Kouichi:. That would be Duskmon, thank you very much!
.:Kaea:. Yeah, anyway, I'll finish Chapter eight by tonight, hopefully. Review! Because-
.:Kouichi:. Because you're awesome. You've only said it two billion times.
.:Kaea:. And Wada Kouji is awesome, too! I want Digimon song downloads! .:goes on a rampage:.
.:Kouichi:. While she obsesses…you can review, I suppose. Anyway, Kaea hopes you enjoyed the chapter.
.:Tomoki:. Let's celebrate with Kouichi singing!
.:Kouichi:. PLEASE! REVIEW AND TELL HER THAT YOU DON'T WANT ME TO BE TORTURED! .:edges away from Tomoki:.