Disclaimer-I don't own Digimon.
A/N-Ah, since I'm updating, I'd like to point out, I'm an idiot and would like to dedicate this chapter to a dear classmate. Only, I should have done so last week...and I forgot. Sorry, Kevin.
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Playing Along With The Game
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Shoot...this sucks, Kouji thought miserably as he was paired into Takuya and Kako's group. "Shit," he muttered under his breath. If this keeps going...everything'll mess up. Damn...it...all.
"Kouji, stop spacing out!" Kako snapped.
"Uh...r-right..."
Takuya walked over, glaring coldly at Kouji. "What exactly is the point of this?" he muttered, his eyes flashing away and catching sight of Izumi, stuck in Naoko and Fujitaka's group. Jealously, he looked back at his own group. "Would you two stop fighting? It's ridiculous."
Kouji returned Takuya's glare. "Sorry, Mr. I-think-I'm-better-than-the-rest-now-that-I'm-w-"
Kako frowned disapprovingly. "Kouji!" she cried angrily. "You know-"
"I don't care," Kouji said, suddenly feeling weak as she poked his stomach. This...sucks...
Rolling her eyes, Kako stared at the paper. "What are we supposed to do again?"
"I...don't really know."
"Does anyone?"
The two turned to Takuya, who had already started. "Eh, so, what are we supposed to do?" Kako asked sheepishly.
"Just let me do it," Takuya muttered.
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Hideki leaned against the wall and shut his eyes. "God, that was stupid. The inexperienced clueless idiot was right. Guess he's not that inexperi-Wait...that means he's better than me. No way, he hasn't even kissed anyone! At least...oh great," Hideki groaned, "I'm confusing myself. The world is wonderful today."
"I thought I told you to leave."
Wincing, Hideki opened his eyes and shrugged. "Sorry, Rai, but I was serious."
Rai walked up to him, her eyes full of hurt. Taking a breath, she murmured, "You know the conditions. It won't work, okay? I've told you a million times, and Kako ten million-It won't work. Now please, leave."
Hideki gazed into her eyes before smiling and shaking his head. "I don't care. If this doesn't work, you think anything else will? At least...we have some time. I don't want to be incomplete, anymore, Rai. I hate it. That's how all my work has been since Mom died. And you've been there for me...but...you just won't accept!" he suddenly yelled, pinning her to the wall. "Do you know, it's not just me who actually wants this! Kako does, too! You know, she'd actually be happier away from Dad. I don't even want to call him Dad, anymore. It's sickening, Rai. If we-"
"I told you, Hideki! I'm sorry," Rai snapped. "But it's only a bit longer! You're old enough to move anyway!"
At this, Hideki shook his head. "I wouldn't leave Kako with him for the world."
"So take her away!"
Hideki slammed his fist against the wall next to her. "You don't understand, do you? Taking her away means going back to Tokyo. Do you have any idea how depressed she was there?"
"Yes," retorted Rai.
"You only know half of it," he growled, turning around and walking off. "I can't tear her away from this. She'd hate me. Kako hates this life...but...she has no idea how bad it is. Do you know what it's like to live in the same house as a man who hates your guts and would do anything to get rid of you? She doesn't even know he hates us. She doesn't understand any of it. All she can come up with is, 'Mom wouldn't approve if she were here!' And it's true. But Mom isn't here...and we can't do anything. We could move. We could, the two of us. But she'd still hate me."
Rai shook her head. "Hideki...what happened?"
He let out a better laugh. "Yeah...she hates me. Kind of...relieving, but hard to accept. Maybe she'll like the truth better. Maybe. I like it. I'll see you around, Rai," muttered Hideki, his voice cracking.
Rai frowned. "You are not going anywhere. Because the first thing you'll do is get drunk, and I'm not letting that happen. No, if you get drunk, Kako will start crying. If she starts crying, things get worse. You'll have to help me with today's lesson."
Hideki's eyes widened. "N-no way...Rai, no."
"Sorry, can't be helped."
He jumped as she grabbed his hand. "No! Let me go! Come on, this isn't fair! What are you going to do? Make me twist into a strand of DNA?"
"Good idea!"
"NO! PLEASE! I PROMISE, I WON'T GET DRUNK!"
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Kouichi walked into the class, following Rai and Hideki. Lovebirds. Never seem to separate. Typical.
"Alright, sit down, class! We've got a volunteer today!" Rai announced, pushing Hideki forward.
"HIDEKI?" Kako shouted in horror. Her jaw dropped as soon as he started looking around the room, walking past all the boys and examining them. "Oh...great...just great..."
"Which one's Kanaye?" Hideki asked, glaring at Kouji.
Kouji glared back and pointed to his brother. Rolling his eyes, Kouichi pushed his brother's finger in the direction of Kanaye and muttered, "There. Why?"
"Rai, can I please beat him up?"
"NO," Kako, Rai, Kouji, Izumi, Takuya, and Kouichi shouted, the students standing up in their seats. Then, Kouji, Kako, Izumi, and Kouichi chorused, "I get to!"
Suddenly, Kouichi sat down in his seat and returned to his book. "I mean...the book gets to."
"Oh please, stop being so modest! You're a star, Kouichi," Kouji suddenly snickered. "Remember yesterday?"
Kako rolled her eyes and sat down. "Brothers. The world would-"
"Be incredibly peaceful without them," Kouichi finished, book marking the page and glaring at Ms. Kawai. "That was uncalled for!"
"What? OH...you mean yesterday? Accident. I just wanted a recording. Anyway, lesson of the day! DNA!" Rai continued, yanking Hideki back before he caused any damage. "Now, instead of having Hideki-"
Kanaye suddenly snickered, "Your boyfriend?"
"ACTUALLY," Hideki said with a smirk, snaking his arm around Rai's waist.
"NO." Rai grabbed his hand and turned around, kicking his shin. "Now, we'll have this...imbecile...demonstrate to us the jobs of the mRNA. Well? Go ahead, Hideki." A smile was plastered on Rai's face.
Kouichi shook his head and opened his book so he wouldn't laugh. This would be one long period.
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"Jeez, Hideki, you can be a total idiot!" Kako laughed, popping yet another chocolate into her mouth.
Kouichi frowned. "Kako, stop eating so many chocolates. You'll get hyper."
She glared at him, but said nothing. Instead, she turned to Hideki. "So...did you two talk?"
"Kind of," her brother mumbled sheepishly, turning red and rubbing the back of his head.
"EW, DO NOT TELL ME YOU MADE OUT WITH HER INSTEAD."
"NO! Um...we kinda...more like..."
"Fought," Kouichi finished effortlessly. "Hideki's as bad as Kouji. Only worse."
Kouji walked over, yawning, "What about me?"
"Nothing," replied the older twin.
"Stop talking about me behind my back!"
Rolling his eyes, Kouichi muttered, "Whatever." A second later, he pulled out the book.
"Why are you so absorbed in that book?" Kako snapped.
Kouichi shrugged. "He's a good writer. I like his style."
Hideki nodded and murmured, "Saito was an awesome writer. The best."
"No way!" Kako interjected. "That would be-"
"No stupid author you like could compare to Saito! And that's not even his real name!"
Kouichi turned to Hideki, suddenly interested. "Really?"
Realizing what he had said, Hideki laughed and nodded, edging away from him. "Uhm," he stuttered, looking around. "Wow! I heard Rai call me! Later!"
HE KNOWS SOMETHING! Kouichi's eyes burned furiously. As he took a step to follow Hideki, something stopped him from doing so. "Not...his...real name? Marise Saito's a pseudonym?"
"A whatsi-nym?" Kako asked, blinking. "Stop confusing me even more."
"Pseudonym. A penname."
"Right, right...sure."
"Uh...Kouji?"
Kouji snapped out of his reverie and glanced at his brother. "Huh?"
Biting his lip and turning away, Kouichi muttered awkwardly, "You're...drooling..."
"WHAT?"
Kako rose an eyebrow and regarded the younger twin strangely as he began to frantically wipe his mouth. "Uh...are you hungry or something?"
"Well, let's see...you're eating chocolate right in front of me," he growled.
Smirking, Kako took a large bite of the chocolate bar in her hand. "YUM...and it's ALL FOR ME."
Kouji began to wail, "JUST GIMME A BITE! I didn't have breakfast!"
"Tough luck!" Kako laughed, walking off with the chocolate.
Kouichi shook his head and opened his locker, taking out Takuya's D-Tector. "Soon, Takuya. Soon."
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Takuya mentally sighed in annoyance as Ai continued pestering Kanaye. Will they ever shut up?
"Just give up, Ai! Takuya, you take her to the dance!" Kanaye growled.
"Wh-what?" Takuya uttered in horror. NO! Don't tell me...
"Take. Ai. To. The. Dance!"
"B-but..."
"Are you questioning me?"
"No, but-"
"Then do it and shut up!"
Slinking back in the bench, Takuya examined his life as it lay before him. He was a failure. His stupidity, his overconfident attitude, his immaturity...all that had cost him his friendship, his entire life. No longer was he gaming or slacking during class. He was actually doing homework, struggling for a way to get out of Kanaye's hold.
Ai's eyes widened in rage and she began to yell at Kanaye. The boys merely ignored her and continued what they were doing.
It would be a long day for all of them.
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"Okay...I'm going home, and you're going to the bookstore?" clarified the younger twin as soon as they were let out of school. Kouichi nodded. "Uh...again?"
Kouichi sighed and muttered an affirmation.
"Why?"
Turning to his brother, the boy responded, "Because I want to. And may I inquire why you're asking?"
"Because...you're...my best biggest brother!" Kouji laughed, rubbing the back of his head.
"Uh...right." Kouichi headed towards the bookstore when it occurred to him that Kouji was following him. "What?" he snapped, glaring at his brother.
Kouji shrugged, putting on an innocent face. "Nothing. I just...happen to be going the same way," he assured Kouichi.
Sighing impatiently, Kouichi started to the bookstore again. This time, he ran.
Kouji watched his brother run off, then shook his head. What is he doing there? I mean...so much of his time...in a bookstore? I wonder what he's up to...
There was only one way that he could think of to find out.
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"Kouichi, what do you plan to do with Takuya's D-Tector?" Lowemon asked curiously as Kouichi stopped running, slowing into a walk.
The boy shrugged and replied, "For me to know, you can find out on Monday."
Agunimon began to whine, "That's not fair! Come on, I know Takuya wants to digivolve and kick some Kanaye-"
"That's actually what I want to do," Duskmon interjected coolly.
"Oh, give me a break! Beowolfmon creamed you."
"Yes, but it took a fusion evolution. I simply am a basic, simple, human spirit digimon, and I can take you all on."
"Your oversized ego says that. But your skills should've rusted...like your blades!"
Duskmon withdrew his blades, showing Agunimon by sticking them in front of the fire warrior. "Rust free, thank you."
"Stop fighting," Kouichi groaned as he thought, Lobomon and Duskmon'll be even worse...
"True," Lowemon murmured quietly.
Shaking his head, Kouichi entered the bookstore, heading straight to Mr. Saito. "Sir, would it be possible to move the lesson...?"
Surprised, Mr. Saito nodded. "Very well...we'll start, then."
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He's kidding. AGAIN? Kouichi sat on the bench inside the kendo dojo, crossing his arms unhappily. Great, and out of nowhere, Kanaye'll show up.
"Hey Kou-wai-KOUICHI WHAT ARE YOU DOING HERE?"
Kouichi winced and looked up, his eyes widening at the sight of his brother. N-no...MR. SAITO HAS TO BE KIDDING! THERE IS NO WAY I'LL-
"Yes, you will. Like last time, an hour," Mr. Saito said calmly before walking out.
Desperately, Kouichi stood up with a start and began to stutter, "N-No, wait, can't we just go bug Fuuya again or something?" As soon as the last words came out of his mouth, Mr. Saito walked off. No...way...
Kouji's eyes narrowed on his brother. "Exactly what are you doing here?" he demanded. "What happened to 'going to the bookstore?'"
Through gritted teeth, Kouichi lied, "I was bored, so Mr. Saito gave some advice on where to go for...some...amusement."
Wordlessly, Kouji just dropped his bag and headed to the floor.
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Kouji's pretty good. But apparently...there are better people. Or maybe not, Kouichi thought, wincing as his brother's opponent hit the ground with a loud thud. "Don't kill them, Kouji."
"So are you saying I ought to get killed myself?" Kouji retorted.
Rolling his eyes, Kouichi snapped, "We had a promise, so even if you wanted to, you couldn't. Even if I wanted you to, and I don't. Why are you using the exact same moves?"
"Since when did you know so much?"
"Um...funny thing is, Kako asked me the same question last week!" the older twin laughed, rubbing the back of his head. Is it because I corrected them? Well, Kouji has been doing kendo for a long time...
His brother snorted, pointing the stick at Kouichi. "Since you know so much, let's see a demonstration, okay?" Although he seemed calm, Kouji was having a fit. He hadn't forgotten Kanaye's words from earlier that week, despite his attempts.
Not that he tried very hard.
To his surprise, Kouichi slowly nodded. "If...that's okay...with..."
"Sensei!" Kouji called out, dropping his hand to his side, "mind if my brother borrows a practice stick?"
"Eh? Brother?" A middle-aged man walked over, frowning at Kouji, then turning to Kouichi. "Twins? This is new. You never told me, Kouji."
Kouichi rose an eyebrow curiously. "Wow, usually he brags," he muttered, standing up and walking over. "If it isn't too much trouble..."
"Ah, yes, yes...practice stick...Kouji, go run to the back and get one, will you?" As Kouji nodded and walked off, the man turned to Kouichi with a wry smile. "He seems determined to beat you."
"Oh...how can you tell, sir?"
"Mr. Tsukoshiro or Sensei, not sir, kid. Sir makes me sound old. Which I'm not. Yet. Kouji's always had that feeling surrounding him whenever he challenged someone. You must be pretty tough if he's challenging you..." mused the kendo instructor.
Kouichi looked at his shoes and shrugged. "I...don't really know. I've used a sword a bit...but I haven't actually fought before, challenge or no. Just...simple sparring, I guess."
Mr. Tsukoshiro nodded and muttered something to himself. Out loud, he laughed, "Well, then, we'll see, won't we?"
Nodding in turn, Kouichi caught the stick as Kouji threw it to him. "Okay then, I guess we will see. Do I really have to?" he suddenly asked, taking off his jacket.
"Yes," Kouji responded automatically. "Because you wouldn't want to disappoint your younger brother, would you?"
"Only a few minutes, Kouji. I'm that much older. And you act as if it's years..."
"Shut up and get ready!"
Kouichi sighed and blocked with ease, wincing at the impact. This was nothing new to him, compared to Saito's extreme training. But it was definitely more serious.
Just thinking about it reminded him of the first time Saito offered him lessons.
-Flashback-
Kouichi walked into the bookstore for the very first time, not surprisingly bored. It had been half a year since the Digital World incident, and everyone else was busy. He hadn't ever been in this bookstore before, so he had decided it would be a good idea to check it out.
The very first thing Kouichi had spotted was a book that supposedly was about the Medieval Age. Whoever had written it definitely had a passion for swords, because that was a majority of the book. Yet, for some reason, it had caught Kouichi's eye. He kept flipping through the book until he realized he couldn't put it down. Panicking, he tried to force himself to put the book down, attempting to pry it away from one hand with the other. Eventually, when he flipped to a page to a drawing with blades almost identical to Duskmon's, he dropped the book.
Mr. Saito must have heard, because he had appeared in that area seconds later, staring at a shocked Kouichi in amusement. Kouichi gazed at the drawing in the utter horror, unwary of the bookstore owner's presence until he was tapped on the shoulder. Kouichi turned to Mr. Saito, then quickly picked up the book before apologizing and murmuring, "I didn't mean to drop the book. I...I guess I was surprised...by...the picture. I know it sounds weird, but I can't explain it and...you must think I'm pretty stupid, huh?"
In response, Mr. Saito shook his head quietly, then took the book from Kouichi's hands. "This book," he told the boy, flipping to the drawing, "is one of a kind. A fool published it. He was a crazy drunk, one who collected swords, killing all trespassers with the swords he had. Eventually, he killed himself." While Kouichi stared in horror, Mr. Saito continued, "But that's pointless knowledge. You seem to be interested in swords yourself."
"I...I guess," Kouichi somehow found a voice to answer, however timid.
"Well, would you like lessons?"
Unable to resist the thoughts of wielding a sword, Kouichi nodded eagerly. Mr. Saito handed him a card, then murmured, "Come back in one or two years. Construction will be complete by then."
-End Flashback-
It only occurred to Kouichi now, as Kouji continued to attack relentlessly, that he should take the defensive. Saito's holding back on me, Kouichi thought grudgingly, sidestepping the attack and unleashing one of his own.
Kouji dodged with ease, then swung his stick around, just touching the sleeve of Kouichi's left arm. "N-no you don't," Kouichi muttered, throwing a few attacks at his twin so as to not be backed into the corner. "Try that trick on someone else. And throw in a few new ones. These are getting old."
"Try attacking," Kouji replied as he aimed for Kouichi's arm again.
Kouichi barely dodged, thrusting his stick forward at Kouji's hand. It hit, loosening his brother's grip on his stick. Kouji let go of the stick, eyes wide. "W-wha..."
I...didn't do that...I did not just do that, Kouichi told himself, eyes wide as well. Quickly, he dropped his own stick and headed out the door. "Fluke," he muttered aloud. "It was a fluke."
"Kid, that was no fluke," Mr. Tsukoshiro replied, taking a hold of the back of his shirt and dragging him inside. "Now sit. Saito told you to wait."
Kouichi nodded, pale-faced as he sat down. When he looked in front of him, he locked gazes with Kouji. A wave of fear washed over him, and he quickly slipped on his jacket and took out his D-Tector. Give me a D-Tector to locate. A digimon...anything! My fractal code, just anything, please? Nothing happened. Kouichi slumped back in his seat.
Kouji was definitely going to attempt revenge.
And he didn't even mean it.
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"No, you're kidding."
"It was an accident!"
Junpei let out an exasperated sigh. "Did he look that devastated?"
The other boy said quietly, "I...I don't think he showed it, but..."
"Kouichi, you really know how to dampen a guy's spirits."
"I didn't mean it!" Kouichi wailed, banging his head on the table. When the door open, he lifted his head and murmured a quiet, "Hi," to his brother.
Kouji shut the door, then stiffly nodded. "Kouichi...Junpei...whatever you two are doing."
"Nothing, actually," Junpei replied, leaning back on the couch and letting out a sigh.
On the floor, Kouichi watched the older boy crash into a tree. "And I thought my snowboarding skills stunk," he remarked.
"Well maybe we aren't all as gifted as you," Kouji shot hotly, storming to his room.
Kouichi let out a moan, "See what I mean? It was a fluke!"
Junpei laughed, "You seem to be getting a lot of flukes, then."
"It wasn't a fluke," Duskmon snapped. "It's because you actually bother to pay attention and learn."
"IT WAS A FLUKE!" Kouichi screamed.
"SHUT UP!" Kouji returned.
"IT WAS A FLUKE, IT WAS A FLUKE, IT WAS A FLUKE!" he continued to yell, banging his head repetitively on the table. "IT WAS A FLUKE, JUST SHUT UP, DUSKMON!"
Duskmon snorted and drawled, "If it makes you feel better, you can say I possessed you. But then, that would be a lie. And lying isn't your style."
"You possessed me?" Kouichi stared at the digimon, a crazed look on his face. "See! It wasn't my skill! SEE! IT WAS A FLUKE! DUSKMON POSSESSED ME!"
Lowemon shook his head and muttered, "Only, he can't, because..."
Nodding, Duskmon finished, "You're missing your fractal code."
Kouichi groaned and went back to banging his head on the table. "My life...is forever ruined. Junpei, when can Ritsuo get me three tickets?"
Pausing for a moment, Junpei shrugged and simply said, "I'll ask tomorrow."
"Thanks...I need them by Sunday."
"Done."
Let's just hope it really makes up for this entire mess, Kouichi thought, still banging his head on the table.
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The next day at school, despite the fact that Hideki, once more, walked with them, Kouji remained quiet, walking ahead of everyone else.
"What's with him?" Hideki asked, scratching his head in confusion.
Kouichi shrugged and turned to him to ask, "Why can't you just drive there?"
Grinning, Kako's brother replied, "Why drive when you can walk on such a beautiful day?"
"Why walk when you can drive?" Kako returned smoothly.
"Point taken, but it's too pretty to drive...besides..."
"DON'T say anything. Don't even open your mouth," the girl warned her brother, glaring at him.
Hideki made a face and did as she instructed.
"You're all too slow," Kouji muttered, quickening his pace and leaving the other three behind.
At this, Kouichi stopped and began to bang his head on a nearby wall. "Fluke, fluke, fluke," he chanted desperately, hoping Kouji would feel better during class. "It was a fluke."
The siblings exchanged glances before tearing Kouichi away from the wall and dragging him the rest of the way to school.
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"NO!" Kouichi suddenly shouted, slamming his locker shut. Proverbs, proverbs, give me a proverb! Ah! Flukes are evil! No...Never regret not having a miracle. That's good! Another! Um...I don't know! Nooo! I can't fail! Give me proverbs! Kouichi began to bang his head against his locker, groaning, "Darn...fluke..."
"What happened?" Izumi asked Kako as she walked by, frowning. "He looks so..."
Hideki shook his head and explained casually, "Something good happened, and he regrets it, so he says it's a fluke." He dragged Kouichi away from any place he could whack his head and held a firm grip on the boy's jacket. "So, you see," he continued, "when this happens, you simply...go up to a girl and kiss her."
"Hideki..." Kako groaned.
Kouichi blinked, then looked up at Hideki. "You..." he muttered. Then, he whacked Hideki and snapped, "YOU'RE STUPID! I ALREADY TOLD YOU! I DON'T LIKE HER!"
The entire hall fell silent.
"Who?" Kako finally asked.
"I don't like anyone!" he continued angrily, yanking away from Hideki's grasp. "So just leave me alone! Proverb number who knows what; Interfering with another's love life will lead you to regret."
Hideki fell silent, then shifted uncomfortably. "Eh...well...I tried..." he muttered, watching Kouichi storm off. "The kid just doesn't know what's really good for him." Smirking, he followed Kouichi and sighed, "Rai...fun..."
Disgusted, Kako made a face, then turned to Izumi. "So...did Takuya say anything new to you?"
"Um," Izumi began to stutter as her face warmed up considerably, "W-well, h-he did say sorry after we bumped into each other...and he picked up my notebook too..."
Kako smiled softly at her cousin, then shut her eyes. "Why don't then hurry up and do something already...?"
Her cousin shrugged and murmured, "I guess...we just need to have faith. Kouichi'll do something soon. I'm sure."
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"Who-" Kanaye whirled around before the fist ever reached his face. Grabbing it, he smirked. "A splendid performance, but still not fast enough. What do you want?"
"Sunday," the boy replied, dropping his hand to his side. "The amusement park. Kouichi will be there."
"Oh will he?" Kanaye let out a laugh and chuckled, "We'll have to make sure he wins first place in all the games, then, won't we?"
The second figure snorted, "Just deflate his ego. And hurt him considerably."
"Don't worry." As the boy walked off, Kanaye muttered, "He may not live to see his birthday."
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Starting something you can't finish leads to regret. Regret leads to failures. Start something you're sure you can finish. I give up, Kouichi thought glumly, book open. "Oh well...it's one grade. The first, but...at least I finished math," he said aloud in hopes of cheering himself up.
"You know, you should just admit you like her."
"I don't. Go away, Hideki," Kouichi growled, stuffing his face in the book and shutting his eyes. "I don't like anyone."
Hideki shrugged and took a seat beside Kouichi. "You know...you'll regret that when you actually do date her and I start calling you 'the twerp' again," he commented.
"Shut up. I don't like her. She's Kouji's girlfriend."
"ACTUALLY," Hideki said, coughing slightly. "I have a videotape that might interest you...now, seeing as how cool I am, I installed a security system that constantly tapes-"
"I don't care. I don't like her!"
A frown appeared on Hideki's face. "Oh, come on! You know you do!"
"I don't."
"Fine, fine...I'll let it go now..."
"Thank you." After a pause, Kouichi added, "Now give me some proverbs!"
"Ooh, didn't do your homework?" asked Kako's brother with a grin.
"SHUT UP AND GIVE ME SOME PROVERBS! YOU PUT ME THROUGH ALL THAT TORTURE, NOW HELP!"
Hideki shook his head and quickly wrote down some proverbs for Kouichi. "Ah...and this one," he muttered, writing down one last proverb.
Kouichi stared at the list, frowning at the last proverb as he read aloud, "The one who denies the obvious simply admits the truth. What...? Give me a break! I don't like her!"
"I never said," Hideki replied in a sing-song voice.
"You're implying!"
"Am not!"
"YES YOU ARE!" As soon as I can digivolve, Kouichi thought with a huff, he's going down.
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The day passed by quickly, much to Kouichi's surprise. It took every ounce of his control to restrain himself from inflicting any damage to Hideki. Unfortunately, as soon as they began to walk home, it wavered when Hideki started to tease him yet again, and despite the fact that Kouichi whacked him thoroughly with a biology book, Hideki continued.
Some people just don't learn their lesson. There's got to be a proverb about that, Kouichi thought, desperately trying to ignore Kouji, Kako, Izumi and Hideki as he conversed with Junpei about the tickets. Ms. Kawai had given him another extension for his proverbs, and he had to make sure he spent time to think up some.
"So just tell her!" Hideki sang in an off tune voice.
Junpei shot the young man a strange look, then continued, "Yeah, so Ritsuo can get the tickets by Friday. How many do you need?"
"Three, right Kouji?" the older twin asked loudly over Hideki's singing.
Kouji nodded. "Yep," he muttered, before turning to Kako and asking, "How long will Hideki keep this up?"
"Until he gets what he wants," replied the girl.
"What does he want, again?"
"For Kouichi to confess his love to some girl...?"
Kouji paused, then glared at Hideki. "Oy, old man. Shut up!"
Hideki stopped singing and glared down at Kouji. "Why should I?" he sneered, pulling Kako away and pushing her towards Kouichi. "This doesn't concern you!"
"YES IT DOES!"
Kako blinked and stared at both her brother and Kouji. Noticing this, Kouji turned red, cleared his throat and clarified his sudden outburst with a simple statement, "Kouichi's my brother."
Snorting, Hideki replied, "And Kako's my sister who doesn't need to date you!"
"SO THREE TICKETS BY FRIDAY WOULD BE NICE, JUNPEI," Kouichi said loudly.
Following the act, Junpei yelled, "OKAY."
"GREAT. SO, HAVE YOU HEARD ANY NEWS FROM TOMOKI?"
"ONLY THAT SHINYA'S HEAD WILL SOON BE ON A PLATTER WHEN TAKUYA GETS HIS WAY."
"...ouch..."
"Yeah, I know. Apparently, he ticked off Takuya that much."
"GAH!" Izumi yelled, racing forward and pushing Junpei out of the way. "What do you mean?"
Kouichi laughed and helped the fallen Junpei up. "Ask Junpei," he told Izumi.
Izumi turned to Junpei, a worried look on her face.
"Well," Junpei started, "Tomoki said that Shinya was bugging Takuya about...um...his social life a lot, so Takuya got really annoyed, and now..."
Sighing in relief, Izumi nodded. "As long as it isn't anything bad..."
"That's not bad?" Hideki asked, raising an eyebrow.
Well, it worked, Kouichi thought, turning to Junpei. "Oh, you're taking Takuya's place on Monday, right?"
"Wish I could completely," Junpei muttered, gazing at Izumi. When she shot him a glare, he reddened and nodded. "Yeah."
"Okay. We need Takuya's drum set."
"I have my own..."
"We need TAKUYA'S drum set," Kouichi repeated, slower this time.
Blinking, Junpei turned to Kouji in askance. When the younger twin shrugged, Junpei shrugged and nodded. "Okay."
"So, whoever sees Tomoki or Shinya first, tell them that we'll be coming for the drum set on Monday. Tomoki practically lives there, anyway."
"Okay..."
"But isn't Takuya...overly protective of his drum set?" Izumi asked, worried once more.
Smirking, Kouichi nodded. "Exactly."
-------------------------------------
A/N-
Wow! Two...twenty-ish page long chapters in a row! It's getting more confusing now. It's supposed to.
If you are frustrated because I am stupid and make confusing plots, e-mail/review with your question, and I'll clarify it as best I can. Unless it gives away the story.
Which reminds me, thank you Catwarrior for your opinion. I know the story got boring. I mean, after all, I'm writing it. Er, however, I don't see how you found it...pointless (that I probably couldn't see because...I'm writing it). It would have been nice if you listed some reasons why. But, I must say, almost every story has to have a boring point somewhere. It may be short, it may be wrong. I just realized that after talking to a friend, actually. Sorry that you feel that way, and I don't mean to sound rude...but, no, I won't say what he wanted me to say. That's rude. But hey, everyone's entitled to his or her own opinion, yes? I respect yours very much. Anyway, I hope you are enjoying it now. If you're still reading it...if you are.
And if it's still confusing, well...there are two parts to this. And I did say, 'Ask me a question if you're confused.'
Now, I shall be like every other person and wish that you all have happy holidays!
...I'm very sure you'll like your present. Well, I hope you will. I think you'll like it, anyway.
Thank you everyone who reviewed. Sorry, I can't formally thank you until tomorrow.
Review or Flame.