Disclaimer: I don't own Digimon.
A/N: Sorry about the wait. You won't see another update till hopefully next week and more often. Please review!
My Best Friend's Girlfriend
Chapter 16: Secrets Don't Last Forever
Tai Kamiya
Tai slowly entered the lunch room, and he glanced nervously at the table that he and his friends usually sat at. It was located in the centre of the room, and so far Yolei and Izzy were the only two who had bothered to show up yet.
He let out a sigh of relief and managed a weak smile. He really did want to fix things with Matt, but he was hoping that he would not have to face his best friend again until later that day when they were alone in his apartment.
At least that way there'll be no one around to watch me screw everything up!
He also did not want to run into Sora again.
I can't believe that she doesn't realize how I feel about her! It's so obvious! Well, at least I think it is. What is wrong with everyone, including Matt? I thought they were suppose to know me inside and out!
His conversation with Sora had almost ended in disaster. When she had kissed his cheek, it had taken all of his self-control not to kiss her back. He had been so close to telling her that he was in love with her, but his loyalty to Matt had stopped him from making a huge mistake. Unfortunately he did not know how much longer he could keep his feelings hidden until they ending up exploding out of him.
There's only one thing left for me to do. I'm just going to have to make sure that Sora and I are never left alone together in the same room. That way I won't end up betraying Matt and ruining our friendship beyond repair.
It was a sad thought, but he did not really have a choice anymore.
For a moment there, I could have sworn that Sora was trying to tell me something important. If I didn't know any better, I'd say that she was hiding something. She was acting really weird when I saw her earlier. It was almost as if she was trying to tell me that she really does care about me after all...
"Tai! Over here!" Yolei shouted, waving her hand to get his attention.
He quickly sat down across from her and Izzy, and they both stared at him with interest.
I'm so stupid. Of course Sora doesn't care about me. She's in love with Matt, and it looks like she always will be.
"Hey, Tai," Izzy said, glancing curiously at him.
Yolei continued to stare at him, and he frowned. "What?"
"Tai-"
Tai held up a hand to stop her and let out a sigh. "I'm not going to tell you why I lied to Matt, so don't bother asking. If you really want to know, ask Mimi or Sora. I'm sure that one of them will be happy to give you some sort of explanation."
Yolei crossed her arms and glared at him. "Is that all you have to say for yourself?"
"It doesn't matter what I say," he murmured. "Things are never going to change, and I'm going to have to accept that."
"Tai, are you okay?" Izzy asked, looking concerned.
"I'm fine," he muttered.
"Will you please tell me what's going on?" Yolei shouted. "I know Mimi went to your apartment last night, but that's about all I know. How am I suppose to ask her anything when I haven't even seen her all day? Even Sora hasn't seen her. Do you think she might be avoiding us?"
"Why would she be avoiding us?" he asked, staring at her in surprise.
Yolei shrugged and gave him an impatient look. "I don't know. That's why I'm asking! I thought it might have something to do with you and what went on at your apartment last night."
"No way," he replied, shaking his head. "I didn't tell Mimi anything. She doesn't know anymore than Sora about what's going on."
"Which isn't much!" Yolei shouted. "Sora doesn't have a clue about what has been happening between you and Matt because you won't tell her anything!"
"Exactly!" he shot back. "So what makes you think that I'm going to tell you anything?"
Yolei glared at him and banged her fist on the table. "Sora's really upset, you know. I talked to her earlier today, and she thinks that Mimi's avoiding her!"
"Why would Mimi be avoiding Sora?" he asked, feeling confused.
"I have know idea. I thought you had something to do with that, too!" Yolei replied.
"No way. I have no idea what's going on between those two," he replied. "You'll have to ask Mimi about that."
Izzy suddenly put a hand on his arm, and he turned to look at his friend in surprise.
"Tai, I just have one question," Izzy said, gazing into his eyes. "You do still care about Matt, right?"
"Yes," he said simply, and Izzy nodded.
"Good," the computer expert murmured. "That's all I needed to know."
Tai stared at Izzy in surprise and frowned.
What's going on with him? Does he know something about Matt that I don't know? According to Mimi, Izzy has been spending a lot more time with Matt than usual.
"Mimi!" Yolei suddenly gasped, looking over his shoulder.
Tai turned in his seat and spotted Mimi walking towards them. Her face was very pale, but she managed to give them all a weak smile.
"Mimi, where have you been all this time?" Yolei asked, motioning for the older female Digidestined to take the empty seat across from her. "I've been looking all over for you!"
"Sorry," Mimi mumbled, wrapping her arms around herself and avoiding Yolei's eyes.
Tai stared at his female friend in surprise and frowned. Mimi's eyes were red, and she looked like she had been crying earlier.
"You were suppose to tell me all about what had happened at Tai's apartment yesterday!" Yolei complained.
Tai gave the younger Digidestined an evil look, and Yolei made a face at him.
Mimi stared at her feet and did not reply. She looked like she was lost in thought, and Tai was pretty sure that she had not even heard a single word of what Yolei had said.
"I saw Sora earlier today, and she's really upset," Yolei continued, staring hard at Mimi's face. "She thinks that you've been avoiding her."
"I'm not surprised," Mimi said softly, her amber eyes filling with sudden sadness.
"Have you been avoiding her?" Yolei asked.
Tai glared at Yolei, and he put a hand on Mimi's arm to get her attention. "Mimi, are you okay?" he asked, giving her a concerned look.
Mimi glanced nervously at the lunch room door and bit her lip. "Where are Matt and Sora?"
"We have no idea," Izzy replied. "I haven't seen either one of them all day. They could be anywhere."
"Anywhere but here!" Yolei snorted. "You'd think that they could take a few minutes out of their busy schedules to come join us for lunch!"
Mimi let out a sigh of relief, and Tai jumped as the rosy haired Digidestined turned to look at him.
"Tai," she whispered, gazing tearfully into his eyes. "I need to talk to you."
He stared at her for a moment, and his heart filled with sudden fear.
Why is Mimi so upset? Has something happened to Matt and Sora? Has she finally figured out what's wrong with me?
"Please?" Mimi whispered.
"Alright," he said softly. "Let's go outside."
He got out of his seat and quickly wrapped his arm aorund her. They were about to leave when Yolei's voice stopped them.
"Hey! Where do you think you're going?" the lavender haired Digidestined shouted.
He glanced at Mimi, and she gave him an anxious look.
"We're going to go see if we can find Matt and Sora," he lied, avoiding Yolei's eyes. "We'll be back in a few minutes."
Yolei looked ready to say something else, but he quickly pulled Mimi out of the lunch room and let out a groan.
"Is it just me, or am I developing a bad habit of lying to people?" he muttered, taking Mimi's hand and leading her outside.
Mimi remained silent, and he pulled her over to a picnic table that was sitting next to the soccer field. Luckily Tomo and the rest of his teammates were nowhere in sight.
Mimi quickly sat down on top of the table and pulled her legs up onto the bench.
Tai stood in front of her with his arms crossed, and he gazed nervously into her eyes.
"Now, what's wrong?" he asked, feeling uneasy.
Mimi slowly looked up at him, and her eyes filled with sudden tears.
"Tai, I know why you lied to Matt," she whispered, staring directly into his eyes. "You're in love with Sora, and you know what? I know exactly how you feel because the exact same thing is happening to me."