Here's another little chapter. Part 1 of the date. Cue awkward Taichi. I promise I'll start to uncover the mystery that is Yuzuki, but not yet. Thanks to everyone who has been reading this. It really means a lot!

Why was it so hard to figure out what to wear? Taichi turned around to look at the mountain of clothing covering his bed. Every piece he ever owned had been thrown out of his closet for inspection. Nothing seemed good enough for tonight.

Leaning against his wall he sighed. Why was he worrying so much anyway? Anything will be better than what he wore the last time she saw him. His hoodie had stains, his sweatpants had holes and he was pretty sure Ryuji dragged him out the door before he could even brush his teeth. After witnessing that disaster, she still wanted to go out with him, so why was he stressing out now? This would be a lot easier with Yamato here, but no, he just had to take Sora out on their weekly movie date conveniently in Taichi's time of need. Trying to think quickly on his feet, he dialed the first person he could think of for fashion advice.

All it took was one ring. "Taichi dear! I haven't seen you in ages! How is college going? Koushy and I are having a grand time! Do you and Yamato want to kill each other yet?" Taichi's eye started to cross, but the voice continued. "Oh, did I tell you that Hikari and Takeru joined the school paper? And their first story is of my theatre debut! That's right, you're talking to a STAR! Now don't be rude dear tell me about you. How is your life going?"

Snapping back to reality, Taichi quickly replied. "Mimi! I don't have much time to talk. I need your help. It's important.."

The other line went quiet before Mimi responded "Oh? My help? Taichi dear, do you need my help with a girl?" She held onto that last syllable for a few seconds too long and Taichi started to regret calling her.

With a sigh he replied "Yes, I have a date. Tonight. And she won't tell me what we're doing so I have no idea what I'm supposed to wear. Can you help me out?"

Taichi heard a giggle from the other end. "Wait, so she planned the date out? Did she ask you out too?" His silence on the other end was enough of an answer for her. Mimi burst into laughter. "OH. MY. GOD. Taichi, you made her ask you out?! I like this girl already. She turned our fearless leader into a scared little kitten. Oh, wait until Koushy hears about this."

Seething, Taichi whispered "So are you going to help me or not because I don't have the time-"

"Oh calm down Taichi, I'm only kidding." Mimi interrupted. "It's cute to see you something other than your obnoxious self. Wear a red shirt. Red looks good on you. And something with buttons, but no graphic tees! Pair it with a some khakis. No football shorts either mister! She won't be able to keep her hands off you!"

Blushing at the thought, Taichi thought about Mimi's advice. "Thanks Mimi" he replied with a smile

"No problem Taichi, now I need to hear ALL of the details afterwards. So I need you to call me as soon as the date is over! And the date better be over tonight because you are a gentleman Taichi and I don't want to remind you what a gentleman does and does not do on a date-"

"Alright Mimi, thank you bye!" Taichi yelled. Throwing the phone to his bed he looked over at the clock. The numbers read 5:15 pm. Crap! They planned to meet up at 5:45. Taking a dive into the pile of clothes he found a red button up shirt, though he's never worn it without a graphic tee before. Taking Mimi's advice to heart, Taichi put it on and buttoned it up. He felt like he was in high school again wearing his old, itchy uniform, but he had to admit Mimi knew what she was talking about and he looked nice. Throwing on his khakis and his nicest tennis shoes, Taichi headed out the door toward their meeting spot.

The practice fields weren't too far away from the apartment and the weather was cooling, which made for the perfect walk. Taichi had a few minutes to clear his head and calm down before meeting with Yuzuki. It was weird being nervous. As far as Taichi was concerned, nervousness was an emotion wasted on him. His crest was courage for goodness sakes! Yes, he had brief periods where his courage faltered, but this was different. This wasn't city-destroying or life-changing in any way. He couldn't potentially die from it, not like that's stopped him before. So why was going on a date with this girl so much scarier than facing Alphamon in an unstable Digital World?

Shaking off his nerves his thoughts shifted to Agumon and how he hasn't been to the Digital World much since classes began. Hikari and the younger kids tend to go weekly, but his schedule is too all over the place to just go. With the state of the world since Meicoomon, it wasn't necessarily a good idea to have the digimon here either. Sighing at his thoughts, he decided to visit Agumon later that week. Maybe he can convince Yamato to come with him.

Arriving at the practice field, he spotted someone sitting up in the stands. Her brown hair was down, flowing well past her shoulders in soft waves. She had a bright blue shirt tucked in neatly to a long floor-length skirt. To top it off, a football sat on her lap. When she saw him approach, her eyes brightened and she waved.

"If your date idea was playing a game of football, I'd say we're both a little overdressed" he chuckled. "Not that I wouldn't play right now."

Giggling she stood up and threw the ball at him. "No, someone left it on the field and I thought about kicking it around until you got here, but football and heels just don't seem to mix." Lifting her skirt slightly Taichi could see her little blue heel had mud on it.

"Didn't stop you from trying?" he asked with amusement in his voice.

"Didn't stop me from trying." Standing up, she grabbed his hand, making him drop the football, and led him out of the practice field. Reaching the sidewalk, she promptly turned left and led the way.

Thrown off by her actions, Taichi said nothing and let her lead, he was too focused on her hand. It was so soft, he felt terrible about his calloused and clammy hand, but thankfully she seemed completely unfazed.

Getting his voice back Taich asked "So. where are we going anyway?"

She spun around to face him. With a wink, she replied "It's a secret."

They continued to walk in silence until Yuzuki stopped. Taichi looked up to see they were at a small restaurant. By the look of the name, it was American cuisine, but Taichi had to admit English was not his best subject.

Looking at Yuzuki, he noticed a guilty expression on her face. "I hope you don't mind. They serve Japanese cuisine too, but I was in the mood for American barbecue. Also, this place is super fast, which gives us time for part 2."

Smiling, almost laughing, Taichi replied "Here's something you should know about me, if it's edible I'll eat it. Let's head in."

Guiding her into the restaurant he was greeted with the smell of something sweet and spicy. It made his stomach growl. The restaurant had a very laid-back vibe, with only 10 tables and a bar. The sign at the front told them to seat themselves, so Yuzuki took the lead and headed toward the back table. It must have been too early for dinner, because they were the only ones there. The waiter quickly approached and took the drink orders before handing them the menus and leaving. Taichi looked at the menu with slight confusion. He didn't recognize half of the pictures, but with Yuzuki excitedly suggesting 5 or 6 items, he decided to be safe and order a simple pork bowl.

Once the waiter walked away with the menus, Yuzuki turned and smiled. Taichi was nervously twiddling his thumbs under the table and when she finally spoke, he jumped in surprise.

"So I don't do this first date thing often, but I think this is the part where we get to know each other. Tell me about the great Taichi Yagami" She started with amusement in her voice.

Laughing nervously, Taichi blurted "Well I can't say I'm all that interesting. I lived in Odaiba growing up, you met my sister, Yamato is my roommate, and I eat, sleep and breathe football. How about you?"

Giggling she replied "Well, you just turned a 30 minute conversation into a 30 second one, but don't worry, my childhood was far from that simple." Looking down, she held a melancholic smile before continuing. "I was born in the states actually. I lived there until I turned 5, then my father took a job here in Japan where I was neighbors with Yamato and Takeru. I stayed in that home until about two years ago when I began traveling a bit and now I'm here. Like you, my only real hobby is football, but sometimes I like to take after my mother and sing a tune."

Taichi stared at her for a moment, trying to understand her reaction, but eventually brushed it off as nerves. "It must have been fun moving around so much. I can't say I've traveled much. I was briefly in France back in middle school, but I didn't really have time to look around."

Her eyes lit up at that statement. "Oh? Why were you there? I've always wanted to go!"

Realizing his mistake Taichi's eyes widened. He couldn't really tell this girl about world-threatening Digimon attacks! Quickly coughing, he stalled long enough for the food to arrive.

"Oh look the food's here! I'm so excited to try this!" He sputtered out.

Yuzuki scrunched her eyebrows in confusion. "You mean you've never had a pork bowl before?"

"I mean I've never had one here." he replied, holding his goofiest grin.

Yuzuki burst into laughter. "Well aren't we adventurous. Hurry up and eat, or else we're gonna miss the second half of this date. And no, I will not tell you what it is."

Starting in on their food, Yuzuki shifted her eyes toward the back window of the restaurant. A series of shadowy movements were followed by a pair of big red eyes peering in on the couple. They were being watched. Yuzuki rolled her eyes, trying to ignore the figure, knowing that she will have to report something soon before the boss starts to retaliate. She looked back at Taichi and smiled, taking another bite of her food and enjoying the moment of peace.