Disclaimer: I am making no profit for this little fan endeavor. Motomiya Daisuke, Catherine, and any other Digimon character appearing in this are the sole property of Toei Animation. I promise to return them in mint to near mint condition.

Author's Notes: This story is being based (And originally posted) in a LiveJournal community called 52 Flavours. Fifty-Two themes, one for every week of the year. I decided to put my bid in for Daisuke and Catherine. If you don't think you can handle the idea of the pairing, that's okay. Just, don't go flipping out over my fic. Go find something that you'll actually like to read.

Fifty-Two Flavors

Theme 38. Hard, But Much Truer

On Thursday night Catherine left her packed suitcases out in the hallway. As Daisuke stared at them before going to bed, he thought of them as rude reminders of what the next day would bring. Childishly, he willed them to go away somehow, or at least burst into flames. Not that it would change things, but it would make him feel better.

Nevertheless, Friday arrived and the owner of the bags was at the airport awaiting her flight home. Both Takeru and Daisuke were there to wish her a goodbye. The others had said so the day before, so now the three of them quietly sat.

He knew he shouldn't, but Daisuke felt like an intruder. Catherine herself had asked him to see her off, yes, but she was still Takeru's guest. She had been Takeru's date for the Sakura Festival. She was Takeru's girl. Well, sort of. Himself? Well, Daisuke was just supposed to be... What was he supposed to be again? He wasn't sure anymore.

Catherine sat silently in between the two boys, her fingers twiddling together in her lap. Floramon sat by her legs, every so often murmuring something in French for her partner's ears only.

"So, Catherine," Takeru began, breaking the silence, "you had a good time in Japan, right?"

"Ah, yes!" she replied, a bit startled by the sudden noise. "I like this country very much, Tah-kehroo."

"Good." The blonde boy nodded, not bothering to look at her. He wore a serious expression, and it made Daisuke wonder just what his friend was thinking.
"But I bet you're glad you're going home."

"Well, yes," Catherine cautiously nodded, she herself picking up the odd tone in Takeru's voice. "I am a bit homesick. But I was treated very nicely here by everyone."

"Yeah, I know," his gaze suddenly shifted. "Daisuke, you'll miss Catherine, won't you?"

"What?" The begoggled boy nearly jumped out of his chair like he had been electrified.

"You heard me," Takeru said, tone flat. "You'll miss her, right?"

"Tah-kehroo..." Catherine frowned.

"Uh, yeah," Daisuke begrudgingly admitted, rubbing the back of his neck nervously. He had the sudden urge for fresh air. "I-I guess I will. I mean, we all will."

"Yeah, but," Takeru sighed, propping his elbow on his chair's arm, and leaning his chin on his hand, "you'll probably miss her more than I will."

Catherine gasped, and Daisuke fumed next to her. "That's rude, man!" he declared, waving a fist.

"Not really," The blonde boy said, shrugging. "I'm only stating the truth." He turned to his brown eyed friend. "Right, Daisuke? You will miss her more than I will."

Daisuke felt a chill run down his spine, as Catherine stiffened beside him. "I don't get what you're going for."

"I think you do. You both probably do," Takeru turned away from them, staring out the window ahead. "I'm not an idiot, you know? Unlike you, Daisuke, I don't need things to be literally smacked into my face before I understand what's going on.
"You've been avoiding me for the last two weeks, Catherine. Avoiding me to spend time with Daisuke, right?" He let out a soft laugh when she sputtered, and continued before she could answer. "Yeah, I figured. I realized something wasn't right when Yamato saw you guys once on his way to band practice."

Daisuke thought his blood had run cold. Why did he feel like he had completely betrayed his friend? Catherine wasn't Takeru's girlfriend. She wasn't. So why did he suddenly feel like the scum of the earth?

"You just confirmed all my suspicions by showing up here, Daisuke," Takeru explained. "It made no sense that you'd want to see a houseguest off, unless there was something more to it.
"You know, for a while there this whole thing really pissed me off. I mean, you're supposed to be able to trust you friends, right? And I do trust you, Daisuke. I did trust you."

"Takeru, man..." The begoggled boy found his voice betraying him at the worst time possible. What was he supposed to say, anyway?

"Let me finish, okay?" Takeru gave him a quick glance. "Yeah, I guess you could say I've been angry at the two of you. You were my guest, Catherine. And you were my friend, Daisuke. I never thought either of you would do anything behind my back. For all our fighting, I at least thought I had your respect. I had it, right, Daisuke?
"It really doesn't matter in the long run, I suppose," he stood up, shaking his head. "After all, I only invited you as a friend, Catherine. Not fair of me to expect anything more. I guess I just assume too much some times. I never did really ask for your opinion on the matter. I... I don't think I even bothered to think about it. It wasn't right of me to just believe anything without even asking you.
"Hey, Daisuke?" He turned to the brown haired boy, a sad smile on his face. "Is this how you felt about Hikari-chan?"

Daisuke bit his lip, unable to answer for fear of sounding stupid. Beside him, Catherine frowned sadly.

"Tah-kehroo, I-"

"Don't worry about it," the blonde said, beginning to walk away. "I just needed to get it off my chest. Um, besides, it feeds my writer's soul. Or, something like that," Takeru added, giving her a sheepish shrug. He gave her a long look, and saddened slightly. "I just don't like feeling like I missed out on something good.
"Better not screw up, Daisuke!" Takeru demanded, as he waved goodbye. "God knows when another girl will be crazy enough to spend time with you."

The last jab managed to sting Daisuke's pride just enough to get him to shout a half-hearted, "Hey!"

This seemed to please Takeru, and he grinned at his friend. "See ya around, Daisuke." With a final wave, the tall blonde walked away.

The duo remained silent for a few minutes, mulling over the scene that had just passed.

"I... I know he said not to worry," Catherine's shoulders drooped with guilt, "but I cannot help but do so."

"Yeah," Daisuke agreed. His brows were drawn together in thought for a minute. Then, he drew back and sighed, slumping down into his seat. "But that's just like Takeru."

Catherine turned to him. "Hmm?"

"Bottling everything up," he elaborated. "He keeps everything to himself, and then just lets it all out until he feels better. At least, that's what I've gotten used to him doing," Daisuke added.

"Oh. So," she pouted, perplexed, "is he okay? Really?"

"Probably," he nodded, a grin beginning to play on his lips. "If this had really been bothering him, I'd have at least a black eye by now."

She gasped. "He wouldn't!"

To this Daisuke smiled wickedly. "Ya really don't know Takeru, huh?"

"I guess not," she blinked, owlishly.

By Catherine's feet, Floramon yawned. She only could catch a few words here and there between her partner and the Japanese boy, and she really couldn't bring herself to care much about the details. As long as Catherine was happy, which she seemed to be now. The digimon had been wondering if she'd need to teach the blonde boy some manners, since he was making Catherine upset. But he left on his own. Just as well. Her partner was much more interested in the goggled boy.

With a smile, Catherine patted her partner's head, amused at the digimon's ability to settle herself into sleep anywhere.

"So," Daisuke started, staring at the floor, "you're leaving."

It was a statement of the obvious, but one that still needed to be said. They hadn't really wanted to admit it, and having the words in the air made the fact solidify itself in their brains.

"Yes," she nodded, picking at an invisible thread on her skirt. "Any minute now."

"Well, you know," he scratched the back of his head, "it was... nice having you here."

"It was very nice being here."

"I'll write and stuff."

"Good. I will, too."

"Can you write Japanese well enough for that?"

"I guess I'll figure it out as I go."

"Oh. Okay. Good."

Stale conversation, Daisuke realized, was even worse than silence. Especially when you had so many things you wanted to say, and no idea how to say them. So, he decided not to think about it, and just say it. Nothing would ever get done if action wasn't taken, right?

"I'm going to visit," he blurted out, throwing all caution to the wind.

"What?" Catherine's eyes widened, her mouth hanging open in shock.

Daisuke turned to her. "I said I'm going to visit. France. You."

"Do you really mean that, Die-skay?" she asked, expression hopeful.

"Yeah," he nodded, feeling surer of himself with each moment. "Yeah, I do."

"That's... That's wonderful, Die-skay!" With a joyous laugh, Catherine leaned over her chair, and threw her arms around him. "That makes me very happy."

Her cheek was pressed against his own, and Daisuke felt a little lightheaded when her perfume tickled his senses. Somehow though, he doubted the lilac scent was the cause of the dizziness. Blushing, he scratched his head. "It makes me happy, too," he muttered, more embarrassed by the moment.

When she released him she was still leaning slightly on him, smiling brightly. "I have all these different places I want to show you! Oh, I will need to make a list..." she tapped his lips, clearly thinking of all the possibilities. Daisuke found it quite cute.

"Now, I don't really know when I can go, or just how I'm going to get there," he warned her, trying not to get her hopes up. "But I think I can swing it with my parents if I go for the cultural angle. Traveling will probably be the tricky part."

"But you'll come, right Die-skay?" she asked, nervous now. "You'll visit, won't you?"

"I said I would, didn't I?" he grinned. "It's a promise; I won't go back on my word."

"A promise," Catherine agreed, looking happier than she had all day. "Right."

The loud speaker crackled to life then, announcing Catherine's flight to France was boarding. The duo sat there silently for a moment, letting it sink in. It still hurt knowing that she was leaving, but not as much anymore. Not now, when there was something to look forward to. Goodbyes never hurt too badly when you knew there was a hello waiting in the future.