Chapter 3: Found and Lost

Though he'd decided against meeting Yolei, as midnight neared Ken found himself sneaking out to the terrace. Yolei came out precisely at midnight, walked past his hiding place in the shadows without seeing him, then waited. He saw her clearly through the holes in the screen. She was so close, and so beautiful in the moonlight, but he didn't dare speak.

Yolei was beginning to worry as the minutes dragged by. Either her poetic admirer hadn't gotten her message, or he decided not to meet with her. She whispered a resentful poem.

"Pine, you called yourself,

But are you that plant that waits,

In dark, for the sun?

This lucent moon reveals

Colors not quite so constant."

He clenched his eyes closed. If only she were here for him, instead of Tora. He answered with a poem:

"You berate the pine

For its complicated hues,

O, Wisteria?

Violet, lavender, or white:

The very color of love."

She started and looked around. She turned and realized the voice had come from the other side of the screen. "I seem to be up against a superior poet," she commented.

"I've had a lot of practice," he whispered.

Even in the pale light of the moon, he saw her blush. The color of her hair in the moonlight seemed supernaturally beautiful. "So," she said because she could think of nothing else, "Do you have a girlfriend?"

He winced. How could he answer that? "If I did, would I be here?"

"Well, I would. Be here, I mean. Even if I had a boyfriend right now, I mean." She was nervous, and consequently rambling. "Not that I'm...you know...I just think if someone finds someone they like more than whoever they're with at the time, then they should break up with them so they could be with the person they like more, because they won't be completely happy with their old relationship anymore, so they'll break up eventually anyway. Know what I mean?" Before he could think of a way to answer, Yolei continued, fully aware of how stupid she was sounding and wishing she could stop saying things that would sabotage this chance. "But then, I do get crushes a lot that just go away as soon as I see the next cute guy. I've had crushes on all of the digidestined boys I've met, for example—Izzy, T.K., Matt, Tai, Michael, Yuri, Willis, Cody, even Davis!"

Her omission hurt more than her words. Ken tried to hide it from his voice when he answered. "At least there's one you didn't name. That demonstrates some level of restraint."

Yolei frowned. Who did she leave out? Then she remembered. "Oh, you're talking about him. That's not restraint, that's...just beyond the limits of my aspirations."

"What do you mean by that?"

"'Out of my league' is an understatement when it describes him. I'm so privileged to just be able to call myself his friend, how could I possibly even ask for anything more? He's so handsome, he's a genius, he's perfection itself. And it's true that I used to dream about him when I only knew him from TV, but then I found out...that didn't last, and then after he...after I really got to know him I realized how unworthy of him I am." She turned away. This meeting had suddenly become less fun. Here she was going on and on about the boy she could never have and ruining her chances with a good-looking poet who was interested in her. She decided to leave before she embarrassed herself more. "I'm sorry, I just became very sleepy." She didn't look back when she left, going around to the back door to get away as fast as possible.

Ken sat in the dark for several minutes thinking about what she said about him.

No one was in any hurry to get up the next morning. They were, after all, on vacation. Not surprisingly, Izzy and Tsukiyo slept in the latest.

Kari, Mimi, and Yolei decided to take a walk through the woods before breakfast. It was a pleasant and sunny morning, though wisps of clouds crisscrossed the sky high above.

"How did your meeting go last night, Yolei?" Kari asked.

"I'd rather not talk about it."

Kari offered her a sympathetic smile. "That good? Well, at least you tried."

"I made such a fool of myself, as usual."

"Don't say that. I'm sure..." Kari trailed off. She couldn't think of anything to be sure of that would cheer Yolei up.

"Was it really Tora?" Mimi asked.

Yolei slowed her step. "Actually, I didn't see him. He kept in the shadow and only spoke in whispers."

"What did he say?

"I'd really, really rather not talk about it."

Kari and Mimi both frowned. If Yolei didn't want to talk about it to her friends, it must have been disastrous. They decided not to bring up the subject again.

When they got back to the cabin, Kari saw T.K. out on the terrace and left her companions to spend some time with him.

"How did you sleep?" Kari asked amiably.

"Fine, except for Davis's snoring," T.K. answered. "I don't think Tora got much sleep at all."

"Why not?"

"The snoring," he explained. "I think for a while he was seriously considering stuffing a pillow in Davis's mouth."

Something didn't add up. "Who was the last one asleep?" she asked.

"Ken, probably. He went downstairs for some reason at about midnight. I fell asleep before he got back."

"Hm."

"Why do you ask?"

"No reason," she said quickly.

"Well, there has to be some reason you're interested. Why don't you just tell me?"

"Because it's none of your business. Honestly, it's not really my business, either."

"But now I'm curious, so you have to tell me."

"Forget it." She began to go inside.

"Is something wrong, Kari?"

"Of course not. I'm fine."

"I mean...is there something wrong with us? We used to be best friends, but now you won't even talk to me."

She turned to him with a shocked expression. "You're blowing this way out of proportion."

"Am I? Why do I get the feeling you're trying to keep me at a distance? And I'm not even talking about today; I mean the whole time we've been dating."

She sighed. "We're on vacation. I don't feel like talking about this right now." She went inside, then upstairs to the deserted girls' bedroom, and started crying.

Yolei found her a few minutes later. "What's wrong?" she asked.

"T.K. and I had a fight."

"I'm sorry. I'm sure he didn't mean it."

Kari shook her head. "I think it was my fault."

"Then I'm sure T.K. will forgive you."

She sniffled. "Really?"

"You bet. Everyone has fights with her boyfriend. It's a natural part of having a boyfriend. Believe me, the next time you see him, whatever you fought about won't even be bothering him."

Kari's tears subsided and she gave her friend a small smile. "Maybe you're right. It was just our first fight. We can work it out."

"Exactly."

Dark clouds rolled in a little after lunchtime, and a few minutes later fat raindrops began splashing against the windows.

Davis and Tora were playing chess to pass the time. "What's it like to have a digimon?" Tora asked.

"It's great," Davis replied. "A digimon is the best friend you can imagine. Sure, you have to save the digiworld sometimes, but it's totally worth it. It's like..." he struggled to find the right words. "It's like the digimon is a part of you, and knowing that makes you feel...more...real."

Tora looked out the window. "I would love to have a digimon," he said.

"Maybe you will someday."

A tree branch broken by the wind suddenly banged against the window, causing them to jump and knock the chess board into disarray.

"Hey, guys." They looked up to see Tai at the door. "We're all meeting in the living room to play games."

Once they all gathered in the living room with a fire blazing in the fireplace, the dark rainstorm outside only served to make the cabin feel cozy. They decided to play charades, and only when they divided into two teams did they notice they had an odd number: someone was missing.

"Where's T.K.?" Kari asked.