Disclaimer: (still holding book of things I own) I don't think Digimon will be in here, no matter how long I hold this book, ya know…
Well, I was kinda bored, and I had just watched episode 46 in the dub where Takuya says he likes Zoe, and I kinda remembered this fic... So I decided to put the 4th chappie. Kinda fast, though... ('Kinda' is my word today P)
I'm not gonna do that 'what happened in the last chapter' thing…but to sum it up; Izumi has no choice but to walk home with Takuya. And I have decided that Chiaki goes with Terou…because Katsuharu was too busy bullying Tomoki (meanie) and their spirits spent most of their time together. Hikari, I'll leave for now… Oh yeah, and Tomoki's not here…for now. He gets to be friends with Shinya later. Shinya's cool…
Izumi brushed a hand through her golden hair, "Um…thanks for the offer, Takuya, but I…" Izumi halted at the sight of Takuya getting his puppy dog eyes, ready to use. Akechi used to do that… There was no way… it was probably a coincidence. Yeah, that was it…coincidence.
She looked over Takuya's shoulder, seeing Hikari talking to both Daisuke and Takeru. She turned her head behind her, seeing Chiaki sending Katsuharu off with Terou looking utterly lost, blinking at her. And Kouji was off giving Kouichi his work.
Takuya was rubbing the back of his neck nervously, staring at his shoes, "Yeah…um…I can see that you're busy and stuff. So…I'll see ya 'round, buddy…right?" he said uneasily. He really had no clue what he was doing anymore.
He lowered his arm back to his side, then turned to walk away. Izumi eyes scanned over the ground rapidly, then bit on her bottom lip. This felt so familiar, in a way. The way she felt when she had hurt Akechi the first time, and how it was his fault that he was depressed.
Pure guilt.
"Takuya!" she yelled out at last. The brunet turned and looked at her again. He nodded his 'yes', telling her to continue. Izumi sighed. It was Akechi and the donkey all over again. Well, she remembered that when she first saw Takuya, she felt that he was easily broken.
She went over and linked her arm with his. Takuya looked outright lost at her movement. He blinked a few times in his confusion, hoping that she would explain this to him soon. Didn't she just say she wouldn't go with him? Now this? He didn't mean to use reverse psychology on her…or to make her feel like she had to.
"So…" Takuya began. He could hear his own voice cracking as he spoke, "I take it you do want me to walk you back?" he gulped, and cleared his throat, trying to keep himself together.
Izumi nodded diffidently. Takuya could only laugh quietly at her.
"So let's go." Takuya started walking, with Izumi staying beside because of their linked arms. Although the brunet was confused at why she gave into him just like that, he couldn't help but feel a similarity or feeling in her that he easily sensed, but he couldn't pin it down as yet.
Izumi smiled to herself. She was going to give up on her theory that Takuya was Akechi. Although there were noticeable similarities, Izumi couldn't…force him to remember her like that, no matter how crushed she was that she had lost her first and best friend, who was also a possible love interest for her. She felt that because of their similarities, she could use Takuya to replace Akechi for her, so she could have her best friend back. That seemed selfish.
Izumi was not selfish! She loved and cared about others!
Satisfied with that, Izumi smiled warmly again, subconsciously clinging tighter to Takuya's arm who merely turned his head to see her, finding that she had closed her eyes in relaxation. Again, Takuya couldn't help but smile at her.
"Hey, you mind if we just go to the marketplace? I gotta get something for my brother." Takuya asked quickly.
Izumi looked up at him, and pondered over that with considerable trepidation. She shook her head. Her mother wouldn't mind anyways. She'd just say that Izumi was 'making new friends'.
Whenever Izumi asked her mother what she meant by that, she always avoided the question, in hopes of not depressing her daughter with the memories of Akechi.
Takuya shocked Izumi by smiling genially instead of flashing her a cocky grin like he would usually do. He pulled her over to some of the stands. She loosened her grip on him, to let him browse around the items freely. He reached over and picked up a blank book, flipping through the pages with consideration.
"Hmm, this'll do." He smiled to himself, forgetting that Izumi was right beside him.
The blonde looked over to see the book, "Huh? That's it? I doubt your brother's gonna learn something with that." She put her hands on her hips.
Takuya pushed the book into her face, "He's not gonna read it, girl, he's gonna write and draw in it." (1) He held the book about chest-high from himself so he could look down at it, "He always does that. He's just running out of books nowadays."
Izumi nodded, "I see…" she began looking through the items while Takuya rang the book up. When he was done, put the book in his bag and glanced at her from the corner of his eye.
"You…want something?" he asked cautiously, startling her.
She looked over at him. Was that an offer? She shook her head, "Um, no, it's fine."
Takuya surveyed her emerald eyes for a bit, then transferred his gaze down to the bracelets she was looking at earlier. He smirked back up at her, "You're not very good at lying."
"Ooh?" she asked in wonder as Takuya reached over, picking up the bracelet.
"I suppose this is it?" he dangled it in front of her.
Izumi's eyes followed it, then made contact with his hazel eyes, "Yeah, but…you don't have to—"
Takuya halted her by whipping around, putting the bracelet on the counter, still smirking, "Ring this up for me, will ya?"
The cashier nodded, despite Izumi's objections. The cashier handed the bracelet, in a small red rectangular box, back to Takuya. Takuya grinned, thanking her and gave the box to Izumi.
"Here ya go."
Izumi looked down at the box, flushing a bit. Takuya's grin softened to another warm smile. She put in it her bag. Takuya raised a brow at her.
She noticed. "I…don't wanna loose it." She assured him.
He nodded, the sniffed the air, "Hey, do you smell food?"
Izumi looked around, sniffing the air to see if he was right, "No…"
"Well, I do, c'mon." he pulled her wrist, going over to a food stand.
"Ramen?" Izumi asked, watching Takuya order a bowl, "You smelled ramen?"
Takuya grinned at her, "I like ramen…" he said obviously.
"I can see that." Izumi said in return. Takuya was handed the bowl and the chopsticks. Izumi shook her head at him, "We'd better sit down…" she dragged him over to a bench where the pair sat down.
Takuya eagerly separated the chopsticks, starting to eat. Izumi sighed. The brunet glanced over at the blonde.
"Want some?"
Said blonde quickly began objecting, "Oh, no I—" Takuya shoved some ramen in her mouth. Izumi swallowed quickly and started coughing, pounding a fist to her chest to get some air.
"Oh…sorry." Takuya apologized, hitting her back.
Izumi sighed in relief as she swallowed it down, "Are you crazy, Kanbara? Are you trying to kill me?"
Takuya put his hands in front of him in defense, "No, I didn't mean to."
Izumi eyed his expression, then sighed in defeat.
"I promised I wouldn't hurt you, remember?" he asked, eating more of the ramen.
Izumi's eyes shifted around suspiciously, "When did you say that?"
"In the letter." Takuya smiled cheerily, going to throw out the stuff. Izumi groaned and followed him, "Ooh a fruit stand!" Takuya grinned at the fruit stand near the garbage he threw his stuff out in.
Izumi's eyes went over the fruits there, seeing Takuya go over to the apples.
"Want one?" Takuya asked, showing her an apple.
"Um…" Izumi hummed, staring at the apple, then to his smiling face, "on second thought…yeah."
Takuya nodded. "Two." He said. He tossed one to Izumi, "here."
Izumi probed over her apple with her hands nervously, staring down at it. (A/N: Kinda like what Jasmine did to the apple Aladdin gave her in the movie…when she was pretending to be a commoner… at Aladdin's place…looking over the palace…yeah)
Takuya stood beside her, tossing his apple in the air, catching it with his other hand, smiling. He tossed it up again.
"Takuya?"
"Eh?" he asked as his apple landed on his head, then fell into his hand.
"Why'd you do all that stuff for me?"
Takuya looked at her in confusion, "Was it a bad thing?"
The blonde shook her head, "It's just that…" Takuya raised a brow at her, "never mind…"
Takuya shrugged, "All right, then." He smiled, tossing his apple in the air again. It landed on his head and stayed there. Izumi looked at him and giggled.
"Idiot, try it…" she went over, moving the apple from his head down to the back of his neck, "there."
Takuya chuckled at her, "You think this is a challenge? I do this all the time!" he claimed.
Izumi's eyes looked shocked, "You do?"
"Yeah," he smiled, taking the apple off the back of his neck, "in soccer."
"Oh." Izumi sounded dejected, turning her head away.
He reached out and touched her shoulder, "Why?"
"It's nothing…" Izumi folded her arms, facing away from him.
"Izumi." Takuya said in a firm voice.
Izumi shook her head, "You just…you wouldn't understand."
"Try me." Takuya demanded.
Izumi bit on her bottom lip again. She never told anyone but her mother… Hikari didn't know…not even Kouji knew. And she trusted Kouji over anyone and she still didn't tell him. She barely even knew Takuya, and yet she was going to tell... But, she felt like she knew Takuya since she was born. She felt like she could trust him... If she told Takuya, how would he react?
She sighed, giving in, "Okay…"
Takuya seemed shocked at Izumi's story. But she didn't say the name…
"Did this kid have a name?" Takuya asked when she was done.
"Um…I forgot it." She lied.
Takuya looked confused, "Well, he's your best friend. Surely, you would remember his name…"
"Was." She corrected, "He was my best friend."
He nodded, placing an affectionate hand on her shoulder. Izumi looked up at him, surprised. Izumi stared at him for a while, then buried her head on his shoulder. Takuya tilted aback, wondering what to do with his hands.
Takuya put his arms around her, like he was hugging her. He glared at the staring people around them.
"Go away, jerks, nothing to see." He told them firmly. Izumi didn't hear; she was in her own world.
Takuya bit his lip, looking down at her. Why did this feel so familiar? This never happened before.
"And the horse said to thedonkey..." Takuya said randomly.
Izumi's eyes shot up, then looked at him. "What?"
(1) – In the dub, Takuya called Izumi (Zoe) 'Girl' in the second episode, and I just put that there… Also that in the beginning of the first episode, when Takuya's racing out of the room, Shinya's lying near a pile of books and what looks like crayons, so I just made him write and draw in the books…for the heck of it.
I tried making them nice to each other in this chapter, especially Takuya, because of what Takuya's supposed to do later. And the way Izumi's acting in this chapter is kind of based on Terra from Teen Titans…randomly, though. Part of her's also based on Aeris from Final Fantasy VII, because she noticed the similarities between Zack and Cloud, trying to replace Zack with Cloud because of that. (Izu doesn't die though...)
Yeah, no Kouji, Chiaki, Terou, Katsuharu, Hikari, Kouichi, Junpei, Daisuke or Takeru in this chapter. They don't really matter that much; they're just...there.
Y'know, I just realized that I've been using Katsuharu's dub name when everyone else has their Japanese name...I was supposed to be calling him Yuki! I'm an idiot...boy, I feel stupid...In every fic I write, I mess up someone's name...oh well.
Yah, I know it's kinda short, but I was side-tracked! I'm gonna go watch episode 46 where Taki says he likes Izu again. (I'm obsessed with that)
Please go review now!
