"Kari, come on, open the door," T.K. begged.
"What's wrong? Kari, we're here to help you," Yolei told me.
There was banging on the door, but I ignored it. I couldn't tell them what was wrong. I held myself close. My knees were up against my chest. I was slowly rocking back and forth letting the thought filled my mind. There was more banging, but I still didn't reply.
"Kari! Y-you're scaring me, please, just open the door before my mom comes down here!" T.K. told me.
That only made me cry more.
"Kari, honey, open the door," I heard Ms. Takaishi.
"She won't listen!" T.K. banged on the door more.
The banging startled me. I slightly jumped and started to gasp for air.
"Move!" I heard Yolei yell. I could tell she pushed T.K. out of the way. "Kari, I'm opening the door…Don't worry, everything will be alright."
No, it won't be alright. I forgot to do something I promised myself I would do, and now I can never forgive myself for my stupid mistake. I was being foolish, first, I tried to have the Dark World take me over, then I forgot to tell Davis about what happened. I betrayed him…I betrayed our love, I thought.
The door slowly opened and Yolei stuck her head in. She looked at me and frowned. Slowly, she stepped in and sat by me. T.K. looked in and watched her.
"Kari, what's wrong?" Yolei wondered.
I looked away and gasped for more air.
"Come on, you have to give me some kind of clue."
"Kari," T.K. whispered from the door.
I tried to catch my breath, but I was having problems.
"It's ok Kari, take your time. We're going to be leaving in 30 minutes though," Yolei placed her hand on my shoulder.
I shot a look at T.K. to close the door and get out. He quickly left. Yolei looked at me shocked.
"I forgot to do something after school…Something important. And now, I will never forgive myself for my mistake. I promised myself that I'd tell him, but I forgot to because I was so caught up in coming here. Now, I'm scared that he'll never forgive me. It was my own fault…I let it happen, but…It still feels wrong. I should of told him, now I have myself to blame for what ever may happen when we get back to Japan," I whispered.
"Kari, I'm going to be honest with you, I don't really know who you're talking about, but I have a feeling that it could be a few different people. The past few years have been rough on the group, but you've always had it the worse. You're scared, I know, but you have to make the best of things. You can't just sit here and cry your eyes out," Yolei told me.
I looked away from her. I wiped my eyes, but I couldn't stop my crying.
"Well, we better get going. We have to change still. We'll be leaving in less than 15 minutes now. Kari, try to dry the tears a little. I can tell that this is painful and scary for you…Look at the way you're trembling. Just, try to calm down a little bit. I'll bring you your bag so you can change in here. I'm going to help T.K. get the rest of his stuff together. You can meet us up there when you're ready," she turned to the door and began to leave.
"Y-Yolie…Thank you," I smiled at her.
Yolei quickly got my bag and I quickly got changed. Shortly after that, I met T.K. and Yolei in his bedroom. We packed a few more things for T.K., then we were on our way to the airport. Once there, we quickly boarded the plane. Soon, we were on our way back to Japan. It seemed like a quick four hours. Before we knew it, we were back in Japan.
"Yolei, could you call Davis and tell him that we're back?" I asked.
"Can't you? He is your boyfriend," Yolei smiled.
I gave her an evil look.
"I was joking!" she walked over the pay phone.
"You guys should probably get back home and get settled back down. Don't let us hold you back, we have a couple things to do before we get home," I told Ms. Takaishi and T.K.
"Are you sure you'll be ok?" T.K. questioned.
"I'll be fine. Now, get going."
T.K. and his mom slowly walked away.
"Kari, Davis is going to call Tai. We better get going ourselves. Davis said that he was going to meet up with us and that Tai is going to join him," Yolei explained.
"Davis? Ok," I softly moaned.
We began to walk in silence. After 15 minutes, we met up with Tai and Davis.
"Kari, Yolei, I'm glad to see you girls made it back safe. How was your trip? Did you get T.K. back? Where is he?" Tai wondered.
"Calm down Tai. Our trip was fine. T.K. and his mom are going home to get settled back in," Yolei told the boy.
"Hey Kari, are you ok? You haven't said much," Davis noticed.
"We have to break up," I mumbled under my breath.
"I can't hear you…What did you say?"
"I'm breaking up with you!" I blurted.
"Kari?" Tai softly questioned.
"No," Yolei was shocked.
"You're joking, right Kari? It's just a joke…You're not serious…Right?" Davis demanded.
"I'm sorry Davis, but this isn't a joke…I-I have to go!" I ran away from them.
Instead of telling Davis the truth, I broke up with him. It was stupid, but the only thing I felt I could do. I hurt because of this, and I knew he did too, but I couldn't let him know what happened. So, I ran away from my fear of him breaking up with me, and I did it to him.
I was laying on the bottom bunk of the bed. Tears filled my eyes and flowed down my cheeks. The door to the room slowly opened and Tai walked in. He sat next to me on the bed.
"Kari, why did you do it?" Tai wondered.
"You wouldn't understand…I just had to," I mumbled.
"I'd like to know."
"I'm not telling anyone. I'm sorry, this is one secret that I don't want to tell. I don't care how much it eats me up inside, I won't tell a soul."
"Well, ok then. I'll leave you here to cry," Tai left the room.
I shoved my head in my pillow and let more tears come. This whole thing was tearing me apart, but I had nothing I could do to stop the pain.
"Ah!" I screamed into the pillow.
I pulled myself off of the bed and threw the pillow across the room. It knocked into a picture frame that held the picture Davis and I took over the summer. I slowly picked it up and placed up against my chest.
"I'm sorry Davis…I just couldn't tell you the truth. I wish I did…I wish I could, because I really do love you Davis, and you love me. I never meant to hurt you. I never meant to do anything to you, but like a jerk, I did. One day, I hope that we can at least be friends again because I know right now, you must hate me with all your might…I hate myself for what I did. I was trying to prevent you from a broken heart, but all I did was give you an even bigger one. Hopefully, I can one day forgive myself for my mistake, but what I did was wrong. I betrayed our love and went behind your back. Davis…I will forever love you, even if we aren't together. You're my only love, and I threw that all away," I told myself.
There was knocking on the door.
"Honey, may I come in?" my mom wondered.
"No! Leave me alone!" I walked over to the door and locked it.
"Kari! Unlock this door!" she yelled and banged on the door more.
I sank down to the ground and sat against the door. Another dose of tears came. Again, I started to have issues breathing, and I began to gasp for air. At this point, I had too many things eating at me. The fact that I just broke up with Davis triggered my depression which eats at my mind as well as my heart. There wasn't anymore knocking on the door, and there was no more begging me to come out. I finally thought they let me be, but then I saw Tai on the balcony. He opened the glass door and walked in. Before stepping in, he called for someone to follow him. Tai and Sora walked into the room.
"Hey Kari, I know you want to be left alone, but I can't do that to you," Tai walked up to me.
I gasped for more air and looked away. "Go away Tai. I don't care if you want to see me or not! I want you to leave, you can't help me! What I've done is done, there's no going back. I broke up with Davis, nothings going to change that."
"Hikari Kamiya!" he slapped me across the face.
"Ah! I hate you Tai!" I pushed him out of the open door. Quickly, I closed it and locked it up. Sora was still in the room and she looked at me shocked. I could tell that she was scared. More tears fell from my eyes. I didn't like her seeing me this way.
"I-I'll leave you alone Kari," Sora told me.
I covered my face with my hands. "I'm sorry you had to see that Sora."
"It's ok…You must be under a lot of stress."
"Yeah."
"Want to talk about it?"
I fell into Sora's arms. She held me tight and I began to cry. I couldn't control my sobbing again, and I began to gasp for air. Sora hushed me, but it didn't help.
"Sora, go out into the living room and get my backpack. I want to show you something. I'm going to lock the door, so use some kind of code when you knock," I told her.
"Ok, I'm going to knock once, wait two seconds, then knock two times, then wait another second, then I'll knock three times, and I'll add another knock until you open the door," she told me.
"Right," I nodded.
Sora left the room and I locked the door right behind her. Soon, she began to do the knock. I slowly opened the door and let her back in.
"Did that take too long?" Sora wondered.
"No, it was faster than I thought," I tried to smile, but I couldn't.
Sora sat down on the bed as I pulled out a binder from my backpack. I walked over to her and sat down. I opened up the binder.
"Remember how I told everyone last year that my camera takes pictures on its own? Well, when we had that little party in the gym for T.K., Ken and I went to the Dark World. I found out that my camera took a few pictures. In all of them, there are black marks that look like something flying in front of the camera," I showed her.
She held the pictures. "Creepy."
"But, that isn't the real reason I wanted you to bring my backpack to me," I pulled out a notebook and handed it to Sora. "Don't open it until you get home. Please, don't show another soul."
"I won't, I promise," she softly smiled.
"You better get going. When you leave, make sure Tai knows he can come back in, but I'm going to bed and I don't want him asking me anything."
Sora stood up. "Right." She walked out of the bedroom.
I got up and put my pillow back on the bed. I didn't bother to change or take off my shoes. I just put my head down and began to cry again. I let all the tears flow down my face. I didn't care how much I hurt or how much I gasped for air. I shut my eyes and held them down tight. Fighting to go to sleep, Tai opened the door. He didn't say a word, he just climbed to the top bunk and went to bed. Just like two nights ago, I was tossing and turning. Slowly, I fell asleep. Once again, I didn't dream and I didn't get a good nights sleep. I couldn't stay still and I woke up a lot during the night and each time I was in a cold sweat.
Finally, morning came. I slowly rose from the bed. Tai woke up and grabbed his school uniform. I grabbed my pink dress and my gloves. My hair pin fell out in the night and my hair was a mess. I searched for the pin on my bed. Tai walked up to me.
"Here," he handed me the hair pin and walked to the door. "You can get dressed in here…I'll stay out of your way today." Tai walked out.
"Tai!" I called after him, but there was no response.
I struggled to get dress. As I stood up to put on my shoes, I fell to the floor. I stayed there for a few seconds and held back the tears. Soon, I was dressed and ready to go to school. I grabbed my bag and left early. I was scared about what was going to happen. Only a few people knew about what happened between Davis and me. The scary part was that Yolei wasn't going to be there to comfort me. I walked out of the house and ran to the school. There was no reason to run, but I felt like something was chasing me. Running up to the classroom, I got stopped by T.K.
"Hey, what's the hurry?" T.K. asked.
"T.K.!" I fell into his arms in tears. I buried my head in his chest and let myself break down in tears. I wouldn't hold it back any longer.
"Kari, what's wrong? Did something happen between you and Tai today?" he wondered.
"After you left when we got back…I-I…I-I h-had to d-do something," I stuttered.
"What did you do?"
"I-I br-broke his h-heart…H-he h-hates me!"
"Why did you break up with Davis?"
"I did something bad and I forgot to tell him. I promised myself I would tell him, but I forgot to. I thought if he knew, I'd hurt him, so I broke up with him. Now, I just made it worse."
"Was that what was wrong in America; when you came to get me?"
"Y-yes…"
"It will be ok. Lets get to class before we're late," T.K. pulled on my wrist.
"I can't! He'll be there…And I can't bear looking at him. I don't won't to break down and cry in class! T.K., I can't!" I yelled.
"Just…It will be fine…Don't worry too much," he smiled as we walked slowly down the hall and into the classroom.
I sat myself in my desk and T.K. sat next to me. The door opened again and Davis with the teacher walked in.
"Take your seat Daisuke, I'll deal with this after class," Mrs. Shing told him.
Davis slowly took his seat next to me. I knew he looked over. I knew he was in pain.
"Ok, lets start todays lesson," the teacher began.
I started to zone out and couldn't hear the rest of her lesson. I made a mistake. I betrayed our love…I know in my heart that this was all a huge mistake, but it's done. I can't take any of it back. The Dark World tried to take control of me. I just hope that I can over come all of this. Davis…I'm sorry…I'm very sorry. Please forgive me.
I lost control of my eyes and I looked over at Davis. I looked deep into his eyes and he slowly looked towards me. Davis quickly looked away, but I couldn't. I began to feel sick. My heart ached and I couldn't control myself any longer. I fell out of my desk and fell to the tiled floor in tears. The classroom door opened and slammed closed. I knew Davis left the room.
"Davis! Daisuke Motomiya! Come back right now!" Mrs. Shing yelled.
A hand was placed on my shoulder, another one on my cheek. T.K. was trying to comfort me, but I was too scared. More tears rolled down my eyes. My head started to hurt and I saw a black hole in my head. The darkness grew bigger and I knew what was happening. I was being sucked into the Dark World.
"Davis!" I screamed as I fell into the darkness.
I was surrounded in darkness. I was still crying, and I was still in pain. A white light appeared in front of me as a small, female body formed. I fell to the ground.
"If you're here to take me over, could you do it fast? I'm not in the mood," I told the thing.
"Don't be silly," a soft voice giggled.
"Who are you? What kind of evil are you?" I demanded.
"Evil? Kari, I'm not evil. I am one of the only good things in this place."
"How do you know my name?"
"You created me. I'm your guide…I'm here to help you find your heart."
"Find my heart? What's your name?"
"You haven't named me."
"Huh?"
"Kari, I am a part of your mind just like everything in here is. You created me and you get to pick my name."
"I want you to pick your own name…Something you like."
"Very well, you may call me Manny."
"Manny…"
"Let us begin, we don't have long until you are pulled out of here."
"Does Ken have one of you? What about Davis?"
Manny smiled. "Ken does, but he hasn't created it yet. As for Davis…You are one of the only reasons he was brought into this world. I guess if he really needed a guide, one would be made…But he never comes here unless you're here. That is why you're here…We need to figure out this Davis problem of yours. Please, walk with me."
"Ok," we slowly began to walk.
I was confused why I was in the Dark World and who this girl was still.
"You said something about finding my heart…What do you mean?" I questioned.
"Kari, you lost something very dear to you, and I'm here to help you get it back. It's going to be hard, and I don't have long to tell you about it. Lets just keep on going, soon your mind will figure out what is going on. Don't really worry about it, this journey will explain itself," Manny told me.
"This is too confusing. Can't I just go back to school? T.K. is probably worried sick, and everyone in the class…They're going to figure out my secret."
"Kari! That's not important right now! If you don't find out what's missing from your heart, the Dark World will take over your mind for good!"
"I already know what I'm missing…I'm missing Davis…I'm missing his love and his friendship."
There was a sudden silence between the two of us. Manny looked passed me and then looked away.
"I'm sorry…I shouldn't have yelled. Here, we've made it to our destination," Manny frowned as we reached a tall tower.
"This tower, it's the same one Ken and I saw, isn't it? I haven't been here since that day I told everyone about my depression," I looked away.
Slowly, we walked into the main room in the front. I remembered everything that happened.
"Nobody's here," I said.
"We can put people here," Ken told me.
"What are you talking about?" I was confused.
"Think about it Kari…If we really did create this place, we can make it how ever we want it. Like, let me think…It's really dark in here…Would you like some light?" he asked.
"Sure, but there aren't any lights," I let him know.
"Close your eyes."
"Ok."
"If we want light, all we have to do is think about it!"
"Right, we want light."
"Open your eyes Kari and be amazed!" he instructed me.
I opened them slowly. "That is so creepy! It's as if we think of something it happens."
"It's kind of weird," Ken said as a door opened and something flew out.
"Ah! What was that Ken!" I yelled as I ran by his side.
"I'm not that sure…Now I am…Look Kari…Bats!" he told me.
"I don't like bats! Do something Ken! You can save us…Can't you?" I asked.
"Give me your hand Kari!" Ken reached out and grabbed me.
"I'm scared, so scared!" I screamed.
"Just, stay with me, you have nothing to fear…I won't let anything happen to you. Just stay close…Nothing's going to happen," he said as he held me.
"I don't like this place, not now, not ever!" I cried as I closed my eyes and laid my head on his shoulder. I started to feel safe.
"I don't like this place either," he softly said.
I started to feel something on my head. "What's touching me?"
"It's just me, don't worry," Ken whispered.
"I don't like it here, I really don't," I said weakly.
"Why was this place ever created?" I heard Ken yell.
After he said those words, the darkness started to fade away. I was thinking the same thing.
"Are there a lot of bats in here still? That was the scariest part when Ken and I came here, but Ken stayed right by my side and promised he wouldn't leave me. He's my protecter in the Dark World," I explained to Manny.
"Don't worry, this will bring us to the top of the tower. That is where all the information is held. I want to figure out what happened in here a few days ago…I want to know how the darkness took control of you and how you fought it off," she smiled.
I followed her up some stairs. "I already know how I got rid of the darkness and I know why it attacked me in the first place."
"You're talking about you yelling at the Dark World to take over your mind and the kiss that you gave Ken. Kari, those meant nothing, there are bigger reasons behind this."
"But, how will this help me find my heart? How will this help me get Davis back?"
"Kari, I can't help you with that. I have no control over your love or your life. I told you, I'm just your guide to help you find your heart, you'll be doing all the work."
We made it up the stairs and Manny went to a computer and sat herself down. I fell on the floor and began to cry.
I began to pound on the floor as tears flowed down my cheeks. "I don't want to lose him! I don't want this to happen again. I love him too much to lose him. I don't want to lose Davis like I almost lost T.K., I just can't do it!"
"Good, you're figuring out what's happening and you're starting to find your heart," Manny giggled as she typed on a computer in the tower.
A screen pulled down from the ceiling and an image of Ken and me filled the screen. It was when the darkness took over my heart. I began to cry again.
"Stupid Ken! It's his fault, isn't it? He had to stay that long…He just had to give me that hug."
"He was trying to calm you Kari. You weren't having a good day," Manny told me.
"That's when everything started to happen. Davis and I had a really bad fight and I never said I was sorry. It's my own fault that we're not together right now. I can't believe I'm so stupid!" I yelled.
Manny started to glow with a white light. She slightly smiled. "Kari, you're finally finding your heart. You can't blame other people for something you did by accident. You're a bright girl, you just need to learn that."
"How do you know all of this?" I demanded.
"Beacause I'm a part of your mind, this whole place is. It was created by you and Ken because of your depression. There's not really a darkness, it's just your depression. Davis was only pulled here because of your love for him…It was a threat to this world. His love over powered your depression, his friendship made you happy."
"But now without his love this world is trying to take over again. What about Ken, what will happen to him?"
"He has the love of Jordan protecting him…He has nothing to worry about, that's why his guide hasn't been made. Ken found his heart with the help of you and Davis."
"So, the Dark World is really out to get us?"
"Yes Kari, that's why you have to find someone, something to protect you from this place. You gave up your main protection, you have to find someone else to replace Davis or you have to get him back!"
I stood up and looked her in the eyes. "I will never replace Davis. He's my first and only love. Davis's love will always be with me."
"Kari, I have nothing left to say. You must return to class," Manny vanished.
I could see the light and I knew I was being pulled back into reality.
I slowly opened my eyes and saw T.K. holding onto me.
"Kari, are you ok?" he softly asked.
"I did something very bad. I broke up with Davis, and I really want him back," I whispered.
"T.K., bring Kari to the nurse. She's not looking that good," Mrs. Shing instructed.
"Yes sir…I mean ma'am!" T.K. corrected himself as he pulled me out of the classroom.
"Where did Davis go?" I wondered.
"I'm not that sure. Once you started to cry, he ran out of the classroom…He never came back. I guess it still hurts him to see you in pain," T.K. explained.
"I went to the Dark World T.K., and I figured something very important out. I figured out that I need to get Davis back. I figured out that he was the only reason the Dark World doesn't take over my heart and mind. I need him T.K., I need him back," I frowned.
"Kari, lets get you to the nurse."
"No! I'm not going anywhere…I'm leaving and I'm going to figure out where Davis is. I can't let him do something stupid. T.K., I'm scared, just like I was scared when all that stuff between you and Yolei happened. It's all happening too fast. I'm confused, but I know what I'm doing is right."
"Just give him some time. I'm having a little summer party type thing. I'm planning on inviting everyone to the pool for a little welcome back party for me. We have Thursday and Friday off, so I thought we could do it tomorrow. Please, just give him a day to calm down…You could use one to think about everything too," T.K. pleaded.
"I guess you're right," I agreed.
"Now, lets just stop by the nurse, pull off a lie and get back to class," T.K. decided.
"Right," I slightly smiled as we walked into the nurse's office.
