As I went to upload this, I noticed I had PMs that I hadn't seen earlier. FFN used to email me when I got them, but that stopped for some reason. If someone knows how to turn those back on, I would appreciate it if you could let me know.

As always, thank you for your reviews and messages. Without fail, they remain my biggest sources of motivation.

Paradigm Shift
Chapter 25: Forced Encounters

Tai was trying his best to keep a straight face, but the situation was too funny, and he knew he wasn't doing a very good job. Standing beside him, Sora was pinching the flesh of his back to indicate that he better not laugh. The situation was nowhere near as funny to her.

Sora insisted it hadn't been on purpose, but Tai hadn't failed to notice that she rarely ever wanted to go to his place anymore. When he had brought it up to her, she had said it was because she lived alone, so they had more privacy at her place. He had been very proud of himself for not retorting that they didn't do anything that required privacy anyway.

Apparently not needing extra seclusion today, she had come over to surprise him with lunch and perhaps another walk, and for the first time in the two weeks since she had been back, was forced to meet Megumi.

"Welcome Sora. Come meet Matt's girlfriend," he had started, pretending not to notice her wide eyes or tensed muscles as he dragged her to where Megumi was.

Megumi, who sat on the couch while waiting for Matt to finish getting ready, had looked up with curiosity hearing Tai's voice. Seeing the new face, she stood up instantly, smoothing her blouse and hair in the process.

"Sora, this is Meg. Meg, Sora," he had introduced.

This was where they currently stood, and he watched in amusement as Sora and Megumi attempted to have their first conversation. They stood an awkward distance away from each other, though Sora had leaned against him for support—or just to pinch him to indicate that she was not happy.

Megumi, dressed in one of her endless supply of black and white blouses and skinny black trousers, looked overdressed compared to Sora, who had come over in casual, colourful athleisure and trainers. While he personally did not think anything of it, he knew that Sora was probably not happy about that either.

He had always found Sora tended to get along with anyone easily, whereas Megumi, who was less painful to watch with new people than Matt, was nevertheless not great.

That being said, at the moment Megumi was going through greater efforts to be friendly compared to Sora.

"I heard that you're a fashion designer?"

"I am."

"That's incredible! I love fashion too, but I'd never have the creativity to produce anything myself. I'd love to see your work sometime."

Sora smiled warmly at her, polite but not really attempting to carry a conversation. "I actually design kimono."

"Oh! That's even more amazing!"

Tai knew that Megumi actually did show interest in traditional culture, particularly music like Matt, but in general she usually showed very little reaction, even when very excited. He found it funny that she was trying to exaggerate her responses.

The topic having fizzled out before it even began, even he felt awkward for Megumi as she struggled to keep the dialogue afloat.

"You know, Sora's really close with Matt's ex-girlfriend," Tai offered with a grin to spice things up, even though he could feel the heat emanating from Sora. "She introduced him to her."

He watched the mild surprise on Megumi's face as she fought to contain her response. Behind him, Sora's fingers pinched him even harder. She was strong, and he winced and distorted his back slightly from the pain. She let go.

Megumi forced a straight face. "I see. I'm… sorry about what happened, but in any case, I've heard so much about you, and it's nice to finally put a face with the name."

"Likewise."

Megumi immediately changed the topic and asked what their plans were for the day. Tai listened as Sora and Megumi had a strained conversation about how they were headed for lunch, amused by the awkwardness but also feeling a bit bad that he was finding so much enjoyment in it.

Upon Matt's request, he had indeed tried to make more of an effort to be nicer to Megumi. He had wanted to stay angry with her longer and was disappointed to find that he had been quick to accept her back in his life. At first, he had only attempted to be cordial to relieve Matt's stress, but once he started actually talking to her, he could remember how well they had gotten along. Nowadays, he was having to remind himself to not be too friendly. It made him nervous how easy it became with each passing day to forget what it had been like when she had gone.

Matt finally emerged, and he too looked surprised to find Sora and Megumi together in the living room.

"Hi Matt," Sora greeted as he entered the room.

"Hi," then added, "How are you?"

While Matt had previously never really made an attempt to speak to Sora more than necessary, Tai knew that this was his effort to engage more as a result of him being nicer to Megumi. He thought it was a fair trade.

"Tai and I are going to go out for lunch," Sora answered, her eyes moving with him as he walked over to join Megumi's side. "If you two haven't eaten yet, you're welcome to join us."

Sora had said this, but Tai knew this was just her trying to be nice, and she didn't really mean it. Everyone else in the room knew this too, so predictably, Megumi told her that she and Matt had plans.

Then, unpredictably.

"Let's join them," Matt proposed. Megumi turned to look up at him, her dark brown eyes silently asking him just what the heck he was doing.

"Sure," she agreed, unable to decline.

"Great!" Tai concluded happily, clapping his hands together. He accidentally let out a small chuckle, which nobody returned. "Can we leave soon? I'm starving."

Megumi just needed to grab her bag from Matt's room, and she dragged Matt with her to probably have a similar talk to the one Tai knew was headed his way.

Indeed, the moment they were out of earshot, Sora turned to him with a glare.

"Why did you tell her I'm Mimi's friend?" she hissed quietly.

"Because it's true."

"It's an unnecessary detail, Tai!" She sighed seeing at how unbothered he was and crossed her arms, looking into the direction of Matt's room. "She seems nice enough."

He laughed.

"You hate her," he teased.

"That isn't true! I don't even know her, so I'm not going to make any preconceived notions about her."

"You hate her."

Sora frowned, knowing he was trying to annoy her. "As Mimi's friend, of course I don't like what happened, but if anything that's more on Matt. I can be objective about Megumi's character."

"Whatever, you absolutely can't stand her," he dismissed, flinching as she hit his back. "Ow, you're actually hurting me." He pulled up the back of his shirt and turned to show her. "Am I bruised?"

She pulled his shirt back down. "You're fine. And stop laughing. Can't you control yourself, Tai?"

"I can't help it. It's hilarious."

"It's really not."

"All right, all right. I get it. You're so mature, so you won't get all petty. You're so much better than me." He grinned watching Sora's scowl deepen, then leaned over to her ear. "But you know, if you really want to get back at her, we should get seafood. Meg really doesn't like it."

Matt could tell that Tai was having a good time. He was the only one. This would have bothered him, but he currently felt like he owed Tai a lot and therefore did not mind.

First of all, he was thankful, for Tai had almost immediately changed his behaviour around Megumi. The hostility gone, Megumi now felt a lot more welcomed in their home and was visibly in a better mood.

Second, it was obvious to him now that Sora wasn't a phase, and that Tai was actually serious about her. It was evident to him that the four of them were going to have to see a lot of each other, so he thought it was better to just overcome that awkward phase now instead of putting it off any longer.

He tried to avoid Sora's eyes, who despite always being very nice to him, actually kind of scared him. It wasn't that he disliked her. He found that she had contributed a lot to Tai maturing since they started to go out, which was a positive in his book.

However, he couldn't blame her if she disliked him.

The elephant in the room was clearly Mimi. On some level, he could understand why as a friend Sora would not want anything to do with him or Megumi. He could understand why Megumi wouldn't want to get close to her as well. For the three of them, it was impossible for the atmosphere not to be awkward, but Matt had accepted the invitation on his and Megumi's behalf because he felt like this lunch was necessary.

He realised he was turning into his father, as this was very much like their forced annual family dinners that nobody ever wanted to attend.

This depressed him.

Tai and Sora had made plans to go to a seafood restaurant, so despite Megumi's distaste for seafood and pickiness with food in general, they had agreed. He found a grilled eel ochazuke set on the menu and had pointed it out to her because he knew she could eat it. He picked a raw tuna set for himself because he knew she could eat that too, so she could try some of his.

"You must be really special," Megumi said to Sora while they waited for their orders. "I've known Taichi for nearly ten years, and I've never seen him so in love before."

"That's what people keep telling me," came Sora's response. She looked at him pointedly, running a hand through his hair. "He must have been quite the playboy."

"No, that's not it," Megumi quickly declined—lied, in Matt's opinion. "Taichi's always had a heart of gold."

"Can you stop trying to sabotage me in front of my girlfriend?" Tai asked dryly.

"Ah, that isn't what I meant," she tried to cover.

"It's okay. You don't have to try to protect him," Sora said with a laugh. Tai tried to put an arm around her, and she shrugged him off. "Don't even try."

Tai laughed, and he and Megumi pretended they didn't notice their flirting. He had gone out with Tai and Sora before, and admittedly at the time he and Mimi had been way worse than the two of them. Back with Megumi, however, their dynamic was less affectionate in public.

Another one of their awkward silences ensued, and Matt prayed in his head that Tai would salvage the situation again, the way he had been continually doing since they first left their flat.

Tai, however, was currently preoccupied on his phone with a furrowed brow, which Matt knew meant that he was reading a work email. The straw from his glass dangled from his teeth as he took sips of water in between reading.

"I want to apologise," Megumi blurted suddenly. Matt glanced in her direction, and she was peering over at Sora. "I know you were friends with Yama—Matt's… the woman Matt was dating."

Tai, who usually had tunnel vision when working, choked on his water. Sora began to pat his back and handed him a napkin. Matt touched Megumi's thigh from underneath the table to tell her to stop, but she kept going.

"I feel really horrible about what happened, and even if I can't apologise to her directly, I want to apologise to at least you—"

"Her name is Mimi, and I'm sure if you really want to apologise to her, Matt can you give you her contact information," Sora interrupted, her tone calm but firm. "I'm not her, so you shouldn't have to feel like you need to apologise to me, the same way I don't have any hard feelings toward you either."

Tai saved the situation somehow, but Matt couldn't remember just exactly what he did. He sat, mortified, his face revealing nothing. Megumi sat, likely embarrassed, covering it up by trying to engage more in the conversation.

It was just like his family dinners. No, it was worse than his family dinners. Neither he nor Megumi could finish their meals, and he couldn't get out of there fast enough.

"That was a disaster," Tai joked once they left the restaurant, now having separated from Matt and Megumi. "You know, you could have made it a little less obvious that you hate her."

"I don't hate her."

"You suggested seafood."

"Because I like seafood."

He smirked. "Well, for next time, she also doesn't like lamb."

"My god, is there anything she will eat?" Sora asked with a roll of her eye. She blushed in embarrassment when he laughed, knowing she was being petty, but she couldn't stop herself either.

"You can shit talk to me. I'm not judging you," he assured her with a small nudge.

"Stop swearing."

They had said it in unison, and she glared at him.

"People swear, Sora," he told her in response to her silent reprimand.

She scowled and didn't say anything back, but neither did she shoo him away when he put his arm over her shoulders.

"What do you want to do today?" he asked her.

"You know," she continued, not hearing him. "The way you all talked about her, I thought she was going to be some perfect woman, but I think Mimi is way prettier and more fun, don't you?"

He burst out laughing, this side of Sora such a novelty to him. She turned pink again from embarrassment.

"No comment," he replied.

"You don't agree?"

"I feel like whichever way I agree, you'll be annoyed."

"Obviously, I want you on Mimi's side!"

He rolled his eyes. "So you're telling me that if I told you Mimi is prettier and more fun than Megumi, you won't care, even though you know I've hooked up with her?"

She frowned and stopped in her tracks. She was glaring at him again. "Well, now I care because you had to bring that up. I wasn't even thinking about that at all!"

"See? I told you you'd get mad." He continued walking, and with his arm still around her, forced her onwards with him. "But, yes, I agree that Mimi's way hotter than Meg."

The way he had said it annoyed her.

"But you're prettier than both of them combined," he added to save face.

This annoyed her even further because she didn't believe him.

"Well, in any case," he said to change the subject. "I just don't understand why Matt would want to go back to a relationship like that, but I guess I can't judge him for how he chooses to live his life."

Sora knitted her brows.

"I genuinely think you're prettier than them!" he cried out in exasperation. "I wasn't kidding! You never believe anything I say."

She laughed lightly, slipping her arm around his waist and putting her hand in his hoodie pocket. "That isn't what I'm thinking about. Actually, I…" She knitted her brows again and hesitated. "I think I can actually kind of understand him… Matt, I mean…" Curious by her words, he glanced down and saw that she was looking straight ahead instead of at him. "Haven't you ever loved someone so much that you were willing to look past all of their flaws?"

Now he was the one who was frowning.

"Are you trying to say something about me?"

She laughed again. "No, Tai, not everything is about you."

This did little to curb his confusion. He searched her words to determine what she was trying to say and realised what she was implying.

"Are you talking about your ex-boyfriend?"

She nodded slowly, her head against his arm. "I know it's terrible, but I can kind of understand what Matt must have been thinking."

"Sor, I know you think I have no feelings, but surely you must know that this doesn't make me feel great," he deadpanned, his arm dropping to his side. In doing so, her hand also fell out of his pocket.

"I obviously mean before I met you," she clarified. She raised her hand again to intertwine her fingers with his and gave them a squeeze. He smiled at the gesture, but she was frowning. "It makes me think so lowly of myself, because Mimi is my best friend and what Matt did was so awful, but deep inside, I know that until I met you, I would have probably done the same. Matt only lasted eight months, but I waited three years."

He didn't know what to say. He knew she had gone through a bad breakup. She had alluded to it herself, and Mimi had often rubbed that relationship in his face, but this was the first time she had ever addressed it in any detail since telling him that he had cheated on her. Jealousy wasn't a trait that often came to him, and he wasn't sure whether that was what he was currently feeling. Whatever it was, he didn't like it.

"Are you trying to tell me you still have feelings for your ex-boyfriend?"

"No, of course not!" She stopped in her tracks again, looking alarmed. "Tai, I love you. You know that."

"I know," he muttered. He let go of her fingers so that he could continue walking, and she immediately caught up and took his hand again.

"I don't think about him anymore, Tai. It's just that the ramifications of what he did are still there."

Suddenly, he thought about all of the times he had laughed that day and wondered whether he had been the idiot. He was confused how they had even reached this topic. Wasn't this about Matt and Megumi, not them?

He didn't know what he looked like at the moment, but it couldn't have been reassuring because he could see that Sora looked worried. "Tai, please don't misunderstand. That wasn't what I was saying. I don't think about him anymore."

"I believe you," he told her, meaning it. "I guess for me… I just can't relate. I've never loved anyone that much."

She looked hurt, and he could tell that it was now she who had misunderstood him. He felt himself being petty and childish, but he didn't feel the need to correct himself either. Her hand still holding his, they walked in silence.

"It's cute that this is your first time experiencing love," she said to him finally after a few minutes. He snuck a glance her way again, and this time she was smiling up at him happily. "Tai, where are we going? What do you want to do today?"

"I don't want to work on my CV," he moaned.

"No, let's do something else." She stopped again, using both of her hands to make him stop too. He looked back at her, and she suddenly walked up to him and hugged him across the torso. She squeezed hard, and when she looked up at him, her joyful expression was still in place. "I love you, Tai. I really do."

He stared down at her and seeing her glowing face made him regret what he had said to her. He found himself reciprocating her confession and sneaking a peck to her lips.

"What shall we do?" he repeated aloud, grinning too.

They had walked a few more minutes when he saw a park, and on a whim, he suggested tennis. It was a beautiful day, and he remembered that she had told him previously that she used to play it. He warned her that even though he didn't play, he was good at all sport and would annihilate her.

She liked the idea, and they headed to a nearby court. It was full, so they went to another one she frequented that had an empty spot.

He already knew the general rules, but he let her explain them to him anyway. She taught him how to hold and swing the rented racket, as well as how to hold form. She kept telling him off when he continually reverted back to his natural stance without realising it, and he protested to her that he was still a beginner while simultaneously telling her that he was a natural. At first, she found his premature bragging too arrogant, and she got a kick out of hitting the ball in different directions just to make him constantly run up and down the court. Once he got the hang of it though, their competitive streaks kicked in. They made a bet, and loser had to buy smoothies.

He tried his best, but she was better than him. Even as his body missed, his eyes watched again and again as her serves continued to zoom past him. Sometimes, he'd hit back once or twice, but he suspected she was going easy on him those times. When he finally lost, he collapsed on the court, breathing heavily.

"I can't believe I lost."

"I can't believe you thought you'd win," she countered as she walked over to him. She stretched out an arm to help him up. He took it and hopped up.

He wanted best two out of three, which then became best three out of five. He finally won the third match, embarrassing her with his victory celebration, but then she won the fourth. She declined best four out of seven.

Their competition over, he bought them smoothies from a nearby vendor as promised, then suggested that they sign up for a tennis court membership so that he could practice regularly. He wanted to become better than her, even more so when she teased that it looked like she'd be getting free smoothies for the foreseeable future. He nearly texted his assistant to buy him supplies for his new hobby for Monday, but Sora scolded him and offered to take him shopping instead. Soon, he had new shoes and a new racket, approved by Sora herself and funded by the disposable income that he was setting himself to leave behind.

They were exhausted by the time they got back to her place, and to his surprise she suggested they take a short, lazy weekend nap together. They took turns taking showers, and again she lent him that dumb yellow dinosaur shirt that he was starting to like. This time, they hadn't forgotten to stop by the convenience store in advance to get him clean underwear. He didn't mind though, content that she now didn't seem to mind him sleeping on her bed.

"Yellow's a good colour on you," she said into his shirt.

"Every colour is a good colour on me," he murmured, eyelids heavy as he held her under the covers.

"How is it that your smugness is still on full display even when you're this sleepy?"

He pulled her closer. He mostly said them because he liked her reactions. "I'm going to beat you next weekend."

"If it matters that much to you, I'm happy to let you win."

She was trying to provoke him, but he was too sleepy to be affected. His lack of response made her drop it, and she too cosied herself closer to him. She kissed his chest before placing her hand there, and the weight of her hand slowly faded as he drifted out of consciousness.

He didn't understand Matt. He thought he never would.

But if this was what he had had with Megumi, then perhaps he could see it.

But only just a little.

27 August 2020