Hey guys!

I knew it would take me some time to upload this chapter but I didn't think that it would end up being four months. I'm sorry, the healing of my hand took way longer than I originally thought it would and I'm still not back at 100% functioning level but I'm getting there.

Also, I felt like I needed some serious break from everything after I wrote all of my exams. (I passed all of them in case you're wondering)

Sometimes you just have to disconnect with the world so you can come back reenergized. I wanted to be the best version of myself before I continued to write this chapter. You all deserve my full dedication to this fic and I didn't want to give you any less.

With that said... here comes chapter 23.

WARNING: lemon included! Read on your own risk.

As always: I do not own digimon but I own my OCs. Please excuse some possible grammatical errors. I edit my chapters several times before I upload them but here are still some mistakes I miss.


My favorite hello

"Life shrinks or expands in proportion of one's courage"

FUTURE MATT'S POV – PAST

"Are you sure about this?" My gaze lingers on the red shining item in my hand before I force myself to look up and lock eyes with my longtime friend.

Her expression is impenetrable and cold but I can see the determination flashing in her eyes. I've known her all my life; this is why I am certain that the huge bomb she just dropped is something she must have been thinking about for a long time. She never was the type of woman who made reckless decisions without considering the consequences and different scenarios that could result from her actions.

Nevertheless I still need her confirmation.

"If something ever happens to me, you and I both know that Tai won't be rational about any decision that will follow."

She surely has a point.

"I still don't understand why you expect that something will happen to you though."

She grinds her teeth, giving away that I'm annoying her with my lack of cooperation. Luckily she decides to explain her plan to me anyway.

"If Dylan and Kazumi travel back in time and find the cure, I am sure that they will start fighting the demon lords sooner than we did. We at least had the time to prepare and get accustomed to our powers. They won't."

"Why should the twins' presence in their time result in the demon lords declaring war sooner than they did with us back then?" Either I'm just getting old or Sora is just way more calculative than I ever gave her credit for.

She huffs in frustration:" They will have to take one look at the twins and realize that they travelled back in time. Alone the fact that we can build up time gates out of nowhere proves the immense power we have Matt! Do you honestly think they'll lean back and wait for the digidestined to be powerful enough to be a real threat to them? There's just no way in hell that they won't try to kill off the digidestined from the past as long as they have the chance."

I brood over the meaning of her words and although I don't like it one bit, I can't argue with her about it. Her assumptions are probably right and if the twins really travel back in time to find a cure for Tai then they'll cause a stir and attract the demon lord's attention in a heartbeat.

"So you're assuming that there's a probability of them killing the younger version of you."

She gives me a curt nod:" In killing off my younger version they'll wipe off the twin's existence."

I look down on the red bow in my hand again:" And that would completely destroy Tai, leaving him with no clear mind to make any rational decisions. I get it now."

"Tai is strong, courageous and a strategic mastermind; he's the perfect leader. There's probably nothing on this earth that could break him. But loosing me? He would never recover from this."

I nod silently. She's making complete sense. The demon lords surely will go after the younger Sora as soon as they realize who the twins are; they'll either finish off her or Tai from the past. Both options would result in chaos.

"So if you die – hypothetically speaking of course – how the hell does me giving the bow to my daughter result in you coming back?"

There has to be something she refuses to tell me. The only thing she wants me to do is to give the bow to Jessica as soon as she'll decide to travel back in time which – according to Sora's prediction – she'll do in an instant if the twins would ever vanish from this world.

"I made Phoenix promise me that he would take care of that part. The bow simply will help Jess to find me."

"And you think if Tai loses you then he'll – "

"There's no way he would ever let Jessica go back in time if he'll lose me or the twins. He would be too scared to lose another one of us", she completes my thought.

I nod again. There's no doubt that she must have played this conversation in her mind countless of times. Otherwise she wouldn't be so fast in controverting everything I come up with.

"How is Phoenix supposed to save you?" I knit my eyebrows in confusion. Not even Phoenix himself can bring back the death... how on earth should he be able to interfere if something like that would ever happen?

"Let me worry about that."

I stare into her crimson eyes, looking for any trace that would tell me that she is not one hundred percent sure about what she is talking about. But there's none. Her lips are a flat line and her gaze doesn't give anything away. She perfected her poker face in all these years.

However there are the unmistakable dark bags under her eyes that show off her sleepless nights she spends sitting next to her husband's hospital bed. Although we didn't age throughout the years, I can clearly see how drained she is. The last months of Tai's condition worsening due to the venom surely did a huge number on her. She's constantly saying that Tai would be crushed without her. But seeing the broken woman in front of me proves that it goes both ways. She's not herself without him.

Maybe it's the fact that she, after all these years, is still trying desperately to save everyone but herself.

Or maybe it's the empty gaze she is looking at me with right now.

Or her faith she has in me to make the decisions she's sure Tai won't be able to make.

Or all of the above.

But I cave.

"I'll make sure Jess receives the bow and will go back in time... if the time comes." I assure her, earning her first genuine smile in weeks.

She stopped smiling when Tai fell into his coma.

She averts her gaze and squeezes my hand:" You mean, when the time comes."


~~~BACK TO THE PRESENT ~~~

SORA'S POV – FLASHBACK

I inhale deeply, regretting it the moment I do so. Dust fills lungs and I cough violently, sitting up immediately. I bend over, in fear that I'll start retching any second. I concentrate to breathe through my nose and after several seconds my breathing finally normalizes. I wipe over my eyes and look down the hill I am currently sitting on.

The gates of the giant, destroyed city make me shudder and bring back memories of a demon like digimon sticking a freaking dagger in between my shoulder blades.

I vividly can recall Tai's terrified gaze when he finally realized what on earth happened to me. I doubt I'll ever be able to forget it.

"I see you finally woke up", a very familiar voice drives my attention to her.

I slowly turn my head towards her. I feel my heart sink and my mouth falls open in shock.

Crimson eyes stare down at me, the very same eyes I look into whenever I'm in front of a mirror.

Her hair is bound in a high ponytail and she's dressed in her uniform. The same one I am currently wearing. On her back is a deep orange bow and on her belt hangs what I recognize as one of Tai's blades with the only difference that there's not only the crest of courage engraved on it, but also the crest of love. On the other side of her belt hangs her helmet and right under it, she's wearing a leg holster with a gun in it. She's standing with her hands on her hips and looks down at me with an annoyed expression.

"W – what happened? Am I not in the right time dimension?" I stammer.

She rolls her eyes:" You're in the right dimension dear, don't worry. Phoenix did his part good."

"What do you mean? What are you doing here then?" I shakily get up on my feet. This is when I notice a bright, oval sphere floating in the air right beside her. My gaze must give away how confused I am right now because she speaks up without me even voicing my question.

"This is a time gate that will get me back to my time dimension. I just wanted to make sure you came back here okay", my self from the future explains.

"How – "

"SORA!" Someone calls out for me and before I can turn around to the source of the voice, I am already surrounded by pink feathers. I instantly wrap my arms around Biyomon, holding her tight to me.

"I'm so glad you're okay Sora!"

I take a deep breath before I loosen my hold on her, smiling brightly down at her:" I am too By."

Biyomon lets go of me and turns towards Sora from the future who is still looking at me with that annoyed expression of hers.

"Thank you for taking care of me", Biyomon says, earning a smile from my older self.

"You're welcome. It was all part of the plan."

"What plan?" I ask, feeling how my confusion grows. My gaze ping pongs between my older self and Biyomon. While my digimon partner smiles happily at me, future Sora schooled her expression into an impenetrable poker face.

Frustration bubbles underneath my skin and I can't help but lash out. I'm so sick of being held in the dark.

"Can someone please explain what the hell happened to me? I – I died!" I run my fingers through my hair and gulp nervously before I force myself to continue.

"T - then I met that bitch Nadia and her son who happens to be the most gorgeous little boy I've ever seen by the way." I stop, remembering the mesmerizing blue eyes that resembled not only his father's but also his uncle's.

"A – and Phoenix. He was there too!" I stare into crimson orbs that, although are the one's from the person I know best, doesn't provide any sense of comfort right now.

I falter for a moment. Her cold gaze makes me unsure but I'm not done letting it all out:" I followed the kid versions of the twins through a foggy Tokio and right when I finally found Tai I blacked out, only to wake up in front of Belphemon's city. What. The. Hell?!"

I wipe the tears off my cheeks and glare daggers at Sora who seems like she knows all the answers but refuses to tell me any of them.

"I'm glad it worked out so well", she says before she crosses her arms in front of her chest.

"UGH! Talk to me! Last I checked I wasn't so close mouthed!" I shout at myself.

Her lips twitch in amusement:" I knew all of this would happen."

"What do you mean?"

She steals a glance at Biyomon who eyes me nervously, as if she's waiting for me to blow up completely. More than I already did.

"I knew you would die eventually. This is why I made sure Phoenix would be there to make sure that you won't enter the dimension of the dead."

Is this why Phoenix practically dragged me away from Nadia and Akira?

"The beach...", I whisper more to myself than to anyone else, but she heard me just fine.

"Exactly. Phoenix had to get you away from there and towards the bridge Joey created with his powers when he tried to save you", future Sora explains, her poker face never slipping off.

God only knows what the hell happened to me to become so... cold.

"What bridge?" Biyomon asks.

"Tai", future Sora and I say in unison.

Her expression brightens by the sheer mention of him and she smiles lightly, her eyes glazing over in excitement:" He's our keeper Sora. It doesn't matter where we end up; he'll always be right around a corner, waiting for us. The only thing we have to do is find him."

"I'm not going to argue with that", I say, smiling lightly at the memory of him standing in the middle of the soccer field. I instantly felt saver when I spotted him. I knew then that everything would work out if I only reached him. As long as he's by my side the whole world can come crashing down on me for all I care.

"By touching you, Joey finally activated his powers fully. He thought he's saving you by giving you the cure but the cure has no effect on the individual if there's no heartbeat anymore." She explains further, confusing me once again.

"But how did Joey then –"

"He connected you to the dimension of the living. This is part of his power. It is a very rare phenomenon and there are only a few who know that something like this is even possible."

I can feel the pressure on my temples increasing, indicating that there's a headache coming my way. A nasty one that is.

I don't respond. I honestly don't know what to say.

She clears her throat and takes a hesitant step towards the time gate:" Keep going southwest. Jess will catch up with you eventually."

"Jess as in Matt and Mimi's daughter from your time dimension?"

She just nods before she takes another step towards the gate. Before she can cross the gate however a painful realization sinks in and I grab her forearm, preventing her to take another step. She yelps in surprise and turns towards me, her eyebrows raised in surprise:" What is it?"

"Dylan and Kazumi, where are they? Did you take them back to your time?"

Hurt flashes in her eyes and she takes a step away from the gate and towards me. Her chest rises and falls faster than before.

"I don't know where they are. But they have to be somewhere here in this dimension."

I gape stupidly at her. How come she knows everything that happened to me and nothing about her own children?!

"They are your kids! How come you didn't stop and think about them for even a second – "

Her slap comes so sudden that I can't do anything than to stand there dumbstruck for several seconds. I slowly lift my hand to the aching spot on my left cheek before I dare to look back at her.

Okay... maybe I crossed a line.

Her cheeks are flushed and she's breathing heavily through her nostrils. Since I am looking at myself right now I have no trouble to spot the rage in her crimson colored eyes. I know how I look when I'm pissed and judged by the look in her eyes, she's barely resisting the urge to beat me up right now.

"I – I'm sorry I shouldn't have – ", I start but she interrupts me.

"See that red light right next to you? It is connected with my bow which is in Jess's hands right now. It will guide her towards you. You can manipulate it so it'll guide her to the twins instead, provided that you put the safety of two perfectly trained agents over your own, unexperienced self."

My irritation towards my future self only increases with every word she says. There's no doubt that Dylan and Kazumi are perfectly able to look after themselves. I also do not have any concerns that they eventually will find me and the others in this giant mess.

But putting my own safety over theirs? .way

I subconsciously lay my palm over my midsection, gulping down the bile that is rising.

"How do I manipulate this thing?" I look over to a tiny red light that is dancing in the air right next to me.

Future Sora glances down on my hand before she looks up to me, a faint smile on her face. Her expression softens in an instant and she takes a deep breath:" Y – you just have to hold the light towards your heart and focus on the two of them. It's really not that hard."

I look down to Biyomon who gives me a knowing smile before she nods encouragingly:" You know what to do Sora."

I try my hardest to ignore my annoying future self and tap the light softly. The red light intensifies the closer I bring it towards my chest, all the while my right hand stays on my lower abdomen. I don't know what exactly happens but I can literally feel the shift in that tiny light.

I take a step back from it and without me even doing anything more the light starts moving away from us towards the endless desert.

"I knew you'd do that." Future Sora speaks up, her eyes glued on my right hand.

I feel my cheeks heat up and I quickly cross my arms before my chest before I make it any more obvious.

She gives me another smile that doesn't quite reach her eyes but seems genuine enough for me to believe that she's seriously concerned:" Will you be okay on your own?"

"I – ",

"I'm with her. We'll be fine", Biyomon says. She glances down for a swift second before she looks up to me again, her eyes twinkling in confidence. "All of us."

Future Sora nods before she turns towards the time gate again.

"Sora?" I call out for her and ignore the weird feeling of calling myself.

"Yes?"

"How did you know all of this would happen?"

Her expression brightens and for the first time I can finally see myself in her. She grins at me before she retreats towards the gate.

"Izzy. He knows everything."

END OF FLASHBACK.


KAZUMI'S POV

Crystal clear, blue eyes bore into mine. I'll be forever thankful to Joey that he somehow managed to restore my man's left eye. I can vividly remember the black hole that was caused by the two terra forces of ChaosBlackWargreymon and WarGreymon.

Uncle Izzy, Uncle Davis and Uncle Ken filled me, Dylan and mom in on what we missed. I still can't believe that every one of them survived the encounter with the chaos generals with most of them having only some minor injuries that took Joey about 15 minutes to take care of. Alec was one of the few who was closer to the two digimon and therefore was hit harder by the attack.

He, Uncle Matt, Aunt Mimi and my dad all were way too close to them what resulted in Matt, Mimi and dad still to be unconscious. Although Joey spent hours checking up on them and making sure that they're not injured in any way, they still didn't wake up. But he's confident they will soon... according to him they're all just exhausted.

However I'm not complaining. After the reunion with the digidestined I feel more drained than ever. Even now they're still eyeing Dylan, mom and me as if they can't believe that we're all indeed alive.

One of these unbelievers being my own boyfriend who, by the way, is still cupping my face and stares into my eyes, looking for any trace that I'm lying when I say I'm real.

His callouses scratch over my skin but honestly, there's absolutely nothing I would rather feel right now than his touch on my skin. I freaking missed this asshole.

"If this is hell then I'm completely fine in spending eternity here", he whispers, his voice raspier than I've ever heard before due to the fact that he inhaled a lot of dust when he was lying in that desert.

"I don't know if I should be offended by the fact that you think I'd end up in hell too or flattered that you want to spend all eternity with me", I say, not hiding the grin that is slowly spreading across my face.

He chuckles lightly before he averts his gaze. His hold on me only tightens and before I realize what is happening he pulls me sideways on his lap. His hands wander down my body and grip my hips much harder than necessary.

I look down on him while my finger thread through his slightly damp hair. He went down to the hidden pond that is nearby the cave we're currently hiding in to freshen up. I tried to accompany him but I could tell by his jumpiness that he was still freaked out by the fact that I was walking around, being alive and all.

"Alec, you're the ruler over the dimensions. Especially you should feel that I am real, no?" I whisper quietly, lifting my palm for him to touch.

He unglues his gaze from mine and eyes my hand hesitantly. I feel his left hand loosen on my hip before he slowly brings it up to mine. I hold my breath and try to stay as calm as possible. Although I'm dying to wrap my arms around him and kiss the shit out of him I put a lid on my urges and wait for him to make the first move.

If I rush him now, I'll scare him off.

God only knows how one must feel to lose the person you love most only to find out that this very person is alive after all.

Delighted? Happy beyond measure? Sure. But there's also the nagging feeling of it being too good to be true. And I am sure Alec is still at this stage.

His fingers graze mine lightly. I feel him tense up beneath me and I let my left hand fall down to his nape, easing him up the best I can.

He gets a little bit braver and every so slowly, he intertwines our fingers, squeezing my hand.

His breath hitches and I'm beyond surprised to see his blue eyes glister suspiciously when he looks up to me again:" I – I can feel you."

"I can feel you too", I whisper. We both know that we're not talking about us physically touching.

Something inside of him cracks: "Damn it Kaz, I thought I lost you."

He cups my face again but rather than stare into my soul again he lowers my head down to his. My heart does that annoying jump that turns my insides upside down and leaves me all giddy in anticipation of his next move.

Alec's lips crash onto mine and I'm a goner. I feel like I've been craving him for months and now that I finally have him I'll never let him go again. I stop thinking altogether; all I can do is, feel.

His bandaged hand grabs my nape in a possessive hold while his other hand travels down my side to my hip. His fingers dig in my flesh so hard it'll surely bruise. But fuck if I care.

I part my lips slightly and he doesn't hesitate to accept my silent invitation; his tongue slides inside my mouth.

He makes a low growling noise in the back of his throat that sends shivers through my whole body. I can't breathe, but who the hell needs to breathe anyway?

His hot lips leave mine and travel along my jaw line, dipping down to my neck where he plants open mouthed kisses that send jolts of excitement to my core.

"Get a room you two. This is disgusting."

I jump in surprise and look up to the person who just prevented us from having sex in front of our whole team. I feel my cheeks heat up in embarrassment but Alec's husky laugh abstracts me again, reminding me of the uncomfortable ache between my legs.

Alec slowly lifts me up from his lap and gets on his feet.

"Come and give me a hug you cockblocker."

Dylan flashes me a smug smile before, much to my surprise, he wraps his arms around Alec, closing his eyes for a moment before he lets go of him again.

Alec cups his face before he brings their foreheads together:" I'm glad you're okay."

Dylan lowers Alec's hands again and takes a step back, an apologetic smile on his face that tells Alec that his tolerance for foreign touch is reached for today:" and we're happy that mom saved you in time."

Alec nods lightly before his gaze flickers over to the younger version of my mother.

She's sitting in the far corner of the cave, my dad's head in her lap. She's running her fingers through his hair, waiting patiently for him to wake up.

Although he gained consciousness back when we first found the digidestined, he lost it again as soon as we flew away from there. I'm certain that he didn't even fully realize that it was mom who he saw when he opened his eyes.

Alec observes her with a weird expression. His glance lowers down before his eyes widen lightly.

However he's quick in masking whatever he just realized. As if she's feeling his gaze, Sora looks up to him, locking eyes with him.

There's some nonverbal communication going on between the two of them and for once in my life I have absolutely no clue what this could be about. Mom narrows her eyes slightly at him what results in Alec to smirk and break eye contact.

He obviously feels my questioning glance but rather than answer my unspoken question he just squats down in front of me and claims my lips again.


SORA'S POV

I mindlessly run my fingers through his hair, brushing it away from his forehead before I reach for the wet cloth next to me. I rub it over the dried blood on the left side of his face, working as careful as possible so the gash on his temple won't start bleeding again.

I still remember how scared I was when I found him back there on this damned battlefield. I never felt so terrified in my entire life, not even when he got stabbed by that dagger back then when we first encountered these bastards. I think deep down I knew then that he would be fine.

But seeing him lying lifeless in the dirt? Yeah that fucked me up good.

"He took some nasty beatings", Alec's voice snaps me out of my thoughts. In an instant I feel my heartbeat picking up pace. My hands get clammy and I nervously run my fingers through my hair, anxious to look him in the eyes.

He leans over my boyfriend's sleeping figure and checks his shoulder and torso; both parts of him where his uniform is shredded to pieces. Judged by the destruction of the fabric I don't have to guess for long to know that he was probably attacked by these weird looking creatures. Thank goodness Joey managed to patch him up again. The moment he regained consciousness, he was full on a healing mission, rushing from one digidestined to the other and engulfing them in a weird grayish light. I stared at him in awe when he was bent over Tai, literally closing all his injuries with the sheer touch of his hands.

Alec places what looks like two clean changes of clothes and a brand new uniform next to me on the ground.

"Where did you get that?" I ask, knitting my eyes in confusion when I spot the crest of love on one and the crest of courage on the other jacket he's still holding.

He just shrugs, a smile tugging on the edge of his lips:" Jess is awesome huh?"

Ah, makes sense that the girl not only found the twins and me but also thought about bringing a change of clothes for everyone. Calling her throughout would be a massive understatement at this point.

"That she is", I whisper, proceeding to wipe off the dirt on Tai's peaceful, pale face.

I can feel Alec's burning gaze on me and it only gets worse when he squats down. I gulp and try to ignore the heat in my cheeks. My hand trembles lightly and I feel the nausea creeping up. If it's because of the very obvious reason or because my nervousness I don't know.

"You have to tell him", he whispers so low that even I have trouble to hear him.

"I – I don't know what you're talking about."

He chuckles lightly:" I'm the ruler over the dimensions Sora. Don't you think I can feel every living being on this earth?"

He glances down on my midsection before he looks up again, narrowing his eyes lightly at me:" he needs to know when he wakes up."

I remain silent, completely focused on the task of cleaning my boyfriend's face.

"How did you find out anyway?" He knits his brows in confusion.

Oh fucking hell.

"I – I don't know. I just feel different", I mumble. There's really no point in denying something Alec clearly knows about anyway.

"I feel more connected to the twins now", I add in a whisper, looking straight into his crystal clear eyes. His expression softens in an instant and he smiles warmly at me.

"Well I guess this shouldn't be surprising considering that you –", he starts but Izzy appears out of nowhere.

"Sora we think that we gave you enough space", he starts, stepping from one foot on another.

"And if you don't tell us what the hell happened to you then we'll probably burst any second", Kari ends his sentence for him, stepping up right next to him.

I look up to find my whole team, sans Mimi and Matt since both of them are still out of it, standing there and smile lightly. I steal a glance at Alec's annoyed expression and thank my lucky stars for being rescued from what was about to become the most awkward conversation ever.

Kari kneels down next to me and traces a finger along her brother's jaw, her brows furrowed in concern.

"So? Are you going to tell us?" Davis asks, sitting down next to Alec who doesn't seem like he's letting me off the hook that easily. Instead of leaving us alone, how he usually does, he sits down on the ground too. He crosses his arms before his chest and shots me a challenging glare.

In my periphery I notice all of them sitting down one by one, waiting patiently for any explanation of why I'm sitting in front of them although they saw me dying, literally.

I don't blame them for a second. I dodged their questions and focused solely on getting Tai back to consciousness somehow. It's wrong for them to know before he does. But I guess it's better to talk about what happened to me than to proceed with the conversation Alec was forcing us to have so I cave in.

I take a deep breath before I lock eyes with Alec again:" I saw Phoenix."

A collective gasp echoes through the whole group as Alec's eyes widen in shock. His lips part slightly and he furrows his eyebrows.

"Impossible", he whispers more to himself than to any of us. Kazumi steals a glance at her boyfriend before her eyes zero in on me.

"What did you see mom?"

Jess takes out what looks like an iPad and a pen, scribbling something down on it while Dylan just stares at me with a weird expression on his face.

I gulp nervously and try my hardest to calm down my nerves. I can't help but feel like the twins know exactly what I'm not telling them. What I refused to tell them the first time they asked me if something was wrong when we were flying on Phoenixmon's back.

"I – I was on a beach – "

"On the shore? As in, you didn't cross the water?" Jess interrupts me, looking over the rim of her iPad at me.

I shake my head:" I didn't cross it."

Jess and the twins exchange a glance with Alec who's still staring at me wide – eyed. The digidestined for their part look as clueless as I felt before I met my future self and got a proper explanation of what exactly happened to me.

I'm just about to tell them more when Alec finally snaps out of his stupor and beats me to it.

"Joey sent you to a breakpoint between the dimensions. This is why I couldn't feel you anymore and thought that you were dead."

Why doesn't it surprise me that it is him of all people who knows all the answers without me even telling him more?

"W – what? I don't even know how that works", Joey exclaims, looking dumbfounded.

"You surely didn't do it on purpose Uncle Joey. You have the power to rescue the ones in need in one way or another. This was probably the only way you could rescue mom", Dylan concludes. His eyes are glazed over and his eyebrow is buckled as if he's trying desperately to make sense of what is being revealed right now.

"In all my years in this world I've only ever heard something like this happening once", Alec says. The nervous undertone in his voice is slightly unnerving but I honestly have enough to worry about at the moment so I don't dwell on it now.

We're all silent for a moment before Alec speaks up again, his voice barely audible:" You said you saw my brother?"

I look up to him and give him a faint smile, ignoring the suspicious gleam in his eyes:" I did. He showed me the way back."

I don't mention the twins or his family for that matter. This is a conversation him and I need to have in private. I don't want to spread his secrets in front of everyone. And I also don't feel comfortable to discuss the dead mother of his son in front of his current girlfriend who also happens to be my daughter from the future.

Holy hell. When did my life get so complicated?

"So let me get this straight", Cody speaks up, drawing our attention him.

"So by using his powers, Joey sent you to some dimensionless place where you met Phoenix who just so happened to be there to sent you back?" The disbelief in his voice is unmistakable. "Sounds like Phoenix knew something like this would happen, don't you think?"

More like future me knew this would happen and made a huge ass plan without anyone knowing anything about it.

HA. Future Sora is a badass.

"I don't give a shit about how all this worked out. I'm just glad it did", T.K says.

"Hell yeah! Joey you're a freaking hero!" Davis shouts out, making the older digidestined blush furiously.

"Oh shut up. I didn't do anything."

"But you did! You saved Sora", Kari smiles brightly at him before she looks over to me. She spent the first hour after she woke up squeezing the life out of me and refusing to leave my side for even a second and I can tell she's dying to come over and repeat it all over again. But her brother in my lap prevents her from doing so.

"I agree. I owe you one Joey", I grin lightly.

"If there's anyone who owes Joey anything than it's me", a deep voice that sends shivers down my spine and makes my heart jump in my ribcage sounds. I look down just in time to see Tai sit up finally. He supports himself with his right hand that is still trembling lightly.

"Tai! Don't make any drastic movements I don't know how bad your head injury is", Joey snaps back into full doctor mode and is just about to get on his feet and rush over to Tai when Ken grabs him by his wrist and pulls him back down:" Let him breathe for a second Joey."

Tai slowly turns towards me and his eyes widen in shock. His expression is a mixture of utter disbelief, shock and fear.

"Took you long enough to wake up old man!" Dylan says, getting up from his spot next to Jess and grinning down at Tai with a certain lopsided grin that makes my heart flutter.

"Dylan..." Tai gapes stupidly at him, not moving an inch. It's as if the shock left him completely immobile.

"I'm so glad you're okay", Kazumi says before she kneels down in front of him and wraps her arms around his neck, catching him completely off guard.

"Didn't you hear what Ken just said? Let him breathe, love", Alec argues, pulling Kazumi off of my boyfriend who's still sitting there, dumbstruck.

Alec eyes Tai for a swift second. The unmistakable glint of concern crosses his features before he schools his expression into a neutral one. He turns towards the digidestined:" Let's give the two of them some space."

Although most of them seem like they'd like to wrap Tai in a hug themselves, they choose to follow Alec's example for now and walk over to the fireplace right in front of the cave, leaving him and I alone.

I hold my breath and sit on my hands to stop them from trembling but fail miserably. I can feel the shivers going through my whole body and the dread sinking in. I'm dying to jump into his arms but the hesitant gleam in his eyes prevents me from doing so. He's looking like a lost little boy who does not believe his own eyes.

He slowly lifts his hand and tugs a strand of my hair behind my ear, his hand shaking like hell.

I see him visibly gulp before he speaks up:" Please tell me you're real this time."

His voice cracks and with it, so does my heart. I'm afraid that I won't get any words out so I just nod frantically. He heard how Joey rescued me. How can he still be unsure of whether this is real or not?

His hand leaves my hair and trails down the side of my face before his fingers wrap around my neck. His thumb grazes the pulse point on my throat as if he wants to assure himself that there indeed is a beating heart inside of me. He studies the pulsating skin with such intensity that I feel more naked than ever before.

He pulls me closer towards until I can inhale him. His usual sandalwood smell is mixed with blood and sweat but it's still my favorite smell on the whole world. He locks eyes with me and I can feel his grip tightening. It's not enough to cut off my air supply but the threat is there. I don't know why but it's turning me on.

Fucking hormones.

"Say it", he whispers against my lips. "I need to hear it."

I slowly lift my hand and graze the stubble on his cheek:" I'm here. I'm real Tai."

The hesitant glint in his eyes is still there. This is how I know that I haven't convinced him yet. Whatever he must have been through while he was unconscious, it must have felt at least as real as I am right now considering the fact that he's still keeping his distance. He's acting as if he fears that I'll vanish any second.

"Oh god! Look at them. They're like modern Romeo and Juliet!" Yolei's excited squeal makes us jump in unison and turn towards our team. Their gazes are fixed solely on us and I can't help but blush in embarrassment. Although we didn't even kiss I feel like they caught us doing something way too intimate.

Tai clears his throat before he reaches for the clean change of clothes next to me. His arm brushes my legs and I can feel the goosebumps all over my body. He avoids my eyes while he gets up on his feet.

"I need a bath", he mumbles before he brushes past me towards the exit of the cave.

I quickly get up too and grab my own uniform before I follow him. I barely register Yolei shouting an apology and Kazumi's encouraging words of not giving up now.

She told me that it took her hours to convince Alec that he wasn't dead and imagining things when he saw her after waking up.

I don't know how I expected Tai to react. But running away from me? Literally? Hell no!

I catch up with him with ease, walking alongside him through the thick forest. There has to be a small pond not far from here and judged by the determined steps Tai is taking, he knows all about it. It doesn't really surprise me; he can memorize paths after walking them only once. And judged by the familiar looking trees and bushes, I know that we must've been here before.

Canalizing all the courage I have, I silently grab his hand and intertwine our hands as usual when we're walking next to each other. I can feel him tense up and steal a glance at our hands.

"You feel different", he whispers, tightening his hold on me.

"Different how?" My heart feels like it'll leap out my chest any second now.

He mulls over his next words before he speaks up again:" As if you're really holding me right now."

A small smile tugs at my lips:" What shouldn't be surprising considering the fact that I am really holding you right now... right?"

He peers over to me, the fear still clear on his face. It is such a Tai – unlike view that I feel my courage falter for a second. His weird behavior is completely disarming me.

"You and the twins got us here then?" He gestures towards the forest.

Oh wow, way to change the subject.

"Uh – huh", I make an agreeing sound.

"I'm glad you got everyone out of there. The fight was – HOLY SHIT!" He exclaims all of the sudden, stopping right in his tracks.

I turn towards him:" What is it?"

"Agumon! Is he – "

I close the distance between us and graze my fingers over his cheek in a soothing way:" He's fine. Joey took care of him."

He lets out a deep breath:" Thank god. I couldn't bear any more losses."

I inwardly twitch at the meaning of his words.

"Come on", I mumble, pulling him through a small gap between the bushes and down a path towards the small pond.

The water is crystal clear and there's a small riverside with a giant rock on it. I unwillingly let go of Tai's hand and unzip my jacket, causing him to do the same. The moment he does, my gaze sticks to him. He's wearing a tight, black Henley shirt that shows off his perfectly sculptured body. He's oblivious to my stare because he nonchalantly kicks off his shoes before he looks up to me again.

His eyes widen again as if he expected me to be gone the moment he let go of my hand and is surprised now that this wasn't the case. I zero in on his clean cut jawline and the kissable lips I am dying to touch with mine right now.

I want to be near him. I want it so bad and the fact that he's distancing himself out of fear only makes matters worse.

I grind my teeth in frustration and swallow down any uncertainty I might be feeling right now and approach him. This is my better half for fucks sake. My best friend!

The fear in his eyes only intensifies as soon as he realizes that I'm approaching him. He backs up with every step I take. It's only when his back hits the rock behind him that he stops moving. I have to pull on all strings of my self-control to not burst into tears.

In what sick world came I back into where the person who's supposed to love me most is afraid of being near me?!

I place both my hands on his rock hard shoulders and press him down lightly. We're perfectly in sync with each other. There are never a lot of words needed from either of us to indicate what we expect the other one to do. This is why it takes him exactly two seconds to follow my train of thought and sit down on the ground.

The confusion in his expression remains the whole time and only grows when I straddle him.

I run my fingers through his hair before I cup his face in my hands. I slowly inch closer towards him, showing him exactly what my intentions are and giving him the option to back off now.

He doesn't.

Taking a deep breath I wrap both my arms around his neck and seal my lips to his. I don't want to rush him; I know he still isn't convinced any of this is real. Therefore my kiss is nothing like the ones I usually give him is. It's tentative. Experimental.

It's one of the rare times that I initiate something sexual between us. I usually like to give him full control so I can let myself fall. Call me old fashioned but I like alpha males.

At first, it's a slight press of my lips against his firm ones. Then, my tongue darts out and I lick his bottom lip. I almost feel like it's our first kiss all over again.

Gaining boldness, I pull myself up and slightly nibble on his lip before trailing soft kisses on the corner of his mouth. The whole time, Tai watches me with hooded eyes. His hands rest on my waist, still hesitant to hold me properly. Although he has his hands on me, he's not really touching me.

He's still afraid that I'll vanish any second now.

My bold phase shrinks a little. Maybe this is the wrong way in convincing him –

He groans before his fingers dig into the flesh on my hips all of the sudden: "Fuck it. If this is me being crazy then I never want to be sane again."

He pulls me towards him and clashes his lips against mine. His kiss is the complete opposite of my gentle ones. He kisses me like a madman searching for his sanity. He's completely out of control. My breathing ceases when he thrusts his tongue inside my mouth and devours me. That's what Tai does; he shreds me apart and strips me bare until he owns every little part of me.

I let out a long breath and let go. He's finally taking charge. He's coming back to me. Thank. God.

Tai's body is all over me. His chest flattens my aching breasts. One of his hands leaves my hip and buries deep in my hair, holding me in place. His raw intensity seeps under my skin and shoots straight to my core. It's addictive. He is addictive. God only knows how I could ever stay away from him longer than absolutely necessary.

Tai wrenches his mouth from mine and we both pant, breathing each other in. His hand is still tangled in my hair, holding me tightly. I'm caught in his stormy gaze. Something inside of him clicks and the hesitant glint finally vanishes. The fire I thought was dumped down in him is blazing brighter than ever before. I can finally see the deep connection we share again. The connection that tells me that there's no one else on this earth that knows me better than he does.

He breaks eye contact to fling my top over my head, quickly followed by my bra. He palms one breast with a rough hand and grunts:" did I ever tell you how much I love these?"

"Oh I thought you were one of those guys who prefer butts over breasts", I taunt him.

He chuckles lightly, squeezing my behind as if to prove a point:" I love every part of you Sor."

His fiery gaze never leaves mine as he sucks a nipple into his mouth and pulls at it with his teeth. He doesn't bite, but I know him well enough that he's dying to do just that. It's one of the darkest sides of him but there's probably nothing that makes me hotter than his rough, possessiveness.

My eyes droop and a moan spills from my throat. Still teasing with his teeth, he pinches the other nipple. His stormy eyes stay transfixed on me as if he's challenging me. My fingers slide into his hair and I pull on the strands. I'm not sure if I want to push him away or pull him closer.

However he doesn't let me decide for neither option. He wraps a firm hand around my throat and bites down on my nipple. Pain shoots through my body simultaneously when I feel my core start to throb with need. His tongue darts out and swirls around the distended but, soothing the ache before he bites down again. Hard.

I cry out, arching my back to give him better access.

Still torturing me with his merciless assault on my nipples he reaches down to my pants, unbuttoning them with skilled movements. He's just about to push his hand inside my pants when an idea pops up in my head suddenly and I push him away from me.

He freezes and looks up to me in confusion. I slowly distance myself from him and drop down on my knees in front of him. His eyes widen in surprise because I'm not usually stopping him in anything he's doing to me.

"I have a feeling I still have to prove you my existence."

He knits his eyebrows, the confusion growing:" N – no you – "

He hisses when I trail my nail down his zipper, unfastening it.

"Take off your shirt", I whisper.

I watch him silently while he grabs the hem of his shirt and pulls it over his head. I feel my heartbeat quickening the moment my eyes land on his perfectly ripped torso. He's cut like a freaking diamond and my eyes are transfixed on those deep V – lines that look like a giant arrow pointing down to my prize.

Anticipation sparks through me as I pop open the button on his pants and tug them down. I bite down on my lip, excitement rushing through my veins. It doesn't matter how many times we fool around with each other, how often I kneel in front of him or how he gets down on me every chance he gets. The adrenaline rush is always the same. If not even better.

With a small smirk, I brush my fingertips along the elastic waistband of his briefs, taking my sweet time. His head falls back and I watch the tendons in his throat move as I push his boxers down. My breath hitches when his cock bobs free finally. I suppress the urge to greet it like an old friend and take it in my mouth instantly.

I'm not done teasing him yet. I want to make him lose control. But most of all, I want him to trust me.

I get as close as I can without actually touching his most sensitive part and lean my cheek against his thigh, looking directly into his eyes.

"You have no idea how much I want to put it in my mouth."

His dick twitches and he groans when he wraps a hand around his base, giving it a slow stroke:" Is that so?"

Nodding, I lick my lips, his eyes following every movement of my tongue:" But someone thought I was a hallucination. So... I won't."

He mutters a curse:" You made your point Sor."

I smile evilly at him:" Are you sure?"

"You're a fucking tease. Trust me I know you're real. There's no way in hell a hallucination would be so annoying", he gives me his usual lopsided grin and I feel my heart skip a beat.

"I haven't even started yet."

"Maybe you shouldn't push me", he whispers, his eyes darkening with lust.

"Or maybe... this is exactly what I should do."

My pulse skitters as I glide my tongue over his tip.

His lips part as he stares down at me:" Sor."

There's so much longing in his voice. I feel my heart crack and I vow silently that I'll never, ever leave his side again. It will be a cold cold day in hell before I'll ever leave him alone.

Lowering my head, I lick a circle around his tip again. His breathing becomes labored:" Fuck."

Wrapping my hand around his base, I stretch my lips over his crown. He watches me with urgent intensity. Tension lines his features when I release him with a wet pop.

"Don't you dare to stop now", his eyes snap with heat and his hand tangles in my hair, keeping me right where he wants me.

The carnal tone lacing his words goes straight to my core and my mouth finds him again, taking him deeper this time. His brow furrows and he releases a low groan:" Yeah Sor just like that."

There's something so hot about the way he's letting me know exactly what he wants. He was never one to beat around the bush when it came down to show me how to please him. We both never were. This is probably the key of our well-functioning relationship.

His body shudders and the hand in my hair tightens. I become more daring with each stroke of his fingers in my hair and groan out of his lips. I love to have him completely at my mercy. I'm getting high by that immense feeling of power I have over him. Feeling bold, I lick and suck him as far down as I can. I go to repeat the movement but he leans over and hauls me back onto his lap.

He doesn't give me the time to adjust on his thighs but rather forces me to stand back up. He hovers over me for a second before he falls down on his knees in front of me. He hooks his fingers in my belt loops and pushes the pants down my legs. I hold onto his shoulder for support and kick the fabric off. I feel my heartbeat in my throat and gulp nervously.

He grabs the back of my thighs and brings me closer to him. I can feel his fingers trembling when he pulls down my panties.

He leans his forehead on my abdomen. His breath tickles my belly button as his tongue grazes my belly. I stop breathing all together when he plants feathery light kisses over my skin, as if he knew what I am hiding from him.

"I missed your smell", he says, his voice a low whisper. His crude words send another wave of want through my veins, worsening the ache in between my thighs.

"I was fully prepared to live like a monk for the rest of my life", he slowly takes hold of my left leg and drapes it over his shoulder, all the while he's burning me up with his deep chocolate brown eyes.

"Good. Because I was going to haunt you if you wouldn't", I tease, ignoring the maddening thumping of my heart.

His chuckles lightly, bringing his face closer to where I want him to be:" I wouldn't have it any other way."

The first brush of his tongue against my folds is like an electric current shooting up my spine. I moan loudly, not caring for a second if anyone can hear me.

"I love how wet you are for me."

Holy shit. He must've been seriously out of his mind without me that he's even dirty talking now. Can't say that I don't like it though, because it only fuels my arousal.

He circles my clit with his tongue then licks it in soft, slow strokes that drive me absolutely wild with desire. His fingers rub my folds up and down before he thrust inside me with two fingers at the same time. I cry out and relish in the moment. Tai curls his fingers inside me, bringing me pleasure but at the same time he touches my soul and I can tell by his intense, emotion filled eyes that he knows exactly what he's doing to me right now.

Just when I start to grind against him, he removes them, leaving me begging for more. However he doesn't let me hanging for long because before I can protest his tongue swipes from the bottom of my slit to the top.

Holy mother of pearl. I love this man.

My head rolls back and I grip him by his hair to steady myself. I cry out at the intrusive, enthralling sensation. A tightness grips my stomach and my chest squeezes so hart that I think I'll lose consciousness any second. I can feel my legs shaking, indicating that there's not much left for me to fall down that familiar cliff I love so much.

"O – okay. Nope", I stammer. "No way am I gonna be able to stay upright if you keep doing that to me".

With a chuckle, Tai sits back down and pulls me onto his lap. He grips me by my thighs and licks his lips:" Spread your legs for me baby."

I obey without a second thought and whimper when he teases me with the tip of his finger. He runs it back and forth over my clit before sliding down to my opening. He bites down on his lip, his eyes glazing over in lust. He leans back on the rock and fists his dick, the hunger shadowing his eyes when he looks my way is unmistakable. I want to keep the sight of him like this in my memory forever, because it's honest to God the hottest thing I've ever seen.

His gaze is turbulent when he grabs my hips and pulls me on top of him:" You're taking too long".

He brushes his lips over my nipple:" Don't you think you kept me starving long enough?"

Although his grip on my hips firm, I can still feel him letting me control the pace. Teasing him, I ever so slowly lower myself down on him. His hands grasp my waist and he juts his hips upward, filling me to the hilt:" You're killing me."

I chuckle lightly and hold onto his shoulders before I start rocking against him:" Better?"

His head falls back. His lips part with a groan when I find a rhythm he likes:" Much better."

Dark eyes roam over every inch of my body:" Christ. You're so beautiful."

Hell, does he want me to comment him?

A jolt of heat rushes through me when he presses his thumb on my clit. I glare down on him. I'm trying to take control over here and as usual he's preventing me from doing so by driving me crazy with his hands. He gives me a smug smile and does it again, only this time he presses down on the swollen nub, massaging it in fast, wet circles.

"Tai", I hiss. I grip him by his hair in a pathetic attempt to get control back. But his smirk only widens. His eyes darken as the sounds of him working me over slip over my lips. I lean my forehead against his broad shoulder, moaning out loud when he hits one particular spot deep inside me.

My breath comes out in sharp bursts while he continues his slow torture:" Oh my god..."

His lips graze my earlobe:" I like the idea of being your god."

With one hand on my lower back, he takes my clit between his fingers and proceeds to drive his cock against the spot that he knows exactly will drive me over the edge within seconds.

Oh hell.

The first stirrings of my orgasm crash through me and I bite down on his shoulder as I hold my balance. Rough hands grab my ass and he leans forward, thrusting fast and wild. I cling to his shoulders, clamping his dick as I fall apart. My head falls back and I close my eyes, falling down in that dark abyss of eternal bliss.

"You're so hot when you come", he rasps against the skin of my throat.

Without breaking his rhythm, Tai pushes me so I'm on my back. His hands slip under my thighs and he flings my legs over his waist. He pounds into me with renewed energy. The new angle causes my walls to contract. I'm still riding my high when I feel new pressure building up inside of me. His hand wraps around my throat again, squeezing lightly. I'm completely at his mercy and he knows it. I'd be lying if I'd say I don't like it though.

My heart beats so fast I'm scared I'll have a heart attack. But damn, it would be so worth it.

I'm at that delirious state you find yourself in between orgasms. I feel so sensitive and sore but I'd be damned if I stop him now. I crave this feeling. I crave what he does to me. I crave him.

"I love you. I love you so much. Don't you dare to ever leave me again," he groans, his rhythm turning rougher and faster with every word.

"I won't. I promise."

"You're driving me fucking crazy Sora. You make me lose control like no one else. I can't fucking breathe without you."

I don't last.

He reaches down to my clit and flicks it before thrusting into me one final time. I come again with a hoarse cry.

"Fuck", he groans as warmth fills my insides.

God, I love the way he sounds as he comes. My lips find his and I kiss him with abandon. I don't break the kiss for what feels like hours and neither does he. I can feel my lungs burning, demanding air, but I couldn't care less. I kiss him until the only thing I'm capable of feeling is him. I graze my nails down his back as we catch our breaths and he buries his nose in the crook of my neck, inhaling me.

"You smell like sex and candy."

I chuckle lightly:" There's a song about that."

He lets out a husky, sexy laugh:" God damn it I missed you so much."


ALEC'S POV

"They're gone for a while now. Do you think we should go and check up on them?" Kari asks, looking into the depths of the forest.

"NO!" The twins shout in unison, earning chuckles from me and Jess. The blonde shots me a mischievous glance, her ocean blue eyes twinkling in amusement. We both know exactly where the twin's reaction is coming from.

The digidestined turn to them, confusion all over their faces. Matt who woke up twenty minutes ago sits down next to Mimi who still looks kind of pissed that her best friend didn't bother waking her up but rather sneaked out with her boyfriend. He chuckles lightly before he takes a spoonful of his soup. I can tell he knows what the two of them are doing right now. He probably planned on doing the same if his girlfriend was in the right mood.

Hell. I know I was dying to do it with my girl too...so I did. But in contrast to Tai and Sora, Kazumi and I are way more discrete.

"Why? Do you know something that we don't?" Izzy asks.

Jess and I just laugh harder at the flushed expressions of the twins.

"W – well mom and dad just have their own special ways of reuniting", Dylan says, scratching the back of his neck; a nervous habit he took up a few months ago.

"Ugh don't remind me. I'll never get that image out of my head", Kazumi mumbles, massaging her temples.

"The image? I won't ever forget the freaking sounds", Dylan spits.

There's a rather long, awkward silence in which Jess and I try to put a lid on our amusement but fail miserably as soon as Kari, Yolei and Mimi burst out laughing. Our hysterics are quickly backed up by the rest of the digidestined.

"Oh my god I can't believe you caught them while – ", Yolei says in between giggles.

"Trust me I've never felt so uncomfortable in my entire life", Kazumi says, joining in our laughter.

"Talk about uncomfortable. Dad freaking high fived me when we were having coffee together the next morning because he heard me and Jess and wanted to congratulate me for getting lucky the same night he did."

"I can totally see him do that", T.K says, his shoulders shaking.

"Oh my god. Thank you for always making sure we're alone before you get your hands on me", Kazumi whispers in my ear. I only laugh harder and wrap my arm around her. God I love this woman.

"What you mean he heard us?" Jess shouts, her horrified expression enough to evoke another fit of laughter.

"Well. He certainly didn't hear me, since I don't make any loud sounds", Dylan responds, barely holding in his own laugh.

"Oh my god! Are you telling me that my uncle heard how I was – ",

"Okay! TMI I really don't want to know anything about this", Matt chimes in, his cheeks flushed red.

"Oh hell we just talked about us having sex in front of my parents. Please excuse me while I go hang myself", Jess mumbles, her face buried in her hands.

"Oh don't worry honey", Mimi says, squeezing Jess' knee with a grin on her face.

"Hey guys", Sora's voice draws everyone's attention to her and Tai who's standing next to her with a shit eating grin on his face.

As natural as ever his eyes lock with mine and I can't help but mirror his grin. God only knows how we went from two guys who lost everything and weren't afraid of losing themselves to two men who are both holding their whole world in their arms again and that in less than 24 hours.

"OH MY GAWD SORA!" Mimi squeals before she launches herself on the red head, wrapping her arms around Sora's tiny frame.

Tai lets go of her hand and judged by the happy, carefree gaze he's looking at her with I'm certain that Sora hasn't talked to him about the huge bomb she's hiding from everyone.

"HOW DARE YOU DIE ON ME YOU BITCH!" Mimi shouts in the her best friend's face, shaking her violently.

"I – I'm sorry?" She stammers, completely overwhelmed by Mimi's reaction. I don't blame Mimi one bit. If I was capable of showing so much emotion I probably would have done the same with the twins.

My chest swells in happiness when I look at both of them. I can't believe I lost them for a moment.

"So? What did we miss?" Tai asks, stealing a glance at the sleeping forms of the digimon. The concern in his eyes vanishes as soon as his eyes land on Koromon who was quite beat up after the huge attack he threw at ChaosBlackWargreymon. Luckily Joey patched the little guy up in no time. I'm still deeply impressed how well he's handling his powers already.

"Oh, nothing special", Dylan says, earning several chuckles from all around us.

Tai shots me a confused glance.

"Trust me. You don't want to know", I bite down on my lip so I won't laugh into his face.


~~~~LATER.~~~~

I sit in front of the remnants of our bonfire, enjoying the eerie silence of the never ending night. Most of the digidestined went back to sleep after we decided that we'll discuss our next steps tomorrow. They surely need all the rest they can get. It felt good to joke around and not care about the giant mess we're still in. At least for a day.

I doubt that the digidestined realize that we lost several hundred digimon who fought alongside us yesterday. WarGreymon's attack wiped out everything and it's probably only due to our immortality that we survived it.

The rest of our troops? Weren't so lucky...

"Penny for your thoughts?" Sora's voice startles me.

She sits down next to me, both of her hands placed on her midsection. I can't help but smile lightly at her. I know I caught her off guard when I called her out on it earlier but seeing that she's not hiding from me anymore I guess it's safe to say that she's getting acquainted to the change in her life.

"I didn't think you'd be willing to leave Tai's side so soon", I say, earning a light hearted chuckle from her.

"He's a heavy sleeper."

Don't I know that? He inherited that trait to his daughter too. This is why I could sneak out here to be alone for a while and stomach the fact that this girl next to me met my brother not so long ago. I tried not to dwell on it but it's fucking with my head. I can feel the deep hole inside of me that he caused when he died and the fact that I haven't had the chance to proper mourn him catches up with me now. I feel like I'm suffocating all over again.

As if she can sense what I'm thinking she addresses the topic.

"You know I was very surprised to meet Phoenix there", she whispers, staring into the dying flames with me.

My breath hitches but I'm too afraid to say something because I might crack when I ask too many questions about him and I embarrassed myself enough these past few days. Luckily she's way more talkative then she was in the morning. Guess her quality time with Tai eased her up good.

"He walked me through the city until I met what looked like the twins as children. They seemed lost and couldn't remember me or Tai...", she trails off and her eyes take up a faraway look.

"Did they accompany you to the bridge?" I turn towards her to get a better look of her expression. She's mindlessly rubbing her belly while she still stares into the flames.

"How do you know about the bridge?"

I ignore her question for now and ask further:" Did that bridge happen to be a person?"

She blinks several times before her eyes lock on mine:" How do you know that?"

I smile ruefully at the memory of a long forgotten family member of mine:" A soul that is trapped in this kind of limbus you found yourself in has a counterpart in the dimension it comes from. Your life is tied to Tai's now. Assumed it was him who was waiting for you?"

Her mouth falls open but she nods:" Damn you're smart."

I puff out a laugh:" No. I'm just experienced."

She's silent for a while and the only sound is the far away pitter patter of the small waterfall that ends in the pond nearby and the crackling of the wood in front of us.

"You don't happen to know a boy who is around five and has the most beautiful blue eyes I've ever seen? He could easily pass off as your mini me."

Her words catch me completely off guard and I feel my heart sink. I whip my head around as if she just slapped me and gape stupidly at her. She's staring straight ahead again but the skin on her jaw is stretched. She's grinding her teeth, seeming deep in thought.

"Y – you met my boy?" I stammer, my throat clocking up in emotion.

"I didn't get the chance to talk to him properly because Phoenix dragged me away from them", she shrugs, her expression darkening.

"His mother wasn't really thrilled to see me anyway", she adds and the bite in her tone doesn't go unnoticed by me.

If I didn't know it any better I'd say she's jealous. I sink my teeth in my bottom lip to prevent me to laugh at her. Nadia is the kind of girl whose sheer presence makes other females uneasy. I'm sure it drove Sora freaking crazy to see my baby momma near the love of her life. And seeing that Tai is pretty similar to me I have no doubt that he was instantly drawn to her.

However it is the fact that my little brother was there with the two of them that causes warmth to spread throughout my chest. I can't believe that motherfucker... he really did what he told me he would.

"He promised me that he would take care of Akira and Nadia if it would be necessary", I whisper, revealing more about me that I think I ever would.

"H – how were they? Did they look okay?" I have to know. I just have to.

She studies me for what feels like an eternity. Her deep crimson eyes bore into me and I feel weirdly exposed. She's seeing through the million layers I spent years of building around me and it makes me uneasy. But it's weirdly comforting at the same time.

"They looked happy."

My shoulders sack down in relief and I exhale the breath I was subconsciously holding in:" Thank you."

She's silent for a moment, obviously mulling over the next thing she wants to tell me but isn't sure whether she should or not. Luckily she decides for the first because she speaks up in a small voice.

"I also met my future self. Who happened to have all of this planned with Phoenix behind everyone's back", she drops the bomb as if it was the simplest thing ever.

My mouth falls open and I can't do anything than to gape stupidly at her. Thousands of questions swivel through my head all at once and I have trouble to sort them right now. I always knew that the mother of Dylan and Kazumi was deeper than she made everyone believe she is but being so involved with this dimension? How the hell did she even know that her younger self would die? Why didn't Phoenix ever tell me anything?

And why the hell didn't I think about Phoenix being at the breakpoint being weird, considering we literally sent him over the water in a freaking, ablaze float?!

"I only realized now that she was indirectly saving her children in preventing my death. I thought she was selfish for once. But she probably isn't capable of being that way now is she?" Sora asks, her gaze transfixed on her hands that are still protectively placed around her belly.

"Are you?" I ask her, lifting my eyebrow. "Capable of being selfish I mean."

She doesn't even twitch:" No."

I nod in approval before I get back on my feet:" Thank you for telling me about my brother and my kid Sora."

She looks up to me and gives me a warm smile:" You have a beautiful family Alec. I'm sorry you lost them so early."

I don't comment on that. I never liked to be pitied and I'm not starting now. Instead I nod towards her belly.

"You should seriously consider telling Tai about you being pregnant Sora."

END OF CHAPTER 23.


Sooooo? Care to share your thoughts on this guys? I'd love to know what you think!

So many of you were waiting for that Taiora reunion. I hope it lived up to your expectations!

I'm not sure how long it will take me for chapter 24. I hope not too long... but I promised myself that I won't pressure myself anymore.

Stay healthy everyone! See you soon.

31/01/21