Part Five: A Secret Exposed

Chapter Seven: Discovery

The weekend had ended, with Monday morning arriving right on schedule. For Matt Ishida, it had been a very bad Monday morning. Having half moved in with his new girlfriend and her roommate over the past few weeks, he had spent the night there. And they'd got drunk... very drunk. To the point that he'd woken up with a stonking headache. Unfortunately, Teiko had taken zero pity on him and physically hauled his ass out of bed, claiming that if she had to go to work, he needed to go to school. When he'd protested, she had simply told him that life could be a bitch sometimes, much like her and he would just have to learn to deal with it. Apparently, if he had wanted to sleep late, he should have dropped out of school. At least Sakura (her roommate) had made them all a pot of very strong coffee.

The morning had only gotten worse from there, as Teiko had then told him he was in no state to ride his moped and had taken his keys. Thus, he'd been forced to walk in the snow. All the while his head feeling like his bass had gotten lodged inside it and started playing. To cap it off, he'd gotten into trouble for being late. The day had only gone downhill from there. At lunchtime, not only had he brought nothing with him, but he'd also discovered that he'd forgotten his wallet. Unfortunately, his dwindling list of friends at school had left him with no one to mooch off of. So he'd spent lunchtime sulking by himself with nothing to eat and his head still pounding.

School sucked, royally, he thought bitterly when the day finally ended. With their university entrance exam over and down with, there was no real obligation to stay beyond the end of the normal day. Hell, there was little point in them still being there full stop. In all honesty, he'd been feeling for quite some time that he could not wait to be shot of the place. After his breakup with Sora, the altercation with Tai and the implosion of the Teenage Wolves, his small circle of school friends had evaporated. Not that he missed any of them. Teiko hung with far more interesting people and with her help, he'd even started putting together a new band. Yeah, as soon as school ended, life would be sweet.

Halfway towards the exit, he caught sight of someone waiting at the gate; a blue bicycle beside her. From the green uniform, he could tell that they went to Odaiba Middle School. However, it was the head of bright orange hair, like it was aflame that drew his attention. She was hot, he thought and if not for the fact that he was very happy with Teiko (baring this morning's incident), he would certainly have gone and introduced himself. Whoever she was waiting on, they were one lucky bastard. An image of Teiko floated through his mind. Granted, perhaps not as lucky as he was. Drawing closer, his eyes widened when he saw the figure who greeted her, Kamiya. He felt a brief flash of anger before he reminded himself of what Teiko had said to him, who cared. So what if Tai was dating a hot chick, it didn't affect him. He'd gotten out of a bad relationship with Sora and come up trumps. What was it to him if… he did a double-take. Wait a minute, he knew that bicycle. His eyes travelled up to stare upon the girl's face. It was Kari; she had not noticed him.

Matt almost burst out laughing, recalling what Teiko had told him about Tai and his secret crush on his sister. Looking like that, he would wager that Kari drove her brother crazy just by standing there. Sucks to be you, Tai, he thought with a snigger, watching as the siblings wandered off down the street. When he himself reached the exit, he turned to follow them, for no reason other than it was the same direction in which he needed to head. He kept his distance, having no wish to engage with either of them; his mood was bad enough already.

Matt continued on his way back to Teiko's, paying little heed to the siblings in front of him. Indeed, it was only when they turned to go in the opposite direction to the one he was headed, that he took note and stopped dead. His eyes widened at the sight of them. Side by side, with bikes on the outside, Tai and Kari were holding hands.

"No way," Matt breathed to himself, fragments of the drunken conversation he'd had with Teiko on that first night playing through his mind.

"Kamiya is in love with his sister…" he heard Teiko say.

"…Of all the people I know, if any of them had a brother complex, it would be Kari Kamiya…" his own voice replied.

He stood and watched them cross the road, transfixed. After a few moments, his feet began to move of their own accord and when he reached the crossroad, he turned to follow them. Matt couldn't believe it, as his eyes found the Kamiya siblings joined hands once more. Surely this was just one of those weird, slightly too close, things they did. Yes, that must be it. Except he had a strong feeling that it wasn't. Keeping his distance, he continued to follow them. They certainly weren't going home, that much was certain.

After about ten minutes, Tai and Kari crossed the road and stopped to lock up their bikes. Matt stopped too, ensuring he kept a safe distance. He watched as they entered a coffee shop. Electing to remain on this side, he walked forward until he drew level with the shop. His gaze scanned the windows until he found the pair sitting in a booth right beside one of them. Reaching into his pocket, he pulled out his phone, opened the camera and used it's zoom function to get a better look. The resolution may not have been the best, but he could still make out who the individuals were. He waited, for what, he did not know. Several minutes passed, during which Tai went and got himself and Kari a hot beverage. Meanwhile, outside, Matt could feel the wind pick up and start to bite at his un-gloved hands and unprotected face. This was stupid, he thought. It's getting colder and I'm standing here in the hopes of seeing what? He was just about to pocket his phone and head for Teiko's place when it happened. Through his phone screen, he saw Kari reach out over the table and kiss Tai full on the lips.

Matt froze as his eyes once again widened in horror. Holy shit! Tai and Kari were snogging each other! Hastily his finger hit the capture button, just moments before the siblings broke off the kiss. This was too much to take in. Robotically, he lowered his phone and pocketed it. His fingers were numb and he felt cold to his core. Mind having blown a fuse, Matt turned and began walking. What had he just witnessed? The answer to that was obvious, the Kamiya siblings snogging of course. But what did it mean? Were they… involved with each other… An if so, for how long?

As questions of a similar nature began to swim through his mind, he recalled once more that first night he'd spent with Teiko and the conversation they'd shared. Tai had been in love with his sister since before that night. That much Teiko had assured him of being true. But what about Kari? He cast his mind further back. Kari had told TK that she'd broken up with him because she was in love with someone else, but no one had ever materialised. It certainly hadn't been Davis, who she'd used for petty revenge purposes. Had it been Tai all this time? Had she been in love with her own brother back then? And then used TK as some way to try and suppress her own feelings? Slowly the pieces began to slot together in his head… yes, it had to be. It was the only thing that made sense. Which meant he now had a decision to make. Did he keep this to himself and hope that TK would eventually get over Kari? His brother had hardly done a good job of that so far. Or did he tell him and run the risk of it setting him over the edge, in the hopes that the knowledge might grant his brother some sort of closure? It was a difficult choice and one that, at present, he did not have an answer for.

Tuning a corner, Matt began making his way back to Teiko and Sakura's apartment. Maybe talking it through with his girlfriend would help him reach a decision. That's if she didn't completely flip out, find the remnants of last night's bourbon plus any other booze she could lay her hands on and get them all drunk again in celebration of the 'happy couple'. Both of those ideas, alcohol and incest, made Matt want to puke. Unfortunately, given time, Teiko would probably find a way to wear him down on both counts. Shaking his head, he continued on his way back to the apartment.