Part Five: A Secret Exposed
Chapter Ten: Us and Them
The sun was low down on the horizon when Tai and Kari began making their way towards the meeting place. After receiving the messages from Davis and Yolei, they'd both agreed to ignore their mother and deal with that problem once they got home. They'd then finished lunch and headed in the general direction of the bridge. However, given that they still had some time to kill, they'd gone into another coffee shop keep themselves warm. Only now the time had come to face their friends. They walked slowly through the still falling snow, neither in any rush. Given what had happened the last time they had walked to this particular spot by the river, they did not relish the return.
They turned a corner and the bridge came into view. Tai pulled out his phone and glanced at the time; 5:28 pm. "Assuming no one is running late, they should all be there by now."
Kari nodded in response. They had agreed to arrive late, so as to ensure everyone else was already there. That way, one of them would be unable to tell the others to go somewhere else or to reschedule. Up ahead, they saw a figure they recognised as Davis heading down the stairs. Giving his tardy nature, if he was on time that probably meant that the rest were, as Tai had suggested, already there. However, they did not bother to pick up the pace.
Just before they reached the top of the stairs, Tai stopped and turned to look at Kari. "No matter what they say, it won't change how I feel about you," he affirmed.
Kari nodded, "I know. It won't change how I feel either. We'll get through this together, agreed."
"Agreed. However, let's go down quietly. I wouldn't mind getting a feel for the crowd before we make our entrance."
For Kari, descending those stairs felt akin to deliberately walking into a pit-fall trap. She'd probably survive, but who knew what injury she might sustain. However, if this was how she felt now, then the day she and Tai chose to tell their parents would probably feel like going to the executioner's block.
Tai too felt similar nerves. He'd faced a lot in his life, danger and death chief amongst them during his adventures in the Digital world. Yet this was an entirely different prospect. Even though the group had become fractured over the past eighteen months, these individuals were still his closest friends. And very soon he could find himself having lost them all in one go. It was a daunting reality, but one he had resigned himself to the night he had decided he wished to be in a long-term relationship with his sister.
Halfway down the stairs, the couple began to hear voices. After a few more softly taken steps, they tucked in against the wall and strained their ears a little to listen.
"…I think we all want to hear the truth of this matter…" that was definitely Izzy.
"…well duh," a voice that could only be Mimi said. "Why else do you think we're standing here in the freezing cold with the snow piling up around us."
"At least you didn't have to trek across the city at short notice just to get here." So, Ken had managed to come.
"It doesn't matter how we all got here. What matters is that Tai and Kari are sick degenerates." Even through the anger, that voice undoubtedly belonged to TK.
"We shouldn't judge them before we know the whole story," the calming voice of Sora interjected.
"What does it matter? Tai and Kari are still our friends and I think it was wrong of you all to agree to meet like this without inviting them." It seemed that Davis at least was not out to condemn them.
Unsurprisingly, Yolei backed him up, "I can't believe I'm saying this, but Davis is right. Tai and Kari are our friends. So what if they're in love?"
"How can you just say, so what, like that?" Cody interjected. "They're brother and sister."
"You can't help who you fall in love with," Yolei snapped.
"It's sick!" TK virtually yelled.
"Before this devolves into a pointless argument over speculation and rumour, can we at least get the facts straight?" Izzy said in what sounded like an attempt to restore order to proceedings.
There was a muttering of agreement from the assembled group.
"Good," Izzy continued. "From what I've heard, only one of us actually knows the whole story. Matt…"
A, "hmph," that could only have come from Matt was heard before the blonde-haired teen properly spoke. "If you all wanted to know so badly, why didn't you bother Tai or Kari? I've got better things to do than supply you lot with gossip."
It came as somewhat of a shock that Matt had not chosen to savage both of them at the first opportunity, given his current disposition towards them. However, his attitude was definitely in keeping with his typical demeanour. They both listened as he continued.
"The only reason I told TK in the first place was because I thought it might help him get some closure and finally get rid of that 'I love Kari' shrine he keeps in a box under his bed... Yeah, Bro, I know about that."
Tai and Kari looked at each other in bemusement. Wordlessly they asked each other if what Matt said about TK having a shrine box to her was true. While Tai did not particularly care if TK was over his sister, Kari felt herself doused in another shower of guilt and pity. Did TK really keep a box of things associated with her, she wondered?
"If you didn't want to tell us, why did you agree to come?" Mimi asked irritably.
"Fine," Matt barked in irritation. "If you want to know what I saw so badly, here it is…"
The entire group went silent for a moment and only the sound of their boots shuffling on the ground could be heard. After a moment, Izzy's voice spoke up, "are you certain that's Kari?"
"I saw them meet up outside my school, it's Kari," Matt said firmly.
Just in case his brother's testimony was not enough, TK then added, "she's wearing an Odaiba Middle School uniform. Kari is the only one in our school that has hair like that."
"In that case, this is pretty damning evidence," Izzy then said.
"What do you mean damning?" Yolei yelled. "So what if they are in love with each other? It's not something they chose to let happen; it just did."
"It sounds like you know more than you're letting on, Yolei," Izzy said in a suspicious tone.
Before Yolei had the chance to say anything, Cody interjected with, "it's their choice to act on it though. And I agree with TK, I think what they're doing is wrong."
"That still doesn't excuse what TK did this morning," Davis countered. "You yelled at the entire class that Kari was sleeping with Tai, but you have no proof of that. That photo only shows them kissing. And no one's even bothered to ask them for their side of the story"
Sensing that this was about to devolve into a massive argument, Tai looked at Kari. "I think that's our cue to enter," he said, giving her a look of resolve.
Kari took a deep breath. "Ok, here we go. Into the woods."
Hands clasped tightly together, Tai and Kari descended the final few stairs and turned to face the assembled DigiDestined.
"Instead of speculating over a photo, why don't you all ask us what you want to know?" Tai said firmly.
All heads turned in their direction, looks of shock, disbelief and guilt spreading across seven of the nine faces. Before anyone could say anything, Yolei strode through the crowd and wrapped her arms around Kari.
"Are you alright?" the lavender-haired girl asked with concern.
"I'm fine," Kari said softly. "I was quite shaken up, but Tai helped calm me down."
Yolei released her grip on Kari and moved to stand beside her, perhaps a symbolic gesture to reaffirm that she stood by the couple all the way.
Tai did not release the gaze of any of the other eight. He had led the elder DigiDestined through thick and thin and even though Davis had taken the lead of the younger group, the boy still deferred to him when both groups were together. He felt a flash of anger towards all but Davis, especially TK and Matt; who were the root cause of this whole affair. However, he knew he had to let it slide. They were all still his friends, yeah even Matt and he did not wish to lose any of them. Unfortunately, the stakes were high, with him being at risk of losing at least seven. In the end, he chose to answer the question he had dared them to ask. "Yes, Kari and I are in love with each other."
Even though they had seen Matt's photo, the majority of the DigiDestined gasped. A silence descended amongst them where only the sound of the passing cars overhead was heard.
After a moment or two, Kari chose to add, "before you ask, this isn't just some brother/sister complex that we have and are choosing to act out. Tai and I are in love and want to be together long term."
The collective shock started to dissipate and soon opinions started to be voiced and questions asked.
"The two of you are sick, twisted degenerates," TK fired.
"How can you be so intolerant?" Mimi shot at the blonde-haired boy. "Ok, sure it's not conventional, but love is love. You can't help who it is you fall for."
On hearing her words of support, Tai gave Mimi a small smile. Of the assembled group, she had been one of the few that he thought might be accepting of his relationship with Kari.
"No, but you can choose not to act on it," Cody reiterated.
"Obviously you've never been in love," Yolei barked. "Do you know how hard it is to be in love with someone and have to try and suppress those feelings? Kari had to do it for two years and it almost consumed her. If you haven't forgotten, she fell so far into depression that she lost all her friends."
"I'm afraid I have to agree with Cody and TK," everyone turned to look at Ken.
"What!" Yolei yelled, rounding on her boyfriend.
"What Tai and Kari are doing is unnatural," Ken continued. "Tolerance for same-sex relationships is one thing, but this is incest. Nature doesn't allow it. For example, brother wolves won't mate with their sister's, even if there are no other females."
"To hell with what nature will and won't allow, Ken," Yolei yelled, her fists balled and a look of anger smeared across her face. "We're not wolves. People fall in love and have free will to chose to be together. Who are we to say who someone can or can't be with?"
Ken and Yolei quickly devolved into an argument over whether or not incest was acceptable. Meanwhile, Izzy said, "while I don't think the two of you being in a relationship is a sensible idea, I am interested to know how it came about. How did one of you have the courage to tell the other how they felt?" However, his question was quickly drowned out by the others as they began to weigh into the argument.
As the situation began to intensify, so too did the guilt inside Kari. Without meaning to, she'd caused yet another fight to happen between her friends. Finally, the dam burst inside her and the memories of all the arguments and fights cascaded over her. It was all her fault, all of it. Had she not felt the way she did about Tai, everyone would still be close friends, instead of… Her eyes surveyed the group, people having jumped in on either side of the argument. Cody, TK, Ken and Izzy on one side, Davis, Yolei and Mimi on the other. Only Sora, who was trying but failing to calm people down and Matt, who stood with his back against the wall and looking completely disinterested, had not taken sides. Beside her, Tai had let go of her hand and entered the fray.
Standing alone on the outside, watching most of her friends fighting like this, finally became too much for Kari. Perhaps this had been inevitable. That one day she would be faced with this choice. Stand up and take responsibility for everything that she'd done, or run and hide from it all like she had been doing since the start. She felt the urge to run. To take the easy way out and never look back. Her fists clenched and it took a herculean effort to stay where she was. Running away was what the old Kari would do. But she was not that person anymore. She was stronger now. And, at the very least for her own conscience and sanity, she needed to do this. Taking a deep breath, she yelled over the top of everyone, "STOP IT!"
The entire group fell silent and every head, even Matt's, turned to stare at her, a mixture of surprise and shock on each face. Kari took another breath to steady herself. "You don't have to fight each other. I'm the reason you're all arguing, the reason you all fell out."
Tai looked at his girlfriend, completely stunned. What was she saying? How could she possibly be trying to take the blame for the divisions that had occurred between the DigiDestined? Eventually, he managed to open his mouth and utter, "Kari, it's not your…" but was quickly cut off.
"Don't say it wasn't my fault, Tai," Kari said firmly. "This time you don't get to blindly defend me." She looked at each and every person in turn. "This all started because of me and the feelings I have for Tai. Two and a half years ago, I found out I was in love with my brother and I panicked. I tried to suppress my feelings, to deny that they existed." Her gaze fell upon TK. "I tried to fall in love with someone else, with you TK, but it didn't work. However, when I came to this realization, I was so scared about what it meant for me, that I couldn't end our relationship. I let it drag on until the point where you made your intentions clear. I knew I would be breaking your heart, but I had no other choice. I couldn't let it go on any longer. And for that, I will be eternally sorry, TK."
Kari could still see the hurt, the pain… the anger in TK's blue eyes. And she half expected him to yell something at her. However, he remained silent. Perhaps taking some twisted pleasure from listening to her confession, or simply being the gentleman she knew him to be and allowing her to continue. Her gaze then fell upon Tai. "You were the next person to be dragged into this mess, Tai. It was my fault TK felt so angry towards me and when you saw us arguing, you blindly leapt to my defence as you always do." Her eyes found Matt, who met her gaze with the corner of one blue eye. "You did the same thing, Matt. You saw your brother in trouble and immediately jumped in to help." She received no reaction from the blonde-haired teen, who still looked disinterested in the whole affair.
Kari found Davis next, who gave her a light smile. "Davis, you too had no idea what was going on, but saw a two vs one situation and dived in to aid Tai. I then used you to both get back at TK and as a last hope to deny my feelings. You're so much like Tai, I thought that maybe it would be enough…"
"Hey, don't sweat it, Kari," Davis said, his smile widening. "I'm not that dumb that I didn't know you wanted to get back at TK. However, it was my choice to go out with you. We had fun together over those few weeks, but by the end, we both knew that we were better off as friends."
Kari returned the smile before moving on, her eyes shifting to Sora. She met the ginger-haired girl's gaze but found she could not read those red eyes. After TK, Sora had the most reason to hate her. After all, she'd clawed the girl's face like she was Gatomon. "I'm so sorry for hurting you, Sora," she began, desperately trying to convey the sincerity of her words. It seemed that time had mellowed her feelings towards the girl. Though she supposed a large part of that was due to the fact that Sora's actions had been of benefit to her in the long run. While she might have hurt Tai eighteen months ago, had she not done so, the two of them may have become a happy couple, leaving her alone with her unrequited feelings. "I was emotionally unstable at the time and when I saw how much pain you had caused Tai, by choosing Matt, I couldn't control myself. Not only did I hurt you, but I solidified the wedge between you, Matt, Tai and myself."
She met the gaze of the other five in turn. "Now, because of me and my relationship with Tai, you've all taken sides and started arguing with each other." Kari lowered her head. "I understand if you all want to hate me, I more than deserve it. But please, don't throw away your friendships with each other because of me."
Tai could feel the sadness radiating from his girlfriend and immediately stepped forward to put an arm around her. It must have taken a lot of courage for her to stand in front of everyone and shoulder all the blame for each and every fight and division that had occurred between them. Unfortunately, despite what he may wish to think, her testimony had been fairly damning. Nevertheless, he would stand by her, even if everyone else chose to denounce her.
The silence that had descended after Kari finished speaking was eventually broken by the person Kari would have least expected to do so. "I never thought I'd hear you stand up and admit that," Matt said, finally stepping away from the wall and into the group. "Much less have Tai stand there and not leap in to defend you."
"That doesn't make her any less of a bitch," TK growled, anger still lacing his tone.
"She didn't do it on purpose!" Davis countered. "She may have been the lit match, but we were the barrels of gunpowder that allowed our fuses to be set alight."
Everyone turned to stare at Davis, his metaphor actually making sense for once.
"I think the important thing here is that, whether she meant to or not, Kari is clearly sorry for her part in our feuds," Izzy said, perhaps hoping to avert another argument breaking out, this time over whether Kari should be demonised or not. "And I hope we're all mature enough to accept her apology and put an end to our arguments."
Kari had to fight the urge to cry when, one by one, each member of the group muttered some sort of agreement. All accept one. "Thank you," she whispered, feeling an eighteen-month-old weight finally lift from her shoulders.
"I'll never forgive you," TK then spat.
Kari had been prepared for this, expected it if truth be told. After seeing the look in TK's eyes that morning, she had known that all forgiveness he may have felt towards her since they'd started talking again had been wiped out. She was about to say, I understand, when Yolei fired at the boy, "why? You and Kari have been on good terms for months now and, despite what you might try and argue, you had started to forgive her. Nothing she told you was a lie. The only thing that's changed is that you now know who she was in love with. Why should that change anything?"
"Because she's in love with her brother. It's sick!" TK yelled.
"It's not sick, it's just unconventional," Mimi interjected.
"How can you say it's 'unconventional' with such blasé?" Ken countered.
Ignoring all of this, for the time being, Tai looked Kari straight in the eyes. "Are you ok?" he asked, his voice full of concern.
Kari nodded and gave him a small smile. "I needed to do that and feel better now that I have. You don't have to worry about me."
Satisfied that his girlfriend would be alright, Tai returned the smile before turning to face the group. "That's enough!" he bellowed over the top of everyone in his authoritative tone. As always, it had the desired result of getting everyone to shut up and turn their attention towards him. It was a difficult and unenviable position, he thought. To be both at the centre of the controversy and the one to try and settle matters. However, he had no other choice. "I understand that you all have your own opinions on whether or not what Kari and I are doing is wrong." He paused to allow his words to sink in. It was hard to appear neutral when you held one of the polar viewpoints. "And if you all want to fight and argue over it like it's just another piece of gossip, neither of us can stop you. However, you all wanted to know the truth of the matter and we've told you; Kari and I are in love and wish to be together."
Tai took a breath. There was already a clear 4:3 split, with two undeclared, however, he at least had to leave the door open should people change their minds at some point down the road. His gaze caught that of each person in turn when he said, "both Kari and I understand that this might be difficult for you all to accept. But, despite that, we wish to remain friends with everyone, if you'll have us. If not… we would like to ask that you keep our relationship a secret." It was a damage control move, he knew that. Thanks to TK, Kari would probably be dogged by rumours that she was a brotherfucker until the end of the year; it not longer. However, it was the group in front of them, their closest friends, that had the greatest potential to spill the beans to their parents.
"Hey, it might be a bit weird, but I'll always be friends with you guys," Davis said, metaphorically being the first to step forward.
"You've had my support since the start and that'll never change," Yolei added.
"I think it's neat that the two of you are so in love that you want to be together," Mimi said merrily. "Not to mention you make such a cute couple."
Well, at least they would still have three friends, Tai thought, although at the same time, braced himself for the impact that he knew was about to come.
Much to his surprise, Izzy then said, "while I stand by what I said earlier, I don't think what the two of you are doing is sensible, I don't see why we can't still be friends."
However, then came the first denunciation. "I'm sorry, but I just don't agree with what the two of you are doing," Cody said firmly.
"I agree," Ken added. "What the two of you are doing is wrong and needs to stop. If you can't see that, then someone should tell your parents."
On hearing this, Yolei suddenly rounded on her boyfriend, "and who's going to tell them, you?" the venom in her tone was something to behold.
Ken quickly shrank away from her and failed to respond. Only for TK to quickly pick up the baton, "I will."
Tai watched Yolei, her expression livid, turn to shoot him down, only for another voice to cut through the air, "no you won't."
Everyone turned to look at the speaker and Tai knew they were probably all as stunned as he was. It had been Matt.
"What! You can't tell me what to do," TK declared defiantly.
"I can when it's for your own good," Matt said firmly, his tone icy cold. "I only showed you that damn photo because I thought it might help give you some closure, not so you could poke your nose into something that is none of your business. Besides, if you do anything to harm Tai and Kari's relationship, my girlfriend will slaughter you…" the last part he spoke under his breath, but Tai still heard it, "…and probably me for telling you."
"I'm not scared of Teiko," TK spat indignantly."
Tai's mouth fell open as his gaze shifted from younger to older brother. "Teiko? As in Teiko Sato?" he asked in disbelief.
"Yeah, what of it?" Matt replied curtly.
Tai couldn't help but stare at him. While he'd barely spoken to Teiko recently, he'd not really spoken to anyone because of his studies to be fair, she'd kept that one quiet. "I…" he had been about to say that he didn't think he was her type and vice versa, when he realised that might not be the case. Teiko would probably enjoy coaxing Matt out of his frosty exterior. While Matt could, if giving the right incentive, be coaxed out. Instead, he said with a chuckle, "have fun."
Matt gave him a sly smirk, "I do."
"I'm still not scared of her," TK reiterated loudly, sounding irritated at having been ignored.
Tai turned to look at the boy at the same time Matt did. "You should be," they said in unison, before catching each other's eye, a mutual understanding passing between them.
"You're not going to get involved, TK," Matt then reaffirmed.
The two brother's locked gazes, but the outcome was inevitable; TK folded. "Fine," he spat bitterly, "I'll keep your disgusting secret," he turned and stared directly into Kari's reddish-brown eyes, "but I'm not doing it for you. As far as I'm concerned, I don't want anything to do with you ever again."
"Are we in agreement then?" Sora then said, drawing everyone's attention. "We'll all keep Tai and Kari's secret, despite what our different views on their relationship might be."
It came as somewhat of a surprise, albeit a welcome one, to both Tai and Kari when everyone in the group confirmed their agreement. Although it was clear that certain individuals did so grudgingly. However, a final score of five still willing to be friends with them, three firmly against and… whatever Matt's actual opinion was, should probably be considered a better result than either of them could have hoped for.
"Thank you," Tai and Kari said as one.
"Yeah, whatever," Matt grunted, once more sounding disinterested. "Now, if we're all done here, I've got places to be."
"Say hi to Teiko for us," Kari said.
A smirk flashed across Matt's face so quick it could easily have been missed as he turned away. "If she finds out I saw her new favourite couple and didn't tell her, I won't hear the end of it." With that, he walked away along the waterfront.
The others started making their goodbyes, Cody, TK and Ken noticeably blanking Tai and Kari; the latter much to Yolei's chagrin. There was going to be further arguments between the two of them. Of that much Kari was certain.
When the group dissipated, only Sora remained. She stepped forward, a smile on her face but a faint sadness in her eyes. Those red orbs then met Tai's chocolate browns. "The two of you split up, then got back together," she said, it was not a question.
"Yeah," Tai confirmed anyway. "We thought it would be for the best, but then realised that we couldn't be without one another. I'm sorry, Sora," he added.
"Don't be," Sora replied. "I had my chance to be with you and I missed it. I hope the two of you are happy together." She then turned and looked at Kari. "Take care of him."
"I will," Kari assured her. "You'll find someone that makes you happy Sora, I just know it."
With a polite nod of her head, the ginger-haired girl turned and headed up the stairs, leaving Tai and Kari alone.
A moment passed before either spoke. Eventually, Tai said, "that probably went better than I could ever have imagined. And I can't believe Matt."
"Yeah," Kari replied, the blonde-haired teen's actions had surprised her too. "And he's dating Teiko."
They both laughed.
"Shall we head for home?" Tai then asked.
"I suppose we don't have much choice. We're going to have to face mom sooner or later."
They joined hands as they set foot on the stairs and started to ascend back to street level. In hindsight, the battle they had just fought would probably pale in comparison to the one they faced when they got home.