A/N: I think this story has a wierd effect on me. Every time I start writing a chapter I'll get really into it and actually like it. Then towards the end I get really awkward, then I read it back and hate it. It's wierd. Oh well. Sorry this took so long anyway.
Disclaimer: You guys know the drill. I don't own any of the characters of Digimon, nor the song Secrets by Good Charlotte (the opening verse).
Dedication: My wonderful reviewers, energy tablets and Max the dog, for actually leaving me alone while I was finishing up this chapter, despite his best attempts to eat my pizza.
Chapter Five: Out of the Darkness
Everybody wants to hide their secrets away.
Nobody wants to stand up to the pain.
But I will stand up to the pain.
Wake up and fight again.
"So have you spoken to him?" Koushiro asked as he and Mimi entered the kitchen, fingers laced. Taichi was slumped at the kitchen table, head in hands staring at the phone in front of him.
"Briefly," he muttered. "He didn't want to know,"
Koushiro let go of Mimi's hand and took a seat next to Taichi, patting his friend's shoulder.
"I don't know Ishida that well but to be honest I wouldn't have expected him to forgive you right away, but I'm sure he will eventually. You'll just have to fight," The red head said comfortingly, "He'll come around,"
"Yeah I know. Well, I hope so," Taichi half smiled, feeling strangely more cheery than he previously had been. Just having Koushiro know felt like a giant weight had been lifted from his chest.
"So, Tai, are we telling everyone else?" Mimi asked cautiously, hovering behind the two boys.
"Yes. Yes we are," Taichi turned around and smiled honestly. For the first time in months he could tell the whole truth to his closest friends and that fact, just for a few moments, made whatever happened with Yamato irrelevant.
The brunette stood up and, accompanied by two of his best friends, walked back down the corridor towards the lounge. He stopped at the door, nervously, and again felt Koushiro's comforting hand on his back.
"I can tell them if you'd prefer," the shorter boy offered.
"No. No I'll do it. It's my lie. They deserve it from me,"
Taichi pushed the door open and stepped in, turning the heads of his four friends.
"You three took your time," Daisuke commented, "What were you doing?"
Taichi smiled, but made no attempt at replying as he held open the door for Mimi and Koushiro, then shut it behind them. The three made no effort to sit down as Daisuke, Jyou and Kuuya stared up at them, confused. Sora had already guessed what was going on, and was simply wondering how Taichi was going to tell them.
"Um, guys? I kind of… have to tell you something," Taichi rubbed the back of his neck nervously.
The three boys on the floor continued to stare on expectantly.
"The thing is… Um… Everything Hiraku said is true. And I'm sorry I lied. I am! But I was scared. I felt like I had no choice. It was stupid, yaknow? But... yeah, I'm sorry," He blurted, looking at the floor. He didn't want to see the expressions on his friend's faces as they found out about his dirty little secret.
There were several moments of awkward silence as he stared at the carpet, absent-mindedly counting the threads. The next thing he heard was Daisuke's voice.
"So you lied to us?" The boy scowled, feeling let down.
"I'm sorry," Taichi mumbled.
"Why, Tai? We're your friends! I don't care if you're gay. I don't even care if you're really with Ishida. We care about you. And the truth. Why would you lie? I mean keeping it a secret is bad enough, but lying about it after we've asked you directly. That's not cool dude," Daisuke practically exploded.
"I agree. I mean, what about Hiraku? Yeah, he's a complete ass, but what you've done to him ain't fair," Kuuya chipped in.
"And what he did to me is?" Taichi practically yelled in defence.
"Guys! Calm down, okay?" Sora stood up, coming between Taichi and the three boys. "Listen, Taichi's telling us the truth now, and that's what matters right? Plus, it wasn't that big a secret anyway. I'm surprised you hadn't guessed. Yeah, he's lied. But you can understand why, can't you? After the way the school have acted today? And I find it hard to believe that everyone in this room is completely okay with him being gay. No offence, but it's likely to take a while. But like you said, he's our friend and he's telling us the truth, the least we can do is just let it go. Personally, though, I'd rather we all support him"
Daisuke sighed, "She's right man. I'm sorry. I just… I wish you hadn't lied. And I really am okay about you being gay, okay?"
"Thanks," Taichi smiled, "And I really am sorry I lied,"
"Yeah. Look, thanks for telling us the truth now and all. I mean, it's a little weird for me, but whatever man. As long as you're happy, okay?" Kuuya stated.
Taichi beamed, feeling more relieved every second.
"Wait, so if everything Hiraku said is true… does that mean you are with Ishida?" Kuuya frowned thoughtfully. Sora's ears pricked and she looked directly at Taichi as he looked back down at the floor, not forgetting what he'd previously said to her - and everyone else - about the blonde 'scruff'.
"Um, yeah. Well no. Er, I don't really know right now," Taichi mumbled.
"You told me you weren't," Sora stated, evidently hurt he'd told her he wasn't with Yamato.
"I know. I wanted to respect his privacy and stuff. But I know you guys won't say anything, right? Not about me either,"
A chorus of "No"s, "Hell no"s and "Of course not"s met Taichi's ears.
"Thanks," He sighed then flounced down onto the sofa next to Daisuke, "Well now that's over, what movies are we watching tonight?"
"Over? It's not over!"
"No way! We're not finished with this yet,"
"Ah, no no no no no. This ain't over,"
Sora, Kuuya and Daisuke objected consecutively.
"Yeah Tai, we want all the dirt," Mimi winked.
"Aw, what?! Come on guys, I'm knackered," Taichi joked, faking a yawn. He couldn't believe how much better he was feeling after just telling his friends the truth.
"Lies! So yeah, how did you two, yaknow, how did you, um," Daisuke attempted.
"What he's trying to say," Mimi said as she squeezed into the space between Daisuke and Taichi, excited at the concept of gossip, "Is how did you two first get together?"
Daisuke nodded as confirmation of his question.
"But I think we should start at the beginning. When did you first realise you were gay?" Mimi patted the brunette's knee with every syllable of her question.
"Um, okay, first, the abuse can stop," Taichi frowned amicably, poking Mimi's hand, which she pulled away with a sheepish apology, "Secondly, your question's a tough one. I honestly don't know. I guess I'd thought it for as long as I can remember, I always liked the boys in the music videos, not the girls" He laughed heartily, then his face sobered slightly, "Yamato just confirmed it for me I guess,"
"So, okay, how did you two get together?" Daisuke asked.
"Well, okay, y'know how everyone thinks we hate each other?" Taichi laughed, and everyone nodded in response, "Well, I guess that was kind of real at first. The first day he came to school, I sort of, well I couldn't take my mind off him," he looked down at his knees, crimson spreading up his neck, "The first time I saw him was in History and as soon as he walked in I couldn't believe my eyes. Sora, you were there. Remember what he said when Mr. Iyadomi asked him if he had any questions?"
"Hah! Oh yeah, 'Yeah, what the fuck's up with the brunette pretty boy over there? Mr Thinks-He's-Everything or something?' It was such a bad insult," Sora chuckled.
Taichi smirked slightly, "Heh, yeah. Well I reacted, didn't I? I played up to it for the next three days because I couldn't handle the way he was making me feel. At the time I'd never felt that way about anyone, and I wasn't really expecting the first one to be a boy,"
"So when did that change?"
"Like I said, it lasted three days. On the third day, it was a Friday, well, we were in Math, and I went to the toilet. Was washing my hands when Yamato came in, said some really weird stuff, pinned me up against the wall. And shit, I thought he was gonna kick my ass. But he didn't, he, erm, he kissed me, stuffed a piece of paper into my hand and left. It was really weird, but he'd scrawled 'Call me' and his number on the paper. Heh, it took me until the Sunday to work up the courage to do it. But I did, and we went out that night, to the park in the pitch black, with hoods up and everything, and we just… I dunno, we got on so well. And yeah, it all went from there,"
"That's really cute," Mimi giggled.
"So what's going on with you two now? After what you said it sounds like things aren't so good," Sora probed softly.
"Yeah. Crap. I don't know. Things were good. Things were bloody amazing until Hiraku walked in on us. We've barely talked since then, but somehow, I don't think he's going to forgive me for the way I acted today. Not easily at least,"
"Well, you never know. Keep trying, yeah?" Sora comforted, squeezing Taichi's shoulder.
"Tai… Do you love him?" Daisuke pried.
Taichi laughed bleakly, "Yeah. Yeah I do. And now I've gone and cocked it all up. Shit. What was I thinking? And after everything he's been through before…"
"Hey, come on Taich, it's not your fault. I can't see anyone handling what's happened to you over the last day very well at all. I mean, sheesh, you just came out to the entire school in the worst possible way," Kuuya consoled, "I'm sure he can understand that, right?"
"No. Not after what he went through before. He didn't deserve this. Not at all. I don't deserve him," Taichi's voice broke. He didn't even try holding back the few tears that were falling down his cheeks as he kept his eyes on knees.
"Um, no offence Tai, but from what I've seen of Ishida, you're better than him. No matter what you've done in the past 24 hours," Daisuke all but whispered.
"You don't know him," Tai ground out, "What the school sees? It's all a charade. He's the most beautiful person I know," He couldn't stop the tears falling now. Not just over the fact that he might have lost the most beautiful person in his life, but over what an asshole he'd been, how much he must have hurt him.
Sora and Mimi both wrapped their arms around their crying friend and Daisuke and Kuuya exchanged worried glances. Koushiro, on the other hand, had his eyes set on Jyou. It hadn't slipped the redhead's attention that the older boy had said nothing since Taichi had come out and knowing Jyou he was probably freaking out about it.
"Ergh. Sorry guys," Taichi choked, wiping the tears away from his face, "Didn't mean to start crying on you. Let's just… let's just watch some films yeah?"
"Shit Tai, don't worry about it," Daisuke jumped up out of his seat, "And I have a better idea. How about we all go to the movies, grab a pizza then crash here?"
"Nothing like inviting yourself, eh, Dais?" Kuuya laughed at Daisuke's bluntness.
"I dunno. I still don't feel like going out tonight. But you guys are more than welcome to stay here for the night. And we can order pizza and get rental DVDs," Taichi's voice was still slightly raw from the tears, but he sounded happy at the thought of having his friends around him all night.
"I'll stay," Kuuya decided.
"Yeah, me too," Koushiro agreed.
"I will, I was meant to be staying at Sora's anyway," Mimi beamed, excited at the concept of a sleepover.
"Um, well, I would, it's just, I don't know how my mum would react to my staying at a guy's all night, even if it is you," Sora sighed uneasily, "I mean I doubt she'd mind if she knew you were gay, but our mums are close… and she might tell your mum and… yeah,"
Taichi couldn't help but let out a slight guffaw as the others stared on in bemusement, "Guys, she already knows!"
"And she's okay with it?"
"Yeah, of course! How else would Yamato and I have been able to spend much time together? Hikari knows too,"
"Really? That's impressive. Though I must confess I'm a little hurt your mum knew before me, but, whatever," Daisuke scowled. Whether he was joking or not, Taichi couldn't decide.
"Anyway, so Sora, you gonna stay?" Taichi turned his attention back to his auburn haired friend.
"Yeah, once I've checked with my mum," Sora decided.
"Goodo. Jyou?" Taichi fixed his attention on his black-haired friend, not realising that he'd been silent through the entire conversation.
"Um, you know what guys? I think I'm gonna take off," said Jyou as he got up and headed out of the lounge door, "It's been fun and all but I have, erm, studying to do. See you round?" And with that he was off.
"Oookay," Taichi frowned after the boy, bemused, "Right, guys, you can all phone your parents about tonight while I double check with my mum and ask my sister and her friends if they want in on the pizza, okay?"
"Yeah, um, I'm gonna go check if Jyou's okay. I'll be back though," Koushiro picked up his jacket then left.
---
An hour later saw Kuuya, Daisuke and Taichi sat in front of the TV eating crisps and ignoring the Friday night programmes that were left on as they talked over it. Koushiro still hadn't come back after chasing after Jyou and Mimi had insisted that she and Sora go back to Sora's to get their belongings, because of course Mimi couldn't survive any sleepover without the essentials. Taichi's mother had given everyone permission to stay granted their parents allowed it and they weren't too rowdy. They were ready to order pizza as soon as everyone got back and Hikari and her friends finished working on their science project.
It was another half hour before Mimi and Sora arrived back, equipped with way too many bags.
"Um, you realise we're only staying one night, right?" Daisuke raised his eyebrows and pointed at the amount of bags the girls had between them.
"Yes," Sora rolled her eyes, "Mimi decided she wanted to go shopping and, well, you have no idea how much stuff this girl likes to bring to sleepovers,"
"I just brought all my stuff. We can do, like, facials and stuff. Tai! I can give you a makeover and Yamato Ishida will take you back in no time," Mimi dropped her bags in the corner of the lounge and sat down on the empty sofa opposite the boys.
"Um, heh, I'll pass on that one thanks. So, what did you buy in the shops?" Taichi directed the subject away from makeovers as quickly as he could.
"Oh you know, the usual comfort food. Marshmallows, chocolate fudge cake, cookies, hot chocolate… pretty much all junk food," Mimi said proudly.
"Comfort food? If this is because of me, you really didn't have to," Taichi shifted slightly in his seat, somewhat uncomfortable at the fact his friends had spent money just on cheering him up.
"Shut up Tai! If the ladies wanna bring us food, let them bring us food! But if you don't want it, that's great. I'm more than happy to eat your share," Daisuke joked.
"No Tai, don't worry about it. You should know by now that Mimi lives for girly sleepovers and cheering people up. If it wasn't for your whole relationship thing, she'd have found another reason to buy junky food," Sora rolled her eyes jovially at her pink haired friend, who simply smiled widely in response.
"Well, all the better for me then," Taichi stretched back happily on the sofa, "I wish the others would hurry up. I want my pizza,"
"Yeah, what's taking Koushiro so long?" Mimi wondered aloud, strangely enough just as the doorbell rung.
The group listened as Taichi's mother opened the door and welcomed Koushiro back in, leading him through to the lounge.
"Hey guys," He stepped in through the doorway, now graced with two bags he previously hadn't been carrying.
"Where've you been?" Daisuke asked, forcing an obviously false annoyed tone into his voice, "We've been waiting for pizza,"
"Right. Well it took me ages to calm Jyou down. It would seem he isn't as okay about Taichi's… revelation as the rest of us are. He's better now, I talked him out of it, but he thought it best not to stay for the night. Then I went home and got some stuff. Did you really think I'd stay out for the night without my laptop?" Koushiro cocked an eyebrow slightly.
The group settled into a slightly uncomfortable silence, none of them realising that Jyou hadn't been as accepting as them.
"So, erm… Jyou's not okay with me?" Taichi sighed, feeling let down and shaken. Since he'd finally let it all out to his friends, everything had seemed okay again, in spite of what was happening with Yamato. He'd failed to notice, however, that his older friend hadn't been comfortable with it.
"It freaked him out. A lot. But like I said, I talked to him and calmed him down. He just needs to get used to it is all," Koushiro shook his head thoughtfully, "By next week, he should be fine,"
"I hope so," Taichi exhaled deeply, shrugging his shoulders slightly.
"Okay now Koushiro's here can we order pizza?" Daisuke either attempted a quick change of subject or really was just thinking with his stomach.
"Yeah. Let me just go check with Hikari how long they're gonna be," Taichi decided, getting up to leave the room.
---
The rest of the night was spent laughing, eating, cooking and watching DVDs, occasionally with deep conversation tied somewhere between. If it hadn't been for the occasional questions about them, Taichi could have happily forgotten about the problems between him and Yamato and simply enjoyed a night in with his friends. Even so, the rest of the conversation, the films and the food helped take his mind off everything enough to severely enjoy the night. It had been a long time since he'd spent a night in with his friends, happy doing nothing, and it felt really good, especially now they knew the real him.
At about 11 o'clock Hikari's friends began to leave. Since they'd finished working on their project they'd stayed in the lounge with Taichi and his friends, finding that they all got on well - particularly Daisuke and TK. Daisuke even walked the blonde to the door as he left and asked him to join them in town the next day, to which TK agreed.
After many rounds of Spin The Bottle, several makeovers with an array of victims (including Daisuke and Koushiro) and about a million marshmallow cookies, the group finally began to fall asleep. Mimi went first, cuddled up to Koushiro in her bright pink, heart decorated sleeping bag. Koushiro was next, drifting off to the sound of Mimi's gentle breathing. Still with them, Hikari seemed to fall asleep the same time as Sora, as they rested against each other. Before long, Kuuya was gone too, and it was just Daisuke and Taichi awake.
"Can you believe them? Asleep already! It's still early!" Daisuke rolled his eyes, but kept his voice low, careful not to wake the others.
"Haha, so not hardcore," Taichi's voice was equally quiet as he flicked through the channels on the TV with the volume down low.
"Dude it's only…" Daisuke glanced at his wrist, trying to see the time, but realised he hadn't been wearing a watch since soccer practice. "You got the time?"
"Yeah," Without looking, Taichi thrust the arm with the watch on in front of Daisuke's face as he continued to stare at the TV.
"Well, it's 3am," Daisuke read from the watch. "Guess it is kinda late," He stifled a yawn, then looked across at Taichi, whose eyes were drooping despite his best efforts to keep them open and watch late night TV.
Before they knew it, they were asleep too.
---
Somehow, Taichi woke up at 8.30 the next morning, long before everyone else. He came to slowly, for a minute thinking that the lump lying on him was Yamato, but as he awoke properly, he realised it was Daisuke. Gently, he pushed the sleeping boy off him, and sat up, glancing around the room. Koushiro and Mimi were still huddled in her sleeping bag. Hikari and Sora were sleeping sitting up, backs leaning against the opposite sofa, on which Kuuya was spread out, mouth open wide enough to catch flies. Quietly, he stood up and stepped over them all, walking into the kitchen. He stretched and yawned, then let out a deep sigh, intensely missing Yamato, so much so that he picked up the phone and punched in the blonde's house number. It may have been early, and yes, Yamato probably was going to kill him, but like his friends had said, he just had to keep trying.
He was almost ready to hang up and give up when the blonde finally answered, voice scratchy and raw. Taichi could just picture him with his tousled hair and nude chest, clad only in a pair of jogging bottoms and probably boxer-briefs, rubbing his eyes and scowling down the phone. Well, the scowl at least was evident in his voice.
"What the hell?" the blonde groaned. No 'hello', no 'how may I help you?'; he was really quite lucky it was Taichi and not someone important calling for his Uncle.
"Yama, it's me, Tai," Taichi stated, voice equally groggy due to it being the first thing he'd said since he'd woken. He instantly regretted using his pet name for the blonde, knowing that 'Yama' would probably snap due just to that, leave alone being woken up early.
"Don't you fucking 'Yama' me. What the hell do you think you're doing ringing me this early in the morning? What the hell do you think you're doing ringing me full stop? I told you Taichi, it's over. You made you're fucking bed now lie in it. And fuck off so I can fall asleep in mine,"
"No Yamato! Listen! Please, just listen! I'm sorry, okay? I was an asshole, but I'm so damned sorry! I want to tell the truth! I want them to know the truth about us. My friends already do. I'm so sick of lying Yamato. I want to be proud of us, of what we have," The brunette pleaded, but to no avail.
"You told them?! That's great Tai. How the hell are we meant to act straight now? And it's not what we have man, it's what we had, because of course why the hell would you date a scruff like me?" Yamato spat.
"No, Yama…" Taichi sniffed, the tears in his eyes evident in his voice, "Listen. Please, please just come and meet me today. We're all going into town, okay? So come in and give me a ring and I'll meet you. We can sort this out properly, please?"
There was a soft silence as Yamato considered Taichi's proposal, heart softening slightly at the tears he could hear in the brunette's voice.
"Maybe," He finally uttered, voice less harsh than it had been "But I'm going back to bed now,"
"M'kay," Taichi sighed, "I'll see you later then. I love you," he whispered, before hanging up, not waiting for his love's reply.
---
Yamato glared at his watch, taking another drag from the cigarette in his hands. It was half past eleven and he was in town. He, Yamato Ishida, was actually up and looking fairly good at half past eleven in the morning. He'd done his hair just the way he liked it, he wore a faded tight black t-shirt - which had fancy white lettering across it, reading 'Cocaine Rodeo' - that clung to his skin tightly, showing off his toned body, and a pair of low slung black jeans adorned in patches - many of which obscene - studs and buttons. A line of milky white skin was visible between the bottom of the t-shirt and the top of the trousers. He'd made an effort with his appearance for a number of reasons. Firstly, he hadn't been able to get back to sleep since the wake up call he'd received from Taichi and there'd been nothing else to do but get ready. Secondly, he was almost ready to forgive Taichi, almost. And that meant getting a little revenge first, which of course he knew would be sweetest when he looked the part. Thirdly - and lastly - he knew that pretty much everyone from his school would be in town, and before he even considered taking Taichi back - if he even did - he needed to make sure his "badass" reputation was still intact.
Leaning against an outside wall of the city's main shopping mall, he finished his cigarette, then took out another, holding it between his lips as he shielded it from the wind with one hand, lighting it precisely with the other. He was going to leave it until at least 1 in the afternoon until he let Taichi know he was in town, which meant a good hour and a half's mindless shopping for him. He really wasn't going to give in that easily, not after the way Taichi had behaved the day before, especially when he knew how Kai had treated him. He probably wouldn't have even considered taking him back at all - at least not this early - had it not been for the surprise he'd had at the wake up call, and the tears he could hear in poor Taichi's voice as he begged for them to meet.
Shortly, he finished off his second cigarette and strolled into the building, heading towards the music shop. It was his favourite shop due to it being split in two halves, one selling CDs and vinyl, the other selling musical instruments and all sorts of accessories. He could spend absolutely hours in there doing not much at all.
He headed to the instrument section first, picking out a new strap for his guitar and several new plectrums, after testing out a range of different guitars. He decided he needed a new one soon.
As he headed into the other half of the shop, he noticed a small gaggle of girls from school walk in, the new girl he'd encountered a week or so back amongst them.
"Great," He muttered under his breath; no doubt they'd have something to say to him about the rumours. And he was right. As soon as she spotted him, Rei sidled over, a grin set on her face.
"So, is it true?" She asked cockily, raising an eyebrow.
"Is what true?" Yamato grumbled, not even bothering to glance up from the CD he was looking at.
"The rumours. You know, you and that jock guy being gay," She stated.
"What do you think?" He scowled, though still keeping his eyes on the CD cover, resisting the urge to put her in her place and tell her that Taichi Yagami was not in fact a jock in the slightest meaning of the word.
She stared at him for a moment as if trying to decide something, "What I think," She mused, " Is that you should hang out with us today,"
He was about to tell her where to go, when he changed his mind, deciding that being seen with a group of girls - especially this group of girls in their tartan mini skirts and torn fishnets or leather trousers - would do wonders for the reputation he wanted.
"Um, just for a while then," He mumbled.
"Great!" She smiled widely, her eyes lighting up, then grabbed his arm, linking hers through his, "So what you buying?" She looked over his shoulder at the CD he was still holding.
"I'm not. I'm just browsing," He muttered, suddenly very unsure of what he'd gotten himself in for and feeling very uncomfortable with the girl's arm linked through his, "And it's Queens Of The Stone Age," He added, signalling to the CD.
"Oh, cool. So if you're not buying anything, wanna go grab some food?" Rei suggested, as she beckoned her friends over.
"Um, sure?" Yamato half agreed, still feeling rather unsure of the situation.
"Guys, we're going to the food court, you coming?" Rei asked her friends, who all nodded in agreement.
Before Yamato knew it, he was standing at the front of the food court with Rei hanging off his arm and the other girls surrounding him. They'd turned heads walking in, partially because of the way they were dressed, and partially because the food court was filled mostly with people from school who would not have expected to see Yamato walking past with a girl hanging off his arm.
"Girls, why don't you lot sit down? Me and Yamato here will bring the food over," Rei practically ordered, pointing to an empty booth and dragging Yamato towards a rather large queue. They were halfway there when someone calling Yamato's name stopped him, he turned to the direction the shout came from to face a group of people from school.
"What are you doing with a girl Ishida?" One of the boys asked.
"Yeah, aren't you, like, a fag?" Another chimed in.
Rei wasn't paying attention as Yamato growled back at the boys. Something - or rather someone - over the other side of the food court had caught her eye. Taichi Yagami and his friends were heading right in their direction. Now she'd find out if the rumours were true or not.
She removed her arm from Yamato's and spun him around to face her, placing one arm around his neck and the other at his hip. She pulled him to her, lips clashing uneasily as she kissed him roughly, whistles erupting from the boys in front of them.
Yamato, stunned, didn't know what to do. If he pulled away, it would look bad, especially considering what he'd just been saying to the boys at the table about being straight. On the other hand, he certainly wasn't enjoying the kiss. It was awkward, bumpy, in front of practically everyone, and worst of all, with a girl. Unsure of how to act, he went with it, uneasily kissing her back for as long as he could take, which wasn't long. He pulled back, and forced a smile at her, then turned back around to face the table, ready to make a snide comment and leave to get his food, but as he turned, a mass of brunette hair caught his eye, and he did a double take. Taichi was standing not far behind the booth with his friends; his mouth hanging wide open, tears in the corner of his eyes with a look set on his face that was one of the most heartbreaking Yamato had ever seen.
A few moments passed before either boy moved, then Taichi spun on his heel and ran off. Daisuke ran after him, and the rest of his friends stood there scowling at Yamato.
"Um, I… Rei, could you excuse me a second? I just have to go to the bathroom," Yamato excused himself shortly, walking swiftly off in the direction Taichi had run, ignoring the glares from his friends.
"Whay, Ishida needs to 'sort himself out'" One of the boys at the table joked, having not seen Taichi and his friends.
Rei simply smiled to herself, "I guess Hiraku was telling the truth," she muttered under her breath as she watched the blonde swiftly follow Taichi through the mall, then turned and finished queuing for her food.
Yamato could feel the embarrassment burning up his face, along with bewilderment. Sure, he was pissed at Taichi, he'd wanted 'revenge' on him, he'd wanted him to think he wasn't planning on taking him back, but he hadn't wanted to do it like that. Hell, he'd just practically cheated on Taichi when they were meant to have been meeting up to talk over their relationship. He watched as Taichi and Daisuke headed into the boy's toilets, then followed them in.
Taichi stood at the sinks, staring into the mirror before him with Daisuke at his side.
"Shit, I'm a fricking idiot Dais. God, if I hadn't acted-" He was muttering to the younger boy, once more beating himself up for everything.
"Taichi," Yamato stated the boy's name, causing Taichi and Daisuke to spin their heads around and face him. They hadn't known they'd been followed.
"What do you want?" Daisuke all but snarled at the blonde, feeling very protective over his mentor and best friend.
"I want a private word with Taichi," The blonde scowled at Daisuke, then turned to Taichi, his gaze softening, "I want to talk to the boy I love. I want him to know that I'm sorry,"
Taichi looked from Yamato to Daisuke, then down at the floor, feeling a wave of weakness wash over him.
"No," He muttered, then louder, "No. You know what? Maybe I was a right asshole yesterday, but I never got off with anyone else! I would never have cheated on y-"
"It wasn't like that!" Yamato defended himself, but Taichi didn't even give him a chance to explain.
"You know what? I can't do this right now. The last few days… they've just been too much. I'm going home. Dais? Tell the others I'm sorry and you can all come chill at mine tomorrow. Yamato Ishida?" Taichi purposely used the boy's full name, "I'll see you in History,"
So I have a question for you guys. This chapter could have been longer, but I wanted to get it up quicker, because it had taken me so long to actually get started on it. So would you prefer quick updates or longer chapters? The choice is yours, and I'll bare it in mind with Chapter Six, which shockingly I've already started.
Please note, although I'm not too fond of this story, I've decided I'm not a quitter and I AM going to see it through. However, for the mean time I'm focusing most of my time on my newest Taito, Boys of Summer, chapter 2 of which should be up within a week. I actually like that story and am enjoying planning it out and stuff. Which means that updates on this may be few and far between, so if you want something to tide you over, check out Boys Of Summer :P. But I am not quitting Fragile Webs. Ever.
Thank you, and reviews are love.
-- Even Gods Dream, August 2007