Disclaimer: I don't own Digimon.

When they say you're
not that strong
Well you're not that weak
It's not your fault
When you climb up to your hill
Up to your place
I hope you're well
There's nothing left to prove
Nothing I won't do
Nothing like the pain
I feel for you
Nothing left to hide
Nothing left to fear
I am always here
-"Not Enough," Our Lady Peace

Not Enough
Chapter Nine

Yamato was miserable. He lay tucked in Mimi's guest bed with little else to do between bouts of sickness than stare at the ceiling. His golden locks were splayed over the pillow under his head and his skin had paled considerably. Sweat tinged his brow and his ocean orbs were bloodshot.

He managed a smile when Taichi walked in. "Hey," he rasped, voice little more than a whisper. "You didn't have to come here. I'll be better in a few days."

"But than I'd have to listen to Takeru non-stop until you got back. He was practically tearing the loft apart when I left."

Yamato laughed but just as rapidly dissolved into a coughing fit. Taichi shot him a sympathetic look and collapsed into a chair that had been dragged into the room presumably by Sora. The blonde coughed for another minute before gasping, "I feel like shit."

"You look like it too."

"Thanks man, that's just what I needed to hear."

"You're such a woman sometimes."

The blonde man was about to retort when the door opened and Sora slipped into the room. To Taichi's amusement, Yamato sat up straight in the bed and gave the concerned young woman a large smile.

"Feeling better?" she asked as she stood by the foot of the bed. The musician nodded once and she grinned. "That's good. Oh and Mimi wants to know if you'd be able to stomach any food. She said she'd make something if you're up to it."

Yamato blanched at the mention of food and before either of his two healthy friends could register the fact, he had thrown his upper body over the left side of the bed and scooped up a basin. Next moment he was vomiting into it and Sora was suddenly behind him, holding his hair and rubbing his back gently.

More than just a little out of place, Taichi quietly snuck out of the room as Sora murmured comforting words and leaned against the wall. That settled it than; there was definitely something between his and Mimi's best friends. Now to give them a little space…

He strolled back into the living room which thankfully he found vacant of Michael whom he considered a talentless hack that would have been unemployed if women hadn't found him attractive. Mimi was in the kitchen cooking something that even he had to admit smelled delicious.

Not wanting to initiate an awkward moment between them he merely arched an eyebrow and observed her from the safety of the living room. Before that day he had never entertained the possibility that Mimi could have any domestic skills or let a man she barely knew reside in her home while he was sick.

It was all very out of character for her.

Wasn't it?

Later that evening Taichi, Mimi, and Sora were all seated in the female brunette's state of the art kitchen eating the pasta and garlic bread that the writer had prepared. Yamato had fallen asleep a little while ago as he was still to sick to force any food down his throat. The only talk had either been between Sora and Mimi, or Sora and Taichi, and he could tell that the band manger was getting agitated.

Doing his best not to run screaming for his mother at the frustrated expression on

Sora's face, he finally commented to Mimi, "This is really good."

Instead of some ego-centric reply the brunette smiled shyly. "Thanks."

Sora had sighed in relief at not being the sole source of conversation and continued, "Yeah, Meems, I love your food. You'd have been an excellent chef."

Mimi smiled again before asking Sora about something music related. The two chatted to themselves and he found himself zoning out and not admitting that he and the writer had just gone a half hour of being in each other's presence and not fought once.

Yamato had still not gotten better in two days, Taichi had elected to spend time with him by staying over at Mimi's apartment, and to make matters worse Michael had been dropping by more and more frequently. It had gotten to the point where Taichi had to promptly exit a room the actor was in to prevent the inevitability of him breaking Michael's nose.

The only solace he could take was that the other three were also unhappy with the actor.

Yamato would pretend to be asleep and Taichi would gratefully sit with him and the two would make snide remarks while doing their best to muffle their laughter. Sora and Mimi acted civilly for the most part and he would never have discovered their irritation had he not overheard this conversation:

"Just go on one date with him, Mimi! If you'd just agree he'll stop bugging you!"

"No! I'm not going down that road again."

But on the fourth day of his "vacation" he found himself alone in the apartment while it was raining once again and there was nothing to watch on any of the five hundred channels. Yamato was asleep, Sora and the rest of his friend's band were at the record company, and Mimi had gone on a few errands. He was so bored currently he'd even be okay with talking to that twit Michael.

Restless, he explored the different rooms of the writer's home, looking for something to do. He finally decided to browse through the closet in a third guest room and after a minute of dull searching he happened upon a photo album.

Interest peaked, he flipped through the pink and white book at the different snapshots. The first one was of a twelve year old Sora and an eleven year old Mimi. Sora was more tomboyish looking with shorter hair and scuffed up looking clothes. Mimi's hair fell to about mid-back and, instead of the smirk he had come to identify her by, she was smiling sweetly, cinnamon eyes dancing with joy. The two best friends had their arms around each other in a tight hug and were both smiling stupidly for the camera.

He paused, hand outstretched to turn the page, and gazed down at the two figures in the picture, chocolate orbs drawn to the younger Mimi in particular. She was never this happy presently. Or maybe she was but she found him irksome and never showed it.

Shaking his head, he continued skimming through the book, passing by scenes from her family, holidays, and what looked like a junior high school graduation. Than when the Mimi of the past hit what he guessed to be fourteen the cheerfulness seemed to ooze away from the pictures. She had adopted her infamous smirk, eyes far away and clearly wishing to be somewhere else.

"What happened? She looked so happy…and why are there less pictures of her family?"

He had reached near the end of the book by now and found it odd that there was only one picture of her father to represent her relatives from her first year of high school and on. There were more of her and Sora, some random friends, and quite a few of men he guessed to be old boyfriends.

"What are you doing?" a sharp voice demanded from the door and he whirled around, startled, still clutching the book in one hand. Mimi stood, arms crossed in the doorway, and her eyes narrowed to slits when she noticed the photo album he held. "Put that away. Now!"

He hastily stuffed the album back into the box he had retrieved it from and scrambled as far away from the closet as he could. Mimi glared at him disgustedly before storming away, muttering oaths under her breath.

Taichi sighed in relief when he heard the door to her bedroom slamming shut.

For a second there he thought she was going to grab him by the hair and shove him out of the window.

Author's Notes: Okay that's all for now. Please read and review.