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 Fourteen

"Sooooo," drawled Taichi, arching his eyebrows for emphasis.

Catherine giggled as they walked along. "So…," she imitated, twirling in place so her golden tresses flowed out behind her. The glow of sunlight struck them and she seemed for all the world to be illuminated.

It nearly made him catch his breath.

She smirked playfully, guessing the cause of his uncharacteristic silence and he stuck his tongue out at her. Still he intertwined their arms and she ran her fingertips down the length of his left arm, enjoying the feel of the soft fabric of his shirt.

It was just them. Takeru had to leave soon after Mimi and Sora after being called away by the manager. Taichi had to suppress a laugh at the amount of jealousy that was soon to be coming his way.

Still he needed to know some things. Namely whatever that little scene between her and Mimi was about.

Something must have shown on his face because she sighed deeply and asked him if he would take a detour into a near by park to talk. He agreed and in less than ten minutes the two were seated on a bench in a secluded part of the park that was generally avoided at this time of day.

She began as soon as he had made himself comfortable.

"You've probably noticed some…tension between myself and Mimi."

"Tension doesn't cover it." He nodded anyway and she edged herself away from him, cradling her face in her hands.

Her blue eyes were suddenly darker, farther away from this moment in time. In a soft, wistful tone she said, "She and I used to be close friends." He snorted and she quirked her lips into the thinnest of smiles. "It's true. Our mothers had been as close as sisters and would bring us with them whenever they visited each other.

"But unlike Mimi's mother, who married a very wealthy man, mine was not quite as lucky. My father had run off when I was five years old with another woman and um, my mother didn't take it very well."

She broke off and he took her smaller hands in his larger ones. Allowing herself to melt into him she continued, "But Mimi's mother was a kind woman and for the sake of her friendship with my mother paid for my schooling and treated me like a second daughter. And for awhile Mimi and I were great.

"Than when she was fourteen and I was twelve her mother died in an accident and nothing was ever the same again. In her will, Mrs. Tachikawa, had seen that I would be sent to a private boarding school and have enough money for college. And had set aside a large amount of money for me when I was done with school.

"But when the time came for me to receive that money Mimi had found a way to stop me from receiving it. Instead I was given only half of the amount and I left America. I spent some time back in France and came here where I ran into Mimi after a few years of not seeing her."

He wrapped his arms around her and held her close as she closed her eyes tiredly. "Mimi is not my favorite person. But I never thought she could sink this low…"

"She was jealous," was the swift reply. "Her mother was very close to me and she couldn't handle it. The money was the last straw."

He only held her tighter while mentally cursing the writer in question with his entire being.

"Don't you think you're jumping to conclusions here?"

Taichi blinked and frowned at the question his best friend had directed at him. He and Yamato were seated at the kitchen table, eating leftover pizza, and the others were all out for the evening. The musician had listened to his recount of Catherine's story with an impassive air and shrugged when Taichi shot him a look.

"Don't give me that look. I'm just trying to be realistic here."

"And you're doing that…how?"

Yamato sighed. "Isn't it weird that she would be so open about all of this personal shit with someone she's only known for one day?" He raised a hand as Taichi was about to interject. "Besides you're only too happy to agree with her."

"What's that supposed to mean?"

"Easy. You want Mimi to be a bad person."

Author's Notes: This will all make sense later, I promise. There is a reason for all of this. Please read and review.