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Imperfection

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II. The Plan

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"Miyako, you don't have to drag me like this!" whined Daisuke, trying to free his hand from her grip.

Miyako pulled Daisuke and V-mon into the room he shared with Ken, and Iori and Ken followed them in, probably out of curiosity, while the other Digimon remained in the living room. She sat him on his bed a little too forcefully and furrowed her brows, hands on her sides. She tapped her foot impatiently.

Daisuke narrowed his eyes at her. "What do you want?"

"You know what I want!" she exclaimed, leaning in toward him with the most livid expression on her face. "Explain yourself! Why were you being such an idiot?"

"Hey, V-mon and I were just playing around!" said Daisuke in an attempt to defend himself. "I didn't know that would happen. I didn't want that to happen, either!"

"Yeah, Daisuke is right!" V-mon joined in, making his way next to his partner's side. "You know we wouldn't want anything like that to happen to either Takeru or Hikari."

"Well, because of you two, Hikari-chan and Takeru have holed themselves in their rooms and they refuse to talk to each other. That's not normal, you know, and it's because of you two that it happened!"

"How many times do I have to tell you that it was an accident!" Daisuke got to his feet, his hands balled into fists at his sides. "I'm sorry, okay! Isn't that enough already?"

"Tell that to the people you hurt!" Miyako raised a fist of her own in front of Daisuke's face, pulled her arm back, and was about to hit his face if Ken and Iori weren't there to stop her.

"Miyako-san, calm down," said Ken soothingly, holding her arm firmly. "There's no need to get violent. We can settle this some other way, right?"

"I agree," said Iori. "Don't let your temper get the better of you."

Miyako gritted her teeth, her body stiff under Ken's touch–she was probably blushing, too, since it was the Ichijouji Ken who was touching her–before she sighed and let her arm fall down to her side. "You're right," she admitted. She looked up at Daisuke and attempted a half-smile. "Sorry about that."

"That's okay," he said, smiling back. "I probably shouldn't have gotten so mad, either."

Silence settled in the room for a while before Ken asked, "Do you think Hikari-chan and Takeru will be all right?"

"I hope so," Iori replied. "Patamon and Tailmon are with them, so I'm sure they're doing whatever they can to make sure they're okay."

"I think they'll be fine," said Daisuke. "They've been through so much worse than something as small as a kiss that they didn't want. We're the Chosen Children. We've been through so many tough situations, and I'm sure this is nothing compared to everything else we had to face."

"But this is completely different from the Digital World," Miyako refuted. "Maybe we should go talk to them, apologize, and make sure that everything will be all right between them."

"Maybe we should leave them alone for a little bit, and then we'll talk to them," suggested Ken. "Let's give them some time alone so they can get over everything that happened."

"Okay, but when should we talk to them?" asked V-mon. "We probably shouldn't talk to them at the same time because neither of them would be willing to speak up with the other around, since things are so weird between them right now."

Nobody answered for a while until Miyako spoke up. "What about I take Hikari-chan to the mall tonight, and I can talk to her while we're there? I want to get some new clothes and some souvenirs, so this would be a good time to do that, too."

"Daisuke-san, Ichijouji-san, and I can talk to Takeru-san while you two are gone," Iori supplied.

"What should we tell them, though?" asked Ken.

"Well, we'll apologize for what happened and tell them it'll be okay, of course," Miyako answered. "We'll have to convince them to talk to each other to sort things out. Then, things won't be so weird between them."

Daisuke laughed out loud. "Who knows? Maybe they'll confess to each other and they'll start dating!"

They all laughed along with him, but some part of Miyako thought that, maybe, Daisuke had a point. It was so obvious that there was chemistry between Hikari and Takeru even if they wouldn't admit it, and Miyako secretly thought that they would make a cute couple. Mimi and Sora agreed. Even Taichi and Yamato had dropped hints that they thought Hikari and Takeru were great together, too.

Maybe they will get together, she thought, smiling to herself.

"So… is it a plan?" she asked.

They all nodded as they said, "It's a plan."

Miyako stood up and pumped a fist into the air. "Bingo!"

"That looks good on you," Miyako complimented as Hikari walked out of the dressing room, sporting a dress with a pink floral design and a one-shoulder neckline with ruffles. Miyako's face lit up. "Seriously, you look really cute in that!"

"Thanks," said Hikari. She observed herself in the mirror before turning back to Miyako. "Do you think I should get it?"

"Of course! You look really pretty. Just change out of it and then we can pay for it," said Miyako. Hikari nodded and went back into the dressing room.

Miyako sighed and leaned back in her seat. She was trying to seem as easygoing and laid-back as possible, but really, she was a jumble of nerves and she was afraid that her heart was going to beat out of her chest any moment. Saying that she was going to talk about the kiss with Hikari was one thing, but actually doing it was another. In theory, it should work, but Miyako knew how much the topic would hurt Hikari and she was anxious to see her reaction.

I'm going to ask her about it when she comes back out, Miyako decided. Yes, that sounds good. I'm going to do that. I will do that.

She noticed Hikari coming out of the dressing room with the dress in hand, and Miyako stood up. They made their way to the end of the line that snaked its way through the store and to the cashier.

The line was relatively long, so this would be the perfect opportunity to ask Hikari about it, right?

Miyako gulped nervously, and she let the uncontrollable adrenaline and the insane, crazy, stupid courage take over her body, pushing away all the nerves and apprehension that had been slowly building inside of her as she said in a voice that was a little too loud, "A-are you okay?"

Miyako mentally slapped herself. Way to go, me. That was definitely the perfect way to start off the conversation… not.

Hikari furrowed her brows and tilted her head to the side. "Yeah. Why? Is something wrong?"

Miyako shook her head. "No, no, that's not what I meant. Ignore that. I was trying to say something else…"

"What is it?"

"Well…" Miyako bit down on her lip. "You see, it's about what happened at the beach this afternoon. You know, how you and Takeru…" She trailed off, but she knew she didn't have to finish.

Understanding what Miyako meant, Hikari grew tense and her face fell. "Oh," was all she said. She shuffled in her spot, moved forward in line, and said, "What about it?"

Miyako looked down. She had an idea of what she should say, but it was still hard to form words. Finally, she settled with, "Are you mad at Takeru or Daisuke or V-mon for what happened?"

Hikari shook her head. "I'm not. None of them did anything wrong, and I'm sure Daisuke-kun didn't intend to do that when he threw V-mon."

Relief spread through Miyako's body. This actually wasn't as hard as she thought it would be. A smile spreading on her lips, Miyako continued, "Daisuke and V-mon feel really bad for what happened, and they wanted me to tell you that."

A small smile appeared on Hikari's face, too. "I'll tell them that they shouldn't feel that way. They didn't do anything really bad." She faced Miyako, and her smile grew. "Really, don't worry about me. I'm completely fine."

Miyako observed Hikari's expression, and she could easily see the solemnness on her face. But what struck her the hardest was how forced that smile of hers was.

Her smile is a lie.

"Hikari-chan, are you sure that you're okay?" Miyako tried again, worried.

Hikari looked down, refusing to look at her friend's face.

Miyako tried to be as reassuring as possible, and she placed a comforting hand on Hikari's shoulder. "Hey, it's okay. We're friends. You can be honest with me. And if you don't want to tell me, that's okay, too."

"It's just that…" Hikari bit her lip before turning toward Miyako, almost urgently. "Can I tell you something, Miyako-san?"

"I'm listening."

"Well…" She looked down at the floor again. "I… I think I… like Takeru-kun."

Wait… did I hear that correctly?

Miyako gasped and covered her mouth with her hand. She wanted to say something, but nothing came out. She was struck speechless.

Hikari sighed. "I wasn't sure how you would take it–or how anyone would take it. I just hope–"

"This is amazing!" Miyako squealed, tackling Hikari with a hug that probably could have choked the poor girl. "I knew it! I knew you liked Takeru!" She let go of Hikari, and she swore she could feel the eyes of everyone around her boring into her, but she didn't care. Her joy completely pushed away any possibilities of embarrassment.

Hikari chuckled somewhat uneasily as Miyako finally let go. Her cheeks were tinted a light shade of red. "Can you promise me you won't tell anybody?"

"Of course I won't!" said Miyako. She squealed again and jumped in place. "I knew it, I knew it, I knew it! I knew you liked him!" Her jubilance quickly died down. "But what does this have to do with the kiss? Did that change your feelings for him or something?"

Hikari shook her head. "No, it's just that… I'm afraid I hurt Takeru-kun. What if he doesn't feel the same way? What if I hurt him?" She leaned into Miyako, who wrapped her arms around the brunette in a much gentler embrace.

"I don't think you hurt him at all," Miyako tried to reassure her. "Takeru is probably worried sick about you right now. Plus, you two have been really good friends for so long, and I doubt he'd just throw your friendship away so easily. Maybe he even thinks about you as more than a friend, too."

Hikari still didn't look convinced. She clutched onto the dress in her hands harder. "You see, the reason why I've always been so unsure about my feelings is because… because…" She took a deep breath, and then exhaled. "I'm so afraid that, if we do go into a relationship, if things don't work out, will Takeru-kun and I still be friends? I love him, but… if a failed relationship between us means losing our friendship, I'd rather just be friends with him for the rest of my life than date him."

Miyako had no idea how to respond to that. She had never thought of it that way, and now that she was, Hikari made a valid point.

"And then when the kiss happened, I don't know why, but I felt so guilty," Hikari continued. "I can't say that I hated it. I think I may have liked it, actually. But I think that's why I felt that way, and I still do every time I think about it. What if Takeru didn't want it? What if it hurt him? What if…" Hikari stopped herself, and then said, "I'm not sure if you understand what I'm trying to say. I don't really know how to say it myself." She chuckled awkwardly but straightened up when she realized she and Miyako were at the cashier already.

Once they were checked out, they made their way out of the store and neither made an attempt to talk. They walked in silence until they reached the food court, ordered from one of the restaurants, and sat down as they waited for their food.

Then, Miyako cleared her throat. "I think I know what you meant back there." She made eye contact with Hikari. "You're afraid that Takeru will get mad at you if you guys talk it out, and you won't be friends anymore, right?"

Hikari closed her eyes and dropped her face into her hands. "I'm scared, Miyako-san," she whispered with a waver in her voice. "I'm really, really scared."

Miyako held Hikari's hand and squeezed it. "I understand how you feel," said Miyako, rubbing circles on the back of her friend's hand. "But, Hikari-chan, you have to learn how to face your fears. You can't just let it be and run away from your problems. Maybe your feelings for Takeru will come up when you guys talk, but you two still need to sort everything out." She smiled reassuringly. "I'm sure it won't be as bad as you think. You and Takeru have been friends for such a long time, and you two have a bond so strong that it's probably unbreakable. Of course, we all have our times when our friendships become thin and weak, and we all have our imperfections, but true friendships will never break. You and Takeru have been through thick and thin together, and you guys have something that I've never seen in anyone else. So do it, Hikari-chan. You're already seventeen years old, so be confident in yourself. Talk to Takeru about it and put this to rest so you can stop worrying about it. And if your feelings do come up, don't worry about it. Whatever happens, Takeru will forgive you and it'll be all right in the end."

Hikari smiled, this time a true, genuine one. "Thank you, Miyako-san. I needed that."

Miyako's spirits lifted at that. "So are you going to talk to Takeru about it?"

Hikari pressed her lips into a thin line for a moment before nodding her head. "Yes. I think I will."

Takeru sat on the couch in the living room with Daisuke, Ken, Iori, and the Digimon as they all watched a live soccer game on the TV. Daisuke and Ken were shouting and cheering as the game went on–it was quite strange to see Ken so hyped up like this–while the others watched as well, but not as enthusiastically. Takeru had never been a huge fan of soccer (basketball was more his thing), but he understood the rules and how to play it, since he hung out with Hikari at her house often and Taichi was as obsessed with the sport as Daisuke and Ken.

There was movement on his thighs, and he looked down to realize that Patamon had settled himself on Takeru's lap. Takeru smiled and stroked his partner's fur. "Hey, buddy. Taking a nap?"

Patamon yawned before making himself comfortable. "Yep. I'm tired."

Takeru remained silent for a while, his eyes fixed on the TV screen. He looked over at Daisuke, and he inwardly flinched.

He immediately thought of Hikari and what happened that afternoon.

It wasn't anyone's fault that it had happened, really. He knew Daisuke had been the one to throw V-mon, but it was an accident, so when Daisuke, V-mon, Ken, and Iori had come up to him to apologize and make sure he was all right, he didn't put any blame on Daisuke or V-mon for what had happened. It was no one's fault for making it happen, but it was his fault for continuing it. He still couldn't help but scold himself for doing it, knowing that Hikari might not have wanted it.

He had been secretly in love with her for so long already, but he was nervous. Scared. Frightened. He didn't want to take their relationship any further than friendship if Hikari didn't want it. Of course, he wasn't sure if Hikari reciprocated the same feelings, but Takeru wanted to play safe.

But the other guys did make a point: He would have to talk about what had happened with Hikari sooner or later. It had to be settled soon, and Takeru knew he'd regret it if he never talked to her about it.

But what if we get in a fight? Will we still be friends? What if my feelings for her come up? How would she react to that?

Takeru shook his head, trying to clear his mind. No. Stop thinking that way. Everything will be fine. Everything will be fine.

"Takeru? Are you okay?"

Takeru looked in the direction of the voice to find Patamon, who looked back up worriedly. "I'm fine, Patamon. Just thinking."

"Is it about what happened at the beach? When you kissed Hikari?"

Takeru froze at that, but quickly recovered. "Yeah," he admitted. "I'm just wondering how she feels right now. Daisuke and the others kept telling me it'll be all right, but I'm still not sure."

"Don't worry so much about that," reassured Patamon. "Hikari's your friend. I know things will get better between you two. Just talk to her about it, and before you know it, things will be back to normal."

Takeru tried to smile. "Thanks, Patamon. I… I think I'll talk to her tomorrow morning, since it's late right now and I'm not sure when she and Miyako-san will be back."

"That's good." Patamon observed his partner's face and grinned. "Cheer up! You can't let Hikari see you like that, right?"

Takeru chuckled. "Yeah, you make a point."

I'll talk to her tomorrow. I have to talk to her tomorrow.

He was going to talk to her tomorrow, no matter what.

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A/N: They're truly one and the same, aren't they? ;)

I'd like to clear up the whole soccer/football thing if anyone is confused. In most parts of the world, the sport is referred to as football, but I did some research just in case since New Zealand and Australia call it soccer, and in fact, the Japanese do call it soccer. There are a few people who still call it football, but those are only the stricter and more reserved Japanese. Soccer is used among the majority. Hope that clears things up.

Well, next chapter is the final one, and Hikari and Takeru finally talk. Be ready for some of the Takari goodness you've all been waiting for.

Thanks for reading and please leave a review!