Chapter 10: Rylice
Couple- Ryo and Alice from Digimon Tamers
The bell rang for lunch. Pretty much every student went to sit with their friends whether it was in that classroom or in another's.
In class 1-A, there was one person who was an exception to this rule. Her name was Alice McCoy. The reject.
"Hey Alice, eating alone again?" asked a concerned voice.
She looked up to her only friend in the entire school. Henry Wong. "Mm, yeah, but don't worry, go ahead and eat with Rika and the others, I don't mind"
It was so difficult trying to hide the sadness evident in her voice.
Henry shook his head. "It's been five years-"
"Technically eight" corrected Alice.
"Right, eight years. Don't you think you should be able to move on to new friends? Like meeting my friends maybe"
"You just don't understand what it's like for me to just…start over. And they all think I'm dead"
"Not all of them. And…I do know how it feels to start over. Remember, a year before the incident, I moved away from my old home. All my old friends there hated me. And Rinchei and Jaarin didn't exactly appreciate the fact that we had to move just because of what I had done"
Before Alice could respond, the sliding door opened and in came Rika. As soon as she came over she gave Henry a hug. Henry greeted her an then turned to see that Alice was gone.
As Alice walked through the halls to get to the staircase, she heard the whispers of many girls who all had a crush on the second-hottest first-year male, Henry Wong. (Number one was Ken Ichijoji, Ryo's number one hottest second-year male)
"The only reason Henry even talks to her is because he pities her"
"He's too nice, he shouldn't be wasting his time on such trash"
"What a ****, she knows he's taken"
"She doesn't even deserve to be alive"
Alice quickened her pace as she walked up the stairs leading towards the rooftop. 'It's not true. What they're saying isn't true. So…why does it hurt so much? Why? Why…must…he belong to someone other than me?'
Her tears fell as she thought back to the day he found out. The day he learned that she was back for good.
Flashback…
"Daddy?"
Original Monster Maker, Rob McCoy turned to face his daughter. A face he hadn't seen in three years.
"Alice? I-Is that you?" he said with tears threatening to break out.
She nodded. "Yes, it's me"
She ran to him and she hugged him tight. He did the same. He held onto her, afraid that if he let go, she'd disappear again. This time, forever.
There was a knock at the door and they both turned to see Henry standing there.
"Alice, it really is you" said the blue haired boy.
"Yeah, it's me"
"But how?"
"The Sovereigns… they brought me back. I'm sorry for what happened And it must be weird seeing me the same age as you. But…since I died when I was ten, I came back as ten"
"It doesn't matter, I'm just glad you're back" said Henry pulling her into a hug.
"Henry…how could you still be friends with me? Even after this…change"
"Because you were there for me when I was at my weakest, now I'm going to be here for you"
"…Thank you…"
End Flashback…
But, that was…five years ago. She's now fifteen when she was supposed to be eighteen. Before Henry, there was only one person she had ever loved, but he was never coming back. She saw his face every day, but it was never really him.
'It hurt, it hurts so much' she thought as she stepped onto the roof.
"Hey…"
Earlier…
Ryo was lying down on the roof of the school thinking about how the love of his life had found her perfect match.
It was unfair, he knew her longer, he met her first, and yet, it was clear she never only had eyes for him.
'Damn it. If I had only made my move earlier, then maybe it wouldn't hurt so much' thought Ryo as his mind drifted back to en he first asked her out, a year and a half ago.
Flashback…
It was Christmas Eve and Rika's mother had decided to throw a party at her place to celebrate. She was even able to convince Rika to put on a simple white dress. It made her look dazzling.
Ryo decided to stop putting it off already and just ask her out. The worst thing she could do was say no right. Actually the worst was her hating him.
"Hey, princess, has anyone ever told you how beautiful you look?" Ryo started.
"Yes, my mother and her photographers"
As usual, she was dodging his attempts by taking things seriously.
"Well, you look even more beautiful in that dress"
"So, I've been told" she mumbled.
'Come on Akiyama! Just ask her!' "Listen, prin-I mean, Rika. I was wondering you'd like to catch a movie with me on Friday"
Rika seemed surprised. She knew that he liked her but he never even tried to ask her out before. She sighed in exasperation knowing that if he asked her earlier, she wouldn't have to do this. "Look, Ryo…I admit that I used to like you. But…not anymore. I have feelings for someone else"
This was not the response he was expecting to hear. It hurt more than her just saying no. "Who?"
As if on cue, the Wongs just arrived. When Henry caught Rika's eye, he waved at her and a slight tinge of pink appeared on her cheeks.
It hurt, it hurts so much…
End Flashback…
'Damn, it hurts'
Just then, a girl about a year younger than him stepped onto the rooftop, crying. Once she stepped onto the roof though, she fell to her knees and began sobbing loudly. She had blond pigtails and pale blue eyes, just from that he knew who it was somehow.
"Hey…"
The girl looked up at him from her tear stained face.
"You're…Alice right?"
She gave him a small nod. "And you're Ryo Akiyama, right?"
"…Yeah…Why are you crying?"
"I-It hurts. It hurts s-so m-much" she sobbed.
Ryo remained silent. But with just this little information, he was able to figure out the situation. "…Yeah, it hurts me too. I love Rika, you love Henry. But I think it's time we moved on"
"B-but, it's so hard to move on"
"Then don't do this yourself, let me help. We can move on together" said Ryo as he pulled her into a hug.
Like this, these two were able to understand each other; they were able to see each other's pain. Something about the other was very similar to what they hid in their pasts. And their pasts was where their pain was hidden in. Today was the start of the end of their suffering.
I know, I know, it's not exactly romantic. But they just met. Give it time for their love to develop. You'll see more of them in a future story called Children of the Present. Also, if you want to know the person Alice loved before Henry. Read A Second Chance- Coming Soon. Next Chapter will be Thomas and Yoshi, I think.