I Swear I Do
A Digimon Fanfic
Summary: Matt and Sora are best friends that both work and live together. They swore three years ago that if they weren't married by the age of 25, they would marry each other. So what happens when that deadline comes to pass?
Disclaimer: I own nothing except my awesome collection of rocks that look like famous people. Hey, look, one that looks like Matt...^-^
Chapter 4: Promises Are Made To Be Kept
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Beep beep. Beep beep.
When would it end? The continuous beeping, a daily reminder that he had to get up and go about his routine without complaint.
Okay, maybe not without complaint, but without exception.
Beep beep. Beep beep.
Maybe he should invest in an alarm clock that didn't beep, one that he could get to play music instead. That'd be so much better than this.
Beep beep. Beep beep.
Much better.
Matt opened his eyes to find them surprisingly clear. In fact, he felt pretty good for a change. It didn't seem a huge trial to get out of bed and make his way to the bathroom.
Sora seemed surprised to see him so awake, too.
"Wow, I'm speechless."
"Shut it," Matt growled good-naturedly. Sora smirked.
"Make me."
Rather than argue, Matt simply walked into the kitchen to begin breakfast. Whether he was awake or not, it was still too early to bicker with Sora.
In fact, it was almost always too early.
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"So what's got you in such good spirits?" Matt teased Sora as they took the train into work.
Sora smiled, her eyes lighting up. "I have a date."
Matt raised an eyebrow. "Wow, he must be something to make you this excited."
"He's a really nice guy, Matt. I think you'd like him. Mimi introduced me to him at a party she had a few weeks ago for her new fashion line. He works in architecture, apparently."
"Why was he at Mimi's party then?"
"Something about him designing their new office building. He asked me out for dinner a couple of nights ago, and I said I'd be happy to."
"What's his name?"
"Samuel Johnson. He's from Australia, and he's got the most adorable accent."
Matt grinned. "Sounds like you're already half in love."
Sora rolled her eyes and simply smiled.
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He so wanted to go to bed. It was three-fucking-am and he was tired. The temptation to just go to sleep was almost overwhelming. But he couldn't.
I will stay up until she gets home...
Whether it was to hear about how fantastic her date was or to give her a shoulder to cry on if everything went wrong, he would be there.
Because that's what best friends did.
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Half an hour later, Matt was seriously reconsidering his decision to stay up.
After all, it had probably all turned out fine. That was probably why she wasn't home yet.
Yeah. That was it.
Matt was about to stumble toward the general direction of his room when he noticed his phone was vibrating. Curiousity compelled him to take it out of his pocket and check the caller ID. Who would be calling now?
SORA
Without a second thought, he opened the phone and pressed it to his ear.
"Sora? You okay?"
"Yeah...sorry for waking you up."
Her tone instantly put him on red alert. "I wasn't asleep. What happened?"
"I don't want to talk about it. Can you come get me?"
Her hesitation surprised him. "Of course. Where are you?"
"At the train station. I don't have any money for a bus ticket."
"I'll be right there."
Matt hung up, grabbed a jacket on his way through the hall and locked the apartment door behind him.
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The car ride home was spent in silence. He knew her well enough to know that now was not the time to ask, and she knew him well enough to know that he wouldn't press her. Matt didn't even turn on the radio. There was too much of a chance the wrong song would play and could make this night worse than it already was.
Sora sat in the passenger's seat, her jacket folded neatly in her lap, staring out the side window, counting the trees that passed. To a casual observer, she was fine. Only he noticed that her hands were shaking.
With what, he didn't know.
Sora looked at Matt out of the corner of her eye. He looked comfortable enough, his eyes on the road, a relaxed expression on his face.
Only the tight grip on the steering wheel gave away his true feelings.
The night had obviously not gone as planned. It never did, if Sora stopped to think about it. There was always something missing, something not right. It wasn't the guy; it never was. It was just...something.
Matt was angry. She knew. Not at her, at her date, most likely. It was a misleading impression she gave him. Sam had been a perfect gentlemen.
It was her fault.
She had lost it as soon as they had walked in the door of the restaurant. The vibe was wrong, she didn't belong.
So ten minutes into the dinner, she made an excuse to leave.
She felt horrible about it, about leaving him hanging like that when he had been so nice. But she just couldn't sit there and endure it, and she didn't have the guts to tell him.
So she lied. Not the first time she had.
But the last, she vowed silently.
At last, they were home. Sora got out of the car, shut the door gently and walked slowly to the front door of the apartment block, her feet dragging on the pavement.
He followed her out of the car park silently, shadowing her footsteps. He slipped in to the apartment behind her, never making a sound.
But she knew he was there. She always knew.
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She made her bed. He stood in the doorway, leaning against the frame as he had done so many times before. She ignored him, as he knew she would. She didn't want to talk about it just yet.
But she would.
He moved over to the other side of the bed, not saying a word. He helped her with the cover, folding it neatly and tucking the edges in.
"Thanks," she said quietly, her voice catching. Matt noticed it, too. It still wasn't the time, however.
In went Eragon. It was her favourite movie, though she conceded that it paled in comparison next to the book. She just loved Saphira.
She had always wished she could be a Dragon Rider, ever since she had read the book. It was her secret fantasy, one no one else knew.
Except for him.
Because he always knew.
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"I won't lie again," she told him when Eragon demanded that Brom tell the truth. He looked at her in surprise.
"What do you mean?"
"I do it every time I go out with a guy. I end up lying and making an excuse to leave, because I just don't want to be there."
"That's not such a bad thing."
"Yes it is. It's not fair to them, and it makes me feel horrible. I won't do it again."
He raised an eyebrow. "And just how do you plan on avoiding it?"
She didn't answer for a minute. They watched Saphira tell Eragon that when their Riders were killed, so were the dragons.
"I'll just have to make sure he's the right one, next time."
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Life went on as usual. Sora kept her promise, turning down more than one dating offer in the next couple of weeks. She refused them on the grounds that they were just "not right".
"Why?" Matt demanded, wanting her to give an actual answer for once.
"Just because," she replied indifferently. He gritted his teeth. He just wanted to know why they weren't right. What her type was.
"I was right anyway," she told him the next day. "Gerard asked Mandy out after he asked me out. Fickle."
Matt just shook his head.
"How do you expect to find Mr Right if you don't give them a chance?" he asked her after the fifth rejection.
She didn't answer.
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Why did he feel like he was so out of sync? He did his job, he was healthy, he felt like he was doing well in general.
He just felt so...wrong. So out of it.
Why?!
Something was pressing in on him, something right on the tip of his tongue that he couldn't spit out.
Something he should know. Should have remembered.
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It all came together one night as he sat up late with Sora, watching some brainless show on TV. All the little pieces fit. It all matched up.
He found what he'd been missing.
"I had a plan, Matt," Sora said suddenly, snapping him out of his almost-doze. "I had it all figured it out. A steady job, nice income, then marriage, children...it was all in my head, and it was perfect. Why didn't it turn out that way in reality?"
"It never does," he replied half-heartedly, still half-asleep.
"But I wanted it to. I should be planning my wedding right now, Matt, instead of Kari's baby shower."
Wedding...marriage...
These thoughts filled his slow brain and he mulled them over, thinking. That was the word...
*flashback*
"Most people I know are already engaged or married, Matt! I had it all planned out! I wanted to be married or at least engaged by 25!"
I smiled. That was Sora. Always had to have everything planned out, to the second.
"I'll make you a deal then. If neither of us are in a relationship by the age of 25, we'll marry each other."
Her eyes widened. "Are you serious?"
I laughed. "Oh, come on. I'm not that bad."
She pulled a face. "It's not that, Matt. It's just...would you? Marry me?"
I looked at her seriously. "Yes, Sora. I would."
*end flashback*
Holy crap. That was what his brain had been trying to make him remeber for weeks now. A promise he had made to Sora three years ago.
Hmm...three years...
Matt's eyes flew open, and he was instantly wide awake.
He was 25. Sora was 25 in October. Not good.
She would remember, he knew. She always remembered stuff like that, little things that didn't seem important at the time.
Would she expect him to keep his promise?
No, he decided. She wouldn't ask him to do that. He didn't have to worry.
Or did he? His love life was all but resembling a desert, and her numerous failures made her more depressed every time. They were both getting nowhere, and he knew it.
Did he want to keep his promise?
Maybe it wouldn't be so bad...she was his best friend, after all, so there was no issue of comfort or affection. And truth be told, the idea didn't bother him. Not at all.
It was her that was the question.
"Marry me, then."
The words slipped out of his mouth before he fully had a chance to think about them. Her startled gaze gave away the fact that she hadn't expected it. Well, he couldn't really back out now.
"Don't be silly, Matt," she replied, her voice shaking. "Why on earth would I do that?"
A corner of his mouth lifted. "Don't act like you don't remember, Sora. I would bet this is why you got so weird with me a few weeks ago when we went to T.K. and Kari's."
Of course he'd make that connection. He wasn't an idiot.
"I couldn't. I wanted love..."
"Bullshit. It was never about love," he scoffed. "You had it planned; love isn't planned. You just wanted your life mapped out."
She bit her lip. He was right, as usual. Love hadn't really been a factor. It would have been nice, but it wasn't necessary.
"Besides, we do love each other," he added. "More than you'd love any other guy you married."
True.
"I couldn't ask you to do that," she argued as a last resort. "You'd be giving up your life, just to make sure I got my dream."
He got up and walked over to where she sat, crouching down before her. He took her small hand in both of his and marveled once again at the contrast in skin tone.
"I never gave up anything for you when we were kids. You did everything for me, whether it was taking care of T.K. when I couldn't or moving in with me because I couldn't look after myself. I've never done anything for you. Let me at least have that privilege. Let me keep my promise."
Her eyes closed. He had won. What argument did she have? He was completely serious, was giving up only the chance to meet the girl of his dreams, which he had made clear many times before was not on his top ten list of things-to-do. What else could she say?
"Okay."
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There you go! It is finally done! It was hard work, admittedly, but we've finally got somewhere. Let the chaos begin! =D
Love you all,
digitalmonster911
P.S. I will not have a lot of time to update from now on. I'm about to enter year 12, and I really have to focus. If I don't update for awhile, I hope you understand. Please keep those ideas coming, though!