Disclaimer: For all the love I have for Digimon, it is not mine.
Yamato knew she was a light sleeper, but he had discovered that when it was just him and her, she slept heavily. Enough for him to cuddle up to her and steal her warmth in the cold morning. He found it ironic, in an adorable way, Natsuhi is always so cool and aloof, even more so than him, yet in her sleep, she is incredibly warm.
He knew it was wrong, to hold another woman in his arms when he already had one of his own, but the hurt part of him childishly sought physical comfort that she simply would not give when she was awake. Or would she…He toyed with the words she had gifted him last night, 'you are easy to love'. But there could be no way, there were no signs, beyond her sleeping habits with him, and that was easily explained by her deep-seated trust in him. Trust that she had chosen to give after peering into his soul with those deceptively unfocused eyes.
He lingered in her warmth only a little longer before shuffling back to his side of the bed and waking up to make breakfast. For all her calmness, Natsuhi was not a morning person, especially not when they have late nights like these.
He keeping an eye on the fish frying in the pan, Yamato opened the cupboard above and grabbed himself a cup without looking. He had become so familiar with Natsuhi's kitchen over the many late nights he had stayed. Part of him felt guilty for imposing on the girl so often, but little voice in his head that sounded suspiciously like her admonished him for being stupid. 'What are friends for?' She would say in such a matter of fact way that he could do nothing but agree. The crest of friendship evidently haunted him in more ways than one.
Ladling the last of the miso soup into the bowl, Yamato looked at his handiwork with pride. "You'll make a great housewife," a sleepy voice commented. Yamato turned to look at the source of the sound, her.
"You say it like you can't cook," Yamato retorted. Natsuhi shrugged non-committedly before taking a seat at the table, taking in the delicious smells of the Japanese breakfast before her. Yamato shook his head slowly, dropping the subject completely and joining her for breakfast. "What are you doing after class today?" He asked. Despite being in different majors, they were both taking the same course on socio-cultures this term. "
"Why?" She asked, Yamato almost never asks about her schedule.
"Well, the guys are having a gathering tonight, I was wondering if you had nothing to do, then maybe you'd like to join us?" He replied carefully.
Natsuhi's chopsticks stopped in mid-air for a moment, before continuing its journey to the perfectly fried salmon. Inwardly, she sighed. 'The guys' meant the digidestined, a group of people she barely knew, much less fit in with. But she knew the hidden request behind Yamato's invitation, he didn't want to see Sora and Taichi together, at least not by himself. She wondered how she got herself involved in this mess in the first place. Oh right, she was in love with the blonde hair, blue eyes heart-throb sitting across from her. Her rational screamed for her to decline, but honestly, the decision was made before Yamato even asked. "What do you think I should make for the party? Roast beef or chocolate cake," she asked as a form of reply.
Yamato smiled and let out a breath he did not know he was holding, "Chocolate cake, Takeru's got a sweet-tooth."
Breakfast then continued in amiable silence.
Aoi Natsuhi, was a psychology major in School of Humanities and Social sciences at Waseda University, where Yamato studies Modern Mechanical Engineering in the School of Science and Engineering. She is also, coincidentally his band-mate. The Teenage Wolves had disbanded after they stopped being teenagers and Yamato retired from the limelight to enjoy music on a more intimate level.
Now, he was just another college student in the music circle at school that occasionally played with friends. He had greater dreams now, while music soothed his soul, his heart longed to see the world in its entirety…he longed for the outer-space. But this new dream is a discussion for another day.
The two not meet through college however, in fact it was not even him that stumbled upon her, it was Gabumon.
It was a routine visit from the Digital World, Gabumon had come to stay for a few days, and as ran down the streets, backwards, relishing the new-found freedom from house-arrest, he ran into the girl. Her first reaction, instead of screaming or apologizing was to grab the startled Digimon and ask for an interview. Unlike most college students who had normal part-time jobs such waitressing or working at the convenient store, Natsuhi was a journalist. She paid her bills writing articles for popular lifestyle magazines. Her job perks often spilled over to him, granting him access to intriguing new cafes and restaurants (great for dates with Sora) and on occasion paid trips to unknown valleys in the country.
She was aloof though, so very aloof, but somehow he always knew that hidden beneath the surface was someone more vibrant even though she never showed him. Somehow, he just knew. Because he was once like her, hiding behind self-made walls. Her walls are not perfect though, and every now and then when they banter, or when she sees something new and exciting, her inner-self peeks through. One day though, Yamato swore, he would see her true self in its entirety.
Taking down the last of the notes, Yamato ran through the topics covered in the lecture yet again. He had become rather studious after deciding on his career and took his classes seriously. In contrast, he turned to look at the girl spinning her pen indifferently at the back of the class, Natsuhi did only what was necessary for her to get-by. Then again, she was very good at what she does, reading people and counselling them. Classes did not really do much for the girl, although when a subject interested her, she could apply herself with alarming finesse. He would know, she went from knowing nothing about the digital world to knowing more than he did about Gabumon's digital composition just because Digimons fascinated her.
Shoving his books into his backpack, he was about to call out to Natsuhi before his phone vibrated in his pocket. Pulling it out, he quickly opened the message tab and read. 'Taichi and I are waiting for you at the front gate! 3' Yamato ran his fingers through his hair, annoyed. Of course Sora was with Taichi…he told himself not to read too much into the situation. They both studied in the School of Political Science and Economics, the both majored in Global Political Economy…it is only natural that they are waiting for him together. It is no different from him and Natsuhi sharing the same Socio-cultural lecture. Shaking his head to calm himself down, he made his way out of the lecture hall, Natsuhi trailing behind him dutifully behind him.
The scene that greeted them two at the school gate was something Yamato really did not need to see, it was nearing summer and the heat in Japan was getting intolerable, so of course Sora was wiping sweat off Taichi with her hankerchief, the perfect vision of a dutiful girlfriend…except she was Yamato's girlfriend.
Natsuhi resisted the urge to go bang her head against a wall, hard, as she looked at the blind trio before her. The three really needed to sort themselves out. Purposefully staying several paces behind Yamato so as to appear completely platonic, she walked up to greet the other two digidestined. "Hi Yagami-san, Takenouchi-san," she nodded at the two.
"Natsuhi-san, there's no need to be so polite with us," Sora waved off her stiff greeting with a warm smile, as if she was not just flirting with the brunette next to her 5 minutes ago. Yamato fist-bumped his best friend before reclaiming his rightful place next to the red-head, putting his arms around her almost possessively. Natsuhi saw Taichi tense at the action and sighed, this is going to be a long evening.
As the three childhood friends walked to Taichi's house, where the gathering was being held, Natsuhi hung behind, left out. There really was not much she could contribute to the conversation they had though, about their adventures in the digital world, which she hasn't even seen, much less been to. She knew that this pattern would continue at the gathering, all of them talking about a topic she could not participate in. Oh the stupid things she did for love.