Whooooooa! It's been a really damn long time! So sorry. Feel free to yell at me, I know I deserve it, so, my dearest readers, I present to you, the much awaited chapter 20.
Yamato
My eyes drifted open, then slide shut again. My head lulls gently to the side, and my blurry eyes take in a sleeping Billy. He shifts slightly, and I look up towards the ceiling. My eyes try to slip closed again. I jerk awake at the sound of Baby barking downstairs. I sit up with a sigh.
"What's the matter?" Sleep filled, over tired mumble.
"Nothing, go back to sleep." I tell Billy, who is probably asleep before I answer. I climb over top of him and slip out of the room. The first place I check is T.K's bedroom. The door is closed, and I turn the handle and push it open gently. The bed is empty. I glance down the hall. Bathroom door is open. I face the stairs at another of Baby's barks.
"Shut up, stupid dog!" I hear my dad shout from below. I move down the stairs quietly. I find Baby barking at the back door. She snarls when she notices me. Then realizes who I am and wags her tail.
"What's the matter, Baby?" I ask her quietly. She scratches at the door. I check the lock. It's not locked. I open the door, and Baby goes bounding outside, and towards the back of the house. I slide my shoes on, and follow her. As I come around the corner, a body moves and I find T.K standing by himself, eyes wide. He relaxes a bit when he sees me. Baby goes on a sniff-hunt. Trying to find the strange sent. Her tail wags.
"Tai, Kari." I say. They both appear from hiding. Tai gives me a sheepish grin.
"Hi." He says. I raise my eyebrow at him. T.K reaches for Kari, and their hands lock. He leads her towards the house. Baby sits by my feet.
"Wanna...uh...go for a walk?" Tai asks. I shrug.
"Yea, sure." We head in the same direction as always.
"Why do we also go this way?" Tai asks. I don't answer, because I don't know. Tai's fingers bump mine, then his last two fingers loop around mine. And although my first reaction is to pull them away, I don't. Slowly, slowly...this boy is melting the ice. It's a new feeling for me, and I don't know if I like it or not. I can feel Tai's eyes on me. I ignore it. Somewhere we took a different turn, this area is fairly new to me. I look up and around, trying to see if I recognize anything. I don't. Everything seems deserted, now, too. Where before there had been a few people walking back and forth around us, there is now nothing. There's hardly any light, either. Immediately I yank my hand away from his.
"Where are we, what're you doing?" I spit. Tai looks at me with shocked eyes.
"We're...walking?" Tai tries to supply. The shock in his voice isn't faked, but I still don't trust it. I see the reason for my snap come to his eyes.
"I'm not trying to do anything, Matt. I just thought we could head towards the beach, instead of the park."
"There's a beach nearby?"
"Well...no, but there's a hidden lake with some sand in the forest." I look towards the dark forest. A million things flash through my head.
"Not tonight.." I mumble.
"Okay." Tai says, there is no fighting, no disappointment in his voice. He slides his fingers through mine and pulls me back the way we came. I allow him to pull me, and eventually my fingers hold onto his hand. I can feel the pause in his breath. He doesn't pull away, he doesn't make me feel like he's pointing it out.
"Matt?" It's barely heard.
"Hmm?"
"How do you feel about homosexual people?" I stay silent. There are hundreds of things I could say. All mean.
"From personal experience? They're fucking douche bags." Tai's hand loosens around mine.
"But, at the same time...they can't all be bad." His hand tightens slightly again. I shrug, even though I'm sure Tai didn't notice. I don't know how I feel. Or why. I just know that between Taichi Yagami and my own birth brother Takeru, I don't feel like Yamato Ranger anymore. I'm just Matt now. Matt Nobody, with Baby Nobody. And really, somewhere inside me, I know that Baby is the only thing that may stay constant, at least until she dies. What's the lifespan of a husky? Ten, fifteen years? Twenty if I'm extremely lucky? That's hardly a lifetime, and I know I will miss her when she goes. And regardless of this new life Vincent tried so hard to find for me, I feel like I will be alone soon. I can once again feel Taichi's eyes on me.
"Are you okay, Matt?" His voice is gently and unsure.
"Yea, sure...Just...thinking."
"About...?"
"Life. Being alone."
"You're not alone anymore." Tai says without thinking about it. I look over at him, and he squeezes my hand tightly.
"You have a family now. Regardless about what happened before. I don't know a lot, but T.K told me some when you were in the hospital. That you know, your dad was mean, and left you alone. You have you're mom, and dad, even if they do fight over you. That's what parents do. They're just trying to do what's best for you, even if they both have different idea's about what's right for you right now. And you have T.K, and take it from me, a sibling, younger or older, is forever, I know you guys haven't know each other long, but he'll always be there for you. And you should always be there for him. And you have Billy, Vincent, and Sherria. You also have Baby, Kari and myself..." My eyes drift to the ground, thinking about that. Tai stays quiet for awhile. And then adds,
"Even if you do fight with them sometimes, friends normally make up. Sometimes they don't, but, I mean, you'll make more friends in your life. And you'd probably have more now, if you weren't so...inside yourself all the time."
"What're you talking about?" He hears the edge.
"I just meant...you're...quiet..all the time. You ignore almost everything, everyone says. We have to ask you more then once to get you to even respond to us most times. You're always so busy thinking about the past, you can't focus on the future." I drop Tai's hand, slightly offended. Who cares if I'd rather spend time in my own head. Who wouldn't want to. Tai's body seems to slouch when I let go.
"I need to go home." I tell him. That ice is there again, and it shocks even me. Baby stops and looks back at me, she can hear it to.
"Sorry, Matt. I wasn't trying to upset you..."
"Yea, whatever. I'll see you at school." Tai stops and watches me walk past him, and down the street. I don't relax until I get home, and back in bed.
"You alright?"
"Just fine." I spit. Billy's eyes open properly. and I roll away from him, facing the other way.
Taichi
I watch Matt disappear around the corner. I really didn't mean to upset him, and I wish I had said it a little less harsh. With a sigh, I head back towards my house, trying to come up with an excuse to why Kari's not in her bed when my parent's wake up. I decided not to think of Matt just yet, knowing it will just upset me. I will try and deal with that situation tomorrow. At school. At least, I'd try. I slip up the steps to my apartment, and sneak back in through the front door. And come face to face with my father.
"Hi daddy." I squeak. He gives me that look. That 'you're grounded for the rest of you're life' look. I sigh in frustration.
"Where's Kari?"
"At T.K's. They had a rough night." I lie.
"Uh-huh. Grounded. Both of you."
"I know." I say, and kick off my shoes. I had straight for my room. The clock reads 4. I fall into bed, and am asleep within minutes.
