Hey everyone,

It's Day 5 of Taiora Week. Today's prompt is jealousy. I have purposely not named a certain boy in this one. I thought I would leave it up to the reader's imaginations to decide who it is ;)

Thanks for all the feedback on the previous story entry. I forgot to mention days 3 and 4 were posted on my deviantart page.

Hope you enjoy :)

Number One

"-I've got a date."

That had been the last thing Tai had expected his daughter to say…

Two days ago after 'interrogating' her as she had so kindly put it as to why she would be home late that particular night; she had eventually dropped that little surprise on him.

His little girl had a date.

Only the truth was she wasn't so little anymore… She was now seventeen. Almost an adult… so it shouldn't have really come as such a surprise; but it had. He had been knocked completely off guard. Maybe it was because in some ways he still saw her as the little brown haired girl who would run about the apartment causing mischief, or would scrunch her face up in disgust whenever they tried to give her a kiss. When she had said she had a date, Tai had suddenly been overcome with emotions; especially when further into the interrogation that evening she had admitted it wasn't their first date either. She had been seeing this boy for almost two weeks now. He didn't know whether he had reacted the way he did due to the fact she had been keeping it a secret from him, or if it was something else… luckily his wife had been there to keep him calm, not allowing the situation to explode where he might have said something he would regret.

Even now two days later he was still brooding over it. No matter how hard he tried he couldn't shake it off. It didn't help matters that at this moment Dawn was in her bedroom getting ready to go out on another date with this boy. It had felt like it had been only yesterday she had been coming home all muddy from playing soccer at the park or climbing trees… and now she was going out on dates.

Like any father, he expected this would happen eventually… but it seemed to have crept up a little too quickly for his liking. He knew she couldn't stay his little girl forever, but now that she was starting to date it felt like she was one more step closer to adulthood... Soon she wouldn't need him anymore; she would be out there living on her own… and there would be another man in her life…

Unable to concentrate on the television, Tai switched it off. Making no effort whatsoever to move forward from his position on the sofa; he simply tossed the remote onto the coffee table.

"Hey," Agumon moaned, whom Tai had almost forgotten was there with him. "I was watching that."

This, as well as the sound of the remote hitting the coffee table, had caught the attention of Sora, who had been sitting at the dining table reading a magazine. She looked over to her husband. "What's the matter with you?" she asked.

"Nothing," Tai grumbled. "I'm fine."

Sora sat up straight, giving him an unconvincing look. She had noticed he hadn't been quite himself. "Don't give me that. You've been in a funny mood lately."

"She's right," Agumon agreed. "You've been a bit grouchy at times."

"No I haven't." Tai said a little too snippy, before he got up from the sofa and headed into the kitchen, to which Agumon took no hesitation in scrambling off the sofa to pick the remote up switching the television back on.

"Yes you have." Sora told him as he walked past her. "You've been sulking and moping around here for the past two days. We've been married for twenty four years so don't try and fool me into saying you're fine. Something is clearly bothering you… Now that I think about it; it started on Wednesday evening when you found out Dawn has a boyfriend." She then noted that at the mention of the boyfriend, Tai had opened the refrigerator door a little too aggressively. As he turned to face her, now holding a can of soda, she noticed his expression had changed. He looked a little… uptight. "Oh… I know what it is now," she said, with a slight smirk. "You're jealous,"

Tai hesitated for a moment before he opened his soda can. "That's stupid Sor'. Why would I be jealous of someone dating our daughter?"

"Well… I think you're jealous that Dawn now has another man in her life." Sora teased through a little giggle.

"I'm not," Tai muttered. "I'm just… upset she didn't tell me." He was about to take a sip of his drink, when he noticed his wife was biting her bottom lip in an attempt to stop herself from laughing. "What's so funny?"

"Even after all these years you still look adorable when you're sulking." Sora continued to tease with a smile.

"I'm not sulking Sora," Tai protested a little sharply. "Aren't you upset she kept it a secret from us? She went out on her first date and didn't even tell us. Why couldn't she tell us she had a boyfriend?"

Agumon peered out from over the edge of the sofa. "Maybe it's because you used to say you would threaten any boy she brought home," He commented, although he soon darted back down out of sight when he got a piercing look from his partner.

Sora smiled as she walked over to her husband and draped her arms over his shoulders. "You know, we used to keep little secrets from our parents. I'll bet this isn't the first thing she's kept from us, and it certainly won't be the last. Maybe Agumon's right; maybe Dawn didn't want to mention it straight away because she was worried how you would react… and by the pouty look on your face right now I'd say her concerns were right." She teased, giving him a quick peck on the cheek. "You knew this would happen one day. You trust her, don't you?"

Tai sighed. "Yes, of course I do it's just…I…" he hesitated for a moment, but he didn't get chance to finish what he was about to say as he noticed their daughter exit her bedroom.

Dawn walked over, wearing a pair of dark grey jeans, an orange t-shirt, and a red checked shirt tied around her waist in case it got a little chilly later that evening. Despite now nearing adulthood, she hadn't really changed all that much. She was still a tomboy and soccer mad, and she still despised having to wear dresses or skirts… something though she had to begrudgingly tolerate when she had entered high school. Tai was secretly thankful her dress sense hadn't changed from when she was a kid, and he didn't have to be one of those fathers who would scold their daughters for going out in a skirt that looked more like a belt. Dawn looked at her parents, noticing it had gone a little quiet upon her leaving her bedroom. "… Is everything okay?" she asked.

Sora smiled. "Everything's fine… you leaving now?"

Dawn nodded. "Yeah. I'll be back later tonight; I'm not too sure what time." She said as she turned to head towards the front door to put on her sneakers.

"You'll be back by nine." Tai told her.

Dawn stopped, turning to look back at her father. "What? Dad, the movie is at least two hours long and it starts at seven… now I know my Math grades have never been great but I do know that means it'll be impossible for me to be home by nine," she said, with a bit of a grin.

"Don't get smart with me young lady."

Dawn blinked, a little taken back by her father's snappy response. She too had noticed he had been acting differently over the course of the last two days. "What's with you lately?" she asked. "You've been acting weird... you're not still mad from Wednesday night are you?" She noticed he then was unable to look her in the eye; pretty much answering her question. Dawn frowned at him. She knew he would have freaked out regardless of when she told him, but she would never have thought he would be still in a mood over it two days later. "This is exactly why I didn't want to tell you."

"Oh? So when were you going to tell me then?" Tai asked, folding his arms. "Or were you planning on not telling me at all?"

Dawn tried to refrain from rolling her eyes. "Don't be stupid Dad. Of course I was going to tell you; but when I was ready to. I knew you wouldn't have taken it well whenever I chose to tell you, which is why I was waiting for the right time, but I didn't think you would be immature enough to still be sulking over it two days later!"

"Hey, now just a minute-"

Sora swiftly placed a hand on her husband's chest, putting a stop to the impending argument. "Go and enjoy the movie," she said to Dawn. "We'll talk later okay?"

Dawn continued to frown at her father look before sighing. "Fine," she muttered stubbornly before leaving.

After they heard the sound of the front door slamming shut, Sora turned to face her husband giving him a look he knew all too well.

"I know, I know," Tai groaned, a wave of guilt suddenly washing over him. He knew exactly what his wife was going to say. "I'm sorry… alright, maybe you're right Sor'… maybe I am jealous…" he admitted before walking off towards the open balcony doors.

Agumon watched his partner as he passed him by the sofa. "Now that you've admitted it the next step is to talk about it-" he was abruptly cut off as Tai threw one of the sofa cushions at him, hitting him square in the face. "Hey!"

Sora smiled slightly before she followed Tai outside onto the balcony. "Now as much as you probably want to throw Agumon off here; he did have a point." She said, standing beside him.

Tai stared out at the city, his hands resting on top of the balcony rail. It was almost dark as the sun had nearly set in the distance. He didn't really want to talk about it as it sounded so ridiculous. Was he really jealous of his daughter's new boyfriend? It sounded so petty. But he knew there was no escaping the subject. Sora would just keep bugging him until he talked about it anyway. "… I guess I'm just having a little trouble admitting to myself she's grown up now. She's not a little kid anymore."

"Then maybe you're not jealous… maybe you're a little afraid of being replaced?"

"Maybe," Tai mumbled, but she had pretty much hit the nail on the head. He had been there for Dawn throughout her life, from the moment she had been born. He knew he could never protect her from everything, but he had always tried his best to. And now she was at that age where she could live more independently she was going to experience new things where he probably wouldn't be able to always protect her, or she would now be turning to someone else first…

Sora wrapped her arms around his, resting her head against his shoulder. "You know, it's perfectly normal to feel like this. I feel like it sometimes too. There's no point in denying the fact she's not going to be dependent on us as much as she used to be, but we'll always be there for her."

"Yeah, I know." Tai murmured. He tilted his head and rested his cheek against the top of Sora's auburn hair. He really had been acting immature the past few days, almost selfish even. His daughter was beginning her first relationship and he had only been thinking about how it would affect him. Just like Sora had just said; they were still going to be there for her if she needed them, even if that wasn't as much as he was used to… and if her heart was to be broken then he would be there ready to strangle the boy… "I'm sorry I've been such a pain the last two days," he added quietly.

Sora lifted her head a little, glancing at him. "Well, it's not just me you need to apologise to."

"I know."

Unknown to them, the front door opened, and Dawn walked back inside. "I forgot my phone-" she said, still sounding a little irritable, but she stopped as she entered the living room to see it was now empty. It didn't take her long to notice her parents out on the balcony. Deciding it would be best to just pick up her phone and leave without having to deal with her father again, she walked over to the coffee table to retrieve it. Luckily Agumon had disappeared from his seat on the sofa, most likely to the bathroom. As Dawn leaned over to pick up her phone, she caught a little of what her parents were saying…

"-Does it make me a bad father?"

Dawn froze, her fingers inches from her phone.

"No, of course it doesn't Tai," Sora reassured. "You're a wonderful father."

"But what if it is jealousy? It just sounds so… pathetic. I sort of knew in the back of my mind she's grown up enough to be more independent. I don't know why it got to me the way it did but when she told me it suddenly felt like it was one more step closer to her not needing me anymore… she used to run up and hug me when I would arrive home from work, or would come and talk to me about anything… now that's going to be somebody else she turns to first… like I'm being knocked down into second place."

"And we all know how much you like to be in first place…" Sora teased a little light-heartedly.

"See what I mean?" Tai groaned, breaking their embrace. "I am jealous aren't I? I've been used to being number one for so long I can't handle it when someone else deserves that place."

"Tai, you're probably using that word a little too strongly. You're probably a little scared of losing that special connection you and Dawn have."

Dawn took a step forward. She opened her mouth about to say something; but she quickly decided against it. She was already running late. Picking up her phone, she quietly left without her parents realising she had even been there listening.

"Talk to her when she gets home. You don't want to keep all this bottled up; otherwise Dawn might end up resenting you for it."

"Hey, she didn't want to tell me about it in the first place."

Sora sighed, folding her arms. "You two are still just as stubborn as each other… Dawn was going to tell you. She was just waiting for the right time."

"Probably on her wedding day," Tai muttered, although he said it with a hint of a playful smile.

Sora raised an eyebrow. "Now you're not going to freak out over that when that day comes, are you?"

Tai's smile grew a little more. "No… I'm not that immature Sora." he humoured her.

Sora smiled and leaned up on her tiptoes kissing him softly. "C'mon, let's go back inside."

"Actually, I might just stay out here a little longer,"

"Okay then." Sora gave him another kiss on the cheek before heading back into the apartment.

Tai watched her go back inside. He knew she was right; he would have to talk to Dawn when she got home later, and he definitely owed her an apology. No matter how old she got, or who she dated, she would always be his little girl though… His phone then pinged in his back pocket, alerting him he had just received a new message. Sighing, he pulled his phone out, swiping the screen to unlock it. Seeing the message was from Dawn, he was a little apprehensive at first about opening it after how things had been left between them when she had left earlier. But he was taken a little by surprise upon seeing what she had written. He peered into the apartment, but he could only see his wife who had now gone into the kitchen. As he read the message again, his smile grew even more…

'Don't worry Dad; you'll always be number one'