A/N: I grew up on this show and I LOVED it so much and I recently got struck with a creative lightning bolt so here ya go… Merry christmas… Also before anyone comes for me about the timeline details, I'm making this story to be more modern instead of in 2003. It just gives me, as a writer, more to work with.
A year after the supercomputer was shut down, everyone moved on with their lives and they began to see less and less of each other. Jeremy and Aelita continued to remain close but there was distance from the others due to both of them getting moved into more advanced classes. Odd ended up joining the soccer team with Ulrich so the two of them remained thick as thieves because they spent every single day together as roommates and teammates. William got rather close to a group of skater kids and almost disappeared from the core group completely. The only one that hadn't found a niche was Yumi.
In the beginning, they continued to eat lunch together every day and would walk to class together as normal, but over time they all got pulled into their own groups. Jeremy and Aelita would be seated with the geniuses of Kadic, talking about whatever lessons were happening in their classes. Odd and Ulrich were seated with the soccer team, who would loudly joke and mess around with each other. William and the skater kids wouldn't even come to the lunch room and would sometimes skip school all together. And for Yumi, she was watching from the outside.
She would walk to class alone, thinking about what happened and how everyone was changing. She would still support Jeremy and Aelita at any kind of academic event like the robot rumble or the academic decathlon and she would still go to soccer games to cheer on Ulrich and Odd but she eventually drifted away into isolation. She began to feel bad that she wasn't involved with things on campus the way her fellow warriors were but she did have something that kept her going and that was dance.
After one particularly rough day at school, Yumi beelines to the dance studio after school to dance her problems away. While there, she was so engrossed in her dancing she missed an old friend of hers.
"Careful there sunshine, work yourself too hard and you'll crumble real quick." Yumi turns around and sees a girl around her age, leaning on the doorframe with a huge smile on her face.
"No way…" The girl runs over and wraps Yumi in a tight hug, which Yumi gladly returns. "What are you doing here, Jordan?" Yumi asks as the two break from the hug.
"The studio at school is under renos so we've been using this place till it's done. What about you… It's been a while since I've seen you in a studio." Jordan raises an eyebrow as she reaches back and pulls her long blonde hair out of its ponytail holder and slips the band around her wrist.
"Yeah… It's a long story and it's been a really rough day." Yumi sighs as she runs her fingers through her raven hair.
"No better cure for a rough day than this…" Jordan gestures to the room around them. "But I'm glad I ran into you… I was gonna go by your house to talk to you about this but I guess I can do this now…"
"What's up?" Yumi asks. Jordan gestures for them to take a seat next to the wall of mirrors. The two sit and Yumi looks at Jordan with pleading eyes.
"Crossroads is having auditions…" Jordan reaches into her bag and pulls out a packet. "And I think you should go for it." Jordan hands Yumi the packet.
"Jordan, I don't know…" Yumi sighs as she flips through the packet that has a plethora of information about the school.
"Yumi, you are one of the best dancers, if not the best, I've ever seen and if I can get into Crossroads, I know that you definitely can." Jordan places a hand on Yumi's leg. "Besides, I already filled out an audition application for you."
"Jordan!" Yumi scolds the other girl, who only laughs in return.
"You pushed me to audition last year, and now it's my turn. You do everything for everyone around you, it's time you do something for you." Jordan smiles.
"I hate you…" Yumi grumbles then smiles at the fellow dancer.
"Love you too. Talk to your parents and get ready… the auditions' in a month." Jordan stands and then helps Yumi to her feet. The two share another hug before Jordan exits the studio. Yumi sighs as she packs up and begins her walk home. Once she enters the door of her house, her mother greets her from the kitchen.
"Yumi, is that you dear?" Her mother calls.
"Yep, it's me." Yumi responds as she enters the kitchen and sits at the table, thinking about the conversation she had with Jordan.
"Did you have a nice work-out?" Her mother asks as she places a bowl of food in front of Yumi.
"Yeah, I ran into Jordan…" Yumi's mother cuts her off.
"Oh I love Jordan! Such a sweet girl!" She claps her hands as she takes a seat next to her daughter.
"Yeah, we talked and she told me that Crossroads is having auditions…" Yumi trails off, playing with her food.
"Really? I thought they don't have auditions often." Yumi's mother remarks.
"They don't. And it turns out… Jordan filled out an application in my name…" Yumi pauses and waits for her mother to jump in but she is met with silence.
"I think it's a great idea." Yumi's mother reaches for her chopsticks and begins eating.
"Really?!" Yumi's eyes widened at her mothers sentence.
"I have always thought that you were not reaching your full potential at Kadic and maybe this is the opportunity you need. I think you should audition." Yumi's mother responds. Yumi flies out of her chair and gives her mother a hug and a kiss on the cheek.
"Thanks mom." Yumi quickly finishes her food and then flies up the stairs to her bedroom. She pulls out a thick book and begins flipping through it. In the book are a number of dance routines she has done in her life. She scans the pages trying to find the right routine for her audition. She spends the entire night looking at the routines until she falls asleep.
"Yumi, dear… Time to get up." Yumi's mother knocks on her daughter's door. She gently opens the door and spots her daughter asleep at her desk. She chuckles as she walks over and gently shakes her daughter awake. "Yumi, sweetie, time for school. Breakfast is on the table downstairs." Yumi groans as she sits up and rubs her eyes.
"Thanks mom. I'm gonna get dressed and I'll be right down." Yumi reaches up and stretches her arms over her head.
"Sounds good, sweetie." Yumi's mother places a kiss on her daughter's head and exits her bedroom, closing the door as she leaves. Yumi looks down at the book and the page it's open to.
"This routine will be perfect." Yumi smiles as she stands up and walks over to her wardrobe and sifts through the clothes. She lands on a black cropped t-shirt, a pair of black leggings and a pair of black and white sneakers. She throws on a black and red flannel over her shirt as she grabs her backpack and her dance bag. She grabs a quick breakfast and walks to Kadic. As she's walking across campus, she hears her name and her ears perk up. She looks around and finds Odd, Ulrich and some of the other soccer guys standing near the arches. Yumi walks over and is about to make her presence known but what she hears stops her in tracks.
"Seriously Ulrich, what's going on between you and Yumi?" One of the guys asks.
"Nothing… absolutely nothing." Ulrich coolly responds.
"Yeah right… You've been obsessed with her for years." Theo laughs as he rolls his eyes.
"Theo's right, man." Odd chimes in nudging Ulrich with his elbow.
"Seriously dude. I've been thinking about this a lot recently and I can't even remember the last time we talked and frankly, I haven't really missed it. She's way too complicated and drama follows her everywhere and I don't need that in my life. Not to mention the back and forth with her is not worth the headache. She's not worth it. I've been meaning to tell her to back off and give me space." Ulrich says. Yumi can hear her heartbeat in her ears and she turns on her heels to get away from the group. She finds an empty classroom, throws the door closed and leans against the door as Ulrich's words repeat in her head. Not knowing what else to do, Yumi pulls out her phone and dials a number she knows by heart.
"Hello?" A cheerful voice sounds on the other end.
"I need to talk."