The Bond Between Partners
After Emily got done with work, she stopped at the grocery store to pick up some meat and vegetables for tonight's dinner along with other sources of produce like eggs, break, milk, spices, sugar, extract, and flour for when she would want to bake at home. She also got more food and kitty litter for her pet cat Avalon.
Now that the shopping was out of the way, Emily could return home and start cooking dinner for herself and Gatomon. She was welcomed home by Gatomon, who eagerly helped to put away the groceries. Before making dinner, Emily tended to Avalon by cleaning out her litter tray and filling her bowls with fresh food and water. Then she washed her hands and decided to start cooking.
The first thing Emily did was fill her rice cooker and set the time. Then she turned on the stove and waited for the frying pan to heat up while she was cutting the beef into small cuts. Once the frying pan had heated up enough, she added the beef and the seasoning. The water in the pot had also finished boiling, so it was time to add the broccoli and sliced carrots.
It took some time, but everything was finally ready. Gatomon helped set the table and Emily filled the plates. Gatomon's mouth watered at the sight of meat and vegetables over a bed of rice, but she couldn't eat yet. Before eating, Emily and Gatomon clasped their hands together, giving thanks for the meal and asking for all friends and loved ones to be blessed.
Gatomon was about to take a bite until she noticed hoe distant Emily looked. "Are you okay, Emily? You look like you've got something on your mind."
The blonde did have a lot on her mind. After what she and Max talked about this morning, she thought about Gatomon's happiness. "Gatomon, are you happy here with me?"
The cat Digimon was surprised that her partner would even ask her that. "Of course I am. Why would you ask me that?"
Emily sighed and said, "I thought you'd be unhappy because, well, these days I'm just too busy to even spend time with you. I mean, I don't spend a lot of time here at home because I have school, work, appointments, errands to run –,"
"And not enough hours in the day," Gatomon interrupted. "It can't be helped. You live alone and you have to do everything you can so you can take care of yourself." She stopped as she noticed Avalon playing with her tail. Gatomon didn't mind. It actually tickled, feeling the cat's paws over her tail. "And so you can take care of me and Avalon."
"I just thought that maybe my absence was making you feel abandoned or even neglected," said Emily.
"I don't feel that way at all," said Gatomon. "That's because I still get to see you at the end of the day and we can spend time together then. I know you're always busy, but it's understandable. I'm not making excuses for you. But sometimes I wish there was something I could do to help."
"You help me enough here," Emily insisted. "You help me with my homework and chores and you help take care of Avalon too. And at least we get to do some fun things together like bake goodies, play games, watch movies, and even make trips to the Secret Garden to get fruit."
"So you see?" Gatomon was asking. "Your life's not entirely boring."
The blonde appreciated her partner saying that. "I just want you to be happy, Gatomon."
"I know and I am happy," she said with honesty. "I know how hard things are for you, but I want you to know I appreciate all that you do." Once more, Emily smiled in appreciation. "But I want you to be happy too, Emily. You know that, right?"
"Of course I do," the blonde replied. "It's just, after what Max and I talked about –,"
Gatomon sputtered her milk. "You saw Max today?"
"While I was on my way to work," Emily answered. "We just talked for a bit."
"Did you tell her about the Dark Masters?" the cat Digimon asked. "Or about what happened while we were in Paris?"
"No, I didn't have time for that," the blonde answered. "I do know, however, that I am going to have to tell her everything eventually." She took a sip from her own milk. "Anyway, Max asked me if I was happy with my life. She also asked me if I had other things I wanted to do."
"What did you tell her?"
"I told her I sort of was happy with my life, but I also admitted that I did have other things I wanted to do." She pauses, then continues, "But with everything that's been happening up to now, I figured, it's probably best to just take life as it comes. Because when you think you've got a plan, fate will intervene and change things for better or for worse, whether you like it or not." She recollects herself. "Don't get me wrong. I think it's good to have a plan and to have goals. But like I said, you never know what life is going to bring that will end up causing whatever you have in store to change."
"I guess you're right," Gatomon said, acknowledging the matter.
"But you know," Emily was saying, "that talk with Max taught me that I should appreciate the life I have here and all of its hardships." It also made her think about her recurring dream about Rachel reminding her of the Lord's promise. There will be many struggles, but in the end, they'll all be worth facing end enduring. In truth, a life filled with ease isn't really a life worth living. There has to be some stress and strife because it can help one to learn to adapt to circumstances. "It also made me appreciate my life as a hero and helping protect all of the other worlds," Emily added.
"Villains and all?"
"Villains and all." And they both laughed together. "Eat your dinner. Then we can have dessert and watch a movie together."
Gatomon cheered and began eating the rest of her dinner. Once they finished eating, Emily put the leftovers in the refrigerator and took the dishes to the sink to wash them. After washing the dishes, the blonde went back to the refrigerator and pulled out a new pie she baked. It was a new recipe she had been working on: banana cream with cherries. She cut one slice for herself and one for Gatomon and topped both slices with whipped cream. Then she joined Gatomon in the living room and they sat together on the couch.
Emily placed her arm around Gatomon to hug her. "I love you, Gatomon."
The cat Digimon happily purred. "I love you too, Emily."
Once again, Emily thought about her discussion with Max. It made her wonder if Queen Mystery and the spirit of the Cobalt Star shard ever had the same heart-to-heart conversations in the ancient past. Well, no use wondering about that since both of their spirits were laid to rest a long time ago. The blonde had faith, however, that though both spirits were on opposing sides, they would still be together in paradise because they were friends. However, something else started to come into mind for Emily. "I wonder," she mumbled quietly to herself.