Disclaimer: I don't own Digimon.

Seeing Red

Chapter: 12

Takato froze on top of Rika.

Oh, this is bad. This is really bad!

The thought echoed in his mind, but his body hadn't yet caught up with the rest of him. He had just realized the position he was in, straddling Rika's thighs with his hips sitting just above Rika's rear end. Blushing in horror, he peered around to see if anyone were watching. So far, he saw no one paying any particular attention to what they were doing, but with how crowded things were, he doubted it be long before that changed. Worse. From an outsider's perspective, holding Rika's waist as he was, he saw that it must look as though he were masturbating against her. Situated within his swim trunks, he felt the swollen hardness of his penis pulse and twitch excitedly, clearly liking the idea. A not too subtle throb from his loins suggested that he do just that in fact; just a little bit of grinding to relieve the tension.

"What's there to worry about?" his penis seemed to be asking him devilishly. "Rika will understand if you happen to 'bump' up against her."

A memory of a burning sky came to mind just then. And beneath it, a monstrous dragon, serpentine with blood-colored armor and a flashing hazard sign. It was there and gone before he even realized it, but the old fear rose up all the same and made war with his emotions.

N-No… No! he told himself, his hands tightening slightly against Rika's sides. Feeling this, the girl shifted beneath him and he felt himself jump as her buttocks came perilously close to touching the front of his trunks. His penis trembled, as if trying to stretch the final distance that lay between them and a heavy pleasure coursed along its length. He gripped even harder and then, with an effort, yanked his hands away as if burned.

"Hey. Are you all right?" she asked. She was blushing too, but not as badly. And her eyes were full of worry and concern. Shaking his head, Takato managed to get a hold of himself and drew himself off of her.

"Y-Yeah. Sure. Just…Just realizing I was being a gogglehead. The way I was…" He coughed and pointed at himself and then at her. "…sitting. Kind of…not very bright."

Rika cocked her head to one side in confusion at first before dawning comprehension came to her in the form of a sudden rush of red to her cheeks.

"Well…" she said, picking at the sand with her fingers. "At least you realized it."

She flashed him a small, embarrassed smile that she hoped would put him at ease, but the boy turned away, shame awash over his face. Rika began to lift herself before remembering her own situation.

"Um… Help me out here?" she asked, grabbing the ends of her bikini and bringing them back around. "Normally, I'd get this, but…" She somehow blushed harder as she pressed herself down on the towel to hide herself from passing onlookers. She felt Takato shift against her and before too long his fumbling fingers took hold of her bikini and began to tie it back together.

"Sorry," he said to her once he was finished. Sitting up, she gave him another questioning look.

"For what?"

Takato made a noise that sounded almost like a growl. His gaze was turned inward and reproachful.

"I know that look," she said. "What are you beating yourself up over? Did you get excited or something?"

"No!" Takato whirled about toward her, his eyes flashing with sudden anger. "I mean…" He caught himself, hesitated, and looked away. "Yes. I did get kind of excited. I…" He heaved a sigh and ran a hand through his hair. "I can't really explain it. It's like, for a second, I almost felt like there were two parts of me and…" Words failed him and he shook his head again. Rika furrowed her brow, remembering their earlier dates, the odd mishaps surrounding them and the unspoken desire they both felt to take things one step further.

"Yeah, well, it seems like there's only one of you to me," she said, placing a hand on his arm and giving him a soft squeeze. "I told you that I…do things sometimes and I know you do too. It's natural to want those things. Kind of like how it's natural for Guilmon to eat bread."

"Except for the part where he's a glutton and has to be put on a diet," Takato replied. Despite the stiff response, she saw some of the tension leaving his face and she traced a thumb along his arm. She smiled softly, feeling a different kind of tightness buried within them. Something she hadn't noticed before. Something new, but couldn't quite put her finger on.

That, however, was distracting her from the issue underscoring their conversation. Takato didn't say it outright, but he was worried about putting his desires above her needs. She supposed he had reason for this. In the digital world, he had a good look at what happened when he failed to control himself properly, resulting in his forcing Guilmon to digivolve into the horrifying creature, Megidramon. The fact that the situation was unique and highly stressful – given that Jeri's partner, Leomon, had just been butchered in front of them – didn't change that in Takato's mind. For all he knew, he was a time bomb waiting to go off at a moment's notice.

Of course, the monster he built himself up as in his mind, didn't even come close to matching how she and the others saw him.

I've got to change that.

"Don't be a wuss about this, Gogglehead," she said, giving his arm another comforting squeeze. The words felt almost hypocritical, given her own fears, but it didn't change the truth in them. "I said that I trust you, so I trust you. And I trust you because I know you. You can beat yourself up all you want about old things, but that doesn't change the fact that you're a gogglehead. My gogglehead. You won't do anything if you even think you might hurt me."

Her expression hardened as she bore into his eyes, daring him to contradict her. He didn't, though whether that was because of the truth in her words or that he was afraid of butting heads with her, she didn't know.

Well… Something to work on, I guess.

Her eyes drifted over to the suntan lotion. Taking it up, she squirted some in her hand and then proceeded to rub it against Takato's back. The boy looked at her in surprise. Blushing lightly, she smirked back at him.

"Don't look at me like that. All's fair in love and war."

Takato gave a small laugh and she felt him relax even further. She hummed in appreciation as she smoothed the lotion over his back, taking note of where muscles quivered and where others remained solid. Her grin grew a little, filing it away for future payback for her hair tie.

"Sometimes, Rika. I don't know where I'd be without you."

"How about you focus on where you are right now, okay?" Rika suggested. "We're here to have fun and you've had a bit of that already. Now shut up and let me have mine."

"N-No problem, Rika," Takato stammered out as Rika explored along his back. The girl frowned slightly, suddenly realizing she was getting a good close-up of her lover-boy's back. For half a second, she found herself daunted by the vast expanse of broadness that lay there, especially in the shoulders.

Boys really are pretty big up there, she thought, massaging the cream along his skin, making note of the little crooks and crannies where bone managed to peak out over muscle. And there was muscle. Not obvious nor sculpted as if he were a statue like in the doujinshi's Jeri let her borrow, but there. Takato was in far better shape than she assumed him to be.

He would have to be, she thought, her hand gliding down a shoulder blade. He runs an awful lot to deal with any wild digimon that manage to get through.

She hummed appreciatively. His skin was so smooth and had good color to it, indicating that he saw the outdoors a lot. Not quite the bronze complexion that Henry had or even Ryo, but she liked it all the same. It gave him a warm, comforting glow. Like a small fire on an autumn day.

Her hands went lower, continuing to rub the lotion in his skin, her eyes followed them, eventually coming to rest on the hem of his swim trunks. Her path slowed and she swallowed hesitantly, becoming all too aware now that, lying just beneath them, lay Takatos' own rear end and more. Awaiting her.

She felt her lips go dry as her hands slid ever closer to the swell of his buttocks. She imagined how they might feel in her hands. Solid and hard, resisting her grasp? Or soft like pillows that she could sink her fingers into? She had, on occasion, found herself watching his rear, usually when parting ways, trying to figure out which it could be. Her imagination, she realized, had become something of a cruel mistress in the years since she hit puberty.

"This is…a lot harder than I thought it would be," she said, her heartbeat speeding up suddenly.

"I know, right?" Takato laughed harshly, his face growing beat red at the feel of Rika's hands near his bum. "I-It's okay though. I trust you."

Rika's eyes snapped away from his rear end and back up to his shoulders. Taking a shaky breath, she slid her hands further down and brushed up against the hem of his trunks. She was so close. So close! All it would take was another centimeter and then…

As if on command, her fingers slipped past the band and brushed against soft skin and tough muscle. He twitched in surprise.

Rika's mind went wild with excitement at that and she hastily retracted her hand with a sharp hiss.

"S-Sorry," she muttered, suddenly feeling angry with herself. It had been an accident, but that it happened at all – and that she enjoyed it – made her feel a little bad all the same.

Takato turned back toward her, a sympathetic smile on his face accompanying the flustered crimson staining his cheeks.

"It's okay," he said, placing a hand on her shoulder and giving it a loving squeeze. Leaning toward her, he caught his lips with his and Rika gave a muffled gasp of surprise by his sudden forwardness. He pulled away at this and he looked at her with eyes full of concern.

"Are you all right?"

Rika blinked, her body flushing as she felt her awareness dialing up. Am I all right? she asked herself. She frowned inwardly. The question itself felt rhetorical. Hating the discomfort she felt, she answered by taking hold of her gogglehead and pulling him toward her. Now it was his turn to stiffen in surprise at her boldness. She didn't stop as he had however, and instead angled her face so as to deepen the kiss. She fell backward onto the towel, pulling him after her. He complied, but with some resistance in him. At that, she drew back and scowled at him.

"Well? What's wrong?" she asked heatedly. The boy's still damp hair was in disarray as he gave an embarrassed laugh.

"Oh… Nothing," he said. "Except, you know." He gestured about them, and Rika suddenly felt self-conscious.

Oh. Right. We're in public.

She glanced around and found a passing older woman about her grandmother's age frowning at them disapprovingly. Rika glared back for a moment before looking away. Irritably, she thumped the back of her head against the ground. It was immature, but presently she couldn't have cared less. She hated it when someone horned in on her time with her gogglehead, judging them by how they showed their love for one another.

"Fine," she grumped, bringing a finger out from behind his head and down to his chest. Her nail brushed against his skin and held itself there. And then, as if to spite the woman from earlier, "But we're not done with this."

As she said this, she poked him in the breastbone and Takato laughed again.

"W-Wouldn't dream of it," he said. "Anything for my queen."

"Right," Rika smirked as they both sat back up, Takato rubbing the back of his head in embarrassment at having made out – however briefly – in the open. "So, what brought on that sudden kiss?"

"Um… Just trying to be a perfect boyfriend?" Takato ventured. Rika gave his shoulder a light punch.

"The kiss is appreciated," she smirked. "But I want you to be you. Nothing else but that." She then gave him a pointed look. "You're not taking tips from Ryo are you?"

"Huh?" Takato blinked, a bit confused. "No. But…" He scratched the side of his cheek. "He does have a certain charm to him that girls like…"

"Yeah, well, I don't." Rika gave him another light punch. "He's too perfect. I don't trust that."

"How come?" Takato asked, lifting an eyebrow.

Rika didn't answer at first. She had never been quite sure herself what it was about the boy that set her off. The only feeling she had was that it felt…false. Put on, like a mask to keep others from knowing what he was really feeling. If she were to guess, it might have been an attempt to protect people he cared about so that they wouldn't worry, but it also suggested a lack of trust for them as well.

Quite a far cry from Takato and Henry or any of the others she knew. Even Kazu at least let her know what he thought, even if what he thought was annoying.

Before she could properly answer Takato's question, a sharp gust of wind swept across them, spraying sand in their faces. Rika cursed and the pair of them leapt to their feet as a miniature tornado rose up from down the beach.

"Is that a digimon attacking?" Takato half-yelled as startled beachgoers shouted and cried out.

"Looks like Terriermon's fighting something," Rika said, shielding her eyes from the sand. Almost as soon as it began however, the tiny twister began to die down, the wind becoming drowned out by a chorus of questions and cries of fear from the crowd. The two Tamers immediately went to their bags and yanked out their digivices and card boxes. Nodding to one another, they shot across the hot sand.

"Out of the way! Move!" Rika yelled, ducking and weaving between the beachgoers. The crowd thickened the closer they got and before too long they were having to physically push their way through. After what felt like an eternity, they broke out into the open and found Henry on the ground, cradling a dazed, bruised Terriermon while Renamon knelt by his side.

"Terriermon… Speak to me!" Henry rasped, his voice tense. "Say something! Anything!"

"Mooomentaiii…" Terriermon groaned, bringing an ear to a bump on the back of his head. "Anyone get the number of the busmon that hit me?"

"Oh, thank goodness," Henry sighed with relief. Renamon placed a comforting human hand on his shoulder.

"My apologies," she said. "I underestimated the strength of your twister during my return. I didn't mean to hurt you."

"Ugh… Sure you didn't," Terriermon grimaced. "That hit pretty low. If I didn't know any better, I'd say you were aiming at me."

"What are you trying to say, Rabbitmon?" Rika asked, stepping closer. "Renamon? What happened?"

The long-eared digimon blinked when he spotted Rika and Takato and a long ear stabbed in their direction, pointing at them accusingly like a finger.

"Ah! You're why she hit me! You… And you…!" His eyes grew wide like saucers. Instinctively, Henry clamped a hand over his partner's mouth.

"I think you've had enough fun for one day," he said quickly, getting to his feet. As he did so, a lifeguard pushed his way through the crowd.

"What's going on here?!" he demanded hotly.

"Sorry, sir," Henry said quickly. "Our digimon were playing a game and things got a little crazy."

"It was awesome!" exclaimed one of the onlookers, pumping his fists excitedly. "The little guy made a little tornado and shot the volleyball and the chick with…uh…" He glanced at Renamon curiously. "…the chick with the tail hit it back at him! Best game ever!"

"I don't know," said another onlooker. "It was a little too weird. I mean, that tornado… What if he hit someone with it? I mean, you've seen the news about these things…"

"Hey! Those 'things' are our partners!" Rika shouted angrily. "And they have names!"

"I don't mean anything by it. I'm just saying…"

"Well, I think you've said enough!"

"Rika…" began Takato warningly, placing a hand on her shoulder. In her seething, the girl almost ignored him. To see someone treat her partner like some non-living object as she had in the early days of their partnership… That hit a particularly close nerve with her.

"All right, look," the lifeguard said, his tone commanding. "I don't want any trouble around here! If you're going to be here, you can't be doing things like what your friend just did. If you're playing, keep it quiet. No…whatever it was you just did or anything like it. Everyone's safety comes first, got it?"

"Of course," Renamon said before Rika could even respond. "I apologize for the disturbance we have caused."

From the crowd, there came a number of uncertain grumblings. Many in the crowd were clearly divided about the presence of digimon on the beach, but few seemed willing to argue about it. After a few, tense moments, the crowd began to disperse. The lifeguard watched the Tamers with a guarded look, his expression hard. Then he turned away.

Rika hmphed before turning her attention back to her friends.

"All right. Can someone please tell me what's going on?"

As Kazu and Jeri approached with a dripping Guardromon in tow, Terriermon yanked his mouth free from Henry's hand. He giggled devilishly.

"You want to start at the part where Takato was on top of you and your top was off?"

A deathly silence fell over the group at that, broken only by Renamon sighing.

"Oh dear," she said while Henry's mouth worked. Words familiar and ever predictable died in his throat before they could even find the voice with which to speak them with.

"That's what you brained me for, isn't it?" Terriermon asked, turning up to the kitsune.

"That's none of your business!" Rika exclaimed, feeling her temper reaching a boiling point. "He was putting sunscreen on my back anyway! Why are you making that such a big deal?!"

"I think you know why," Terriermon smirked.

"T-T-Terriermon!" Henry finally croaked out. It sounded weak and flat. He had found his voice, but such was his shock, it lacked the force of his usual indignation. Terriermon giggled.

"Momentai," he sang. "Come on, Rika. Why do you think we think it's a big deal?"

"You mean besides your itch to annoy me?" Rika demanded, eye twitching slightly.

"Maybe it's because anything the two of you do together is a bit of a big deal," Kazu chimed in with a wolfish grin as he drew to a halt.

"It's not, and you're all being stupid!"

"I don't know. You letting Chumley decorate your back with sunscreen? When was the last time you let someone do that for you?"

Jeri pressed her lips together and met Takato's eyes. The boy seemed to be of the same mind as her with regards to revealing Rika's relationship with him. Yet at the same time, they were both loath to disrespect Rika's desire to keep things under wraps.

"Hey, here's a thought," Takato said, interposing himself between Rika and the others. "Why don't we just go back to having fun, okay? There's nothing to get upset about, right?"

"Sure, there's not," Kazu grinned. "Rika's got you after all. She has plenty of fun with you putting sunscreen on her…"

"Kazu!" Jeri reprimanded in a hushed voice, kicking at his ankle. He was treading dangerously close to Rika's temper. If he didn't stop now…

Rika was already starting toward him.

"That's it," she growled, brushing past Takato.

"Wait! Rika!" he called, trying to snag hold of her. He caught her by the arm and whirling about, Rika flashed him a dangerous look.

"Let…go!" she growled, tugging hard and almost breaking free from his grasp. "He's got it coming! Both of them!"

"No! Rika, we just got told by the lifeguard…"

"Who cares whathe said? Kazu…!"

"Can I get popcorn for this lovers quarrel?" Terriermon asked, much to Henry's growing horror.

"Terriermon!" Henry exploded, clamping a hand over his mouth again, this time securing it tightly.

"Takato. Let…go!"

Rika abruptly cut off in breaking free of Takato as the sound of a flute whistling filled the air. Renamon was suddenly there behind her – in her natural form – hands taking hold of her by the arms and stopping her dead in her tracks.

"Renamon?" she began, her anger suddenly evaporating. For a moment, she began to wonder if she had pushed things too far now, requiring her partner to step in and take control of the situation. There was a tense moment in which the vulpine digimon said nothing, but then she released her.

"Why don't we let things go now," she suggested, casting a warning look at Terriermon and Kazu. The former squirmed in Henry's grasp while Kazu merely shrugged, but said nothing. Renamon took that to be about as close to an affirmation as she was ever going to get out of him.

"Fine," Rika grumbled, massaging the spot on her arm where Takato had grabbed her. The boy winced at the red mark there. She was far from anything that would bruise, but he hated seeing the mark anyway. Once again, a flash of a memory came to mind – barely noticeable to his surface attention – and he repressed a shudder at the haunting visage of Megidramon.

Renamon breathed a sigh of relief and then lifted her paws back up to the back of the girl's bikini. Blushing, Rika squirmed and looked over her shoulder.

"Renamon? What…?"

"You're starting to become loose back here," she supplied, quickly undoing and then reknotting more securely. Takato blushed.

"Sorry," he said, taking responsibility. "I'm…not used to those things."

"You might want to get used to them before too long, Chumley," Kazu chuckled, making his way over to his shorter friend. Rika made a disgusted sound, adjusting her strap.

"Don't even think about starting this up again," she warned. "I've had it up to here with you today."

"Rika… Kazu…" Now it was Jeri's turn to speak up in a warning tone. Kazu waved a dismissive hand, bringing himself around so that he was standing just adjacent to behind Takato.

"Lighten up, would you? I bet the two of you would have a lot more fun if you weren't always wound up so tight." He turned to Takato and the boy regarded him with suspicion. "You know what? Why don't we just break the ice and get down to brass tacks? Give her an idea of what she's missing if she just relaxed a little, you know?"

"Kazu, what are you talking abou…?" Takato began, but before he could finish, Kazu moved quickly. Grabbing hold of the boy's swim trunks, he yanked them down, bearing Takato's rear end and his penis, flopping about from the tuff of brown hair for all to see. Takato shouted in exclamation, whirling about and snatching hold of his trunks, attempting to wriggle them out of Kazu's grasp. Rika and Jeri's eyes shot open wide as Henry's hand fell away from his partner, having gone limp. Not that such precautions were needed by this time. Terriermon's now liberated mouth, for a wonder, found itself with nothing to say. Indeed, nothing he could say could come close to approaching Kazu's daring – and suicidal – maneuver. Further off, Kenta inhaled sharply with horror – mirroring Renamon – while Guilmon and MarineAngemon, having long removed themselves from the escalating situation that they barely understood, looked on with rapt fascination by what was happening.

Guardromon burbled something unintelligibly.

"Kazu! What are you doing?!" Takato demanded, finally shoving Kazu away from him, his bare end aimed directly at his friends. His face flushed in humiliation, he grabbed his swim trunks again and yanked them back up before anyone else could see. "Are you crazy?"

"Not as crazy as you, Chumley," Kazu replied, pointing at him with a grin. "The two of you dance around each other but never do anything about it. I'm just trying to kick things off for you two so you can stop… Whoa. Charging bull."

What? Takato began, but before he could verbalize that question, Rika was suddenly dashing past him, her eyes flashing with untold wrath. This time, nothing could stop her.

A second later, there came a dull thud as her fist collided with Kazu's face, sending him crashing to the ground with a cry.

###

"Nice job, doofus. You got us kicked off the beach."

Rika's sharp rebuke echoed as the Tamers trudged away from the golden warmth and cool blue lying behind them. The mood in the air was a dour one. Kazu shrugged it off in spite of Rika's best efforts. The bruise he sported on his cheek was swelling and did nothing to dampen his spirits.

Takato, glared at his friend, red eyes burning.

"Ah, lighten up," Kazu replied. "You at least got a good show. You had to have liked it, right? I've seen you scoping him out you know."

"Kazu… Will you just shut…up?!" Takato's anger flared, his voice cracking like stone while his face still steaming in embarrassment. At once all eyes turned on him in surprise. Kazu stumbled slightly, missing a step.

"Chumley?" he asked, slightly taken aback by his friend's anger. While he was no stranger to Takato's ire, the boy often proved in the past to be the slowest to it, making it easy to forget that he even could get angry beyond being merely annoyed. Squaring his shoulders, Takato laid into him. The look in his eyes was a stark reminder now, and Kazu shook himself. "Hey, I was just trying to help…"

"We didn't need your help!" Takato interrupted, clenching his fists so tight that his knuckles turned white. "And we don't need it, so just keep your nose out of our relationship! We were doing fine on our own so just lay…off!"

Another pause, with nothing that could be heard save for the sound of Takato's labored breathing. Rika blushed, realizing faintly that Takato had just spilled the beans to everyone and she hurriedly looked around. Kazu's mouth became a faint 'O' of surprise and realization while Henry and Jeri breathed a sigh of relief while Terriermon's mouth fell open again. Kenta and MarineAngemon looked at one another.

"Pih!" the tiny pink fairy said with a giggling smile.

"Yeah, all right. You were right. I'll get you an ice cream later."

"W-Wait!" stammered out Kazu. "Chumley. You knew about this?!"

"MarineAngemon did. He's got a pretty good sense for these things. Even better sense to not badger someone about it either."

"I wasn't badgering them! I just didn't know! Takato…" Kazu looked at his friend forlornly, guilt riddling his face. Takato looked away, unable to face that. The mood darkening even further, Jeri took the opportunity to step forward and take hold of Kazu by the arm, steering him back toward her.

"Come on," she said quietly. "I think they need a minute alone."

"But… Jeri…"

"Might be a good idea for you to listen to her," Terriermon said. "Before she decides to give you a matching shiner."

"Terriermon…" Henry sighed.

"I wouldn't do that," Jeri said, puffing her cheeks out irritably. She gave Kazu's arm another tug and this time Kazu helplessly allowed himself to be pulled along, followed swiftly by Kenta, MarineAngemon and Guardromon. Rika turned a frown toward Terriermon.

"Since when did you get smart all of a sudden?" she asked.

"I'm always smart," Terriermon giggled. "I just know what lines to not cross, that's all. Well, most of the time. You make it pretty hard to find sometimes."

"Will you stop then?" Takato asked, his voice low. "Making fun of Rika?"

Terriermon opened his mouth to reply and then promptly snapped it shut, thinking better of it. He shrugged and climbed up on top of Henry's head. The boy had been very quiet since Rika's punching of Kazu. Unsettlingly so.

Great. Another person's good mood I've ruined, Takato berated himself.

"Come on, Henry. Let's follow Jeri's advice and leave these two alone. I have the feeling that they need it."

Henry tipped his friends a small, companionable nod and wordlessly headed off after Jeri and the others, leaving Takato and Rika alone with their partners. Guilmon bumped up against Takato's leg, hoping to offer some comfort.

"Are you going to be okay, Takato?" he asked, worry dripping in his voice. He hated seeing Takato sad and quite often he was at a loss for what to do when the teen got like this.

"I'll be fine," he replied dully, his tone making Rika frown a little. She drew up next to him, trying to think of something to say but coming up empty. She felt…drained, after a fashion. Their relationship was out in the open now, spilled by Takato in the heat of the moment. A part of her felt she should be angry with him, but she found that she just couldn't. If anything, she felt a bit relieved now.

"It'll be fine," she said, and she stretched. Muscles pleasantly popped in her back and shoulders and she gave him a reassuring smile. Takato was stiff and silent as he trudged along, head bowed, trying to work through his emotions and struggling with doing so. Rika's eyes softened at this. In his youth, she saw that he sometimes had these 'explosions' and because they were rare – vanishingly rare in fact – he had difficulty bringing them back under his control once loosed. There would follow a spell where he would beat himself up for anything he did, no matter how light. He was the sort who would hate himself for crushing a flower out of anger. Kazu certainly deserved being a target of anger. He had gone out of his way to push their buttons today, but that didn't change the fact that all Takato could see was him hurting someone he cared deeply about.

She took hold of his hand and gave him a soft squeeze.

Bring him back down to earth, she thought to herself. It's one thing I'm good at with him.

"I'm sorry," he said finally, his voice thick with unsaid emotion. "I wanted today to be fun and it just…wasn't."

"I wouldn't say that," Rika said. "I got to punch Kazu. I got to see you stand up for me. For us." She paused. "You put suntan screen on my back too. I rather liked that."

A lot more than I thought I would, she added morosely in her mind. She found herself cursing Jeri a little for being right about how she would enjoy that. She hadn't expected that.

Takato finally looked up at her, a bit surprised by her list. Rika blushed, but she didn't take her words back.

If he's going to stand by our relationship, then so should I. It's time I stopped being so worried about how the others would act. I'm the Digimon Queen after all. And a Tamer. And a Tamer never walks away from danger.

"Come on," she said, putting on a small smile. "I think Kenta had a pretty good idea for once. How about we get some ice cream when we get home? Just you and me."

In her hand, she felt Takato squeeze her back in answer.

"Awww… That's nice," Guilmon beamed from behind them. Rika blushed, but hand in hand they made their way after the others, their pace quickening as they went.

10