Hello! This is written for Sweet Cari, a very dear friend of mine because I wanted to gift her something for standing by me for so long. For context for those who haven't seen the Japanese version, this is set just after Digimon 02, Episode 13. T.K. in the original episode yells at Kari for being too dependent on Tai when she tells him about the Dark Ocean. Obviously, he feels guilty and it all turns out okay but I thought this might be a nice resolution to show.
Kari knew T.K. hadn't meant it but that did not stop the hurt from coiling in her stomach. She knew Tai would not be around forever to protect her, but it wasn't as easy as he made it out to be. He had always been her protector, her big brother, her best friend and she didn't know if she could face the world without him.
T.K. and her stood outside her apartment. He had come to drop her off but there was an odd silence between them, one that even their partners did not wish to break. They were watching them both but neither of them intervened, something which Kari was glad about.
"It's different for you," Kari said softly. "I know you had to learn to be independent from Matt when you were captured by Puppetmon. But I'm not like you." Her voice was soft. She did not raise her voice, but it was also a little resigned as well.
She knew T.K. had not meant to hurt her – he was her best friend; he never would do that. But in the moment, she had felt weak and his words – his lashing made her feel weaker than she already was. She knew that was why the Dark Ocean wanted her – she wasn't strong like Tai or Davis or even T.K.
"I didn't mean in that way," T.K. said softly. "I panicked; I wanted to tell you that you don't have to only rely on Tai." His cheeks flushed a little. "You can rely on me too."
Kari shook her head, eyes a little distant as she stared into the distance. "But you meant that part, didn't you? You don't like how much I rely on Tai."
T.K. went silent at that and he looked away. What was he even supposed to reply to that? His eyes locked with Patamon who nodded at him causing him to frown. Why would he want that? It would shatter this fragile glass to pieces even more than it had already.
"I don't," T.K. admitted with a sigh. "Because of how scary it was for me when I had to stop relying on Matt because he couldn't save me. Puppetmon would have killed him if he tried. But Kari, just because I don't like something because I've had a bad experience with it, I'm not going to make you agree with me. You're right. I don't like it. But that doesn't make it right that I lashed out at you. I am sorry about that, and I never meant to hurt you."
Kari's posture relaxed a little at that and she smiled a little at that, tilting her head. "I forgive you. Thank you for being honest." She held out her hand to him. "Let's go inside."
T.K. let out a breath he hadn't known he was holding when her eyes softened, and she smiled. He found his own lips curve into a smile. Patamon had been right.
"Let's go."