Four

If there was one thing Davis felt he was better at than anyone he knew, it was his ability to lie to everyone else that everything with him was fine even when it wasn't.

Despite the smile on his face, and the energy he conducted himself with, Davis felt lonely. He was the only one of the DigiDestined that didn't have any kind of a romantic relationship, with either another member or someone outside the group. Even Cody had managed to get himself a girlfriend and they were coming up on their fourth year together, whereas he couldn't make a relationship last longer than a few weeks, and not for lack of trying.

The problem lay, of course, with Kari. She was the only girl he had ever had eyes for, and still did, so he couldn't help but compare whoever his current fling was to her and, invariably, they came up short. It meant that whenever they met up for get togethers, he was the only one without a date and every time Davis would look at them all with a slight twinge of envy, particularly TK with his arm around Kari's shoulders.

But, he had too much deep-seated affection for her and too much respect for him as a friend to burden them with his troubles, so he had learned to hide them and plaster a wide, goofy grin onto his face like nothing was inherently wrong with anything. It had taken everything to agree to come on this trip with everyone, not liking the idea of being surrounded by couples in a foreign country because it would simply increase his feelings of isolation all the more.

The only reason Davis had said yes in the first place was to avoid worrying the others, and to get one last real moment with them all before they started seriously thinking about colleges and universities and jobs, and began drifting apart.

That being said, he still needed some time alone to just decompress from keeping up his act away from the others, which is how he found himself sitting on an isolated stretch of beach a mile from the hotel. He was just staring at the waves of the Pacific Ocean as they crashed down onto the sand, occasionally glancing up at the stars above, when he got Kari's text. TK had looked in on her earlier when she didn't show for dinner, reporting back she was fast asleep, and she still was as evening approached.

Everyone had decided to let her rest and see how she was in the morning, descending on the hotel's lounge as darkness drew in to plan tomorrow's activities, assuming they weren't all escorting Kari to the hospital or calling back home with the news. After a time Davis had excused himself and wandered out into the night, stumbling across this secluded spot not that long ago.

He gave Kari the directions and sat back, idly wondering what it was she had to talk with him about so late at night. The only thing he could come up with was that she might want to tear into him for spiking a volleyball into her face this afternoon, possibly giving her a concussion, but that could wait until morning, when she had gotten over it enough to be mad at him. Couldn't it?

There was no way of knowing and Davis was still puzzling it over when he heard the soft crunch of sand beneath someone's foot, turning to see Kari appear out of the gloom and heading straight for him. She was still wearing her swimsuit and T-shirt, though they looked to be damp with sweat even though it wasn't all that warm now.

Davis stood to greet her and opened his mouth, an apology ready for what had happened earlier, but it never came to be as Kari walked right up to him and placed a firm kiss on his lips, her arms wrapping around his body. To say Davis was shocked was an understatement and for several long moments, maybe even minutes, he did nothing but let Kari kiss him in a way she never had before.

When she finally broke contact long enough for him to say something, he stuttered out, 'What are you…?'

Kari responded by kissing him again and pushing backwards, making Davis trip over his own feet and fall to the floor with Kari sitting atop him. He was too stunned to do little else but look up at her as she pulled her T-shirt up and over her head, and then undo the straps of her bikini top so her breasts were exposed. Davis felt his mouth drop open at the sight. Never in a million years had he expected Kari to show him such a sight, even accidentally, and here she was sitting half-naked atop him after kissing him for several long minutes.

It was like something from a dream and Davis had to pinch himself, multiple times, to make sure he was awake and not suffering some feverish hallucination brought about by jet lag or something he had eaten.

'What. Are you. Doing?' he managed to say between kisses as Kari leaned back down again, her hands on his cheeks and feeling like they were burning hot. 'You're with TK. Not me.'

'I need you, Davis,' Kari whispered into his ear. 'Ever since I saw you this afternoon, I can't get you out of my head.'

She sat up again and started to tug at his top, not so much undoing the buttons as she ripped them open, eventually succeeding in exposing his chest to her and when she came in for another round of kissing, Davis became acutely aware of the feel of her breasts as they pressed up against his skin, of their softness and warmth, and his hand moved of its own accord to fondle one. Kari moaned in response as her own hand moved from Davis' cheek to his groin, gently caressing what she found there to make his hips buck on reflex and surprise.

'You're with TK,' Davis said again, but even he could hear the lack of conviction in his voice. This was something he had dreamt about for years, and now it was actually happening. Kari Kamiya was kissing and touching him, and of her own free will!

'I can't explain it,' Kari said, breathlessly. 'I just know I have to be with you, Davis. I have to.'

She rolled off him onto the beach and struggled out of the rest of her bikini, leaving her lying naked beneath the Californian night sky, and said, 'Take me, Davis. Take me.'

He should have refused. He should have said no and got up and ran back to the hotel, to try and explain everything to TK and hope he would understand, and hope that Kari would come to her senses and remember who it was she had pledged herself to. But he didn't.

In a moment of weakness Davis thought about these past few years, of always being the odd one out and the fifth wheel at group meetings and how he had always loved the girl lying naked next to him, and figured life was presenting him with a golden opportunity to change all that.

He struggled out of his clothes with an excited incoordination, unable to focus on anything but Kari's nude form until he too was naked, climbing on top of her without a moment's hesitation. Her arms snaked around his body and held him close as he began thrusting, punctuating each with a kiss as she moaned in apparent ecstasy. If she was in any pain from having her virginity taken she didn't show it, which only spurred Davis on.

This was everything he had hoped for, to be Kari's first lover and for her to be his, and for the next twenty minutes they went at it like animals, gradually finding their rhythm until at last they finished together, staying locked in place for a minute or two as they fought to get their breathing back under control.

Davis still couldn't believe it that he and Kari had actually just had sex, that she had given herself over to him willingly, and a genuine grin spread out onto his face as he gazed into her eyes. They were, for the moment, glazed and unfocused but right as Davis was about to confess his feelings towards her they blinked and became focused again, and filled with abject shock and horror.

'Oh, god,' Kari whispered. 'I can't believe I did that. I can't-'

She pushed Davis off her and rolled away from him, curling up into a ball with her back to him as she tried, in vain, to cover her naked body from sight. For his part, Davis just lay in the sand, confused by Kari's sudden change in attitude. Not two minutes ago she had her legs wrapped around his waist, crying out in orgasmic bliss, and now she was suddenly embarrassed to show him her body?

'What?' he said. 'What do you mean you can't believe we did that?'

'I can't believe I did that,' Kari whispered again, tears forming in the corner of her eyes.

'You can't believe it?' Davis said. 'You were the one who asked for it.'

'No, I wouldn't,' Kari said. 'I'm in love with TK.'

'Then why did you-'

Davis got to his knees and crawled over to Kari, placing a hand on her shoulder, but she recoiled violently and moved away from him, fear etched onto her face. Her chest was heaving from exertion and stress, and there was a fearful look in her eyes.

'Kari, what's going on?' Davis asked gently, shuffling back a foot or two. 'Why are you acting like this?'

'I don't know,' she whispered. 'I can't explain it. I… I just can't. Why would I give myself to you? I love TK.'

'Do you?' Davis said. 'Because if that were true, he'd be the one here rather than me.'

He hesitated then reached out again and gently brushed his fingers against Kari's shoulder, savouring the feel of her skin, and said, 'I love you.'

'I love TK,' Kari mumbled back, keeping her back to Davis. 'I love TK, not you. I'm in love with TK.'

At that, anger surged into Davis and he said, 'Then why the hell did we just have sex? Huh? Answer me that, Kari, because if you really love him then your first time wouldn't have been with me. It would have been him. Do you really love TK as much as you think?'

'Yes, I do,' Kari snapped, turning her head to glare at Davis. 'I love TK with all my heart which is why I'm so upset that my first wasn't him.'

'You still chose me,' Davis said, glaring back. 'I didn't force you into anything. You kissed me, Kari, not the other way around.'

'Then you should have stopped me,' Kari said.

'Why?' Davis said. 'As far as I knew, the girl I loved was finally returning my feelings. Why would I ever put a stop to that?'

'Because you should have known better,' Kari said. 'I made my choice over who I loved, Davis, and you know full well it wasn't you.'

He continued to glare at her as he said, 'You kissed me, Kari. You told me you had to be with me, and you even asked me to take you. Don't tell me you forgot stripping everything off and lying there, naked, asking me to have sex with you.'

'I didn't forget,' Kari said. 'I just don't understand why I would. I'm not in love with you, Davis. I never have been.'

'Could have fooled me,' Davis said.

He stood and started grabbing his clothes, strewn about the place, dressing himself with a thunderous look on his face. Where there had once been optimism, even hope, was a slowly building anger towards Kari as she remained curled up behind him. She had sought him out, given herself willingly to him, and now had the audacity to throw it back in his face and claim he should have been the one to do something?

'Davis, wait,' he heard her say from behind him as he began to move off, away from her and the hotel. 'Where are you going?'

'What do you care?' he snapped back at her. 'Go back to TK and fuck him, if he's really the one you love. I'm done.'

He took off at a run with that, losing himself in the nearby trees even as Kari called out for him and not stopping until he could no longer hear her voice. Only then did he find something to collapse against and break down in tears.