All right. I'm here to set the record straight once and for all.

I, Akiyama Ryou, do not have feelings for one Makino Ruki. Any and all affections for her were merely the result of hormones.

...Why are you staring at me in disbelief? It's the truth! I swear it! I'll prove it to you.

You see, as a budding teenager, it's only natural for me to have budding hormones as well. Of course, I had been in the digital world for a long long time, so I had no chance to meet any other girls. And that's where Ruki came in.

Now, I know you're thinking, well what about Katou Juri? Well, sure she's cute, though I still don't understand the deal with the puppet... But, it's so plainly obvious that a certain goggle headed boy has feelings for her, so naturally, I couldn't very well do that to him. Takato's a good friend.

And the only other option left is Suichon... which is disgusting. She could be my sister...hell, she is the sister of Jenrya, and if I so much as looked at her in such a way Jenrya would beat my ass. He's a pacifist sure, but he's an older brother first and foremost.

So you see? It's not because Ruki's eyes are so deep and soulful underneath their icy exterior and probably the most beautiful shade of amethyst I've ever seen. Or even because her hair looks so soft and silky that it kinda makes you wanna run your hands through them. It was because there was no one else around at the time.

...You're still giving me that look of doubt. I don't see why...

Okay...so being around Ruki is really fun, I can always have a good time with her. She's a very good partner to verbally spar with, and I can always rile her up easily by mentioning the digimon card tournament from years ago. ...She still has that grudge against me, though I believe it's lessened over time. She's spunky and vibrant and...okay okay, she's really really pretty too.

But that doesn't mean that I have feelings for...

"What are you doing out here so late Ryou...?"

"R-R-Ruki!"

Well speak of the devil, there's the spitfire in all her glory right standing right in front of me.

"Uh...what are you doing out here?" She motions to the big grocery bag occupying both her arms and looks at me as if I were an idiot. Which...yes...I probably am.

"You still haven't answered my question." Ah...always straight to the point. That's one of the things I love about this girl...er...wait a minute! I swear it's the hormones, stop giving me that look!

"Oh yeah. Takato couldn't contact you before, but he wants us all to meet tomorrow afternoon at the park."

"R-Right..."

She gives me a queer look, "Are you okay? You keep stuttering and you look a bit red."

She comes closer, looking me squarely in the eye and I can't help but sweat under her intense stare.

"R-Ruki...what are you..."

In a fluid motion she presses her forehead against mine and I avert my gaze from her beautiful face. The grocery bag shifts between us and I can't help but curse its existence...no wait...she would've used her hand if it weren't for the bag...

She pulls away quickly, her eyes wide in astonishment, "You're burning up! And your face is even redder than before!"

It's your fault...

"You should hurry and go home, and don't come tomorrow if you're still feeling unwell."

She cares about me!

"All right?" I can only nod mutely at her in fear of stuttering again. She frowns a bit, but also nods, continuing on her way home.

Shut up. And close your eyes. How many times do I have to tell you that it's all just because of the hormones?

Look, if I really liked Makino Ruki, I would be completely overprotective of her, and always be there to help her and would always save her anytime she needed me. And most importantly, I would never let her walk the rest of the way home at this time of night with her arms occupied with the grocery bag because that makes her such an easy tar...

...Damn, I gotta go.


A/N: Wahaha...that was fun. I love poking fun at Ryou. Hee, well I dabbled in this fandom a few years back (you can check out some more of my stories on my profile) and well...now that my Tamers interest is renewed, I'm back to finish some old fic ideas I've had... I already have another typed up and ready to be revised but I'll put that on hold till later. Maybe more reviews would motivate me to post it sooner! J/k. I'm going to Otakon tomorrow (Is anyone reading this going too!?!) and I'll probably upload it sometime after that.

Anyways...this couple is always so fun to write. But does anyone have a link to some Ryuki sites? I've been looking but ever since the complete digicouple link list closed down, it's been hard to find them. Also keep a look on my deviantart ) for future Tamers art that I will probably draw... unless I come back from Otakon and forget about Tamers again...ahaha... All right, this A/N is long enough, review if you enjoyed it please.

Extended A/N:

----Firstly, the whole Renamon argument is totally my fault. Since this story was written and revised in an hours time tops, and I wanted to upload it before my cable went off again (darn thing can be very undependable sometimes) I forgot to mention that this story takes place after the end of Tamers, ie: when the digmon leave. Although, correct me if I'm incorrect (and that's a very possible factor seeing as how I last saw Tamers the year it came out and only about half the episodes in a somewhat chronological order) but the only time Ruki and Ryou are on friendly terms in the real world is when they return to kick some pink blob butt. But if it took place then, I highly doubt that Ruki would waste her time grocery shopping, and even if she did, Renamon would definitely be with her in case something were to happen, no? Plus, if Takato called a meeting, I doubt that Ruki would let Ryou stay home because of a little sickness if the fate of the world rests on their shoulders. So you can sorta speculate that this takes place after the series ends.

----Next, yes, Ruki is not weak. She could probably take on one or two baddies on her own, but could she take on a group of five or six? The only one capable of that is probably Jenrya and that's because he actually trains. Ruki, with no formal training in fighting (I don't think) could not possibly do such a thing, and with Ryou being overprotective of her "Look, if I really liked Makino Ruki, I would be completely overprotective of her..." he imagines the worst situations she could land in. (Like your parent might) And that is why he runs off at the end, because as shown in the fic, when Ruki is concerned, Ryou is quite senseless, so he doesn't realize that such a thing is highly improbable.

----Also, "Okay...so being around Ruki is really fun, I can always have a good time with her. She's a very good partner to verbally spar with, and I can always rile her up easily by mentioning the digimon card tournament from years ago. ...She's spunky and vibrant..." Doesn't this show that Ryou does care about her as a person...?

----The last point about relationships Cloaked Fox brings up is a very good one. But honestly, Ryou is 14 or 15 in the end of the series, he doesn't know how to handle himself around girls (since he was in the digiworld for who knows how long) and probably knows nothing about real relationships (I'm 15 and I most certainly don't, which is why I probably can't write a serious romance). His feelings for her are budding just like his hormones. "Look, if I really liked Makino Ruki, I would be completely overprotective of her, and always be there to help her and would always save her anytime she needed me." He never says that he wants to be up her ass so to speak, but that he'd always be there to help her and save her anytime she needed (needed was italicized) him. And those were really trying to be points that happened in the series (cause he did help and save her when she needed him), and did try to point out that Ryou liked her like RikaTabithaStarr asked...or perhaps I did a bad job of expressing that...

----In all honesty, this is not supposed to be romantic. It's categorized as humor, and was just supposed to be a lighthearted read... (So I guess I should change the summary from Ryuki to Ryuki-ish... but this can simply infer the characters involved in the story too, can't it?) Anyway, thanks for reading this if you did, this was written up in hopes that those who reviewed these thoughts might lessen their poor opinions of me and for future people who may feel the same way. I am thankful however, that you took the time to review your opinions on the fic (they really do mean more than random reviews saying 'kawaii' and such, cause it means you actually took the time to write a real response to the fic, even if it wasn't exactly positive..heh.) and I only wish I could contact you in some way so that I might clear this up..