I'll never forget the first time I saw him.

It was a Sunday afternoon, and I was playing alone in the park near my apartment. My mom was sitting on one of the park benches, reading a book and keeping a careful eye on me. Even now, I can remember how annoyed I was about what I felt was 'unnecessary overprotectiveness.' After all, I was five years old and could 'take care of myself;' I guess all five-year-olds think like that.

We had just moved to Highton View Terrace a few weeks ago, and school hadn't started yet, so I hadn't made any friends yet. I was sitting on a swing all by myself, staring at the ground and wishing I had someone to play with, when a black-and-white ball rolled to a stop at my feet. I stared at it for a second, then slowly looked up and saw him. He had warm, happy brown eyes that were several shades darker than mine; his brown hair tufted out crazily, which only seemed to make him cuter, and he wore a pair of goggles around his neck: he was the cutest boy I'd ever seen.

He ran over to me and picked up his ball. "Sorry," he apologized.

"That's okay," I replied, trying not to blush.

Suddenly the boy smiled at me. Even then, my heart did a flip. "Hey, I have an idea!" the boy said excitedly. "You can play soccer with me! Do you want to?"

Did I ever! There was only one small problem . . .

"Sure," I agreed eagerly, then hesitated. "But I don't know how to play."

"I'll teach you myself!" the boy stated proudly.

I hopped off my swing. "Then let's do it!"

After explaining some of the basics--like not using your hands--he showed me how to dribble, and also how to shoot correctly, kicking with your laces, not your toe. I got the hang of it very quickly; I could tell that the boy--his name was Tai--was impressed.

"You're a natural!" he told me after I had dribbled around him and scored for the third time. I blushed at his praise, and I really was enjoying myself. This game was fun!

Tai and I played soccer together almost every afternoon all the rest of the summer. The day before I was to start kindergarten, we played until the sun was low on the horizon and the shadows grew long and dark. Soon a lady holding a little toddler in one arm and a bag of groceries in the other came walking down one of the park's paths. "Tai!" she called, a little impatiently. "Taichi Kamiya! It's time to go home!"

Tai was in the middle of demonstrating a trick shooting move. "Just five more minutes, Mom!"

Tai's mom put down her groceries on a bench not far from my mother's. "Sorry sweetie, but we need to go home now. You've got a big day tomorrow--it's your first day of school!"

Tai picked up his soccer ball, then said to me, "Come on! You can meet my mom and sister!" He took my hand and led me over to the path. I followed a little reluctantly, feeling shy around his mom.

"Hi, sweetie! Did you have a good time?" she asked him.

"Yeah, it was great! Mom, I want you to meet my friend. She likes soccer, too, and I've been teaching her how to play!"

Tai's mom smiled down at me with a twinkle in her eye. "Hi there. Are you here all alone?"

"No, ma'am. My mother's over there." I pointed her out to Tai's mom.

"Well, I can see that you've already met Tai. I'm Mrs. Kamiya, and this—" she indicated the toddler she still held—"is Kari, Tai's little sister."

The little girl was sooo cute! She looked a lot like Tai, except she was a younger, prettier, more delicate female version of him. She looked down at me for a moment with big, brown eyes, then smiled at me, though it was almost hidden by her pacifier. I smiled back, and I was about to ask how old she was when Mrs. Kamiya asked me a question instead: "What's your name, honey?"

"Oh, I'm sorry," I apologized, a little embarrassed at forgetting to introduce myself. "My name's Sora. Sora Takenouchi. My mom works in the flower shop a couple blocks from here."

"Well, Sora, we'd better be going. I have to get Kari to bed soon. She didn't get her nap today, so she's a little tired." This was true: the little girl's eyes were drooping even as her mother spoke. I would have bet that she'd be asleep before they got home. "Goodbye, Sora," Mrs. Kamiya took Tai's hand firmly and started down the path again.

Tai looked over his shoulder at me. "See ya!" he called.

"Bye!" I waved until they were out of sight, then sighed contentedly. He was so cute, and so friendly. I wondered if I would ever see him again. But when I turned around, I knew I had to find him again—quickly: his mom had left her bag of groceries on the park bench.

I stood frozen in place for a moment, thinking fast, then I made a snap decision. "Mom?" I said suddenly. She didn't even look up from the herb book she was reading.

"Yes, Sora?"

"Do you know someone named Mrs. Kamiya? She has two kids, one about my age and another a couple years younger."

Now she did look up at me. "Why, yes, I do. They live in the apartment building right next to the flower shop I work in. Why?"

This was all I needed to know. Ignoring my mom's question, I rushed over, grabbed the bag of groceries, and took off down the path heading for the flower shop and Tai's building.

"Wait!" I heard my mother call after me. "Sora! Where are you going?"

"To—to the flower shop! I have to run a quick errand!" I called over my shoulder without stopping. I bit my tongue, angry with myself for lying, but I didn't want my mom tagging along. "I'll meet you at home!" Sorry, Mom. I'll make it up to you somehow. Ignoring my mom's continued shouts, I sprinted down the path.

I found Tai's apartment building with no trouble at all; it really was right next to the flower shop. I hesitated for a moment, then went inside and approached the front desk.

"Excuse me," I said to the lady at the desk. "Can you tell me the apartment number for a 'Tai Kamiya'?"

The lady typed on her computer for a few minutes as I fidgeted nervously. "Well," she finally said, " We do have a Kamiya family in apartment 1403, but I don't see record of any 'Tai'—"

By the time the lady looked up from her computer screen, I was already in the elevator.

When I reached apartment 1403, I knocked softly, then stood there anxiously. In a few seconds, the door swung open, and there stood Tai.

"Hi," he said, looking a little surprised to see me.

"Who is it, Tai?" I heard his mom ask from inside.

"It's Sora, Mom. The girl from the park," Tai called over his shoulder.

"Well then, ask her in, dear. Don't leave her standing outside."

Tai turned back to me. "You . . . wanna come in?" he asked, and I almost thought I saw him blush a little.

"That's okay. I have to hurry home." Suddenly remembering the bag in my hands, I shoved it at Tai. "Here. Your mom left this at the park." He took the bag, looked at it, then looked back at me.

"Thanks," he said.

"Well . . . I'd better go. My mom gets worried if I'm away too long. See you later." I turned and slowly started to walk back towards the elevator.

"Sora!" a voice behind me called: Tai's voice. I turned and saw that he was standing in the hall outside his apartment. "Do you want to come over tomorrow? I just got a cool new video game we can play," he said.

I felt a smile spread across my face. "Sure!" I said happily. "I'll come over right after school, okay?"

"Great!" he exclaimed excitedly.

"Tai Kamiya, what have I told you about leaving that door open?"

He zipped back into his apartment and obediently closed the door. Suddenly it opened again and Tai stuck his head out. "Bye!" he said quickly, then shut the door again.

I smiled to myself. I had a feeling that Tai and I would become good friends.

My mother, however, wasn't so happy about my behavior that day.

I figured that out as soon as I got home, but she didn't say anything about it until my dad got home, too, and we were all seated around the supper table. We were halfway done with our meal when I asked if I could play at Tai's house the next day after school. My dad smiled and said, "Sure, Cupcake! Have fun!" Then he chuckled, "The boys like you already! Don't give him any mercy when you play him in those video games!"

I laughed, too. "I don't know, Dad! I might have to let him win at something. After all, I beat him at soccer today and I'm still just learning!" My dad laughed again, but my mother suddenly put down her fork.

"Sora," she said, and I heard the displeasure in her voice. "Why did you disobey me like that today? I've told you so many times not to leave my sight when we're outside. And you didn't go to the flower shop at all! I was so worried! Where were you? What did you think you were doing?"

"Mom!" I protested, "That lady, Mrs. Kamiya, she left her groceries on that bench. I had to take them to her!"

"Sora, I could have gone with you!"

But I didn't want you to come with me! I wanted to say, but I bit the words back, knowing they would only get me in deeper trouble.

My dad, who had been silent until now, swallowed his current mouthful and said to my mother, "Dear, it sounds to me like she was just being friendly and doing a good deed. It's nothing to get so upset over. Besides, you've been friends with Mrs. Kamiya for years."

"Yes, but Sora didn't know Mrs. Kamiya until a few hours ago! And what if something had happened to her while she was delivering the bag?"

"Dear, you're overreacting—"

"No, I'm not! It's too dangerous these days for Sora to go anywhere by herself. She's too young, and besides, she's a girl!"

I had taken all of this I could stand. I pushed away my half-eaten supper and headed to my room.

"Sora?" my mother queried. "Where are you going?"

My back to her, I allowed myself to grimace. Even at home she always has to know exactly where I am and what I'm doing! "I'm . . . not very hungry. I think I'll go to bed early tonight. I have school tomorrow, remember?"

"Sora—" she started, then stopped. "Goodnight, Sora," she finally said.

The next day my mother took me to my first day of kindergarten at Westside Elementary. She had insisted that I wear a frilly pink-and-red dress. I was at the age where I hated dresses: I felt like I couldn't do anything in them. I surprised my mom by not fighting with her about the dress, but she wouldn't have been so surprised if she had known that I had shorts and a T-shirt stashed in my backpack.

She walked me to my classroom, then knelt to tell me goodbye. "I'll see you after school, Sora."

"But Mom . . . I'm going to Tai's, remember?"

She suddenly stood, a slight frown temporarily creasing her face, but it was gone in an instant. "Fine, Sora. But be home in time for supper, all right?"

"Thanks, Mom!" I said, feeling relieved that she had let me go. "Bye!"

I watched her walk down the hallway, then found the nearest bathroom and changed into my more comfortable clothes. Then I headed back to my classroom.

Inside was chaos.

Kids, boys and girls alike, were throwing paper airplanes and shooting spitwads at each other. A group of girls, all dressed in frilly dresses like I had been, were sitting in a circle in the reading corner and having a tea party with their dolls. A couple kids were drawing on the board, a few more were playing "table tag"--jumping from desktop to desktop--and another small group of boys was playing a rough game of indoor soccer: the teacher was nowhere to be seen.

As I stood in the doorway, bewildered by the pandemonium, the soccer ball whizzed through the air, narrowly missing my head, then bounced out into the hallway. "Heads up!" a familiar voice said, and to my surprise Tai came running up to me.

"Tai? I didn't know you were in my class—"

"Hi, Sora! You wanna play with us? Where'd the ball go?" he asked me, talking a mile a minute.

I was about to reply when a deep voice behind me said, "It's right here."

I froze, then slowly turned to look behind me. There stood the biggest man I'd ever seen: he was well over six-and-a-half feet tall, and the prominent muscles in his arms bulged as he gripped Tai's soccer ball, which suddenly looked very small in the man's huge hands. The entire class stopped in the middle of whatever they were doing, staring open-mouthed at the giant of a man. The room got very quiet, and then our teacher—a small, willowy blonde—stepped into view. Knowing without a doubt that she had our attention, she smiled very big and said, "Good morning, class! My name is Miss Tanoshii, and this is my special friend Mr. Waru. Say 'hello' class."

"Hello, Mr. Waru," we said obediently.

"Mr. Waru doesn't like naughty children, but I told him that my class would be very well-behaved." Miss Tanoshii raised an eyebrow at us. "Isn't that right, class?" she asked pointedly.

"Yes, ma'am!" None of us even considered arguing, not with Mr. Waru standing right there.

Miss Tanoshii moved toward her desk, and Mr. Waru sat in a chair beside her, still holding Tai's soccer ball. "All right, children. Take your seats." As we sat down, she proceeded to tell us about herself, the school, and how much we would all love kindergarten.

As she was winding down, Mr. Waru cleared his throat. Miss Tanoshii nodded to him and he stood, moving to the front of the class. He held the ball up so we could all easily see it, then said in his voice of gravel, "Whose ball is this?"

There was absolute silence in the classroom for a moment, then Tai, who was sitting in the desk in front of me, raised a hand. "It's mine, Mr. Waru," he admitted quietly.

The huge man's gaze fastened on Tai, and for a long while Mr. Waru just stared at him, almost seeming to weigh him. I saw Miss Tanoshii fidget nervously, and finally Mr. Waru spoke again. "What's your name?"

"Tai Kamiya, sir," Tai replied without hesitation.

"Mr. Kamiya, we shall discuss this after school. But for now, come and get your ball." Tai seemed to waver for a second, then slowly he rose to his feet and walked to the front of the room. He gingerly took his ball from Mr. Waru's expansive palm, then took a few rapid steps back. Mr. Waru gave Tai another piercing, measuring look, and Tai looked very small and somehow fragile next to the huge mountain of a man.

"You may take your seat," Mr. Waru said at last, waving a thick hand dismissively.

"Yes, sir." Tai bowed respectfully and turned to head back to his seat.

Before he had taken more than a few steps, however, Miss Tanoshii tried to break the somber mood. "Well now, are there any questions, class?"

Tai, still at the front of the room, turned back to face our teacher, a questioning look on his face.

Miss Tanoshii noticed his inquisitive glance. "Yes, Tai?"

"I was just wondering . . ." He hesitated.

"What, Tai?" Miss Tanoshii asked a little impatiently.

Tai looked up at Mr. Waru, then back at Miss Tanoshii. "Is he your boyfriend?"

Needless to say, Tai had to stay after school a little longer than he had first thought, but he always claimed that it was worth seeing Miss Tanoshii turn five shades of vermilion. Even I had to admit that the look on her face had been priceless. Tai had only been asking an honest question: he wasn't trying to embarrass our teacher! It would still be a couple years before he hid (but didn't lose) his sweet, caring nature and picked up his cocky, trouble-making habits. Anyway, as I waited for Tai, I thought about what had happened at recess:

Miss Tanoshii had taken us all outside to the playground to play. Most of the girls sat in the shade of a big tree and played with dolls or skipped rope, but that didn't interest me at all. The rest of the girls and a couple boys were playing on the playground and chasing each other. I had started to walk towards them when I noticed something that looked like a lot more fun: Tai and the rest of the boys were picking teams to play soccer!

Once again I was very glad that I had changed out of that dress.

Excited, I ran over to the guys just as they finished picking teams. "All right!" Tai was saying as I walked up to the back of the group. "Everybody knows the rules, right? Any questions?"

I took a deep breath. "Can I play?"

The eyes of every boy in the group turned to stare at me. Some of them looked surprised, some uncertain, and a couple wore scornful sneers.

"She can't play! She's a girl!" one boy said, and a chorus of agreement rose from the group.

"Forget it!"

"Get lost!"

"Go play dolls or somethin,' girl."

I felt the tears begin to well up in my eyes, but then one voice rose above all the others: "STOP THAT RIGHT NOW!!!"

Silence fell over the group, and they all turned to stare at the speaker.

It was Tai.

He pushed through the crowd of boys to stand protectively in front of me, facing the mob fearlessly. He had a fierce, determined look on his face as he said, "So what if she's a girl! She's my friend, and I say she play! If anyone has a problem with that, then they've got a problem with me, too!"

"Aw, Tai! She'll wreck the game!"

Tai just picked up his ball, and his face grew even more resolved. "I don't play if she doesn't," he stated, and the other kids heard the finality in those words.

"Oh, all right."

"I guess she can play."

"Whose team'll she be on?"

"Yeah, we've already got an even number!"

Tai winked at me. "Well, since she's a girl, why should she count?" he pointed out.

"Oh, that's true."

"Sounds fair to me. But she's on your team, Tai."

"Yeah, we actually wanna win."

"Hey, quit talkin' and let's play!"

A cheer of agreement went up, and the game began!

Now, if you know anything about soccer, you know that there are lots of different strategies and positionings for the game. In the game we played, the only "solid" position was the goalie, and the only strategy was to get the ball and score. After the kickoff, nearly everyone clustered around the ball, kicking and shoving, trying to get at the elusive sphere. I was just standing there, watching in disbelief when Tai ran up and gave me a roguish grin. "Here's the plan," he explained. "I'm gonna get the ball outta there, and you dribble down and shoot, okay?"

" 'K.' "

With that, he plunged into the fray. True to his word, in a few seconds Tai broke away from the group, and he had the soccer ball! But not, it seemed, for long: the whole group began to chase him. "Here, Sora!" Tai passed me the ball, and then the group caught him and he was lost in the crowd.

I took one look at the mob heading straight for the ball (and me) and I froze in fear. Then I remembered all the times I'd played with Tai at the park that summer, and I realized that I had no reason to be afraid. I started dribbling for all I was worth, heading for the goal. I didn't look back, but I ran faster and faster till I reached the goal box. Everyone else was far behind me, and it was one-on-one, me versus the goalie.

"Shoot, Sora!" I heard Tai yell from somewhere behind me. I pulled back my left foot and the goalie lunged to his left to block my shot--but suddenly I switched feet, striking hard with my right foot instead. The goalie, not expecting me to know that kind of a trick, had committed to going left and could do nothing to block my shot. The ball sailed into the goal easily and unhindered.

Tai had taught me well.

Silence fell over the soccer field. I turned to see all the guys staring at me, mouths open and eyes wide with shock . . . all the guys except one—Tai. He was grinning, proud and triumphant, as he ran over to me. To my surprise, he threw an arm around my shoulders and, without removing his arm, turned to the others, "Now what do you think, guys? Can she play soccer with us?"

"YEAH!" they responded, cheering.

"She's great!"

"Awesome fake, man! . . . Er, I mean—"

"That was so cool!"

"You're the best!"

"Can she play on our team every day, Tai?"

"Hey, that's not fair!"

I looked over at Tai. His warm, glowing brown eyes met mine, and I knew then that we would always be the best of friends . . . no matter what.

I went over to his apartment that day after school, and we had a blast playing his video games. It was only the first of the many, many days we spent together. A couple years passed, and though we had our disagreements every now and then, we were still best friends. I was always there for him, to help and encourage him, even when some really weird things started happening:

One night, I woke up around midnight. I was shivering and covered in a cold sweat, and it wasn't because the building's heating system had quit working again. I still don't know what it was, but something inside me told me to go look out the window. I followed that pull, and what I saw in the streets below was so bizarre I thought I must have still been dreaming.

I saw a big, orange dinosaur-monster on the street below, and attacking it was a huge, green bird-like creature. On the ground beside the orange one I could see two small figures . . .

"K-Kari? TAI!"

I pressed up against the glass, watching in amazement as the orange monster spat a fireball at the green one. The huge green bird, unhurt by the attack, cackled something, and then I noticed the electricity playing on the metal plate on its head.

"Huh?" What's it doing? I wondered.

Almost as if in answer to my question, the bird let loose an electrical burst, knocking the orange monster into the Terrace Bridge. A cloud of dust went up, and Tai, Kari, and the orange monster were lost in it. Then—"Whoa!"— the lights went out all over Highton View Terrace.

I peered through the dust, trying to see what had happened to Tai and Kari, and the big orange thing. But when the dust settled, all I could see was the big orange monster. Suddenly, I noticed that it was different—bigger, a whole lot bigger, but now it also had a brown face mask, blue stripes, and its skin was a darker orange.

But where are Kari and Tai? I wondered, desperately scanning the street for them. Then the now-huge orange dinosaur-monster slowly rose to its feet, and I saw with relief that it had been protecting Tai and Kari, shielding them with its body. I heard it growl something to Kari and Tai, then it spewed a huge, white stream of flame at the big bird. The bird fell over backwards, and the orange dinosaur stepped over Tai--who was trying to hold Kari back, away from the monsters--and charged at the bird. The two monsters grappled for a second, then the green bird threw the orange dinosaur backward and gave it another jolt of its electric attack. The dinosaur fell back stricken, nearly crushing Tai and Kari, and lay motionless. The big green bird started to approach, and for some reason, I felt afraid for the big orange dinosaur. Kari and Tai tried without success to revive their orange protector. Come on, Tai! Think of something! I forgot how he had switched our lunches the day his mom packed him a peanut butter-and-fungus sandwich. I forgot how he borrowed my soccer jersey for a week while I was out of town, then returned it to me with the whole week's worth of sweat, dirt, and grime on it. I even forgot how mad I had been at him earlier that day for throwing up in my hat and not telling me about it before I put it on. I forgot everything except the immediate danger to my best friend and his little sister. And suddenly, it hit me. The whistle, Tai! Use Kari's whistle to wake that big dinosaur up! Straining my eyes in the dim light, I thought I saw Kari raise the whistle to her lips and try to blow, but it looked as thought she suddenly started coughing so hard she could hardly breathe.

Tai watched her for a second, then grabbed her whistle.

He took a deep breath.

Come on, Tai!

He put the whistle to his lips . . .

Come on, Tai!

And he blew. He blew, and blew, and blew.

"Come on, Tai!" I heard myself say out loud, though I knew he couldn't hear me. Please let this work! Get up, Dinosaur! Please get up! I thought desperately.

It worked, all right.

To my relief, the big orange dinosaur's eyes suddenly snapped open. With a resounding roar, the dinosaur lurched to its feet again, charged, and spat a long stream of white fire at the bird. The flame swirled, engulfing the huge, green bird; then it swallowed up the orange dinosaur, too, and everything went black . . .

When I woke up, I was on the floor in my room, slumped against the glass. It was morning, and the sun was rising over the city skyline. Was it all a dream? I wondered, staring out the window blearily. Then I looked down at the street below: the bridge was nearly demolished, and the concrete of the street was a total wreck, spider-web cracks branching from the deep, crater-like impact marks of the monsters throwing each other to the ground, the rifts and debris stretching for nearly five blocks.

I knew with certainty that it had really happened.

I knew for sure that it wasn't a dream.

I wonder what all this means? I asked myself.

My parents, however, thought they knew what was going on. They kept on talking about terrorists and bombs, and I knew they would never listen to my story of what really happened. Just to make sure I wasn't going crazy, I went over to Tai's house that day to ask him about what had happened last night. He was glad for someone to talk to about it; his parents weren't interested in hearing the real story either. I asked him about what the orange dinosaur—he called it "Greymon"—had said to him and Kari. He told me everything that had happened, and said that he was sorry about the hat thing.

I forgave him, of course.

I probably would have stayed over at his house longer if I had known it might be the last time I'd ever see him: when I got home my parents were busy packing up everything, and we moved away the very next day. They didn't even let me say good-bye to Tai, I thought sadly as we drove away from Highton View Terrace.

I turned my face towards the car window so my parents wouldn't see the tears sliding their way down my cheeks.