Okay, A/N
is long enough… If this chapter is a little off or maybe not as well written…
it's been 6 MONTHS since I last did this. But hopefully, it's not
too bad. Thanks for putting up with the delay.
State of Mind
"You can complain because
roses have thorns, or you can rejoice because thorns have roses." -Ziggy
Part 13: Bigger Than The Eye Can See
"Wanna go
out?"
The surprising
question cut through the heavy silence that had grown within the last few
minutes. Slowly, Takeru lifted his head slightly from where it had
been resting on his friend's stomach and turned it to stare sleepily into
the wide, puppyish eyes looking back at him.
"But… Taichi
said he wanted to be alone with Oniisan," Takeru commented with a yawn,
laying his head back to its previous position again. He didn't want
to move from his current position anyway, whether their oldest comrade
had made the request or not. It had been an exhausting and frightening
night, having been left alone through most of it to worry about what was
happening to his new friends elsewhere. Now that the two he trusted
most were with him again, he just mostly felt tired and confused.
Yamato's sudden change of character scared him and Takeru still couldn't
shake the image of his brother being half carried into the apartment, reeking
of sweat and alcohol like… like…
The younger blonde let out a quiet, unexpected whimper at the memory and closed his eyes to try and block everything from his mind. He felt hurt and scared… his brother had never acted like that before within Takeru's presence, so why now…?
Above him, Daisuke sighed softly and started to stroke Takeru's hair in a comforting manner, "S'okay, 'keru… I just meant… I-I mean I feel so…" Cerulean eyes opened again, appearing calm once more as Takeru regarded his stuttering companion curiously. He let his mouth curl up into a small smile, relishing the feeling of the fingers running gently across his head while he waited for Daisuke to sort out his thoughts. It was easy to forget the past when he had Daisuke and Taichi here to ease his fears.
Finally the red-head sighed again, though with more frustration this time, "I just wanted to go outside." He looked up to the ceiling, hugging Takeru closer to him while the other tried to sort out what his friend was saying.
"Outside? Like… out of the apartment?" Takeru asked, shocked that the other would think such a thing. Slightly baffled by this, he lifted himself up and crawled completely onto Daisuke, sitting lightly on his friend's stomach to stare down questioningly into bright cinnamon eyes. "Without… them around?"
Daisuke grinned weakly, staring back up at him, "Yeah. I… I just feel trapped here, you know? I wanna get out… but…" He looked away again, almost shutting his eyes in an ashamed sort of way, "A bad idea, right? They… they wouldn't like us to…"
"Bad?" Takeru took a moment to think about this, leaning down to rest his forehead against Daisuke's. They both remained silent and still for a while, each thinking about the consequences of leaving without anybody's permission. Then suddenly Takeru grinned, feeling a bit reckless for no particular reason, and whispered, "Let's do it!"
Daisuke's eyes snapped open again, filled with disbelief, "Really? You… you think…?"
With a quick, firm nod, Takeru sat up and beamed down at his staring friend, "Sure. We don't have to go far." Then his smile faded a bit as Daisuke raised an eyebrow in question. Takeru sighed, "Besides, I… I know how you feel 'bout… being trapped. I do too, sometimes." All their lives they had been trapped. Forced to remain indoors, unable to do anything outside of the boundaries set for them. But now everything had changed. They didn't have to be here… not really.
"B-but, we… we've never gone out without one 'o them before!" Daisuke protested, but sitting up eagerly all the same.
Takeru slid off of Daisuke's stomach and the bed, then reached out a hand to help Daisuke to his feet, "I… I know that. But… Maybe… 'not far." He frowned, realizing that maybe it wasn't such a good idea after all. Yamato and the others might not like it if they even left their room, much less the apartment. He hated feeling so trapped… Like there was no air within the walls.
"Hey, I'm sure they… they won't mind, 'Keru." Daisuke grabbed his hand, a reassuring smile on his face, "Don't worry. 'Chi said he wanted to be 'lone anyway."
Takeru smiled back, "'kay… let's go then." They grinned nervously at one another, both hesitant to take the first step towards the door. It was almost exhilarating, the fact that they could just walk out the door and nobody would hurt them for it. At least they didn't think anybody would…
Still gripping each other's hands tightly, they slowly crept out into the hallway. They slid along the wall, avoiding the living room where they knew the others to be. Takeru hesitated for a moment as he heard Yamato's voice rise threateningly, but Daisuke tugged him on, shaking his head. He was right, there was nothing they could do for the others anyway. Takeru sighed, hoping that the two older teenagers would sort out whatever was hurting the both of them.
It wasn't until they had actually stepped through the front door, closing it as quietly as possible behind them, that Takeru realized that they had no idea where they were going to go. The two boys turned and stared at one another, standing motionlessly in the middle of the hallway.
"So…" Daisuke grinned nervously, "Where to…?"
"I… I don't know," Takeru shrugged uncomfortably, "'was your idea."
Daisuke nodded, and looked down the hall, "'vators, I s'pose."
As one, they grimaced, looking to where the large metal doors of the elevator was. Neither one liked the frightening, noisy contraption much. It was too small, too airless and cold, and it somehow moved up and down in a sickening, stomach twisting sort of way. They sighed and approached it, 'though neither moved to press the button.
"'Suppose it's booby trapped?" Daisuke wondered, staring at his wide-eyed reflection in the metal doors.
"'Never been before."
"Maybe 'cause they know the secret code to… to stop the traps." Daisuke tried to reason, taking a step back and pulling Takeru away with him, "Maybe this was a bad idea."
Takeru shook his head determinedly, "No. It's not. We'll just… just…" He looked around frantically for a moment, trying to find a way to skip the elevators and still get down. Then he spotted the doors off to the side, "…take the stairs!"
"Oh…" Daisuke blinked before a grin broke out, excitement lighting up his face, "Okay!"
They ran down the stairs, not stopping until they reached the bottom and by then they were both gasping for air. Breathless, they leaned against each other in the lobby, giggling quietly when they noticed that nobody else was in the area. It was strange but for those few moments they felt as though the weight of the world had finally lifted from their shoulders. It was just the two of them having a bit of fun, something they could never really do in the past. It was freedom.
They grinned at each other, finally catching their breath as they looked curiously around. There wasn't much in the lobby, just a few sad looking plants, worn out carpet and doors leading off to other apartment rooms. And then of course there were the front doors leading to the outside world. It was to these that they looked, their grins fading as they realized that they were planning on going out there. Throngs of people passed by the glass doors, the noise of the traffic seeping into the quiet room. They had never faced the crowd and noise without somebody older with them, somebody to protect them and guide them.
"M-maybe we should…"
"And climb all those stairs again…?" Daisuke snorted, stepping closer to the blonde as he glanced nervously outside.
Takeru looked over at his friend, "Where did you want to go?" Of course, it wasn't as if they knew how to find anything and they would get completely lost in no time at all.
"I d-don't know. Where'd you wanna go?"
"Your idea, 'member?"
Daisuke sighed in defeat, then shrugged, "Well… We could try to find Ken's home." He smiled hopefully.
Takeru thought about it for a moment and then smiled back, "Sure!" He wouldn't mind seeing where Ken lived either. The gentle, intelligent bluenette surely wouldn't mind them visiting. Maybe he'd even be proud of them for walking there by themselves! Ken and the others did keep telling them to do things for themselves, after all.
Bravely, though still keeping their hands clasped tightly together, they exited the building and stepped out into the sunshine. At first they stood frozen at the edge of the sidewalk, staring with half terrified, half awed faces at the crowds passing them by.
"Do… do y'think 'Chi's goin' to be mad at us?" Daisuke whispered, pressed closely to Takeru's side. The blonde didn't answer, too busy trying to stop his heart from breaking out of his ribcage. Silently, clinging to each other's side, they edged along the side of the walkway, not daring to get in the way of the strangers. Neither one could figure out how they got this far without giving up and just going back to their room, but they both decided that everything would be fine once they reached Ken's house. It didn't seem to matter that neither one had the slightest idea of where their friend lived, it couldn't be that big of a world, could it? They'd run into it sooner or later.
There were so many strangers! Takeru shivered, tightening his grip on his best friend. He hated strangers. Strangers were bad, scary. They hurt you, did bad things to you. But as long as none of the strangers noticed them, they would be all right. So far they had managed to come almost three blocks without incident, making a few random turns in hopes that they were going in the right direction. It wouldn't be long now, he kept telling himself. His stomach felt tight and queasy as somebody brushed by him, causing him to shove nearer to the wall of the building they were currently beside.
"S'okay," Daisuke whispered. His skin was pale but he forced a smile for Takeru, knowing how even worse off the blonde was around strange people and places. "We'll be fine. We're almost there…" Takeru didn't even bother telling him that they hadn't a clue how long it'd be, or that they didn't even know if they were headed in the right direction.
Okay… so maybe this whole thing really had been a bad idea. It had seemed like a fun thing to do at the time. But now… "I… I th-think we'd better g-go back," Takeru mumbled, trying to keep himself from outright shaking. He hadn't realized that there'd be so many people outside. It had never really seemed like this when they had Ken, Yamato and Hikari around to keep them safe.
"Y-yeah… but…" They looked around frantically, unsure of the turns they had made to get to where they were now. Takeru's breathing hitched as he came to the conclusion that they really were lost. Lost in the city, with nobody they knew and unable to find their friend's home. "D-don't… don't panic, Take-chan! We… we'll get back. Or… or Chi'll find us."
Takeru just nodded, unable to speak as he shut his eyes against the sight of all those people. He felt Daisuke tug at his arm, then let himself be led blindly by his friend as he tried not to let the panic take control. It suddenly felt cooler and the noise of the crowd faded slightly. Slowly, Takeru dared to open his eyes again and found himself huddled against Daisuke in a quiet alleyway.
"You… you o-okay now?" Daisuke asked, looking terrified as he held tightly onto his blonde friend. He was shaking slightly himself. "Nobody'll c-come in here. 'Cept Chi when he… when he comes for us."
"R-right." Takeru shivered as they slid to the ground, resting back against the dirty, brick wall. This hadn't been a bad idea, walking outside like this, it had been a very stupid idea. Nobody knew they had left, and Ken wouldn't know that they had been trying to find him, assuming he had even gone home in the first place. But… but Taichi would figure it out, surely he would. He was smart. He would be able find them soon.
It was then that they heard the laughter echoing through the long alleyway. It sounded like a group of people joking around, curses and shouts mingled with their laughs. And the sounds were getting closer, coming from the opposite way that they had entered the alley. Fearfully, the two young boys looked at each other before curling up further against the wall, clinging to each other as though their lives depended upon it. The strangers were going to find them!
Unable to do anything else, they watched as a group of four teenagers emerged from the gloom. There were two boys shoving playfully at each other as they argued and an almost gothic-like girl egging them on, none of which Takeru had ever seen before in his life. But the third boy! Takeru's eyes widened as he pulled slightly away from his confused friend, but there was no doubt about it, he could never mistake those blindingly bright clothes or hair.
"I… I know him…!" Takeru whispered to Daisuke, "I think… Sachi… yeah." Sachi, one of the boys from Yamato's band that he had met a little while ago. The bright and mischievous teenager that had tried to flirt with Taichi that day.
Unfortunately, Takeru's movement caught the attention of the group as the neared. They stopped laughing and talking, staring a moment at the odd scene of Takeru and Daisuke huddled miserably together on the filthy pavement.
"'The fuck?" One of the boys muttered, frowning curiously at them.
Then Sachi's eyes widened with realization as his mouth dropped open, "Oh… holy shit! That's… damn!" The band member slowly walked over to them, motioning for his friends to stay put as he ignored their attempts to find out what he was talking about. "You're Yamato's brother, aren't you?"
Takeru felt Daisuke tighten his hold on him, but nodded slightly, unsure of whether to be terrified or relieved that Yamato's strange friend had found them. But at least he knew that Sachi wouldn't hurt them… or at least he hoped he knew that.
"Yeah… okay, then." Obviously unsure of what to say to this discovery, the green haired teen rubbed his neck, then caught a glimpse of Daisuke's expression, "Woah, hey, it's cool. I'm not gonna hurt either of you or nothing!"
Curiously, Takeru looked up at Daisuke and blinked as he saw the unwavering, threatening glare as the red-head held him protectively closer. "Dais? It… it's fine… I think. H-he's Yamato's friend," he whispered, trying to calm down his friend before he did something stupid.
"What the fuck are you two doing out here?" Sachi finally asked, looking completely lost.
Takeru hesitated, then turned his eyes to the pavement before truthfully answering, "Trying to… to f-find Ken-san's house, Sachi-san." It definitely didn't hurt to be as polite as possible.
The incredulous expression on Sachi's face, though, was far from reassuring. "Ken's? As in Ken Ichijouji?" Takeru nodded, confused. What other Ken could he be talking about? Yamato's friend finally grinned, his face filled with amusement as he shook his head, "You're no where near the Ichijouji place. That's all the way in Tamachi! It would take you days to walk there!" He started laughing, waving off his friends' complaints about staying there.
"Days?" Daisuke whispered unbelievingly. Takeru just shook his head, not understanding what Sachi was talking about. How could anything be that far away? It wasn't possible. It had never taken them long to walk anywhere.
Suddenly, Sachi stopped laughing, "Wait a minute… Does Yamato know you're out here? He told us a little bit about you guys… and I'm assuming your overprotective friend there is the other of Hikari's supposed brothers. I honestly doubt that Yamato would agree to let you wander off by your lonesome, now would he?"
Takeru turned to Daisuke for help, not knowing what to answer to this. Would Yamato be that angry with them for leaving? He didn't know… Daisuke frowned, still glaring suspiciously at this wild looking teen who seemed to know his friends. Neither one of the boys spoke.
Finally Sachi ran a hand through his neon hair, looking a bit exasperated over the whole thing, and turned back to his own friends, "You guys go on ahead, I'll catch up later." They grumbled a bit but agreed, soon leaving the three teens alone. Then the oldest of the three sighed and kneeled in front of the two frightened boys, "What happened? Did somebody try to hurt you again?"
Again? Takeru frowned, trying to figure out how this stranger could possibly know that they had been hurt before. More than hurt. But he just shook his head. Sachi rolled his eyes a little before standing up again and brushing himself off. "C'mon then, I'll take you back to Yamato. He'd fucking kick my ass if I didn't get you safely home." Takeru and Daisuke just stared at the hand held out to them. Neither one trusted him enough to let go of each other and take it. "Well? You comin' or not?" Sachi raised an eyebrow, smiling despite his words.
"N-no… We… we can't!" Takeru finally managed to get out, feeling his friend's arms tense around him with surprise. They couldn't go back to their apartment now. It would disturb Yamato and Taichi, interrupting the talk they needed to finish so badly. And then they would never make up and be friends!
Daisuke, as though he could read Takeru's mind, looked pleadingly up at Sachi, "Onegai… could… could you take us t-to Ken-san's home?"
Sachi stared from one to the other, baffled by their answers. "But… I told you, it's miles away!"
"C-call him… please?" Daisuke persisted, sounding almost desperate now. They wouldn't be able to argue if Sachi ordered them home, but maybe they could get him to change his mind before he tried to.
The keyboardist just kept on staring for a while, as if trying to figure out what the two were really up to. Then finally, just as Takeru was about to give it all up as a lost cause, Sachi's mouth lifted into a teasing half grin, "Aw, it's impossible to say no to you two cuties. Fine, I'll take you to him, but if big, bad Yamato finds out you ran away then you know for a fact that I was out of the country for the day, got it?" He winked and Takeru smiled at him in relief. The guy couldn't be so bad if he was willing to do this for them.
"Take us there?" Daisuke asked, confusion in his voice, "How?" At least he didn't sound so suspicious anymore.
"Oh… we'll just take the ol' van for a spin," Sachi explained unhelpfully but looking excited by the prospect. "'Keno actually has it at his place this week, but it's not a far walk from here. I was going to drop by there anyway today, so don't worry about it!"
Takeru looked doubtfully at the once again proffered hand, glancing at Daisuke to see what his opinion of the matter was. The red-head only shrugged back uncertainly. Of course, it wasn't as though they could argue with their new 'friend' and risk angering him. It had been bad enough that they had insisted on not going back to their apartment, as they were first asked to. But, no matter how friendly and helpful Sachi acted now, Takeru couldn't help but be nervous about going off alone with somebody they really didn't know at all, especially since nobody else knew that they had even left the apartment. Takeru's previous experiences had taught him to be cautious in situations such as this. And so he left it to Daisuke's discretion, hoping that they weren't getting into anything more than they could handle.
Sachi's hand was starting to waver and a worried frown was replacing the grin on his face, but before he could open his mouth to ask the obvious question, Daisuke slowly pushed himself up from the ground, pulling Takeru with him. Neither of them touched the now retreating hand.
The green haired teen gave them both a strange look, then shrugged, turning to the end of the alley, "Well, come on then. We gotta catch 'keno before he decides to take off. Plus it might take a while to convince him to let us take the van out. He hasn't let me even touch the steering wheel, much less drive the thing, since I put that teen-tiny dent in the rear after backing up into that misplaced light post."
On that reassuring note, Sachi led the way to Akeno's apartment, Takeru and Daisuke following more hesitantly after the bouncing neon teen. Both of them hoped that day would get a lot better than it had been so far.
=-=-=-=
This day could not get any worse! Not only had he walked out on his very frustrating, idiotic best friend but now Takeru and Daisuke were apparently missing. Just vanished, into thin air. And as if that wasn't bad enough, he now had to deal with a very panicked Yamato over the phone. Nope, this just wasn't his day at all.
"Ishida Yamato, if you don't calm down this instant I'm going to come over there and knock some sense into you!" Ken finally resorted to yelling, just to shut up the blonde who, when panicked, could not seem to stop babbling guilt ridden thoughts. The other end of the line went silent, probably due to the shock of hearing Ken threaten somebody so loudly.
"That's better. Now, you're sure you checked all of the rooms? They're not just hiding somewhere?" Ken listened to the frantic answer, dread settling in his stomach. He could not believe this was happening. How could they just lose them? "Okay… okay, Yamato, I believe you! No… Of course I haven't seen them! In case you've forgotten I live a little out of the way… alright… Okay, you and Taichi go out to search for them, I'll be over as soon as possible, and keep your cell with you. Yeah… don't worry… we'll find them."
Ken sighed as he set down the phone, hoping beyond hope that the two young teens weren't wondering lost in the city where any horrible stranger could get them again. They probably wouldn't even resist if someone tried to kidnap them or hurt them in any way. They'd just accept it as they had before.
Horrified by the thought, Ken quickly grabbed his jacket and wallet from his room and hurried to the door, but before he could open it, a knock sounded from the other side. Great, company. Just what he needed right now
Prepared to politely tell the person to just bug off and come back later, Ken answered the door and found himself almost blinded by glaringly neon colors. His eyes narrowed, taking in the suspiciously innocent grin, "What are you doing here?"
"Ken! Good to see you too, buddy!" Sachi mockingly answered back, sounding a little out of breath but still looking cheerful as ever despite the rude greeting he had received. "I'm here to see you of course. We don't spend enough time together, so I've come to remedy that!"
With an irritated glare, Ken shook his head, "Well, we can bond later, Sachi. I was just on my way out and –"
"And now you're on your way back in!" Sachi cut him off with a wink, slinging an arm around the increasingly annoyed bluenette, pulling him back into the apartment. Although Ken had had lot's of practice in dealing with stubborn people (nobody was more stubborn than Yamato) he knew that the wildly dressed keyboardist was stronger than he looked and would make his life miserable if Ken tried to run out on him. The only thing to do now would be to explain the emergency and hope that Sachi's loyalty to the band's lead singer would be strong enough to call for immediate departure.
"Sachi, really, I've got to go. Yamato needs my help to –"
"Naw, I'm sure he'll be fine," Sachi waved his arguments off and sat on the couch. Then, just to make sure that the frustrated teen couldn't make a run for it, Sachi pulled the younger of the two onto his lap, firmly wrapping his arms around the boy's stomach.
There was a moment of stunned silence and then, "Um… Sachi? Just what do you think you're doing?"
Sachi gave him a mischievous grin, "You know what, Ken? You're just way too uptight. You've got to learn to relax, man."
"But…"
"No buts! You're not going anywhere until you do something about it."
"Damn it, Sachi no baka! I don't have time for your stupid little games!"
At that moment they heard the front door slam open and Sachi jumped a little, giving a nervous 'eep'. A second later, another member of the band, looking rightly pissed off, came storming into the living room. Ebony bangs did nothing to cover the glare aimed at Sachi who was now trying to use Ken as a human shield.
"How many times have I told to not jump out of the van while it is still moving!" Akeno growled, acting quite the opposite of his usually calm and relaxed nature.
Sachi peeked over Ken's shoulder, who still couldn't move despite his struggles to, "But 'Keno-chan, I was only –"
"I don't care what you were only doing. If you wanted some cuddle time with Ken, you could have just asked us to take the stairs instead of almost killing yourself in parking lot!"
Ken gave an indignant squawk, blushing as he finally tore himself away from the restraining arms, "Sachi, I swear… you are the biggest –" He stopped in mid-sentence, turning to look curiously at the newest arrival. "Wait a minute, who else is here? You said 'us'" Oh gods, if the entire band had decided to come over and harass him now, he was never going to get out of here and Yamato was going to kill them all!
"Hm?" The tall guitarist glanced at him, seeming to notice Ken for the first time. "Yeah, the other two. I left them at the entrance so they wouldn't have to see me strangling this idiot here," he explained with another glare directed at the 'idiot' in question. "Takeru and Daisuke…"
Ken gasped and ran out of the room the moment he heard those names. He skidded to a stop in front of the two boys, staring at them as though they'd disappear any second. How did those two insane band members get a hold of them?!
"K-Ken-san?" Daisuke finally stuttered, both him and Takeru stepping closer together as Ken's eyes narrowed.
"You… you two…" Ken sputtered for a moment, anger rising as he realized what must have happened. Either Sachi and Akeno had kidnapped them right out of Yamato's apartment, or they had found the two younger boys wandering the streets and for some reason decided to bring them here. He was betting on the latter. "How could you run away like that?! You have Yamato and Taichi worried sick, you had me terrified, and now you think you can just walk in here as if nothing happened? I thought you were smarter than that!"
The two boys gaped at him in shock, not moving or daring to speak. Finally Ken spun around, fighting the urge slap both of them for doing something so stupid, and stormed off to his room to calm down before calling Yamato to put his worries to rest. None of them had figured that normally submissive teens would gain enough courage to step outside of the apartment without one of them there to lead them. It was completely against their usual behavior. They had no idea how the real world worked and didn't seem to realize just how big it was. They were too naive! Anybody could have picked them up…
Finally he realized that he was pacing and forced himself to stop. It didn't matter now anyway, they were safe. Nothing did happen to them, thanks to Sachi and Akeno. Although he still didn't understand why they didn't bring the two lost boys back to Yamato's apartment, which made a lot more sense considering Takeru was his brother and his place was much closer than Ken's.
Still confused and upset, Ken sighed and reached over to his bedroom phone to call Yamato. He managed to convince the older blonde that the two were fine and that he didn't have to come all the way over here just to see them. He would get them dropped off later. After he hung up, he heard the door open and looked over to see Akeno waiting for permission to enter.
Ken waved him over, both of them silently going over to the bed to sit down. He saw Akeno studying him from the corner of his eye, but only kept his gaze on the floor. He was glad at least that it was him and not Sachi that came to see if he was okay. The guitarist was easier to talk to and was a lot more reasonable about things.
Ken had accepted the band as friends a while back when he saw how happy Yamato was to be playing with them. It had lifted the depression slightly from the blonde and had given him an outlet for his anger and guilt. That didn't mean that Ken approved of some of the other things the band did together, but he still got along with them all right in the end. They helped when Yamato was in one of his blacker moods, the kind where he would go an entire day without talking to anybody, sinking into his guilty thoughts and memories. And the other three band members had accepted Ken right back, treating him as a younger brother when they found out how close of friends he and Yamato were. They enjoyed teasing him constantly, especially over his protectiveness of Yamato, but were always there to help and talk to when he needed it.
"Ken," the concerned voice shook him out of his thoughts, "Why were you so upset to see them?"
With a sigh, Ken tilted his head to hide his face within his curtain of hair. He didn't feel angry any more. Just… helpless and confused. "It's not like that," he finally mumbled, still feeling the other's intense gaze, "Where did you find them?"
"Find them?" Akeno's voice was slightly edged with confusion now, "Sachi showed up with them at my apartment. He just told me he needed the van to take Takeru and Daisuke to your place. I just thought Yamato had asked him to or something."
"Oh." Ken frowned down at his hands, wondering why Sachi had had them in the first place. It didn't make any sense for him not to take them back to Yamato's, especially since he knew of Yamato's quick temper. "Well, they were supposed to be at Yamato's. They left, for some reason, and both Yamato and Taichi had a fit."
There was a moment of surprised silence while Akeno registered this new information. Then he grumbled, "Damn Sachi. Don't worry, I'll deal with that baka later. He just can't say 'no'. You know how he is."
Ken frowned, "What do you mean by that?"
"Well… obviously he wouldn't just decide to take them here for no reason," the other explained, sounding almost amused, "They wanted to come see you and he's never been able to say no to the cute ones."
Surprised, Ken blinked up at Akeno, "Why would they want to come here?"
Akeno rolled his eyes slightly, "You can be so clueless sometimes, Ken-chan."
About to protest, Ken opened his mouth but closed it again as he thought of something else. Eyes widening, he stood up, "Oh no… I yelled at them. They're going to think… shit." Ken immediately left the room, Akeno following close behind.
Stepping into the living room, fearing the worse, Ken saw the sight and did a double take. In shock, he could only gape at the scene, completely surprised by what he found. Instead of the cringing, terrified, crying boys he had expected to see, they were curled up against Sachi on the small sofa, his arms around them as they hung on to him. The two younger ones gave Ken a frightened look when they heard him enter, but quickly turned away again.
Akeno stepped around the stunned Ken, taking in the situation with a glance then shrugged, "Well, at least he calmed them down like I told him to. They were practically hysterical when I left."
Sachi grinned at the two of them standing in the door way, giving them a cheerful little wave from around Takeru's shoulders, "Hey guys! Everything a-okay?"
Instead of answering, Ken's eyes narrowed suspiciously, "What did you do?"
"Do?" The green haired teen blinked innocently, "What, to these two?"
When Ken nodded, Sachi grinned and affectionately tousled the boys' hair. They, on the other hand, kept on ignoring everyone and everything around them, not looking as though they wanted to move from their spot any time soon. Sachi rolled his eyes at Ken's expression, "Aw, come on, Ken. You don't seriously think I'd do anything like that, do you? I'm not that stupid. Yamato would kill me anyway, so there's no point. They know I'm not going to hurt them, that's all. All I did was explain to them what it was that got you in such a pissy mood and told 'em not to worry about it."
"That's all?" Ken asked disbelievingly. It sounded way too simple. He knew from experience what those boys were like when they thought they had done something wrong.
"What do you mean by that?" Sachi held his grin, but anyone could tell it was becoming a little forced. His body remained relaxed however and Ken suddenly realized that this was to keep Takeru and Daisuke from becoming nervous or frightened. It amazed him that someone like Sachi would ever think of something like that.
"He didn't mean anything by it, Sachi," Akeno finally said, walking closer to the couch. He stopped, however, when he saw Takeru and Daisuke press closer to their new protector. So they were still scared, but just not unreasonably so. "We should just get them back home where they can relax."
"But…" Takeru whimpered, looking pleadingly up at Sachi.
"But what?" Akeno frowned, also staring at Sachi with a raised eyebrow.
He shrugged but Daisuke answered, his voice barely even a whisper and Ken had to strain to hear him. "Ya-Yamato-san and… and 'Chi n-need to t-talk."
Ken frowned when he heard this. Was that why the two had left the apartment? To give their siblings some alone time together to work out their problems? He sighed, "It doesn't matter now. They found out you two left and went out looking for you. They're back at the apartment now, but I'm sure that there's going to be no more 'talking' until you go back."
The youngest two flinched slightly when they heard this, looking a bit guilty. But again they refused to look at Ken. That was definitely a bad sign. Ken winced, knowing that they didn't fully believe that he wasn't mad at them.
"Well, you heard the man," Sachi said cheerfully, "Time to go home!" They nodded, if a bit reluctantly, and yet didn't move an inch. Sachi sighed and shook his head in mock despair, "Look, as much as I enjoy cuddling up to you two beauties, we can't stay here forever. Eventually Yamato and your Taichi will go crazy with worry and come hunting us all down, which will end with my very painful death for holding out on them."
The two in his arms were now staring up at him with wide, curious eyes. Neither one looked sure about whether or not Sachi was joking. Finally Takeru gaped, "Really?"
Sachi grinned, loving every minute of their attention, "Well… maybe I won't actually die, but it'll be pretty close. Don't worry, I'll drive you home safely."
"No you won't," Akeno interrupted, crossing his arms over his chest, "I didn't let you drive here and I'm sure as hell not letting you drive back. You've caused enough damage to our van as it is. I'll drive back and you can keep them company in the back."
"Fine," Sachi pouted, dragging the two teens to their feet as he stood. They were still watching him with almost delight on their faces. They seemed to have forgotten Ken and their fear of him as they were cheered up by Sachi's antics. But that didn't mean that everything was fixed between them.
Slowly, Ken approached them, feeling a bit apprehensive when he saw Daisuke and Takeru turn to stare at him while drawing closer to the keyboardist. Hoping it wasn't as bad as it seemed, Ken nervously smiled a bit at them, "I'm sorry for yelling at you. I was just scared and didn't know what to think when you showed up like that. I'm just relieved to see you are safe. I hope you can forgive me."
Wide cerulean and cinnamon eyes regarded him with surprise and confusion, then with hope. Takeru tilted his head slightly, "You… you mean that? You're n-not mad anymore?"
Ken shook his head, feeling a bit more confident when neither one of them appeared ready to run from him. "I was never really angry, just upset that you had put yourselves in danger like that."
"Danger?" Daisuke whispered, ducking his head halfway behind Sachi's bright orange shirt when Ken turned his attention to him. "H-how?"
"When you ran off without letting anyone know," the bluenette answered with a smile at the shy boy. "Just make sure you tell one of us where you're going next time, okay? You had us all really worried."
"Okay," they replied as one. There were small, hopeful smiles on their faces now, much to Ken's relief.
"One question, though," Ken said curiously, "How did that nutball con you into letting him help you?"
Sachi stuck out his tongue at him and sulkily tried to turn away, but Takeru and Daisuke wouldn't let him move. Takeru's smile widened as he looked up at the pouting keyboardist, "He said you… you just hung around Yamato too much and that's… and that is why you are so… so moody and b-bitchy."
Daisuke nodded, despite Sachi's horrified gaze as he noticed Ken's raised eyebrow, "Y-yeah! And… there was something about… PM…PMS? Don't know what that is… but it sounded funny."
"And he said he knows just wh-what we're feeling," Takeru finished happily, hugging the older teen who looked as though he wanted to just disappear, "He says he gets scared of… of your t-temper too."
"No-nobody told us stuff like that before," the red-head said softly, "Except Yu… Yuki a-and Rio when… when th-they were be-being funny."
Takeru nodded, looking sad at the mention of their old friends, but Sachi quickly fixed that by wrapping his arms around them again and hugging them to his sides, "See? Aren't they the sweetest?" Then he leaned over and whispered loud enough for Ken to hear, "Now get ready to run if Ken blows his top. He doesn't like to be reminded of his Yamato inherited PMS-syndrome."
They glanced wide eyed at Ken, who rolled his eyes, "Very funny, Sachi. If they weren't looking so happy right now, I'd punch you in the nose."
"Sure you would, you ol' softie," Akeno teased, as he walked past them to the front door. "Now would you three hurry it up? I have other things to do today, you know."
"You coming with us, Ken?" Sachi asked as Daisuke glanced at the bluenette hopefully.
But Ken shook his head regretfully, "No… I can't. My mom will be home within the next hour. If she finds out I'm not here doing homework and getting ready for that damned soccer photo shoot…"
Nodding understandably, Sachi pulled the two younger teens along, "All right then. I'll pass that along to Yamato so he can go rescue you after the shoot's done."
Ken nodded thankfully and went to see them out. They waved back at him as they went down the hallway to the elevators. The last thing he heard before he shut the door was Sachi squealing, "Takeru, you're so much cuter than your brother! Can I keep him?"
"No."
"Can I carry him then?"
"No." Was again Akeno's exasperated response, even though Sachi went right ahead and ignored him. Ken shook his head as he slipped back into the apartment, wondering what Yamato would do to Sachi if he caught the other band member flirting with his younger brother like that. There would definitely be some bloodshed.
He sighed, hoping everything was okay between him and Daisuke now. It would be horrible if the other stopped speaking to him again. He wouldn't be able to stand it. But it seemed that he was back in their good graces when they had left, so hopefully that wouldn't happen.
Finally, after a few minutes of aimless wandering from one room to another, dreading the moment his mother came home, he went over to the phone to call Yamato again. He thought it best to let Yamato know the others were on their way back, Takeru and Daisuke safely among them. This would hopefully give the stubborn blonde some time to lighten up a bit before they arrived. And he decided as well that he would hold back on Sachi's new interest in the younger Ishida, knowing that it would just cause Yamato to unreasonably start a fight, even with the knowledge of the keyboardist's playful, yet harmless nature.
=-=-=-=
Hours Before…
=-=-=-=
"You thought what?!"
Taichi winced and took a step back at the sound of angry disbelief in the other's voice. What he saw scared him. A mixture of hurt, anger and disgust clouded those normally calm, cold blue eyes. He should have known the other teen would respond like this, but there hadn't been any other option other than to tell the truth. Yamato had seemed surprised by Taichi's blunt ways of sharing his feelings, his fears, but the brunette had never thought to hold back some of it. Growing up, he and the other kids had always shared everything when they needed to get things off their minds. They had never thought to lie about or keep back their true feelings, it wouldn't do them any good otherwise. How else would they gain the help and comfort they all so desperately sought?
Obviously it was a mistake to assume the same thing here. Yamato appeared horrified by Taichi's confession, but there was no taking it back now. Anyway, everyone had kept telling him to just talk to the one causing him so much distress, so that's exactly what he was doing. There wasn't any other way but to be honest about it.
Seeing that Taichi was not being even the slightest bit humorous, Yamato groaned and fell back onto the couch, his head resting in his hands. The following silence did nothing to calm Taichi's nerves and he remained staring desperately at the carpet. All he could do now was wait for Yamato's response and let the blonde punish him at will for thinking such thoughts, for doubting him like that.
"Why?" Yamato finally whispered, his voice strained and rough, "Why would you think… think I'd do that to you?"
Taichi gaped silently, wishing he knew exactly what the other was thinking. It would be so much easier if Yamato was more like him and just told him what was on his mind. "I… I told you… already. B-because of wh-what I heard, Yam… Ishida-san." Best to be as safe as possible now. Be polite and obedient. He could be hurt for the tiniest mistake now.
"Fuck…" The blonde teenager moaned, rocking forward slightly as though he were about to be sick. "F-fuck! I… I wish Ken were still h-here. I'm no good at this. I can't even think…"
Taichi's eyes widened as he heard the singer's voice waver dangerously. He had never seen Yamato as close to crying as he sounded now. Why though? Shouldn't he be angry? Taichi didn't understand, but felt horrible for causing such distress all the same. "I-Ishida-san?"
"Don't call me that!" Yamato spat, lifting his head to glare at the wide-eyed brunette. "I can't stand it!" But his face softened slightly when he saw Taichi's terrified expression, "Am I really… that horrible?"
Daring to raise his eyes at the hint of vulnerability in the other's tone, he was surprised to see those icy eyes glistening with unshed tears. Why? Why was Yamato so emotional now? The… the Masters had never been like this. They would have beat Taichi senseless for even thinking thoughts of what he had just told Yamato. It just… just didn't make any sense! Taichi hated not understanding, not knowing his place in a situation. It just made it all that much harder.
When he received no response, Yamato scowled and looked away, "Then why are you even talking to me. If I'm such a terrible, sick person, why are still here?"
"Because…" Taichi looked away too, back to staring at nervously at the ugly brown carpet, "Because I… I wanted to kn-know. If… if you a-are really like… like that, I mean."
Yamato snorted, his expression darkening as he curled up further on the couch, "Well I must be, huh? Everybody thinks so, so it must be true, right?" He seemed almost… almost like he was convincing himself of that. Or maybe he was already convinced and was just reinforcing that belief.
Uncertainly, Taichi shook his head, "Well… that's why I w-wanted to… to talk to you. Every… everyone I've talked to d-doesn't think that. So… so I… want to believe them."
"They don't?" Yamato turned to look at him again, his eyes narrowed with suspicion, "And just who did you talk to?"
Uh oh, he didn't sound too happy about this. Taichi mentally sighed, knowing he must have said the wrong thing again. "J-just… just D-Daisuke and Ken-san and… and Jyou-san."
"You told Ken and Jyou about my fucked up behavior? Great… No wonder they are so pissed at me." His frown grew as he wrapped his arms around himself, almost protectively.
Concerned, Taichi came a bit closer and asked, "A-are they mad at you? G-gomen nasai…"
"No…" Yamato sighed, tiredly brushing the loose hair from his face, "They're not mad. Just… just annoyingly concerned. They always are though, for some stupid reason."
"Oh."
They finally looked at each other, staring uncertainly until Yamato beckoned to the empty spot beside him on the couch. "Well… they were right about one thing at least. We definitely need to get a few things straightened out." When Taichi hesitated, Yamato gave him an irritated frown, "I won't bite, you know. Or… or are you really that afraid that I'll…"
Taichi quickly sat before the sentence could be finished, hating the hurt and self-disgust he had heard in his tone. He had to admit, though, that if Yamato hadn't done anything to him yet, then he wasn't likely to any time soon. Not, at least, if he managed to be more careful about what he said.
With a slightly surprised expression, Yamato turned to face him, then looked down at his lap, "I… I guess I should tell you why I'm so fucked up…" He really didn't look too happy by this prospect. Taichi was beginning to realize why Yamato had been so surprised by the brunette's openness. The lead singer of the Teenage Wolves was completely opposite. He was the type that kept all his feelings hidden from others, kept the hurt and fear buried so deep that no one, not even himself, would be able to see it. That's what made him seem so cold and unfeeling sometimes. It made sense now.
"No," Taichi blurted out, facing the shock on the usually unemotional face without flinching, "I… What I w-want to know is… is why you hide… Why you lie." He was taking a big risk here, trying to get Yamato to open up to him. But before Yamato explained anything, he had to make sure that he wasn't going to lie about it all first.
Astonishment filled Yamato's voice, "You… You want to know…? That's exactly what Takeru asked me!" Taichi didn't know whether or not to respond to this, so he kept his mouth shut. He wasn't surprised, though, that his younger friend had thought of that before. Takeru had always been able to feel when other's were lying or hurting, especially after the… the beating. "I'll tell you the same thing I told him, I don't lie."
"Yes, you do." Taichi contradicted, feeling slightly braver when Yamato made no movement towards him. He even cut off Yamato's protest, something he would never normally do under similar circumstances, but he could see now what Takeru had been trying to explain to him earlier. Yamato really did have problems and needed so very badly to sort them out. "When you say you… you're fine, and you're not, tha-that's a lie." The blonde was on the edge of scowling, but remained quiet, "And… and you smile when… when you're not ha-happy. That's lying too."
"But…" The musician tried halfheartedly before giving up, "Fine. I lie, have it your way then. But who cares? Everybody lies."
Taichi shook his head, trying not to slip into his past memories as he thought about that statement, and softly said, "No… not everybody. Just… just some people who… who can't face the t-truth." Like those men… all of them. Those men who had tried to justify their need to use the kids like Taichi. It was all lies. He hated it when they lied like that, hated when they used him to hide and further their lies.
Yamato must have seen something in Taichi's expression that hinted at what he was thinking, as the blonde went slightly paler than before, "Taichi… I … I didn't mean…"
"I know," Taichi tried to smile, but failed and looked to his lap instead, "It…it's okay. B-but I want to know the truth. If… if th-that's all right." He would feel so much better to hear what was really hidden in that dark mind, the secrets that lay within. Maybe then Taichi could start to really trust the beautiful singer.
"The truth?" This was whispered in an empty tone. Taichi looked over and saw the far away look in the other's eyes. "I… I can't. I just can't, Taichi. I was such a… a dirty… a terrible person." He shivered a bit, jumping to his feet and stumbling away until he was against the opposite wall. There he slid down and sat on the floor, not looking at Taichi. "I… I hated myself. 'Hated everything."
Taichi restrained his instinctive need to go hug the other, as he would have done if he had seen Daisuke or Takeru so upset. But he didn't want to push Yamato further away. Not now, not when he was so close. He took a deep breath, preparing himself for the worst if Yamato decided to take out his anger at the past on him, "Why?"
There was such a lost look in those alluring sky colored eyes. An expression that was almost identical to the one he had seen on Takeru for weeks after he had come back to them, hardly able to move without feeling pain. Oh gods, he didn't want to see that look again. It brought back those memories… the ones he tried so hard to forget.
Finally, just when Taichi began to think that the other hadn't heard his question, there was a whimper, "It was my fault… all my fucking fault. If… if I hadn't turned… hadn't stopped watching him…"
"Wh…who?" He almost didn't want to know, but this was no time to back out now. He didn't think he'd ever get to talk to Yamato like this again. There was little possibility that the other would ever again let down his guards.
Suddenly Yamato seemed to snap. His eyes came up, filled with such anguish and self-hatred that it made Taichi feel the need to run from their piercing gaze. "Who the hell do you think?!" The terrifying blonde practically screamed as he stumbled back to his feet, "Takeru! My brother, my little TK! I… I lost him, to them. I couldn't save him, I couldn't do anything. You don't know how it feels! I had to live with the guilt, I still do. They hurt him…" He was trembling now, wrapping his arms around himself as though to keep himself from falling apart, "Th-the bastards hurt him so… so much. They killed my little brother, the one I knew. The Takeru that c-came back is nothing… nothing like him. And it's my fault!"
Taichi curled up further into the couch, terrified by Yamato's rage. He only understood some of what the blonde said, but enough to get the meaning. His heart hammered against his chest as he shook, wondering how Yamato could have kept this in for so long. Wondering if the other would take it all out on him now.
"Oh… oh gods…" Taichi peeked out from behind his hands to see Yamato's wide, horrified eyes staring at him. "I… I'm sorry, Taichi. S-sorry. I shouldn't have… Oh fuck…" He ran his trembling hands through his blonde hair and squeezed his eyes closed. "Shit!"
Cautiously, Taichi uncurled a bit, and whispered, "It… it'll be okay." Well, maybe not okay, but he didn't know what else to say. He was still trying to get over seeing Yamato so out of control.
"I… I've got to get out of here." Yamato suddenly choked out, his eyes darting around to avoid Taichi's staring eyes, "G-got to find Ken, or… or someone. M-maybe Dad…"
"W-what?" Taichi realized that Yamato was as white as a sheet and looked like he was going to be sick.
"I n-need…" The older teen's hands crept uncertainly to his pockets, for some reason that Taichi didn't understand, but pulled away again as Yamato's expression became more agitated. He swayed slightly, seeming lost, sweat beading on his forehead.
"Yamato!" Taichi didn't know what to do. He couldn't believe how the other teen was acting. This really didn't make sense. What could upset him so much? Just Takeru? Wasn't there something he could do to help? "P-please stop…"
Yamato glanced at him blankly, as though his mind was had shut down and left him completely. Then he blinked, his eyes filling with despair instead, "I… I was hurting myself. That's what Ken told me. 'Hurt him too, he said."
Through trembling lips, the shaken brunette asked, "Why…?" He couldn't take much more of this. He had hardly been able to deal with Takeru back then, but this was so much worse because he still didn't know exactly what had happened to Yamato.
"I don't… remember much…" Yamato sighed, calming slightly, 'though his eyes were still glazed as though he wasn't even seeing Taichi anymore. "K-Ken and… and the others… they helped me. My dad even… Ken wouldn't leave me. I tried to get him to hate me too… like… like I hated myself. 'Thought I deserved it. He said I didn't, 'said it wasn't my fault." He winced, shaking his head slowly, "Bullshit. But…"
Then he choked out a laugh, his eyes suddenly focusing on Taichi again, "But why the fuck am I telling you this? Like you'd understand."
"I… I kind of do." Taichi admitted, closing his eyes against Yamato's unconvinced glare. He sighed, glad that Daisuke and Takeru hadn't been here to hear all of that. Even Takeru probably had no idea just how deep Yamato's pain was. He started talking, just to fill the heavy silence, not really knowing what he was saying as he thought about the past, "There… was this man once. He kept coming back… always asked for… for me. And one day h-he told me why. S-said I… I reminded him a bit of his dead boyfriend. Then he explained that his… his boyfriend had been… hurting himself. The boyfriend had hated himself, 'though the man wouldn't say why. But… but the guy c-couldn't save him when he… when he… he…" Taichi paused, remembering the horror he had felt that someone could do such a thing. He pulled his legs up, hugging them to himself for comfort.
Finally he took a breath, continuing, not noticing Yamato's growing horror, "His boyfriend k-killed himself. S-slit his wrists. The man de-described it all to me, a-all the blood. It was horrible. But he felt so guilty, felt he… he could have done more to help. He… he was scared too. That's why he kept coming back to me. Said I… I was safe. I couldn't hurt him like that 'cause I was just a kid. Said I didn't know a-about pain like that, so I couldn't understand. I… I was safe to talk to about it 'cause of… of that."
Then he opened his eyes, feeling sad as he watched Yamato's darkened face. He didn't want the same thing to happen to this wonderful, beautiful teenager. He didn't want him to drown in his own blood. It couldn't happen… he wouldn't let it. "But… but you know what, Yamato?" His voice was strained and trembled slightly as he tried to hold back the tears that were just aching to come out, "I did understand. I… I understood how hurt the guy must have been over his boyfriend's death. I understood why… why he felt guilty even if it wasn't his fault. I didn't need to know the whole story to understand because… because it didn't matter why he hurt. It only mattered that he did hurt."
He shut his eyes once again, shutting out the world around him. Why was this always so hard? It hurt to comfort others, to help them. How did one keep from feeling their pain and despair? He hated it. And yet he always felt to need to listen to them, to find out where they hurt. Maybe he had nobody to turn to when he needed it the most, but he wasn't going let others feel the same. Takeru and Daisuke had always found him ready to listen and help wherever he could. They knew what it was like. But… this was different, in a way. He didn't know if he had enough strength to keep this up with Yamato on top of everything else.
The couch shifted under him as a new weight was added to it and, surprisingly, he felt Yamato's hand rest on his shoulder. "Taichi, I… I'm sorry."
With a confused frown, Taichi mumbled, "'bout what?" What did Yamato have to be sorry about? It wasn't his fault, even if he didn't believe that.
Yamato sighed, his voice still unsteady but much calmer than it was before. Taichi took comfort in that fact, hoping that the blonde was in a more reasonable mood now. He didn't think he could take much more of those drastic mood swings. "For laying it all on you like that, I suppose. I shouldn't have lost control like that. But… but I couldn't help it. You made it so easy to…" He trailed off, bowing his head further as though in shame.
"It's all… all right, Yamato-san." Taichi whispered, watching the musician from the corner of his eye. He hated it when someone appeared so despairing. "I asked you to t-tell me."
"Yeah, but still," Yamato looked at him, unsmiling, "You don't deserve it. It was my stupidity, no one else's."
Taichi shook his head, "It wasn't stupid. Everybody needs to talk about their feelings sometime. It… it doesn't help to keep them inside."
This time a small, barely distinguishable smile formed on Yamato's face, "You know what, Taichi? You're a good person. I don't know where you learned to be so wise, but everything you say makes sense. I never really believe Ken when tells me the same things…"
Surprised, Taichi turned his head, "Really?" He smiled at the other's confirming nod, feeling a whole lot better about himself and the situation. He rarely heard Yamato complement anyone like that. "That… that means a-a lot. Coming from you, I mean."
This time it was Yamato's turn to be surprised. His eyebrows drew together in confusion, "Why?"
"Because I like you," Taichi stated without thinking about it. It was true though, he did like the wonderful, if unpredictable blonde musician. There was no point in lying about it either. "You… You've been helping me and my friends. It d-doesn't matter what you think, Yamato, you're very… very kind hearted."
He looked stunned by this comment, and almost looked as though he was going to deny it. But he only shook his head, "If you say so, Taichi. But thanks."
"And… and maybe one day…" Taichi continued hopefully, "You'll be able to… to trust me 'nough to tell me why you… you're so sad all the time."
"Yeah… maybe." Yamato said unconvincingly. Then he shrugged and stood up. "But not today. You've got to understand Taichi, it's not as easy for me just to say what's on my mind. Even Ken has trouble getting me to admit my problems. I just… can't." He shuddered slightly, staring at the wall, "I hate thinking about it all, much less talking about it. But I'll try, Taichi, just not right now."
"O-okay, that's alright, Yamato." Taichi told him, standing up as well. He still didn't fully understand why Yamato had trouble talking about his past, but he knew better than to push him. He was just lucky he had gotten this far unscathed.
"Thanks," Yamato smiled a little, running a hand through his hair again as though it calmed him down. "Maybe I… I should talk to Takeru and Daisuke now. Just to let them know I'm okay."
"Yeah," Taichi agreed, "They're worried about you."
"Well, come on then," the blonde beckoned, heading slowly for the door, "I'm not facing them alone."
Taichi grinned, happy that Yamato wasn't upset with him. And he felt better about the situation as well. Yamato definitely didn't act like he was going to hurt him or use him like those other people had. Something would have happened by now if that were the case. And Yamato wanted him around, still! Nothing could have made Taichi happier at the moment than knowing the beautiful guitarist was going to put up with him for a while longer. Everything would turn out for the best, he was sure of it.
"Uh… Taichi? Where'd they go? They're not here!"
=-=-=-=
(A/N) Whew, that was painful to type, but it's done and I'm happy with it. Next chapter will probably focus on getting those kids into school, and stuff. Poor things. So? Was it worth the wait? Maybe? Well, my updates will take less time than this one did from now on, when I find time around my classes and homework. So if you still want more, I'll keep on writing!