Unrequited (Blue Flag Fanfic)

A Sprout

A/N: Hey, guys! Here's part two! I'd love to know what you guys think!

~+~+~

Taichi remembered the day he and Futaba broke up clearly.

It was a Saturday at the end of winter. Both were second-years attending their separate universities in different parts of Japan. Taichi had been texting Futaba, which he hadn't been doing quite as often as he used to, when out of the blue they both decided it was probably best if they called.

It was something along the lines of, "We're growing apart. Our dreams don't align. It's time to let go."

It was relatively mutual, with Taichi being the one to initiate the official break up.

Taichi drank his sorrows away with Yokki.

It was funny, really. You'd think Yokki was the one heartbroken.

A week later, Touma texted him.

To be perfectly frank, Taichi had grown a little distant from Touma over the years. He'd preached all this "Best Friend Power" stuff, yet couldn't hold onto his best friend. He was a little disappointed in himself, although he hated to admit that.

Hey, Tai, Touma typed. I heard from Masumi that you and Futaba split. Are you doing okay?

Taichi sighed. Yeah, I'm alright. I'll be alright, I mean.

Well, I'm here for you. If you ever want to talk, I've got your back.

Taichi's eyes widened. Okay. He thought of something Touma might like. We should catch up. Want to get tickets to a baseball game?

A text came through. Taichi looked down. Sure.

~+~

Taichi wasn't one to wander too much inside the minds of his friends. He liked to keep to himself, to hide away from the what-ifs.

But there were some days when he wondered if Touma was still in love with him.

Touma Mita. As pure-hearted and cool as could be. He was everything Taichi dreamed of becoming.

It wasn't like it was back in high school. He wasn't jealous or anything—not anymore. He now knew things about Touma that made it hard for him to be jealous. The feelings he'd hid for so long, the discrimination he'd faced and would continue to face in the future—it all added up.

But there was a part of him that still wished he could be bigger, stronger, taller. The things Touma was that he wasn't.

And, now that he thought about it, Futaba had no longer chosen him, so that gloat had gone right down the drain.

Taichi's head fell right into the palm of his hand. He was sitting on the train, packed with people, a good half of them probably on their way to this baseball game. He didn't know whether to feel excited or not.

Taichi scooched past the people beside him and glanced out the window. The cherry blossoms were no longer alive and well. It was already the beginning of May.

The train stopped at the station. Taichi put some yen into a nearby vending machine and got an orange soda.

Because they'd come from slightly different directions, they'd planned to meet each other at the stadium.

Taichi rushed over, his little legs nearly giving out along the way. There was Touma, tall and mighty, masked by a crowd of people, but his height made him stand out. Taichi's eyes lit up when he saw him.

"Touma!" he called. He raced over to his best friend since childhood. "Touma," he said again, hands on his knees. "Hi."

Touma smiled. "Hi, Tai," he said back, and Taichi looked up at him. The two stared at each other for a moment.

Once they'd found their seats and Taichi had gotten them popcorn, they sighed at exactly the same time, for both teams were only just starting warm-ups.

"You know, Tai," Touma began, "as much as I thought this would be a bummer at first, it just hit me: this is actually pretty cool. We're watching the pros warm up. We get to see the intricacies of it all, yeah?"

Taichi looked up at Touma. His eyes were bright, shining, even, and then he closed them, scratching the back of his neck. Taichi's lips parted, and he nodded.

Taichi swallowed down the lump in the back of his throat.

It was strange, really.

Quite strange.

He decided it was probably best not to dwell on it.

Taichi was glad to see Touma was still keen about baseball. That passion of his was something he'd always admired.

"How's work?" Taichi asked.

"Pretty great, actually." Touma flexed his biceps and smiled. "All the heavy lifting has kept me in shape."

Touma had officially chosen his trade right before high school was over. He was a construction worker now, sweating his ass off at sites not too far from home.

"How about you?" Touma started. "How's college?"

Taichi, on the other hand, had just started his third year of university, quickly on his way to becoming a computer engineer.

He wasn't proud of much, but Taichi was certainly proud of the fact that he wasn't growing up to become a failure.

"It's pretty awesome. I've made some amazing friends."

Touma smiled brightly. "I'm glad, Tai."

Taichi took his eyes off of Touma and focused back in on the upcoming game.

~+~

Once warm-ups finished and the game began, Touma finally asked the question.

"How's life since you broke up with Futaba?"

Taichi was so honed in on the baseball game he almost didn't hear Touma. It was sudden for Taichi, really, and it forced him to blink a few times before he really processed what Touma had said. After all, even the thought of Futaba made his gut twist in all different directions.

"It's okay. It's fine."

Taichi dug his nails into his scalp. Fans were cheering and screaming in the background, as somebody had just hit a homerun. Even Touma didn't focus on that, though. All his attention was on him.

"I lied," Taichi began. "It sucks. I mean, I don't want her back. We split for a reason. But she was my first love, if you get what I mean. So it still hurts."

Touma nodded. The sports broadcaster's voice boomed overhead. "I understand," he shouted over the noise. "Don't forget that time heals all wounds."

Touma smiled. It was a pure, innocent smile, and Taichi's thoughts were wandering. Did time heal Touma's wound? The wound of getting rejected by his childhood friend? He wondered if maybe, just maybe, it hadn't, although Taichi doubted it.

Oh, well. Did it even really matter in the long run? He guessed probably not.

"When, though? When will time heal this one?"

"Taichi"—Touma put a hand on his fellow friend's shoulder—"it's only been a few months. You were together for a while. One day, it'll get better, and you'll look back on this with a completely different attitude."

Taichi looked up at him, a frown on his face.

"You promise?" Taichi asked.

"I promise," Touma said.

And Taichi smiled wide.