Digimon: American Digidestined

Chapter 10: Disappearing Kaleb and Kari

"Kaleb are you sure you're okay?" Ashley asked worriedly. "You haven't been sleeping well."
"I'm fine." Kaleb mumbled.
"Are you sure? You've been having nightmares." Ashley looked at him, worry evident on her face.
"I said I'm fine!" He snapped, shocking her. She stepped back, away from him. His furious expression turned into a sorry one. " I'm sorry I yelled at you. It's just... the dreams are becoming more... realistic." He looked at the floor in shame for yelling at his sister.
"I know you didn't mean it." She found the dust bunnies under their desk at her right a little more interesting. " I think I'm going to dust when I get home." She stated. She grabbed her duffle, Tsunomon inside and left. She saw Kari closing her door.
Kari now, she looked tired. The bags under her eyes were evident. She also seemed on edge, and constantly on guard.
"Hey Kari." Ashley decided to mask her worries for now and put on a cheerful face. The reaction got, however, was one she didn't expect.
Kari gasped, as her eyes widened in fear at the sudden voice of someone there. "O-oh... sorry Ashley, I didn't realize it was you." She apologized when she realized it was her.
"You've been getting nightmares like Kaleb?" Ashley asked, curious.
"Yea..." Kari replied sullenly.
"I'll go on ahead, can you wait for Kaleb for me? He usually gets lost when he's tired, and I need some time to think." Ashley looked a bit bothered about something.
"Yea, okay." The brunette tried to smile a bit.
"Thank you so much Kari." Ashley bowed. "See you in class."
"See you class." Kari said, before Ashley left.
"You know you might have just made a terrible decision." Tsunomon said from inside Ashley's bag.
"I know, but I need to think." Ashley sighed.
Ashley felt hurt when her brother yelled at her. She knew he didn't mean to, but she couldn't help but to feel hurt. It also worsened when Kari was frightened by her. She felt... terrible and alone. Something she hates feeling.
As she looked at the sky above her, a thought weaseled into her mind. 'What if they think I'm not trustworthy?'
-
"Hey you alright?" Davis asked me before our class started. This class, TK and Kari were in a different one. "You're not your usual self today."
"I know." I rested my forehead on my desk. "Just... worried. Kaleb and Kari are both having nightmares." She sighed.
"Huh? So? Why are you so worried about that?" Davis asked, being the clueless guy he is.
"I think their nightmares are connect. They're both so anxious. I'm worried that Kaleb will be taken away again." Ashley instantly regretted saying that.
"Again?" Davis asked. Before Ashley could explain the teacher begun the lesson, much to her delight.
-
Yolei was in class, like usual, with Kaleb sitting in the row next to her, three seats up. She was taking notes on the lesson when she noticed Kaleb was disappearing. "Kaleb!" She quickly called out, not thinking through. Every one turned and starred at her, then Kaleb almost fell out of his chair and faint, if it weren't for a classmate behind him.
"You should head to the nurse." The teacher sighed, returning to the lesson. Little did anyone know that the same thing happen in another classroom with Kari.
-
"Kari?"
"Kaleb?"
Ashley and TK had popped by the nurse's office. Yolei had told Ashley Kaleb almost fainted in class and is supposed to be in the nurse's office resting.
"I'm sorry kids, but Kaleb and Kari haven't come in today."
Ashley looked at each other, both nodding in agreement to go looking for them. They also almost had an incident with the girl's bathroom, when TK almost mindlessly went to open the door. Thank goodness for Ashley's quick thinking. They looked around, deciding to split up. While looking, Ashley ran into Davis.
"What's wrong Ashley?" He asked her, as she did literally bump into him, knocking them both to the ground.
"I can't find Kaleb!" She cried. "He was suppose to be at the nurse's office resting, but he didn't come in at all!"
"Maybe he went to the computer lab." Ashley shook her head.
"I told Yolei. She's there right now. Her and Kaleb also have the same classes. She would have messaged me if she saw him after leaving class." She sniffed. "And he eve forgot his PDA at home too!"
"Hey I'm sure he's fine, maybe he's in the bathroom." Davis tried.
"No, when me and TK looked around, he checked all the bathrooms, he wasn't in there." Ashley sighed.
"TZ?" Davis questioned. For some reason he felt jealous he was with Ashley, but he likes Kari, right? "Why were you looking around with him?" He shook the thought from his head.
"Well... Kari is missing too. We already checked all the bathrooms for them." Ashley looked at the floor. "I'm worried. Kaleb has been having nightmares, I'm scared for him. Kari... it she's been having nightmares too."
Davis had no idea what to do. He's never seen Ashley so upset. He had no idea what do at all when girls were like this at all. He supposed he has to wing this. "How about I'll help you look? Maybe they're in the Digital World."
"It's worth a try." They headed to the computer lab. Everyone, but TK, was there. Before say hi or anything, Ashley headed straight to the computer to see if she can find her brother.
"Are you ok Ashley?" Yolei asked. "Is he still missing?"
"Yea, and I can't find a Digivice signal on the map." Ashley sighed.
TK came in then, looking distraught and distracted.  He than sat himself on a chair. "I didn't see your brother, but Kari is okay, I guess." TK mumbled that last part. That's when Gatomon barged in carrying Kari's backpack.
"Kari has disappeared!" She stated, panting from running all the way back here.
"I knew I shouldn't have left her alone." TK grumbled, though no one heard him.
"She must be in the Digital World!" Davis announced. "Let's go in and find her!"
"How I was just looking at the monitor." Ashley said softly, still bummed about her brother.
"Davis he can't think irrationally. We don't know for sure if she in there. Even if she was, he can't just go in there without knowing her exact location." Cody, ever the rational kid he is, stated.
"She's not in the Digital World." Every one looked at TK. He looked serious. "The beach. She sais something about the beach. That's where she is!" TK took off, Patamon and Gatomon following. Just then Ashley remembered something. When Kaleb had a nightmare that night he talked about a 'dark ocean', Kaleb and Kari have to be together somehow. She just knew it.
"I'm going with them. Paomon, Tsunomon, in the bag." She opened up her duffle, and the two jumped in. "I'll let you all know if we find either of them." With that, Ashley was gone.
-
Kaleb now, he's been walking forever around this maze of wooden fences, walking on gray sand. Just as he turned the corner, he bumped into Kari. "Oh Kari. Am I glad to see a friendly face around here." He sighed in relief, now that there was a friend at his side now.
"Same here. Where do you think we are?" Kari said, as they continued to walk aimlessly, until they found themselves facing the ocean.
"I'd say a gray beach, with a dark ocean." Kaleb said looking out at the water, feeling an ominous presence presiding in it. "You know if it all wasn't so dark, I bet that this would be a great view." Kaleb tried to make the situation seem not so bad.
"Hey there's a cave over there." Kari pointed out a cave down the beach. "Maybe there's something in there that can help us."
"Great idea." Kaleb nodded. The two walked down to the cave. Stepping in a bit they saw that it wasn't a cave, it was a tunnel. "Woah, who knew there'd be a tunnel at the beach." Kaleb wasn't expecting the cave to be tunnel.
"Kari... Kaleb..." Hoarse voices called from within the tunnel.
"W-who there?" Kari asked fearfully.
"We are Scubamon." The digimon came out of the shadows a bit.