Digimon Adventure: Continuing Evolution

10. Love and Courage

Minato City, Tokyo; August 26, 2010 – 8:25am

It was three days after Tai and the others had announced the truth about the breaking of bonds to the world. Three days since Digidestined everywhere were forced to acknowledge that the partnerships they had with their digimon were not permanent after all. And it was three days since Tai had begun to start the daunting process of returning to a semblance of normal life. He'd gone to his classes the morning after the livestream and apologized for being absent. His professors, who had heard about what was happening by then, were mostly kind to him and understanding, appreciating at least the emotional impact that Agumon's sudden disappearance had had on him if nothing else. One very sweet and grandmotherly professor who had briefly met Agumon once was particularly sympathetic, saying that she would miss his unbridled enthusiasm and his bright eyes. That wasn't to say that his missed classes were without consequence; he still lost points for attendance and would drop a letter grade from a minor exam that he'd missed, but at least he would be allowed to take it. His boss at the pachinko parlor had been less gracious, however, and threatened to fire him if he failed to show up for another shift. Tai had bowed and apologized profusely, promising to be more reliable from then on.

Aside from a few blips such as these, everything seemed to be back to normal. Except, for Tai, nothing was normal anymore. Food had lost its flavor, colors seemed less bright, and the Summer breeze a little less warm. Without Agumon in it, his world had become a colder, more dreary place. And yet, the sun still rose, birds still sang, and people carried on about their day. Time, and life, went on. And recognizing that he too must go on, Tai rose each morning with a determination to not be broken by it, but to face what lies ahead with unwavering courage. For Agumon.

At this present moment, Tai found himself strolling down the street a few blocks from his apartment building on a sunny Thursday morning. He was on his way to see Matt, who had texted him half an hour ago asking if they could meet up. They both had a couple of hours to kill before their respective classes started, so it was decided they'd grab some coffee at a small diner roughly equidistant from their homes. I wonder what he wants, Tai thought absently as he turned a corner down a narrow alley, and a pang of pity welled up inside him. Oh, Matt. He's gotta be having as rough of a time as me. Maybe he needs somebody to rant to. Then something else occurred to him. I hope he doesn't have any trouble getting there. Ah, who am I kidding? He'll be on his motorcycle, and his helmet will keep his face hidden. He'll probably be fine; I'm the one that needs to be careful.

Because of all the digimon battles he had participated in, Tai and the others had been—to a certain extent—something like minor celebrities in the area for the last several years. Saving so many people from errant fireballs or chunks of collapsing buildings tended to make one stand out, after all. Most of the time it wasn't that intrusive. Occasionally someone would recognize him from some former disaster and want to get a picture or ask a few questions, and in those situations he'd usually politely decline the photo, but he'd be glad to talk with them if he had the spare time. These encounters weren't very frequent, but Tai found himself taking a little more care to be inconspicuous than he used to. After the broadcast, his face had been plastered on social medias and news networks around the world, and reporters were desperately trying to track him down for an interview. Yesterday, Kari told him that a news crew had appeared on their parents' doorstep hoping to ask Tai a few questions. She apologetically informed them that he no longer lived there, and when she refused to give them his new address, they tried to pester her into answering their questions instead. She'd ultimately had to slam the door in the reporter's face before they would leave.