Ebacusta: Sorry! I'm so sorry! My computer is acting really weird and it erased all my documents and then I got them all back except for this one so I had to retype it like fifty times because my computer refused to save it. And ARGH! We've had so much stupid homework! And then my grandmother died a week ago, so things have been rough. Please enjoy the story and thanks to those who reviewed.

Disclaimer: I don't own Digimon.

A Mistake Can Last A Lifetime

By ebacusta

Chapter 6

Epilogue

TK yawned and stretched. He pushed back his covers, got out of bed, and stumbled to the bathroom, where he lazily showered, brushed his teeth, and brushed his hair. He walked into the kitchen to see his mother with a cup of coffee.

"Did you brush your hair?" she asked.

"Yes," TK said. "I already told you, it doesn't do much good." His mother had been home everyday since the dance. When she found out that TK had a girlfriend, who just happened to be Kari, she had been so happy that she practically had a heart attack. Or at least that's how TK felt. But he had to admit that he had been feeling a million times better ever since he and Kari had started going out two weeks and a day ago.

He ate his breakfast and then reached for his bag. His mother spoke, "TK? Do you still have your special invitation from Kari?"

"Yeah," TK said.

"Well keep up with it. We're going to be going tonight with Matt and your father, and then we're going to have dinner with her family," Natsuko said.

"Okay," TK said trying to hide his excitement. He gave his mom a quick peck on the cheek and ran from the apartment. He ran down the stairs and almost sprinted to school. He slid into his seat to wait. And he continued to wait until finally the lesson started.

"Okay, class, as you know, today we're going to go see your classmate Hiakri in her dance school's production of Cinderella. I see that you all have turned in your permission slips, so, we're just going or jump right into the lesson. We're leaving at lunch time so all lessons have been cut short.

TK didn't listen very much while he waited for lunch time to arrive. Tonight was the grand opening of Kari's show and he could hardly wait. From what he'd seen that day, he'd gone with her to the school, the production was going to be awesome, and furthermore, his girlfriend was going to be Cinderella.

But, much to his surprise, two hours before lunch, the administrator came in and told TK that he was being picked up. As he gathered his stuff, he wondered if this meant he wouldn't get to see Kari in the show.

When he got outside, he saw his mother waiting for him. Her face lit up when she saw him. "TK turn on your cell."

He pulled it out and turned it on. "Why?" he asked.

"You'll see," his mother said. As if on cue, his cell phone rang.

He answered it, "Hello?"

An excited voice greeted him, "TK?"

"Kari? What's up?"

"Nothing much, except, I convinced Ms. Tiffany to let me do something special. It involves you and it's only if you want to do it."

"What?"

"Well… you can do the finale with me if you want too!" Kari exclaimed.

"Really?" TK asked. He got in the car with his mom and they headed over to the place where Kari's recital was going to be.

"Yeah," Kari said. "It will have to be either the afternoon show that our classmates are coming too, or the last day of the show."

"I'll do it today, but… what about all the dancing that other guy had to do?"

"Well, that's why you'd have to do the afternoon show. No offense to you or anything, but Ms. Tiffany wants to get good reviews for this, and the critics are coming tonight. We've changed it around so that you can do it without all the dancing. It would be a simple spin onto the stage and then you'd catch me. We'd have to rework the timing, but… Tom's open to it. He's willing to play a different role for the finale."

"Wow, you did all that for me?" he asked.

"Yes. So will you? I mean only if you want too."

"Sure," TK said

"Great, I'll see you in a few," she said and hung up. TK and his mother pulled into the parking lot of the gigantic building and then quickly went inside. Kari was waiting on stage doing some warm up exercises with Tom and Satsuki. But when she saw TK she stopped, jumped over the divider between the seats and the stage. And dashed up the stairs before she jumped into his arms.

"TK!" she exclaimed. Tom and Satsuki stopped stretching to watch.

"Hey," TK replied. She let go of him and pulled him down the stairs with her.

"There's not a lot of time to get this right okay?" Kari told him as they jumped over the divider. "Tom is going to show you what to do, and then we're going to try it. If you don't get it the first time, don't worry about it. Tom will be there to catch me if you can't."

"Okay," TK replied.

"Now you'll have to wear Tom's outfit and you'll have to wear a brown wig so you can keep Tom's hair color. We can't have a brown haired guy all show and then suddenly a blonde, but, we've got that all taken care of." She led him backstage with Tom and Satsuki closely in tow. She stopped in front of a wardrobe and then pulled out a wig, and a copy of Tom's outfit.

"Here," she said handing them to him. Then she and Satsuki disappeared while Tom taught TK his part. It was a spin onto the stage and he had to stop on a small red "x" on the ground and he had to be facing Kari. He was to start the spin when she picked up her leg and started spinning and then he would spin on and stop just in time to catch her and pse.

Tom was showing TK the pose he was to take, when Kari and Satsuki reappeared in their costumes. "Do you have it?" Tom asked.

"Yeah," TK nodded. "Thank you… for everything."

"Tome smiled, "Sure." He went back to watch and leaned against the wall. Kari and Satsuki started their spins, and then Veronica came out spinning, and then Kari spun into the air. He watched as Kari did her little dance routine, and then she kicked her leg back to start her second spin. TK spun onto the stage and stopped, a little dizzy, but still able to stand upright. He held out his arms. He repressed a grunt as Kari fell into them and they posed.

Ms. Tiffany was bursting with pride. "Excellent! Excellent! Now, let's try it with costumes!" TK went and got in the costume. He pulled on the brown wig and then went back out. They tried it again, and this time he did it without getting dizzy, and then Ms. Tiffany wanted to run through the whole show, and then end with the finale. And they did. Finally, she ushered everyone back stage and spoke to them. "Okay guys. It was wonderful today. We've changed around the finale a bit, but you seem to have adapted wonderfully. Everything will be back to normal tonight. I want you all to do your best and don't worry about the crowd. If you make a mistake they won't notice unless you make a big deal about it. Okay?" Everyone nodded. "Great, now let's get out there and do our best!"

The auditorium was starting to fill up. Kari and TK sat on a bench waiting. Kari was nervous and was leaning against TK's chest trying to calm her nerves. She wasn't wearing her seven layered costume anymore, but instead, she was wearing a blue leotard with a see-through raggedy looking skirt.

"TK, I'm so glad you did this," she said.

"I'd do anything for you," TK replied. He put his arm around her. She laid her head on his shoulder and he laid his head on top of hers. "It'll be okay. You'll do great."

"Thanks TK," she said. Ms. Tiffany rush backstage. "It's Showtime!" TK kissed Kari's forehead and then let her go so she could get ready to go on stage. He smiled at her and then the arena went black. Kari and her evil stepsisters rushed onto the stage and got in position. This was going to be fun.

2:45: Dance Arena

TK stood at the edge of the curtain watching Kari dance with Tom, and then spin away. She pun off stage with him, and he ran behind the curtain, passing TK. Tom pulled off his prince outfit and replaced it with a bright blue outfit. He ran up behind TK and gave him a reassuring pat before he got in line behind a bunch of other guys wearing brightly colored outfits as well.

TK understood. Tom had agreed to be one of the fill-in dancers. Today, when he wasn't just concentrating on Kari, he noticed the fill-ins were not just girls in short brightly colored dresses, but guys in similarly colored jumpsuits as well. Finally, the last of the girls on stage spun off, and the fill-ins all flipped onto the stage on after the other. All of the boys were coming from TK's side of the stage, the girls from the side opposite them.

He watched the two lines merge into one and then break into two lines of boy-girl, boy-girl. They started their synchronized dancing. TK watched feeling eternally grateful to Tom. And then the fill-ins spread and he saw why. Satsuki, Kari, and Veronica had spun onto the stage. He took a deep breathe and readied himself. He watched as Kari did her spin into the air and then her routine up there, and then he saw her kick back her leg.

He took a deep breathe once more and spun onto the stage. He spotted the red "x." He stopped and faced Kari; he saw her spin and then fly from the air towards him. He held out his arms and caught her. Just before they struck their poses, TK brought his face close to hers and kissed it. The music stopped right when they hit their pose. The audience burst into loud cheers and applause. He and Kari were smiling, and then she slid out of his arms and they retreated off stage.

Slowly the kids in the production dance onto the stage, where their name was announced. Tom was standing in a group with TK and Kari.

"Thank you," TK said to him again. "I am eternally in your debt."

Tom laughed, "No prob. And you don't owe me anything. I was happy to do it. I know exactly how you feel." TK grinned at him.

"Really?" he asked.

"This is us," he told TK, so TK followed him onto the stage in a simplified routine, created just for him. They stopped.

"Prince Charming, played by Tom Kennerdy and Takeru Takaishi," the announcer announced through his microphone. TK pulled off the wig and took a bow with Tom, to immense clapping and loud cheers come from, where he suspected his classmates were sitting.

"And the star of our show…" TK and Tom split. Kari came spinning down from the ceiling her costume sparkling brightly. She landed delicately between TK and Tom. "Hikari Yagami!" A whole section of the audience stood up as loud cheers erupted from them. Kari took a bow.

The auditorium rang loudly with shouts such as, "GO KARI!" and "GO TK!" All of them smiled, and then the curtain fell, and the dancers split from their lines, congratulating one another and verifying plans they had for the evening show. All of them were going out to eat and Kari had invited TK and his family to join them. TK could hardly wait.

6:30: TK's House

TK pulled on jeans and a t-shirt. He was going to meet Matt, and his parents at the auditorium. He was going with a bunch of his classmates. He called good-bye to his mother and tan to the sidewalk. Yolei, Cody, Davis, and Ken were waiting for him.

"Come on," Davis said. "I still can't believe you were in the show. How did it happen?"

"Kari," TK told him again. They crossed the street. By the time they got there, their group had added a number of other classmates they met on the way. They showed the tick taker their special invitation from Kari, and he directed them up a flight of stairs. After waving at their classmates, they all went up them. TK saw Matt talking to Tai. They were sitting with a bunch of other teens. There was a boy with reddish-brown hair, a girl with pink hair, another girl with reddish-orange hair, and a boy with blue hair and glasses.

Matt stood up when they entered. "TK," he said, "You remember my friends: Izzy, Mimi, Sora, and Joe." They all waved at him.

TK smiled, "Hey guys. These are my friends Yolei, Ken, Davis, and Cody. In fact I think you've already met them."

"Hi," everyone said in unison. This got everyone laughing as TK and his friends sat down on the same row as Matt and the others. A little before the show started, his pranets entered followed by Kari's parents. They sat behind the children. And then a long line of other adults entered. They were all introduced as the parents of the kids already on the balcony. More people came and sat down around them, no doubt others who had received special invitations from someone they knew in the program. But TK didn't pay much attention because then, the show started.

9:00 p.m. Dance Arena

Kari and the others took their bow. Tk was waiting on the side of the stage. He was holding a bouquet of flowers. He had worked it out with Ms. Tiffany that afternoon. She nudged him in the back signaling that it was his turn. He walked onto the stage holding flowers and he presented them to Kari, who took them with huge smile and tears in her eyes. TK leaned over and kissed her cheek to tremendous applause.

Many flashes went off, and then the curtain fell. Kari hugged him. "Thank you TK. Thank you so much."

TK grinned. "Sure."

The Next Morning

There was a knock on the door. TK pushed himself up from the couch to answer it. "Yes?" he asked and opened the door. Kari was standing there holding the newspaper, looking excited.

"Look!" she exclaimed pushing the newspaper into his hands. He stepped aside to let her in, and then kicked the door shut.

"What am I looking at?" he asked as he followed her into the living room and onto the couch. Kari pointed to an article with a large picture over it. It was the picture of TK kissing her cheek as he gave her the flowers.

"Read it," she said.

He read the review aloud:

"Last night's grand opening of Cinderella was a huge success. The dancers were wonderful, and the costumes carefully planed and colored. The acts were excellently executed as Cinderella (played by Hikari Yagami) went through her hard life as a maid in her stepmother's house.

The most exiting act of all was the Grand Finale when Cinderella performed an exciting and breath-taking routine. And despite all the complicated steps the rest of the show involved, the simplicity of the Grand Finale made it better than all the rest.

Spinning into the air and successfully getting all seven layers of her complicated costume into the air, the finale came to a climax when she went spinning across the stage and landed perfectly in Prince Charming's waiting arms.

Prince Charming (Played by Tom Kennerdy) executed his perfect timing in stopping his own dance just in time to catch the flying Cinderella.

But perhaps the highlight of the evening was when Hikari's real Prince Charming came onto the stage to give her a surprise. Takeru Takaishi (more commonly known as TK) walked onto the stage last night holding a huge bouquet of flowes especially for his girlfriend. Upon receiving her flowers and a kiss (pictured above), Hikari rewarded her boyfriend (an everyone else in the auditorium) with the biggest and prettiest smile seen all evening. No doubt, Cinderella is a show worth seeing. Its majestic setting adds to the show, as your family is pulled into the story.

Rating: 9.5/10"

TK looked up at Kari, "Kari that's wonderful!" He reached out and pulled her into a hug. When he released her, she pulled back smiling at him. "Let's go see if the other critics put in the same picture.

"Sure," TK said, "but first…" he went into the kitchen and pulled out a pair of scissors. He cut out the article and the picture and handed it to Kari. "And the critic was right, you have one of the prettiest smiles ever."

Kari blushed, "Thanks TK."

One Week Later

TK and Kari sat together in a café. Kari stared at TK. "You know TK, somehow, I think your kindness is something that I am undeserving of."

"What do you mean?" TK asked. "Does that mean you don't want me to go out with you?"

"No, I do want to go out with you. It's just, you been to all my shows," Kari said.

"You don't want me to come?"

"Yes I do. I do want you to come," Kari said. "It's just that you bought tickets to all my shows and you've taken me out after each one. And you bought those flowers and everything. And I haven't given you anything. Sometimes I just feel that I'm not worthy of your kindness."

"But you are," TK said. "And you always will be. And for me, your love and affection is enough. You don't have to give me anything else."

"Thanks TK," Kari said. "I'm amazed you haven't gotten tired of seeing the same show over and over and over again. Of course the last one is tomorrow night so we'll be able to spend more time together."

"No, I haven't gotten tired of seeing the same show over and over again because I find something new I hadn't noticed before. And I'll be there for the last one tomorrow too," TK said.

"TK," Kari said and snuggled against him.

"You know what?" TK asked. "I don't know how I survived this long with out you."

THE END

I hope you liked this story. Sorry for the delay. Please review.

ebacusta