Disclaimer: I don't own anyone. I got the quote from YM.

I'm Starting To Kind Of Like This

Rika Nonaka wore a bored expression as she flipped through her magazine. Actually, it was one of Jeri's "Teen Star" magazines. The girly kind of magazine that had the latest in makeup, clothes, stars, movies, music, etc. The kind of magazine Rika, before, would never be caught dead reading. Jeri had managed to convince her that it was okay and so she started to read it… sometimes. But, only when she was alone in her room, sometimes with Renamon, and when she was super bored like today.

I'm only reading it for the embarrassing moment's section. That was partially true, but the truth was, she actually enjoyed the silly magazine. Only a little. Especially the edition that was in her hand today. No. I hate this stupid magazine. Stupid Jeri.

It was a rainy Saturday afternoon, and everyone seemed busy today. Takato was out on a date with Jeri, Henry was at basketball practice, Kazu was at football, Kenta was grounded, and Ryo was in Australia. Even Suzy was busy at street dance! She was the only one who was completely free today.

Rika was currently lying on her bed, stomach down, and Renamon occupied the floor. The digimon all returned about a year after they were sent back and it's been two years since they came back. She, Takato, Henry, Jeri, Kazu, and Kenta were all fifteen and attended the same school. Rika managed to convince her mother to change schools, by arguing. In the end, it was her grandmother who persuaded her mom.

She, Takato, Jeri, and Henry grew to be the best of friends. But, she grew very close to Henry because Takato and Jeri often did things together. After all these years, she still refused to go out with any boys. Occasionally, she would accept a couple of invitations to dance, but other than that she didn't date. Boys are stupid.

Dating… Bleh. That reminded her of Takato and Jeri. Goggle head and his girlfriend may be her good friends, but their displays of affection made her sick. They made out and cuddled and all that crap. But, still yet, they made a cute and perfect couple. Bleh. It was disgusting.

Henry… he was her best friend. And he was the hottest guy in school. And because of that, almost all of the girls at school were jealous of her. Why else would they shoot her death glares every time she talked to him? She flipped another page, half thinking and half reading the magazine.

Even though he could have easily had hundreds of girlfriends, Henry has never dated. He, like Rika, refused every girl that asked him out. Why? She didn't get it! Practically the whole population of girls was head-over-heels for him! Maybe Henry was just plain dense and didn't know, or maybe he knew but didn't care. Yeah. That was it. He didn't care. Typical.

She shook her head and flipped the page. Renamon looked at Rika and smiled. Her partner was terribly amusing when she read these silly, human girl magazines. Renamon figured Rika needed some time alone.

"I'm going to be out for a while." Rika didn't look up and shrugged. She brushed a strand of hair out of her face. Her mid back length, auburn hair was down and slightly wet from her shower.

"Whatever." Rika said sharply. She was still the cold rebel. And she rarely smiled, even at home. But when she did, it was usually reserved for only a handful of people: her grandma, Renamon, Suzy (who had her moments of sweetness), and Henry. Most of her rare smiles were at Henry. Argh! What am I saying! She shook her head and frowned. She had stopped denying the fact that she liked – no – loved her best friend, but that didn't stop her from trying to get him out of her mind. Stop thinking about him, stop thinking about him! Stupid Henry.

She tried to concentrate on the magazine in front of her. Her amethyst eyes scanned the page, trying to clear her mind from the navy haired boy. Ah. The music section of the magazine… hottest band of the week… Blink 182. Henry's favorite band… She quickly flipped the page.

The next page was fashion page, full of the latest fashions and styles. She hardly read this page, but right now, she didn't care. Hmmm… cute orange vest… kind of like the one Henry still wears. Stupid magazine.

She turned the page and looked at the next section. Sports! That's better! Being the captain of the volleyball, soccer, and basketball team, Rika was very fond of sports. Then again, Henry was captain of the boy's basketball team, co-captain of the soccer team (goggle head was the captain), captain of the baseball team, and a black belt in karate. Sigh. Henry this, Henry that! Stupid Henry… has to be good at everything.

Rika groaned inwardly. She flipped the page and rolled her eyes. She might as well stop reading the dumb magazine. But it was so addicting at the same time. She needed to finish it.

She looked at the new page and looked at one of the quotes.

Boy Translation—

WHAT HE SAYS: "I'm starting to kind of like Alias!"

WHAT HE MEANS: "I'm falling in love with you and will watch whatever you want to watch."

Rika raised an eyebrow. As much as she hated to admit it, it was pretty cute. Jeri would love this quote. But the only problem was that it was unrealistic. There was no boy she knew who would ever say something that sweet. Boys don't say stuff like that in real life. Only boys from fairy tales would say such things. Stupid magazine.

But I would be a little flattered if a boy said that to me. Actually, maybe annoyed at he same time. Scratch that. I would hate it if a boy said that to me. Stupid boys. Stupid magazine. Especially if that boy was Kazu. She smirked and closed the magazine. Enough. This magazine is stupid.

She looked at the time. 4:30 pm! She wasted a whole hour reading that ridiculous magazine!

DING DONG!

She muttered curses under her breath and hurried to the door. She was the only one home because her mom had a photo shoot and her grandmother was visiting friends for the month. Home alone… she thought sullenly.

She reached the door and quickly opened it. Her eyes widened slightly when she saw who was at the door.

"I thought you had basketball, Wong." Rika said raising an eyebrow. She looked at the boy in front of her. He was about 3 inches taller than her 5'6" figure. His midnight blue hair was slightly spiked, due to the light drizzle and him constantly running his hand through his hair. His silver-gray eyes seemed to pierce right through her and contrasted perfectly to his lightly tanned skin. He gave her a warm smile.

"It was canceled and I thought you might want some company…" he said shrugging, as he ran his hand though his hair. She saw him flush slightly. But why? She decided to ignore it.

"Whatever. No one's home anyways." She said stepping back to let him in. She gave him a very small half smile. It was quick, but it was still a smile. Henry smiled back and entered the quiet house.

"Where's the talking terror?" Rika asked referring to Henry's small partner. Henry grinned and rolled his eyes. Terriermon stayed the same Terriermon… including his loud mouth.

"At home with Suzy and Lopmon, where else? I'm guessing Renamon is out." He said as they walked into the living room. She seated herself on the couch and he sat down next to her. Rika nodded and looked at her best friend, who had his eyes closed and seemed to be deep in thought. I wonder what he's thinking about.

Henry closed his eyes and silently took a deep breathe, smelling the lavender eyed girl's scent. She smelled like country apple… Henry felt himself flush slightly. He felt like an idiot. Snap out of it, Wong! But, he just couldn't help himself. Ever since they first became friends, he had a crush on her. He eventually settled on love and tried to deny it at first, but lost. He never had feelings for any other girl. Then again, she was the prettiest girl in school, he hardly knew any guy who didn't like her! Although… he found it amusing when she glared at every boy who dared to talk to her.

He didn't understand why she pushed so many guys away. But he didn't really care, seeing that he got upset and jealous when other boys tried to make a move on her. Feh. Jealous… So what.

"Are you okay?" She asked shooting him a look. He blinked a couple of times and gave her a small smile.

"Uh… yeah. Just thinking… So, what do you wanna do?" She looked at the clock and let out a small, barely audible gasp. Shit!

"Quick pass the remote!" Rika snapped. Henry shot her a confused look as he tossed the remote to her. He watched her scramble with the buttons and chuckled.

"I get it. Friends is on right now right?" He asked with an amused expression on his face. Ah. He knew he too well.

"Maybe." She said keeping her eyes glued to the T.V. screen. Her slender fingers tapped the remote, while the screen quickly changed from one channel to another. He grinned.

"I don't get why you like that show so much."

"Hn." She replied. It was funny. That's why. He gave her a look.

"Hn? Gee, that's a good reason." He said sarcastically. He rolled his eyes. Rika loved that show, though he couldn't see why, and hardly missed an episode… which was probably why she was ignoring him right now.

"Just on time," she said with a triumphant smirk. Henry raised an eyebrow, it wasn't even playing yet! He chuckled and shook his head in disbelief. Girls. He'll never figure them out.

"Want me to make some popcorn?" he offered. She finally turned to face him and smiled. He felt his heart skip a beat and struggled to force down his blush.

"Yeah and can you grab some drinks too?" He stood up and headed for the kitchen. He grinned, Rika only acted like this in front of him. At school, she only hung out with their small group and was pretty much the same old Rika to other people. She wasn't as cold, but she was still known as the Ice Queen. Whenever they were at his place, or hers, alone, they were more relaxed. It used to be the same with Takato, but he usually hung out with Jeri now. It was a lot of fun with Takato and Jeri over, but, they usually did their own things.

Rika watched Henry as he walked into her kitchen. She smirked. She had her favorite show, her best friend, popcorn, and drinks… what more could she ask for?

"Um… a little help here?" Henry asked struggling with the popcorn in one hand and the two drinks in the other hand. Rika walked over and grabbed the bowl of popcorn, then scurried back to the couch.

"Hurry up. It's starting!" She said and looked at her best friend. He smirked and took slower steps. Rika scowled.

"Very funny, Wong." Henry grinned and sat down. He took the popcorn from her and placed it in his lap. He opened his can of root beer, then opened her can of orange soda. It was their tradition for him to open both his can of soda and hers while they watched a movie, or in this case, Friends.

He grinned and rested his arm on the armrest. He never really liked Friends, but every time she laughed, he would laugh or chuckle along with her. Her smile was contagious and warm. Friends was never his favorite show, but he loved seeing Rika laugh and smile. And she only did those two things while watching her show… She never smiled in public and never laughed either, making this moment an uncommon one. He'd watch this show all day long with her if he had to.

"You know what?" Henry said looking at Rika. It was a commercial break, so it was okay to talk and have her full attention. Rika turned to face him, her amethyst eyes met his slate ones.

"What?"

"I think I'm starting to kind of like Friends!" He said grinning. She froze, remembering the magazine she read earlier. Nah. It can't be… can it? That was just a coincidence. Stupid magazine.

Rika felt her heart race. Did he actually return her feelings? Why? Why her? Whatever. She didn't care anymore. She didn't care if that stupid magazine was wrong or if it was just some crazy coincidence. She leaned up and gave him a soft kiss on his lips. Then she noticed her show was back on and refocused her attention on the T.V.

Henry flushed.

Was it something he said?

end