The year Yamato started at NASA was the loneliest year of his life.

Nevermind the culture shock, the severe displacement of coming to America, the stress- he could have handled it, if that had been all. It was the little things that got to him. The microaggressions.

The way people spoke to him. Their failure to understand his accent, to listen to him past it. The fact that nobody seemed to remember his name- and Yamato was not a hard name to remember. Yama-to. The general refusal to listen to him as a professional.

The isolation.

Gabumon was there with him, of course, but even having his Digimon partner around did nothing to stave off loneliness. He missed his home, his friends, his family, his culture. He missed being able to blend in, and standing out for other reasons. He missed being top of his class, going out with the other Digidestined, playing guitar.

This place just... wasn't his home.

His first birthday at NASA was a miserable day. March 8 was a grey, rainy day, and he spent it in classes and training. Neither went well. He was called out in his afternoon class for presenting wrong information- which hadn't actually been wrong, but had been worded wrong- and sat fuming in the back of the room for the rest of the lesson. He'd made a fool of himself during training, vomiting during an anti-grav procedure- which, they'd all assured him, was totally normal, everyone threw up once- but he felt no less humiliated by the end of it.

He returned to his apartment that evening tired, cranky, and on the verge of tears after replaying the events of the day in his head so many times. He threw himself onto the bed of his studio, facedown, and Gabumon closed the door behind him and locked it.

"You shouldn't beat yourself up," Gabumon said, climbing up on the bed and patting his back. "Everyone makes mistakes."

Yamato groaned something incomprehensible into his pillow.

"Why don't we order a pizza and watch a movie?" the digimon suggested. He had become obsessed with pizza after moving to America, where it was so cheap and readily available. Yamato rolled over onto his back and started up at the ceiling.

"You go ahead. I'm just gonna lie here for a while." Somehow, he didn't feel like eating.

Gabumon sighed and slid off the bed, padding over to the desk to pick up Yamato's phone. He nearly dropped it as it started ringing and vibrating with the notification of an incoming video call. "Yamato, I think you'd better take this?"

"I don't feel like it."

"No, really! Look!" Gabumon hurried over and held the phone out to him, screen first. Yamato glanced at the screen, then grabbed it out of his partner's hand and answered.

"Hey man! Gueeeess who?" Tai yelled into his phone. He was too loud and too close, his face taking up the majority of the screen. His hair took up the rest of it. "How've you been?"

"Okay," Yamato lied, sitting up on his bed. "Just. Doing astronaut stuff."

"You didn't forget your birthday, did you? Cause we sure didn't!" He ducked out of the way of the camera, and the rest of the gang came into focus behind him.

"Yamato, otanjoubi omedetou!" the Digidestined cried, and confetti and glitter flew at the screen as the lot of them pulled the strings on their confetti poppers. Joe's popped last, a pathetic dribble of paper confetti that fell on the table in front of him. They had laid out a whole spread of cake and food, things he hadn't even thought he'd missed. He recognized some of his mom's dishware and several of her signature meals on the table as Tai walked closer to it, showing off to him.

"Alright, quit hogging and let me talk to him!" Mimi cried, grabbing the phone out of Tai's hand. "Hi, Yamato!" ("Hi Yamato!" Palmon cried, the top half of her head just barely in the frame.) "We've missed you so much we just had to throw you a big party to celebrate your big day! Oh you do have to tell us all about it, I'm just dying to know what space is like! What do you think aliens look like? Do they have good hair?"

"Give it here," Joe said, and Mimi handed it over, still jabbering to herself. "Hey Yamato. Hope you're studying hard! You're going to need good grades to get up there."

"Aw, Joe, don't be a killjoy!" Gomamon said, pawing at the phone. "Have some fun, Yamato! Rent an R-rated movie! Eat some pizza-"

"That's what I was telling him!" Gabumon cried, shoving his face up close to Yamato's to get in the shot.

"Hi Gabumon and Yamato!" Kari said, setting down her drink to take the phone. Gatomon, clinging to her shoulder, waved. "We miss you guys a whole lot. Hopefully you can visit home soon!"

"Yeah, but not too soon!" Takeru teased, leaning into the shot. Kari laughed and pecked his cheek. Yamato grinned. His little brother seemed to be doing well.

"I really miss you Gabumon," Patamon said. "It feels like it's been forever since you left."

"We'll come home and visit soon Patamon, I promise!" Gabumon said, leaning in so that his furry hood took up the entire screen. Yamato laughed and pulled him back.

"There's the birthday boy!" Sora said, taking the phone next. "We got you a present, but I guess we'll have to wait to give it to you."

"It's a Midi Fighter!" Koushiro cried, holding it up to the phone. He'd already opened it to test it out, apparently. Yamato laughed.

"Hey, don't be a stranger," Sora said, as the phone was taken away. Biyomon chased after it, her beak partway into the shot- "I didn't get to talk to them!"

"Statistically speaking, you've got the best chance out of anyone at getting into space, Yamato. None of your competitors even come close to your credentials," Koushiro said.

"Plus you're more fashionable than the others!" Tentomon added, as Biyomon clambered into the shot.

"Happy birthday, Yamato!" Biyomon cried, flapping her wings. "We love you!"

"I love you guys too," Yamato said, laughing behind his hand.

The camera swung back around to Mimi, still talking, and Meiko beside her. "Happy birthday," she said, waving. She held Meicoomon in her other arm, who turned to face the camera and waved too. Yamato and Gabumon waved back.

"I wanna talk to them, I wanna talk to them!" Agumon cried, and Tai crouched next to his partner, getting both of them into the shot. "It's lonely without you guys here, but I can't wait to see you on tv going to space!"

"We'll get there soon!" Gabumon said, eyes squeezed shut in joy. Agumon grabbed the phone, pulling it closer.

"Make sure you call home every week, and eat lots of vegetables!"

"Hey man, don't hog it," Tai said, taking his phone back. "Yamato! What do you think, man?"

"What time is it there," Yamato laughed.

"It's nine a.m! We got up early to throw you this party, so you'd better have a good birthday!"

"I will," Yamato promised.

"But don't go anywhere yet, cause we've gotta light the candles on your cake!" Tai turned and flipped the camera to the back-facing view. Kari was pulling the curtains while Joe lit up the candles with care. Then the group gathered around the table again, all turned to face the camera.

"One, two-

"Happy birthday to you
Happy birthday to you!
Happy birthday Yamato..."

"Hey, you got sauce on your chin," Gabumon said, pointing.

"Yeah, well you got sauce on your fur," Matt teased back, laughing as Gabumon frantically felt his hood all over for the mess. Eventually realizing it was in jest, Gabumon laughed too. A man passing by did a double-take and stopped at their table.

"Hey, you're-! Ya- Yama..."

"You can call me Matt," Yamato said. Everyone else did.

"Matt, alright man! And you're Gabumon, the digimon!"

"That's me," Gabumon said, sipping Fanta through a straw.

"Listen," the man said, leaning a hand against the table and withdrawing with his other hand a business card from his pocket. He extended it to Gabumon, who took the card in both claws. "I'm Jim North, and I want to send you to space."

Gabumon stared at him a moment before speaking. "Sorry, but I don't go anywhere without my friend Yamato. We're partners."

"Alright, alright. I respect that," Jim said, straightening and putting his hands up. "You drive a hard bargain, Gabumon, but I'm sure we can find a spot for Matt on our team!"

"Whoa, whoa," Yamato laughed, "we're still in classes, and training-"

"Buddy, I'm putting you on the fast track. Talent like this?" He gestured to Gabumon. "We can't waste talent like this by letting it rot in a classroom somewhere! We've gotta shoot it into space, drop it on the moon, let it flourish! Are you thinking what I'm thinking? Manned mission, to Mars. Boom. The first person on Mars? You. And the first Digimon on big red? Gabumon, baby!" He threw an arm around both their shoulders, pulling them close and shaking them a little. "Come on! It'll be radical."

Yamato looked down, thinking about it. Gabumon, with stars in his eyes, rushed to accept. "It's a deal, Jim North!"

"Hey, Gabumon-"

"Alright, baby!" Jim shook their shoulders again. "Picture this Gabumon."

"Uh-huh."

"Your face."

"Uh-huh."

"Fifty feet tall."

"I like where this is going!"

"Times Square, Tokyo, Bangladesh, not a city in the world that won't have you plastered on their buildings! In honor! In recognition! You're gonna be a star!"

"Are we astronauts, or movie stars?" Yamato muttered under his breath.

"Don't think I've forgotten about you, Max!" Jim said, slapping him on the back. "There are gonna be women- so many women- rocket groupies, I call 'em. They go NUTS for pretty boy astronauts! And buddy, you are a pretty boy."

"Thanks," Yamato said stiffly.

"So! Do we have a deal? Am I gonna make you kids into astronauts or what?" Jim held out his right hand, waiting for a shake.

"Sold!" Gabumon said, grinning. "Come on, Yamato, this is our big break!"

Yamato sighed, but eventually reached his hand out and shook on it.

When Jim North said "fast track" he apparently meant it. The next morning at six a.m, Matt awoke to a phone call and rolled over to take it.

"M- hello?"

"Matt buddy, it's Jim. I've been up all night making phone calls and preparing paperwork, and I think I've found a place for you!"

Matt bolted upright in bed. "Really?"

"So, for this moon mission-"

"Wait. I thought you said it was a Mars mission."

"Baby you gotta start small! Start small, dream big. I can't just throw together a manned Mars mission myself in less than a day! It'll take time, Matt! Give it some time!"

"Alright," Matt said, climbing out of bed. Gabumon lifted his head, blinking sleepily. "So, I'm on a moon mission now."

"That's right!"

"Wow," Matt breathed. This was really happening. "When-?"

"Next year, my man! I'm putting you in the second seat-"

"Whoa, hey, slow down... don't you think I'm a little... green for that?"

"It's like I always say- start big, dream bigger. Don't tell me you're backing out on me, please, I spent all night getting this together!"

"No, I. I'll do it." Matt ran a hand through his hair and rubbed his face. "I can't believe this is happening."

"Believe it! Forget your classes today, go out and celebrate! Live a little! There are no bars in space, you know- not yet, at least. I gotta go, my secretary is giving me a look- you know what that means, ha! Am I right? Call you back later." He hung up before Matt had a chance to say goodbye

Matt didn't go out to celebrate, but he did make a phone call. The line rang a few times before Tai picked up.

"Hello?"

"Hey, Tai. It's Yamato."

"Hey, how are ya?"

"Good, good. I'm going on a moon mission."

"What?!" Matt heard Kari and Agumon in the background, asking what was wrong. "Dude, seriously?! You're going to the MOON? The real moon?"

"The real moon," Matt said.

"That's so- amazing! Yamato, wow! When? Do you have time to talk?"

Matt laughed, sitting down on his bed. "Not until next year, but I have class in a couple hours."

"Tell me everything. Dude, this is awesome!" The blond grinned, ducking his head as Tai loudly gave his family the news. Sometimes, he was just too much.

If Matt had felt isolated before, it only worsened with the news that he was joining the manned mission the coming year. A divide grew between him and his fellow candidates, a wall between them that he couldn't seem to overcome.

He could feel himself spiraling as the days went on without human contact, without validation. He had started to withdraw again, hiding in class, leaving immediately after to go back to his apartment, skipping training and classes to hide in his studio. He couldn't handle being hated like that.

On the third day that he skipped class, Taichi called.

"Hey," Matt said, holding the phone up to his ear.

"Hey! How's it going, moon man? Are you busy?"

Matt looked around. He needed to take out the garbage and do the dishes... "No."

"So let's talk! What're you up to?"

"Just..." Just this. Just hiding in his room like a child. "Not much."

"Whaaaat? They've gotta have you in some special astronaut pilot training right now! Are you in one of those spinny things?"

"I'm at home," he said sharply.

Tai paused. "You mad at me or something?"

"No! I'm just..."

"What's going on, man? You okay?" He had gone from cheerful to concerned in seconds. "Wanna talk about it?"

"Yeah," Matt sighed. "I'm... I'm lonely. I'm homesick. I'm sick of everyone avoiding me just because I caught a break and they didn't."

"Gabumon's not avoiding you, right?"

"Of course not. But Gabumon's coming with me." There was a long pause. Tai probably didn't know what to say now. "Listen, I'm gonna-"

"What time is it?" Tai asked suddenly.

"Around eight, eight-fifteen?"

"Go outside."

"What? No."

"Come on, man, I'm gonna pep talk you! Put some shoes on and get outside!"

Matt sighed loudly into his phone, and rolled off his bed. He slipped his shoes on at the door, made sure he had his keys, and stepped out of his apartment.

"Alright, I'm outside."

"Can you see the stars?"

"Uh..." Not quite. The roof hung over the balcony, blocking out the sky. "No, why?"

"Get somewhere where you can."

"Tai..."

"This is going somewhere, I promise."

"Fine," Matt sighed again. He headed down the stairs and out towards the walking path. Framed between the trees on either side shone hundreds of stars, glowing bright against the black sky.

"Okay. I see them."

"Find Polaris." Hokkyokusei, the north star. Matt nodded, taking a moment to orient himself and find it.

"Alright."

"You see it?"

"Yeah."

"That same star is shining over Japan, right now. We're looking at it together."

It took Matt a second, and then he burst out laughing- "you jerk, it's morning there!"

"Well, it was shining over us, and it will again. We're not that far apart, okay? Much closer than the moon," Tai said. Matt lowered his head, smiling.

"I'm right here, on the same planet as you, whenever you need me," Tai continued. "Just call me. Okay?"

"Okay," Matt said.

"I mean it, whenever you're happy or sad or mad or just wanna talk, call me. I don't care what time it is. I'm your friend, Yamato. And I love you, dude."

"I know," Yamato said. "I love you too."

"Call me!"

"I will!"

He went to class. He went to training. Yamato was doing fine.

"Just try not to puke this time," the instructor warned as he stepped into the anti-gravity machine. He gave her a thumbs up.

(And he didn't puke.)

Jim North's office was bigger than he'd expected. Yamato sat, feeling rather small, in one of the leather chairs in front of the man's desk. Gabumon sat in the other one. Jim was on the phone, currently negotiating something or other with the person on the other end- "Uh-huh. Uh-huh. Ah-hah! Uh-huh. Alright, get back to me on that." He slammed the phone down, folded his hands together, and looked between Yamato and Gabumon, grinning.

"...So?" Yamato asked.

"What's the news?" Gabumon pried.

"You two are officially the hottest thing since Neil Armstrong. I'm putting you on the Today Show, tomorrow morning, as the faces of the moon mission!"

"Alright!" Yamato cheered. Gabumon beamed.

"And that's not all," Jim said. "You two are gonna have a lot of interviews coming up. I hope you're ready for- what am I saying, of course you're ready! You're a star, kid!"

The months that followed were a blur. School, training, interviews, parties, dinners, meet and greets, tests. He made friends in classes, and in training, and he called Tai every week.

"How does it feel, knowing you're going to be the first person in 45 years to walk on the moon?" he was asked in an interview once.

"It's an honor," he said.

Time flew by, and one day, he woke up early, and realized it was time to go.

"Takeoff is the worst part," his first officer told him as they were strapped in and waiting. "It's a lot like being on an airplane. Takeoff and landing are rough, but everything else is smooth sailing."

I hope you're right, Matt thought. He didn't want to make a fool of himself on his first mission.

It was as if a giant beast were waking up beneath them, as the rocket came to life. Valves opened and closed, jolting them.

Go, go, go! All systems are go!

"We have lift off," mission control announced.

It was... fast. Matt shook and jolted in his seat, nauseated by the movement. For a minute, he thought he might pass out. BANG, and the rescue system was jettisoned.

BANG, when the straps on the boosters separated.

BANG, when the nose fairing came off.

BANG, and the g-load dropped.

It lasted a full two minutes, and then some- and then very suddenly the world was gone, and all he could see were the stars.

"Don't move just yet," the first officer warned him. "Settle in."

Matt stayed still, waiting, and then- some eight or so minutes after lift off- there was a massive jolt, a BANG, a jerk that ran through his entire body and slammed his skull inside his head- and then it was over. There was nothing, no gravity, holding him in his seat anymore, and though the feeling of weightlessness wasn't entirely unfamiliar, it was...

Wow, Matt thought.

"I think I'm going to be sick," Gabumon said from the seat behind him.

It is now safe to float around the cabin, as a steward would say.

There was the anti-grav testing, and then there was this. Matt and Gabumon floated and drifted and everything else floated too, within the spaceship. The first officer didn't seem to mind them having some fun while he chatted with mission control to confirm everything was good up here. Soon enough, he joined them, drifting in nothing, no weight, no heaviness.

"How far is it to the moon?" Gabumon asked, looking out the window. The first officer, Geoff, laughed.

"It'll be a while!"

Eight hours passed like a dream, and soon they were strapping back in for a safe landing. "Are you ready to be on every television in the world?" Geoff asked at some point as Houston was guiding their lunar module to their landing.

"I was born ready," Matt said seriously. Geoff laughed.

The moon that had hung so small and distant in the night sky came up over them now, and the edges of the celestial body disappeared over the far horizons. Geoff hung back to let Matt and Gabumon out first, and the two of them stepped out of the lunar module into the cool, dusty surface.

"Oh, wow," Matt breathed.

He had seen pictures of the earth from here before, but somehow, none of them had ever captured just how... blue it was. A heavenly glow surrounded the planet, hung far off in the distance, color bleeding into the vast blackness of space around it.

From here it looked simultaneously so huge and so tiny, disappearing into the folds of black; a smooth pebble buffeted by the dark waves, and the stars shone like a specks of dust all around it, millions and millions of miles away.

He could make out shapes from here; the earth had turned in the past eight hours, slipping slowly around its axis until the eastern hemisphere almost faced them. Japan was just over the edge, clothed in darkness, waiting for the sun. It was four a.m. there.

He wondered if Tai was awake to see it.

He suddenly felt very lonely again.

"We did it!" Gabumon cheered. "We're here! I'm the first Digimon on the moon!"

"It's an incredible feeling, isn't it Matt?" Geoff asked. Yamato nodded, not looking away from the beautiful planet out ahead.

"Yeah, it is."

Japan was so far away now, and it ached in his chest.

The broadcast was seen around the globe, by over four billion people, Yamato learned after a safe landing in the Nevada desert. Jim North chattered on the phone to him for almost an hour as they drove back to Houston, promising him models and a movie deal and a heap of money he didn't know how to spend. Yamato was silent. Gabumon slept, leaned up against him.

"Let me tell you, Matt, there's not a lady out there who won't want you now! Everyone knows your names- Gabumon and Matt, uh..."

"I have to go," Yamato said suddenly, hanging up. He dialed a number from memory and held the phone up to his ear.

"This is Yagami."

"Tai?"

"Yamato! Dude, you're famous! I saw you on tv! You and Gabumon!"

"I wanna talk to them!"

"Hang on Agumon, I got to it first! Yamato you've gotta tell me all about it, I can't believe how cool you looked! You've gotta stop that brooding look though man, you looked totally down!"

"Lemme talk to Gabumon!"

"Hang on, here's Agumon!"

"Gabumon, Yamato!" Agumon's voice rang through the car. Gabumon jolted awake. "I can't believe you were on television! Could you see Japan from space? Did you see us waving?"

"I can't believe you were up at that hour just to watch us," Yamato laughed, holding the phone away from his ear while Agumon and Taichi squabbled over the phone.

"Hey hang on, Kari, I'm not finished!"

"Hi Yamato!" Hikari sang through the phone. "They butchered your name on the American broadcast!"

"Is everyone over there?" Yamato asked, grinning despite himself.

"We all got together just to watch," Kari said. "Oh, hang on, Takeru wants to talk."

"So, mister astronaut, what are you going to do now that you've been to space?" Takeru teased from the other side. "Have you heard they're talking about making a movie of you? I think I could play you."

Yamato laughed, shaking his head.

"Hey, if Gabumon is there, tell him we're really proud of him!" Patamon yelled from somewhere near the phone receiver. "All us Digimon were watching too! And he'd better come home and visit soon!"

"I will!" Gabumon cheered.

"Lemme talk to him!" Mimi cried, and then Yamato could hear her and Joe and Koushiro fighting over who got the phone next. "Yamato!" Mimi cried frantically into the receiver, "what was your hair like in zero gravity?! Did space rays affect your color at all? No, I have to knooooow!"

"We're all really proud of you Yamato," Sora said, calmly taking the phone from the three of them and leaving them to fight. "You're really amazing."

"Yeah, we can't wait to see where you go next!" Taichi yelled, pressing his face up against hers to get closer to the phone.

Where he went next...

"Mars," Jim said, slapping his palm against the poster of the big red planet on the wall. "You're in, Matt. Are you ready?"

"We're honored!" Gabumon cried, eyes closed in joy.

"I'm ready," Matt said.

Two years. Lift off didn't feel so bad, this time.

Mars was even redder than he'd expected. Huge and endless and dusty and red.

"Ready for the broadcast?" Pam asked, setting up the camera. Matt turned to face her, squinting to try to see through the swirling dust. Somewhere way off far were the stars...

He couldn't see the earth at all.

We go live now to the broadcast from the first ever manned mission to Mars. Manning the Ascension 01 are Pam Zinke, and rising young captain Matt Ishida, as well as the first Digimon in space, Gabumon.

Red swirled everywhere, and Pam had to walk the camera closer until it could capture his image. She gave a thumbs up when it was close enough, then moved into the shot with them. Gabumon waved vigorously at the camera. Pam made a peace sign.

Yamato stared past it, trying to find earth.

"Again, this was the first manned mission to Mars," the newscaster said, "and with us are Gabumon and Matt Ishida, the first Digimon and human to take a step on the planet. Gabumon, how does it feel to break down so many barriers for Digi-kind? It seems like you just keep busting through the glass ceiling."

"It's an honor, Josephine, and we're so grateful for the opportunity to put our skills to the test twice now!" Gabumon said. His little lizard tail wagged against the leather couch they'd been directed to.

"As the first Digimon astronaut, tell me- is it hard to find work?"

"Not at all! Everyone wants us on their spaceships, and it's clearly because Yamato is such a good captain!"

"Captain for his second mission. Matt, what can you tell me about your plans? Where are Matt and Gabumon headed next?"

There was silence on the fake living room set for a moment. Gabumon nudged him.

"I think I'm ready to be on earth for a while," Matt said, lifting his head and smiling at her.

"Jeez, I'm coming, I'm coming," Tai grumbled, running his fingers through his bedhead as he made his way towards the door. "Better not be another door to door-"

"Hey," Yamato said as he swung the door open. Tai blinked at him, closed the door, and then threw it open again.

"Wha- You're here? You're really here?! Dude, what! How did you even get here?!"

"Ever hear of an airplane? Let me in."

"Gabumon!" Agumon cried, dashing down the front hall to meet his friend. They clasped claws, moving their arms up and down as if shaking hands for the first time.

"Why are you here though?" Tai asked as he poured tea for both of them. "What about your work? Don't you have other stuff to do?"

"I just wanted to come home," Yamato said. "Do you mind if I crash here for a day or two?"

"Of course! Don't you want to see your family though?"

"I'll visit tomorrow."

"I don't have an extra futon..."

"When did you get all stingy? We'll just share."

Tai grinned at him, and Yamato took a long sip of tea. "Why are you looking at me like that?" he asked after a while.

"It's really good to have you home, Yamato!" Tai threw himself forward, capturing Yamato in a hug, and they both laughed as tea sloshed everywhere.

"You sure you don't want to go out tonight? I could get the gang together, everyone would love to see you!"

"I'll go see everyone tomorrow," Yamato yawned. "Let's just get some pizza."

Tai looked at him strangely. "Man, I'm glad you're home and all, but I don't have that kind of money..."

Yamato could have smacked himself. "Right. How about oden?"

"Let's go then!"

The two men and their two Digimon chatted eagerly as they walked down the street to an oden stand. There, Yamato and Taichi got somewhat drunk, and racked up a tab that had to be settled with several large bills and a lot of apologies for the inconvenience. By the time they returned to Tai's apartment, their Digimon were asleep on their shoulders, and they had to tiptoe, giggling, down the hall towards the bedroom.

Agumon and Gabumon were put to bed in the middle of the futon; Tai wriggled into the left side and Yamato slid into the right, and the four of them lay crammed together under the covers like a bunch of canned sardines.

"It's really good to see you and talk face to face again," Tai yawned, rolling over to face Yamato and scooting in so the blankets covered his butt.

"Yeah it is," Yamato said.

"Did you miss me at all? While you were floating around on the moon and stuff?"

"Not at all," Yamato lied.

"Jerk! Don't lie!"

Agumon rolled over, grumbling something in his sleep- "Mmm... no more radishes..." The two men shushed each other, settling down until the Digimon relaxed again.

"Of course I missed you," Yamato said, closing his eyes. "When I was up there on Mars, and the moon, looking out at the stars... all I could think of was how far away home was."

"Wow. Deep," Tai said, stretching.

"I thought about it a lot," Yamato said. "Actually, I don't think I can go back out there."

"Really?"

"Both times, when I stepped out of the ship and saw how tiny the world was, and how long it would take to get back... It made my heart hurt."

Tai was silent.

"I kept thinking that I had to keep going, so that I could make everyone proud... But I missed you all so much. I missed you so much."

"You big softy," Taichi murmured. "We'd be proud of you anywhere, in space or on earth."

"I'm glad," Yamato said, taking the initiative and leaning forward. Tai met him halfway.

Gabumon snored and Agumon kicked in his sleep, but the two of them slept soundly, hands clasped together.

Light spilled through the windows. His phone was ringing, too loud. "Get the phone," Tai groaned, rolling over and covering his eyes. Yamato grimaced, pushing himself halfway upright to fumble for his cellphone.

"Hello?"

"Matt, baby, where are you? I've been trying to get ahold of you all day! Listen, we're talking big this time, we're talking giants--honey I'm talking Jupiter! Get ready for the expose on the big red spot! Get over to my office, first thing- no, get over there now, and I'll meet you there! We've gotta get you ready! The Today Show wants you yesterday!"

Yamato was silent a long moment, eyes closed. "Actually, Mr. North, I don't think so," he said. Tai lifted his head, looking back at him.

"What- what are you saying, Matt? That you're not going? This is a big deal, this is- it's huge! It's GIGANTIC! You can't pass on this! It would be a career-ender!"

"I think that's okay," Yamato said.

"You can't be happy with this! Matt, tell me- what did you feel when you were on Mars. You were happy, right! You were the first man to touch the red planet! You and Gabby!"

"I was happy," Matt said. It was true; despite the distance, the loneliness, he was happy. He had achieved his dreams. "But I'm happier on earth."

"Oooo, whatever you've leaving this for- it'd better be one hell of an opportunity!"

Yamato glanced over at Tai, who stared at him quizzically. "It is," he confirmed.

"Matt, wait, let me sweeten the deal-"

Click, and the call ended.

"Who was that?" Tai asked, curiosity stronger than his hangover.

"No one important," Yamato said. He leaned over, blonde bedhead blocking out the morning sunlight streaming through the windows, and pressed his lips to Tai's. The brunette reached his arms up to slink around his shoulders, and a minute or two passed like that.

"Wanna go see the gang?" Tai asked when they separated.

"Yeah," Yamato said, "I'm ready."