A/N: Alright, I know I said I'd update Slipping right away, but when I sat down to write the chapter, this idea kept bugging the CRAP out of me until I had to stop working on Slipping chapter 20, and write this. It's a short, fluffy, random-holiday oneshot. I think Fruits Basket fried my brain this weekend. That and I still feel really bad about my laptop situation, because I'm probably not going to be able to get my work back until Labor Day weekend, which SUCKS, and I'm sorry—so I wrote this for everyone who reviewed Echo's In A Paintbox. It got a lot more attention than I was anticipating, so here is my apology. I hope everyone enjoys it!
Disclaimer: Beyblade is © Aoki Takao
…
"Hey Kai?"
"Hmm?"
"Have you ever heard of Independence Day?"
The phoenix blader blinked up at the sky at the strange question, turning to glance at Tyson from where he was laying in the grass.
The younger bluenette sat down beside him easily, patiently waiting for an answer. Kai watched him curiously for a moment longer before gazing back up at the clear blue skies above them. It was a beautiful day.
"Sure."
"Could you tell me about it?"
Kai chewed on the blade of grass in his mouth, thinking over the question and the wistfulness in Tyson's voice.
"It's an American holiday. The fourth of July is the day that they celebrate the adoption of their Declaration of Independence, securing their freedom from the British so that they could become their own separate nation."
Tyson smiled a bit, nodding. "I remembered Ms. Kincade saying something about it during our World History course. It's today isn't it?"
"Is today the fourth of July?" Kai shot back around a smirk. Tyson blushed.
"Do you think Grandpa would get us some fireworks then?"
"Why?"
Tyson leaned back on his hands and shrugged. "Why not?"
"Because we don't live in America," he answered matter-of-factly.
"So?"
Kai sighed, sitting up. The dragon master stayed silent for a long time, the warm summer breeze playing with his long, dark bangs. The look in his eyes was different from anything the Russian teen had witnessed from his teammate before. He couldn't quite place the emotion…it confused him.
"Tyson…?"
"I just think it's nice…to be celebrating freedom. It's a nice idea."
Kai opened his mouth to respond, but Tyson stood up and jammed his hands into his pockets before he could. So he shut his mouth, unsure of what to say, and watched the Japanese blader head home. When he was out of sight, Kai dragged his ruby eyes away from the road and back to the sky. Lying back down, he followed the large white clouds as they passed overhead, offering brief seconds of shade from the sun before moving on again.
Tyson had been acting strangely lately, ever since their last World Tournament. Kai had opened himself up to Tyson completely during their battle…finally admitting things that he never thought he'd ever admit.
"I've traveled a long road to get here Tyson. This is my life's goal. Everything I've seen, everything I've done, it all starts and ends with you…"
And now it seemed like an awkward tension had risen between the two of them. Tyson never stayed in the same room with him longer than necessary. Their conversations where shorter now. Tyson wasn't such an annoyance anymore. When Max and Rei had left for their respective homes after the BBA Banquet held after the tournament, Kai had vaguely wondered why he'd stayed.
Closing his eyes, Kai let out a long breath, removing the piece of grass from his mouth as he did. Twirling it between his thumb and his forefinger for a second or two, he flicked it away and opened his eyes again.
His musing had been short-lived, in the end. He knew why he'd stayed, even if it took him a while to admit it, least of all to himself. There was nothing for him in the world any longer. With Voltaire in prison, Boris finally defeated, no family to speak of otherwise, and no need to settle down…there was only one thing left in which he could find peace.
His ruby eyes softened.
"It all starts and ends with you…"
…
Later that night, Tyson was lying on his stomach on the floor in his bedroom, staring at a comic book distractedly. He must have glanced at the same page nearly thirty times since he'd picked it up. Somehow, he couldn't manage to concentrate.
He lifted his head suddenly, when there was a knock at the door. Glancing at the clock, Tyson frowned when he realized how late it was. Who could possibly be calling on the Kinomiya residence at this hour?
"Yo my main man!" Grandpa called loudly, sliding open his bedroom door with a snap. "You gotta visitor, so get hip little dude—it ain't cool to keep a guest waiting!"
Tyson furrowed his brows as he stood up, slipping out of his bedroom around his crazy guardian.
"Who is it?"
"Are you trippin' homie? What'd I say about making guests wait?"
With a sigh of exasperation, Tyson waved his grandfather off before walking into the front hallway. Catching a glimpse of a familiar flash of white, he picked up his pace.
"Kai?"
The older teen looked up at him with a smirk, not moving from his perch leaning against the wall. Tyson blinked, walking up to him.
"Hey, what's up?" he asked casually, sliding his hands into his back pockets.
Kai shrugged. "You busy?"
"Not really," the dragon master answered truthfully, glancing over his shoulder to see his grandfather shuffle into the kitchen with his kendo stick propped up on his shoulder.
"Why?"
"I have something to show you," the Russian teen answered, pushing off the wall. "So hurry up and get your shoes on or we'll miss it."
Tyson opened his mouth to answer but couldn't find anything to say, partially from disbelief and partially…from hope.
"Um…" he answered smartly, after a minute. Kai raised his eyebrows.
"Well…I…sure…I guess."
"You don't have to come if you don't want to," the phoenix answered softly, turning away.
"No! No, it's not that! I just wasn't expecting it…I guess." he found himself blurting. Kai turned back to face him, his garnet eyes soft.
"Hurry up then."
Nodding, Tyson slipped into his shoes and grabbed his jacket, pulling it on easily.
"Grandpa?" he called back into the kitchen, tugging his ponytail out of the collar of his shirt as he did.
"What can I do for you two cool cats?" the old man called back, turning the corner into the hallway, smiling at them both.
"I'll be back in a bit, alright? Kai and I are going out for a while."
"Sure thing little dude," Grandpa nodded. "Not too late though—if you want to be jammin' the next day you gotta be early to hit the hay!"
Tyson and Kai both sweatdropped.
"Err…right Grandpa…thanks!" Grabbing Kai's arm, Tyson shoved him out the door before they had to listen to anymore of his grandfather's "advice".
"Man," Tyson breathed once they were out of earshot of the dojo. "He never changes."
"That's not a bad thing."
"I guess."
For a long time after that, they walked in silence, the flickering of fireflies and the sound of their footsteps on the pavement their only company. Finally Tyson stretched, putting his hands behind his head, glancing at Kai.
"So…where're we off to?"
Kai shrugged. "You'll see."
Pouting cutely, Tyson earned a smile from his stoic companion. After that the atmosphere was more comfortable, and both of them were relatively content with the silence. It didn't take them long to reach their destination, in fact, Tyson was surprised to realize that Kai had taken him to the beach on the edge of Bay City.
"What's this?" he asked curiously as Kai led them up behind a group of people waiting excitedly on the shore.
When Kai didn't answer Tyson rolled his eyes good-naturedly, sitting down with the phoenix blader when he sat down on the stone wall separating the city from the sand. Everyone around them was grouped in the darkness seemingly waiting for something to happen, speaking in a language that Tyson had only heard this much once before in his entire life.
"Are these people American?" he asked quietly, turning to Kai. Ruby eyes met his stormy gaze and the Russian teen smiled.
Suddenly there was a shrill whistle that echoed over the water that silenced everyone around them. Tyson whipped his head around just in time to see a huge explosion above them shower the sky with golden stardust. The dragon master's eyes lit up almost instantly, his face stretching into a huge smile.
Kai smiled too, one of his rare, ghostly smiles that he saved only for Tyson.
The Japanese blader laughed and cheered with the rest of the people around them as the fireworks exploded from a small boat that Tyson hadn't noticed earlier drifting far out to sea. After a while, the younger bluenette was able to pull his attention away from the brightly colored fireworks erupting above them in the sky. Turning to his companion, he didn't know what to say.
"Kai…how did you…?"
"Not everyone who lives here is Japanese Tyson," he smirked. "It wasn't hard to find."
"But why?" he asked suddenly, still smiling. He blinked when Kai looked away, his eyes softening.
"Because it was important to you," he answered quietly. The dragon master stared at Kai, watching the explosions of color light up his pale face, in awe.
"Besides…I think it's a nice idea too. It's the kind of thing…that unites people."
Tyson smiled gently at the soft words, his chest swelling with an unexplainable emotion that made him want to cry and laugh hysterically at the same time. Eventually, he turned his face back up at the fireworks, still smiling. Reaching across the space between them, he slipped his hand into Kai's larger one, entwining their fingers.
"I know," he whispered in the stillness before the next fireworks went off. "That's why I wanted to share it with you."
Kai looked up at him, startled. The cheers and explosions seemed to fade into the deep expanse of darkness all around them until all either of them sensed was their hands laced together, and the warmth of their skin.
"I've been trying to find a way to tell you…for a long time."
"Tell me what?"
Tyson smiled sadly at him. "How much you mean to me."
Kai's eyes widened. Unconsciously he squeezed Tyson's hand inside his own.
"I guess…I was afraid of your reaction. I'm sorry for being such a coward."
"You aren't a coward," he whispered suddenly, his voice shaking. "The scariest thing in the world for anyone…is being rejected…by someone they care about."
Tyson smiled warmly. "You don't have to be scared anymore Kai."
The phoenix inhaled sharply at his sincere words.
"I'll always be right here for you, no matter what. We're a team; we always have been, so I got your back."
"Tyson…"
"I'll protect you, Kai. So you don't have to run away anymore."
The stoic Russian didn't have any idea what to say. Lowering his head, he let his long bangs cover his eyes.
"Tyson…why…?" was all he could manage.
Suddenly Tyson's arms were around him, pulling him into a strong embrace. Kai stiffened. This was all so far from what he had expected. Was it possible that Tyson really…?
"Because I love you."
A huge explosion overhead echoed in his ears, seemingly imitating the sound of his wildly beating heart. He was glad the red glow covered his cheeks. They were burning. After a moment, Kai could breathe again, and he lifted his arms to pull Tyson closer, burying his head in the younger teen's shoulder.
"I didn't know…if…if I could risk my time with you…" he muttered incoherently into Tyson's neck. "I didn't want to lose you…"
"I understand," Tyson answered reassuringly. "But it's over now…you'll never lose me."
A stream of silent tears stained the dragon master's jacket slightly blue as they streaked through Kai's face paint.
"I've always loved you, Tyson."
Pulling himself away from the warmth of the embrace, Kai leaned in towards his companion brushing his lips against the others. Tyson closed the gap, catching the phoenix's mouth in his own, passionately claiming it for himself.
Above them, enormous fireworks streaked across the night sky, exploding into a million tiny fireflies of different colors, before fading against the stars.
…
A/N: Yeah…Fruits Basket definitely fried my brain. Anyway, I had a lot of fun writing this, it made me happy, and it was a bit different from my usual approach, with Kai being the one who is seemingly oblivious to Tyson's feelings for him because he'd long given up on ever getting them returned. And awww…how cute was that when he found out the truth! Lol. But yeah, thanks for indulging my fluffy-spasm, I'm sure they'll be more of them to come! Slipping will be updated later this afternoon as well, 'cause now that this is finished I can concentrate! Thanks again for reading!