Tai: So…sorry sappy, sorta sad, sorta…weird I suppose, but I have a new story! This is only going to be a oneshot; please no asking for sequels because, well, I'm not really sure I could do one for this. However if you'd like me to write a beyblade story with your favourite couple (or a random couple you'd like to read a story about) review and let me know, or flick me a PM. Also if you check my profile, you'll find a link to a list of animes I've watched, if there's another anime you can think of something for.
Disclaimer: Don't own Beyblade or its characters.
The sun was shining, the birds were singing, and the world was aglow with colour; vibrant reds, purples and yellows decorated the landscape with splashes of colour, creating an altogether beautiful scene. The young male surrounded by the wondrous sight barely noticed it however, his bright eyes were unusually devoid of their light as he stared at the gravel beneath his feet. The news he and the rest of the Bladebreakers had just received was, in a word, devastating. It hadn't hit the bright and bubbly blonde of the team yet; not fully, and when it did the slate haired male knew he needed to be there.
The neko-jin had returned home merely a month ago, and both his Russian and American teammate had missed him dearly; there was more between the three of them than just a friendship, not that their world champion companion had realised it. The blue haired male had been thoroughly absorbed with his girlfriend for more than a few months, leaving him blind to his teammates emotions.
One month Ray had been gone, and it was only two weeks until he was due to return, something both Max and Kai were looking forward to; the bed felt lonely with one of their trio missing. The ruby eyed Russian was still glad to have the sapphire eyed blonde in his arms every night when he fell asleep; it was comforting to have something to hold on to.
"Kai?"
The blonde's gentle voice was as welcoming as ever; his sparkling blue eyes still as lively as they'd been yesterday, before…
"Come here, Max." the slate haired teen mumbled, holding back the waves of emotion that threatened to overcome him. The blonde obliged, settling onto the bench next to the older teen. He didn't remain there long as Kai easily pulled him into his lap, holding the male against his chest while one hand stroked through the sun coloured hair.
The pair stayed in a comfortable silence, tears slowly making their way from Kai's eyes and dripping into the blonde hair. Finally a gentle sob escaped the younger male as he grasped the dark material tightly, burying his head again the pale neck.
It was several minutes more before either of them spoke and even then the words from the blonde were barely audible to the slate haired male. "He's not coming back, is he?"
"I'm afraid not pet; we'll go and be with him soon though, I promise." The Russian mumbled back, gently pressing his lips to the younger's forehead.
"Why did it have to happen to him Kai? He didn't deserve it."
"No one deserves such a thing Max, but we can't change what's happened. He's…gone…" his voice was already cracking as he finished his sentence, the blonde in his arms already broken down into tears. The pair remained in a firm embrace, sobbing on and off for near an hour before they were interrupted by a short brunette.
He looked at the pair, hesitant to disturb them but well aware they would be furious if they missed anything. "Kai…Mr Dickenson just called; he'd finished informing all the teams and since the White Tigers were the ones to tell him…the media's been informed." The bespectacled male stated, earning a stiff nod from the Russian.
"When's it going to be televised?" Kai asked softly, continuing to stroke the blonde's soft hair. Seeing the stoic teen's eyes as bloodshot as his own was a stark reminder of how close the two had been. It took him another moment to realise the young American had fallen asleep, though his eyes appeared just as puffy.
"Shortly; Hilary and Tyson are sitting in the lounge with one of the news channels on waiting for it."
He received another nod from the slate haired teen and took it as his dismissal, disappearing back inside the dojo. Kai waited several more moments, processing the information, before finally moving to rouse the teen in his lap.
"Max, wake up." He mumbled, gently shaking the younger male. It took several attempts, but he finally succeeded in waking the teen. "Mr Dickenson's going to do a press release shortly, did you want to see it?" His voice was unusually gentle, but one Max was familiar with for their many evenings spent together with their neko-jin.
"Yea…it might be nice…" Max mumbled, moving slightly to move inside. He was stopped as Kai tightened his grip and stood, effortlessly carrying the American inside and settling both of them on one of the couches.
They didn't have long to wait, as the headline 'breaking news' began flashing on the screen.
A woman in a tidy suit sat behind a desk, her eyes focused just behind the camera as she began to speak. "This just in, we have some breaking news. Well liked beyblader Ray Kon, known widely from his time blading for the bladebreakers, is reported to have died while visiting his home town. We bring you live to the BBA office, where Stanley Dickenson is preparing to give an official statement."
The scene changed to the front of the new BBA building, where the head of the BBA waited pateintly for the camera crews and reporters to sort their equipment, before finally speaking. "Thank you all for coming, though I wish it were for more pleasant reasons. It is my unfortunate duty to announce the death of one of competitive beyblading's greatest competitors, Mr Raymond Kon.
"Ray was a well-loved member of the beyblading community, a loyal friend, honourable competitor and a friendly, polite young man. He was fatally injured while travelling with friends around his home town, and was unable to be revived. Our hearts go out to Ray's family and friends at this time; he will be sorely missed."
The television flickered off suddenly as a cry of grief escaped from Tyson, which seemed to set off a chain reaction through the younger members of the team, Max and Kenny soon joining him in sobbing. As things began to quieten down, slowly but surely, Kai let out a small sigh.
"I've scheduled an airplane to take us to China tomorrow morning. From there, there'll be a helicopter to collect us from the airport to take us to the White Tiger Village." The Russian stated, receiving gasps from Tyson and Hilary. "I've told Lee we'll be there tomorrow evening."
Without another word he gathered the blonde back into his arms, intent on heading off to bed. None of them were likely to sleep that night, but it was worth a shot. There wasn't anything more they could do until they reached the village and saw him. As he settled Max against his chest, curled under the blankets of their bed, both males started sobbing once more, memories flooding back.
"It's not fair Kai!"
"It never is."
"I love him…"
"I love him too, just as much as I love you Max." Hugging the blonde tightly, the Russian fell into a restless sleep, glad he still had the American and promising himself he'd never let him go.
24 hours earlier, White Tiger Village, China
"Come on Lee, we haven't gone training in the forest for years!" Ray argued, his bright amber eyes locked on to the other neko-jin. "I'm only home for another two weeks, we might as well."
"Fine, you're right. I need to talk to the elders briefly, and then we can go." The tanned male relented, earning a grin of triumph from the other male. "I'll be back shortly." Straightening his yellow shirt he headed out of the small hut and toward the centre of the village.
The remaining ebony haired neko-jin finally settled down somewhat and let out a sigh; he'd come home to talk to his best friend about something important, but as the grandson of the village leader, Lee had been busy. Today was the first day the male was free, and Ray was looking forward to getting away from the village for a few hours so the two could talk alone.
'Kai…Max…I know you wanted to come with me when I told them, but I need to do this alone.' Ray sat watching the door, waiting for his childhood friend to return. He kept his smile firmly in place as other members of the village wandered past, while nerves bubbled under the surface. He'd straightened his white shirt multiple times and pulled every loose thread free from his pants, but nerves were still prevailing.
It didn't take long for Lee to return, and he laughed as Ray began bounding around the room again, waiting for the dark haired male to collect his blade so they could leave. "Are the others coming with us?"
"Nah, I thought it'd be more fun with just the two of us, just like old times." Ray grinned, settling down again as he moved to the door. "Ready to go?"
Nodding, Lee followed his old friend from the village, the pair making small talk as they walked; catching up on changes in the village, how the other beyblade teams were doing, what each of them had been up to recently. It didn't take Lee long to realise his old friend was holding something back, and with the village well out of sight he stopped.
"Lee?"
"Ray…you didn't come home just for a visit. You wanted to tell me something, didn't you?" he asked firmly, their amber eyes locking on to one another.
Silence ensued for several minutes, before he finally answered. "I did. I've been trying to think of the best way to say it, but I don't think how I say it will matter…I don't like girls Lee; I'm gay."
His black haired companion blinked at him for several moments, processing the news before sighing in relief, something that confused Ray greatly. "Sorry, it's just...I've sort of suspected for a while; I haven't told Mariah or the village elders, but I've been trying to sort out her betrothal to someone else. I was kind of worried you were going to ask my permission to marry her."
The pair broke out laughing as Lee wrapped an arm around his friend's shoulders, the pair continuing on their walk into the mountains. "Don't tell me you were worried about telling me Ray; we've been friends for years, nothing can break a friendship like that!" he stated, taking on a Cheshire-cat like grin. "So, who is he? Do I know him?"
Ray let out a nervous laugh. "Ah yea…you know them…"
His friend cocked an eyebrow, "Them?"
"Kai and Max…"
"Wow….both of them?" Lee paused for a moment, his grin still firmly in place. "You know that's three times as many fangirls to kill you out of jealousy if they find out."
"Hadn't thought of that." The pair laughed as they continued walking, further from the village as they headed to a secret training ground they'd shared as kids. It was secluded, quiet and beautiful; a small waterfall tumbled into a pool that fed a stream, surrounded by trees and flowers. Animals were a common sight; normally birds or small mammals like rabbits.
"It hasn't changed a bit, has it?" Ray asked, happily jumping down the bank beside the waterfall.
"Are you really surprised? No one comes out here." Lee responded, following suit. Soon both were settled on rocks by the small stream, talking about anything that came to mind.
"So Tyson finally opened his eyes and realised Hilary likes him?" Lee grinned, earning a nod from his friend. "How the hell did it take him this long?"
"He's dense. Hell Kai, Max and I normally cuddle into the same bed on cold nights. Tyson sleeps in the same room and he still hasn't noticed; Kenny noticed the first day and asked me about it." Ray smiled, earning a laugh from Lee.
"Have the three of you…y'know…while he's been in the room?" the neko-jin's grin grew wider as Ray blushed, sending him into hysterics again.
"Kenny was staying at Ming Ming's, Daichi had been back in his home village for weeks and Tyson…Tyson snores like a rhino so he wouldn't notice anything!" the dark haired male defended, his blush darkening. "Kai's pretty sure he woke up at one point but didn't notice anything."
"Sounds like Tyson hasn't changed." Lee stated, gasping for breath and wiping away a tear as his laughter finally died down. His grin disappeared suddenly as the trees around them fell silent, both males frowning. "Ray did you hear that?"
"Yea…what do you think it was?" he replied quietly, not daring to move.
"I don't know, but I think we should head back."
Both males moved quietly toward the trees not far from the waterfall's cliff. The yellow shirted male began climbing first, easily scaling a tall tree. It was the easiest way to get back up the steep cliff; climbing one of the tall trees nearby, walking across one of the high branches and jumping the short distance over to the rocky top.
Almost at the top, Lee looked back to check on Ray, grinning at the male. "Just like old times, isn't it?"
"Yea."
Reaching the top of the cliff, he moved to the far side and lay down to quietly survey the area, wondering what had scared the birds from the trees on the opposite side. He continued to ponder for several minutes before a shot rang out, and a feeling of dread bolted down Lee's spine. "Ray!"
Rushing back to the tree, he found the dark haired male crumpled at the bottom of the tree, crimson staining his while shirt. "No….RAY!"
Without thinking he bolted back down the cliff face to reach his friend, heart pounding loudly in his ears. "Ray…Ray stay with me." Checking the wound, he tried to keep the panic from his voice.
The ebony haired male smiled at him, the pain clear in his amber eyes. "Lee…you know you've always been like a brother to me…"
"I know Ray…you've always been like a brother to me too." Holding back the tears, he gripped his childhood friend's hand tightly.
Ray's amber eyes slowly drifted closed as his breathing slowed, blood still pouring freely from the wound in his chest. Lee rested his head against the male's shoulder, listening to the male's breathing as it got slower and slower, before stopping completely.
The birds had returned to the trees, though very few of them were singing as Lee broke down into tears, head still resting on his friends shoulder. He didn't want to accept it, but his childhood friend was gone.