Hello ! Sorry for the wait, I was very sick for the last 3 weeks and had to spend a lot of time recovering. However I am back to normal now, so updates will be more frequent.
I had to tweak this chapter so badly, there were WAY too many references and mentions of things that date back to 2006/2007. It's also the longest chapter so far; I was thinking about splitting it in 2 but since you guys waited so long for an update, I'm leaving it as is.
Thank you to everyone who reviewed, it warmed my heart while I was sick and motivated me to get better faster so I could write !
Enjoy :)
-Justgabbe
The week could not have gone by any slower; that's what happens when you know you have something special planned for the weekend. Friday couldn't have come any sooner. Here I was, sitting in the last class for the day. Everyone was pretty agitated since it was going to be the weekend in a couple of minutes, but I'm pretty sure my excitement overrode everyone else's.
Kai was actually not in class today, probably finalising his training schedule and helping Gramps and Mr Dickenson with preparations for the trip. No one really seems to notice his absence anyways. Only Simon and Aiden asked about it during lunch, but I played dumb and said I didn't know.
"By the way, what's the duffel bag for?'' Simon asked over lunch seeing that I was carrying it around today. All my stuff for the camp was in there.
"Spending the weekend with some friends from back home.'' I lied.
I can't imagine what would happen if I told them I was actually spending the weekend with the G-Revolutions at a training camp. Aiden would have a cow. And I can't risk the spreading of rumours if someone heard. I'm still the talk of the school and I don't want to worsen things.
As soon as the bell rang, I was the first out of class. I head to the bathroom first to change out of my uniform into some casual clothes, and then I jog out of campus to start the long trek to Tyson's place. We had all decided last Saturday that we would meet there since it's our mutual reference point.
As I walk in on the street where Tyson resides, I see a mini bus and people gathered around it. I can feel and hear the excitement from the group of people, all talking loudly and laughing joyfully.
"There she is!" I hear Hillary call out as she sees me and waves me over.
"Hey," I jog a little faster to reach them," Sorry I'm a bit late, school and all."
"We were worried that you got lost or something.'' Daichi says.
"No way,'' Tyson cuts in as he was loading his bag "the map I made her was perfect!"
I hear the window of the bus driver's side slide open beside me and see Gramps poking out his head.
"No sweat home girl, you're here now and that's what counts. Now everyone get in gear! Time to go!" He calls out to the group.
One after the other, we climb on the bus. Mr Dickenson was sitting the closest to Gramps so they could talk. Since we were only 8 people, everyone got their pick of seats but were still all sitting close to one another so they could talk comfortably. Kai was the only exception; he's sitting at the back completely with headphones in his ears.
"Hello young lady,'' Mr Dickenson says as I enter the bus, "It's nice to meet you and welcome to the team!"
"Thank you, sir. It's a pleasure to meet you and I'm glad to be included." I reply politely. He is the chairman of the BBA after all.
"Oh, no need for formality, my dear. This weekend we will be partners, we always need all the help we can get with this bunch.'' says Mr Dickenson with a laugh.
"No worries, I'll help with whatever I can with."
The roar of the engine signals our departure and I find a seat next to Hillary who was currently bickering with Tyson and Daichi. Daichi couldn't sit and was bouncing around in his seat excitedly and Tyson was digging into a huge bag of chips. Kenny was typing away on his laptop as usual. Max and Ray were currently sharing a snack and talking casually. Kai was still listening to music as he watches the scenery go by. I decided to the same as him as I pull out my phone from my bag and start a random playlist.
The bus was already out of the city and was rolling on the highway. The high buildings and the hustle and bustle were fading slowly. We passed many suburbs and smaller neighbourhoods. We were soon surrounded by large farming fields and nature.
The bus takes a random exit and drives through a small farming village to get to a specific off-the-road street to a beaten path and a large forest greeted us as we penetrate it. Again, specific turns are made and we finally arrive at a beautiful clearing with a lake.
Camp Minogami it's called as I see the sign on the small cabin. The cabin was at the far left of the clearing that has beautiful lush green grass and a stone settlement for building a fire with large stumps around it. The trees surrounding it are big, strong and cast a pleasant shadow over the clearing.
We all get off, Daichi running out first to jump around excitedly, going on about how it looked like where he lives. Kenny and Hillary go check out the cabin to see what was inside while the rest of us were unloading our luggage and equipment.
"Ok guys! The cabin has 2 beds and a toilet like it said it would on the website." Kenny calls out as he leaves the cabin.
"But no shower or bath… We have to wash up in the lake…" Hillary adds with a bit of disgust and disappointment in her voice.
"I hope the water isn't too cold…'' Tyson adds.
"Everyone brought bathing suits, right?" Max asks.
No one said otherwise, so we continue to unpack and to plan out what to do.
"So we can agree that Gramps and Mr Dickenson get the cabin? How many tents do we have to set up?" Hillary takes charge.
"Just 2," Max replies as he points them out beside the bus, "I can set them up."
"Great," Hillary says as she turns to Tyson and Daichi, "can you guys gather firewood? It's almost time for dinner. So, we might as well build a fire now."
"Whatever you say, boss.'' Tyson says mockingly as he turns towards the forest. Daichi runs ahead of him, clearly more excited than Tyson was about gathering firewood,
"I'll try starting up a fire meanwhile,'' Ray says as he finds newspaper and matches in the equipment, "there's some wood left. I can start whipping up some food after.''
"Do we need fresh water," I ask "I could go filter some from the lake if we need it."
"I think I saw the water filter and the jugs in the back." Max tells me as he gathers the tents over his shoulder. Kai quietly follows him to help him set up.
"On it!" I reply and run back to the bus to get the supplies.
We all calmly but quickly set up camp before the last rays of the sun disappears behind the line of trees. As soon as the fire is up and running, Ray starts cooking dinner. Max and Kai get the tents up and as soon as that's done, Kenny and Hillary bring their stuff inside one of them. Tyson and Daichi return with arms full of branches and scraps of wood. I fill up 2 huge jugs of purified water from the lake and roll them toward camp.
At one point, Mr Dickenson points out that there is firewood lining up behind the cabin with an axe to cut them up. Instead of going back into the woods, Tyson and Daichi cut up some of that firewood to bring back to their pile of collected branches.
When everything was set up, the sun was already set and the stars were making their appearance. We all ate the excellent meal that Ray made for us and leisurely talked around the fire. Gramps and Mr Dickenson both retired for the night after the meal and went back to the cabin. Hillary and I decided to bathe in the lake while the guys were either busy setting up their sleeping bags in the tents or brushing their teeth before bed. She and I had enough privacy to wash in peace.
I think it was decided unconsciously who would sleep with who in the 2 tents. Both tents could hold up to 3 people but everyone knows with enough squeezing in and snuggling up with the people you're going to sleep with, they could fit 4 people.
Max had already set up his sleeping bag in one of the tents after he set up and Ray had set up his beside Max's in-between starting the fire and cooking dinner. Tyson just decided to set up in the tent with the least people. And where Tyson goes, Daichi never fails to follow him.
It's a no brainer for Hillary and me to be in the same tent, seeing as we are 2 girls. And since Kenny mostly hangs out with Hillary, I sort of expected him to be with us too. But I'm still shocked that Kai was our 4th tent member. I mean, yeah sure, he's my friend and he's known Hillary and Kenny for years. I don't know, it was awkward for me. And what made it worse is that he set up his sleeping bag right next to mine.
I can hear Daichi loud snoring and quiet whispers coming from the other tent. Kenny and Hillary were already fast asleep, both facing away from me. And here I am, trying to sleep too, but all I could feel is embarrassment because Kai was just soo close to me. I blush when I feel Kai's body and his heat against my back as he moves in his sleep.
It's going to be a long night!
I wake up with a start to the sound of multiple screams. I look nervously around me and realise that I'm the only one in the tent. I quickly get dressed and wrap a large blanket around me to brave the cool morning breeze. I get out to see Hillary and Kenny quickly preparing breakfast: scrambled eggs and sausages.
"What's going on?" I ask the two of them with a groggy voice and crusty eyes to match.
Hillary just points towards the lake with a bored expression on her face as she continues to cook.
I look over to the lake where I see Kai standing on the beach overlooking 4 figures that are swimming in the lake. I put one and one together.
"Wow… That's some sick torture right there." I say as I watch the 4 boys doing laps in the cold lake at 7am in the morning.
"Kai caught them while they were bathing.'' Kenny adds.
"Happy I decided to bathe last night," I reply, "When did they start?"
"About 30 minutes ago.'' Hillary says.
I sit down on one of the stumps to watch the whole ordeal go down. Kai screaming orders, Tyson and Daichi complaining while Ray and Max just endure, Kai giving extra laps for insubordination. It was pretty funny to watch.
"I have to admit, swimming is a great idea for building arm and leg strength and overall endurance." Kenny comments as he also watches.
"It's good for controlling your breathing too." I say.
We hear the door of the cabin open and Mr Dickenson and Gramps get out equipped with fishing rods and all the gear that goes with it.
"Hey dudes! Since y'all are going to be busy with training, Mr D and I decided to go fishing for the day!" Gramps yells out to us.
"Yes, you kids have fun! We'll be back by sundown!" Mr Dickenson adds.
"Do you want breakfast?" Hillary asks the 2 men as they head towards the forest.
"No worries, girlie. We have protein bars to snack on!" Gramps replies over his shoulder.
Pretty soon, both men were out of sight, only hearing their loud talking and laughing.
The boys continue swimming laps in the lake for another 30 minutes before coming back to shore shaking from the cold morning breeze but they all wrap themselves in their towels that were on shore.
"Jeez Kai, you couldn't wait a couple of minutes! We were barely awake!" I hear Tyson saying in the distance
"If you thought this trip would be a nice little vacation, then you thought wrong." Kai replies in an assertive tone as he folds his arms.
"That water sure was cold…'' says Max as he wipes the water off his body.
"Yeah, Kai, we didn't have breakfast yet!" Daichi protests as he shivers violently.
"Look, if you want someone else to coach you, I'll gladly step down,'' Kai threatens in a very serious tone, "But say goodbye to your chances of winning first place."
"Don't mind them Kai," Ray interjects, "They're just whining because they haven't practice in a long time."
Kai only sighs in discouragement before turning back towards camp, leaving the others behind to dry and whine in peace. He passes Hillary and Kenny who were slowly serving breakfast into different plates and sits down on the tree stump beside me.
"Morning!" I greet him with a toothy grin on my face, still half awake.
"Good morning," He replies as he takes a cup of coffee that was made in advance with a kettle over the fire.
"So, what's on the menu for today, Drill Sergeant?" I jokingly ask him.
"Jeez, don't encourage him!" I hear Tyson say as he reaches camp and grabs a plate of food.
"Knowing Kai, he probably has the day planned out already," Max remarks to Tyson as he too sits down and grabs food.
"Tyson, can you be a bit more grateful to Kai? He didn't have to be your coach, you know?" Hillary tells Tyson in an annoyed tone.
"Guys, please, not so early in the morning," Kenny pleads to the two bickering teens.
"Well, I'm excited. After this, we'll be right on our way to win the championships," Ray says to light up the mood.
"Yeah baby!" Tyson agrees with his mouth full of food.
I smile to everyone and their banter as I drink coffee and eat quietly. It was fun to be surrounded by so many people who cared about each other. It sadly reminded me of when I was back in my old home with my friends. I was genuinely happy to be doing something like this after so many weeks of being friendless. Shaking off my sadness, I turn to Kai to see him slowly sipping his coffee and eating.
"Thank you for bringing me with you." I suddenly tell him, thinking out loud. I sort of regret saying it now… But I stand my ground as I look at him in the eyes.
Kai turns to me with a surprised look on his face at my honest statement. His eyes were bright in the morning sun and his pale skin was practically glowing. Our eyes meet for a millisecond before he turns away and mutters a quiet "you're welcome" for only me to hear.
The rest of the morning was dedicated to training the team's bodies. First, there was the 2-mile run/hike in the woods. Then, there were the drills that included burpees, jump rope, push-ups, planks, jumps squats and many other exercises. There was also some weightlifting with nearby rocks and/or stumps.
In the afternoon, the training was strictly beyblade related. Kai paid special attention to each teammate; knowing their strengths, weaknesses and fighting styles, he could tailor specific advice and strategies to each of them. Finally, it was time for them to put that advice to test by beybattling.
Tyson and Daichi go first. Their beyblades clash and smash against each other relentlessly. Both of them are not giving in and are seriously battling. Suddenly they call out something unfamiliar to me and a flash of light comes out of both their blades. I was then face to face with 2 dragons. One was blue with huge claws; the other one was yellow and had enormous wings.
"Am I crazy or are there 2 giant dragons fighting in the sky?" I ask as I watch them fight over Tyson and Daichi.
"Wait, you can see them?" Kenny exclaims, shocked over what I said.
"What no way? It took me so long before I could see them!" adds Hillary who is just as surprised as Kenny.
"So I'm not crazy?' I ask again.
"Maybe you are a little crazy." I can hear Kai chuckling in front of me as he turns his head to look at me over his shoulders with a smug smirk on his face. Surprised by his joke, I just pull out my tongue at him.
"Nah don't worry, those are just bit beasts." Max reassures me as he chuckles at Kai's little joke and my reaction to it.
"Bit Beasts?" I repeat, not entirely sure what he was talking about.
"A Bit Beast is a powerful animal spirit that can inhabit a beyblade. There are Bit Beasts that come in different shapes and sizes and have different attacks, " Kenny clarifies as he explains it to me, "they provide beyblades with a spirit within it, making it more than just a regular spinning top.''
"So, not everyone who has a beyblade has a Bit Beast?" I ask.
"Only a handful of people have Bit Beasts. They are usually chosen by the Bit Beasts themselves." Ray replies.
"Do all of you have them? A Bit Beast I mean?" I question again.
"Yup! We do!" Max answers very proudly.
I eye both Ray and Max with both shock and amazement. I never knew something like that could exist. It feels like something out of a comic book or a manga. I turn back to look at Tyson's and Daichi's match and examine the beasts fighting. The beyblades moves matches almost all of the beasts' actions. They battle it out ferociously for dominance. Before long, they disappear and the beyblades both retreat into the hands of their masters. Max and Ray were up next. Both of them also called out their bit beasts while battling. Max's was a huge land turtle with a hard black shell and Ray's was a white tiger with long teeth.
I could still not believe that things like this existed. It also made me think about the sport; people who have bit beasts have a serious advantage in battles. No wonder these guys were the best! But does that mean others have bit beasts too? I look to Kai and wonder what his own bit beast looks like.
"Kai doesn't really uses his anymore," Kenny says as he sees me eye Kai, "He stopped beyblading after his last battle."
"Yeah, he was pretty beat up. His blade was all wrecked too." Hillary adds.
"He had a rematch with Tyson for fun after that, but he's retired for good now." Kenny finishes.
For the reminder of the day, I can't stop looking at Kai. I can't help but to wonder how it feels to give up on your passion, on your daily livelihood. Does he miss it? I also can't help to notice that his eyes reflect an unidentifiable feeling as he watches the others practice and beybattle together.
I felt very cold when I suddenly wake up in the middle of the night. I can still hear crickets and frogs sing their nocturnal song. I look to Hillary and Kenny who are both off to dreamland. I realise that Kai was missing. I wait for a while to see if he would come back but after a couple of minutes, I put on my hoodie, drape a blanket around me and put on my shoes to go find him.
The cold air hits me hard as I get out and quickly put the blanket over my head to protect my ears. The boys in the other tent seem fast asleep too since I could hear 2 distinct snores and no other noise was coming from it. We all called it a day pretty early, since we were all exhausted.
I scan the clearing to find Kai by the beach that surrounds the lake, skipping stones silently. I slowly come up to him to not scare him and clear my throat to let him know I was there.
"Hey," I say lazily, "what's up? Can't sleep?"
"Yeah, something like that." He replies seriously.
I come up to his side and grab one of the many stones beneath my feet. I examine it for a while before throwing it in the lake.
"I suck at skipping stones, I never could do it." I tell him nervously, trying to strike up a discussion, "I don't have that wrist flicking technique."
He still concentrates on throwing the stones, ignoring my nervousness and me. He makes one stone skip 6 times.
"You miss beyblading, don't you?" A rhetorical question, but I ask it honestly. I can still recall the look he had on his face when he saw the rest of the gang all laughing and having fun together as they trained.
His lips drop into a barely noticeable pout and his eyes narrow slightly, but he still chooses to skip stones rather than talk.
"I know it's not my place to ask but… Why did you stop?" I ask hesitantly.
He pauses for a moment before turning towards me with the same look on his face. The gentle breeze made his hair dance in a most elegant way and his dark crimson eyes shone brightly under the light of the moon. This moment was so mesmerizing and his seriousness only made it more intense.
"I made a promise to someone after my last true beybattle. For them to be free."
"Are you… Are you talking about your bit beast?" I guess as I recall the conversation I had with Kenny.
"Yeah." He replies as he turns his head to look over the lake.
"But… Aren't they still by your side?" I question hesitantly
He reaches into his back pocket to grab his beyblade and looks at it with that same intensity. His eyes reflected so many emotions at once, clearly trying to understand why it was still there even though he hasn't broken his promise.
"Maybe they're still with you for a reason," I suggest, " maybe they really like you and they just don't want to leave you." I add chuckling, trying to lighten up the mood.
A long silence goes by as I wait to see what Kai would do but he glares at his beyblade with that look. The night breeze caresses his pale skin and the moon basks him in a lovely light. He then pockets his beyblade and goes to sit on an abandoned log on the beach. I mirror his action.
"Tell me, what do they look like?" I say to break the silence between us.
He looks to me with a surprised look on his face, as if not really knowing what to reply. He clears his throat nervously before replying.
"Dranzer is a phoenix." He says.
"Dranzer," I think over its name, letting it sink into my memory," you know what they say about phoenixes… They never die. They rise from their ashes and begin life anew. It's an eternal circle of life."
Kai hums in agreement, looking towards the horizon beyond the lake. He was still deeply pondering over his situation with his bit beast that remained with him. I study his face once again. He had removed his twin stripes on his cheeks and you could see some scars on his face. He had a small sharp nose and a strong jaw line. I also notice how full his eyelashes are and how plump his lower lip is. Sure, this guy is sought out after many women but for the first time, I realized that he is beautiful.
I suddenly shiver as a particularly cold breeze washes over me. Kai notices as he turns his head towards me.
"Maybe we should go back, we need to get some sleep." I suggest.
Kai only nods and gets up. I do the same and we head back towards the tent together. We settle ourselves in our sleeping bags and without a word, we go to sleep.
At some point during the night, I woke up again. I open my eyes to see that I was face to face with Kai. He was sleeping peacefully with one arm under my head and the other wrapped around my hip. I madly blush at this, unable to control my emotions. Yet, I couldn't help but to move closer to him and to wrap my own arm around his hip before going back to sleep. What am I doing ?