Chapter Eleven: The Ultimate Showdown of Ultimate Destiny

Elisa: HOLY SHIT!

BXR: IS THIS AN UPDATE?

Elisa: WHY I THINK IT IS!

BXR: Yes kids, after many months of absence, I have returned with TWO, count them, TWO new chapters for you!

Johnny: It's true!

Elisa: Exactly! So now before we continue on, let's give our lovely loyal readers a preview. This chapter will entail:

-A horrible decision following an "oh no he didn't" moment.

-A game of extreme tag.

-Inquiring about the miracle date.

-Plotting

-And the Ultimate Showdown of Ultimate Destiny

BXR: Perfect! Now, who wants to read the disclaimer?

Elisa: WAIT! We forgot the infamous Robert Uncouth Counter!

BXR: Gasp! How silly of us! Speaking of which, would Lord Robert care to bless the disclaimer with his almighty-ness?

Johnny: Why are you calling him "Lord Robert?"

BXR: *whispers* Because I need to kiss up to him. You'll see eventually.

Robert: I'd be delighted. BXR does not own Beyblade or any other copyrighted thing in this story.

BXR: Couldn't have said it better myself. Now, on with it!

Recap: I quickly drifted off to sleep with anticipation for tomorrow's mighty duel.

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Chapter Start

The alarms woke me up the next morning and I actually got up without protest. I quickly showered and dressed in my best ripped jeans and Nirvana tee shirt. By the time I returned to the room, Nick and Adam were just waking up.

"You're up early," Nick yawned.

"Of course! I need to make sure that I'm fully prepared for my duel. We're picking teams during breakfast, so be there," I grinned.

"Fair enough, we'll meet you downstairs."

I left for the cafeteria, meeting Johnny on the way down.

"Are you ready?" He asked.

"As ready as I'll ever be. You know you're not allowed to play, right?" I clarified.

"I'm not!?" He exclaimed, as we got into the cafeteria line.

"Of course not. We're fighting over the rights to have you in our band, it's only natural that you don't play. Besides, it helps to prevent people from realizing that you're biased. It makes Hiwatari think that you might want to be in his band." I grabbed only a bottle of orange juice and the two of us sat down. More people started arriving and soon there was a crowd around Kai and I.

"The rules are: you go to whichever team picked you, no if's ands or buts. Adam, this means you. If you're not on Nick's team, I don't want any complaints," I explained.

"Sounds good, ladies first?" Kai agreed.

"With pleasure. I take Nick."

"You bitch, he was my first choice! I take Adam."

I could see the clearly unhappy look on Adam's face when he heard that he was separated from Nick, but he kept quiet about it. "I pick Bryan."

"Tala."

"You douche, you can't have my boyfriend! Enrique."

"Ian."

"Robert."

"I REFUSE TO BE A PART OF YOUR CHILDISH, BARBARIC, UNCOUTH GAMES!" Robert yelled.

"Okay… never mind then," I continued. "The teams are even now."

The bell rang and the group of us left for first period.

"So, are you sure you're all set for this battle?" Tala asked, walking down the hall with his arm lovingly around my waist.

"Of course I am. God, it seems like none of you have faith in me," I chuckled, resting my head on his shoulder.

"No sweetheart, I do! I just want to make sure that you have a plan."

"I do, but seeing as how you're on the other team, I can't tell you what it is. This conversation ends here love."

He nodded and took out a blank piece of paper as the teacher began talking. He scribbled something on the paper and gave it to me.

"Aside from all of this nonsense, how are you baby?"

"Alright, same shit different day." I wrote back.

"Good, Hiwatari hasn't been giving you problems, has he?"

"No, nothing apart from the problem of his continued existence."

"Let me know, because if he does I'll beat the shit out of him."

I sighed at his overprotective nature and wrote back, "Alright, will do Tala."

"Speaking of beating the shit out of people, I'm going to fucking kill Johnny."

Now I was getting worried. I could see the anger radiating off of him. "What the fuck for?"

"Because he knows that you're my girlfriend, and yet he still tries to flirt with you and get into your pants. He wants you back and I'm not going to let him take you. I don't want you to talk to him anymore."

"What!" I asked aloud. "Tala, he's my best friend and you want me to stop talking to him just because you don't like him?"

"He's also your ex boyfriend. It's either him or me, you decide."

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Elisa: Whoa, whoa, whoa! Hold on a fucking minute!

BXR: What is it? You know that we can't stop in the middle of a chapter, what's wrong with you?

Elisa: He did not just say that!

BXR: I told you there was an "oh no he didn't" moment in here. You're the one who read the preview.

Elisa: But STILL! *to Tala* How dare you? *grabs Tala by shirt collar.

BXR: Anyway *while Elisa is assaulting Tala with a giant inflatable hammer* Sorry folks, back to the chapter…

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I opened my mouth to speak but any words I could've said got caught in my throat. "Can I still have him in the band if I win? Or do I need to call this whole thing off because you don't want me near him?"

"No you can have him if you win. But I'm going to ensure that that doesn't happen," he assured.

The bell rang and he walked me to my next class. The whole walk there was silent as Tala wrapped an arm around my waist as if he was trying to keep me close to him and away from everyone else. "I'll see you next period," he began. "Be sure to tell Johnny about the change in your friendship status."

"I will," I muttered, my voice completely devoid of emotion.

Tala leaned in and kissed me. "I love you."

"W-what?"

"I love you."

I had no idea what to say, so I said the first thing that came to mind; and it was the completely wrong thing. "I love you too."

He smiled and left and I walked into the classroom, completely emotionless.

"Nicole, what happened?" Nick asked.

"Nothing, I'm fine Nick." I wasn't fooling anyone, especially my twin brother.

"What did he say to you?"

"N-nothing Nick, really. It's nothing to worry about." But it was something to worry about, because as soon as Johnny walked in the room I burst into hysterics.

"Nicole stop lying to me and please tell me what's wrong!" Nick pleaded.

"Johnny," I sobbed. "I need Johnny."

"I'm right here, what's wrong?" Johnny asked, taking a seat next to me and wrapping his arm around my shoulders.

"I'm so sorry, but I can't talk to you anymore."

"What? Why the hell not?" He exclaimed. Everyone around us looked absolutely bewildered, but Johnny was fired up, obviously aware that it wasn't my decision.

"Because Tala threatened to break up with me if I didn't stop talking to you. But you're one of my best friends and I don't want to stop, but I didn't know what else to say. And he told me that he loved me and…" my words were cut off because I burst into tears again.

"Honestly Nicole, since when have you ever listened to what people told you to do?" Kai asked. He placed a hand lightly on my shoulder, but removed it with a sigh after I gave an uncomfortable twitch.

"Nicole, what do you want to do?" Johnny asked carefully.

"I-I want to still talk to you. I want to stay friends with you," I sniffled.

"Then that's exactly what you should do. Don't let Tala tell you what to do, we can hide this from him, don't worry."

"He wants to beat the shit out of you. He's making all of these false accusations, saying that you keep flirting with me and trying to get in my pants."

"Let him try to beat the shit out of me, I've been fighting my whole life. Tell him to bring it."

I sighed and took out my science book to take notes. "Honestly, do you really plan on doing work?" Ian asked.

"Well, what else is there to do?" I questioned.

Ian looked around, seeming to check if anyone else was watching, and jabbed me in the arm. "Tag! You're it!"

He ran away and I jumped up. "Oh, you're dead you little shrimp. It's on!" I chased after him and tripped over a chair, falling into Nick in the process. "Tag! You're it!"

Nick sprung over the table and tackled Enrique to the ground. "You're it!"

Enrique grabbed his notebook and threw it at Kat, hitting him in the head. "You're it!"

Kai, who I'm surprised played along, grabbed his binder and slapped Johnny in the back with it. "You're it!"

Johnny pounced on me and tackled me to the ground. "You're it!"

I took my thick ass science book and cracked Ian over the head with it. "You're it!"

Our game of extreme tag continued, even with Robert joining in, until the bell rang for 3rd period. Tala was already in his seat waiting for me. "Hello love," he greeted, though not as warm as usual. "Did you tell Johnny what you were supposed to tell him?"

"Yeah… I did," I answered.

"And…?"

"Everything's all set, don't worry."

"Good," he smiled, regaining his usual warmth and kissing me on the cheek. I felt a small twinge of guilt as I realized that I was lying to Tala. I almost felt better when I told myself that it was a small matter. Small, but relationship threatening. I barely made it through art as usual, then headed to 4th period English.

"Hon, I have to go and work on a project for my Russian class. I'll be gone this period and lunch, but I'll be back in time for the game. Will you be alright without me?" Tala asked.

"I'm sure I'll live Tala," I assured.

"Alright, I'll see you later." He wrapped his arms around me and leaned into my ear and whispered, "I love you."

"I know," I whispered back, almost too softly to hear. He gave me a kiss on the cheek and left.

"What did you say to him?" Nick asked.

"He asked if I told Johnny, which wasn't a lie. But he thinks that we're not going to be speaking anymore, which is a lie. And strangely enough, I feel almost no guilt whatsoever."

"Hn, I didn't think that you would," he chuckled.

"Yup, I'm a heartless bastard." I took my seat in between Johnny and Bryan and pretended to pay attention.

"Hey Nicole, did you hear about Robert's date next Saturday?" Johnny whispered.

"Yeah! Nick and I almost shit a brick! Did he tell you who it's going to be with?"

"No! Enrique knows, but he won't tell."

"Enrique!" I whispered loudly across the room.

"What?" He whispered back.

"Who the fuck is Robert going on a date with?"

"Not telling! Wait and see!" He teased.

"I'll knock the shit out of you! Tell me!"

"Nicole, what are you doing?" my teacher asked.

"Um… threatening my cousin," I answered as if it were no big deal.

"Why…?"

"Because you see, Mr. Fancy Pants Lord Robert over there has a date next Saturday and he won't tell us who it's with. And Enrique knows, but he won't tell either, so I have to force it out of him. I hate surprises you see."

"Uncouth fool!" Robert yelled. "Must you tell everyone?"

"Of course I do silly! Now everyone can be as happy for you as we are!"

"Happy for me?" He sputtered.

"Yeah! This calls for a celebration!" Nick added.

"Oh hush! You think everything calls for a celebration, you drunkard!" I hushed.

Nick stuck his tongue out at me and class resumed. I took out two pieces of paper and wrote notes, one to Johnny and one to Bryan. Johnny's said, "Ugh, this is taking too long. This duel needs to happen NOW." and Bryan's said, "Missed you in class yesterday Angel, it was so boring that we skipped all day." I passed them to their intended recipients and waited. (A.N. Johnny. Bryan) Johnny's came back first.

"I know! I want to watch you destroy Hiwatari! But I think it's weird that a guy and a girl are fighting over me. Two girl, maybe, but not a guy and a girl."

I chuckled and wrote, "Maybe he likes you." I sent it back and Bryan's came.

"I missed you too. Tala told me that the two of you are going out now. He seemed pretty braggy about it too. I wish you the best of luck, I really do."

"Thanks Bryan. But let him brag. Sure, he may be dating me, but YOU were the one who actually had sex with me :]" He chuckled and wrote back as Johnny returned his.

"Ew Nicole, that's gross. But seriously, who do you think Robert is going out on a date with?"

"Hmm… maybe it's Oliver!"

Johnny tried to fight back a laugh. "I doubt it. And I don't know why he told Enrique."

"I know! But I'm sure Robert has a totally legit, couth reason for telling Enrique instead of US!" I sent Johnny's and Bryan's came back, this was getting confusing.

"Very true, I think I have more to brag about than he does, no offense. So, do you and Tala plan on doing it any time soon?"

"None taken love, and no, not right away. No offense to you, but I wasn't planning on losing my V-Card, so I'm going to be a lot more careful about it now. I'm going to re-lose it when I'm ready."

He quickly wrote back and handed it to me. "How about I just give it back to you?"

I laughed and wrote, "How exactly do you plan to do that?" As I wrote, Johnny gave me back his note.

"I have an idea. I'll talk to you about it at lunch because the bell is about to ring." I nodded in his direction and the bell rang.

"Bryan, how exactly do you plan on giving it back to me?" I asked.

"Like this," Bryan handed me an index card, on it were the words "Nicole's V-Card" written in red sharpie. I almost doubled over from laughter.

"Bryan, you are amazing."

"So I've been told." He lowered his voice a bit. "I heard what Tala said to you about not talking to Johnny anymore, how are you taking it?"

"Splendidly," I grinned. "I'm not gonna stop talking to him."

"Sneaky move, shame on you."

"Fuck it, it was wrong of him to make me choose," I answered as we entered the cafeteria and I met Johnny in the food line. "Alright, so what's your idea?"

"Maybe he's asking Enrique for relationship advice," Johnny suggested.

"Could be, or maybe it's someone that Enrique has dated before, and that's why Robert told him, because he needed advice."

"That doesn't really help us, Enrique has dated a lot of people. And how to we know it's a girl anyway? Robert never really specified, he just said that he had a date."

"Nah, I think it's a girl," I assured. "I don't really see Robert as the type."

"I have the greatest idea!" He exclaimed as we took our seats. "How about we spy on Robert and find out for ourselves on Saturday?"

"Oh my God Johnny that's brilliant!" I agreed enthusiastically. "If only we could get Enrique to tell us where Robert is going to be."

"Hey Enrique! Where is Robert going for his date on Saturday? If you won't tell us who it's with, at least tell us where it'll be so we can find out on our own."

"Alright, they're going to this fancy French place called Le Chic," Enrique answered.

"Ooh, fancy," I commented. "Thanks favorite cousin! Tell me, are you ready for the duel?"

"Am I ever? We are going to kick Hiwatari's ass out there! We have the ultimate team!"

"We do! And once we have Johnny, we'll have the ultimate band too!"

"Is your boyfriend alright with that?" Enrique inquired.

"Nope, but I honestly don't care," I grinned.

"Not for nothing, but you really sound like you don't like him very much."

"No, no, no! I do! It'll show more when I get over all of this. I'm pretty upset over this whole ordeal."

"Why did he tell you that you couldn't talk to me, again?" Johnny asked.

"Because he thinks that you're trying to get me back and get in my pants," I sighed, thinking that the whole this was a joke.

"Wow, he's too paranoid for his own good. I would never jeopardize your relationship with anyone, especially for my own gain."

"I know that Johnny, but he refuses to believe it. He gets mad when Bryan or Kai is even near me. He gets like that with anyone that I've dated or been with in some form, but especially you." He gave an irritated sigh and I saw his deep violet eyes look up to meet mine. They were almost too mesmerizing. "Johnny tell me the truth, are those contacts?"

He touched the tip of his finger to his eye and pulled out a thin lens, revealing the natural deep green color of his eyes. "Yeah, they're fake. I always hated my eyes, I thought they were too green."

"Well I like them, I think they're very pretty."

"Maybe, but they're nothing compared to yours." The bell rang and we got up. I had a feeling that if it didn't, things may have gotten awkward. "Hopefully I'll talk to you later."

"Yeah, I hope so."

Johnny looked to make sure the coast was clear and he pulled me into a close embrace. "I'll always care about you, no matter what. Don't you ever forget that," he whispered. I looked up at him at a loss for words. Johnny smiled as if he had expected that and walked away. I joined up with Nick and Adam and we walked to class together. Just as I had expected, Tala was at the door waiting for me.

"Hey you, I missed you," he greeted, wrapping his arms around me.

"Missed you too love," I smiled, kissing him hello. "Let's get inside before we're late." The two of us went inside and took our seats. I barely paid attention for the entire duration of the class, I was too busy staring at the clock, waiting for the period to end. Once the clock struck 12:30, I darted up from my seat and ran out the door to the field, followed by Kai.

"Are you ready?" He sneered.

"Of course, you're going down Hiwatari!" The rest of our teams showed up and we began.

"Ladies first?" Kai suggested.

"Fine. Get ready, this won't take long." His team moved towards the plate and mine took the field. Nick was pitching because he was the only one who could, Enrique took the entire outfield, Bryan took the left side of the infield and I took the right. Kat stepped up and Nick threw the ball. Kai kicked it directly to me and I threw it at him, pegging him in the head.

"Ow! You bitch! Pegging is against the rules!" He yelled.

"Fuck you! This is street kickball motherfucker! Just go sit down and stop being a whiney bitch."

Kat sat down and Adam came up to the plate. Nick felt bad so he threw Adam something that he could kick. He kicked it to Bryan who dove and caught it in the air. Adam stomped his foot, gave a huff and stormed away. Nick sighed and I cooed, "Aw, he's so precious." Tala came up and Nick was determined to get him back for all of the accusations he made against Adam, while he was alone with me. He threw it so fast that Tala didn't even see him go by. He did it two more times to strike him out and end the inning.

"Ha, ha! In your face!" Nick yelled. "What!"

"So how many innings are we playing Hiwatari?" I asked as we switched sides.

"Does four sound good?" He suggested.

"Perfect, wouldn't want to make you suffer for too long." Kai snorted and took the mound while I took the plate. "Bring it on, ho!" He threw the ball and I purposefully gave it the sissiest kick that I could. Kai tried to throw it at my legs, but I jumped over it and kept running.

"For fuck's sake! Someone hit her!" Kai yelled. Ian ran into my path in an attempt to stop me, but I pushed him out of my way onto the ground and kept on running. By the time he got up and threw the ball to Tala to tag me out, I had already crossed home plate and was doing a victory dance. Kai kicked the mound in frustration and Adam stomped his foot in the outfield.

"How could you let that happen?" He whined.

"Shut up! I didn't see any input from you!' Kai snapped. Adam huffed again and the game continued. By the end of the inning it was Kai-0 Me-8.

"You know, you could give up now before it gets too embarrassing," I suggested.

"No! This isn't over yet!" Kai yelled. It's really too bad for him that it was. Kai's team managed to score one run, but that's only because Enrique swore that he saw a hot girl walk by. And it didn't help that Nick started to feel bad and let Adam hit the ball. The final score was Kai-1, Me-25.

"Yes! We are the Gods of kickball!" I yelled, pumping my fist into the air enthusiastically.

"Yes! We are awesome!" Nick agreed, running up and giving me a jumping high-five.

"You know the rules, Johnny's with us now!"

"I have to say, that was absolutely insane," Bryan laughed.

"I know! We should have Ultimate Showdowns of Ultimate Destiny more often!"

"So now what?" Adam asked as the bell for the end of gym rang.

"I guess we go to band class. Which I'm sure will be more fun because we have a new band member!" I grinned. I took Tala's hand and covertly flashed Johnny a grin. He smiled back and we all headed to band. Throughout the entire double period class, all I could sense was tension, and a lot of it. Tala shot Johnny a murderous glare every time Johnny spoke to me, even though it was for class. Johnny responded with an "I dare you to come at me" smirk, and was practically begging Tala to hit him. Needless to say, nothing got done. When the final bell rang I grabbed my stuff and stormed out of the room.

"Hey? You couldn't wait for me?" Tala called, catching up to me.

"I'm sorry, I just needed to get out of there," I heaved and exasperated sigh and continued. "Look, I know that you hate him but, please, can you put that aside when we're trying to get work done?"

"Fine, but you have to tell him-"

"I'm not telling him anything. You're the one who told me that I'm not allowed to speak to him, remember?" I sighed and lowered my voice. "I'm sorry babe, I'm just a little on edge, can we go and relax?"

"Of course we can love, let's go back to my room." Tala led me back to his room and wrapped his arms around me. "Thanks for making the right choice."

"No problem…" I muttered, trying to hide my uneasiness. As Tala laid me on his bed and kissed me, I couldn't help but wonder, despite all that I felt for him, if this was what I really wanted.

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BXR: That's it kids! Where's Elisa? We need to do the R.U.C.!

Johnny: She's still beating up Tala…

BXR: Oh… well then. I'll have to do it myself. The R.U.C. for this chapter is only 2. But fear not! There is more uncouthness to come! Who wants to give the next chapter preview?

Max: Ooh! Ooh! Ooh! Pick me! Pick me!

BXR: Um… alright, go Max.

Max: Okay! The next chapter will feature…

-Secret Agents

-Ridiculous disguises

-Everyone deciding to tell the truth

-And something unspeakable!

Kai: Unspeakable huh? What is it?

BXR: I cannot say! It is unspeakable! But look at it this way, if you think Elisa's mad now, wait until she hears this! She'll flip! And so will everyone else!

Johnny: You know what to do by now kids. There's a review button down there with your name on it. Click it or ticket!

BXR: Johnny, that was just…dumb. No more please?

Johnny: Fine…

Max: CAN YOU DIG IT???