Disclaimer: Don't own Ultimate Muscle. This chapter kinda proves as much…

Recap: Poor Eskara doesn't understand Kiki, and Kiki doesn't understand Eskara. Kevin threatened to reveal Eskara's true identity to Vance McMadd.

Chapter 13 – Night Swimming

Kiki lay flat on her back, her arms and legs spread out, her eyes fixed on the ceiling. It had only been one day since Eskara had defeated Dik Dik, but in that time, she had not seen either man.

Roxanne had tried to bully her into visiting Dik Dik, but she did not really want to go. Her parents had gone off for a week to their Summer House, leaving her completely alone with her thoughts; and her thoughts mainly concerned Eskara.

Kiki did not trust herself to wander too far from the house. In her mind, she could hear Eskara inviting her down to the lake, over and over. She had hoped she could resist the urge to take him up on his offer, but here she was, barely one full day later, and only by putting herself under house-arrest was she still able to resist him.

Kiki closed her eyes, trying to remind herself of Trixie's thoughts on the matter: "He's gorgeous. He's famous. He's rich. He's successful. Every woman on this planet wants him. Why the hell would he want a boring, little, goody-two-shoes, freckle-faced, mousy girl-next-door like you?" she heard Trixie's voice echo through her head.

Kiki quickly opened her eyes again, the prevailing image of Trixie burned in her mind's eye. Roxanne had excused herself from most of their girly activities lately as she was dating Kid, but Trixie had no excuse. Although Roxanne claimed Trixie had had sex with Terry, Trixie had never said as much herself, and neither had said Trixie and Terry were dating.

Kiki sat up, grabbing up her mobile phone. She quickly dialled up Trixie's number, chewing at her bottom lip as she waited for an answer. The phone rang for a considerable amount of time, and Kiki eventually hung up in defeat. It was not like Trixie not to answer her phone, and Kiki began to worry something might have happened to her friend.

Kiki quickly pulled on a pair of shoes, slipped into her coat and hurried out of the room. She ran all the way to the front door, hurriedly locking it shut behind herself, then briskly walking down the street.

She decided the best place to look for Trixie first was the diner; Trixie rarely stayed at home, whether or not one of the girls was with her.

Walking briskly in her attempt to keep her mind occupied, Kiki reached the diner in a matter of minutes, slowing down as she passed the line of lit windows. She searched the interior of the diner, but saw no sign of Trixie; she did, however, spot Terry sitting alone, hunched over a steaming mug of cocoa.

Smiling to herself, Kiki skipped around to the door, walking into the diner. It was fairly empty, and almost everyone inside looked up as she walked in; everyone except Terry. Kiki's smile dropped as she realised Terry looked very sad about something.

"Terry?" she said as she approached him.

Terry did not respond, making Kiki wonder if he had even heard her.

"Terry?" she said again, forcing herself to talk louder.

"Huh?" Terry replied, blinking several times as though he was just waking up. "Oh, hey there, Kiki. Fancy seein' you in here! Take a sit, little lady!"

"Thanks."

Kiki sat down opposite Terry, frowning as he lowered his head again, dragging his fingers through his bright blonde hair.

"Terry, are you alright?" she asked. "You kinda look upset about something."

"Yeah," Terry absent-mindedly replied.

"Is it to do with Eskara?" Kiki asked meekly, suddenly thinking her presence may be the last thing he wanted.

"Nope," Terry replied with a sigh. "It's just… Well now it just wouldn't be proper to go talkin' about a lady behind her back like that…"

"A lady? Oh, you mean Trixie?"

"Well, kind of."

"What is it? I tried to phone her, but she isn't answering her phone, and I got worried."

"Yeah, she ain't answerin' to me, neither. She said she would meet me here four hours ago…"

"Oh my God! What if something awful has happened!"

Terry narrowed his eyes at Kiki, who took a moment to notice his change of expression.

"What?" she asked nervously.

"Sheesh, Kiki, sometimes I really do wonder about you, y'know that?" he replied.

"What do you mean?" Kiki asked.

"Well, either you really are the kindest girl in the world, or you are just plain stupid!"

Kiki's jaw dropped in shock; in all the time she had known Terry, she had never heard him be so blunt or insulting.

"Trixie ain't hurt, Kiki," he said slowly. "She's not answerin' her phone cause she don't want to, not cause she can't."

"But why would she do that?" Kiki asked, her eyes darting back and forth between Terry and the table as she braced herself for another outburst from the Texan warrior.

"Well, I think it's cause she's gone n' found herself another man," Terry said, before rubbing his face with both hands.

"Oh…"

Kiki turned away from Terry for a moment, mulling over this piece of information.

"Terry, Trixie adores you," she eventually said. "I know she does! Ever since she first saw you, you're all she's spoken about! She liked you long before Roxanne ever liked Kid-"

"And now she's bored of me."

Kiki hung her head, watching her hands. It seemed that Terry was beyond consolation; and she was still confused and concerned about Trixie's exact whereabouts.

"I'm sure you're mistaken," she said softly.

"I sure hope I am," Terry sighed.

"Well, I'm going to look for her," Kiki said decisively, standing up from the table. "Are you coming with me?"

"No thanks."

"Okay then."

Kiki was quietly glad that Terry had chosen not to go with her. She was enjoying some time alone, and she was beginning to worry exactly where Trixie was and what she was doing. What if Terry was right? What if she had found another boyfriend?

Kiki replayed Roxanne telling her at Kid's match that Trixie had had sex with Terry; surely she could not have dumped him so soon if the relationship was that serious?

Kiki began to head for the hut Kid and Meat inhabited, assuming she would find Roxanne there too. Hopefully Roxanne would be able to shed some light on the situation for her.

As Kiki entered Beverley Park, she slowed down, tilting her head slightly as she sighted Meat's hut. It was in complete darkness, and it appeared as though there was no-one at home. Kiki decided to walk on to Roxanne's house, but as she passed the hut, she heard a voice from inside.

Kiki stopped, turning to face the hut. She slowly walked over, reaching out a hand towards the door handle. Although Kiki knew she should really knock, she was so certain the hut would be empty, and the door would probably be locked, she went ahead and opened the door wide, taking a step into the hut.

As Trixie let out a scream that could have woken the dead, Kiki stopped in her tracks, her blood running cold at what she saw.

"Kiki!" Trixie screeched. "What in the hell do you think you're doing?"

Kiki paused, eying the nervous man perched on top of Trixie, then turning her attention back to Trixie, who was pulling the sheets of Kid's bed up to hide her naked form.

"You know what Trixie, I was just about you the very same question," Kiki calmly said, folding her arms.

"What?" Trixie whimpered.

"What the hell do you think you're doing, Trixie?" Kiki asked, her voice rising with her emotions. "Terry is at the diner waiting for you! He's been there for like four hours! I can't believe you did this to him!"

"Don't stand there and lecture me, Miss Can't-Be-Wrong!" Trixie retaliated.

"Don't try to turn this around and make it about me, Trixie," Kiki coldly said. "Because this is about you. It's all about you. Y'know, if you were gonna be a lousy cheater, you could at least have found somewhere original to do it. How could you have sex with someone, someone who isn't even your boyfriend, in your best friend's boyfriend's bed? You make me sick!"

"Kiki, wait!"

Kiki slammed the door shut, and marched off out of the park, ignoring Trixie's cries for her to stop. Her arms folded defiantly, Kiki marched on with more purpose than ever, heading to Roxanne's house.

Kiki had left her house in search of a distraction from her thoughts, but this was far more than she had bargained for.

Kiki did not even know why she was still heading to Roxanne's house; what would she do once she got there? Would she tell Roxanne what she had seen? Surely if she was going to tell anyone, the first person she should tell should be Terry. But how could she even begin to tell him about what she had borne witness to?

Kiki began to walk faster, determined to reach Roxanne's house. Once she saw her friend, she would know what to do.

Kiki slowed as she neared Roxanne's house, stopping completely at the point where she could see around the back of the house. She spotted Kid and Roxanne out in the back yard, laughing and joking about something. Closer to the house – and closer to Kiki – watching the young couple was Roxanne's mother, Marie, and Meat.

Kiki edged closer, her interest peaked by what she saw. Marie was watching Roxanne and Kid with a faraway smile, and Meat was watching Marie with the same expression.

Roxanne had mentioned to Kiki and Trixie that Meat had feelings for Marie, her adoptive mother, but Kiki had never truly believed it before. Watching Meat's forlorn expression, Kiki was suddenly reminded of Terry. Both men were suffering from the symptoms of unrequited love.

Unrequited love.

Kiki knew that feeling only too well. She had fallen in love with Dan, and he had barely even acknowledged her existence, except for the occasions when he chose to mock her for her feelings towards him.

And now she was repeating the same thing with Eskara. What had started out as a curious attraction to a masked man had turned into a crush, and it was now turning into something much deeper.

Kiki sighed, turning away from the happy family scene. She could not stand to see Roxanne and Kid at such a time.

Kiki walked onwards, barely even aware of which direction she was heading in her daze. It was after dark, but the night was pleasantly warm, and the walk was quite refreshing.

Before long, Kiki found herself passing the small Chinese restaurant at the edge of town, the same one she had often gone to with the girls to spy on Kid Muscle and his friends when they had first arrived on Earth. Kiki smiled as she looked through the window, happy memories dancing through her mind.

In her dreamlike state, Kiki almost walked into two men walking out of the restaurant, only just managing to stop herself; and yet they never even noticed her. Kiki watched them pass her, her mind taking a moment to click.

It was Vance and Ikeman McMadd.

"This will finally be the end of Kid Muscle!" Ikeman laughed.

"Good riddance!" Vance rejoiced. "Eskara sells far more tickets! He's a better wrestler, he's got the testicular fortitude to lead the Muscle League to new heights, and he's a real hit with the ladies!"

"I'll say!" Ikeman agreed. "I've never seen so many women turn out for ticket sales to an IWF event!"

"We're onto a real money-earner, son!" Vance barked, slapping his son on the back.

"Hurrah!"

Kiki watched the two walk away, laughing loudly. She was more than a little disheartened to hear that they thought so little of Kid Muscle, and she hoped that their obvious preference towards Eskara would not be to her best friend's boyfriend's disadvantage; Roxanne would be heart-broken if Kid was sent to Uranus.

Kiki walked on again, beginning to think the evening was turning into some sort of joke. She had merely sought something small to distract her mind from Eskara. Something very small would have sufficed. She had never dreamed she would see, hear and learn so much.

It almost felt as though, for the first time in her life, she was truly seeing the people around her for what they really were. Was that because of the situations she had happened to find them in, or was it because she had changed, and was now able to see them that way?

Kiki kicked a pebble at her feet, a shiver running over her body as she heard it splash into water.

Kiki stopped, looking around herself. She had left the town, crossed the valley, and she was standing in front of the lake.

"How did I get here?" she grumbled to herself. "The one place I was meant to be avoiding…"

Kiki turned to walk back, starting to take a step away from the water; but she stopped, her foot in midair, as she spotted a dark patch on the ground. Kiki pulled her foot back and squatted down, grabbing up the pile of cloth that lay on the ground.

"Oh no…" she whispered, opening it out with her hands.

It was Eskara's bodysuit.

Kiki dropped it, turning back to the water. She searched the water's surface desperately, but saw no sign of Eskara. She started to walk on, around the water's edge, only to trip on one of Eskara's boots. Looking down, she saw one boot, then another a short distance away from it. Kiki slowly walked past both boots, stopping at the one item of his clothing that did truly fascinate her; his headdress.

Kiki gathered it up in her hands, running a finger along the glittering gold visor he had used against Dik Dik the day before. Just as she was trying to figure out what it was, an almighty splash caused her to drop it in shock and turn towards the water.

Kiki watched in awe as Eskara rose from the water, throwing back his head. She prepared herself to avert her eyes as he rose higher above the level of the water, but as he reached his fullest height, the water level was just high enough to hide his dignity.

Kiki watched as he wiped at his face with both hands, smoothing his deep red hair back from his face. He took a moment to spot Kiki, a smile instantly appearing on his lips when he did. As he watched her, his smile widened, his eyes sparkling with mischief.

"Kiki?' he called to her.

Kiki gulped, clasping her hands at her chest.

"Sweetheart, I thought you'd never get here…"

Kiki remained silent, still shocked to see him without his headdress. She had not thought it was possible for him to look any more attractive than he had when he first revealed his true form, and yet he was the picture of perfection standing out in the lake.

"Won't you join me?" he called to her, holding out a hand towards her.

Kiki wanted to answer him, but she seemed to have lost the power of speech. Eskara's smile faded slightly, and he started to frown at her.

"Don't be shy, sweetheart!" he coaxed. "And don't make me have to come over dere!"

Kiki's heart leapt into her throat at the very thought; two steps closer to her would be enough for the water level to drop to his thighs.

"Okay, if dat's what you want…" Eskara sighed, lifting a leg beneath the water and starting to take a step towards her.

"No!" she wailed, holding up a hand to halt his progress. "No, don't come over here!"

Eskara grinned again, placing his leg back down to its original position.

"Well, you gotta come over here, den!" he called to her.

"But, I…"

"Or I can come to you!"

"No, I'm coming!"

Kiki pulled off her shoes and eased off her coat, glancing around herself to ensure no-one was watching before stepping into the water.

"Oh God it's cold!" she yelped as the water licked at her ankles.

"It's not cold over here, sweetheart," Eskara said slyly, beckoning her to come closer.

Kiki slowly waded through the water towards him, forgetting for a moment how much taller than her he actually was. She stopped as she found herself up to her waist in cold water, and still a good distance from Eskara.

"What are you stoppin' for?" Eskara called to her.

"It's alright for you, you're tall!" she wailed.

Eskara smirked darkly, before raising his arms above his head.

"Wh-what are you doing?" Kiki asked quietly, unsure if she was shaking from the cold or from nerves.

Eskara swiftly dove under the water, gliding along towards her. Kiki's eyes widened in shock as she watched him circle around her beneath the water. He then popped his head out of the water, winking at her before grabbing her waist and pulling her down on top of himself.

Kiki screamed at the top of her lungs, but her cry was quickly lost as she was forced under the water. Eskara held her against his body, swimming back towards the deepest part of the lake with her.

When he eventually resurfaced, Eskara pulled Kiki up with him, holding onto her as she shivered and gasped for air.

"Hey, are you okay, sweetheart?" he asked through playful laughter.

"No!" she answered breathlessly. "So… Cold!"

"You're still cold?' Eskara asked, pretending to look concerned. "I guess dat means you ain't accustomed to da water yet."

"Eskara, no!"

Eskara laughed as Kiki screamed, both of their voices turning into bubbles as he pulled her under the water again. Once they were under the water, Eskara swam forwards, holding Kiki tightly against himself. He began to roll over, forcing her to move in circles as they swam. He kept watching her as they went, wary of keeping her under the water for longer than she could stand.

When they resurfaced, Kiki grabbed her arms around Eskara's neck and grabbed her legs around his waist, instinctively clutching onto him in a desperate attempt to steal some of his body heat. Eskara chuckled softly, sliding his hands up her back.

Kiki gasped and shuddered, looking around herself. Eskara had been right about one thing; the view of the stars was phenomenal from the lake. Kiki was amazed she had never noticed it before. It was so dark where they were, so very, very dark.

Kiki frowned, looking around herself carefully. Eskara had taken her to the other side of the lake, by a patch of trees, which effectively obscured them from the view of any passers-by.

"Eskara…" she began weakly, looking around the dark shapes of the trees.

"Hush, sweetheart," he said softly, as he gripped his fingers into the material of her dress at her back.

Kiki screamed in shock as he tore his hands from her, ripping her dress from her body,

"Sh," Eskara said, stroking one hand over her head.

Kiki froze, her fingernails biting into Eskara's shoulders as he waded out of the water, carrying her to the bank of the lake amidst the trees. He carefully pulled her body from his, lying her down on the soft forest floor, and positioning himself on top of her.

Kiki opened her mouth to speak, but Eskara pressed a finger to her lips, silencing her. He smiled down at her, and Kiki found herself relaxing as she looked into his eyes. She slowly reached up, taking his face in both her hands. Smiling back at him, Kiki pulled Eskara's face to hers, kissing him on the lips.

Closing her eyes, Kiki began to lose herself in the moment, simply enjoying the closeness of Eskara, the warmth of his body, the tenderness of his kiss; and barely noticing that he was tearing off the remains of her clothing.

Next Chapter: It's time for the final match-up, Kid Muscle vs. Eskara. During the match, Kevin has a confession to make that concerns Eskara and the Kinnku Buster. Chapter 14 – War of Nerves.