Hey guys! Sorry to leave you all hanging a little longer than intended with that cliffhanger, but here's the next chapter! :D I hope you all had a safe, happy Halloween! If anyone's wondering, I went as sexy vodka, and it was FANTASTIC lol in other news, I wanna let anyone who's reading this have a heads up, I will be starting a new OC-centric story soon! Keep your eye out if you'd like to submit a character! Also, thank you to Cosmic Crow for reviewing!

I do not own Metal Fight Beyblade.

"What happened?" Avari seethed.

It was two am, but the girls were wide-awake as they occupied their living room, bundles of raw emotion. Avari paced back and forth between the kitchen, fully sober. After the set had ended, she'd stopped drinking, and had spent most of the night hiding out in the van. Gin sat at one of the island chairs, Ninel stood by the couch, Christina flopped down on the couch, and Stella eased back in her beanbag chair, clearly unsettled.

Selen had gleefully greeted them at the door as they'd been loading the van, telling them what a "great" job they'd done. It'd taken all their energy to keep quiet and not engage. After the Garcias had played and they'd finally gotten paid and were allowed to leave the venue, Selen had called to them, saying it might be time to pack their bags.

Stella's stick bag had been found shoved under a table that had been pushed into a corner with other tables and fold-up chairs, with no explanation as to how it'd gotten there. As for what happened to Gin's guitar, that was anybody's guess.

"It's like someone unintentionally wanted to make us look bad," Christina said unhappily. "But why?"

"I think the better question is who," Avari snarled. "When we find out who did this, they're going down."

Ninel thought back to the argument she'd had before the show even started. That may have been even more of a mistake than she'd realized. She'd almost forgotten about it with the chaos of the night. "I bet it was the Garcias."

"I wouldn't doubt it," Gin said, thinking about all the unpleasant experiences they'd had with the band. She wouldn't put it past them.

"Selen and I got into a bit of a fight," Ninel divulged and the others gaped at her.

Christina sat up. "Why didn't you tell us earlier? We could've backed you up!"

Ninel shrugged. "It was stupid. I was talking to Dashan, and Selen seems to think he's her property. She told me to back off. It wasn't anything physical."

Stella rolled her eyes. "I really hope that girl gets what's coming to her one day."

"I thought when I walked away that was the end of it, at least for now, but I guess not," Ninel frowned. "I knew they were awful, but I cannot believe they would stoop this low."

"Well believe it," Avari groaned. "This is so, so bad. The timing could not be worse. Our second single's been released. We're officially in danger of going home."

"Maybe it won't be so bad," Gin said optimistically, though it didn't sound like she believed herself. "As long as we redeem ourselves at the next show, we might be okay."

"That's right. And DNMM hasn't released the music video yet. There's no way they're gonna put that much time and money into it only to never make it public," Christina agreed. "'My Apocalypse' is one of the best songs we've ever put out. It has to save us."

"I guess," Avari pursed her lips. "From now on, nobody bother with the Garcias. Don't even give them the time of day. If they try to talk to us, we ignore them. Even if they're talking to guys. Selen might be into Dashan now, but there's no saying she won't change her mind. She could go after Bao next. Maybe we should stay out of Dauntless Inferno's way, too."

Christina shook her head. "No way. That's like letting her win. If we let Selen control our relationships, what else are we going to give her power over?"

"But our performance sucked because Selen got mad one of us talked to a guy she liked. She messed with our instruments," Avari argued. "Imagine what could happen if we were actually with one of them."

"Hey, it's not just Selen who caused problems," Ninel contended. "What about you? How much did you drink before the show even started? You could barely walk on stage."

"My singing was fine," Avari defended.

"Maybe this time, but what about next time? You need to cool it with the drinking before it's too late. I'm not going to let you ruin the rest of our dreams just so you can get buzzed." Avari and Ninel stood face to face, fuming.

"Guys, guys. Calm down." Stella had gotten out of her beanbag chair and stood between them. "It was one bad show. Yes, maybe we should be more careful with who we talk to when the Garcias are around, and yes, Avari should probably drink less before we play. But it's late. We need to sleep this off."

Exhausted, angered, and tearful, the girls split off to their rooms, apprehensive of what the next day might bring.

"It was awful," Gin murmured as she sat in one of the many wrought-iron chairs that filled the garden of the apartments, her arms resting on the matching table.

She wore oversized sunglasses and sat in a more secluded area, not that that was really going to help her hide. She wasn't so sure her bandmates would approve of what she was up to, even though they hadn't made any real decisions the night before. Ideally, she'd blend in with the foliage thanks to her dark clothes, and the others would be none the wiser. But she had to talk to someone, and that someone needed to be a person outside of Midnight Embrace.

"But you're staying right?" Kyoya said, a hint of anxiety at the fringes of his tone. Gin couldn't figure out why; it was so unlike him. Maybe last night's performance was just a reminder of how things worked in this industry. One day you were in, the next… not so much.

"We're staying," Gin confirmed, but she still cringed at the fresh memory. Midnight Embrace had been summoned to DNMM headquarters early that morning.

It hadn't ended as badly as it could've, but it still wasn't pleasant. DNMM told the girls they would be staying, but were on probation until after their next show. After that point, DNMM would reassess, once the numbers were in for "My Apocalypse" and its music video, and based on how the show went. Doji and his assistants had been extremely clear that another performance like last night's would not be tolerated. Until then, the girls would not be allowed to record further and all practices would be monitored by a DNMM employee.

"It's humiliating," Gin admitted. "And it's not like it's a secret, either. Everyone knows what happened last night, and most of them weren't even there! I passed another one of the bands in the program this morning, and they steered clear of me, went out of their way to stand in another hallway while I passed, like they think what happened to us is contagious. As if just being near us is bad luck."

"That's just stupid. Anyone who's seen you guys play before knows you're better than that. I can't believe the label is doing this," Kyoya said disgustedly. "It's obvious someone was messing with you."

Gin looked down. When they'd tried to plead their case this morning, Doji wasn't having any of it. He told the girls to stop making excuses, and start producing results or they'd be gone. "Even if they did believe us, I don't know what they could do. It's not like we can prove who did it. We'd have to catch them in the act, and we can't risk anything happening next show."

"I'll go to your next show," Kyoya offered. Gin's head shot up. "I'll stay backstage with you, help keep an eye on all your instruments. It sounds like whoever did it took advantage while you were all at the bar or something."

"Yeah…" Gin smiled warmly. "Thanks, Kyoya, that'd be great. We're seriously gonna need all the help we can get if we want to get off probation."

Kyoya looked away, towards the gardens so Gin couldn't see his expression. "You guys are talented- better than a lot of the bands here. You need to stay."

"Let's hope everyone else agrees," Gin shrugged. "The way things are right now, it's not up to us. I think what Christina said is right. Too much money has been invested in us up to now to get rid of us after one bad show. As long as practices go smoothly, I think we should be okay. We've just got to be perfect while DNMM is watching us."

"So that's really all they have you doing? Practicing?" Kyoya grimaced. He stood up and Gin followed, wondering where they were going next.

"Yup," Gin nodded as she pushed her chair in. "Well, actually we've got our first press interview on Tuesday. From the way Doji talked, it sounded like it'd be bad to cancel it last minute."

"I'd say it's a good thing. Sounds like they're not planning on letting you go, so they don't want to risk damaging your reputation and starting you off with bad publicity."

Gin paused, thinking. She hadn't thought of it that way, but he definitely had a point. If DNMM really wanted them gone, they would already be on a plane home. Gin visibly relaxed, finally starting to feel better about the whole ordeal. She followed Kyoya down the brick path, out of the garden, trying to figure out where they were going. He certainly wasn't giving any clues.

They stopped at the edge of the forest, right in front of the trailheads.

"Have you gone on any of these yet?"

Gin shook her head. Kyoya brought her over to the sign depicting the three different paths, going over the merits of each. In the end, they decided to take the easiest, mostly for Gin's sake. Gin protested, not wanting to slow him down or interfere, but Kyoya insisted they do one that worked for both of them.

"Fine," Gin quipped. "But next time you have to promise we'll take the path you want." She felt a little bold, assuming there would be a next time, but so far he hadn't given her a reason to think there wouldn't be. Kyoya was so hard to read.

"Works for me," Kyoya flashed her a crooked grin, fang peeking out, and Gin felt her face grow warm. She wondered again how she was standing here with one of the hottest, fastest growing stars in the music industry.

The trail followed a gentle incline, with rocks scattered here and there to climb over, but it was pretty straightforward for the most part. It felt nice to just get outside for a bit, even when they were all of ten minutes from the downtown area of a massive city. Even if just for a while, it felt like being home again. Out in the wilderness, reality felt so far away.

She and Kyoya chatted easily, and Gin enjoyed how nice it felt talking with a friend and for once feeling like there wasn't any pressure weighing her down. She already couldn't wait for the next time they met up.

"A word of advice," Kyoya said suddenly. Gin's head snapped to attention. "Be careful at the interview. You never know when they might twist your words, so watch what you say. And there's no telling what they've already heard about you. Be ready for anything."

"Got it," Gin nodded, feeling apprehensive again as worry seeped back into her veins.

Kyoya stopped and turned, looking at her with an expression she couldn't decipher, but one that felt really warm. "You'll do great."

His gaze held hers a beat longer than she'd been expecting, and her heart thumped. She thought it might be all in her head, but the more time she spent with Kyoya, the more he seemed to prove otherwise.

Avari glared at Ryuto, who stood in the corner of the practice room, innocently watching. Why was it he always showed up at the most inopportune times? He always seemed to show up when she was at her lowest.

She hadn't had a chance to see him since the kiss even though he was normally all over headquarters, and now he was overseeing band practice, then responsible for escorting them to their interview so nothing "happened." His words, not hers. What kind of mess did DNMM think they could get into during the twenty-minute ride there?

It was infuriating. Avari was so glad she hadn't seen Selen around lately, because she wasn't sure she could keep it together if she did. This was all her fault.

Avari kept her gaze straight ahead at the door the entire practice, refusing to look at Ryuto. She wasn't even sure what she was supposed to be feeling. They'd both made it clear they were into each other, and they did both have crazy schedules, but she wished he'd have made an effort to reach out. She didn't have his number- yet- but he probably could find hers in DNMM's files.

Then again, that might be against the rules, but still. Avari doubted Ryuto cared that much about violating them. If he really wanted to reach her, he would've.

The thought made her heart ache.

Avari ignored him and focused on playing. They weren't allowed to do much, but they had to nail the things they could.

"Awesome," Ryuto spoke the first words he'd said since coming in the room, other than a casual hello. "But at the end, do you think instead of-"

'This isn't your band," Avari lashed out, refusing to hear whatever he was about to suggest. "So really, it doesn't matter what you think. Just sit back and watch. That's your job."

Ryuto held his hands up. "Just trying to help." The other girls watched uneasily as the two stared each other down.

The rest of band practice went off without a hitch, then they piled into the car they'd be taking to get to the interview. The interview was going to be fairly informal, just at a local coffeehouse in the middle of the afternoon, when it wouldn't be too busy. The girls weren't big enough that going out in public would be an issue, and because it was their first interview, a relaxed setting was supposed to help put them at ease. Avari hoped the others were feeling okay, because everything was putting her on edge these days and she was struggling to manage it all. It wasn't like she could take a shot or two before the interview.

Well, she supposed she could, but not with Ryuto watching. Or any of the other girls. Not after the argument the other night. The last thing she wanted in all of this was another fight with her bandmates and best friends. The five of them had to stick together.

Even with the traffic, it wasn't a terribly long ride, though it was disturbingly quiet with no one saying a word. Avari supposed that was one of the perks of living in the city, with everything close by. They practically could've walked.

Avari stepped out of the car last, shielding her eyes from the sun cursing herself for forgetting her favorite pair of sunglasses back in the apartment. The other girls had already gone inside the coffeehouse. Ryuto was right behind her, following close. Did he think she was going to make a run for it if he didn't watch her every move? She rolled her eyes at him and turned around, tossing her hair. She kind of hoped it might whack him in the face. It'd serve him right.

"Alright, what's going on?" Ryuto pulled her aside, annoyed. They stood on the side of the building in a small alley, close to the front entrance.

"You can't tell me you don't understand how frustrating this is." Avari matched his tone. "I haven't seen you since the release party, and suddenly now you're watching my every move?"

Ryuto moved in closer, almost touching her. She hated that his proximity made her heart beat faster. "Do you even know what's going on here? I had to beg DNMM to let me be the one to supervise Midnight Embrace. Trust me, you don't want any of those other guys hovering over you. You won't be able to get anything done, and they'll critique every last decision you make. It'll be like they want you to fail, like they're looking for a reason to kick you out. Besides, this looks bad on me, too. I'm the one who brought you guys to the company in the first place. So don't think you're the only one in trouble, Vari."

Avari blinked, surprised. "Oh," was all she could manage. Once again, she'd embarrassingly only been thinking of herself. Midnight Embrace might not have been the only ones who'd been called in for a lecture.

"So go in there and just give a decent interview so this doesn't end up screwing up both our careers." Ryuto turned and walked away.

"Wait!" She couldn't leave it like this, not before she was supposed to present her best self. She ran up to Ryuto and grabbed his shoulder, forcing him to turn. Avari wrapped her arms around his neck and pulled him towards her into a deep kiss.

She didn't want to leave, finally feeling safe in his arms after days of unending turmoil. She only let the kiss fade with Ryuto nudged her, reminding her she had work to do.

"I'm sorry," Avari apologized, truly meaning it. "I've been so stressed lately."

"We'll talk after," Ryuto promised, kissing her on the forehead. "Go in before the others wonder where you are."

She knew whatever rift between them wasn't fully gone yet, but at least now they were almost on the same page. As irritated and annoyed with each other as they might be, neither was going to give up yet. There was hope after all. She felt better than she had in days.

Avari headed for the door, confidently striding over to the table where the girls sat. A woman was across from them, intently giving each of them a once-over.

"Sorry about the delay. I forgot my bag in the car." Avari patted the small purse she carried.

"That's alright. My name is Katie. You must be Avari," the woman introduced.

"That's me," Avari pasted her most cheerful smile across her face. If she had to present a bit of a false image to help get the band off the ground, so be it. She was more than willing to play the part of well-behaved, sweet singer for now if it ultimately helped them.

"Shall we begin?" Katie took out a laptop and started typing.

The interview questions were fairly typical, asking where they were from, their goals and their music, simple questions that were meant to give readers an idea of who they were. Avari had been expecting those, but sooner or later they'd have to be careful, because once Katie got them comfortable, she'd likely start asking more prying questions. Avari had read enough online interviews to know where this was going. The media always wanted a story.

"How do you girls like it here?" Katie asked next, going down her list.

"It's really nice," Christina smiled. "The city's great for walking around and there's so much to do."

"It really is," Gin piped in. "And there's a lot of trails nearby, so we can still experience a lot of the nature we did back home. There's really something for everyone here."

"Wonderful. I'm glad to hear you've enjoyed the move. Now what would you say about the people? What do you think about the other bands you've had the opportunity to play with so far? Any boys here catch your eye?"

Avari kept eye contact with Katie, not wanting to break it because Katie would likely pounce on her if she sensed Avari was trying to hide something while she tried to formulate something to say. Avari was the last person who should be answering that question, especially considering what'd just happened around the side of the building. Her heart was still fluttering. They didn't need to come off as boy-crazy, silly girls who couldn't be serious, and they didn't want to start their journey to becoming rock stars in the eyes of the public as gossip fodder.

"The other bands have been very welcoming," Ninel said politely. "It's been a great introduction to the scene. Of course, we're still adjusting to our new lives and recording, so right now we're focusing on ourselves rather than seeking new relationships."

Avari cheered inwardly at Ninel's perfect answer. Katie pursed her lips, almost looking disappointed that she wasn't going to get anything juicy to print. She pressed on anyway.

"Lastly, there's been a rumor going around about your most recent show was a bit of a flop. Care to say anything on the matter?"

Avari froze. Had word already gotten out about that? How? Was this somehow Selen's doing, too? What were they supposed to say? Her mind was too panicked to form a rational sentence.

Gin came to the rescue, hardly missing a beat. She was grateful Kyoya had prepared her to be ready for something like this. She'd have to thank him later. Katie was probably hoping to catch the girls off guard, but Gin's response came only seconds after the question was asked. "While it's true we did run into some technical difficulties, I'd like to think we handled them well. Sometimes it just goes with the business- any business, really. Some days things just don't go your way. We'll be much more equipped to handle circumstances like that in the future, and with more experience, we can only continue to do better."

"Right," Katie murmured, typing away. "Thank you, girls, that was very insightful. I hope we'll be seeing great things from you." She stood up to shake their hands.

The girls walked out of the coffee shop. "I think we did pretty well," Stella commented.

"At least we didn't give her anything to really work with," Ninel agreed. "She was sneaky with some of those!"

"That last one, definitely." Avari nodded. "I wonder how she found out about the show last weekend."

Stella shrugged. "Who knows? Maybe the publication she works for had someone at the show. At least we didn't look stupid when she asked it. Well, Gin didn't anyway. Thanks for that."

"No problem," Gin grinned. "I'd heard she might try to trip us up, and I wasn't about to give her that satisfaction."

"For now at least we've managed to survive our first interview," Ninel nodded. "We'll have to see what it looks like once the article's posted."

They climbed into the car, where Ryuto was waiting. With Avari no longer gunning for him, the car ride was much more relaxed and everyone was animated, filling in him on every detail of the interview.

"Doji will be pleased to hear that," Ryuto said as he pulled into the apartment building's parking lot. He stopped the car right out front, letting the girls slip out. Avari turned to look at him. He pantomimed holding a microphone. Avari watched him confused.

He did it a second time, and a light bulb went off in her head. Practice room. She wasn't sure how she'd figured it out, but as long as he met her there, she didn't care. He drove around in search of an open spot to park.

"Guys, I'll meet you upstairs in a few minutes." Avari stopped just before the elevator as the rest of the band got in, pretending to rummage through her purse. "I don't know how, but I think I left my phone in the practice room earlier."

"Don't let them catch you in there," Christina advised. "The last thing we need is for someone to think you're trying to squeeze in unsupervised practice time."

"I'll be quick, I promise," Avari told them as the elevator doors closed.

She made a break for the room, unable to contain her excitement. Finally, it'd be her and Ryuto completely alone, with a chance to really talk, even if it was only for a few minutes.

She could barely sit still as she sat on the stool, waiting for him to come in. When he did, the second he'd closed the door she rushed for him, catching him in a kiss. His arms wrapped around her waist. It felt so good now that they'd cleared some of the air between them.

A few minutes later, they broke apart.

"So what does this mean?" Avari asked breathlessly, half-scared of what he might say.

"We're gonna have to be careful for a bit," Ryuto answered, kissing her nose. "At least until Midnight Embrace is off probation. We just can't be open about it until I'm done being in charge of your practices, or some of the higher-ups might have a problem."

"Okay," Avari said, hoping she'd be able to hide the relationship from her bandmates, though she hated keeping secrets from them, especially reckless ones like this that had the potential to endanger them all. "That's probably a good idea anyway. We told the reporter that none of us had any interest in anyone right now."

"Perfect. You should head back now, before the others come looking for you."

Avari stood on her toes to kiss him one last time, peered out into the hallway to make sure no one was there, then dashed for the nearest elevator.

Stella yawned as she sat at the kitchen island, waiting for King to text her. As soon as he was ready, they were going to meet downstairs in the lobby. King had wanted to go out, but according to him the rest of Dauntless Inferno was busy, and he was hoping for company. Stella was glad she'd passed her number along to him. While she'd given it to him at the last show, thankfully it'd been before her disastrous performance. She'd hidden out for the rest of the show, dodging him at every chance. She'd known he was looking for her too, because people kept saying he'd been asking for her.

Stella smoothed down her hair. She hadn't seen him since, though she'd texted him a few times, at least when his texts weren't asking about the nightmare show. She was still coming to terms with it herself. From now on, she'd have a pair of drumsticks on her everywhere she went, at least for shows. She was never risking walking on stage without them again.

It'd been such a rookie mistake, and she hated that he'd witnessed it, as a fellow drummer and a super cute guy who'd been nothing but nice to her.

Still, she couldn't hide out from him forever. If King wanted to take her to the restaurant that made the best rum and cokes in town, so be it. This was a good opportunity to finally rip the Band-Aid off.

…Even if she wasn't sure how one place could make the "best" rum and cokes. Was there some kind of secret ratio she was unaware of? She'd have to ask Avari.

Her phone buzzed and Stella set off, heels clacking on the tile floor. Five minutes later she was downstairs. King had yet to arrive, but Stella got the feeling he was one of those people who was perpetually late. "Meet in five minutes" was probably more like ten minutes.

Waiting gave her a chance to think, though. Sooner or later King was going to ask about the show, and she couldn't avoid it forever. The least she could do was get her thoughts together so that she'd be ready to talk about it.

When King bounded out of the elevator, she was more than ready to go. A taxi was already waiting to take them downtown.

"So tell me. What's the secret to the best rum and coke?" Stella settled into the cab.

"How should I know? It's just amazing!" King buzzed, hardly able to sit still.

"But is the brand of rum? How do they do it?" Stella pestered.

"Just trust me!" King insisted. "Once you've had it, you won't want to go anywhere else!" Stella just shook her head, amused.

As they walked into the restaurant, Stella began to feel a bit uneasy. There were people all around her, which she wasn't too fond of with her dislike of crowds, but that was to be expected in the city. Through that though, something felt off.

Stella brushed it off, following King inside. The restaurant was crowded, but they headed straight for two open seats at the bar. The restaurant had a bit of a tropical theme, two palm trees stretching on opposite sides of the bar before crossing in the middle overhead.

King ordered them both the house rum and cokes before Stella had a chance to say anything. He passed her a menu.

"Wanna grab some snacks while we're here?" His cerulean eyes lit up.

Stella smiled. "Totally." She went straight for the appetizers, eyeing all the greasy, fried delights the restaurant had to offer.

"Let's get the sampler. It's got everything," King suggested.

They placed their order as the bartender brought them their drinks.

"Get ready for the best rum and coke experience of your life." King immediately took a sip of his, then watched to see Stella's reaction.

Stella eyed the drink, looking at the blue paper umbrella sticking out of it. On the surface, it seemed to just be a regular rum and coke.

She took a drink, then let the flavors sit for a minute before another. King was practically falling off his seat in anticipation. It was hard not to notice how cute he was.

There was definitely something different about the rum, and something else wasn't quite typical either. Her mouth puckered a bit. If it was what she thought it was, she wasn't particularly fond of that type of rum. She noticed the lime wedge on the edge of the class.

When she put the pieces together, it was hard not to laugh.

"So? Is it not the best rum and coke you've ever had? I don't understand how they do it!"

"Um, King? It's coconut rum. And just a teeny bit of lime juice."

King's face fell. "Wait, really? I thought it was just some kind of super special rum they mixed with the soda! Is it really just that?"

Stella giggled. "Yeah. But it's good! You should come over sometime. Avari's a bartender. Well, she was anyway. She could make us something like this in a heartbeat."

"Hmm," King stared at his glass, mild disappointment written across his face. "And here I thought this was just a basic drink they'd somehow perfected."

Stella was about to laugh again, when a click caught her attention. She didn't have time to dwell on it, because their food was brought out almost immediately.

"Woohoo!" King cheered.

A few minutes into their feast, King finally asked the question she'd been dreading all afternoon.

"What happened at the show last weekend?"

Stella cringed. The show had happened almost a week ago now, but the wounds were still fresh.

"We don't know for sure," Stella answered helplessly. "My stick bag was missing, so I figured someone brought it on stage for me. But when I got there… I later found it hidden in a corner. Like, actually hidden, like someone had stuck it over there where we couldn't see it. And someone messed with Gin's guitar. I watched her tune it before the show even started."

"Weird," King frowned. "But why would anyone do that?"

"Beats me," Stella picked at her plate. She wasn't about to tell him about their suspicions. Accusing another musician, at least without solid proof, wouldn't be a good look. "As long as it doesn't happen again, we'll be fine. We're gonna triple check everything before we go on stage next time."

"Sounds like a good idea." King's smile lit up the room. "If it makes you feel better, I've messed up big time, too, and we were still okay. One time I forgot a cymbal. Kyoya didn't talk to me for a week after that! Luckily someone had one I could borrow."

Stella laughed. She listened as he filled her in on Dauntless Inferno's own three-month stint with Nebulous Records and the madness they'd gone through before DNMM officially signed them. Listening to him talk put her mind at ease and knowing a hot band on its way up hadn't had the easiest time either gave her hope. Maybe now she could start to put the last show behind her, and start looking towards the future again.

As Stella reached for a mozzarella stick, once again something didn't seem quite right. She turned around, but didn't find anything out of the ordinary. Everywhere she looked there were wait staff and other diners, enjoying their meals and blissfully unaware of her and King.

So why did she feel like she was being watched?