Thanks to ILoveMySweetIndia, Velox the Knight 07, and guest for reviewing the previous chapter. Also, thanks to two unnamed guests who reviewed chapter one. This one came out pretty late, but I kinda got a bit distracted by life and other stuff, but I'm back with some inspiration at last.

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Chapter Two: Kai Makes Friends. Maybe?

For the past half hour, Kai had followed Tyson around the campus as if he were a tour guide. All that was missing was a camera opportunity and he would've felt like he was on vacation in some foreign place. He might as well be – coming back to a busy school after being home-schooled was strange, but Tyson had worked hard to make him feel included.

Now they were at the cafeteria hall. Students didn't have to eat their meals here at lunch, but most chose too because there were tables and chairs, and food was nearby. Though as Tyson liked to put it, the cafeteria was the meeting place for all senior students. Juniors had a separate hall to avoid conflict.

Tyson approached the table where four students sat. "Everyone! Meet Kai. He's the new kid!"

The group of four turned their heads to look at Kai. "Hi, Kai," they chorused together.

Kai examined their faces, taking note of their main features. There was a girl with short brown hair and chocolate brown eyes. A boy with messy blond hair and bright blue eyes. A boy with long black hair tied up in a ponytail. And lastly, a male with glasses, tapping away at a laptop. "Hi."

"I'm Hilary," the girl said smiling. She rose to her feet and approached Kai, offering him her hand. "I'm the head of the student council."

"And she'll tell you all about it if you ask," Tyson supplied, jumping out of the way as Hilary tried to slap him. "She's also really violent," he added with a grin.

"I'm Max," the blond boy said. "My mother mentioned you'd be joining our mathematics and information technology classes. You'll be with me. And Kenny." He turned his head to the boy with the glasses.

"Your mother?" Kai repeated.

"Ms Judy Tate. She's head of the science department, but she takes two senior mathematics classes and the only senior information technology class too in addition to all senior science classes," Max explained.

The final boy stood up. "And I'm Rei. Good to meet you, Kai."

"Current champion of the hottest bachelor in school," Tyson said with a frown.

Rei sighed. "Those votes are rigged. You know it. Mariah probably nominated my name one hundred times. You know what she's like when it comes to me. Besides, those numbers don't mean anything. It's just a plastic crown."

Raising an eyebrow, Kai said, "People vote on attractiveness here?" What sort of a school had his grandfather forced him to enrol at where people received a ranking for how attractive they were? "Why is that a thing?"

"Oliver started it a few years ago. He wanted Valentine's Day to be celebrated – everyone deserves to feel loved. People were supposed to send their fellow classmates' anonymous compliments on a small note, but then some of the girls decided to turn it into a rating system, and well, it kinda became a thing," Rei explained. He then frowned.

Some girls walked past their table. One he noticed had long royal blue hair and emerald piercing eyes. She met his eyes then flashed him a roguish grin, giggling to herself when Kai frowned. He immediately moved a hand to one of the blue triangles on his face. He was grateful Tyson hadn't asked about them, but they appeared to be a point of interest for these girls. Something to laugh at.

Hilary's gaze followed Kai and she gagged. "That's Mariam."

"She is pretty hot though," Tyson remarked.

Hilary shot him a glare. If looks could kill, Tyson would've imploded into flames. "She's a bitch."

"A pretty hot bitch," Tyson acknowledged.

"Unbelievable," Hilary murmured, throwing her hands up in the air. "Men! Honestly."

"…I don't mean to pry, but those face markings on your face…" Kenny started, glancing up from his laptop.

Kai sighed. Someone was bound to ask eventually. "It's a personal thing." Four markings. One for every person he had lost. His mother. His father. His grandmother. Wyatt. But no one else needed to know.

"I'm sorry. I'll pretend I didn't ask."

Tyson surged to his feet, planting his hands down on the table. "Who wants to eat?"

Hilary groaned. "But you had breakfast like an hour ago."

"Hey. I'm a growing boy, and a man has got to eat."

Max chuckled. "I'm coming with you. Gotta make sure you don't clean out the cafeteria."

"You want anything, Kai?"

Kai shook his head. "I'm not hungry. But thanks."

"Your loss then." He followed Max towards the counter.

"Will he really clean out the cafeteria?" Kai said.

Kenny covered his mouth with his hand and chuckled. "Depends. Do you like muffins?"

Rei sighed. "Tyson loves muffins. Especially the chocolate-chip kind." He then frowned. "You're not a fan of chocolate-chip muffins, are you? Because if you are… You should run to the cashier now."

The boy didn't even smile. Either Rei was telling the truth, or he was an expert at telling jokes with a straight face. Kai frowned. "I don't like muffins. Especially chocolate-chip ones."

"Then you're fine."

Rei fell silent. He didn't seem like the talkative type. Normally, Kai enjoyed the silence. It allowed him to think uninterrupted, but on rare occasions, talking was necessary. Such as right now when he needed answers to his questions. Kenny seemed more interested in his laptop screen than making conversation, and Hilary was looking at Tyson and shaking her head.

Hilary stood up, and grabbed her books, tucking them beneath her right armpit. He counted three thick books. One about law. Another about business. And the last book was about literature. "I need to go to a meeting now. Head of student council and all, so I need to be there before everyone else. If Tyson gets sick, tell him I told you so, will you?"

Before Kai could reply, Hilary was already gone. "…Student council," Kai murmured.

Rei snorted. "Yeah. Hilary likes being bossy. The student council gives her that right."

Sounded like someone his grandfather would love to have around for dinner. A cold chill raced down his spine and he shuddered at the thought of Hilary coming over. "...Right."

"What class do you have first?"

"English," Kai replied. He looked down at his school diary and examined the timetable.

Rei peered over his shoulder. "Oh, English with Miss Kincaid. You'll be with me for the first lesson. It's fine. She's the nice gentle teacher everyone loves. We're looking at Macbeth."

Of course. Was there a school that did not look at Shakespeare when it came to English studies? He fought the urge to roll his eyes. What a pointless subject, he thought. "Hmm, Shakespeare."

Rei sighed. "Unfortunately. But hey, she's a fair marker. It's an easy class."

Silence once more. The silence was short-lived, broken by the sounds of loud hollering.

Kenny pulled his laptop lid down and tucked the computer back into its safety bag. "They've finally arrived," he muttered, casting his gaze towards the sound.

A group of three tall males entered the room, each one wearing a black and orange sports jersey with the school's name on the back. Each jersey had a number and the player's surname above it. The text was big, bold, and orange, and could easily be seen from his position. "Parker, Smith, and Jones," Kai read aloud. Parker wore a baseball cap. Jones was easily the tallest man in the building. And Smith was built like a mountain.

"Our local celebrities," Rei replied dryly.

"Dumb jocks," Kai said.

Kenny shook his head. "You would think that, but they defy the stereotypes."

"Michael Parker, captain of the baseball team, and a well-known flirt," Rei explained. He gestured to the tallest kid. "Eddy Jones, captain of the basketball team, and so chill you'd swear he was on drugs all the time. And that mountain? That's Steven Smith. Captain of the football team, and he'd be more than happy to use you as practice. They're all on sports scholarships, and everyone must know about it. They're known as the All-Starz. How lame is that?"

The boys sat down at the middle table in the hall. Several girls walked over to join them. One he noticed as Mariam. She sat on the lap of the boy called Steven, wrapping a hand around his neck. Kai made a mental note to keep his distance from them. He didn't want to deal with a bunch of jacked show-offs, nor did he want any broken bones. "Ah, and here I thought they'd all be your classic dumb jock. So very unlike the movies."

Rei snorted. "They need high grades to keep those scholarships."

A fourth dark-skinned male soon joined the group. Unlike his friends, he wasn't wearing a jersey even though he looked right at home in the sporting field. The guy had arms as thick as tree trunks and wore an expression that looked ready to murder anyone that came too close. "Who is that?"

"That's Rick Anderson," Kenny said.

"He likes to box and wrestle," Rei supplied. "They're not sports offered by the school, but he does it outside for some club. That's all I know about the guy – not someone approachable unless your part of the gang. Anyway. Just keep your distance and they won't bother you… unless you have a cute girlfriend."

Well, that wasn't a problem, Kai thought wryly. He had no interest in the complications of love and dating. Besides, his grandfather would just scare them off anyway with all his talk of marrying into the Hiwatari name. "That won't be a problem."

Rei studied his face and frowned. "Not interested in women?"

Kai rolled his eyes. What had given Rei that impression? "Untrue," he said softly, trying to keep a neutral expression. "I'm more interested in completing my studies than wasting my time with relationships and all that drama that comes with it. I don't need more drama in my life." He shifted his attention away from the All-Starz and sighed.

"Heh, yeah, understandable. Women are weird," Rei said, glancing at the spot Hilary had been sitting at. "I mean, I'm dating Mariah, and I still don't understand women. Sometimes, I think I've finally understood the code, but nope. Not even close. Here's some advice; if a woman says she's fine, she most definitely isn't fine, but you have to find out why she's not. Chances are, it's something you've done, but you're not going to be told why."

Kai just nodded. He hadn't asked, nor was he interested in Rei's love life, but it was better than sitting in total silence and waiting for Tyson and Max to return. So, he pretended to care. "I'll keep that in mind."

"…I don't see Emily with them," Kenny said.

Kai recognized the name. According to Tyson, she had a terribly dull personality. "Emily?"

"Kenny has a crush on her," Rei said with a grin.

Kenny glared. "I do not like Emily York!"

"Oh, Tyson mentioned her," Kai said. "You're blushing," he pointed out, noticing how Kenny's pallid cheeks had turned a deep shade of red.

With a sigh, Rei said, "Kenny. You sent her an anonymous Valentine's Day card professing your love for her. You're like, made for each other. She's smart. You're smart."

"Easy for you, Rei. Girls are just naturally attracted to you. They make it known they like you. That's not the same for me," Kenny replied, flustered, his cheeks turning as red as a tomato. "Besides, she spends all her time with them," he added, sending a withering glare in the direction of the All-Starz.

"Just because she's part of their group, doesn't mean she is attracted to any of them."

Kai nodded. "Yeah. What Rei said."

Kenny turned back. "Are you kidding me? How do I compete with that? Good looks. Popular. Attractive. Physically fit. Isn't that what women want?" He looked down at his hands resting on his lap. "All I have is sharp mind, but girls aren't interested in that."

"You're too hard on yourself, Kenny," Rei said, giving the boy a sympathetic look. "You just… need some confidence. I mean… just talk to her. What's the worst that could happen?"

"Make a fool of myself in front of her?" Kenny said. "You don't understand what it's like." He picked up his laptop back, threw it over his shoulder, and stood. Without saying another word, he marched off in the direction of the exit. Now Kai was alone with Rei.

"…Is he always like that?" Kai said, an eyebrow raised.

Rei nodded. "Yeah. Good kid. Heart of gold. But he lacks confidence. A lot of confidence." He then gestured at the cafeteria. "You should get something to eat you know. It can be kinda hard to stay awake during class with Miss Kincaid otherwise."

"Of course. Lead the way."

Rei stood up. "I'll show you what not to eat."

Kai didn't say another word and followed Rei to the cafeteria.

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All the introductory stuff is done (probably another chapter), we'll start getting into the drama and fun. Who are you most keen to see next? Reviews much appreciated, as always!

Story Shout Out

If you're looking for a story that mixes in drama, friendships and beyblading, check out Darkened-Storm's 'No Sacrifice, No Victory!' Worth a read!