"I thought you said you knew how to get in."
"Shut up."
"But I'm huuuungry."
"Well that's not going to make things go any faster, is it?" Kai quipped at his (frankly infuriating) partner-in-crime as he fiddled with the big padlock holding closed the doors to the kitchen, trying and failing for the third time to get all the stupid pins to align so he could open the damn thing and prove to Ray that he was okay and he knew shit and could show a guy a good time —
"Are you any closer?"
"Just — stop talking and stand guard, okay? Make sure no one's coming, I'd rather not spend the rest of this trip in the brig."
"Do they actually have one of those here?"
"I mean… probably. Now shut up and keep watch."
Two minutes and twenty-five seconds later, the tension gave way and the cylinder turned, releasing the shackle of the padlock. Glancing at his "partner," Kai removed the clunky device and swung the door open. "Ladies first."
"Oh my God, that took forever. I thought you were supposed to be good at this."
"These things take time!" he huffed.
"Remind me to never call you if I get locked out."
"What are you talking about?! That was one of my best times ever and do you even know how much a professional locksmith will set you back? You may as well sell your home at that rate and —" he paused when Ray started laughing.
"You're so easy."
Kai frowned as they both went inside. How am I easy? What exactly about me is easy?
The inside of the kitchen was much larger than Ray could have possibly imagined. Sure, he'd seen big kitchens. Hell, he worked in one before becoming a representative for Japan in the World Championships. But he'd never seen anything quite as large and… as organized as this.
There were multiple food prep and expo stations, huge ovens and long lines of stoves surrounded by all shapes and sizes of cookware — some stacked on shelves, some hanging from the ceiling — Ray felt his heartrate pick up as the limitless possibilities overwhelmed him.
"Hm. Smaller than I remembered," Kai noted absentmindedly.
He wasn't actually aware of where the food was kept, but tried to be discreet in his search as his eyes ever-so-casually swept the room for signs.
Ray practically skipped down the aisles as he was taking it all in. Once-in-a-lifetime opportunity, this. Never before had he broken into a secure facility (allegedly or in reality) after hours, and he never dreamed his first time would be like this. Searching for snacks, spending time with the person he had the most ambivalent attitude about, hoping to not get caught - actually the last part he could have predicted. Reminded of the stakes of their "mission," Ray skipped back to Kai, who was kneeling by the door, fiddling with another lock.
"Fuck!"
Kai practically fell over when he heard Ray rematerialize behind him, giving him a half-strength glare and a loud sigh. "Having trouble?" Ray asked.
"No! You just snuck up on me! Almost had this cracked, too," he lamented, spinning the dial a few times before resetting his position with his ear pressed against the door, listening for the minute 'clicks' that would tell him the combination. "Should get you a bell or something," he muttered.
Roughly thirty seconds later, the latch released. Kai fought a grin at the pride in his own abilities. Granted, random abilities, but in a way, that almost made it better. He couldn't deny the feeling bubbling up in his chest at the thought of impressing someone personally. What a rush!
The door swung open with a sharp tug, and the two stepped inside. As they moved around, automatic lights flickered on, giving the room an eerie glow.
'Room' may have been an understatement. The 'pantry' (as it was indicated on the door) was practically a small warehouse, with high ceilings, linoleum floors, and rows and rows of tall metal food racks. From their spot by the door, they couldn't see the far corners of the room or tell what food items would be where.
Ray turned to his left and started browsing the aisles, getting a feel for the place.
Kai headed right, instantly feeling like he was in the stacks of a huge library after hours, except instead of books there was food and instead of being alone, Ray was with him.
It was certainly an unprecedented feeling for him. He had no memories of comfort in another's company, or attention to him that was not directly the result of his beyblading abilities or poor attitude. No one in his life had ever seemed to care about him as anything other than a pawn to reach their own objectives, no one ever cared about him as a human. It was bizarre.
What was Ray's game? What did he want from Kai, and was Kai becoming soft enough to let him get it? He already told him one of his most medium secrets – well, now he supposed it was no longer a secret. Tell anyone anything and it's bound to get out. It was just a matter of time before his so-called teammates would start sneaking glances at his scars or kick him off the team for being so weak. The thought made him seize up inside. Maybe it wouldn't be the worst thing.
"Why the long face?"
Kai barely kept from jumping out of his skin. "Jesus, will you stop doing that?"
The playful grin on Ray's face slipped off, replaced by a look of embarrassment.
"Sorry. You just looked… yeah, no. Sorry."
Looks like we're back to doing this again, Ray lamented.
Cutting his losses, he pointed to the door to their left. "This looks like the fridge, I don't know if you want to check it out or just grab some snacks and dip. Personally, I could go either way since I'm kind of getting tired again."
If Kai was being honest, he was also feeling drowsiness creep up on him. He figured that it was at least part of the reason behind his loose tongue tonight, because there was no way in hell he would have told Ray the stuff he did if he was fully cognizant. Now that he did, he wasn't sure what he was going to do about it.
"Let's check it out."
No sooner had he said that did the terrifying, discordant sound of an alarm and flashing lights go off overhead. The sound of heavy boots thudding down the hall reached their ears, along with the muffled voices of at least two men. The boys looked at each other, eyes wide. What the hell is happening?
"What do we do?" Ray shouted over the noise. Kai cursed his luck, he was too tired for this shit. He didn't have any sort of plan for this.
"Must have tripped some silent alarm or something. We gotta get out of here."
"How do we do that?"
"Same way we came."
Suddenly, the alarm cut out, along with all the overhead lights. Only the dim red glow of the exit sign broke the otherwise complete darkness. "Shit," Kai muttered.
The men outside seemed to be heading towards the pantry, but with significantly less urgency than before. Kai's sluggish thoughts pieced together the most likely explanation, that the pantry door was equipped with a trigger to notify security in the case of any unauthorized breach. It would explain why they didn't show up earlier, when they broke into the kitchen, but also why the pantry door had a separate set of locks on it. At this point though, it didn't really matter what happened. What mattered was that he and Ray wouldn't get caught – it would be very bad news for the Bladebreakers, and Grandfather would not be happy to find out the kind of trouble Kai had gotten himself into. There had to be a way out.
"Kai!" Ray whisper-shouted from a few yards away. Kai had to stop zoning out at the worst possible times; it wasn't good for his reputation.
The men were fiddling with the lock just outside the pantry door, and it occurred to Kai in a half-formed thought that they would have been trapped in there if not for the men coming after them. The boys were too far away from the exit to make a quick escape without being seen – they would have to wait until the men were far enough into the room to have a chance of evasion.
"Hello! This is ship security, we know you're in here! Kindly show yourselves!" A booming voice projected towards the back and echoed off the walls of the room. Ray and Kai were frozen in place behind a high shelf near the back wall, not willing to cede to the commands of the security team. "If you refuse to comply, I guarantee the punishment will be much worse. Now, you have ten seconds to come out from wherever you're hiding and come to the front. Ten… nine… eight…"
"Oh my god, I can't believe he's actually counting," Ray hissed into Kai's ear. A flashlight beam flew over the sacks of rice a foot away from where the two were crouched, startling them. "Okay, follow me."
Kai grabbed Ray's shoulder, holding him back. "What are you doing?!" He mouthed, trying to keep quiet as possible.
"Just trust me, I know how to get out of here. There are only two guys, one at the exit, one walking around. Need to distract the exit guy while the other guy is at the back. Then you run, I'll come after. Got it?"
Kai wasn't sure he did, or that Ray's plan would actually work. But he wasn't in the mood to think. He nodded.
"Three… Two… I can hear you guys talking back there! You're not getting away without us knowing, so just come out!"
Ray crept up to the edge of the shelf. The second guard, the one with the flashlight searching the aisles, was less than two yards away. When he turned to face the other direction, Ray dashed to the opposite wall. It was nearly silent. Kai moved after him, but wasn't nearly as quiet. The flashlight beam turned in their direction.
The boys dove towards the ground, but it was too late. They were seen.
"Okay, new plan, RUN!"
Ray shoved Kai towards the side wall and ran in the other direction, towards the guard in the other aisle. Kai understood. He ran along the wall towards the front of the room, but stopped when he got to the end of the racks. The first guard was still there.
It sounded like Ray was coming to the front, the second guard chasing after him. "Catch me if you can!" He taunted.
"Fred, get the brat!"
It was enough to make the man move away from the exit, but Kai suddenly felt rooted to the spot. What if he didn't make it?
"KAI, MOVE!"
His legs started before his mind could think him out of it, and he was flying towards the open door with all the speed he had. The sound of heavy boots clammered after him, getting louder and closer and almost right behind him – a boot came down on his heel and they both came down, a hand grabbing his ankle to keep him from getting away. Kai kicked his foot as hard as he could, but the hand was strong and wouldn't let go.
He could barely react when a blur stumbled over him and his ankle was released, but after a second he forced himself to move again and he hightailed it towards the front of the kitchen.
He ran and ran out of the cafeteria and down the stairs, until he was out of breath and he couldn't move anymore. His whole body was buzzing with adrenaline. Ugh, what a rush.
Leaning against a wall, he slumped down to the floor, unable to do anything else. He was finally safe again, at least relatively. His body was protesting the continuous stress and exertion, and Kai knew he'd made a number of stupid decisions that would no doubt catch up to him in some way, very, very soon.
Feeling the thrill drain out of him, he suddenly remembered something important. Where the hell is Ray?