"I can't do this."
Tala raised his eyebrows. "What exactly are you doing?"
"This!" frustrated, Anastasia gestured towards the view from her window helplessly. "I can't do this. I can't be the perfect daughter. I shouldn't have to be!"
"Okay," Tala sounded confused. "Is this about the memorial, or…?"
"It's everything, Tala!" she snapped. "Why are you here anyway? You should be getting ready, you're actually here for this thing!"
"Kai went into the city to do something and told me to make sure you didn't run away when it was time for the memorial," replied Tala easily. Smirking at her expression of disbelief, he sank into her desk chair. "So, princess, looks like you're stuck with me until he shows up."
"Why would he even ask you to do that?" Anastasia sounded annoyed, but she had turned her face away as she spoke, and there was significantly less venom in her voice.
It only took Tala a few seconds to realize she was pleased that Kai had ordered Tala to watch her. He gave her a thoughtful look – she was steadily gazing out of her window at the trickling of guests entering the property with a pouty expression on her face, but she definitely didn't look as angry as she had moments ago. He chuckled. "Because he likes you."
Immediately, Anastasia's shoulders tensed. "What did you just say?"
"He likes you," Tala rolled his eyes. "You knew that, right? It's pretty obvious."
There was a pause. And then, "I didn't think Kai liked anyone," her voice was guarded.
Tala snorted. "Trust me, I've known him since we were kids. I've seen the way he is when he wants to get laid, andI've seen him be nice to girls because he feels bad for them. Neither of those things happen often, because Kai doesn't have to try with girls. Even I've never seen him like thisbefore."
Anastasia sniffed. "Well, yeah, he's nice to me. But we're just friends."
"Has he ever said you're just friends?"
"That doesn't automatically mean he wants us to be more than friends, Tala."
"Doesn't rule out the possibility either, Anna."
Anastasia turned back to glare at him. "You're being stupid. Kai does not have a crush on me."
"Don't act so uptight about it," Tala picked up a pencil off her desk and twisted it around his fingers idly. "I know you like him too."
Her eyes widened. "I do not!"
Tala snorted. "Anna, I wasn't born yesterday. I know you want to jump him. Personally, I think you could jump him and he'd go along with it pretty happily, but Hilary said that isn't a healthy way to start a relationship, so I can't advise it."
"Hilary knows?" demanded Anastasia. "Tala, have you told Kai your stupid theory?"
Tala shrugged. "He wouldn't believe me. He thinks you're too good for him, and that he's got too much baggage to get a nice, normal girl like you interested in him."
Anastasia turned pink, but still rolled her eyes. "Really? Kai said that?"
"Maybe I'm paraphrasing," admitted Tala. Then he smirked. "See what I mean, though? You know that's not the kind of thing he'd say, because you know him pretty well, and that's because you like him."
"Knowing someone well doesn't mean I want to sleep with him, Tala."
"But you do."
"You're the one who wants to sleep with anything that moves!"
"And you just want to sleep with Kai!" Tala cackled madly.
Anastasia turned red. "And you're five years old!" she snapped.
"Three," said a flat voice from the door. Anastasia's eyes darted there immediately, and Tala wanted to laugh when he saw her tense posture loosen even more as Kai walked into the room uninvited. He didn't react when Tala tossed the pencil at him and missed; he was already dressed in a suit, tie in hand as he leaned against the bed-frame lazily. "What did you do now, Tala?"
"He's just annoyed that I haven't been lying about his stats from your old battles," Anastasia rolled her eyes, and threw Tala an annoyed look. He grinned, but didn't correct her, and Kai didn't look like he realized she was lying.
"Still think you're better than me?" Kai raised an eyebrow challengingly at the redhead.
Tala rolled his eyes. "I know I'm better than you, Hiwatari. Not my fault the technician is biased."
"I am not!" protested Anastasia.
They both ignored her. "We'll see," Kai smirked. Then, he seemed to notice Tala's outfit. "Why are you dressed like a homeless man?"
Anastasia cackled, and Tala scowled, glancing down at his hoodie and pajama pants. "You dragged me out of bed and told me to watch her!"
"You could've put some clothes on before, dickhead."
Tala grinned evilly. "Why, you worried Anna's going to fall in love with me when she realizes I'm more ripped than you?"
Kai rolled his eyes. "Totally," he deadpanned. "Go get dressed, it's getting late."
Chuckling, Tala left the room, pausing only to ruffle up Anastasia's hair playfully. She swatted him away and fell back onto the bed with a groan, ignoring Kai's presence completely.
Tala was wrong. There was no way Kai had a crush on her. He liked her, and he liked being around her, but that was because she knew what wouldn't annoy him, and she stuck to that. She was also fixing his beyblade. If anything, it was probably gratitude and some friendly affection. Completely platonic. Nothing more.
He was absolutely delicious in a suit, though.
"You're thinking pretty loudly," said Kai dryly. "What did Tala do?"
Anastasia frowned as she sat up. Immediately, she decided to lie again. She was not going to come clean to Kai about her opinion on him with a tie on. "He didn't do anything," she merely glared at the black dress hanging from her wardrobe door accusingly. "I changed my mind, Kai. I'm not going."
Kai nodded, seeming unsurprised. "Okay."
Anastasia blinked. "That's it?"
"I can't carry you kicking and screaming," Kai sat down on the bed next to her, loosening the tie he had probably knotted when she had been brooding. "We won't go if you don't want to."
She almost smiled at his careless words. "We?"
"Tala will probably still go because he says funerals are great places to pick up girls," Kai frowned slightly. "It sounded less weird when he said it."
"Everything he says sounds less weird until you think about it," grimaced Anastasia. Kai lifted one shoulder in a shrug. She nudged him softly. "So you'll stay with me if I don't want to go?"
Instead of answering, Kai fell back onto her bed with a grunt. Anastasia didn't hesitate before following suit. They weren't touching, so it wasn't romantic in any way. But it was nice, and she let out a quiet sigh of contentment.
"I missed my parents' funeral," said Kai suddenly. Anastasia turned to look at him in surprise, but his expression hadn't changed. He didn't sound sad at all. He just sounded like Kai. "I locked myself in my bedroom when I was five and didn't leave until Voltaire sent someone to get me later in the day."
Anastasia bit her lip. Hesitating for only a moment, she touched the back of his hand, which lay next to him, with the tips of her fingers. "Sorry," she murmured. "You must think I'm a brat after what you've been through."
"I know you're a brat," he said dismissively. Anastasia wasn't offended. "I'm telling you so you know that one day, you'll regret it."
"I know I might," admitted Anastasia. "I just – I can't do it. There are too many people who expect me to be perfect, and I'm not. My sister didn't even show up."
"So?" Kai shrugged. "Don't be perfect. Your parents are dead. You're going for you, not anybody else. Your sister isn't here because she feels like she owes them nothing. You still think you do."
Anastasia frowned. "How did you know that?"
"Because I went to Voltaire's funeral thinking I owed him nothing and ended up confronted with a bunch of people who thought he was benevolent and a genius," said Kai. Anastasia blinked. She couldn't remember him ever speaking so much, let alone to her. "Most of those people were mental like he was, but that didn't help me. I ended up getting drunk in my hotel room and stayed there until Mr. Dickinson sent someone from the BBA to check up on me."
She didn't hesitate this time, slipping her hand into his gently. To her complete and utter surprise, Kai intertwined their fingers easily. He didn't even bat an eyelid at her actions. "I'm sorry," she said again, when she'd gotten over her shock. "You've had a sucky childhood."
"So have you," he turned to face her, and Anastasia realized how close they were. Eyes faltering, she turned away, fixing her eyes to the ceiling of her room. It was so much easier to be around Kai when he wasn't being nice to her. "Go because you think you'll be at peace later, Anna. Don't go because you feel like you should."
Anastasia bit her lip. She hadn't been lying. The last thing she wanted to do was go to the memorial and be confronted with the entirety of her family, most of whom considered her and her sister to be pariahs and ungrateful brats who had shunned their family, instead of it being the other way around. It had never bothered her, because she had thought she would never have to see any of them again. Her parents' death was sudden, a freak accident on the highway during a thunderstorm and a drunk driver who hadn't stopped to check for a pulse. She felt bad for the way they had died, but could not bring herself to feel sorry that they were gone. But she didn't want to regret not being there to say goodbye in ten years, when the bitterness would definitely escape her.
She sighed. "I should go."
"If you want to."
"Jury's still out on that," Anastasia snorted, wanting to dispel the tension. "Ever consider a career as a motivational speaker, Kai? You'd be great at it."
Kai rolled his eyes. "I hate talking."
"Could've fooled me."
Kai ignored her and sat up, running a hand through his hair. "You should change so we can go," he said. "I'll go check on Tala." He stood up.
"Cool. Help me up?" Anastasia held out a hand.
Kai grabbed her hand and hoisted her to her feet, dropping it immediately. But Anastasia was standing way too close, and she smelled really good, so he wasn't fast enough in backing away, and she had already kissed his cheek by the time he realized he should move.
"What was that for?" he forced himself to ask. He was also forcing himself not to blush. He raised an eyebrow instead.
Anastasia tilted her head to one side. "Because you're sweet," she smiled softly. "And short of fixing your beyblade in record time, I'm not sure how to show you I really appreciate what you've done. I'm glad you're here, Kai."
Kai shrugged. He didn't want her to feel like she should thank him. "What are friends for, right?"
She raised her eyebrows. "We're friends now?"
He rolled his eyes. "You decided we were friends a day after we met."
"I did," she was smiling wider now. "But you've never said it before."
"I flew in from Japan."
"Now that just sounds like you like me."
"I do like you," he flicked at her forehead, noting the look of surprise in her eyes. "When you're not talking."
Anastasia frowned. "But I'm always talking."
"Exactly."
"Hey!" she slapped his arm. "You're mean."
"That too," he dodged her next slap. "I'll meet you outside?"
"Yeah," Anastasia's smile faltered. "Outside is fine."
Kai looked like he wanted to offer her some form of comfort. Anastasia was almost afraid he would, but instead he merely nodded and walked out, closing the door softly behind him.
