"After careful consideration, and at the request from our gracious hotel staff, I have decided that tomorrow's BBA party will include a short dinner here followed by an excursion to a secret location off-site. There will be no alcohol allowed at any point in the night. Any teams who don't abide by this rule will be barred from the remainder of the tournament. Also, I ask that if anyone has information about what happened to the chocolate fountain at the last party, please come forward…"

"Ugh, we're not even at the same hotel, so I'm not sure why it's such a big deal," Bryan grumbled while twirling a spoon lazily across his breakfast plate, "And no vodka? We're not seriously going to follow this, are we, Captain?"

Tala wasn't paying attention. Instead, he was glancing at Kai out of the corner of his eye. Kai had his head in his hands, with his elbows barely propping him up. A small plate of fruit sat untouched in front of him. White bandages covered his arms from wrist to shoulder. Ruby eyes were closed, and his face paint was slightly smudged around the edges. Kai was the picture of exhaustion, which didn't surprise Tala after he watched his match against Ray the previous day.

"Hello, Earth to Tala? Are you done ogling Hiwatari, or should I wait another five minutes before I try to engage with this meat sack you call a body?" Again, Tala didn't answer. His eyebrows furrowed when Kai hunched up even further. The younger Russian was one soft breeze away from collapsing at the table. Bryan and Spencer, noticing their Captain's lack of response, looked over at their teammates.

"Are you alright, Kai?" the tall blonde asked. Nothing. The Blitzkrieg Boys grew wary as the silence dragged on. Did Kai need to go back to the medic? He was medically cleared yesterday, but maybe something was missed.

"Hey, Kai? Are you awake?" Tala, deciding it was his job as captain to risk bodily harm, cautiously poked the other blader in his side. Kai released a startled gasp and sat up straight in his chair. His unfocused eyes glared at the redhead next to him. He shook his head as if to chase away the remnants of sleep, and he scanned the room as if trying to get his bearings.

"Great, if Hiwatari is done napping," Bryan scoffed, "can we please get back to the issue at hand? How are we going to survive two more parties without alcohol?"

XXXXXX

The following night, the dining room was ablaze with gossip. Mr. Dickenson had refused to disclose the second location to any of the bladers and had only revealed that the teens should dress casually. This didn't narrow down the options much, so the teams, minus the Blitzkrieg Boys, were speculating loudly about where they might be going.

"Alright, Bladers," the Chairman said into the microphone at the front of the room, "We have two buses waiting to take you to our secret location. There is an odd number of you, so some teams may be required to split up so that everyone fits. Please make your way outside."

"Last chance to ditch. Are you sure they'll even notice we aren't there?" Bryan scowled at Tala. Blue eyes narrowed in annoyance. Tala wasn't pleased to be going to a random place either, but rules were rules.

"We're going." The redhead neatly stacked the team's dishes and set them in the center of the table. When he reached out to take Kai's fork, their hands brushed against each other. Electricity surged between the two, and both blushed slightly before Kai let go of his silverware. Spencer chuckled under his breath, while Bryan rolled his eyes.

"But what if we practice instead? The training center will be empty, so we wouldn't have to fight over beydishes." Tala didn't say anything for a minute, and Bryan began to mentally congratulate himself. However, his dreams were crushed when Tala finally spoke.

"No. Now, let's go. We're the last ones here. If we get left behind and are disqualified, I'll hold you personally responsible, Kuznetsov. I'll make Boris' training seem like child's play."

With that, the Russians trudged towards the buses as if being sent to their deaths. They knew that their definition of fun was very different from what the head of the BBA had probably planned. When the team got outside, the chairman smiled brightly and beckoned them towards the second bus. As they prepared to board, Max ran down the steps of the first bus and bounced in front of Kai, blocking him from the rest of his teammates.

"Kai! We're going to have a mini Bladebreakers' reunion! We saved you a spot next to Ray, because we knew that you'd hate to sit next to Tyson. Remember that one time we were heading to a stadium, and Tyson was singing so loud that you threw his bag out the window? Good times, although I'm not sure he sees it that way. But it was a while ago, so he needs to get over it. And rememb-"

"Max," Kai sighed, "I remember. Consider the reunion complete." The American burst out laughing and grabbed Kai's arm.

"You're so funny, Kai! I'm sure Tala won't mind if you sit with us for the ride over." The taller Russian found himself face-to-face with blue, watering, puppy-dog eyes begging for a positive response. Tala glanced at Kai, whose eyes were pleading for the opposite. Chuckling, Tala decided he couldn't resist letting Kai suffer a little. His pouting face was too adorable!

"It's fine, Max. He can sit with you. I wouldn't dream of keeping Kai away from such a touching reunion." Kai's eyes widened at the betrayal, and he swore at the redhead in Russian. "Now, now, Kai, I don't want to hold you back from your friends. The rest of the team will see you when we get there." He winked, waved, and got onto the bus. Bryan flashed a twisted smirk at his trapped teammate and hurried up the steps. Spencer nodded in sympathy to Kai before he moved to sit with the others.

Kai wrenched his arm out from Max's hold and stomped up the other stairs to his seat next to Ray. The Chinese blader, fully expecting the new arrival to be in a sour mood, grinned mischievously. He wouldn't let the opportunity to torment Kai go to waste, especially if there was no threat of extra training.

As the bus revved to life, Tyson and Max began to loudly recount their favorite memories of their time as Bladebreakers to the other teams. Ray interjected intermittently to correct some of their exaggerated claims, while Kai sat silently and looked out the window. After 45 minutes of storytelling, the two younger bladers finally ended the 'reunion' and started to play a game. This gave Ray the opportunity he was looking for to speak privately with the Russian.

"I'm surprised Max convinced you to join us." Kai grumbled and rolled his eyes at the raven-haired teen.

"It's not like I had much of a choice." Seeing Ray's raised an eyebrow, Kai continued, "Tala left me out to dry." A soft laugh filled the space. Although Kai knew it was at his expense, the sound wasn't obnoxious. Besides Tala, Ray was the person Kai felt closest to. His calm demeanor was the only reason why Kai hadn't gone insane during that first year as the Bladebreakers.

"How are things going between you and Tala?" asked Ray suggestively. Puzzled by the other's tone, Kai responded blandly.

"Hn, we're solid tag-team partners." Ray blinked at the blunt response. Trust Kai to miss the point completely.

"Yes, you're well-matched as teammates, but that's not what I meant! I want to know how things are going between the two of you. Did you go to the movies together?"

"Yes," Kai answered. He closed his eyes and leaned his head back against the seat.

Kai had let Tala pick the film, which ended up being a mediocre action flick. Kai's body buzzed at the memory of sitting next to his captain in the theater. Kai felt comfortable and safe, which wasn't how he normally was in the dark. The deep, blackness held too many bad memories. Somehow, being near Tala kept those unsettling feelings at bay. Why did Ray want to know about this? Was he offended that Kai never thanked him for the ticket vouchers? Did Ray want to know what movie they saw? Kai wasn't sure, so he opted not to say anything else. Ray would have to let him know if that was an acceptable answer or not.

"Kai." Apparently it wasn't.

"Hn."

"I meant," Ray exhaled and tried to think of the best way to word his question, "Have you and Tala talked about your feelings, yet?" Kai opened his eyes and stared at the Chinese blader, not comprehending the question, as if Ray had spoken in another language.

"I don't know what feelings you're talking about."

"Kai," Ray sighed, "when it's just the two of you together, how do you feel?"

Kai blushed as he thought about everything that had happened since the start of the tournament. There were these - what had Bryan called them? - moments that Kai couldn't explain. Sometimes, Tala would touch his shoulder during practice, and Kai's body seemed to burn hotter than Dranzer's finishing move. There was the time that Bryan had 'accidentally' tripped Kai in the Beystadium hallway after a match. Luckily, Kai fell into Tala instead of face first onto the floor. While he was in the redhead's arms, Kai couldn't catch his breath, and his stomach felt like it was doing somersaults. Then, there was that moment at the holiday party, where Kai felt drawn into Tala's eyes while they were on the balcony. His heart had been thudding like a runaway train. If Bryan hadn't interrupted them, Kai thought he might have fainted.

"I feel strange around him. I don't understand it."

"Uh huh," Ray smirked, "you like him." Kai stared at Ray, not comprehending what he meant. He shrugged.

"I guess. We're teammates."

"No," Ray laughed at the clueless Russian, "I mean that you like him like I like Mariah." Red eyes widened. His pale blush exploded into a much brighter shade of red. Ray couldn't be right, could he? As much as Kai wanted to deny having a crush, his behavior towards Tala suddenly made sense. The chest pain, the near-constant blushing, the dizzy feelings…

"So now that we've established that. What are you going to do?" Kai glared at Ray. He ran a hand over his face and almost wished that Tyson would start singing again. Almost.

"Even if you're right, which I'm not saying you are, I won't do anything."

Ray punched Kai lightly in the arm. Of course that would be his response. However, the White Tiger was prepared. As Kai's friend, Ray was determined to help him through what seemed to be his first romantic crisis.

"Why not? You two are very close, and it's-"

"Ray."

"-natural that your feelings would evolve as you both got older. You-"

"Ray."

"-would be such a cute couple! You guys are-"

"Kon," Kai interrupted pointedly, "Tala doesn't like me that way."

"Are you sure about that? He scares off everyone within a mile radius of you, like he's an overprotective boyfriend." Kai was about to deny Ray's claim, but he thought back to Tala's anger at Miguel: the shattering glass and death glares at the blonde. Maybe Ray had a point.

"Regardless, what if dating didn't work out? It could hurt the team and ruin our chance at the championship." Kai shuddered as he thought about Bryan's potential response. Kai's life would be full of relentless teasing and taunting.

"Okay, I get what you're saying. I went through a similar struggle when I was trying to decide what to do with my feelings towards Mariah. As for Tala, if he's gay, he's bound to be attracted to you. I'm happily in a relationship, but even I can't deny that you're incredibly sexy! The scar over your eye from last year's battle against Brooklyn makes you look ruggedly handsome."

Kai glared at the former Bladebreaker, but the effect was weakened by Kai's rosy cheeks. Ray put up his hands defensively, "I'm not sure what might happen if you start dating Tala, but you don't either. I'm your friend and want you to be happy - just promise me that you'll think about telling him."

"Hn."

Before Ray could pester Kai further, the bus erupted in cheers. Ray leaned over the Russian to look out the window at their destination. Past the gravel lot, there was a neon sign that said Spring Fling: Carnival and Amusements.

"Would you look at the name of the carnival? It's like fate, telling you to let Tala be your spring fling." He waggled his eyebrows and winked.

Kai groaned and silently hoped that Bryan had smuggled in alcohol after all.

XXXXXX

When the teams had all filed off of the buses, Kai walked over to rejoin the other Blitzkrieg Boys. For reasons he couldn't explain, Ray decided to follow him instead of going to the White Tigers. When the two of them stood in front of the Russians, Ray smirked at Kai before staring straight at Tala.

"Thanks for letting us borrow Kai! He and I had a great time." With no warning, Ray threw his arm around Kai's shoulder, pulled his shocked friend closer, kissed him on the cheek, and then ran off laughing. Kai cursed his Russian heritage as his pale face flushed yet again. Bryan and Spencer stood still, unsure what to do in this scenario. Tala's eyes narrowed dangerously.

"Well, I'm glad the two of you had fun," he sneered. He scrunched his nose in disgust and rubbed his temples aggressively. Kai took in Tala's actions. Was he jealous of Ray?

"Ah, lay off, Captain!" Bryan snorted, "It's not Hiwatari's fault if Kitty cat had bigger balls than you and asked him out." Kai was startled but also oddly touched that Bryan was defending him. He inhaled deeply and decided to clean up the mess Ray made.

"I'm not dating Ray or anyone else. I don't need distractions to get in the way of the championship." For some reason, his statement caused Kai's chest to hurt. It wasn't a lie, though, was it? He wanted to beat Tyson, and starting a relationship with Tala could jeopardize that.

"Fine," Tala said sternly, "Let's get going. We have two hours to kill before we can get back on the bus. Any suggestions on what we should do first?" His three teammates shook their heads. None of them had been to a place like this before. The closest thing to an amusement park they had been to was the haunted house at the first BBA party.

Tala huffed in annoyance. It was going to be a long night.

XXXXXX

First, the Blitzkrieg Boys had gone to a fortune teller. None of them were impressed by the vague predictions the woman made. Then, the team moved through the house of mirrors. Thanks to their Abbey training, they completed the route with ease. After that, the Russians went on a spinning ride. Although Bryan laughed like a maniac the entire time, his teammates didn't find the weird sensations nearly as fun. Once safely back on the ground, the group bickered about what to do next.

"I say we go on the roller coaster." Bryan pointed to the enormous structure at the other end of the park.

"Haven't you had enough rides, Kuznetsov?" Kai spat irritably. His stomach was churning from Bryan's last recommendation.

"Aw, feeling a little sick?" he mocked. Kai clenched his fists, and Spencer rolled his eyes as he moved closer to the duo. He hoped that he wouldn't have to step in and take any punches. To think, today was going so well.

"Bryan," Tala cut in, "if you want to ride the coaster that badly, take Spencer. I don't want to go either, so I'll stay with Kai." Kai uncurled his hands, relaxing at the suggestion.

Although Spencer was glad to avoid yet another fistfight in a public place, the blonde wasn't sure why he had to be the sacrificial lamb in this scenario. He wasn't particularly fond of these rides either. Spencer looked at his captain, who tilted his head towards Kai. Sensing that Tala wanted time alone with the youngest Russian, Spencer decided that it wasn't worth it to push the issue. Plus, Tala would owe him. Big time. That would come in handy at some point.

"Fine, Bryan, let's go." With that, the two bound off into the crowd.

"Okay, Kai," Tala sighed, "we're on our own now. Any ideas?" He turned to the younger blader and grabbed both of his hands. Despite Kai's claims to himself that he could deal with his feelings towards the redhead, Kai's legs wobbled, and he stuttered his reply.

"Uh, well, I mean, we could go to the arcade." Kai blushed. Was that a stupid suggestion?

Tala smiled and nodded. He let go of Kai's right hand but held onto the other as he led them through the park to the game stalls. Kai's body hummed in delight at the touch. He let out an almost-imperceptible mewl of protest when Tala finally released his left hand. What was that? Kai felt so pathetic. Hopefully, Tala didn't notice! Kai wrapped his arms around his torso and couldn't stop the pout that spread over his face.

However, Tala had managed to hear Kai's whine over the noise of the crowd. He was going to ask what was wrong, but his words caught in his throat when he saw his childhood friend. Even with a sour face, the younger Russian looked mesmerizing.

Feeling emboldened, Tala touched Kai's face carefully. His lips hovered near Kai's mouth, cautious and unsure. Feeling a fluttering sensation in his stomach, Kai's face flushed and his breath quickened. Kai couldn't explain his newfound need to close his eyes, but he wasn't one to doubt his body's intuition. His lids closed, and he waited in darkness. He felt lips timidly brush against his. Sparks flew up his spine, and he let out a gasp. One of Tala's hands moved behind his head, deepening the kiss briefly before pulling away.

Kai's legs were jelly, and he swayed at the sudden lack of contact. He opened his eyes and felt dazed. He couldn't believe Tala had kissed him. On purpose this time!

"I've tried to tell you how I feel for the longest time," Tala whispered, "and I know I should have probably waited to bring this up, but I can't take it anymore. I can't get enough of you - I want to keep you in my arms all the time."

"Tala," Kai let out a shaky breath, "I like you, too." Tala moved closer again, and although Kai's heart protested, he put out an arm to keep the other back. The taller Russian gasped lightly and his eyes shone with pain. Kai continued, "Please don't get me wrong, Tala, I want to be with you."

"But…" Tala started. His eyes started to grow more icy. Seeing the change, Kai knew that he needed to carefully choose his next words.

"I think that we should wait until after the championship match. When I'm around you, I can't focus on anything else. You're all I think about, and I don't want to be anywhere but with you. However, that's a problem when we have a job to do. As the team captain, you have to understand that, don't you?"

Tala ran his hand through his red locks and turned away from Kai. The younger blader worried that he had ruined their friendship forever. Curse Ray and his stupid suggestions! Sighing, Kai summoned his courage and touched Tala lightly on his arm. He expected the other to shrug him off or to walk away, but Tala didn't move.

"You're right," came the small reply.

"I know," Kai smirked, "I always am."

Tala turned and shoved Kai. The icy edge was gone, and his blue eyes shone with amusement. Kai let out a small laugh and pushed the taller Russian back. They continued to hit each other playfully until Tala caught Kai and pulled him into a hug.

"After we win the tournament, you're mine, okay?"

"I wouldn't have it any other way," Kai reluctantly pulled away. "Now, I'm going to kick your ass at these games." Blue eyes narrowed.

"Bring it on, Hiwatari!"