Three
Do I have to explain myself
Every time things go wrong
I'm not always to blame
Just leave me alone
You can't blame me
Just shut up
Shut up
Shut up
"Kai!! You take heroin?!! Are you INSANE?!!" Ray yelled. Kai refused to make eye contact. He'd said enough already, and he didn't have to justify his past actions to someone like Ray. "Kai answer me!!!"
"I don't have to justify my past to _you_ Ray," Kai said eventually, his eyes closed, still refusing to even look at Ray.
"Well, an explanation would be great right about now! I can't believe you'd be so stupid!!" Ray stormed back to his suitcase, and started unpacking his things again, in a more furious fashion. The silence was agonising for Ray, as Kai just stared out of the window and refused to meet his deepening amber gaze. Ray's heart rate sped up. What was going on? He knew Kai was hiding something, and his eyes suddenly caught sight of the letter Kai had received earlier that day. He noticed Kai wasn't paying him any attention, so he made a dart for the note, grabbing it quickly without making too much noise so as to disturb Kai. He read the note over and over again. "Get out of Russia you are being watched? What's that all about?" Ray asked. Kai snapped back to reality, realising in horror what Ray had been reading. He leapt forward and snatched the letter from him.
"It's none of your goddamn business so stop reading my things Ray!" Kai snapped, screwing the note into a ball and putting it in his pocket.
"What are you hiding Kai?" Ray asked, calming down quite significantly.
"Nothing!! It's nothing, alright?! It happened a long time ago, so it doesn't matter anymore alright?!!" Kai growled back. Ray put a hand on Kai's arm gently, but Kai, pulled his arm away at the touch, as if it burnt him.
"Kai, you can't keep hiding behind a wall! You have to let someone in eventually or you'll be alone forever!" Ray said, standing in front of Kai.
"Well maybe I prefer to be alone!!" Kai yelled back. Ray looked at Kai in horror. "I don't mind being alone!! Unlike you and your little groupies! Being alone has always worked out better for me that being with other people!"
"But Kai…we're all friends here…you don't have to keep your problems shut away…you can tell us, and we'll do what we can to help you…"
"You can't help me!! None of you can!! What good is your help if I can't even help myself?!!"
"Kai…calm down…stop yelling…"
"Give me a good reason why I should do anything you tell me to! And if you say anything to do with the fact that we're friends, I don't give a damn!! I don't care!! I just want you to stay out of my life!!" and with that Kai opened the door out into the hallway, and slammed it behind him. Ray ran to the door and down the hall to try and get Kai to come back, but Kai was long gone.
'Damn…' Ray thought. 'This isn't gonna go down well with the guys…but I have to tell them! Whether Kai likes it or not! We may not be a team anymore, but we're still friends! And friends always look out for one another!' with Ray's resolve restored after its crumble at the hands of Kai, he turned back into the room and went to see Tyson, Max and Kenny. It was time they had a talk.
~~***~~
It was dark out on the streets of Moscow. Kai could remember very clearly when he had felt this cold before, but he would rather just forget about what happened on Lake Baikal. He came so close to dying that day, he just wanted to block the memories out. All of the shops were closing up, as the evening lights flickered on and brought some comfort to the dark, bitter streets. Families and couples were gathering in street side restaurants for their evening meal, and everywhere Kai went he could hear the reverie and music of the happier side of Russia. A shudder shot up Kai's spine. He felt as if he were being followed. He whipped around, and yet no one was there. He had the distinct feeling that storming out so suddenly was a pretty bad idea, as he'd forgotten to bring a jacket of any sort with him, and he was shivering with the cold.
'This is my business, not Ray's' Kai reminded himself as he continued walking. 'Ray can tell the others for all I care. It's none of their business either, and they won't get any answers out of me.' Kai looked down at his arm guards, and felt a compelling urge to remove them. He took the left one off slowly, and put it in his pocket. He glared in horror at the state of his arm. It was worse than he had remembered. The needle scars were still there, but the dim light around him made them look darker and more painful. He also noticed bruises running alongside the scars, most likely due to the fact that he'd slipped with the needle when injecting himself, and that his veins were badly inflamed, most likely because of the heroin. But this was all coming out now. Why? He hadn't taken heroin in years. Why were the side effects coming out now?
Kai heard heavy footsteps behind him. His heart started to race as the footsteps drew closer. He picked up his own pace, but the person behind him was still drawing ever so closer. Eventually Kai broke out into a run, and ran through back alleys and barely lit streets. He eventually stopped to catch his breath down a dark and unforgiving-looking alleyway. He used the wall to support himself, his chest was heaving. But there was silence all around him. His follower was gone. Had Kai imagined it all up? He peered around the corner. The streets were once again calm and empty, except for the faint sound of music coming from a local restaurant. Kai ventured back out onto the street, but he was paranoid now. He knew for a fact he was being watched; he could sense someone nearby watching him. He kept his pace brisk, and decided that maybe he should go back to the hotel and go to sleep. He retraced his steps and quickly found his way onto a familiar street. But as he turned a corner a man smacked into him.
"Watch it!" Kai said angrily. The man glared back at him and Kai froze in his steps. Where had he seen a piercing glare like that before?
"Maybe you should watch it, boy," the man said, a dark undertone to his deep voice. Kai recognised the voice, but he didn't know where from. "Young teenage boys like yourself shouldn't be outside at this late an hour when there are people like me around who carry sharp weapons…" Kai gasped in horror. He didn't know who this man was, but there was something hauntingly familiar about him. The man grabbed Kai tightly. Even his grip was familiar. "Don't remember me yet, son? Maybe this will help jog your memory!" the man drew out from his belt a long machete and extended Kai's bare left arm. He rested the blade on Kai's exposed skin and ripped at it repeatedly as if it were paper. Kai bit down on his lip hard to prevent himself from crying out, but the pain was beginning to overwhelm him and he didn't know how long he could keep this up.
"Wait!" Kai cried out, almost in desperation, but more so in realisation. "I…I remember this! You've…done this to me before…"
"That's right…you're remembering now…do you remember how your mother screamed and begged for me to stop? Do you remember how she silently accepted death as I dealt her blow after blow? I remember it well. I saw the tears in your eyes as I slashed at you, but that didn't help you did it? No, it just made me hurt you all the more. Now look at what all the abuse has done for you, Kai. It has made you strong!" Kai's eyes widened. He remembered perfectly now. It was like a nightmare had been reborn into his consciousness.
"No…it's you!!" Kai cried out in horror.
"Yes Kai!! It's me!! Your father!! You hoped that I was dead didn't you?! I thought that after I shipped you off to The Abbey you'd be out of my way, but it looks like our paths have crossed again, my son. I hear you and your little do-good team are the new World Champions. I would be happy for you, but I'm not that kind of a father. Biovolt was weak when my father, Voltaire, ran the company, but if I can reclaim Biovolt as its sole heir then it will flourish! I won't make the same mistakes my senile old father made! I'll do it my way! The world will be my oyster…and you Kai will be dead!!" he ripped off the arm guard on Kai's right arm and continued his ceaseless assault. Kai felt tears start to swell up in his eyes, but he refused to show his father how weak he was.
"Just kill me now and get it over with," Kai said, his father sensing the weakness and the pleading nature in his voice. Kai's father sneered, pulling Kai closer to him. Kai's arms were now stained with blood, and the inflamed veins on his arms had let loose rivers of blood under the mounting pressure. His clothes were now even stained with the dark red substance. Kai kept his eyes tightly closed, too afraid to watch his own death. He heard his father laugh, and he slowly opened them, looking at his father in bewilderment.
"Oh, it's not that simple Kai! You see, your time to die will come, and when it does, I want your friends to be there to watch you fall. I want to enjoy crushing them as they watch you fall into the shadows!" a frightened gasp escaped from Kai's lips unintentionally, but that just made his father laugh all the more. The fear he'd felt at Lake Baikal was nothing compared to the fear he was feeling now. He gathered up all the courage he had left and glared at his father.
"If you seriously believe you can crush the Bladebreakers…you're wrong!" he yelled, wrenching his arm free and making a run for the hotel. The streets were quite crowded now, so Kai's father chose not to pursue his son.
"Until next time Kai…" he said before disappearing into the darkness.
Kai ran across the foyer, a lump developing in his throat as well as a stinging feeling in his eyes. He was about to crack and he knew it. He ran into the lift and repeatedly hit the button for the fourth floor. He kept himself up against the wall, blood dripping everywhere. The stinging in his eyes was getting worse, and his legs felt shaky and weak. The lift doors opened slowly at the fourth floor, and Kai wasted no time in running out and down the hall to his room. He stopped at door, his heart was racing. He was trembling all over, a wild look of fear still in place in his eyes. He slowly turned the door handle and walked into the room. He felt a huge wash of relief to find that no one was in the room waiting for him. Maybe Ray had kept his mouth shut after all. He sat down on the bed, not realising that he was dripping blood everywhere. He felt a tear escape from his eye, but he brushed it away quickly. He felt weak, but he didn't want to show it. He was too proud to show weakness. His breathing became heavier, and his vision faded between clear and blurred. He was growing weaker and dizzier due to the amount of blood he had lost.
He heard the door open behind him, and he got to his feet quickly. He automatically assumed it was Ray, so he made a dash for the bathroom, so that the scars on his arms and the blood wouldn't be noticed. But his path was blocked by two men in black suits, bearing Biovolt's insignia on the arm of the jacket. Kai gritted his teeth and turned to face the intruder. It was Boris.
"Well…you've looked better. Feeling a little suicidal after our last meeting Kai?" Boris asked, sneering.
"Where are my friends?! Where are they?!!" Kai yelled furiously.
"Oh they left not too long ago," Boris replied, advancing on Kai. "They went out looking for you. Your friend Ray knows about the heroin I see…"
"But he also knows that's all the past. I'm not going back to what you wanted me to be; your drone for world domination!!"
"I don't think you understand who the under dog is in this situation Kai," Boris said, as an unusual cloth was pulled over Kai's mouth and nose. He inhaled an unpleasant smelling gas before losing consciousness completely. "Get him to the van. Be careful. Mr Hideaki wants him alive." and with that, the two men carried Kai carefully out of the room and down to the waiting van outside of the hotel. Just as Boris embarked the vehicle and it started up to leave, Ray, Tyson, Max and Kenny walked back into the hotel.
"He's nowhere! Jesus, that guy sure can disappear when he wants to!" Tyson sighed, his hands behind his head. Ray looked down at the floor, his head full of unanswered questions and worries. Where in the world had Kai gone? They all made their way up to their hotel suite and as they stepped into the lift they noticed dark blood staining the walls and the mirrors.
"What happened?" Max looked at the interior of the lift in horror.
"Something bad I'm guessing," Kenny replied, stepping into the lift nonetheless. The others joined him, but just before they were able to go, the White Tigers ran towards them.
"Hold the lift!" Lee yelled, running as fast as he could. He put his hand on the doors and the White Tigers slumped into the lift, exhausted from their sudden bolt. Mariah noticed the blood and screamed.
"What's going on?! Ray?!" she cried, looking over at her former team mate. He kept his gaze to the floor. He wasn't sure about anything that was going on anymore. The rest of the trip up to the fourth floor was a silent one. No one said a word in fear of causing offence or starting an argument. The lift reached the fourth floor, and the two teams disembarked. The White Tigers' room was just across from the Bladebreakers room, so they were both headed in the same direction. That's when they saw more of the blood which stained the walls of the lift, but now it was running all along the corridor, and it ended at the Bladebreakers' door. Both teams gasped when they saw the blood all over the floor, the walls and on the door handle. But the thing about this particular door was that it was the one that lead into Ray and Kai's room.
"What is all this?!" Lee asked in shock.
"What's going on Ray?!" Mariah persisted. Ray looked at the door in shock. It couldn't be…could it?
"Ray…do you think…." Tyson began, sounding hesitant to finish his question. Ray clenched his fists and grabbed the door handle, the blood now staining his own hands. He turned it quickly and ran into the room.
"KAI!!!"
Honesty in bloom
Heart on sleeve
Life ever exposed and safe
Courtesy to them and all you know
Cinnamon and cider mills past last night's drenched roof shingles
Down and cotton covered breath
Out in the open with nothing to hide
SN: I found that above little thing in the White Stripes album sleeve thingy. It seemed quirky so I thought I'd use it. But I don't own it!!! Like I do not own Beyblade. Oh how I wish I did sometimes though…
Hugest of thanks to TigerTerror, treachery89, DragonBlade, Identity Thief, kai baby-girl and Disturbed-Child for your kind reviews. And yes kai baby-girl, I refer to home as being Japan, cos I have a hunch he grew up there before going to The Abbey. Anyway, you people made me feel appreciated, and I love that feeling. And that goes for all you anonymous reviewers too! THANK YOU!!!!
*Jedi mind trick time* You are going to review…you are going to be so very nice and review to make me really really happy…now go…review!!! ^___^