Men Don't Change: Chapter 6
Hilary groaned as she woke up. The sun was shining at an angle that was practically blinded her. Lifting her arm to shield her eyes, she looked at her watch that she had ignoramously left on overnight. What time was it? 12:30 (half past noon)?! How long was she asleep?! Quickly, she glanced around the room, wondering why Tyson hadn't awakened her, expecting to see the half-painted wooden walls of the dojo and an overhyper Max traipsing around, bouncing off the four of them like a dodgeball. Instead, her eyes were greeted by white stone and unfamiliar furnishings. Where did all these beyblades and trophies come from? And how big was this room?
Snap! All of a sudden, it came back to her. Tyson, the animosity, the running, and...Kai! That's right. She was boarding with him now while her parents were gone. What would they say if they found out she was in the same house with a guy other than her boyfriend? And last night, she had...and...then that meant...then this was Kai's -
The chain of thoughts was cut off by the cheerful voice of the maid. "Morning, deary." Hilary gasped. The woman had accidentally startled her. How long had she been there? She was half-thankful, half-disappointed that it hadn't been Kai who had been there. "I'm sorry. Did I frighten you, child?" apologized the maid. She was a little husky, but that didn't mean she was loyal. Heaven knows, she had been there for Kai since childhood, and she was going to be there through thick and thin for the young master. In fact, she had been looking forward to his juvenile years, and now they'd end soon. Her accent was a little heavy, Russian, if Hilary wasn't mistaken. In response to the question, Hilary rubbed her eyes, allowing herself to completely wake up. This didn't seem to bother the kindly maid. She just continued, "Master Kai is out right now; training with his friends, I assume. His team, at any rate. He doesn't like to refer to them as friends." She paused, realizing that she was rambling on, the momentary hurt on Hilary's face alerting her that she was possibly revealing things that didn't necessarily apply to the brunette.
"Don't worry, deary," corrected the well-paid servant, "You ain't like them. I think it's healthy that he finally wants to have someone in his company. Breakfast is downstairs when you want it. Or, rather, lunch according to the schedule." She left, the smile remaining.
"Nice lady," commented Hilary, once she was out of earshot. She noticed a chair close to the bed, on it, her normal "uniform," washed, dried, and squeaky clean. How had they...She shook her head. Duh, they had keys. How many of those outfits had she packed?
Slowly, she got out from under the covers, and slipped on her clothes. Why had everyone let her sleep? After all, it wasn't her house. Just as she was opening the door to leave, a servant girl, around her own age appeared, about to enter the chambers.
"Sorry, miss," whispered the girl as she slid past Hilary. Now was her chance to find out what was going on.
"Um, excuse me," said Hilary, causing the girl to look up from making the bed.
"Yes, ma'am?" asked the girl obediently.
"Why was I allowed to sleep in? I'm supposed to go to training, too, right?" The question aroused a little confusion in the tiny mind of the girl, from her visage.
"I know not, ma'am," she answered. "It was orders from Master Kai not to disturb you, it was." She went right back to fixing the bedsheets to look neat and tidy.
"Um." The girl again responded with a "Yes ma'am."
"Oh, uh, thank you," stuttered Hilary as she left, though she had wanted to ask a lot more.
She descended the stairs into the dining room, amazed at how large it was and how much space there was at the table. Enough seats to comfortably the United Nations, and enough food to feed them as well.
She counted how many places there were, and sat at her appointed space according to etiquette. Seems like that year at the boarding school really paid off now. Then, suddenly, she got up, to the amazement of the nearby butler who was ready to serve her (how was she supposed to reach the food on her own?). "You know what? I'm really not that hungry," she told him. As she was getting ready to leave, she spotted the maid she had seen that morning and made her way to her.
"Oh, good morning, deary," repeated the maid. "Didn't you eat anything?"
"Oh, no, ma'am. I -"
"You really should eat something," she interrupted.
"No, that's alright. I was just wondering if you knew where we were training today. You know, the Bladebreakers."
"Of course, I do, silly. They were going to the dojo, and then some afternoon workouts on the beach. I would think if you were leaving now, you should go to the beach. After all, that's where they'd be about now."
"Thank you," Hilary said quickly and rushed off, not staying long enough to hear the maid call out to her, "You should at least take something with you in case you're hungry later."
It wasn't much of a jog to the beach, thankfully. A few minutes took her straight there. It was, what, quarter after one, now? Yes, just that. Stopping on the roadside, she (BTW, the beach is the sandy area of the park) glanced around, looking for her teammates. There they were! Tyson seemed happy enough, doodling in the sand, waiting for his turn to battle it out in the ring. Ray and Max were currently having it out in the dish, waving their ripcords around and shouting orders to their bitbeasts. Driger, do that! Draciel, go this way! You know. Kai was watching the fight, expressionless, as usual, and Kenny was typing away on his laptop (does he ever do anything else), loading the new battle data.
Kai was the first to notice her arrival. His concentration being taken away from the battle led Ray and Max to investigate what was distracting him (this left an opening for Driger to knock Draciel out of the stadium seconds before it began to wobble and cease spinning). Tyson looked up, astounded for some reason, looking like he wanted to grin until his face fell off. Heck, even the Chief stopped typing in order to figure out what was going on. Hilary was already sliding down the hill. Everybody rushed to her.
"Man, Hilary, we thought you weren't coming," observed a nervous Tyson. The statement was followed by a "yeah" from Max and a "mm-hm" from Ray. Kenny and Kai didn't say anything.
"What made you think that, guys?" asked Hilary, surprised by their unfaithfulness. "I'm part of the team too, aren't I? Why wouldn't I come?" At this Kai commanded that training recommence. A few "aw's" followed, but nothing like defiance. Everybody knew where that got you: In deep crap.
Kai was the only one who remained behind. He used his arm to block her path to the stadium, informing Hilary that now was the time she could have that talk with him she had been planning. (Max: Oh, man! Draciel!)
"Finally woke up, huh?" he started. She nodded.
"Yeah. How come you didn't wake me up?" she demanded in return.
This caused a little panic inside his mind. What was he supposed to tell her, the truth? He thought, 'You looked so graceful sleeping, it would've been a shame...'
He was spared the torture of answering. "I'm not weak, ya know. I can train just as well as the others." He remained silent. That wasn't his excuse, but she it was better that she had her own conclusions than the truth, right? Her next comment wounded him. "Why aren't we your friends, Kai?"
"What?"
"The maid. She said you didn't refer to us as friends. We're your team. We are your friends."
"That's not...it wasn't completely accurate, what she said."
"Yeah, she said -" She now had his undivided attention, and she didn't want to embarass anyone by telling him what she had heard. "Never mind." By now, Kai had his hands in his pockets and her way to the others was unbarred. She took this opportunity and went to join them, Kai permitting her. He was about to go as well when she turned around once more.
"You could've told me to buzz off you know." Seeing the puzzled look her gave her, she explained. "You didn't have to put up with me all night. It's not like you asked me to barge into your life."
Training went on as planned, with no more conversation between the two. 'No, Hilary,' he thought as he watched the others smile and jump around, watching jubilantly the beybattle between Ray and Tyson. 'But that doesn't mean I don't want you to. For the first time in a long time, I actually find joy and comfort in someone. When I'm with you.'
Hilary groaned as she woke up. The sun was shining at an angle that was practically blinded her. Lifting her arm to shield her eyes, she looked at her watch that she had ignoramously left on overnight. What time was it? 12:30 (half past noon)?! How long was she asleep?! Quickly, she glanced around the room, wondering why Tyson hadn't awakened her, expecting to see the half-painted wooden walls of the dojo and an overhyper Max traipsing around, bouncing off the four of them like a dodgeball. Instead, her eyes were greeted by white stone and unfamiliar furnishings. Where did all these beyblades and trophies come from? And how big was this room?
Snap! All of a sudden, it came back to her. Tyson, the animosity, the running, and...Kai! That's right. She was boarding with him now while her parents were gone. What would they say if they found out she was in the same house with a guy other than her boyfriend? And last night, she had...and...then that meant...then this was Kai's -
The chain of thoughts was cut off by the cheerful voice of the maid. "Morning, deary." Hilary gasped. The woman had accidentally startled her. How long had she been there? She was half-thankful, half-disappointed that it hadn't been Kai who had been there. "I'm sorry. Did I frighten you, child?" apologized the maid. She was a little husky, but that didn't mean she was loyal. Heaven knows, she had been there for Kai since childhood, and she was going to be there through thick and thin for the young master. In fact, she had been looking forward to his juvenile years, and now they'd end soon. Her accent was a little heavy, Russian, if Hilary wasn't mistaken. In response to the question, Hilary rubbed her eyes, allowing herself to completely wake up. This didn't seem to bother the kindly maid. She just continued, "Master Kai is out right now; training with his friends, I assume. His team, at any rate. He doesn't like to refer to them as friends." She paused, realizing that she was rambling on, the momentary hurt on Hilary's face alerting her that she was possibly revealing things that didn't necessarily apply to the brunette.
"Don't worry, deary," corrected the well-paid servant, "You ain't like them. I think it's healthy that he finally wants to have someone in his company. Breakfast is downstairs when you want it. Or, rather, lunch according to the schedule." She left, the smile remaining.
"Nice lady," commented Hilary, once she was out of earshot. She noticed a chair close to the bed, on it, her normal "uniform," washed, dried, and squeaky clean. How had they...She shook her head. Duh, they had keys. How many of those outfits had she packed?
Slowly, she got out from under the covers, and slipped on her clothes. Why had everyone let her sleep? After all, it wasn't her house. Just as she was opening the door to leave, a servant girl, around her own age appeared, about to enter the chambers.
"Sorry, miss," whispered the girl as she slid past Hilary. Now was her chance to find out what was going on.
"Um, excuse me," said Hilary, causing the girl to look up from making the bed.
"Yes, ma'am?" asked the girl obediently.
"Why was I allowed to sleep in? I'm supposed to go to training, too, right?" The question aroused a little confusion in the tiny mind of the girl, from her visage.
"I know not, ma'am," she answered. "It was orders from Master Kai not to disturb you, it was." She went right back to fixing the bedsheets to look neat and tidy.
"Um." The girl again responded with a "Yes ma'am."
"Oh, uh, thank you," stuttered Hilary as she left, though she had wanted to ask a lot more.
She descended the stairs into the dining room, amazed at how large it was and how much space there was at the table. Enough seats to comfortably the United Nations, and enough food to feed them as well.
She counted how many places there were, and sat at her appointed space according to etiquette. Seems like that year at the boarding school really paid off now. Then, suddenly, she got up, to the amazement of the nearby butler who was ready to serve her (how was she supposed to reach the food on her own?). "You know what? I'm really not that hungry," she told him. As she was getting ready to leave, she spotted the maid she had seen that morning and made her way to her.
"Oh, good morning, deary," repeated the maid. "Didn't you eat anything?"
"Oh, no, ma'am. I -"
"You really should eat something," she interrupted.
"No, that's alright. I was just wondering if you knew where we were training today. You know, the Bladebreakers."
"Of course, I do, silly. They were going to the dojo, and then some afternoon workouts on the beach. I would think if you were leaving now, you should go to the beach. After all, that's where they'd be about now."
"Thank you," Hilary said quickly and rushed off, not staying long enough to hear the maid call out to her, "You should at least take something with you in case you're hungry later."
It wasn't much of a jog to the beach, thankfully. A few minutes took her straight there. It was, what, quarter after one, now? Yes, just that. Stopping on the roadside, she (BTW, the beach is the sandy area of the park) glanced around, looking for her teammates. There they were! Tyson seemed happy enough, doodling in the sand, waiting for his turn to battle it out in the ring. Ray and Max were currently having it out in the dish, waving their ripcords around and shouting orders to their bitbeasts. Driger, do that! Draciel, go this way! You know. Kai was watching the fight, expressionless, as usual, and Kenny was typing away on his laptop (does he ever do anything else), loading the new battle data.
Kai was the first to notice her arrival. His concentration being taken away from the battle led Ray and Max to investigate what was distracting him (this left an opening for Driger to knock Draciel out of the stadium seconds before it began to wobble and cease spinning). Tyson looked up, astounded for some reason, looking like he wanted to grin until his face fell off. Heck, even the Chief stopped typing in order to figure out what was going on. Hilary was already sliding down the hill. Everybody rushed to her.
"Man, Hilary, we thought you weren't coming," observed a nervous Tyson. The statement was followed by a "yeah" from Max and a "mm-hm" from Ray. Kenny and Kai didn't say anything.
"What made you think that, guys?" asked Hilary, surprised by their unfaithfulness. "I'm part of the team too, aren't I? Why wouldn't I come?" At this Kai commanded that training recommence. A few "aw's" followed, but nothing like defiance. Everybody knew where that got you: In deep crap.
Kai was the only one who remained behind. He used his arm to block her path to the stadium, informing Hilary that now was the time she could have that talk with him she had been planning. (Max: Oh, man! Draciel!)
"Finally woke up, huh?" he started. She nodded.
"Yeah. How come you didn't wake me up?" she demanded in return.
This caused a little panic inside his mind. What was he supposed to tell her, the truth? He thought, 'You looked so graceful sleeping, it would've been a shame...'
He was spared the torture of answering. "I'm not weak, ya know. I can train just as well as the others." He remained silent. That wasn't his excuse, but she it was better that she had her own conclusions than the truth, right? Her next comment wounded him. "Why aren't we your friends, Kai?"
"What?"
"The maid. She said you didn't refer to us as friends. We're your team. We are your friends."
"That's not...it wasn't completely accurate, what she said."
"Yeah, she said -" She now had his undivided attention, and she didn't want to embarass anyone by telling him what she had heard. "Never mind." By now, Kai had his hands in his pockets and her way to the others was unbarred. She took this opportunity and went to join them, Kai permitting her. He was about to go as well when she turned around once more.
"You could've told me to buzz off you know." Seeing the puzzled look her gave her, she explained. "You didn't have to put up with me all night. It's not like you asked me to barge into your life."
Training went on as planned, with no more conversation between the two. 'No, Hilary,' he thought as he watched the others smile and jump around, watching jubilantly the beybattle between Ray and Tyson. 'But that doesn't mean I don't want you to. For the first time in a long time, I actually find joy and comfort in someone. When I'm with you.'