Chapter 2: Present day (Ninth Grade)
Hilary walked into class, the smile she was well known for on her face (You're never fully dressed without a smile (). She took her seat just as the bell rang and the teacher walked in.
"Good morning, class," greeted Mr. Wallace, the instructor. A chorus of "Good morning, sensei" sounded as the class responded in unison. 'They sound like a bunch of robots,' thought Hilary. All of a sudden, the temporary peacefulness was broken by the sound of the door opening once again, this time by Tyson, who nearly slipped as he rushed into the room and fell on all fours panting.
"I got here...as fast...as...I could..." he managed between breaths. When he had gained his second wind, he got up and walked as casually as he could to his seat in the middle row in between Hilary and Kenny.
"Nice to see you, Tyson," greeted Mr. Wallace sarcastically. "Late as you are..."
"Only by thirty seconds!" objected the blue-haired tardy victim. "And it was a new record, too," he added under his breath. If the teacher heard, he didn't pay any attention, and went back to doing his job.
"You're in ninth grade and you still haven't figured out how to get to class on time, Tyson," hissed Hilary.
"Oh, shut your trap, Hilary," cried Tyson (rather loudly), which caused the instructor to warn him to cease disrupting the class.
"Sorry," he apologized meekly. He cautiously whispered to Kenny, careful not to let Hilary hear him, "How come she doesn't get on your nerves, Chief?"
The last bell for the day rang, and a stampede of eager high-schoolers streamed out of the various opened doors of the building. Some waited outside in the yard, while others started immediately home. As usual, Tyson and Kenny walked out together, discussing ways to improve Tyson's game, and Hilary went on home. She didn't come to their practices anymore for some reason, but she always cheered for them in local matches and tournaments. As soon as she was out of earshot, Tyson heard someone call his name.
"Hey, Tyson! Come here!" shouted one of his classmates just as the world champ was about to walk out the entrance gate.
"Who? Me?" He didn't need to say it loudly; you could hear him a mile away when he was talking normally.
"Yeah," came the answer. Tyson hardly waited for it before he started running over to the group. At least he remembered to tell Kenny, "See ya at practice, Chief!" before he was too far away. Kenny sighed, knowing that Tyson was late for everything, and left for the dojo Tyson's grandpa owned.
"What's up, guys?" asked Tyson, curious as to why these people wanted to talk to him. 'Well I AM the world champ,' he thought to himself. 'Shame I forgot to bring my spare autographs.' He didn't need them.
The group he had been accepted into didn't waste any time getting to the point. The blond boy he knew from lab science class, probably fifteen and a half, a little older than Tyson himself, spoke first, "Why do you always get on Hilary's case?"
"What?" This was unexpected. Come to think of it, though, they had been like cat and dog since eighth grade.
"Yeah," agreed a strawberry-blond girl, possibly blondie-boy's girlfriend. The rest decided they didn't want to see this and divided off into their own small little packs.
"I, uh...well," Tyson stammered. 'What to say...?'
"You like her, don't you?" demanded the redhead. "No!" he denied. 'I don't think...'
"Well, good," commented the blond. 'Don't gotta get an attitude,' thought Tyson. He didn't pause before he added, "Cuz she ain't been the same since that Justin playboy-"
"Shhh!" the girl shushed him. Hilary had transferred schools after seventh grade, as had this girl and boy. They had been like an extra family to her in her childhood. The boy covered his mouth, realizing too late his mistake, "Oh, yeah, I forgot. Sorry."
"What?" Tyson was eager to discuss it now that something had sparked his interest. Unfortunately, they didn't seem to share the enthusiasm.
"We can't say," answered the boy at the same time the girl snapped, "Nothing." Tyson was getting impatient, but he refrained from getting angry. The couple sensed this and tried to run away before they said too much, "Oh, gosh. Look at the time!"
The two tried to escape, but Tyson tripped the boy and placed his foot on his back to prevent another flight. "What's the big secret? Spill it!" Tyson commanded. "I swear, if it's that important, then I won't tell anyone. You have my word as a beyblader." Still, the captive struggled to break free, and only surrendered when Tyson applied more pressure.
"Okay!" he shouted. He lowered his voice as the world champ helped him to his feet. "Hilary wasn't always like this. See, she fell for some guy named Justin, really popular, hard to blame her, I guess. Anyway, after he played her, she kind of...well...she put up this sort of emotional barrier. Then, to get her mind off the pain, she devoted herself to her studies. That's why she's top of the class, next to Kenny. She needs it, so she puts everything she has into it." He looked away. "Then she met you guys, and we thought you'd be able to bring back the old her. I guess I was wrong, because she isn't as into the beyblade world as she once was. You know, she wanted to be a blader herself. It was the happiest I'd ever seen her."
Tyson went home that night, with a lot on his mind, and the urge to talk to Hilary. Why hadn't she told them? There was no need to. But why had she left them? Did this have something to do with it? At least now he understood her better, and the feeling he'd been suppressing for some time grew stronger than ever before.
Hilary walked into class, the smile she was well known for on her face (You're never fully dressed without a smile (). She took her seat just as the bell rang and the teacher walked in.
"Good morning, class," greeted Mr. Wallace, the instructor. A chorus of "Good morning, sensei" sounded as the class responded in unison. 'They sound like a bunch of robots,' thought Hilary. All of a sudden, the temporary peacefulness was broken by the sound of the door opening once again, this time by Tyson, who nearly slipped as he rushed into the room and fell on all fours panting.
"I got here...as fast...as...I could..." he managed between breaths. When he had gained his second wind, he got up and walked as casually as he could to his seat in the middle row in between Hilary and Kenny.
"Nice to see you, Tyson," greeted Mr. Wallace sarcastically. "Late as you are..."
"Only by thirty seconds!" objected the blue-haired tardy victim. "And it was a new record, too," he added under his breath. If the teacher heard, he didn't pay any attention, and went back to doing his job.
"You're in ninth grade and you still haven't figured out how to get to class on time, Tyson," hissed Hilary.
"Oh, shut your trap, Hilary," cried Tyson (rather loudly), which caused the instructor to warn him to cease disrupting the class.
"Sorry," he apologized meekly. He cautiously whispered to Kenny, careful not to let Hilary hear him, "How come she doesn't get on your nerves, Chief?"
The last bell for the day rang, and a stampede of eager high-schoolers streamed out of the various opened doors of the building. Some waited outside in the yard, while others started immediately home. As usual, Tyson and Kenny walked out together, discussing ways to improve Tyson's game, and Hilary went on home. She didn't come to their practices anymore for some reason, but she always cheered for them in local matches and tournaments. As soon as she was out of earshot, Tyson heard someone call his name.
"Hey, Tyson! Come here!" shouted one of his classmates just as the world champ was about to walk out the entrance gate.
"Who? Me?" He didn't need to say it loudly; you could hear him a mile away when he was talking normally.
"Yeah," came the answer. Tyson hardly waited for it before he started running over to the group. At least he remembered to tell Kenny, "See ya at practice, Chief!" before he was too far away. Kenny sighed, knowing that Tyson was late for everything, and left for the dojo Tyson's grandpa owned.
"What's up, guys?" asked Tyson, curious as to why these people wanted to talk to him. 'Well I AM the world champ,' he thought to himself. 'Shame I forgot to bring my spare autographs.' He didn't need them.
The group he had been accepted into didn't waste any time getting to the point. The blond boy he knew from lab science class, probably fifteen and a half, a little older than Tyson himself, spoke first, "Why do you always get on Hilary's case?"
"What?" This was unexpected. Come to think of it, though, they had been like cat and dog since eighth grade.
"Yeah," agreed a strawberry-blond girl, possibly blondie-boy's girlfriend. The rest decided they didn't want to see this and divided off into their own small little packs.
"I, uh...well," Tyson stammered. 'What to say...?'
"You like her, don't you?" demanded the redhead. "No!" he denied. 'I don't think...'
"Well, good," commented the blond. 'Don't gotta get an attitude,' thought Tyson. He didn't pause before he added, "Cuz she ain't been the same since that Justin playboy-"
"Shhh!" the girl shushed him. Hilary had transferred schools after seventh grade, as had this girl and boy. They had been like an extra family to her in her childhood. The boy covered his mouth, realizing too late his mistake, "Oh, yeah, I forgot. Sorry."
"What?" Tyson was eager to discuss it now that something had sparked his interest. Unfortunately, they didn't seem to share the enthusiasm.
"We can't say," answered the boy at the same time the girl snapped, "Nothing." Tyson was getting impatient, but he refrained from getting angry. The couple sensed this and tried to run away before they said too much, "Oh, gosh. Look at the time!"
The two tried to escape, but Tyson tripped the boy and placed his foot on his back to prevent another flight. "What's the big secret? Spill it!" Tyson commanded. "I swear, if it's that important, then I won't tell anyone. You have my word as a beyblader." Still, the captive struggled to break free, and only surrendered when Tyson applied more pressure.
"Okay!" he shouted. He lowered his voice as the world champ helped him to his feet. "Hilary wasn't always like this. See, she fell for some guy named Justin, really popular, hard to blame her, I guess. Anyway, after he played her, she kind of...well...she put up this sort of emotional barrier. Then, to get her mind off the pain, she devoted herself to her studies. That's why she's top of the class, next to Kenny. She needs it, so she puts everything she has into it." He looked away. "Then she met you guys, and we thought you'd be able to bring back the old her. I guess I was wrong, because she isn't as into the beyblade world as she once was. You know, she wanted to be a blader herself. It was the happiest I'd ever seen her."
Tyson went home that night, with a lot on his mind, and the urge to talk to Hilary. Why hadn't she told them? There was no need to. But why had she left them? Did this have something to do with it? At least now he understood her better, and the feeling he'd been suppressing for some time grew stronger than ever before.