"Now, listen Tyson. Don't you think it would be better if Kai was your partner?" Rei tried to reason. "I mean, he does have more experience."

"Are you actually admitting that I'm better than you?" Kai teased, looking very smug once he saw Rei whip around to face him.

"No way! I meant that he knows you better." Rei turned back to Tyson, Max watching to see how Tyson would settle this. It wasn't like he had any problem with Tyson and Kai being partners. He was certain that Rei and him working together would be just as fine. Kai and Rei? That was a different story. They never seemed to get along…

"Seriously, you can't disagree that you and Kai make a better tag-team battle rather then with me and Kai."

Tyson shrugged, appearing to not be very concerned. "Well, I do agree. But once you think about it, me and Max- no offence- are really good friends and I never actually got to battle along side him. It seems you and Kai are always trying to avoid each other. It's not a good way to act around team members…"

"Ah…" Rei was going to argue, but then decided against it. Tyson had a point- a small one- but nonetheless, a point.

Kai, who was leaning casually at the door frame, spoke irritably.

"Hn. Max. Tyson. Go get lunch ready. Tomorrow we're going to get an early start for practice, so make sure to retire early tonight."

"Alright, Captain," Tyson and Max said as they both headed into the kitchen.

"Hmph." Rei walked next to Kai and sat down parallel to the wall and closed his eyes.

Through his meditation, Rei could hear parts or Tyson's and Max's conversation. He couldn't put it together though.

"Not that one! It's salt!"

"Wha? Whoops…?"

"Tyson…!"

"Hey, you scared me! Yelling at me like that!"

The last part he hear in a quieter tone, but could still make out.

"Rei and Kai won't know if I add more sugar to out measure to salt… Shh…."

"Hehe. Good idea…"

"Shh!"

Rei opened his eyes, looking up. Kai wasn't there.

Oh! Now he remembered! He stood up, stumbling slightly due to his position in the past… hour?

He carried his suitcase up stairs and opened one of the doors. Some boxes came tumbling down from the top of the room. Rei looked around, grateful that the box hadn't caused anyone to come upstairs. Suddenly one of the boxes opened and (what seemed to be) albums and books fell out.

'Hmm… This must be the room that Tyson's Grandfather used to store his things.'

He put down his suitcase and put everything back into the box when he saw a book (rather an album) labeled "The Blade Breakers".

Rei smiled and was about to look inside it when Kai appeared from one of the rooms behind him. "Need any help?"

Rei nearly dropped the book when he heard him- not noticing when he came upstairs that the door was opened and Kai was sitting on his bed reading. "Yeah, could you help me put these boxes back up there?" Rei asked, recovering and pointing to the top point of the stacked boxes.

"Up there? Fine- since I am taller."

"You just always have to start something, don't you?"

"If it makes you feel better, yeah."

Rei stuck out his tongue playfully and once finished putting everything back, tried to pick up the container.

"Wha?" Rei said unconsciously., surprised at the weight, and dropped the box heavily on the ground. "I didn't even know it was that heavy…."

"I'm sure if we pick up together, then we could pick it up."

"Okay."

They both positioned themselves on either side of the box . Surprisingly, the box had lifted and the weight was more bearable.

"Well, thanks," Rei said politely and was about to pick up his suit case when Kai stopped him. "Didn't you forget something?"

"Huh?" Rei asked.

"That book. Were you going to read it?" Kai repeated, glancing carelessly at the book in Rei's hand.

"Oh…" Rei looked down into his hand, he forgot to put the book back and had unconsciously pick it up before his suitcase.

"I –er- forgot I left this on the ground…" Rei said, thinking of only that excuse.

Kai turned his attention to the stairs and for a moment Rei thought he didn't buy his explanation.

"Rei! Kai!" It was Max who was running up the stairs. "Lunch is served!" Max put on a cherry smile, his glance, like Kai 's, focusing on the book in Rei's hand.

"Nice book. Did you bring it to read?"

"No… It's Tyson's."

"Oh. Okay, then." The blonde looked confused and curious at the same time.

"Yo, Max! Is everyone coming down to eat?" Tyson asked as he was ascending the stairs.

"No, Tyson. Umm…. Why don't you go downstairs and put the fried rice into bowls for me, okay?" Max said hurriedly, like he didn't want Tyson to see them all up here together.

"Well, if it make you feel better…" Tyson replied, walking back into the kitchen.

At that instant, Rei suddenly realized that Tyson had repeated exactly what Kai had said to him.

"You can go down first," Rei said directly to Max, something more out of habit that Kai must have already gone down with Tyson.

"Our room is the one with my suitcase in it."

"Ah..!" Rei turned quickly around, then sighed in an irritated way. "I thought you were downstairs already."

"I didn't know I couldn't wait here for a while."

Rei scratched his cheek sheepishly. "Sorry," he quickly apologized, "I'm just still used to you always leaving when I turn my back."

Rei walk pass his older teammate and put his suitcase on the floor next to the unoccupied bed (since Kai's was marked by his bookmarked book laying on top of the bed.) He didn't even notice that he had told Kai something very personal.

Rei looked out the window. The sun was already going down. Rei looked at it serenely until the thought came up that he had been going on the whole day without food. "I guess this lunch is going to be dinner. Just go head downstairs, Kai," he called over his shoulder but when he didn't receive an answer, he turned around for the seventh time that day.

"Gone. I knew I was right…"

Rei laid Tyson's book into his bed. He didn't really know why he still had it… Come to think of it, he hadn't even opened it yet either.

Before going down to eat (very sure that everyone was waiting for him) , he open the book for a quick peek. It was an album. There was a picture of Kai, Max, and himself. Of course that would explain why he had labeled this "Blade Breakers". It was a fairly thick one, unusual that Tyson would take his spare time to organize it and put it together. Deciding that it was better to look at it later, he (still not knowing why) put the book underneath his bed sheets and pat it to make sure that everyone passing by wouldn't notice a lump on his bed.

He arrived downstairs in good time, seeing as how he ran down. "Hi, guys. Hope you haven't been waiting too long?"

"Heh. Tyson couldn't wait…" Max said, pointing towards the blue haired youth, who had his bowl nearly half gone.

"Sorry. I didn't know that Tyson had being eating passed his first bowl," Rei apologized and took his seat on the floor next to Kai. He pick up his chopstick and began to eat, grateful that no one questioned his whereabouts. But, he hadn't really expected them to since they all had a mutual agreement to respect each other's privacy.

"My first bowl?" Tyson asked, putting a heavy emphasis on the word 'first'. "This is my third!"

"Ah?" Rei blinked at him, but smiled after a moment.

"I'm surprised," Kai said from beside him. "The people who cook the food are never the one's to eat more… Unless you're willing to say, Max, that Tyson didn't spill that whole container of salt into the pot."

"Uh…? How did you know?" Max said after a while of deciding whether or not Kai really had anything against his case.

"Wait. Was that what you were yelling at Tyson for?" Rei interrupted.

"Well, no point in talking about that, you guy!" Tyson said, guiltily hiding his mistake.

Rei and Kai stared that him accusingly. At this point, Tyson said, "Besides, Max already put in the sugar to outweigh the salt. Nothing to worry about."

Kai stood up and walked back into the kitchen. Several minutes passed by and everyone wondered where he went.

Rei perked up when Kai came back- with a bowl of ramen in his hands.

"I want some too!" Rei said, pushing the bowl of rice towards the center and grabbing his chopsticks once Kai took his seat and put the bowl down.

"Sorry, Max, but you're suppose to be the good cook. I'd rather eat some ramen."

"Wait a minute…" Max said slowly, directing his question to Tyson, 'Did you seem to forget that you had ramen left over?" Max added more angrier, "And we didn't have to go through all this trouble!"

"Well, Maxie… I had so much leftover food so we had to make fried rice. It would have been a waste to throw it out." Then Tyson added, "Plus Kai made the last bowl."

"How did you know there was ramen in Tyson's kitchen?" Max queried, forgetting that he was partly mad at Tyson, but not the one to hold a long grudge.

Kai shrugged. "His grandpa always keeps his own stash of food somewhere."

"Hn." Rei smiled. "I'm definitely not letting Kai get the last ramen."

"Well, if you think I'm going to give you the last bowl, then you're wrong."

"Not give it me," Rei said, "but let me share." At the last part of his sentence, Rei put his chopsticks into Kai's ramen and scooped a huge chunk out of the plastic bowl- a futile attempt to get that whole thing in his mouth.

"Eugh," Kai said, making a face, "Fine, scoot over and we'll split it."

Rei smiled widely and dropped the contents hanging from his chopsticks back into the bowl.

Kai sat quietly afterwards and ate in small portions while Rei, not wanting to be finished with his side first, ate slower. Tyson had begun to eat yet another bowl while Max started to clean up.

XXXX

Hope you liked it! This was just another chapter where they all finally get to relax and enjoy before the tournament.

Oh, I also wanted to say that this story isn't yaoi. It is purely in friendship terms. I hope that doesn't disappoint too many of you…

As a final note: Please Review!