Trapped. The feeling that there was no place for him to hide and nowhere to go was not new to the boy, having grown up in Balkov Abbey, yet this was different. The garnet eyes watching him seemed to overpower him somehow, and as he realized this he abruptly turned his head away, closing his eyes with his back turned to the other. The feeling of being watched and the helplessness ground on his nerves and he had to resist the urge to get up and leave the room. Run, run away, that was what he wanted to do, but at the same time he was aware that running would not be an option. He had to face this and he had to do so now.
Taking a deep yet silent breath, the captain of the Demolition Boys tried to regain his composure. He methodically relaxed his tense muscles and told himself that such spontaneous reactions were unworthy of him, that his rational mind should have long time ago suppressed any feelings such as these. He then realized that the anxiousness caused by this situation had greatly diminished his usually quick mental reflexes. He didn't stop to think about how his actions would affect the other teen. As a result, Kai Hiwatari had just now witnessed an indubitable show of his hesitance, if not even his fear. Weakness, Tala toughed. Such feelings could prove very dangerous, and now the one person who he was most vulnerable towards had seen his weakness. How easy it would be for Kai to take advantage of it now.
Head bowed and hands turned in to fists on his lap, the teen tried to concentrate on figuring out a way to deal with his own mistake. He had shown he was vulnerable, but the other boy was of course quite aware of that. Seeing his hesitation must have only proven to the young Hiwatari the newfound power he held over his rival. Lowering his wild eyebrows over the shut blue eyes, the Russian boy tried to imagine how Kai must be feeling. That proved to be impossible, as he had not taken the time to look at the other, to gouge his reaction upon seeing him.
A few minutes had passed since the room had gained it's second occupant, and only now did this one decide it was time to break the eerie silence that had befallen them. Tala seemed unwilling to do so, as he sat on his chair with his eyes shut and his head turned away. The boy's initial reaction upon seeing him had of course not escaped the dual haired blader, and he was quite surprised to see such an obvious demonstration from the redhead. It was quite opposed to the training that he himself, as well as the other, had been subjected to at the abbey. Then again, he could remember other little outbursts of Tala's during the time they had been on the same team, right before the tournaments. Trough the haze black dranzer had forced on his mind, he saw the images of the fierce blue-eyed captain on moments when his fiery temper would surface. Those where the times when he felt that at least a bit of the human inside the perfect soldier would come to light.
Yet now was not the time to sink in to his own toughts. He had to deal with this "problem" of making Tala feel at least slightly more at ease around him, as that was where the other boy would be for a while. But where to start? How could he approach this icy warrior, address him without hurting the pride he could see shining in the cerulean eyes? That was the last thing he wanted, to humiliate the proud Russian and thus take from him the last shreds of dignity his life had left him with until then. He had to figure out a way… But Kai became aware that this was not the right time for pondering about Tala's past and emotions. He had to say something, because the silence was becoming more and more uncomfortable. As he looked at the other boy, he couldn't help but feel a kind of pity for the redhead, imagining how hard this whole ordeal must be on him. But then again, pity must have been the last thing the captain of the Russian champions wanted, and seeing something of the like in Kai's eyes would surely ruin any chance he had of ever gaining Tala's trust.
The red-eyed captain gathered his courage and took a step towards the other
Russian while trying to think of something non-insulting to say to him. The sitting teen was, at the same time, trying to figure out how he should act towards Kai. As he heard the sound of soft footfalls on the thick carpet, he could once again feel his chest constrict as every breath had to be forced in, and carefully controlled so as to not turn in to a sigh while leaving his slightly parted lips. The pressure increased and, more as a gesture of desperation then anything else, he shoved his clenched fists in to his pockets to hide their quite obvious shaking. The footsteps stopped beside him and the youth was filled with shame as he had no choice but to acknowledge his own fear. He tried still to keep it from showing, and succeeded almost perfectly due to his training and his experience with situations where he was inferior. But this was nothing like the things that happened to him in the abbey. It was worst that Boris' inhumane punishments, worst that the guards hitting him and the endless training sessions. He had never before been exposed to this particular kind of helplessness. He tried and failed, continuously in the short time between when the footfalls started and when the other reached his side, to calm himself and use at least his commonsense to deal with this. It proved to be impossible, as the only thing his brain seemed to conjure were terror-filled snaps of what might happen to him. All the pain he had suffered should have prepared him for this, all the humiliance Boris had subjected him to should have given him the ability to look at this as just another way in which the world seemed to want to break his will. But alas, it did not. He started taking long, slow breaths as he tried to control the images running trough his head. The presence he felt beside him seemed to bring his pride back to life. He didn't want Kai to see just how much all of this affected him. He tried to showe his fears to the back of his head, but failed. Still, he managed to regain some control over his toughts, and he realized that only a few moments had passed since the other had arrived beside him. It was disconcerning to see just how great an avalanche of the emotions he supposedly did not have could overcome him in such a short amount of time. Just then he heard a soft intake of breath, as if the teen beside him was preparing himself to speak. The redhead opened his clear eyes, looking at the floor just in front of his feet as every nerve in his body sparked to life and all his being focused on the other boy's words. It was unnerving, how important a role Kai Hiwatari now played in his existence.
A/N: Sorry for the long time it took me to update, and for the chapter that seems pointless even to me. I just wanted to give some insight on the character's state of mind, and try to explain their future actions. Or maybe I was just looking for an excuse for making them act so OOC.
I want to thank all the nice people who reviewed, and also,
since this is my first story, i would much appreciate some
constructive criticism. Feel free to express your opinion on what i
wrote. I am a great fan of good advice.
I'll try to update
sooner from now on. Thank you again.
