Title: Boys Days In or Out?

Authoress: Ladya C. Maxine

Rating: PG-13

Summary: see chapter one

Warnings: see chapter one

Disclaimer: I do not own Beyblade or any of its characters. Any and all unrecognizable characters belong solely to me and are not to be touched. I am not making any money off of this and I write with the sole intention to entertain.

"Eat all of it."

The half-eaten bowl of porridge was pushed back towards him.

"I don't even eat that much when I'm feeling well," he argued, pushing it away.

"Don't make me force feed you." The rejected bowl was pushed back with Ata's fork. "Your body needs all the supplements it can get."

He grumpily picked up the spoon but merely swirled it about in the brown mass, eyeing Ata's scrambled eggs and bacon. His appetite appeared to be returning but it was obvious that he was nowhere near being out of the woods. Despite longing for something solid, his stomach was also churning from the sight of food.

Irony at its worst.

"I hate porridge."

"I know," Ata grinned, popping a piece of ham into his mouth, eyes glued on the morning paper. "It kinda reminds you of baby vomit, doesn't it?"

He dropped the spoon back into the bowl, definitely not going to eat another bite.

"Thanks for the encouragement."

Before Ata could respond the phone rang in the living room, getting the redhead's attention. Putting down the paper, he slipped off the high barstool, taking his plate with him when he saw the bluenette's eyes still on his breakfast.

"Selfish bastard," Kai growled. Ata merely laughed, exiting the kitchen. The ringing soon stopped as the phone was answered.

Leaning on his elbows, Kai rubbed his eyes, staring despondently at his 'meal'. Gods, how he hated porridge! Lumpy and tasteless, though he admitted that the latter was due to his cold, it was his least favorite food. And Ata knew it. So, of course, the redhead had taken advantage and the enormous bowl of steaming gunk had greeted him when he entered the kitchen.

'And he isn't going to let me leave this room until I finish everything. I have to eat it. Or…'

Glancing back at the archway, he debated the spontaneous plan that had popped into mind. Risky and childish, but it was his last resort. Moving silently, he lowered his feet to the ground and taking the half-full bowl made his way to the sink. From beyond the room he could hear Ata rounding off the phone call so he quickened his steps. Success was but four steps away.

Three steps.

Two steps.

One step.

"Didn't your parents, or Natasia, ever teach you not to waste food?"

Dammit!

The redhead stood in the doorway, one hand holding his plate while the other rested on a hip.

"I paid for it," he answered, bowl still poised above the sink.

"Do you know how many children in third world countries die each day because they can't even get a spoonful of porridge?"

The tried-and-proven guilt trip. He couldn't make a come back on that fact. Defeated, he retook his seat as Ata did the same, a satisfied smile on his face as he watched his friend grimace with each swallow.

"Who was on the phone?" Kai asked, hoping to distract himself.

"Bryan," Ata answered, taking the spoon he had used to mix his tea and scooped up some porridge from the bluenette's bowl.

"What about?"

"Not much; just an update on things in the abbey. Things are moving pretty fast down there."

He paused, swallowing though his mouth was empty.

"Do you think they're beginning to put the plan in motion?"

The red bangs swayed as Ata shook his head, taking another spoonful.

"Far too soon. Most likely just drills and tests. Still," he tapped Kai's spoon with his to remind the bluenette to eat, "we won't let our guard down. How's Inga?"

"Silent," he said, rubbing the back of his neck absently. "Still shielding herself from the virus, I think. She'll let me know when she comes back online." Eating a bit, he admitted, "It feels weird."

"What does?"

"Not hearing her. It's almost like she's not even there. Like she's not in me…"

"That's a relief," Ata sighed, watching Kai take another mouthful of porridge. "Vitha drives me up the walls sometimes. Women can be so annoying. I am never getting married."

Kai smirked, raising a brow.

"I thought she matched your personality."

"She does."

"Well now you know how I feel."

"Ha ha," he responded sarcastically.

"Done," he said, pushing the indeed empty bowl forward.

"Only because I ate most of it," Ata said though he picked it up, carrying it along with his plate to the dishwasher. Neither really understood why there was one; Natasia refused to use it when she was around. Still, on occasions like these when the cook was not there it was put to good use.

"Dare I ask what's for dinner?" Kai asked as the redhead placed their plates in the racks.

"Pizza for me, porridge for you."

"I thought as much."

"Hey, if you're good today I'll let you sniff the pizza."

"You're a saint." He stood, stretching but a series of coughs made him almost double over.

"Did you take the tablets I gave you?" Ata asked, still occupied with the dishwasher.

Oops. The small pile of pills was exactly where the redhead had left it on the counter. Stuffing them into his pocket, he nodded, trying to sound convincing.

"Yeah."

Ata gave him a strange look but shrugged it off.

"We're going out," he said, heading towards the stairs.

"I'm ill," Kai needlessly reminded him as he followed.

"Share the joy with others."

"Aren't you a great contribution to mankind. What are we going out for?"

"Shopping."

"For?" He narrowed his eyes.

"Clothes."

By now they had already entered Ata's bedroom. Like all the other rooms it was spacious and nicely furnished, to the redhead's taste. The large king-size bed dominated the center wall which curved into large windows which looked out over miles of city and parks. One noticeable thing in the room was a desk which was loaded with the most modern technological instruments. Of course there was the laptop that Ata never left without. Surrounding it was every imaginable modem and whatnot.

And Ata paid for it all. While it was generally understandable to assume that Kai was the redhead's benefactor he had only bought a few things in the room, the rest of the expenses came out of Ata's pockets. The wolf enjoyed the pampered life, as long as the one pampering him was himself. In all honesty the redhead could easily purchase a ridiculously expensive penthouse of his own with all the money he had inherited from his deceased parents, but the two friends preferred to stay as close together as possible. Kai had more than enough space to accommodate the redhead and Ata had accepted his invitation to come live with him.

Laying himself down on the untouched bed, seeing as Ata had spent the night in his friend's room, Kai sighed.

"Clothes? You have thousands of dollars worth of clothing in your closet."

And then some. Ata was a fiend when it came to wardrobe. Kai attributed that to the fact that his friend had been deprived of a lot as a child by his parents, plus the abbey had held him down for many years. In fact, Ata had first tasted true freedom but two years ago when, upon turning 14, the law had granted him permission to leave the abbey as he was of legal age. Of course they were all tied to the abbey until their 18th, but Boris could not order them to remain within its walls. They had to report back every few weeks and their beyblade training required them to stay there sometimes as well, but other then that they were free to go where they wanted to.

But back to the clothing issue, Ata had wallowed in the simple pleasures he had been denied of for so long and strangely enough his main addiction was clothing. Having Natasia, Russia' sole domestic fashion officer, around didn't help either.

"I have enough clothes; you are going to need a new outfit for our night out."

Oh hell no. He had almost forgotten about that stupid bet.

"What's wrong with the clothes I have?"

"Nothing," Ata answered from somewhere in his walk-in closet, "except that they are very boring."

"They are not."

From within the depth of the closet Ata snorted.

"We're going to a nightclub, Kai. Quite a few if I get my way. I have a fashionable reputation to uphold and I'm not going to let your staff-meeting's wardrobe wreck that."

"Fashionable reputation?" he doubted, getting to his feet and entering the closet. "Since when is walking around half-naked considered fashionable?"

"I do not go out half-naked," Ata laughed, tossing a top he had been holding at his friend who caught it. "Honestly, Kai, you have got to get out more. This night-out is more crucial for you than I imagined."

Rolling his eyes, he watched on as the redhead picked out a pair of pants from amongst about fifty others. Despite what he said, he had to admit that Ata had quite a collection in here and he knew how to combine them. In other words, whenever the redhead went out he drew a large amount of attention. Perhaps that was why Kai didn't approve so much of his friend's fashion fetish…

"Where's that belt?" Ata muttered, handing him the pants before crouching down to rummage through a large plastic container filled to the brim with belts in every style and color.

"And where exactly are you dragging me off to?" Kai asked, noticing that the leather pants he held were one of the redhead's favorites.

"This outfit is for later," was the quick reply. "We're going to Giovanna first; they have the best tops and shirts. Either Hot Notch or Topanga will have good pants; depending on the latest shipments though Topanga carries great shoes too. Oh, and remind me to check out Silver Sterling for accessories."

"You are so scary," Kai said though the long list hadn't thrown him off. "What do you mean 'this outfit is for later'?"

"Found it!" Ata said triumphantly, holding up a black belt with small iron studs. "Huh? Oh, I'm going out tonight." Here we go.

"With who?" Kai asked as the clothes were plucked from his arms.

"Three guesses," Ata answered, laying out the ensemble on his bed to study the effect.

"James?" he asked, practically growling the name.

"Good guess."

"When-"

"He called this morning. He got promoted to department chief so he's treating his colleagues tonight and asked if I wanted to come. He's coming to pick me up at eight so you terrorize, I mean interrogate, him."

His stomached flipped and Kai knew it wasn't because of his cold, neither was the nausea he felt. Pushing away the thought of having to meet this man, he kept his voice calm.

"And where is this party going to be held?"

"It's a diner, not a party. We're going to that restaurant on Moscow Square."

"Romero's," he identified.

"That's the one."

Despite himself Kai had to admit that whatever it was this James did it must be a very well paying job. Romero's was a very posh restaurant, part of a multi-million dollar chain owned by a French billionaire. He himself had gone there a few times for business diners. The restaurant was concrete proof that the higher the prices were, the lesser the food was. Still, the menu was very exotic as was the wine. Mysterious James had taste.

'I bit too much for my liking,' he mused, wondering if this taste extended beyond cuisine. 'If he thinks that Ata is just another item to add to his list…'

He didn't like it. This feeling he had…it went beyond just being jealous. What was wrong with this scenario? Was he just being paranoid? Ata had gone out with others before but never with any serious intent. In fact, the redhead usually went out alone and met someone at a bar, had a couple of drinks and a few dances, but that was it. Ata never mentioned anyone of special interest and, despite his lively night life, Kai knew that the redhead was still a virgin. This just proved that Ata was more than capable of taking care of himself. But still…

"You're quiet," Ata said, noticing the unusual lack of argument from his friend. The red eyes merely stared at him, worrying him even more. "Kai?"

"Nothing," he responded after a long while. Kissing the redhead lightly, he pulled away and for the second time that morning he left his confused best friend without looking back as he closed the door.

"That color is so you," the salesgirl giggle around the large wad of chewing gum in her mouth, smiling coyly at him.

"It's a bit too loose," Ata said though, studying the silvery-blue top that fitted his friend's lean torso. "And too long. Do you have a size 8?"

She nodded, know fixing her foxy eyes on the redhead.

"Yeah, though it's even longer."

"We'll have someone deal with the alternations," he smiled back, making her giggle and blush. "And while you're at it, see if you can find something similar in red."

"Oh, I have the perfect thing. Don't go away!" She turned and trotted off, high-healed boots clicking on the white tiles which shone in the store's neon lights. The blaring music was quick to cover up her retreat.

It was a never ending circle. If he was to die within one week then Kai would want to die in this very shop; time just dragged on by in here! Still, as painful as it was to be turned into a dress-up mannequin at least it served as a good distraction. Also, any place that had clothing always cheered Ata up and despite his current suffering Kai was relieved to see his friend smiling again, the tension from earlier no longer present.

The things he did for the redhead…

"I think I prefer another hour with Becky from Florida than this," Kai scowled to the other, quizzically eyeing the top. He had been subjected to almost an hour of fitting, helpless as Ata and the salesgirl from Hell went through what seemed to be Giovanna's entire storage. "Being naked before her was less embarrassing that this."

"That's because she had very bad eye-sight."

"What! Why didn't you tell me? I was too scared to stand up and had to wait until she fell asleep before I could get out!"

"No use crying over spilled milk," Ata waved it off. "And if you want to meet someone then you're going to have to catch their eye. This top just screams 'Look at me!'"

"Really? I'm thinking more along the line of 'Fresh meat!'"

"Here we go!" scary salesgirl chirped, appearing out of thin air. "I couldn't find a size 8 in that color, but we do have this one." She held out a near see-through red sleeveless turtleneck which had black straps around the neck.

"Excellent," Ata clapped though Kai was less than thrilled.

"That looks like a dog collar," he said accusingly, studying the neck.

"It is," she informed cheerfully. "It's the newest in line."

"He'll take it," Ata said.

"He will?" she repeated, smile growing.

"I will?" Kai questioned, eyes narrowing.

"Of course," Ata said. "Look at it this way; now we don't have to bother with neck accessories. Might as well kill two birds with one stone."

"Wish I was one of those birds," Kai said tiredly, earning a light punch in a shoulder.

"Ring it up," Ata said to the girl who nodded, bouncing off happily. "Alright, now we're going to look for pants. I was originally going to look for red leather pants, but too much red is too slutty."

Was it? He'd have to remember that in the future.

"I'm not wearing tight pants," he said when he heard Ata muttering something about body-fitting leather. "And no leather either."

"Kai," Ata said in a tone that dripped with exasperation. "If you got it, flaunt it."

"Got what?" he asked, entering the changing room with the redhead on his heals.

"Got what?" Ata repeated, rolling his eyes. He slapped the bluenette's rear as he pulled off the clingy garment. "That. Rule number one when going out: clothes are merely to avoid getting yourself arrested for indecent exposure. As long as all private parts are covered you can wear whatever you want."

"If that's the case then why don't I just go out in a thong?" he asked sarcastically, regretting that at once when Ata seemed to consider it. Luckily for him, the redhead shook his head.

"Nah, too cold. Maybe on a summer night. Fine, but you can't wear jeans."

"Why not?"

"Club rules: no jeans allowed. Clubs don't allow just any slob in, you know," he informed, putting the shirt back on its hanger as they left the dressing room. "Alright, here's a compromise; black baggy pants, but low riding."

Having proven himself already a fashion dud, Kai nodded, his pride not allowing him to admit that he had no idea what 'low riding' meant.

Standing in front of a mirror in Topanga fifteen minutes later, black baggy pants' waist half an inch away from aforementioned indecent exposure, he cursed his stubborn pride.

Could this day get anymore painful?

Yes it could: Ata has just found the pills he had stuffed in his pockets earlier. Guess he wasn't going to get that whiff of pizza anymore.

TBC…….

A/N: The line about the children in third world countries is something my mom always uses on my sister and me. Believe me, it really lays on the guilt.

As for the 14 year thing; I don't think such a law exists in Russia, but I'm going off of the series. No, it is never mentioned in Beyblade, but who knows what type of rules there are in that universe! I mean, none of the kids seem to go to school; all they do is beyblade! Apparently the show's writers realized that and so dumped everyone back in school in season two, but I hate that season so I'm sticking to season one, so there!

The chips played a very important role in 'Untold Truths'. Each chip has a name. Remember that in 'Untold Truths' Ata's chip's name was revealed in chapter 15 as Vitha. And while Kai and Saskia's chips' names weren't mention they are, respectively, Inga and Vira. Also, all three chips have female voices (hence their names) and spoke a lot more to their bearers in the original version. Kai and Ata refer to the chips as 'her' or 'she' most of the time.

In the end though I decided not to mention all this since it would have become a bit confusing. The chips won't be as prominent in this story as 'Untold Truths' but I figured it wouldn't hurt you guys to know that they originally did have names.

Read Review, please.