Title: Chinese For Two
Pairing/Characters: Kai/Hilary
Rating: T
Disclaimer: Beyblade © Aoki Takao-sama

Chinese For Two

Part: II

Hilary pulled her thick blue coat over her trembling form, seeking warmth from the freezing wind. It was so cold this morning that her teeth chattered as she walked down the sidewalk, heading for the dojo. It wasn't that far away, but on a morning like this, it might as well have been miles away.

She trudged on, and took note of the fact that it was early. Around 7:45 - she might be late. Her breath came out as smoke as she exhaled deeply, pulling the coat over her that much more.

She vaguely wondered what it would be like if the others could come to their little party. Of course she knew that little wish wouldn't happen - everyone had separate lives now.

Separate lives. Separate lives that didn't include each other. She had to stop thinking about it and be happy. It was Christmas time for goodness sake, and she was determined.

Be happy! Be happy! Hilary chanted in her mind. She tried making her lips form a smile which only seemed to turn into a lopsided grin. She decided that constipation wasn't the look she was going for.

Hilary gave a sigh, giving up in her ministrations. She was happy! She didn't need to constantly smile. Just because she wasn't smiling now didn't mean she wasn't happy.

She was happy - she had a good school to go to, a bright future, friends, a nice apartment…where she lived alone…all by herself…

Okay, maybe happy wasn't exactly the best word to use. But she was doing fine - she wasn't dead yet, so that must count for something.

Right…she was…fine.

She pulled some loose strands of chestnut brown hair behind her ear, which had fallen in her face as if wanting to get her attention.

She blinked as she looked in front of her. It was the dojo. Her ruby eyes scanned the place; it looked like a winter wonderland with all the heaps of snow that covered the ground and roof. Ice sickles were hanging off the edge of the roof, shimmering as the morning sun hit them.

It was like she was home again. Hilary would always hang out with the boys - it almost seemed like it was her home. A home…it really was a home, wasn't it? The Bladebreakers always seemed like family. They were always there for both her, and each other. The dojo was just always the place they chose to be.

Yeah. It was home.

With that last realization in mind, and with some now renewed cheeriness, Hilary practically marched up the walkway of the dojo. She remembered…she would always come early each morning with Kenny, they would always be let right in; like it was their own home.

She came up to the shoji door that went into the living room. Taking a deep breath, she slid the door open, only to hear…

Silence?

She raised her eyebrows at the eerie quietness that lingered throughout the whole house. They had to be there…they had made special plans just so that they could spend time with each other. She opened the door further and hesitantly walked inside, almost as if afraid that something would jump out at her.

Who knew? When it came to Tyson's dojo, anything could happen.

"Tyson? Kenny?" she called out into the hallway that lead to the other rooms. Still, no sound came back to her as she watched in confusion while she stood there. Her gaze dropped to the floor as she suddenly had second thoughts about this little visit. She didn't know why, but she felt strangely stupid at the moment.

Shaking the thoughts away, she slowly walked out so that she came into the training room where Grandpa practiced his kendo. She walked in; it looked exactly the same as it always had been.

Clean, shiny floors, sturdy walls, wooden kendo swords, Mariah…

"Hey, Hilary!" The neko-jin called out to her friend.

Hilary looked towards her and waved before passing right by her, "Hey, Mariah!" Then she stopped and blinked - what?

Hilary stumbled backwards as she noticed that it was in fact Mariah, who was sitting down on one of the mats that were from the living room.

Mariah smiled at the wide-eyed Hilary, feeling a sense of excitement. "I was getting worried for a second there! You passed right by me!" she exclaimed before laughing at Hilary, who blinked in response.

Mariah put her hands on her hips, obviously a little annoyed at her friend's actions. With a tilt of her head, and a raised eyebrow, Mariah finally voiced the statement she was thinking, "Do something, Hilary."

As if finally realizing what was going on, Hilary snapped out of her stupor only to run up to her friend, squishing her to death in a hug.

"I missed you!" Mariah cried, hugging the brunette back.

Hilary pulled away from the embrace and looked into her friend's face. She looked the same as she'd always been. Pink clothes, golden eyes. Her hair may have grown a little longer, but it never changed the pinkness of it that made her Mariah.

But why was she here? Shouldn't she be in China with Rei and the rest of the White Tigers? Did she miss something?

Hilary looked into her friend's excited face with a curious look as Mariah gave her a raised eyebrow, almost as if she was confused.

Yeah, she missed something.

"What's wrong?" The neko-jin asked her friend, concerned.

"Uh…why are you here?" She wasn't getting anywhere with staring. Mariah tilted her head to the side with a blink. Her smile shifted to a light frown.

"What do you mean by that? Didn't Tyson and Kenny tell you?" She put her hands to her side in surprise as Hilary just shook her head in a negative answer. The pink-haired neko-jin looked at her with wide golden eyes; this was going to be very interesting.

"What's going on, Mariah? What were Tyson and Kenny going to tell me?" Hilary gave her friend another bewildered look.

"Uh…everyone's here for Christmas."

The brunette turned around swiftly, surprised by the sudden voice. Standing before her was Tyson, Kenny right behind him. Tyson was rubbing the back of his head, looking nervous. Kenny stood behind the dragon master, looking like a deer caught in a headlight. They both stood there, silent as can be, waiting for her response.

Hilary stared at them, her ruby eyes glazed in silent contemplation. Mariah…? Christmas…? Everyone…?

Finally their words sunk in.

"You mean to tell me that you invited everyone over only to forget to let me know about it!" Hilary yelled out to the two boys in front of her. She was mad. She was very mad. She was beyond mad at her two friends, who she knew she was going to blow up at.

The two boys looked away, the feeling of shame coming over them.

They weren't clueless to Hilary's loneliness. They knew that she wasn't truly happy the way she was living now. She may not have said what was plaguing her, but the look in her eyes - it was kind of hard to miss. If you listened closely to the way she talked, you could hear the dullness as she spoke about school or other such matters.

They also knew that she would never just come right out and say she was unhappy. Hilary was a stubborn person - no arguments there - and she wouldn't want sympathy from them, and she wouldn't appreciate it. So, they wouldn't say anything for the time being. But, with the way she looked at them and the way she would drift off into her own thoughts, it was almost as if she were silently asking them to change their minds.

Even if she wasn't aware of it herself.

Mariah watched with a shake of her head as the brunette gave the two boys a tongue lashing. She noticed they weren't really listening to her though. It was almost as if they were in their own little world, thinking about whatever little thoughts were popping up into their heads…

Anyone got any passports to La-La Land?

She glanced up as she heard the door slide open, not being heard by the other three because of the brunette's sharp words.

Mariah gave a quirky smile to her boyfriend as he looked at her with confused eyes. He raised an eyebrow at the three people before him before his gaze finally rested on his girlfriend once again. What'd he miss?

The pink-haired girl shook her head lightly, the pink strands of hair falling loosely in her face before she walked over to him, taking his hand in hers.

Rei smiled at the girl as he intertwined their fingers together. "What happened?" he asked quietly, feeling a strange sense of caution run through him at the sight of Tyson and Kenny's faces as they looked down at the floor, seeming to be caught up in their thoughts.

"Tyson and Kenny didn't tell Hilary that everyone was coming," Mariah muttered quietly, still looking at her friends.

Rei's brow furrowed. "How could they forget something like that? Kenny at least should've remembered…"

Mariah nodded. She agreed with that. If anything, she thought that Kenny would've been the one to talk to when it came to such things. But even he forgot…

What were they doing, to forget something like that? They would've undoubtedly remembered unless it was something that acquired a great deal of attention - she'd have to question them on this subject later.

"So I don't understand how you could've forgotten to tell me that the team was going to be here when you guys knew it was a big thing! It's not like we see them everyday, and when it just slips your minds! I just don't get it…" Hilary finished with a huff. She knew she was over-reacting a little about this, but how could they just forget? Had they even thought about her when they had found out the others were staying?

She felt tears burn in her ruby eyes, but blinked them away. She was fine - nothing to cry about - just like she told herself before. She was just fine.

Tyson and Kenny finally looked up towards the brunette in front of them. She looked like she was trying to decide on something, but wasn't having any luck in doing so.

"We're sorry, Hil, we really are. We never meant to hurt you, honest," Tyson said, placing a comforting hand on her shoulder. Kenny nodded in agreement as he stood next to the World Champion.

Hilary shrugged his shoulder off. "Y-you didn't hurt me…you just really upset me that you would forget about something like that…" she stuttered out, before walking over to the back door where Rei and Mariah still stood.

She looked up at him with her ruby orbs, tried to smile, succeeding in forming a sloppy, lopsided grin as she had earlier, "Hey, Rei, great to see you again," Hilary said before she disappeared through the door, shutting it behind her.

But Rei had seen.

They had hurt her.