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

Chinese For Two

Part: III

Mistakes.

We all make them. Nobody's perfect - simple as that. There are times when you get things right, and times when you get things wrong. When we're wrong, of course we want to fix our mistakes; erase them and then write the answer over again as if the previous one was never even there to begin with.

But, even with erasers there are stains that linger on the paper. Once a mistake is made, it can't be taken back again.

Tyson understood this. If he could erase his mistake of not talking to Hilary sooner, he would do it without a second thought. He would take that little pink eraser and rub it across his paper until there was nothing left but the eraser shavings. But he couldn't do that. Life didn't come with erasers. You get one sheet of paper - either make the grade, or fail.

Tyson sure knew what his grade was.

Kenny stood next to Tyson quietly, seeming caught up in his own thoughts just as Tyson was.

He was always the one to answer problems, or to help with strategies. Kenny was the man with the mathematical smarts, and never in his calculations had he seen the equation that would give him such an answer. The boy was unable to help this time, and he was unable to find the solution of the problem.

The young man had always made up for his lack of skills in Beyblading - he felt the waves of disappointment wash over him as he realized his field of knowledge couldn't make up for it this time around.

"So…" Rei's voice cut through his train of thought, making both boys look up to see Rei and Mariah's concerned faces. Did they know about Hilary's current problem? Probably not. He'd be surprised if they did, seeing as they were gone the whole time.

Tyson clenched his fist tightly at his side. Gone the whole time.

A silence hung over them as they just stood there for what seemed like forever to them. Tyson stared down at the ground, unable to meet his friend's gaze. He didn't feel like talking about it right now.

"Tyson…"

"Nothing. I don't want to talk about it," he cut the neko-jin off, pushing past the Chinese boy and headed out the door. He still had that Christmas tree to get.

Rei watched him before remembering he was going to help the blunette as well, and was just outside helping with the lights before he came in to see… that event.

"Wait up!" Rei called after him, jogging towards the blunette, since he was already outside and almost completely out of the yard.

Tyson wasn't avoiding him that easily.

Hilary stood solemnly as she watched the light snow cover the ground. The pond that had always been there was now frozen; the small stones surrounding it looked like huge piles of snow, each one of them completely white.

She yelped when she felt something hit her head none too gently. Rubbing her now sore head, she glanced down to see that it was a tangle of Christmas lights. She raised an eyebrow, before looking up as she heard a loud curse, followed by a light chuckle.

"Drat! Max, get those for me, would ya?" Hilary recognized the voice. Daichi.

"Sure!" Hilary turned her gaze down until it rested on the blond, who was standing next to a ladder, gripping it tightly so that Daichi wouldn't topple over and break his neck. Max carefully released the wooden ladder as if he were afraid it would fall over. He turned her way, which was where the lights had fallen, and just noticed that she was standing there as his ocean blue stare caught hers.

His grin widened as he looked at her. "Hilary!" he yelled excitedly while running over to her, completely forgetting about Daichi and the ladder as he embraced the brunette in a hug.

Hilary wrapped her arms around the blond, holding him gently as she rested her head against his shoulder, breathing in his light scent that had always calmed her down. Max was always in a happy mood - it made her feel better to be around him when she needed comfort. She was happy he was so enthusiastic. She really needed a hug from someone.

Max's eyebrows furrowed as he looked down at the brunette. She buried her head in his chest almost as if she was trying to hide from him. He had always given hugs to Hilary when they were younger. She had never seemed so tense before now, and Max couldn't identify what his feelings and thoughts were right then.

"Ah! Max! Would you hurry up! This stupid ladder is wobbling!" Daichi bellowed as he held onto the ladder as if his life depended on it. He really didn't want a fractured skull.

Hilary let go of the blond as he stumbled over to grab hold of the ladder. He sighed in relief as he caught it just in time. "That was close," Max commented.

"No, really!" Daichi yelled, still gripping the ladder in his shaking hands. "Do you have those lights or what, Max?" Daichi asked irritably, looking over his shoulder slightly to get a glimpse of the boy below him.

Max looked over towards Hilary who was just standing there staring back, not sure what she should do.

"Do you mind carrying those over here?" Max asked sheepishly. Hilary nodded, before bending down and picking up the fallen lights, bringing them over to the blond who took them gratefully before handing them up to Daichi, who seemed nervous about the idea of letting go for even a second. After that experience, he didn't trust the ladder at all.

Hilary stared up at then lights that were currently being hung up. They were a mixture of reds and greens - the colors of Christmas. She noticed that it was beginning to get dark as dusk rode in like a blanket had been draped over the sun, only leaving a flicker to remain.

"Okay, I'm coming down!" Daichi called out loudly. He slid down carefully until his feet finally reached the bottom. He looked up at his work and gave a huge triumphant grin.

Hilary looked down at the grinning boy and couldn't help but grin herself. He looked the same as when she last saw him - he still had those ripped up jeans despite the cold, and the scar on his forehead was still there. The wild flaming red hair still adorned his head as well as those green eyes that always held the look of mischief in them. It was the same Daichi.

Bringing a hand up, she ruffled the boy's hair, causing him to yell out in protest as he swiped at her hands. She ignored his shouts, instead pulling him closer until they were in a one-armed hug.

The scowl disappeared from the redheads face as he felt the brunette latch onto him unexpectedly. He wondered what was wrong with her, and couldn't help but feel awkward as he stood there, accepting the affection she was giving him despite his lack of understanding.

Just when he was about to say something, though, Hilary pulled away, putting on a grin while looking at the perplexed redhead in front of her.

"It's great to see you, Daichi!" she chirped, before looking over towards Max, who was staring at her strangely.

"So!" Hilary said, pulling at her jacket sleeve. He looked at the brunette carefully, before giving a shake of his head - she seemed fine now.

"Where's Kai?" Hilary asked curiously, while eyeing the blond.

"He's over there trying to perfect his tough guy facial expressions," Daichi commented dryly while pointing over to the porch. Hilary's ruby gaze followed to where he was pointing, and then widened in surprise as she made out a form sitting down cross-legged. His arms were crossed against his chest, his eyes closed as if he were in very deep thought. His scarf draped around him elegantly as the light wind waved it to and fro. The dark blue triangles painted on his face were immensely contrasting against his skin, making it look almost as pale as snow.

Kai…

He had been so quiet that she hadn't even realized he was there. He looked the same as before - yet not. He still had that unruly hair and his blue triangles, not to mention the same scarf and baggy clothes. But he just seemed…older, in a way. More mature - she couldn't really describe it, but she knew that something had changed.

"Hey, Kai," Hilary called to him over towards the porch. Kai opened his eyes, revealing the same mahogany color that had always been there.

"Hn," he responded. All of a sudden, he stood up, walking towards her slowly until he was standing right in front of the brunette, looking down at her with those deep mahogany eyes of his.

And then she realized how he matured. She barely reached his shoulders, and it was very evident he had grown taller over the past year! She almost felt intimidated by his height, as he towered over her like he was doing now - okay, she was intimidated - but she knew she shouldn't be. It was only Kai - they had been friends since they were fourteen. He was that same boy that given her a chance, to let her show them that she could be of use, and not just the annoying pain in the neck they had first thought her as. That same boy that protected her from the rockslide on the island when they had been stranded. That same boy who she had actually developed a small school-girlish crush on as she spent more time with the Bladebreakers.

Only, he wasn't a boy anymore - no - he was a man now. A big, strong, tall man that was towering over her like the Empire State Building. With these continuous thoughts running through her mind, and with each second ticking by as she continued to look up at him, she couldn't help but feel the need to step away.

So that's what she did. Hilary took a few steps back, still keeping her gaze locked with the duel-haired man's. He showed no sign of acknowledging this move; he only watched as she moved further and further away from him, his sharp features forever etched into his face.

And then, his eyes seemed to glint with something she couldn't identify, and it passed as soon as it had come.

She shivered slightly, suddenly feeling very cold. She opened her mouth to say something, but was cut off by the sound of Mariah's voice.

"Hey, Hilary! C'mere for a second!" The pink-haired girl called out to her from the doorway.

Hilary glanced back at Kai, whose jaw seemed to clench. "Great to see you again, Kai! Bye!" she said quickly, before rushing away from the three boys, moving over to where her friend was awaiting her.

Hilary wasn't sure what she wanted, but whatever it was, it sure saved her from whatever situation was brewing just those few moments ago.

Rei watched the blunette run around the store, looking at all the different trees that they had to offer. They had come to the department outside where they kept all the trees for Christmas, so that they wouldn't have to be trudged out of the front door.

Tyson continued to run around, pointing at random trees. He was avoiding him, he knew. And to put it simply, it was beginning to get on Rei's last nerve. It was annoying when Rei tried asking him a question, only for the blunette to interrupt him again by yelling out, "Ooooh! That one looks good!"

Rei sighed as the dragon avatar ran around, almost looking like a child trying to find his mother in a big store.

"Hey, Rei, what about this one!" Tyson called over to him, pointing at an exceptionally large tree that was about three times bigger than him. It was a nice tree, but Rei was yet to be swayed from the annoyance that continued to eat away at him.

Pushing down his frustrations, Rei stated in a calm manner, "It's great Tyson, but I really-"

"Great! Let's get this one!" Again with the interruptions! Rei felt his nerves edging to their snapping point. He was usually calm in such situations, but Tyson was making things so difficult. It almost felt like he didn't trust him…but then again, it had been awhile since they had seen each other like this. Perhaps the blunette felt slightly insecure about him. The more he contemplated these thoughts, the more they seemed to make sense. A pang of guilt stabbed him, before he shook his head. He hadn't done anything wrong, and Tyson knew that.

He had missed something. While he was gone, something had taken place between the three friends. Hilary seemed so upset with Kenny and Tyson…and Tyson didn't want to tell him. Was it because the blunette no longer held as must trust in him as before?

He needed answers. No matter what, they were always his friends, no matter how much the dragon tried to avoid him, he would always remember the promise Tyson had made to him - the promise he had made to himself. He knew Tyson still thought of him as a friend; the blunette would never just cut him off as a name in the address book. But it certainly wasn't helping when the dragon wouldn't let him in.

Rei sighed once again, finally regaining his composure as Tyson came back from paying for the tree. "Tyson."

The blunette went tense as he heard his name. There was no escaping the neko-jin now, with no shopping left to do; he couldn't inch away from him. He knew that Rei would ask him about earlier, and he just didn't want to talk about it. He was ashamed, he admitted, but if Rei was about to look down on him with disappointment, he would take it like a Champion, he decided.

He knew he would make it up to his friend in some way. He just wasn't sure how.

"I want to know about earlier, and stop trying to avoid me already!" Rei said bluntly. Tyson blinked before turning his attention to the raven-haired male in front of him. The neko-jin almost seemed tense as he looked at him with his golden eyes. All the tension must have really gotten to him, seeing as the usually calm and collected blader was now trying to get a handle of his bearings.

Tyson closed his eyes, rubbing his temples. He really couldn't do anything now. Besides, Rei deserved to know, right? It was only fair…

"Fine, you saw Hilary earlier today…" Tyson started, launching into the conversation. Rei nodded timidly, a slight shine in his eyes of satisfaction as he listened intently.

"I forgot to tell her that all you guys were coming back for Christmas, and well, it all went from there…she was upset, and I could understand…" He trailed off, letting it sink in. Tyson pulled his red jacket over him, shielding himself from the sudden blast of cold that the wind had brought.

Rei nodded, "Mariah told me about that…but something else happened, I know it. What happened while we were gone, Tyson? There's something you're not telling me…"

"You might've known if you were here…" Tyson mumbled to himself, but with his hearing, Rei was able to pick it up.

Rei's eyes narrowed. "Yes, I would've, but I wasn't. So I'll just have to let you tell me then." He said it calmly, his eyes burrowing into the stormy blue ones that belonged to the dragon master.

Tyson rubbed the back of his neck before sighing. "I guess that after everyone left, and when we went to college, Hilary just kinda got lonely after awhile…" When he got a confused look from the raven-haired male, he explained further. "She lives by herself in a small apartment where she eats Chinese food and does homework, Rei. It's an okay apartment, but that's not really all that great when you have no one to share your company with, ya know?"

"Yeah…" Rei nodded. "But why wouldn't she say something then? If she was lonely then why didn't she tell any of us? We could've helped her," Rei stated.

"I think we all know Hilary by now," he answered, his jaw clenching as he spoke. "She always was stubborn."

Rei looked away from the dragon, getting caught up in his thoughts. "You mean like someone else we all know?"

Tyson fixed his hat that had been slightly blown around by the wind. "Haha. Very funny. C'mon, we should be heading back now. It's getting dark."

He was right; the sun had already gone down, causing a blanket of night to sweep over them as the cold night wind picked up.

"Alright," he agreed with the blunette. This conversation was obviously over, and now he finally had some answers to his questions. The tree had already been loaded up into the car, so now all was left was to get it home.

"So, I hear you have a new apartment. How is that?" Mariah asked curiously while handing her friend a cup of hot chocolate, which the brunette took gratefully, taking small sips out of it before placing it down again.

"It's fine. Small, but I really didn't need a lot of space anyways," she answered. Mariah picked up her own glass before she also took a sip of the delicious liquid.

"What's it like? Having a place all to yourself like that?" The pink-haired neko-jin asked with inquiring golden eyes.

Hilary thought about it for a moment. What was it like? "It's pretty neat. But I guess it's a little quiet…" she said, trailing off at the end.

Mariah's eyebrows furrowed. "What do you mean, quiet?"

"Err…well, it gets kinda quiet there since it's only me," Hilary replied.

"I guess that could be pretty lonely. I don't know what I would do if I didn't have Lee or Rei to talk to-" Mariah instantly stopped her sentence when she realized exactly what she was saying. She glanced to the brunette who had a sort of sullen look on her face. "Sorry," the pink-haired girl apologized.

Hilary shook her head, her expression softening again, "It's fine!" she said, getting up from her seat while finishing her beverage, putting it into the sink before heading out the kitchen door. "I'll be out here!" she said before exiting.

Mariah sighed when she was out of ear-shot. That wasn't a smart thing to say, and now she probably hurt her friend's feelings without meaning to. She was lonely? That was certainly the impression that the brunette had given her. So then, perhaps she could help. Maybe she could try to cheer the brunette up, now that her mood seemed spoiled.

She'd find some way - she just needed a plan.

"Ugh, maybe this wasn't the best tree after all!" The sound of Tyson's voice made Mariah raise an eyebrow before she got up and stepped into the living room as Hilary had previously done not too long ago. The pink-haired girl gasped, seeing the dragon and her boyfriend try to pull the humongous Christmas tree through the doorway with no prevail.

Hilary stood in front of them, giggling at the sight. "You know, we don't usually have this problem at my house. I bring a tape measurer with me!" she called out to the struggling boys, still laughing at the frustrated looks on their faces.

"Darn it! It ain't funny, Hil!" Tyson yelled over the large mass of green in front of him as they both grunted at the weight. Finally, after many failed attempts, they finally managed to get it through the door way somehow. The four of them set up the tree with decorations while Daichi, Max and Kai were still outside, probably still working on whatever light problems were left before the sunlight was completely gone for the night.

After awhile, the tree was covered in large quantities of lights, each trinket shining beautifully off of the large plant. Daichi, Max and Kai came into the dojo soon afterwards, and hearing the commotion, they came into the living room as well to take a look at the large tree that seemed to take the room as it's own.

"Alright, now all we need to do is get the star up there!" Mariah called energetically, waving the small glass star around in her gloved hand.

"That thing is huge! Who the heck was the smart guy who got something that large?" Daichi asked while pointing at the huge tree that brushed against the ceiling. Rei and Tyson sheepishly raised their hands at the question, each showing a look of embarrassment.

Hilary laughed as she looked at their faces. She couldn't help it - the way the two boys screwed up their faces made her giggle. Her laughing stopped as she felt someone tap her shoulder. She looked over to see that it was Mariah, who was holding the star out to her.

"You put it on."

Hilary looked at the little glass star in her hand, then up at the high tree, and back to the pink-haired girl again.

"Mariah, uh…I can't reach that high…" she started, before she was cut off by a soft grunt. She watched as Kai got down on his knees, his back facing her.

Hilary must've had a really dumbfounded look on her face, because Kai gave a short sigh, probably from annoyance, before looking over his shoulder at her. "Get on." It was a command, not a request.

Hilary did as she was told, and still gripping the little star in her hand, she used her free one to grip Kai's shoulder so that he could hoist her on without falling off. When she was finally on, Kai curled his fingers around her feet so that he could hold her in place. His hands were surprisingly warm. She could feel the calluses on his hands from all the years of Beyblading, the finger-less gloves he always wore no longer hiding them.

He stood up, and Hilary felt fear well up inside of her at how high she was. She could see over the phoenix's head easily, and looking down she saw the others looking up at her with amused eyes. She held onto the phoenix's shoulders and neck as tight as she could without choking him. Hilary adjusted her hand so that it went in back of Kai's neck to where the dark blue strands were traveling down down his neck like a dark river. They were soft, and without meaning to, she accidentally gave a tug that earned a shift and a grunt that told of his displeasure.

She felt Kai's hands grip a little tighter so that she could adjust better. She let out a breath that she didn't even realize she was holding in. She calmed down; letting herself actually enjoy the height she was at. So, this was what it felt like to be as tall as Kai. She didn't know how he could stand being this tall. He mustn't be very afraid of heights.

Suddenly feeling brave, Hilary leaned forward slightly, reaching to the tree so she could put the glass star on top. She inched closer and closer until she finally could tip it onto the very top. She admired her work for a moment as the star sat there shining while the rest of the lights made it glitter.

Kai suddenly squat down so that she could get off, much to her bemusement. She actually found herself having…fun. She scampered off his shoulders quickly so that he could stand up again. He glanced at her with his mahogany eyes before turning around and walking back into the kitchen, his scarf flowing out behind him gracefully.

For the rest of the night, Hilary found her thoughts wandering back to the little star that stood proudly at the top of the tree.

And of the phoenix blader who had helped her get it there.