Warning : Strong language, eventual yaoi, violence

Disclaimer : I don't own Beyblade or any of the characters. The characters you do not recognise are mine and are not to be stolen/used in any story other than my own.

"………" - Speech

'………' - Thought

Italics - Something written (e.g. e-mails)

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"…" Rei groaned softly as he woke up, staring around the white room he was laid in. Everything hurt. Everything ached. He had honestly thought that he'd died, but he'd actually just passed out from shock and his body kept him there, not waking him up due to steady loss of blood. The teen sighed deeply, trying to forget everything as he closed his eyes once more; he wasn't entirely sure that he could stay awake for much longer, despite only just waking from his painless dreamland.

He was just dozing off, his mind returning to a large sandy-coloured field of dried grass where five young children ran about, playing hide and seek in the long tufts and having a good time. He was one of those children, it was a time of no hurt and no aching, just playing, having fun, laughing… A quiet voice brought him straight back to the small hospital room, again reminding him of his eventful morning.

"I cried, you know." The voice, one that he recognised straight away, told him, barely above a whisper. "I was scared. I thought I'd never see you again… Apart from in a coffin with a bunch of flowers on top."

The speaker sniffed, closing a shaking hand around the neko's, squeezing gently. Rei began to remember the fear that he himself had felt that morning when he was staring wide-eyed into the sneering lilac orbs of his attacker, feeling the pain rush through him as a little reminder of what dawn now meant to the neko… He had been scared. Scared was an understatement. He had been terrified. He thought he'd never see the light of day ever again – Or anything else, for that matter.

"I was scared too." The amber eyed boy managed to admit in a rasping voice. Speaking hurt. Even something as simple as breathing hurt. Everything hurt, it ached inside. Rei knew that he was lucky to be lying there, speaking to a friend and knowing that he was alive, even if there were several tubes connected to his hand and arm, one providing him with blood, two providing him with necessary drugs and pain killers, and another one he wasn't completely sure what it was for, but the nurse had something about feeding him and he hadn't been given any food yet, so the fourth tube was probably giving him any nutrients he needed to regain strength.

Still, knowing that he was lucky was one thing, but feeling it was another. He was scared. He felt truly unwanted to the world, all because some psychotic asshole had tried to kill him just for being himself. All he'd ever really wanted was somebody to love and care for and know that they felt the same in return – Was that too much to ask for? According to the Falcon it was. Nobody was allowed what they wanted any more, prejudice proved that.

Another sniff brought Rei to tilt his head slightly, meeting his friend's troubled eyes. "I didn't think you were coming. I thought you'd forgotten." The other voice continued, though now he was choking on tears of relief, though slightly mingled with worry, fear, pain… Anger. He felt anger toward the bastard that had tried to kill his friend. "I called your house to see if you were coming and your mum told me you'd left ages ago."

After pausing to take a shuddering breath and giving Rei's hand another slight squeeze, the boy continued. "That's when I knew something had happened. I told Hiro I was going to look for you, but I didn't have time because just after I'd got my coat and shoes and stuff on, your mum phoned back and told us that the police had called her and that…" He let out a small sob at the memory. "That you'd been rushed to hospital because you'd been…" He couldn't bring himself to say the last word. It was as though it would hurt them both again if he did, and he didn't want Rei to hurt any more. The neko-jin teenager had been through more than enough already that day.

"Tyson…" Rei forced himself to talk, even though it made his throat sore and shattered his breathing, he spoke, returning the comforting squeezes to his best friend's hand that he had been given beforehand. It was comforting. It was nice… The navy-haired teen before him was his greatest friend, even over Lee and they'd been friends forever. Anguish filled his voice as he spoke, he was still afraid, though he knew too that he would be for a long time yet. The Falcon had affected his life. "Did they tell you who it was?"

"Yeah." Tyson nodded his reply, but looked confused. "They said his name was Bryan Kuz… Kuzna-something-or-other-tov." He tried, a slight smile appearing on his lips. "I was too worried about you to listen properly." He admitted with a small laugh, looking in adoration at the other boy. 'He must be so brave to be lying there now, despite everything he's been through.' Tyson mused, knowing that he himself would have died straight off, he was never as strong as the tiger.

Rei watched his friend with sad eyes. What would his reaction be when he knew exactly who Bryan Kuza-whatever-hov was? Sighing, he knew that Tyson had to be told, they went to school with that psycho… School. There was no chance Rei was going back, he was too damn scared to go back. Not while he was there.

"Tyson?"

He had to tell him. Things were going to be difficult, but he knew Tyson would help him.

"Yeah?"

Any help would be appreciated.

"He…" The raven-haired boy half sighed, half sobbed, having to gasp for breath afterwards, closing his eyes slightly. He reopened them and turned his face as much as he could toward his best friend, whose deep eyes were ridden with worry. "That Bryan guy… Is Falcon." He coughed, groaning in pain, watching the expression underneath the bangs of navy blue change from worry through confusion, back to worry, then to utmost anger and complete rage.

"That fucking bastard!" He shouted, gripping his friend's hand possibly a little too tightly. Rei had known that the news wouldn't be taken lightly, Tyson had never trusted Infamous. "Falcon… He… But, he's in Kai's gang! I thought Kai was supposed to be your friend, Rei! How could they do this to you?"

Evidently, the boy was livid. He had every right to be at the teen who had 'made the move', but he couldn't take it out on Kai. It wasn't Kai's fault! He'd hated the fact that Rei had started to befriend their leader. It was jealousy to the max, and now somebody had almost been killed… Not by the jealousy itself, but by the cause of it.

"It wasn't Kai though, was it?" The neko reminded the younger teen in answer, his voice wavering dangerously close to tears as he protected the blunette's name. He took another shuddering breath, glaring accusingly at the wall. "It was him." Rei couldn't keep it in any more and let the tears spill over the brim. He felt a second hand on his shoulder as Tyson sighed, trying his best to stay calm and comfort his closest companion at the same time. Tyson was such a good friend to him. So good that Rei had even had a tiny crush on the navy-haired boy at one point, but that had soon vanished after deciding that there was no way he'd ever risk their friendship by telling him – Plus he discovered the fact that Tyson was straight.

Sniffing, the neko-jin boy looked up from his pillows at the teen next to him and gently shook his head, making him feel sick and dizzy, though that may have been due to the thought of having to go back to where the Falcon was waiting for his return. "I can't go back Tyson, I'm scared. I can't ever go back to school." He let out another heart wrenching sob, only to feel Tyson's wrap around him in a brotherly hug. Rei clung on to his friend tightly and inwardly wished to be somebody else, somewhere else, who didn't get judged for who he was.

He needed this, the hugs, the reassurance, but everything that Tyson gave him as a friend wasn't enough anymore; he needed all of that and more. He'd got to the point in his teenage life where he wanted to be with somebody, somebody who loved him and wanted him for who he was and not for who they wanted him to be; somebody who was fun to be around and knew what a good time was; somebody who would help him when things got rough and would look out for him… Somebody who would protect him from assholes like Falcon.

And Rei could only think of one name.

Rei POV

Of all the people in the world, it would have to be his name and his face that I can't get out of my mind. I haven't seen him since I told him to get out of my garden, my paradise… I wonder if things would have gone differently if I'd let him stay. Maybe it's like the butterfly effect, you know, a butterfly flapping it's wings in one part of the country can create a tornado in another part of the world? Yeah, maybe it's like that – If I'd let Red-eyes stay with me and we'd actually got to know each other, maybe I would have been in a good enough mood to have already done my homework, so I wouldn't have needed to go to Tyson's, meaning that I'd never have been attacked by Falcon. It's a bit long winded and a bit surreal, but it could work, right? I don't know and I guess it doesn't really matter either. What has happened, has happened and there's nothing I can do about it; I can't change the past – No matter how much I want to now.

I wonder if Kai even knows about what his so-called friend has done to me. If he does know, I really start to question what he thinks and how he feels about it all. Is he laughing along with everything too, or is he cursing Falcon and wishing death upon him while trying to find out which hospital I'm in? Doubtful as that may be, it does actually give me a warm feeling at the thought of him caring like that, but I'm not sure if I want it to. I'm not sure if I want Kai to care about me in that way.

Okay, so all my life I've known I was gay and I've been waiting patiently for a guy to come along and say he likes me… But him? Not that there's anything wrong with Red-eyes, apart from the fact that he's the leader of a crazy-ass school gang that the entire town is scared of, plus the fact that one of his best friends can officially be labelled as 'attempted murderer'. But apart from all that, I guess Kai is quite a nice guy.

I remember the time he let me use his psychology essay as my own to hand in, I got very close to top marks for that; or the time he told me that I was a really good drawer one time when we sat under the oak tree together at school, or when he told me to stay out of Falcon's way… He warned me. He knew that the guy was going to do something to me. He knew, and he tried to warn me about it, but I guess nobody knew exactly when the psychotic Falcon was going to strike.

What if he isn't done with me yet? He knows I'm alive because if I wasn't my face would be plastered all over the news with a big red "MURDERED" sign above it… And it's not. He'll probably want to finish what he started, so to speak. But then again, Tyson said that the police know who he is and that means that they'll get him in the lock up, he won't be able to come to school anymore, right? Please tell me that's true… I don't want to go to school if he's there. I don't really want to go to school anyway. I'll stay at home, I know I'm safe there.

Overall I guess that Kai is a nice enough person… He doesn't seem to talk much though, but that's okay because I kinda like it when things are quiet, peaceful. I suppose that's why I like my garden so much, the tranquillity it holds. I would have felt guilty if the last thing I'd ever said to Kai was what I'd said to him in my garden, I'm so happy to be alive. I want to say I'm sorry, though I'm not entirely sure what for. Well, I go back to school in a couple of weeks so I'll probably see him then, and I can tell him I'm sorry for kicking him out and that I didn't mean to hurt him, if I did, that is. And I can tell him he's welcome to come back, I guess I quite like his company really… Wait…

Am I? No, I couldn't be…

I think I am.

"Think you are what?" Tyson asks as my throat protests at it's action, overall proving that I'd spoken my last thought out loud. I can't tell Tyson what I think I am, even if he is my best friend I know that he'd be annoyed with me. Still, I can feel myself smiling… And blushing. That's right Rei, you are slowly beginning to figure it out. Maybe it's just because he's always there for me?

Woah, where did that come from? He's always been there for me?

"What the hell did you get me into trouble for yesterday? You did it on purpose!"

"Who are you?"

"Um… I'm Rei."

That's when the Falcon tried to kick my ass for the very first time, crushing my windpipe with his hand… Until Kai told him to let go. I remember sticking up for Red-eyes even when I didn't know him and Tyson was calling him the World's Biggest Prick...

Message : GrangerT331

Yeah I am doing the work. I don't know why or how I got away from Infamous… Kai saved me.

Message : KonR672

What do you mean he saved you? He's the world's biggest prick Rei, don't go starting to like the guy!

Message : GrangerT331

You're jealous, aren't you? There's no need to be you know, I don't like him. I hate him! He got me into loads of trouble Tyson, and yes – He is the world's biggest prick.

I don't remember really agreeing with that, but I'd typed it any way. There's always been something telling me I disagreed and that he was 'okay really' or 'not as bad as you think'. I've always been sticking up for Red-eyes against Tyson, most of the time without even knowing it. I even enjoy his company! For example, the many times that we have sat under the tree together, just him and me… Though sometimes Ginge came to join us too. We had some good times actually, just the three of us sat there in peace. We never spoke to each other, just sat. It was… Nice.

I can't imagine anything 'nice' any more though. I'll be too scared to go and sit under the tree in peace like I used to, I don't even think I'll be able to go there to eat my lunch or even sketch any more. The Falcon has affected my life in a really bad way, I'm scared to do anything now, I don't think I'll ever be able to walk anywhere on my own ever again, even in the daylight. I'm not just being a scardy-cat, you can't understand how completely horrifying it is until it has happened to you. I wish it upon nobody except the Falcon himself. He deserves to feel the fear that I did… But for some reason, it's never the attackers that get attacked by another. I don't think he'd feel the fear that I did either, I think he'd enjoy the pain and the terror…

"Please let me go! No… Please… Help! Somebody please help me!"

It's the most frightening experience I've ever been through in my life. The way he looked at me when he pulled out the knife left a chill to shiver it's way down my spine. He didn't have any regret or any remorse, he didn't even care. Falcon to do that to any person, be it a 'good for nothing queer boy' like me or an innocent child… It wouldn't matter to him.

I remember the way that my heart skipped a beat when I rounded the corner and saw him, his sneering face baring hard into mine, and the way every little noise that was made on the street made me jump and hurt my ears, seeming so much louder than it really was. I remember the way the blood felt as it soaked through the clothes on my back when I was shoved against that wall, and the way he smirked at me when he raised his fists. I remember the shock that rushed through my veins when he first struck my cheek, it felt like somebody had hit me as hard as they possibly could with a baseball bat… A metal one.

And I remember when he pulled out the knife, raising it up until it was level with my heart. If that man hadn't come out when he had, I would have been dead now. Falcon was ready to kill… Ready to kill me. If that businessman hadn't delayed himself from rushing off to work just a few minutes to see what all the screaming was about, I would be dead.

"Oi, you! What the hell is going on? Get off of him! I'm calling the police kid!"

It's difficult for anybody to comprehend how I'm feeling right now, knowing that. I'm scared. I'm really scared. Even when I know that Falcon has been shut in the lock up, I'll still be scared. The feeling might never go away, I may always need to have someone I know and trust near me all the time, just to get from one place to another. And all things said, there is still only one name in my head.

Kai.

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