sighs. I am so lazy, I didn't even want to write this, but I am. I should be sleeping. I mean, how many people start typing a chapter at like 2 in the morning and refuse to leave until it's done despite them having school in the morning? Oh well. Tis my fault. I suppose I should stop my insistent rambling. I'm sure you all want to read the freaking chapter already. Go ahead then. Review replies go to:
Serenity Cathedral a.k.a. Serena429: I see you have become my faithful reviewer. Hope this chapter pleases you.
Nkingy: If I told you that, it would spoil the chapter. You'll just have to read and find out. Oh yeah, and thank you for reviewing.
Xaiony: I appreciate the review. Here's another chapter.
Disclaimer: I do not, nor will I ever own beyblades. I merely use the characters and my own plots to entertain readers.
Chapter 5.
Tyson stepped outside and gave an audible gasp. The heat seemed to wrap itself around him like an oppressive blanket. 'Kai is making us train in this heat? What is he, insane or something?' he stopped thinking and began to actually consider that maybe, just maybe, the ruby-eyed team leader wasn't as cold and down-to-earth as he appeared to be.
He shook his head slightly, dislodging the thought from further development in his mind.
They all bent and stretched their muscles carefully to warm up before setting off on a light jog to the park. By the time they arrived, everyone was soaked in sweat.
Max's breathing was erratic and his face was redder than a tomato while Rei rested his hands on his knees and tried to control his own hasty breaths. Tyson's hair had slipped loose of it's ponytail and midnight blue hair stuck to his perspiring face. Kai merely kept walking, silently signaling that they still had a long way to go before he would let any of them leave.
He was a good distance away before they all groaned and started after him.
"What is up with Kai?" Rei panted to Tyson as he sped up slightly.
"I have no idea." replied the teen, even though in his head he had already worked out Kai's ceaseless drive to push them to their limit.
He was testing them, but more specifically, he was testing Tyson. After his mannerism and abrupt denials the previous day, Kai wanted to catch him in a lie.
'Too bad.' Tyson thought and sniggered softly.
"I can't keep...up like...this." Max gasped.
"You can do it Maxie!" Tyson shouted encouragingly.
"Yeah. Don't give up." Rei nodded.
Max said nothing, but strained himself physically and continued going.
'Can't give up. Can't give up. Can't give up.' he repeated inside his head like a mantra.
"Twenty-five push-ups, thirty sit-ups, and then five laps around the park. Go!" directed Kai, and he dropped to the ground and began.
His fellow team mates just about fell to the ground before starting their push-ups. It was way too hot. The sky was a unsettling, piercing blue; cloudless and it seemed to magnify the rays of the sun. There was no wind at all and the ultraviolet waves beat down mercilessly upon them.
Snakes of thick wavy heat rose from the super-hot asphalt. Even the leaves on the trees drooped, sagging limply from their stems.
"Twenty-five...twenty-six...twenty-seven...twenty-eight...twenty-nine...thirty.." Rei finished his sit-ups before the others and stood up.
His muscles protested weakly, but he forced himself upward and onward. His footsteps jarred his body more than usual.
'It must be really hot out here to be affecting me this much.' he thought as he labored through another lap.
Kai was fast. Very fast. In fact, he was so fast, that he was already done with his laps and he sat underneath the hot sun, watching the others morosely.
'At least Kai is a team player. He won't sit in the shade until we are all done. Makes me feel a little bit better about the rest of the teammates.' Rei noted with a small smile of satisfaction.
Rei finished his laps before Tyson and Max had even started their's, and went over and stood next to where Kai was sitting.
Tyson evened out his sit-ups to match Max's speed, which, in all honestly, couldn't really be defined as speed at all.
He refused to leave his struggling friend's side and stuck with him. When Max got up, he fell on his knees, arms trembling with exhaustion. A hand entered his field of vision and he looked up to see Tyson holding it out to him.
"Thanks Tyson." his voice barely came out.
"No problem buddy. There is no way I would leave you behind. Lets go. We can run the last laps together."
He pulled the tired teen up off of his knees and they both began to run.
"One more lap. One more lap." Tyson and Max chanted together, pushing themselves harder and harder. Perspiration raced down their faces, dampening their shirts and making their leg slick and slippery. Max's bright orange t-shirt was toned down to a more subtle color as the fabric absorbed the salty liquid.
"Gah!" Max cried out as he stumbled over his foot and fell. The skin on his knees was torn and shredded by the rocky black pavement. A particularly sharp stone pierced the corner of his right knee, impaling itself in his flesh. Blood leaked out and stained the ground darker.
"Max, are you okay?" Tyson asked and knelt down beside his friend.
He didn't respond. Sharp, needle-like pains raced through his leg as he tried to move it. Every movement caused a painful spasm of searing agony.
Rei was walking around in a small circle to cool down his body so his muscles wouldn't stiffen and cramp up sorely. He heard someone call out and he looked to see Max on the ground cradling one of his knees. In an instant he was up and running to where his friend was on the track.
"Max!" Rei called out. Small tears started to form in the corners of Max's blue eyes but he sniffed to hold them back.
"It hurts." he whispered.
"Hilary can help us bandage it up. Lets get you back to the dojo. Come on, you can ride on my back." Tyson said and bent down.
With Rei's help, Max was able to climb onto Tyson's back. Kai arrived just as they had started to leave.
"You haven't finished your laps yet Tyson." he said coldly. His eyes were like bloodstained chips of ice.
Rei turned, surprise and confusion written across his face.
"You are such a heartless bastard, Kai." Tyson said, whirling around to face his team captain.
Max whimpered softly at the penetrating glare that Kai fixed upon him, but Tyson brushed it off as though it were merely a shy glance.
Tyson continued on his rant.
"One of your teammates is injured and all you care about is that I haven't done everything you wanted me to. You don't deserve to be team captain and I don't even know why you are. Sure you can lead us into battle, but don't desert us when one of us falls. We are all a team, and we need to stick together. Unfinished laps or not, I'm helping my friend!"
With those final words spoken, Tyson turned on his heels and left Kai behind. Rei stared and Kai, sadness and concern radiating in his rich honey orbs. He followed Tyson and Max, speeding up to a jog to catch up to them. The dual-haired teen watched as they left him behind on the hot pavement. Despite the heat, Kai gave an involuntary shiver.
...time passes...
Max breathed a sign of relief as the pain pill he had taken started to take effect. He felt small jolts of pain, but it was nothing compared to the near-crippling sensation he had felt earlier.
"Better?" Tyson asked his friend.
"Yeah." Max said softly.
"I'll check on you later. I need to take a shower because I stink like a hippo in a mud bath." the navy-haired teen said and grinned sheepishly.
Max gave his own laugh, but it came out subdued thanks to the wonderful thing known as aspirin. He closed his eyes and slipped into a light sleep.
Another smiled tugged itself across Tyson's face and he got up and went to his room. He didn't bother flicking on the light, but he immediately noticed the light on his cell phone was flashing red.
"That means either one of two things." Tyson spoke out loud to no one in particular. "Either my battery is dying or someone called me. I remembered to plug it this morning, so it can't be the battery. Who called?" he asked, moving over to the phone.
The red light continued to flash ominously. Tyson reached out, picked it up with one hand, and flipped it open. The blood froze in his veins.
And then, all of a sudden, the cell phone began to ring.
Hah. Yes, I know. I left it at a cliffie. Let me know if it's a good cliffie, because I want to do it again some time. I had to find a place to end this chapter at, and here just seemed like a good place. It isn't like me to ask for reviews, but if anyone has any suggestions on what I can do to improve my writing, you know what to do. The next chapter will be updated soon.