Note: Four months in a row! For a while, I didn't even think I'd get around to writing this chapter. I've essentially been having multiple allergic reactions a day, not a lot of fun. Regardless, the monthly updates should continue, though you might not see me until a late part of April.

Oh, this chapter is also kind of related to Highway. Nothing really specific is mentioned, so if you forgot it, it's fine.

Thanks to Player Zero, Kenrai, and MidnightStarr for the reviews. Always very much appreciated. Extra thanks to Kenrai for pushing me to write this chapter.

Disclaimer: I do not own Beyblade.

Lemonade

"Oh God, Hilary! What did you put in this?"

"Nothing!"

Max smiled, walking through the entrance of his new apartment with a medium sized box in his arms. He stood in the doorway pleased with his new home and the fact that two of his best friends had travelled all the way stateside to help him move. They claimed it was only right, Max having helped them both move a handful of times with a grin on his lips the whole time. He was thankful he had such amazing friends.

The pair that had come to help him, Tyson and Hilary, were standing opposite of each other in his living room. They were surrounded by towering boxes and Tyson was holding a glass in his hand, a disgusted look on his face as he looked down to its contents. Hilary was giving the capped boy an equally disgusted look, her hands on her hips, as a pitcher of what looked like lemonade balanced steadily on top of a cardboard box.

"You know this is supposed to have sugar, right?"

Hilary rolled her eyes. "It does!" She waved her hand to a small thing of sugar that Max noted was beside the pitcher. The blond walked into the room, setting the box down on the floor before he also put his hands on his hips as he watched the pair curiously.

"What? A single grain of sugar?" Tyson scoffed. He grabbed the small container of sugar and proceeded to dump a few teaspoons into his glass. Hilary gagged and Max pinched his face together equally sickened. Tyson stirred the contents of his drink with the spoon, eyeing his friends with a shrug. "You don't know how bad it was before."

"It's fine," Hilary argued. She looked to Max to make her point and the boy shrugged with a small smile, not too keen about the idea of getting in the middle of an argument.

"I really appreciate the help guys." Max tried to steer the conversation elsewhere and from the looks on their faces they seemed to reciprocate. Hilary waved him off and Tyson once again shrugged, taking a drink from his sugary glass. "I mean it; you didn't have to come all this way to carry boxes."

"Don't worry about it buddy!" Tyson frowned at his glass, but eventually took another quick sip. "You help us out all the time, just returning the favour." Hilary nodded in agreement.

Max grinned, he stood back to get a good look at the room. He had gotten his bigger furniture moved in days prior and the three of them had just been handling the boxes of his smaller belongings. The apartment was beginning to look homier by the hour and while it made him feel welcomed, another part of him was left feeling anxious.

"What do you guys think of the place?"

Max was honestly curious to what his friends had to say, he had chosen the place himself, refused any help from his parents. He denied all handouts, wanting to go about his first place his own way. His mom was not very happy about this, his phone was full of messages of her trying to pry in some way or another, but Max had his own reasons. He needed there to be no strings attached for what he had planned.

Hilary jumped into the conversation first. "It's great Max! Really suits you, I know you'll love it here. And look at the view!" The brunette always gushed whenever she was in New York, dragging her friends to visit sights and really immerse herself into the culture.

Max scratched his head, weaving his fingers through his hair in thought. "You think so? You don't think it's too... masculine?"

Hilary tilted her head at the odd question, looking about the room she believed to be very neutral. While she was thinking about how to respond, Tyson snapped his fingers. He pointed to Max, drink wobbling in his other hand. "Dude, you know what you could do? Hang up posters of girls...!" The champion's voice trailed off as Hilary's face turned back to disgust in his direction. "Not that I'd do that."

"Don't listen to him," Hilary said in annoyance, "please." Tyson rolled his eyes.

"Trust me, I won't." Max smiled sheepishly, his head ducked down to the hardwood floor. "But, really, you don't think it's too masculine?"

"Why, is Mariam moving in?" Tyson laughed, winking at Hilary in the process. The brunette laughed too, but the silence from the blond caught them both off guard. They stopped, looked at each other, and Tyson sat his drink down on another of the many cardboard boxes. "Wait, seriously? How has your mom not locked you up yet?"

"She doesn't... know."

Tyson cringed. "We're accomplices. Hil, we're going down."

"Besides, Mariam's not moving in. Laws don't really work like that." Max crossed his arms, slouching against the wall as he explained what truly was going on. "I just figured, if I got a place of my own, she could stay here when she visits instead of the hotel."

"Wait... Mariam knows you're doing this, right?"

Max bit his lip and then proceeded to shake his head.

"We're screwed." Tyson looked over to Hilary with concern on his face. She was deep in thought, so she ignored him, looking about the room. "Max, tell my fans I loved them."

"You're fine."

"I want to be buried with my hat."

Max covered his face with his hands and took a deep breath. The whole situation made him feel good and bad at the same time; he was so excited for his future, but felt like he was burning bridges in the process. He could only imagine his mother's reaction. Max was pretty sure Mariam would go along with the plan, but of course he would give her time to decide on what she wanted to do. He just wanted her to be comfortable in his life and he felt like he couldn't do that if she was never welcomed in his own home.

"I think...," Hilary began, tapping her pointer finger on her chin a few times, "that this will be perfect." Max peeked at her from between his fingers at first, but upon realization of her words, lowered his hands. Hilary smiled. "Really, Max. I think you just need to be open to any changes she wants to make."

"Right," Max said nodding, egging his friend on to continue.

"Little things, you know? To make her more comfortable."

"Of course!"

Tyson crossed his arms incredulously, regarding his two friends' conversation. "Let's be realistic here, pretty sure Mariam isn't the one who's gonna blow a gasket when she finds out." Tyson tilted his head toward Max. "What's the worse Mariam will do? Be a bit put off due to the surprise? Your mom's gonna enroll you in a convent or something."

"Tyson!" Hilary scolded.

"What?"

Max shook his head again. "No, he's right. I'm nervous about how Mariam will react 'cause I'm not sure what to expect. I know how my mom is, though." He scratched the back of his neck, his blue eyes looking back and forth between his two friends. "It's why I didn't let my parents pay for anything, so she had no leverage."

"Oh," Tyson said simply in realization. He then tapped his finger to his temple with a grin. "Sneaky."

"Well, this is important to me. I mean, one day we could..."

"You could...?" Tyson had a puzzled look on his face.

Max turned sheepish. "I don't know, get married?"

Tyson was taken aback, he had never considered it before, but he knew they were much older than they used to be. Of course it was possible. On that thought, Hilary squealed. The loud pitch made Tyson cringe as the brunette swarmed Max with a gigantic hug. The blond spluttered, causing Tyson to grin.

"I'm not proposing, Hilary! Not like... now, anyway."

Tyson laughed, putting his arms behind his head. "Too late man, you got a wedding planner now."

Max joined in laughing, his arms wrapping around Hilary to give her a hug back. On this new path in his life, how could he have doubted his best friends would have supported him? He just hoped in a few weeks' time it would be Mariam hugging him this tightly.