This resurfaced in my documents folder, and has been bugging me for a while. I'd completed up to Chapter 14 when I last worked on this, so now I'm focusing on finishing up the last few chapters and will post accordingly. It's been nearly three years since my last update; I haven't really been on here since. Apologies for my unexpected absence, and thank you to everyone who read/reviewed this story while I was gone. Fingers crossed this gets done soon!

I do not own Metal Fight Beyblade.

Mei Mei blinked slowly, readjusting to her surroundings. The clock next to her said 11:45pm. Next to the window, she could see Madoka's sleeping form. Mei Mei yawned. She'd already slept almost six hours, but she was still exhausted. She hadn't realized how much the previous night had drained her.

Outside, the wind howled and rain came down relentlessly. Mei Mei shook her head. This had to stop.

She hoped Chao Xin was back. If he wasn't… She didn't want to think about it. Mei Mei ignored the nagging feeling in the back of her head that if he had returned, one of her friends would have woken her up earlier to tell her.

But if they hadn't…

She blinked furiously. There was no way he was still missing. Her friends had decided to let her rest, that was all. There was nothing to be worried about.

Unable to get back to sleep, Mei Mei quietly slipped out of the room and down the stairs. She thought she saw someone resting on the couch, but it was too dark to be sure. She didn't want to risk waking up anyone else anyway.

The dishes were stacked in a pile next to the sink, still waiting to be done. It didn't look like they'd had much for dinner.

Mei Mei couldn't blame them. She wasn't hungry in the least.

Something glittered behind the pile. Intrigued, Mei Mei reached behind them, grabbing the object in question.

It was a key.

She flipped it over, studying it. The key looked relatively old, dirt and grime coating it thoroughly. From what she could tell, it looked to be gold in color. Both sides of the key were made up of sharp, jagged edges. She frowned. What was that doing here? She was almost positive she'd never seen it before.

Mei Mei brought it with her over to the adjoining door. The key almost fit, but not quite. So much for that theory.

The key definitely wasn't the one they used to get into the condo, she was sure of that. They only had two of them, and Sophie and Madoka were the ones holding on to them. There was an extra stashed in a potted plant outside just in case, but Mei Mei was convinced that one had been silver. She didn't think it belonged to the guys, either. The keys to the condo probably looked generally similar to each other, she assumed. This one didn't fit the pattern at all.

She put the key back down on the counter. Maybe one of her friends had found it walking along the beach or something.

"What are you doing up?"

Mei Mei jumped, startled. Hikaru was standing up in the living room.

"It's the storm," she admitted. "I can't sleep."

Hikaru nodded. "Same here. Something isn't right." She noticed the key. "What's that?"

"It was on the counter," Mei Mei explained. "Have you seen it before?"

Hikaru picked it up. "No, I haven't. Maybe Sophie or Madoka will know something about it."

"I tried to see if it was the one that connected to the boys' half, but it didn't work."

"It looks really old," Hikaru commented. "It was just lying on the counter like that?"

"Behind the dishes."

"Either way, we would have noticed it before." She put the key back, then went over to the couch. "I'm going to try to get to sleep. I'm exhausted."

Mei Mei remained in the kitchen. "You were outside last night, too, right?" What happened there?"

Hikaru looked sideways. "I'm not entirely sure. Ryuga jumped in the water… And I jumped in after him. After that, it's kind of a blur. I remember being in the water and almost drowning; I still don't know how I managed to get out of there. Ryuga was with me, and he said something about the rocks. It took all I had to get to them, and after that I passed out."

Mei Mei knit her eyebrows in confusion. "Why did you follow him into the water in the first place? That was so dangerous, you could have tried to get help!"

Hikaru looked down. "I didn't want to be alone. We were… behind the others, so by the time we made it to the beach, they were already gone. When he went in the water, I didn't know what else to do. It seemed like the only option at the time."

Mei Mei sensed there was more to the story, but she didn't want to push it further. Her friend seemed tired, and forcing her to answer a bunch of questions wasn't going to help. If they'd kept badgering her once she got back, she'd have felt the same way. Regardless, Mei Mei still couldn't believe her friend had gone in the water like that with the storm as bad as it was; it was practically suicide.

She grabbed a granola bar out of the closet. Suddenly, she was practically starving. Mei Mei headed toward the stairs.

"Hey."

She stopped at the sign of Hikaru's voice. "Yeah?"

"Don't blame yourself for what happened. It's not your fault."

Mei Mei blinked. She hadn't been expecting that. "I won't," she said softly.

"He didn't really mean it."

Mei Mei stood still for a minute, trying to process what the other girl had just said. He hadn't meant it? It sure sounded like Ryuga blamed her when he spoke to her earlier. What was Hikaru trying to say?

Mei Mei was about to ask, but Hikaru had turned away, not facing her. Maybe she hadn't intended for Mei Mei to hear it.

Mei Mei started up the stairs then stopped halfway, looking down.

"Hikaru?"

The other girl turned to face her.

Mei Mei took a deep breath, gathering the strength to say what she had to. "Chao Xin… Has he come back yet?"

Her friend's silence said it all.

They'd spent the majority of the day shopping.

Madoka's arms hurt, carrying bag after bag in her hands. She'd never intended to buy much, the shopping trip supposed to provide a distraction more than anything else. The group had been relatively quiet, forcing smiles and laughter. Some of their unease had melted away as the day had gone on, but there was still an underlying tension.

Hikaru was much more alert than she had been, and Mei Mei seemed less distant. She'd been more than willing to get out of the house, and had even suggested they check out a different part of the island.

They'd taken her advice. The area they were currently in was as busy as the rest of the island, with shops all along the roads. It was smaller than the main town, but people all around them were moving at a fast pace, with places to go.

The area was slightly more industrial than touristy, but welcoming all the same. There had been plenty of different stores to check out, most of them seeming to be more like island chain stores than souvenir shops. Madoka remembered having seen a few of them on the other island when they first arrived.

"Hey, let's go check out this one!" Mei Mei took off ahead of the others, her bags bumping against her as she ran.

"Slow down!" Madoka laughed, trying to keep up.

They entered the store, and were immediately greeted by a large collection of swimsuits. Hikaru started looking through them intently. Fortunately, when she'd followed Ryuga into the water, she'd been wearing her old bathing suit so it didn't matter that it had been practically destroyed during the ordeal. All the same, she needed a replacement for it.

"Do you like any of these?" She held up a few options. Sophie was too busy flipping through racks to pay her any attention. Mei Mei had gotten distracted, too. "Guys?"

Madoka watched them, the scene taking her back to just a short while ago, when they'd first learned they'd be spending their summer in the tropics. Back then, none of them had a clue what they were in for. Maybe in was better that way.

Taking the hint, she poked through the racks as well. The styles were nothing like she'd ever see back home, but the price… Madoka remained aware of the bags she held, reminding herself she already had plenty of unique items.

After leaving the store, they settled on a small restaurant for lunch. Hikaru had happily found a new bathing suit, and even Mei Mei had broken down and bought something. They sat down and began flipping through the menu. Fortunately, it wasn't too pricey, but still offered some of the exotic food they'd come to expect from the island.

For the first time since the storm, Madoka felt as though things were finally returning to as close to normal as they could be. She listened as her friends talked animatedly, sticking to safe topics, but still enjoying themselves. This was how their vacation was supposed to be.

"So Sophie," Hikaru had a devious smile on her lips. "When are you and Wales going to get together?"

Sophie dropped her fork. "H-Hikaru!"

"You told us you thought he was going to kiss you," Hikaru said as casually as if she was talking about the weather. "Aren't you going to act on it?"

Sophie was bright red. "I- I don't know! That's kind of personal!"

"And we're your best friends!" Mei Mei jumped in. "You're supposed to tell us personal stuff!"

Sophie stammered on, clearly trying to steer the conversation in a different direction, but failing miserably.

Mei Mei left for the bathroom after they'd finished eating.

"This isn't over!" She told Sophie. "You have to tell us what you're thinking!" Sophie turned away, ignoring her.

Hikaru glanced at the enormous pile of bags on the ground next to them. "We could make a fort with those."

"It was worth it," Sophie defended. "It's not like we'll be coming back here anytime soon."

"Oh, I know, I was just saying we may have overdone it- just a little."

Madoka laughed. They were going to have an adventure getting them back to the condo, that was for sure.

"Whatever," Sophie said dismissively. "As long as we're happy, that's what matters."

"As long as we're not broke, that's what matters," Hikaru responded flatly. "Don't forget, we've still got a while before we go back home."

"Or maybe we'll figure out a way to stay here forever," Sophie sighed.

Madoka reflected on that. Staying on the island would be wonderful- but there were some things she would miss about home.

Mei Mei headed back. She froze in her tracks, complete disbelief written across her face.

"Mei Mei's been gone a long time," Sophie frowned. "Should we go check on her?"

Hikaru shrugged. "Might as well."

The two of them stood up, leaving Madoka alone at the table. She hesitated, then joined them, glancing back at the table.

"There she is," Hikaru nodded and started walking to where they saw their friend. Her back was facing them, but it looked like she was standing still. Maybe the guys had had a similar idea and were in the area as well.

"H-Hey!"

Hikaru stopped dead. Madoka had nearly smacked into her, but sidestepped at the last moment.

Mei Mei was in tears, looking directly at the booth in front of her. From where he sat, Chao Xin stared back at her, a slightly bored expression on his face. His arms were around two island girls, each of them giggling. Across from him, there were two other girls.

"What are you doing?" Mei Mei hands curled into fists.

"Just visiting some friends," Chao Xin said, though he looked rather uncomfortable now.

"Oh? That's all? What about your real friends?" Mei Mei continued. "What about the people you came here with?"

"It's not a big deal, Mei Mei, relax."

"Right, it's not a big deal that you disappeared into the ocean and have been missing for days. We've been so worried, we thought you were-"

Chao Xin cut her off. "Well, I'm not, so you don't have to worry anymore."

"Of course, silly me for actually caring, not like it really matters. This whole time, you were just out flirting with every girl on the island, we really should have known, it was so obvious. Because you would never have died in that storm, we should have known better."

"Mei Mei," Chao Xin started to stand up. "I can explain-"

"Explain what!" She shouted through her tears, drawing attention to herself. "We were really worried. If you were okay, you should have at least told us!"

"I-"

"The last thing we knew was Ryuga had gone into the water after you, but you were gone."

"Mei Mei-"

"I don't care. I don't want to hear your excuses."

Meanwhile, Sophie and Madoka had edged back toward the table, picking up their bags and placing money on the table. Both of them had a pretty good idea of where this was about to go.

Seconds later, their predictions came true. Mei Mei said one last thing, then went running out of the restaurant. Hikaru followed her, leaving Sophie and Madoka to grab as much as they could before running after them. Madoka shot Chao Xin an annoyed look as they passed him, and was surprised to see what looked like a helpless expression on his face.

The extra weight slowed her down slightly, but Madoka was determined to catch up with the others as quickly as possible.

Mei Mei was sitting on a rock overlooking the beach, silently crying. Hikaru stood right behind her.

"Why didn't he just come back?" Mei Mei whispered. "Why?"

"I don't know," Hikaru sat down next to her. "I'd say he has his reasons, but honestly-"

"I'm trying really hard not to care, but…" Mei Mei trailed off. "It's hard not to. What am I supposed to do?"

Madoka put down the bags, unsure of what to say. What had Chao Xin been thinking? He had to have known they were looking for him.

"We know he's okay now, that's what matters," Madoka said soothingly. "I know this isn't how we wanted to find out, but at least he's okay."

"She's right," Hikaru said, trying to sound upbeat. "Sure, he's a massive prick, but now we can stop stressing about this and move on."

Mei Mei only started to cry harder. Sophie looked at them, lost.

They took a cab back to the other side of the island, to their condo. Mei Mei ran upstairs and locked herself in the bathroom, still crying.

Hikaru and Sophie took matters into their own hands, banging on the door to the boys' half of the condo.

Kyoya opened it, looking peeved, with Ryuga and Masamune at his side. "What do you-"

"He's alive," Hikaru said harshly. " So you can stop blaming Mei Mei." She stared right at Ryuga.

Ryuga looked like he wanted to say something, but Sophie didn't give him a chance.

"We found him in one of the restaurants on the other side of town," Sophie explained, ignoring their confused looks. "Chao Xin was doing what he does best, flirting with every girl in a 10-mile radius. So stop worrying about him." Again, they didn't give the boys an opportunity to speak before continuing; they were on a roll.

"And please, leave us alone," Hikaru added. "We've had enough crap to deal with without you guys adding any more."

With that, they slammed the door shut right in their faces.