Hey, guys, I finally managed to come up with the silliest chapter title for this story! XD It was the first thing that popped up in my head, and it seemed so ridiculous that I couldn't convince myself to change it. Anyway, I didn't realize it last time I updated, but this story is officially five years old! Oops. After this chapter, there's only one more to go! Thank you to Guest for your review and I hope everyone enjoys this latest installment!

I do not own Metal Fight Beyblade.

Mei Mei lingered in the doorway as the others exited the restaurant, waiting. Kyoya was still an enraged, drenched mess ranting at Masamune and Gingka for covering him in the sticky soda. Not that the two of them were bothering to listen. They cheerfully led the group without a care in the world. Kyoya was livid.

She shook her head, grateful she wasn't on the receiving end. Honestly, though, shouldn't Kyoya be used to this sort of thing by now? If he had managed to survive the summer with them so far, what was a spilled drink or two?

Then again, this probably wasn't the first time it had happened when she thought about it… Living with them for any extended period of time would likely drive anyone mad.

Chao Xin was at her side moments later, ready to go. She looked up at him.

He entwined her hand with his. Something about his expression made her suspicious.

"What?"

He smiled devilishly. "How do you feel about ditching these guys and having some time to ourselves?"

She tried to repress her own smile. "Sure."

The two stepped outside. Their group was a fair distance ahead. Masamune suddenly turned, looking around, and Chao Xin pulled her so quickly she flew off her feet. He positioned them behind several chairs on the patio, making sure they wouldn't be seen. While Mei Mei was still recovering from surprise, he kissed her quick.

They waited until the others were well out of sight.

Mei Mei stumbled out from behind the chairs, taking Chao Xin's hand when he offered it. She still couldn't believe this was real.

It was actually happening. She was with Chao Xin. He had his pick of all the girls on the island, locals and tourists alike, and yet he'd chosen her, the girl from school. This had to be a dream.

She stared at him as he led the way. To where, she had no idea. Not that it mattered; Mei Mei would have followed him anywhere. She'd taken the chance despite the fact that her mind had been screaming not to after how much she'd been hurt by him. After all this, Mei Mei felt she couldn't be happier.

For now at least, she would take things as they were so she could properly enjoy them. There was no telling what could happen once they returned to real life, she reminded herself. Living in the moment was important, even if it was only brief.

As they walked, Mei Mei could feel the eyes of girls they passed on them. Suddenly, Mei Mei knew exactly what it was like to be the envy of every girl in the room. She grinned.

Chao Xin led her to a small coffee shop tucked away in the corner of town, much to her surprise.

"What are we doing here?" Mei Mei asked. "Didn't we just eat?"

Chao Xin gave her one of his dazzling smiles. "We did, but there's always time for dessert. I found this place when we first arrived."

"Dessert?"

"They have the best cupcakes on the island. One of the local bakeries delivers them." Chao Xin took Mei Mei's hand, "We better hurry before they close. It's getting late."

As Mei Mei stepped through the door, the warm and inviting smell of coffee and baked goods instantly hit her.

"Chao Xin!" A girl's voice called. Mei Mei looked over at the counter to see one of the baristas frantically waving in his direction.

"Hey, Lilah," he grinned, walking over to give the girl a hug from over the counter. Mei Mei tensed slightly. How did he know every girl on the island? Granted, they had been on vacation for a while, but this was getting to be a bit much. If nothing else, he had friends everywhere, she supposed, and that wasn't a bad thing.

"Ooh! Is this the girl you were telling me about?"

"Yeah, this is Mei Mei."

Lilah came out from behind the counter and hugged Mei Mei. "Hi! It's so nice to finally meet you! Chao Xin has been talking non-stop about you for weeks!"

Mei Mei glanced in his direction. Chao Xin was looking pointedly away from her, appearing to be interested in something on the menu, but a faint blush had spread across his cheeks.

"Oh, really?" Mei Mei inquired, hoping for more details. Chao Xin cut in.

"Anyway," he started, "I was telling Mei Mei about the 'famous' cupcakes you guys sell. Care to show her?"

"Oh!" Lilah ran back behind the counter. "Not quite famous, but they have won several competitions across the islands."

She opened a glass case, pulling out a variety of colorful treats. Each of them was labeled with a bright little sign. Lilah quickly arranged them.

"So here we have mint chocolate chip, this one is vanilla lavender, strawberries and cream, and Island Surprise," Lilah pointed each out individually. "They change up the selection each day."

"What's Island Surprise?" Mei Mei asked, intrigued.

Lilah's eyes lit up. "That's one of our best sellers! It's a mix of tropical fruit flavors: mango, pineapple, and coconut! It's got a great fruit filling on the inside; try it out!" Lilah pushed one in Mei Mei's direction.

It didn't take long to understand why the cupcakes had won those competitions. The Island Surprise was heavenly. It reminded her so much of the island with its exotic tastes. Mei Mei bought an assortment to bring back to her friends. She'd have to keep them well hidden so Gingka and Masamune didn't find them.

"Bye, guys!" Lilah waved as she closed up the shop. "Hope to see you again before you leave!"

"She was nice," Mei Mei commented as they made their way down the sidewalk. Chao Xin still had a bit of that blush to him. "You see her often? Sounds like you talk to her frequently."

"Kinda," Chao Xin said. "Let's just head back okay? It'll be dark soon." He picked up the pace.

Mei Mei tried not laugh, walking faster to keep up. Seeing Chao Xin a little uncomfortable, especially when it was about his feelings for her, was just too good. She lit up a little inside knowing he'd been talking about her to his island friends.

Mei Mei and Chao Xin had already slipped away to wherever, Sophie noted, so it was only appropriate that she and Wales do the same. Besides, they were practically back to the condo anyway. It wouldn't be a big deal if they left now. The others would be fine without them. When it came down to it, she wasn't sure if they would notice they had disappeared. Everybody was a little preoccupied on their own, it seemed.

If nothing else, it would give her an excuse to get away from the incessant bickering of Kyoya, Gingka, and Masamune that had been dominating the conversation since before leaving the restaurant. He should've known better than to sit near them at dinner; it was asking for trouble. Those two caused disasters no matter where they went, intentional or not.

Enough of that, though. Now was her chance. She'd get Wales away from the rest of the group first, then decide where to go. Where they were going wasn't what really mattered in her opinion. Sophie just wanted to be alone with him.

She tugged on his hand. Wales gave her a questioning look.

Sophie looked in the direction of the others, putting space between them as she came to a halt.

The perfect idea hit her. She couldn't think of why she hadn't thought of it before. The timing was about perfect, too. It couldn't have been better.

"C'mon," she said slyly. "Follow me."

Sophie didn't quite remember the trail as well as she hoped, but in her defense it had been a while since she'd last used it. She had continued to visit the spot by herself for the first few weeks, but once the summer had picked up there hadn't been any time to go back. Going there alone didn't seem to hold the same magic after her first few trips. Regardless, she knew where she needed to go and that was all that mattered.

Wales seemed to catch on. He took the lead, with Sophie following his steady strides. Sophie had to wonder if he'd kept going back there without her the same way she had gone without him. It seemed so amusing that they both had continued to go to the spot, but never saw the other there.

The path began to incline steadily. Sophie glanced at all the greenery around her, taking it in. She probably wouldn't get another chance to see this again. The trees quickly faded behind them as the terrain grew slightly rockier.

Soon, they were back at the cliff, where they had come so close to having their first kiss at the start of their vacation. The breathtaking view always took her aback at first.

Sophie bit back a laugh. This was the place where half of their problems started. How ironic that they should end up back here after so much. If Wales had kissed her back then, would they still have had to go through all the same drama?

Not that any of that mattered anymore. They were together after all this time and nothing could change that. It only made sense they return to this cliff, to watch one last sunset on the island as a couple away from the rest of the world.

Behind her, she turned to find she could faintly see the town below through the trees. Streetlights blinked on as cars drove along the narrow roads. To the left was the beach. She couldn't pick out their condo from the numerous beach houses, but she knew somewhere down there her friends were preparing to glimpse their own sunset.

Sophie took a step forward.

She stood on the edge, gazing out at the ocean.

The crystalline water was calm, lazily moving along the shoreline. Several ships could be seen in the distance. A soft breeze flitted through the air, gently moving Sophie's hair. Far away, a thin outline of a neighboring island was visible. Beyond that, the only thing left was open water.

They stood there without talking for a few moments. Wales took Sophie's hand as the vibrant blue sky began to darken and change colors. The different shades of pink, purple, and orange reflected beautifully off the water.

It seemed impossible a view like that could ever be real. She felt like she was on another planet or in some sort of fantasy world. She resisted the urge to pinch herself to see if she was dreaming.

The magic of the island had finally returned, stronger than ever after the struggles she had faced.

Sophie managed to break her gaze with the sea to look at Wales. He was still staring out into the distance.

When he turned to face her, Sophie fought the urge to smile. She locked eyes with him, hardly daring to breathe.

Wales leaned in, and Sophie finally got her sunset kiss.

The next few days were a blur of packing.

Hikaru yawned. Mei Mei had brought back more of those amazing cupcakes yesterday from a coffee shop Chao Xin had taken her to, so Hikaru swiped one out of the fridge. She even had a second one on the nightstand waiting for her. Who cared if it was barely ten in the morning? Buttercream frosting was perfect at any hour.

She tossed one of her shirts into a pile. Compared to her friends, Hikaru knew she had packed light, but still she had brought so much. Add to that all the things she bought, and Hikaru found herself in a bit of a packing nightmare.

Most of her stuff had been packed the night before, but she still had to squeeze in a few more things before they left early tomorrow morning. Hikaru couldn't believe how fast their vacation had slipped away. It barely felt like a week ago when she was bored out of her mind on the last day of school when Madoka had suddenly gotten her attention, breaking her out of her stupor, to relay the good news.

A shadow in the doorway caught her attention. At first she didn't pay it much mind, but it didn't move.

The door was open. Any of her friends would have come right in.

Hikaru turned around to see who it was. A gasp caught in her throat and died.

"Ryuga?"

He shifted, putting his hand down. It looked like he had been about to knock. "Hey. Madoka let me in as she was leaving."

Oh. So that meant everyone was out now. "Did she say anything about where she was going?"

Ryuga shrugged. "Something about needing a new bag?"

Hikaru fought the urge to facepalm. Last night Madoka had been struggling to fit everything into her luggage. The girl already had more bags than any person should ever need for a trip, even for a vacation as long as this one had been. The fact that she needed another bag only served to prove that Madoka had taken the task of packing way too far.

Not that Hikaru could say much about that as she peeked at her own pile of belongings. Honestly, with everything she had purchased, she almost needed a new bag, too. Almost, but not quite.

"So what's up?" Hikaru asked casually as she turned her back to Ryuga, pretending to be very invested in packing, although that was suddenly the last thing on her mind now that he had appeared in the hall. Something had changed between them and she still wasn't sure if it was good or bad. Either way, it made her feel something.

Ryuga took a few steps into the room to look out the window. Hikaru became acutely aware that she wasn't the only one unsure of how to handle the situation.

"Not much." He didn't look in her direction.

"Any reason you stopped by? Did you hear about those cupcakes Mei Mei picked up?" Hikaru could feel her heart beating faster in her chest.

"Yeah," Ryuga finally stopped looking out the window to face her. "But-"

Whatever Ryuga was going to say was cut off by Hikaru hurriedly thrusting a cupcake in his hands.

Ryuga stared at it. "What?"

"It's the Island Surprise flavor," Hikaru tried to sound nonchalant. To her surprise, Ryuga took a bite of it.

"Too sweet," he commented, putting it down.

Hikaru tried not to panic. She gripped the handle of her suitcase.

"It's not that sweet," she countered, feeling oddly defensive of the cupcake. "It's one of the best flavors."

She didn't know why she was acting like this. She and Ryuga had been alone before. In a lot of situations, actually. Between the night they spent on the rocks, arguments, the whole fiasco in the jungle, the police station, and even the other night when they sat next to each other at dinner, she had spent quite a bit of one-on-one time with him. So why was she so nervous now?

What had changed, other than the welcome fact that her life wasn't in danger for once?

"So," she tried again. "Why did you stop by?"

Ryuga took a step toward her. "I… I wanted to apologize. For most of this trip we really didn't get along, and I feel like a lot of it is my fault."

Hikaru suddenly felt relieved. "No," she shook her head. "It's my fault, too. There were times when I could have let things go, but I didn't. And besides, I never thanked you for any of the times you helped me. I guess we're both a little headstrong." She looked up at him from underneath her bangs.

"It's no big deal. You don't have to thank me for anything," he fidgeted.

"But I want to. First in the ocean during that storm, then with Charles… I've had a lot of close encounters this summer, that's all," Hikaru swallowed. "And I haven't exactly been as grateful as I could have been considering the circumstances."

Ryuga took another step closer so he was right in front of her. "Let's just make sure you don't have another on your last day here," he said softly.

Her heart was hammering now.

The truth hit her hard like a brick. As she leaned in close to him, Hikaru finally accepted the emotions she'd been trying to repress all summer.

She liked Ryuga.

And, as Ryuga kissed her tentatively on the lips, she realized that he liked her, too.

Abandoning all rational thought, Hikaru kissed him back, showing him that she was okay with what he was doing, and that she saw him as more than a friend.

The last thing she wanted to do was to make him think this was a mistake.

She had spent her summer arguing with him, avoiding him, and generally doing everything she could to push him away, but now there wasn't anything else to hide behind. Despite everything, he had been there for her when she needed help most.

Hikaru thought she heard a gasp, and opened one eye quickly. She didn't see anyone, but as she closed her eyes she distinctively heard someone quietly walking down the stairs. Hikaru ignored it and kept her attention fully on Ryuga.

This was her opportunity, and now that she had taken it there was no way she was going to waste it.

A few minutes later, Hikaru and Ryuga left the room to address a few last minute details, primarily rescuing whatever Masamune and Gingka had taken from the female side of the condo. She was certain more than a few of their things had ended up with those two. More than anything, though, Hikaru just wanted to see the ocean one last time with Ryuga by her side.

Sophie was in the kitchen, cleaning out what was left in the fridge. She glanced up when Ryuga and Hikaru came down the stairs.

Sophie winked at her knowingly. Hikaru tried to suppress the embarrassment creeping across her face.

She followed Ryuga out to the back deck, overlooking the ocean as she held tightly to his hand.

Hikaru gasped. Standing at the edge of the water looking straight out into the sea was Elise.

The Wraith Bride turned ever so slightly toward her before taking a step into the water. Seconds later she began to fade, disappearing completely as if she had never been there at all.