Reviews: Wow! A big thanks to; MintCa, chrono-contract, sasukoi, orphen chica, dark-phoenix-4eva, Dranza the Phoenix Goddess, Painted Ys, sanctuarydreams, lilly, NapoleonDaGreat, OnlyNotReally, shininglake, Rapunzelle, Blaze Queenie, Surrealtraversity, the Light Shadow, storm05, Petalwhisker X Fireheart, LunaLocket, Tenshi of Freedom, Kaz-za-15 and DancerInTheDark101 for taking the time to review!!

I'm so glad you like the first chapter. I hope you enjoy this one as well.

Chapter 2:

The Price of Passion

Laying his head on the table in front of the low volume TV, Kai can't help but utter a small sigh to himself. It's been two weeks since that passionate night he shared with Hiro before he went gallivanting across the world and no one has heard a word from him since. Not that he can say he's surprised at all. It's hard to communicate to the outside world when you're in the middle of the Sahara Desert.

Gramps was disappointed that Hiro didn't at least see him before he left, but he has this sense of understanding as well. Hiro is so much like his father. He's a free spirit, a wanderer by nature. He can't help but make unpredictable decisions and acting on them in a blink of an eye. Despite his age, Gramps is still as sharp as a tack, but even he has a hard time keeping up with Hiro.

Tyson was livid when he found out that Hiro skipped town on his birthday. He's been planning a surprised 21st birthday party for about a week, but all that planning falls to bits as Hiro couldn't be found anywhere.

He just doesn't know where to look.

Kai swallows a groan of annoyance and resists the urge to bash his head against the hard table as images of that night play over in his head. It's only been two weeks and he remembers every single feeling that Hiro evoked within him. He has dreams about that night and when he awakes, he has this sense of disappointment whenever he realizes it was just a dream and Hiro isn't sharing his bed.

He can't believe that he's missing the handsome coach as much as he is. He's only been gone for two weeks and he already feels gutted. Hiro always had this presence about him, and to have him hanging around for so long and then disappearing suddenly, seems to have left this void behind.

It's a little unnerving to say the least.

For the last few days, Kai has been feeling nauseous, lightheaded and yesterday morning he even threw up. He has never really had a good relationship with food, but he does love his coffee. But as the last few days he can't even stand the smell of the beans and they literally make his gag. And he's been eating more than he usually does. He even ate a jelly-filled doughnut Max gave to him the other day. He immediately regretted it, though. It made him sick afterwards, leaving him queasy, yet he was still hungry.

He also doesn't have the energy he used to. He's been feeling increasingly lethargic. He gets tired making his bed and has to sit down to gather his bearings when he is overcome with a dizzy sensation in his head.

He must have some kind of virus, or something. Maybe it's just stress from missing Hiro more than he thought he would.

Wonder what he's doing now? No doubt living out his dream of exploring the word, that lucky bastard.

"Tyson, for heaven's sake, stop pouting!" Hilary orders. "It's been two weeks already."

A wince appears on Kai's face as Hilary's voice seems to grow in pitch and echo through his head. Is it possible for your head to pulsate in pain, yet feel lightheaded at the same time?

"I'm not pouting," Tyson heatedly replies, crossing his arms over his chest as he sticks his bottom lip out. He's not pouting though; he's just brooding in a kid-like way. "I can't believe him. Taking off without telling us. That jerk!"

Ray sighs as he leans on the table next to Kai, taking a moment to give the dual hair teen a look of concern before flickering those amber eyes towards Tyson. "The least he could have done was tell us when he was going. He would have known a few days prior, wouldn't he?"

"Hiro has always been spontaneous," Kai murmurs from his spot, not having the energy to move his head, simply letting it rest on his arms, over the table. "It's just his nature."

"I know," Tyson finally sighs in defeat and shakes his head. "He's still a jerk though. Where did he say he was going again? A desert, or something, right?"

"The Sahara Desert," Kai explains from his spot, sounding like he's ready to drop of to sleep. Suddenly, he snaps his head up when he feels someone poke him in the back. He glances over his shoulder to find a pair of baby blue eyes staring at him in concern.

"Are you feeling alright, Kai?" Max asks, concern evident in his voice.

"Just a headache," Kai replies quickly as he pushes himself into a sitting position and then struggling to his feet. "I'm going to start lunch."

"Are you sure it's just a headache, Kai?" Ray asks, trying his best to discreetly prod for the truth. He has his lips in a thin line, his body language telling Kai that he doesn't believe him.

"Yes, I'm sure," Kai replies tersely as he makes his way out of the room, choosing to ignore the obvious sighs of irritation coming not only from Ray, but Max, Hilary and Tyson. Kai bites his tongue in an attempt to prevent the feeling of guilt from appearing in his chest. He knows they are just concerned for him, but he doesn't want them to worry needlessly.

Walking into the kitchen, Kai sets about gathering his ingredients for a quick, but wholesome meal. He's feeling uncharacteristically hungry and has a craving for something spicy. Stir fry it is.

Chopping up the vegetables, Kai shakes his head and blinks harshly as he tries to will away the sudden bout of dizziness that seems to have taken resident in his head. He stops what he is doing to lean against the counter, one handing gripping the bench as the other ventures up to hold his forehead in an feeble attempt the stop the room from spinning.

Suddenly, dark spots appear before his eyes and the room seems to tilt to one side. His mind starts to feel fuzzy, as if he's about to drop off to sleep and then his hearing seems to disappear, only the sound of blood pulsating through his head rings true.

After a moment of blackness, Kai finds himself feeling like he just woke up from a broken sleep, heavy in the head and blurry in the eyes. It feels like only a second has passed, and yet all these voices he can hear weren't in the same room as he is seconds ago.

What just happened? It feels like he blacked out or something. Opening his eyes, the first thing Kai sees through his blurry sight is that Ray is leaning over him, one hand behind his head, the other checking for his pulse on his wrist. His brow suddenly furrows, whether it's from concern or annoyance, Kai isn't sure at this point.

Suddenly, a familiar blonde head pops into view and blue eyes shimmering with blatant concern bores into his. A look of relief brightens Max's face and a small smile appears on his lips. "He's awake!" he calls out, as if alerting everyone.

"Kai!" They cry out in relief, all pushing to gather around. Looking at the sea of face, Kai realizes that not only are Tyson and Hilary looking at him in concern, but so are Daichi, Kenny and Gramps himself. They went out to do some shopping and weren't going to be back for a while. How long was he out for?

"You scared the hell out of us, Kai," Tyson says, a sigh of relief passing his lips.

"What happened?" Kai asks as he tries to sit up, and manages to do so with the aid of Ray's arm around his shoulders.

"You fainted," Ray explains, his brow furrowing even more with a mixture of concern, annoyance and a hint of guilt for not foreseeing this. "I walked in and asked if you needed help, but you didn't answer. One second you were leaning against the counter, holding your head, the next you were falling to the floor."

"It was lucky Ray caught you before you hit the floor," Hilary says, sending Ray a grateful look. "Or you would have had a serious head injury."

"Take the K-man to the spare room," Gramps orders, pointing down the hallways with his kendo stick. "If the funky feeling doesn't fade, we'll call the doc, you dig?"

Kai groans at the mention of a doctor only to eep a second later when Ray stands to his feet, taking Kai with him, holding him effortlessly in his arms bridal style. An indignant look appears on Kai's face when Ray carries him into the spare bedroom and carefully placing him on the bed.

"I'm fine," Kai mutters with a hint of irritation as Ray tries to feel his forehead. "I just have a headache."

"You need to see a doctor, Kai," Ray tries to reason with him. "You might have a virus. You've thrown up a couple of times, haven't you?"

Kai immediately snaps his attention to Ray, a look of surprise, with a tinge of guilt appearing on his features. "How do you know?"

"The down side of being a neko-jin," Ray explains and points to his nose. "I have an extremely good sense of smell. I wanted to say something, but knowing you, you'd deny everything just so you won't be a burden."

A sigh passes Kai's lips and he pinches the bridge of his nose. A part of him wants to deny that there is anything wrong, but another part of him feels a little fearful; he has never felt this bad before. It's really inferring with his life, he can't train, he can't work. He can't do anything without feeling tired or literally feeling sick to his stomach.

"Fine," Kai mutters in defeat, choosing to ignore the look of triumph on Ray's face as he points to his mobile on the table. "Give me my phone. I won't go to the doctors, but I will call a doctor. He's an old friend of mine."

He doesn't trust doctors, but Dr. Tenzen is the only one who managed to gain his trust.

--

With his white doctor's coat hanging off one shoulder, a man about mid thirties runs a hand through his long, dark aqua green hair, heavy bags hang under his apple green eyes as a look of utter disbelief adorns his face.

"Now, I've seen everything."

Dropping the manila file onto his desk, Dr. Tenzen flops down onto his chair, a blank look on his face. He must say, after being in the medical profession for nearly 10 years, he's seen a lot of cases that leaves him scratching his head as to how the hell did this happen.

He thought he left all this behind when he transferred out of the emergency ward to practice as a doctor in a private hospital.

His morning shift was simple enough, but around lunchtime, he received a call from someone he hasn't seen for about four or five years, young master Kai Hiwatari. Of all the patients he's treated in his years, young Kai has to be his favorite. He stumbled across Kai when he was about 10 years-old. He just got into a fight with a group of teenagers who were picking on a disabled young boy in a wheel chair. Surprisingly, for someone so young and skinny, he won the fight with only a few cuts and bruises.

When he tried to treat the little spitfire of his injuries, Kai fought him every step of the way. He doesn't trust doctors; he blatantly told him so, suspicion blazing in his eyes. It took Tenzen a couple of weeks to find out the kids name, but gradually, after a lot of patience and gentle coaxing, he manages to gain the young child's trust.

And the kid managed to worm his way into his heart.

He'd do anything for this kid, and when he got the call that Kai has been feeling ill, he dropped all appointments he had this afternoon to see Kai. It was just lucky that he happened to be working at a hospital that is within a ten-minute bus ride from where Kai is staying.

Their reunion, and introduction to a dark haired teammate who accompanied him, was short as Tenzen wasted no time hurrying Kai in for a series of tests. He decided to do a series of quick tests and scans to cover all areas. He conducted blood tests, scans, x-rays, fluid samples, you name it.

After the tests, he sent the young master home with instructions to get plenty of rest and drink plenty of fluids, while he, himself, spends the rest of the afternoon and night conducting tests and investigating the reports he has.

Running a hand over his face, Tenzen picks up the folder and flips through it again. He managed to cross off a few potential suspects. He doesn't have cancer, or a virus. There's no fluid on the brain and he doesn't have blood poisoning.

But a scan over his abdomen revealed something that no human male has. It appears to be a womb.

Dizziness, fatigue, nausea, eating more than usually, finding some food a turn off, while eating food he has never tried before; it all makes sense now. And the test of his urine sample confirms it.

Kai appears to be pregnant.

Dropping the folder again, Tenzen leans over the table and pinches the bridge of his nose. He'll have to conduct more tests, but he's certain of it. There's nothing else wrong with him.

"Great," Tenzen mutters as he runs a hand through his hair again. "Here comes the hard part. Telling a healthy young male he's pregnant."

Aw, poor Kai misses Hiro. Isn't that sweet? Next chapter; Kai learns the results. Stay tuned!

Please review.