A/N: OMG, wow you guys ROCK! I never thought that I would get the reception for this fic that I did. I got 14 reviews for chapter 1 – the most I've ever gotten for a first chapter.

Thanks so much to: x-Black-Dranzer-x, Rapunzelle, dark-phoenix-4eva, d1bontemp, FlyingShadow666, -izza-x23-, FallenHope-Angel, OnlyNotReally, mimic shalle, Miako6, phoenix-falling, black angel falling, pheonix80 and marishka91.

Soundtrack: I've been listening to The Birthday Massacre's Walking With Strangers while writing this fic.

Disclaimer: Refer to chapter 1

Special note: There is some information given in this chapter that is not canon to the show. I have taken liberties with writing Kai's past and other details about him and the other characters, as I am trying to make this fic as realistic as possible (with beyblading involved of course).

Tears Aren't Made to Fall

DancerInTheDark101

Chapter 2

Ray gasped as Mr. D revealed the information that they had wanted to hear for years. Kai leaving had been hard on them all, especially since they didn't know where he had gone or even if he was still alive. Those last thoughts sent a shockwave through Ray as he stared at the head of the BBA. Did Mr. Dickinson mean that they'd found Kai…dead?

"Is…is he okay, Mr. D?" he demanded, pushing his food aside as he stood up, the chair slamming backwards with a screech. Kai had been one of the people he felt he could connect to the best out of the team. Tyson…well Tyson was slightly too immature to have a decent conversation with. Max, although a nice kid, seemed to always been on a sugar high. Whenever he tried to have a conversation with Kenny, there were technical computer terms thrown in. Most of the time Ray had to ask Kenny to re-explain things.

The Nekojin had lost count of how many midnight conversations he and Kai had had, back while they were touring the countries for the world championships. Ray was sure that it was probably nowhere near as much as Kai would have had with the Blitzkrieg Boys, but he felt that out of the Bladebreakers, he was the closest to Kai.

Sighing as Mr. Dickinson ushered him to sit back down, Ray planted himself back in the chair and ignoring the plate of food in front of him, focused on the older man.

"Yes, I have been told that Kai is in good health." Mr. Dickinson paused before carrying on, wondering how the group before him would take the next lot of news. "Actually…my sources say that he's currently staying in a hotel not far from the American BBA Headquarters."

Eyes widening as a gasp left his lips, Ray stared at Mr. Dickinson. Kai was in America? How had they not found out earlier? They had been in the country for almost a month now, with all the hype and exhibition matches leading up to the BBA World Championship finals. Ray glanced at the other members of the Bladebreakers, noticing that their mouths were hanging open in shock. The Nekojin had a feeling that he looked exactly the same.

"But… but how?!" Tyson exclaimed, jumping up from his seat, inadvertently knocking over the bowl of soup placed on the table. The steaming liquid spilt all over the table and onto the boy's clothes, eliciting a loud squeal from Tyson.

Eyes widening in disbelief and laughter, Ray stared at Tyson as he started to cry out in pain, obviously over dramatising the whole scene. He couldn't help but chuckle as Tyson smacked his toe on the chair and started yelling at the chair. Tyson was definitely a comedic relief.

It took a while, but eventually Tyson settled down enough for Mr. Dickinson to carry on with his explanation. Although watching Tyson dancing around and squealing had been entertaining, Ray really wanted to know what was going on with Kai, and it seemed Mr. D was the only one who knew anything.

"I'm not quite sure as to why Kai is in America, but I've received word that he's been here for approximately two months. He hasn't been seen anywhere near the stadium and the witnesses to have thought to have seen him said that he was just carrying on with everyday chores – grocery shopping, appointments with businessmen."

Mr. Dickinson took a deep breath and was about to continue speaking when Max piped up. Ray looked over at the blonde, wondering what could be on his mind.

"Wait," came the slightly confused reply. "Why would Kai be visiting businessmen? He's only seventeen, isn't he?"

"That's a really good point, Max," Kenny added, at the same time pulling his laptop out of the shoulder bag lying on the floor by his feet. He lifted the lid, powering up the sleek silver contraption and started tapping away at the keys.

"Well, you see," Mr. Dickinson started, clearing his voice. "Kai is now the owner and CEO of BIOVOLT and Hiwatari Enterprises." Ray felt his mouth drop open. Kai was in charge of both BIOVOLT and Hiwatari Enterprises? Holy shit…

But before Mr. D could continue on speaking, there was a shout from where Kenny was staring intently at his laptop screen. Everyone's attention immediately shifted from Mr. D to the short teen.

"Aha!" Kenny cried out triumphantly, his glasses slipping as he stood up. Ray looked quizzically at the boy before glancing at the computer screen as it was turned to face everyone. He found himself staring into the picture of a face that he hadn't seen for many years.

"I searched the BBA database to see what kind of information they had compiled on Kai. I've managed to find his beyblading profile, championship statistics, family history, pretty much everything you would want to know about Kai. However," there was a slight pause as Kenny shifted the laptop back around to him and quickly read through some information. "There doesn't seem to be any new information about him since a few weeks after the BEGA incident. It states that Voltaire and Boris were arrested and put in prison and Kai was selected as the single heir to both Hiwatari Enterprises and BIOVOLT, effective as of immediately. But there's nothing after that. Strange…"

Ray watched listened patiently as Kenny rambled off random facts about Kai. He glanced around at the others to see them listening intently to what Kenny was saying. Realising that there could be some stuff said about Kai that none of them knew, Ray tuned in more accurately.

"Kai was born on August 2nd 1989 to Nikolai and Mikaliya Hiwatari in the Moscow General Hospital. Born one month premature, he was kept in neonatal care for two weeks before being allowed home where he lived with his parents for the next five years…"

Ray's eyes narrowed. There was no way this information was on the BBA database. "Kenny…" he drawled, letting suspicion lace the word. He saw Kenny's face redden and the young teen hid behind the lid of the laptop and that was when Ray knew for certain. Obviously not wanting Dr. Dickinson to find out, Kenny had hacked into a secure website of some sort and pulled out a whole bunch of info on their stoic, ex-captain.

"Hehe…" was the cringing reply from Kenny. Ray saw the boy swallow nervously before glancing at Mr. Dickinson, only to see that the man's eyes were soft. He wasn't angry at all.

"Mr. D?" Tyson asked, having finally clicked onto what the silent conversation between Ray and Kenny had been about. "Aren't you mad?"

Ray could safely say that he hadn't seen Stanley Dickinson look so soft and mellow ever before in all his years of beyblading. And the man's next words shocked him too.

"Back when Kai's father was young, I was an acquaintance with the coach of his beyblading team. They were called the Demolition Boys – a name that still stands today, in the form of the Blitzkrieg Boys. Voltaire Hiwatari was the coach of the team back then, and Nikolai – his son – was the captain. I probably shouldn't say too much, as you know how Kai is about his past, but I can say this: I was around Kai for much of his childhood and watched him grow."

Mr. Dickinson paused and Ray saw him look in the direction of Kenny, who was now cowering behind the laptop. "I know that the information you've gathered isn't on the BBA database. The means of which you have gathered the facts I do not agree with, but in this case I will let it slide. I know that you have been worried about Kai, but I think this discussion would be best left until Kai can tell you himself."

Ray was disappointed that he wasn't going to learn anything new about the stoic teenager, but maybe, if they got Kai back, then he would be able to tell them some things about himself. Maybe the two and a half years away mellowed his cold attitude?

Nah…what am I thinking? Kai will always be the same. He wouldn't be Kai if he wasn't.

"Right," Ray stated, breaking the awkward silence that had enveloped the table. "Back onto the original train of thought here. So Kai's in America and apparently on business. What can we do so that we could meet up with him, Mr. D?"

Tyson piped up with an idea, which everyone shot down. Ray had to laugh. The nervous tension that had consumed the occupants at the table soon dispersed as they started to converse on how they could con Kai into seeing them again – if they could find him.

Kai looked up from the menu he was gazing through as a waitress arrived, pen and paper ready in her hand. He quickly scanned through the rest of the page and ordered a strong, black cup of coffee and BLT sandwich. He wasn't particularly hungry, but he knew that he had to eat sometime, even if it was only half a meal.

The day was as beautiful as the day before. There were only a few sparse clouds lingering, barely even visible against a clear blue sky. A warm breeze floated through the small outdoor area of the café he was sitting in, making the slate bangs fly around haphazardly. Kai flicked the annoying strands of hair out of his face before looking down at the papers resting on the table.

God, he didn't think he would ever get used to doing so much damn paperwork. Earlier that morning, he had gone to see one of the main investors in a new project BIOVOLT was undertaking. Of course, the company was completely legal now, not dabbling in any underground researching facilities and other experimentation procedures.

There was just one problem with going legal – there was too much god-forsaken paperwork! Groaning at the lines and lines of black typed wording that he had to read through, Kai lifted a hand and rubbed at his temple, hoping to ease the headache that he felt starting to pound at his head.

He took off his sunglasses, rubbing at his eyes before slipping the dark item back onto his face. Kai never went anywhere without his sunglasses. For one, they hid the discolouration of his right eye, and secondly, there were actually prescription glasses that helped the vision in his damaged eyes slightly, protecting it from the blinding sunlight. If he didn't have his sunglasses on, he normally wore a specialised contact lens that did the same job without the bulky frame.

"Sir?" a young voice spoke up from beside him. Looking in that direction, Kai saw his saviour. The waitress had a large cup of coffee balanced on a tray, the BLT sitting nicely made on a place beside the beverage.

Kai muttered a 'thanks' before taking the food and placing it on the table. He picked up the cup and took a long gulp of the strong liquid, wincing slightly as it scalded his tongue and throat. Coughing, Kai placed the cup back on the tray and pushed the top sheet of paper forward into the small amount of shade that littered the table.

The heading read: BIOVOLT Corporation

Below, many paragraphs of complex wording filled the page. Kai flitted through the text, wondering why on hell people had to use so many damn intricate words to get a simple point across! Crap. This isn't helping my headache…

Taking a small bite of the BLT, Kai got to the bottom of the page and saw the part where he was supposed to sign. Sighing, he grabbed a pen from the bag slumped on the seat beside him and quickly scrawled his signature on the dotted line. Yeah, he really wanted to get this beyblade stadium built – along with the training facilities and camp, but he was so sick of signing his damn name that at one point he seriously considered changing his name.

Although he had retired from beyblading nearly three years before hand, Kai hadn't cut himself completely out of the loop. Hiwatari Enterprises and BIOVOLT were primarily beyblading corporations, so that meant he still had to have some involvement in the sport. And when the board of BIOVOLT had suggested a state-of-the-art beyblade stadium, training facilities and a beyblading training camp, he couldn't exactly say no.

After signing his name on another dozen pieces of paper, Kai downed the rest of his coffee and took a couple more bites of the sandwich, barely noticing that he hadn't even eaten half of it. He grabbed the black bag, stuffed everything inside it and walked inside the café to pay.

"That'll be seven ninety, thanks," the cashier said as Kai handed the slip of paper with his order on it to him. Pulling out one of his many credit cards, Kai flashed the Visa in the teenager's face and proceeded to finish the transaction.

Ten minutes later, the slate-haired teen was driving along the main highway, some rock band he had never heard of blasting through the speakers. Through the music, Kai almost missed the distinct sound of his cell phone ringing and once the sound reached his ears, reached over and plucked the black contraption from his bag.

A frown settled on his features as the screen showed an unknown number. It wasn't very often that someone unknown called him. He had every person he needed to contact programmed into the memory.

Apprehensive, Kai eventually decided to answer the damn thing, since it wouldn't shut up. He quickly turned down the music to a quiet blare and pressed the 'start call' button, opening the link to the person on the other end.

"Hello?" He knew he sounded quite frosty, but he didn't care. Obviously the person on the other end didn't care either, because the next sound that reached his hearing was a jolly laugh.

"Kai, m' boy?"

Kai's eyes widened and he accidentally jerked the wheel to the left suddenly. A slight gasp left his lips and he spun the wheel to the right, bringing the car under control again. How the hell had the head of the BBA found his number? Shit…

"Mr. Dickinson…" He made himself sound as formal as he could, knowing full well that if Mr. D was calling, it had to be something important.

"Kai! It is you! It's good to hear from you. Everyone's been quite worried." Hearing the concern in the older man's voice, Kai lowered the frostiness a little. A little.

"I'm fine. I've kept myself away from everyone for a reason, Mr. Dickinson. Why are you calling, and how the hell did you get my number?"

A chuckle from the earpiece and Kai growled low in his throat. He wasn't in the mood to be playing games. He had things that needed to be attended to; like going to the pharmacy and getting some damn medication for his headache.

"Look, Mr. Dickinson," the teen said, exasperated. "I've got things I have to do, so make this quick.

"Okay then," was the reply Mr. D supplied. "I met up with the Bladebreakers earlier today and they know you're in town. They want to meet up with you."

"What!?" Kai exploded, not caring that he had most probably blown the man's eardrums. "How could you tell them that? You of all people should know why I didn't want to be around them anymore. Shit…"

"Kai, please…just listen, okay?"

Rubbing a hand over his face, Kai hit the indicator and pulled over to the side of the road. He was stressed; not getting enough sleep and the unhealthy relationship him and food were having wasn't helping at all. Now this had to get thrown in on top of everything else? Great…

"Okay…" he reluctantly agreed, leaning on the steering wheel of the Buick as he talked. The wheel was cool and it somewhat soothed his head. "I'm not sorry that I took off for so long, but I can see where you're coming from. I'm not interesting in beyblading anymore, so don't bother asking about that."

Liar! A voice piped up. Oh great, now I'm hearing voices… I'm going freakin' insane.

"Will you at least agree to meet the boys while you're in town?" Mr. Dickinson asked. Kai was very tempted to say no, but… Ah crap, what was he thinking? Kai knew that if he went and saw the Bladebreakers, they would somehow rope him into beyblading again.

But that wouldn't be a bad thing. You know you wanna blade again, the voice spoke up. Kai groaned. Why the fuck was this happening now? Maybe he ought to go see a shrink...

"Kai?" the worried voice of Stanley Dickinson came over the phone and Kai realised with a start, that he was still on the phone. Crap.

"What?" he snapped, not really in the mood to deal with all this at this time. He just wanted to get some medicine and go back to the hotel and have a nice, hot shower and get some much-needed sleep. "Sorry," he apologised. "Long day."

What was wrong with him? It was just after two in the afternoon and he wanted to go to sleep? Maybe he was coming down with something.

"Look, I've really gotta go. Tell Tyson that you couldn't get hold of me. That way he won't get all antsy and annoy the crap out of me 24/7. And make sure he never finds this number!"

Without waiting to hear a reply, Kai hit the 'end call' button and threw the phone on the passenger seat. Oh what a great day this had turned out to be. With those wonderful thoughts in his mind, Kai pushed the accelerator and merged back into the traffic, heading towards the nearest pharmacy. Maybe he should get some stuff to help with the nightmares that plagued his sleep while he was there.

What Kai didn't notice was the red car that pulled out of the driveway behind him, following him through the weaves of streets and towards the hotel.

A/N: Well, there's chapter two done :) Thanks to everyone for reading. Don't worry, the pace will pick up very soon. It's gonna be a long fic and what I have planned needs a bit of build-up. I hope you all enjoyed the chapter.

Also, about Kai's characteristics in this fic: I don't know if he seems really out of character, but you've probably noticed that he's kinda snarky and sarcastic. You can blame Supernatural for that one :P Too much Dean Winchester is bad for the health LOL.

Oh, one last thing. Would you like me to reply to the reviews via the 'review reply' button or at the end of each chapter?

Thanks! Drop me a review and tell me what you thought :)

-Dancer