A/N: Hello! I know this chapter was supposed to be up last Sunday, but after re-reading through it, I ended up rewriting it two times before I was happy with it. It's longer than I originally planned, so hopefully that makes up for it somewhat. A huge thanks to everyone for reviewing. I can't believe I've hit over 100 reviews!!

Also, I now have a website up that will have updates on all my fanfiction and pictures relating to them as well. If anyone wants to see the tattoo that Kai has, the picture is up on the website, which is www(dot)phoenixfyre(dot)webs(dot)com – and it's under the pictures tab.

Dedicated to: Aquila Tempestas – thanks for all your help!

Thanks to: Darkened-Storm, aoitsuki77, SouthernDragon, Fire Lady Ursa, CryMeOut, NightShroud, xflightofthephoenix, Rapunzelle, Petalwhisker X Fireheart, Dark Shadowed Dragon, Yuliya, FlamingIce94, Ms Controversy, Mashy-Gaara4life, IloveKaiHiwatari., valfredo , GabZ, ForeverFalling86 and PWN3D,

Anonymous review replies are after the chapter.

Also, as it has been pointed out, I have made a few errors in the past chapters with birthdates and other things. I will go back and change it when I have the chance. Nothing major will be changed though.

Enjoy!

Tears Aren't Made to Fall

DancerInTheDark101

Chapter 7 Two weeks later

The shattering of glass... the burning of flesh... raw screams echoing through the carnage... the crackling of fire as it devoured everything in its path... pain gripping his body tight and unable to let go... and then, nothing.

Kai gasped as he shot upright in his bed. A hand reached up and gripped his shirt tightly, right above his heart as he struggled to get his breathing under control again. Slowly, the bluenette managed to slow his breathing back to normal and it was then that he felt the cold sweat enveloping him. Wiping a hand across his forehead, he carefully leant back into the pillow and glanced at the red digits on the clock, which read 3:28. Shit, it's almost four AM.

Blinking, the teen sighed and shifted lower in the bed, hoping that sleep would eventually come. After twenty minutes of lying in darkness, he resigned himself to the fact that he wouldn't be getting any more sleep that night. He was to meet with the Bladebreakers that same day and Kai knew that deep down he was worried about how it would go. That particular nightmare always seemed to come back with vengeance when he was stressed or worried.

Truth be told, he was dreading the meeting so much that it had taken him two hours just to click the button on the website to book the plane tickets. Actually, he had never even clicked on it as Tala had gotten impatient and done it himself.

It was frustrating. Kai had no idea why he was so worried over this god forsaken meeting. He kept telling himself that he didn't want to beyblade anymore and that if he went, he would most probably get roped into the team somehow. But then, there were Dranzer's annoying comments, stating otherwise. God, he didn't know what to do.

Fighting the urge to sigh again, the confused teenager slipped out of bed and switched on the nearby light. He stretched, hearing bones pop as they were relieved from staying in the same position for hours on end.

Strolling over to the set of draws on the other side of the room, Kai pulled open a few and grabbed some typical coloured clothing to wear for the day; a pair of black jeans and a button-up black shirt with long sleeves.

A yawn escaped as he made his way towards the bathroom, alerting Kai to the fact that it was still insanely early to be up. At that thought, images of a burning wreckage invaded his mind and he had to shake his head to get rid of the pictures.

Looking around the apartment he had purchased just under a week before hand, Kai realised that it was very bland. There was nothing personal about the place, apart from one single photo sitting on a table in the living room. All the furniture he had bought was black and with the off-white coloured walls, made the place very monotonous. Maybe he would paint the living room red at some point.

Kai entered the small bathroom and dumped his clothes on the floor as light bathed the white room. He walked over to the sink and looked in the large mirror hanging on the wall. Discoloured eyes stared back at him and he winced. He didn't think he would ever get used to having different coloured eyes. For some unknown reason it unnerved him.

After grabbing the eye solution and letting a few drips land on his partially blind eye, Kai blinked and let it cover the entire surface. He then grabbed a few pain killers for the headache he knew would be coming on soon enough and dry swallowed them.

A few minutes later, the teenage boy stood under a hot stream of water, eyes closed as it ran down his back and soothed his somewhat aching muscles. Sighing in content as he relaxed under the hot spray, Kai let his mind wander.

He already knew what the Bladebreakers would be doing, considering the time of morning it was, but he wondered what they were going to say when he met up with them at nine AM. He was sure that there was going to be some form of animosity from a few of them, considering how he had just disappeared without notifying any of them. But then again, he could be wrong.

Kai kind of wished that Tala was in Japan at the moment. The redhead had offered to come with him, but the bluenette had known that Tala had things he needed to attend to in Russia, and declined the offer.

Finishing off washing himself, Kai let the soap suds wash off his body and onto the floor of the shower. He quickly flicked the shower off and cringed as a jet of cold water hit him before slowing to a steady drip and then completely stopping.

The retired beyblader dried himself off and got dressed, looking at his reflection in the mirror. He could see that the weight loss had started to take a toll on him as his face was starting to look a little on the gaunt side. Slate bangs fell haphazardly into his eyes and he pushed them back before applying a little bit of gel to keep them out of his deteriorating vision.

Before pulling on his shirt, Kai stared at his chest in the mirror. He could somewhat see his ribs starting to take shape underneath his skin. Shit. He hadn't meant to lose so much weight. It was just... when the headaches got bad, the last thing he wanted to do was eat. The pain was bad enough that it made him want to throw up at times.

Cringing away from the sight of his torso, Kai slipped on the black dress shirt and buttoned it up, before rolling up the sleeves to just under his elbows, revealing his newly inked left forearm. He fixed the collar of the shirt before putting on his usual accessories, which included a silver phoenix pendant on a chain and two silver studs in his left ear.

Kai exited the bathroom and looked at the clock on the wall in the hallway and frowned. Okay, he had managed to waste almost half an hour in the bathroom, but that still meant that it wasn't even half four yet. He still had just over four hours until he had to leave. Great... just great.

The four hours passed slowly for the ex-blader. He tortured himself through watching a terrible movie about sparkling vampires for an hour before giving up and doing some paperwork for BIOVOLT and Hiwatari Enterprises. There was so much to do be done for the companies, but at times he just really couldn't be bothered dealing with any of it. He was only seventeen and was running two of the world's most successful beyblading companies. Hiwatari Enterprises dealt with other aspects other than beyblading, but Kai left that up to other people.

Engrossed in the latest financial reports, Kai didn't realise how much time had gone past until his cell phone rang and heard Tyson's voice screaming over the line. Eyes wide, the bluenette glanced over at the clock and was shocked to find that it was quarter past nine. Shit!

"I'm leaving now. Jeez Tyson, don't have a heart attack."

Hanging up, Kai froze as he grabbed his keys and sunglasses that were lying on the kitchen table. How the hell did Tyson get his cell phone number?

Cursing, the teen quickly locked the apartment and made his way downstairs to where the car park was situated. He spotted the gleam of his black and white car from the stairs and strode over, checking the vehicle over for any scratches before unlocking it and clambering into the driver's seat.

The engine started with a rumbling purr and Kai smirked. God, he loved this car. It was one thing he had always wanted but had never been allowed. His Grandfather had a hatred of all things America, preferring the Italian cars like Ferrari over the powerful V8 muscle cars.

He manoeuvred the large car out of the covered car park and turned left towards the suburb of Bakuten, letting his foot push a little harder on the accelerator than what was probably necessary.

The drive was quiet as Kai decided to leave the stereo off. His mind was racing a mile a minute and he was pretty sure the music would distract him even further. The last thing he needed was an accident...

Kai cringed as the thought passed, screwing his eyes shut tightly for a moment before reopening them when a car horn reverberated through the air. A small gasp left his lips as he yanked the steering wheel to get the car back into the right lane. God. I need to get the accident out of my head. It happened years ago, why is it still affecting me the way it is?

He was still frustrated when he pulled up at Tyson's house ten minutes later.

Turning the ignition off, the slate-haired teen leant forward and rested his head against the steering wheel. It wasn't long before a shout was heard and looking up, he saw the Bladebreakers running out towards him. The look on Tyson's face as he caught sight of the car was priceless.

"Whoa... wicked car, Kai!" The exuberant teen ogled the pristine vehicle and Kai quickly exited said car before Tyson tried anything.

He looked over to see Max, Ray, Kenny and Hilary smiling at him. They weren't nearly as boisterous as Tyson, but Kai could see that they were glad to see him. This was going to make this meeting even more frustrating.

"Hey, Kai."

It was Ray this time and Kai shook the offered hand, nodding lowly in response. Following the Nekojin towards the house, the bluenette pushed back the feelings of worry that were building and forced himself to calm down. Christ, he wasn't walking to his death or anything, so why the hell was he so nervous? Does the idea of even contemplating beyblading again scare me that much? Huh, wait, why the fuck am I scared!?

Inwardly groaning, Kai stopped himself from hitting his head against something hard at the random thoughts running through his mind. God, I didn't realise just how much my IQ drops when I'm around them...

The wielder of Dranzer slowed slightly as he heard the bickering between Tyson and Hilary behind him.

"Tyson! Just leave him alone! Kai's only just got here and you already want to start pestering him? Mr. Dickinson is waiting inside, so you can wait until then to talk!" Hilary's voice rose in pitch as she carried on berating the world champ about his actions.

"Wha? Hilary!" came Tyson's indignant reply. Without even looking, Kai could clearly see in his mind's eye the look on the teenager's face as he spoke. Some people never changed...

Once inside, all chatter ceased and Kai realised that it was about to get pretty serious. He looked behind him and saw the determined look plastered on all of the Bladebreakers' faces. Oh shiiit.

Kai was ushered into the living room where Mr. Dickinson and Tyson's grandfather were seated around the low table in the middle of the area. They greeted him warmly as he sat down opposite the head of the BBA and crossed his arms on the top of the table, waiting patiently.

It took a few moments for everyone to be seated and once they were all quiet, Mr. Dickinson spoke up. Kai turned to face the elderly man, wondering what he was going to spurt out next.

"Kai?"

"What?" he tried to be civil, but with everyone staring blatantly at him, Kai found his patience wearing thin.

"I believe that Tyson has something to ask you."

The slate-haired CEO rolled his eyes and suppressed the urge to groan. Of course Tyson had something to ask! They were treating this meeting as if he had no idea what it was about. God, what was it with them?

Tyson opened his mouth to speak, but Kai held up a hand and stopped the younger boy in his tracks. "Look," he explained. "I know what this meeting is about, and I'm only here because I thought I would be polite. You don't need to ask me anything Tyson, I just want you to tell me why you think I should rejoin this team – and no stupid reasons either."

He didn't care that everyone was staring at him. He had been dealing with idiots for years when dealing with BIOVOLT and Hiwatari Enterprises. The only difference being that aside from being both an idiot and a moron, the businessmen he dealt with were a lot older than Tyson.

"Well..." Tyson began. "WE NEED YOUR HELP!!" Kai blinked as Tyson dropped to his knees and clasped his hands together in front of him, looking like he was about to pray. "Please, please, please....!" he begged, dark blue eyes widening in what looked like a sorry attempt at the dreaded puppy-dog eyes.

"How in the world do you need my help, Tyson? If I'm not mistaken, you've won the last three world championships without my help. Why now?"

"Well, y'see... In the last world champs, Tala almost beat me!" he whined. "He was sooo close to beating me, it wasn't funny! I CAN'T be beaten, ever!"

And there was that childish side of Tyson that Kai had hoped had disappeared forever. Great...

Kai listened as all the members of the Bladebreakers went through their reasons on why he should return. He focused a little on what they were saying and made sure that he looked attentive, but in reality he was mostly

'Kai, listen to them. You know that there is a part of you that wants to come out of retirement. You want to feel the rush of the battles and the exhilaration when you win, and despair when you lose. I know you miss it at least a little, Kai. Just listen to them.'

This was ridiculous. They had no idea what they were talking about. They had no valid reasons as to why they wanted him back, apart from Tyson's whinging about almost losing to Tala. God, he wished Tyson had lost. Maybe then, he would have come back.

"Kai..."

Kai looked up to see that everyone had fallen silent and was staring at him. He could see the looks of concern written on their faces and immediately anger began to build inside him. What were they seeing in him that had triggered the concern? He knew that he didn't look terrible, so... why?

A sigh escaped before he could stop it and before he knew what was happening, he had reached up and slipped the sunglasses off from over his eyes, exposing his mismatched eyes to them all. A few of them gasped when they glimpsed the almost black-coloured eye.

"Look," he began, erasing anything that the others were going to say before it even made it to their lips. "You haven't given me one good reason to come back." There was a flurry of indignant replies, to which Kai held up a hand again to stop them. He turned to Tyson, fixing him with a steady glare. "Maybe if you had lost to Tala in the finals, then I may have had a reason to come back, but the truth is, you're good enough. You've managed to win without me and truth be told, I have no intention of ever beyblading again."

Kai wished he had a camera when he saw the shocked expressions on the Bladebreakers' faces. Glancing towards Mr. Dickinson, the bluenette saw that the elder man was frowning disapprovingly. So, even old man Dickinson hadn't liked his last statement.

"And because I'm feeling exceptionally generous today, I will tell you why," he stated and even after he had said the words, he had no idea why he had said them. He was digging himself into a hole, one of which he wouldn't be able to get out of easily.

"You've seen my eyes; seen the discolouration in one of them. It's a result of an accident a few years back that has rendered that eye virtually useless. I only have 15 percent sight in that eye." Why are you saying this? Stop talking! It's none of their business! Yet, he found himself carrying on.

"I have a life outside of beyblading, one that takes up a lot of my time," he looked towards Kenny at the next statement. "I've told you about BIOVOLT and Hiwatari Enterprises, and I'm sure not that stupid that you don't realise how much time it would take to run them. Beyblading has no time slot left in my life. You may all want to continue playing with spinning tops your entire life, but I don't. I have other responsibilities and other things I want to do."

The words were harsh and Kai didn't miss the flinch that ran through the bladers when he spoke of 'spinning tops.'

"But, Kai..."

The Russian teen looked up sharply as Max spoke. His vision blurred a little and he blinked to get rid of it, before focusing an impatient glare on the blonde boy.

"You used to love beyblading. What happened to Dranzer? How can you just give up? Sure, I know that running those companies must take up a lot of your time, but wouldn't there just even a little bit of time to blade?" Max's blue eyes were wide as he spoke, waiting to hear a reply.

Sighing, Kai rested his arms on the table and placed his head in his hands. He didn't have a headache – thank god – but it was becoming increasingly difficult to not just up and leave. He had told them too much already.

"I've already told you, Max. I don't want to blade. Yes, I may still have Dranzer, but I have absolutely no interest in beyblading-"

He was about to continue when Mr. Dickinson cleared his voice. "I would like to show you something, Kai." The elder man then proceeded to stand up and leave the room, motioning for them all to follow. They ended up in another living room, except this one had a medium sized TV in the corner.

Everyone took a seat on the floor in front of the television. Kai opted to stand, and leant against the wall, sharp eyes glancing over everyone as they waited.

Mr. Dickinson produced a video tape and placed it in the machine below the TV. Immediately an image was displayed and Kai frowned as he saw the tell-tale scenery of a beyblade stadium. Voices came through the speakers and against his will, Kai found himself becoming intrigued. What was the old man plotting?

"Well, Brad, it's another beautiful day here in New York for the finals of the Beyblading World Championships! And up today we have the heavyweights of the beyblading world: Tyson Granger and Tala Ivanov!"

"Yes, AJ, it certainly is going to be an interesting match today! Tyson has been struggling in this championships, barely beating Brooklyn to make it to the finals. On the other hand, Tala has been breezing through, easily defeating Ray Kon and teammate Bryan to clinch a spot in the final."

"It still seems weird, seeing Tala in the dish with Tyson. It's been three years since Kai Hiwatari retired from beyblading, but there is no doubt in my mind that if he were here today, it would be him in the dish against Tyson"

"Right AJ, it's time for the match to start! Both Tyson and Tala have entered the stadium and are ready to kick off the Sixth Beyblading World Championships finals!"

Tyson and Tala stood opposite each other, launchers out, faces contorted into serious expressions as they studied each other. A loud voice came over the internal speaker system.

"Three, two, one... LET IT RIP!"

Dragoon and Wolborg were let into the dish, each blade spinning furiously as they circled each other, ready to attack at any given time.

Kai frowned as he watched the match. He could from the beginning that Tyson's stance was off right from the launch. As a result, his launch was messy and Dragoon hit the dish spinning at a much less velocity than what Wolborg was.

As the two beyblades circled each other, Kai felt himself slipping back into his old role of Coach. He could see the clear differences between the blades; Tyson's raw power compared to Tala's agility and destructive power. From what he had already seen, the bluenette knew how the two were going to go about trying to win in this match.

Tyson would try for an all-out assault, trying to use Dragoon's seemingly unlimited raw power to overthrow his opponent. While Dragoon's element was Wind, that left him at a disadvantage against Wolborg, whose element was Ice.

As it was, Kai found himself being proved right. Moments later, Tyson's voice rang out loud and clear.

"Dragoon! Hurricane Storm!" The blue beyblade shot towards the smaller, grey one, a vicious wind tearing up behind it. A blinding light emerged from the bitchip of Tyson's blade and then Dragoon was visible in all his glory. The dragon let out a ferocious roar and swooped downwards towards Wolborg.

In an instant, Tala reacted. He called upon his own bitbeast and within the same blinding light as before, Wolborg arrived. The hybrid wolf was half beast, half machine, with the power to control snow and ice. Tala called out for Wolborg to attack as Dragoon got closer and closer. "Wolborg! Dark Blizzard!"

The two powerful beasts clashed high above as their blades continued to slam into each other, sparks flying every which way. Powerful winds blew through the stadium as the temperature dropped significantly. And then the two attacks slammed into each other with as much destructive force as a hurricane and a blizzard could.

Kai smirked as he saw what was happening. As the battle had progressed, he found himself wondering how in the hell Tyson had managed to win. Tala seemed to have the upper hand at every aspect of the match. As the blizzard and hurricane hit each other, the Russian CEO saw the air mist slightly as Tala's bitbeast started to freeze the air around them, causing Tyson's attack to become completely void.

Soon enough, the tornado that had been summoned by Tyson had been frozen in place. The winds ceased to exist and the stadium was thrown into a stage of stunned silence. With bated breath, Kai watched the screen, wondering how on earth Tyson managed to get out of this situation.

Then he saw it. His eyes widened as he realised what Tyson had done to get out of it. It wasn't anything remotely planned on Tyson's part either.

There was a loud crack that reverberated through the silent stadium. Both Tyson and Tala looked over at the frozen tornado, sporting identical shocked expressions. Little by little, small cracks appeared in the ice, ripping through the substance like it was water.

Seconds later, a massive explosion tore through the stadium. Shards of ice flew in every direction and some of them pierced the two bladers' skin, causing red lines of blood to show on the otherwise unmarked skin. Following the explosion, the fury of Dragoon's Hurricane Storm was back in full force and moved forward, catching Wolborg completely unaware.

Wolborg was thrown out of the dish, hitting the floor hard and bouncing a few times before coming to a halt ten metres away. Everyone froze, staring in disbelief at what had just happened. Tala had been winning and then from nowhere, Tyson had come from behind to claim the win.

". . . and that's all there is folks! Tyson remains the world champion once again!"

Kai stared at the TV, frowning. Sure, Tyson had claimed the win, but there hadn't been any real strategy to the boy's win. As he suspected, the only reason the Japanese blader had won, was because Dragoon had so much raw power, much more than what Wolborg possessed. That was all. If Tyson had faced Tala with any other bitbeast, there was no way he would have won.

'Maybe you have a reason to rejoin the Bladebreakers, Kai...' Dranzer's voice echoed in his mind. Kai thought about it.

Tyson obviously needed a lot of work to regain the stamina and finesse he had once had when Kai had been blading, all those years ago. Maybe... just maybe he could be their coach again. Being a coach didn't mean that he had to blade either. Coaching was completely different.

It wasn't until someone cleared their throat that Kai realised that everyone was staring at him once again, waiting for a reply to a question he hadn't heard.

"Sorry... what?"

"Kai, m'boy," Mr. Dickinson queried. "What did you think?"

Answering honestly, Kai pushed himself off the wall and stood straight. "Tyson didn't win."

"WHAT!?" came the incredulous reply from several of the team members.

"Tyson didn't win, Dragoon did. If it wasn't for the raw power of your bitbeast Tyson, you never would have beaten Tala. Your skill level has gone down the drain. As for the rest of you," he in turn looked at Max, Ray and Kenny (who was an active beyblader now), "if Tyson's match is anything to go by, you have all slacked as well. If you go into the next World Champs like this, you will lose."

Tyson's gaped openly, his eyes wide with shock as he stared at his ex-captain. Had he really been that bad in the match with Tala? Was Dragoon the only thing that saved him from defeat? He hung his head low, ashamed at how much he had slipped in the years of Kai's absence.

His head shot back up and he stared at Kai in astonishment as the elder teen began to speak again.

"I'm not going to beyblade ever again... but that doesn't mean I won't coach."

TBC

A/N: Well, I finally finished the chapter! Hope you all liked it. Yes, the movie reference is indeed Twilight and I share the same sentiments as Kai in this. I HATE the movie. I took creative licence with Bakuten – I wasn't exactly sure as to where it was, so I made it a rather large suburb in the outskirts of Tokyo. And yes, I gave Kai another tattoo lol.

Anonymous Review Replies:

IloveKaiHiwatari. – thanks for the review! I'm glad you liked the last chapter. The issue with Kai blading again is dealt with in this chapter :)

Ms Controversy – thanks for the review! I can't remember whether I PM'd a reply to you or not, so I'll reply here lol. I'm glad that you like the story so much. Sorry this chapter wasn't uploaded last week, but I'm hoping to have another chapter up next week :D Ahh, I have no idea about the right hand/left hand drives lol. I live in New Zealand, so it's different I think. I'll just claim creative licence lol... Oh, and Skylines are illegal in Canada? Wow, they're so common here....

NightShroud – thanks for the review! Glad to hear that you like the story ^^ Hope you liked this chapter as well.