Hi Folks!
A quick heads up! I updated some previous chapters, re-writing some dialogues and addig extra details. I'm still working on them, if you want to check which one is edited, go to my profile and you can find the list of updated chapters.
I didn't want to bore you with beybattles after the long break I took, you wouldn't deserve that and honestly, I usually don't enjoy to write those parts, either. So I tried to keep it short the most possible way for you and made only a summary about the last day of quarter finals. I hope that's okay.
I'm leaving another AN at the end of the chapter.
Enjoy!
Chapter 27
The last day of the quadra-finals was a victorious day for the Bladebreakers. Crestfallen by their poor performance from the other day, they managed to pull themselves together (either thanks to Kai's merciless training sessions for the team, or to Tyson's inspirational attitude) and they won all their matches against the Ragged Force, scoring maximum points and securing solidly their place in the semi-finals. It wasn't their easiest win, though. After all, team Ragged Force were supposed to be amateurs compared to Kai, Tyson, Ray and Max. Yet, some of them still struggled against them.
Surprisingly, Kai fought in the very first round, for the advantage, and because of his exhausted state – both physically and mentally –, his Dranzer was close to being thrown out of the dish when his opponent initiated an unexpected and forceful attack. Kai's slow reaction time and clumsy defense didn't remain unnoticed by his team, and when he was done and stepped down from the podium, Tyson's first job was to question him with worry. But Kai didn't miss Kenny's uncommon silence, Max and Hilary's frowns and especially Ray's meaningful look either. The captain was so pissed that, despite Tyson's loud indignation, he left the stadium right after his own match.
The F-Dynasty was less fortunate with their setup. They fought the quickest battle in the tournament against Justice 5. Garland was polite enough and accepted Julia's challenge to do a duo battle against her and Romero since Raul lost the battle against Brooklyn, but they still had not many chances against Garland and Mystel. Thus, F-Dynasty couldn't score enough points to continue the championship.
It was not the best day for the Blitzkriegs team, either. They went against the White Tigers and practically only Tala won his battle, all his other teammates failed. Boris fought for the advantage, but Mariah earned it for her team after all. Thanks to that, the Russians couldn't challenge the ones they wanted, and both Alexandra and Sergei lost their matches against Lee and Gary. Frankly, Sergei was close to winning the game, but he had a huge disadvantage with his new defensive gear, and he made a lot of mistakes and awkward moves. Alexandra made so many clumsy moves during the fight, that Lee practically had a laught at her. Tala fumed, but Blitzkriegs eventually scored enough points to be qualified.
The last battles were fought by an exciting setup – the two European teams, Majestics against Miguel's Squad. Robert's team demonstrated their superiority over their opponents, making it clear for the audience that they could not be replaced. None of Miguel or his friends could score a point against them.
Hence, the summary of the scored points and the winners of the quadra-finals were well written on the enormous screen above Jazzman.
Justice-5: 8 pts (qualified)
Bladebreakers: 7 pts (qualified)
Blitzkriegs: 6 pts (qualified)
Majestics: 6 pts (qualified)
White Tigers: 5 pts (disqualified)
Ragged Force: 2 pts (disqualified)
F-Dynasty: 1 pt (disqualified)
Miguel's Squad: 1 pt (disqualified)
The crowd left the stadium with mixed feelings. Some fans were satisfied, some were disappointed.
oOoOo
Hilary was still dubious if it was a good idea, when she was already hesitating in front of the door, ready to knock on it. She agreed with the boys that she was going to meet them at the party. So, she would have plenty of time to get closer to Alexandra.
Suddenly, Hilary found the whole plan ridiculous. How could they have a girly talk? They had completely different personalities, it was clear as day. On top of that, Alexandra wasn't an open book. The Russian might be more talkative than her teammates, but she was not less secretive. It won't be a piece of cake to get useful information from her.
Collecting her courage, Hilary shook her head, and finally knocked. As the door opened, she put on an unctuous smile.
"What's that grin? Did you swallow a hanger?"
Hilary's mouth immediately flattened. Different strategy was needed.
Alexandra invited her in, and Hilary made a quick look-around in the small room. It was smaller than what she was sharing with Kenny but definitely more private, with its own bathroom. The view was different, though. In the distance, Hilary could see the endless desert.
"I like your view. Ours looks out on the city itself. That's amazing, too, but somehow, I prefer the desert. It's beautiful." Hilary said, just to warm up the conversation somehow.
The blonde looked at the same desert with a furrow.
"What's so beautiful in it? There's nothing green. Anyway, is this your party outfit for tonight?"
Hilary looked down at her pink shirt and short jeans, not getting what the problem might be with them. The blonde's tone implicated she didn't wear the proper clothes for the event.
"Yep?"
"I'll dig up something for you. Let's start with your hair. Sit down here."
Alexandra pointed to a chair that was placed in front of the long mirror of the wardrobe. Hilary seated herself, while the Russian put on music that was unfamiliar for her and brought the necessary tools. As Alexandra started working on her hair, brushing, then gently parting and dividing the strands, Hilary started slowly settling down.
"I think this is the first time that someone other than me is doing my hair, haha."
"Really?"
Hilary's eyes met with Alexandra's surprised one in the mirror.
"Yeah, the boys are not really partners in this kind of stuff."
The blonde understandingly breathed a laugh.
"You don't go often to parties, do you?"
"Is that so obvious?" Hilary asked, half worried, half offended.
Alexandra flashed a mischievous smile.
"No worries. You're in my hands, now. I'll make you look as hot as Dubai. You'll be my little sister tonight."
Hilary laughed, but rather out of politeness. She couldn't picture herself like that. Attractive and also being proud of that, like Alexandra. Like Julia. Or Kai. Simply it was never her thing. She was well-behaved and compliant, not sticking out of the line. She hoped that the Russian wouldn't make a whore out of her.
"Do you have a sister?"
Hilary caught the green glance in the mirror and the blonde's reply was delayed for a second.
"I don't know. Perhaps." Alexandra shrugged a shoulder, but the answer was too implicit. She was on guard.
"Can't you know?" Hilary pressed uncertainly. She knew she shouldn't have, but the Russian gave such an evasive answer that Hilary couldn't simply ignore it.
"I grew up in orphanage. I don't remember." The pointed look in the mirror told Hilary to abandon this subject. "But I have lots of friends, so it's almost like having sisters, I guess. You?"
"I'm an only child."
"Friends?"
Hilary realized that she had to make the first move and open up to Alexandra in order to earn some of her trust. Thus, she told her the truth.
"I did have before the Bladebreakers, but you know… they were fair-weather friends. They were always there when they wanted something from me. But when I needed help, they somehow evaporated. After getting closer to Tyson and the boys, I must say, I finally learned what a true friendship is."
Hilary looked in the mirror, hoping to catch a reaction from the Russian. Alexandra didn't look up this time, she smiled fondly at her own working hands.
"But being the only girl in the bunch, it can be… tiring." Hilary continued, mostly to make Alexandra speak, but she also wanted to say these things out loud. It felt good to talk about this to someone who was in the same shoes.
"Yeah, I understand you. Sometimes I feel like I'm surrounded with animals."
Daichi's cheeky grin and scratched voice ran through Hilary's mind and cast her back to the many times, when she had to scream at the brat for doing something outrageously stupid or inappropriate. She giggled to herself at the memory. Daichi could be annoying and loud but also innocent and good-hearted like a child. However, Hilary imagined the Russians completely different.
"Do your teammates also like messing with each other?" She probed.
Alexandra made a face which indicated that Hilary had no idea about that.
"All time! Like other day. Sergei put hot chilly in Boris's food when he was not paying attention. Yuriy noticed it and put another hot chilly in it. Then he looked at me and said if I wanted to be part of team, I must do the same."
"And? You put another chilly?" Hilary asked with a titter.
"Of course, captain was not joking!" The blonde defended with fake innocence, and Hilary struggled more and more keeping back her laughter.
"Turns out, Boris hates spicy food and can't stand it at all. He became so sick, his head turned purple, snot ran like tears on his face, looked disgusting! He had to spend his whole day in bathroom. He even had to skip training."
Hilary couldn't hold back anymore, she erupted into laughter, and had to cover her mouth with a hand to save some of her dignity.
"And the most disturbing thing in that, that guys already knew about it. They were completely aware that Boris would react like that. They're savages." Alexandra shook her head to herself with widened eyes, not believing her unfortunate with those boys. Hilary was still chortling, the described pictures were vivid in her head.
"Please, tell me your teammates do similar crackbrained things, and I'm not alone in this." The blonde begged with a tormented face.
From that point, they shared stories with each other about the craziness the boys had done. Alexandra provided some funny scenarios, but Hilary had a bigger history with the Bladebreakers. After a while, they both eased up and could talk about other things without tension.
Alexandra finished doing Hilary's hair in the meantime, and said that she was preparing herself before continuing with the make-up. The blonde loosened her hair from the tight braids, elegant curls fell on onto her shoulders. She started to do another smaller braid around her head, making it look like she was wearing a crown.
While the Russian was getting ready, Hilary checked her own braids in the mirror, and she was pleased with the result. It was tasteful but not boring, fairly suiting to her character.
"What do you think?" Alexandra asked from the bathroom, already doing her make-up.
"Cute! I love it!" Hilary replied with a genuine smile.
When the Russian blonde was done with her make-up, she put on new clothes in the bathroom. The black turtleneck was changed to a white tank top, but the blonde hair still covered Alexandra's whole back. Pity, Hilary hoped that she could catch a glance on her neck, checking if there was the tattoo.
The clothes on the blonde were too provocative for Hilary's taste, but Alexandra definitely looked badass in the white top with the black arm gloves, short plaid skirt, black thigh-high socks and boots. Her black eyepatch fitted perfectly to the outfit. Hilary started to worry about what Alexandra was planning to make her wear if she had clothes like that.
"Come here, I'll do your make-up." The blonde suddenly sounded tired.
The Russian used so many different things one after other, Hilary was certain that she would eventually turn out to be a prostitute. She was thankful that her parents were in a different part of the globe, right now.
"How is Kai? Does he have any serious injuries from the fight with Boris?" Alexandra asked casually.
As the Russian girl was defining Hilary's eyes with an eyeliner, she couldn't look into her eye and check what kind of thoughts might be in Alexandra's mind, but the forced light tone the blonde used told Hilary that she had been waiting for an opportunity to ask this question for a while.
"It's hard to tell. He doesn't look hurt at first sight, but I think he's just good at hiding the pain. Kai's taciturn and also very proud. He doesn't really like sharing anything with us, however, sometimes I have a feeling there's a lot in his mind recently. All in all, I think he's fine." Hilary answered honestly. She was cautious not to tell any specific detail about the captain, but also give something to Alexandra.
The blonde hummed and continued with the make-up in silence. Hilary had no doubts that numerous things were running in Alexandra's head she wanted to know – including Kai's poor performance from today – but was careful enough not to ask about them.
"What about you? Are you not afraid of Boris after what happened to you?" Hilary asked with the same fake casualness.
"Look up. I'm doing bottom line."
Hilary looked up at the ceiling, still waiting for her respond. They both were tiptoeing around the same sensitive topic, and Alexandra contemplated her answer so long that Hilary thought that she was simply ignoring it.
"I understand why you expect me to be scared. We, Russians are a bit different as I noticed. All of us are here to win the championship and we're not afraid of making sacrifices. Boris apologized, and that's enough for me not to hold grudge against him. Okay, you're ready. See yourself the result in mirror."
Knowing that Alexandra was not willing to discuss further the incident, Hilary jumped up from the sofa and ran to the mirror in excitement. She was nervous about her look.
'Please, don't be as tarty as Alexandra's.'
For her surprise, it was not provocative at all. Actually, she looked amazing! The make-up was more natural than she expected. It was in perfect harmony with her hair and outfit.
"Oh my god! It looks great! I look…" Hilary wanted to stay 'gorgeous', but she didn't want to seem vain." Pretty! I'm so pretty, now! You did an amazing job! Can you teach me how to do it?"
She looked back to share her enthusiasm with the blonde, only to find her still sitting on the sofa, head buried in a hand. Hilary instantly hurried there, her joy was pushed aside by worry.
"Hey, are you okay?"
When Alexandra noticed that Hilary was standing right before her, she quickly tried to collect herself and reassure her with a faint smile.
"Sure. Just my head… It's killing me since morning."
Hilary looked at the bruise around Alexandra's temple that was already turning into purple despite the thick foundation she applied on that spot.
"Are you sure you want to go to the party?"
Alexandra stared at her almost in bewilderment.
"Of course, I am! I need this party more than anything right now."
"Do you want me to call the reception for painkillers?" Hilary offered.
"Good idea. But I have my own."
"Just stay here. I bring them to you if you tell me where I can find them."
"I'd rather not have you rummaging in my stuff. Besides, my medicines are written in Russian, and you can't read Cyrillic alphabet." Alexandra was about to stand up, when suddenly stopped midair and looked up at Hilary. "Can you?"
"No. I don't speak Russian." Hilary said in an apologetic tone but wanted to help somehow.
While Alexandra was looking for the pills, Hilary picked up a glass from the table and filled it with bottled water she found in the drink cabinet, then provided it to the blonde. The Russian glared at the water, then at her in suspicion. Hilary didn't get the distrust at first, but Alexandra might have a problem with the bottled water, maybe.
"Oh, sorry. I heard the water was not recommended to drink here, so I thought this would be better." Hilary explained sheepishly. Were all Russian born with the same cutting glare?
"Thanks, but I'm not dying." The blonde huffed after swallowing a pill, and Hilary realized that she was probably embarrassed by the good-natured gesture.
"We still have time. Let's wait until it takes effect." Hilary said and dropped herself in the armchair, preparing herself mentally for the night. Admittedly, she was a bit nervous about what to expect.
Alexandra put down the glass on the coffee table, and Hilary suddenly noticed she was not wearing her finger claws. Her hands looked so much more… human with simple black nails.
"Is Kai alright?"
The question broke Hilary's train of thoughts and looked up at the blonde.
"What?" She asked in puzzlement.
"Boris was brutal to him yesterday, and he seemed to be in very bad shape in today's battle. Is he hurt?"
Hilary blinked in confusion. Did she have a déjà vu?
"No, he's okay. More or less. But we already discussed it."
Now, Alexandra frowned at her.
"No, we didn't. I'm asking about him for first time."
"Yes, you already…" Hilary faltered. She was confused.
Did Alexandra play a game with her? What were the rules? She didn't know what to say.
They stared at each other in competing silence for a short time as if they were trying to convince the other about their own truth. Eventually, Alexandra got bored.
"Is it true that he's got amnesia?" Her voice was different.
"Yes. He doesn't remember his childhood as far as I know." Hilary replied, pulling back up her guards.
The blonde nodded understandingly, and Hilary saw something in her eye that she couldn't interpret at first sight.
"I feel painkillers start to kick in. I give you some thigh socks, put them on, and we can go."
oOoOo
When he arrived at the right door, he was still unsure if it was a good idea. Uncharacteristically, he hesitated and thought through his plan again. Although it didn't matter how many times he questioned his intention, a part of him wanted to do this.
He had roamed the streets for hours. Cars and people had been whooshing around him in the city. He didn't remember when he had such a bad day – or bad month –, but he felt the control was slowly slipping out of his hands.
The disturbing thoughts still occupied his mind, running back and forth endlessly, not giving him a moment to relax. He needed a distraction, something that required complete focus from him. Originally, he had wanted to hit the gym, but his body was already screaming in agony. He could have beyblade, but after today, he didn't want to even think of spinning tops. The weight of failure sat heavily on his shoulder. He had considered the idea going back to the hotel and catch some sleep or just to be alone in the stillness. After all, his teammates went to the Blitzkriegs' party, if that was all true.
In his frustration, he had put his hands in the pocket and that was when he had found the business card with the address. He had been surprised, he had thought he had got rid of it. And questions had started to overrun his mind. Questions he had never dared to ask but always bothered him.
Exhausted by the problems and the many nights, in that moment he had felt impulsive enough to pay an unexpected visit and demand answers. Hence, here he was; standing and being on the horns of a dilemma whether he was going to regret this decision.
Kai licked his lips and landed three firm knocks on the wooden surface. For his annoyance, not his mother but her bodyguard opened the door and invited him in.
"I didn't expect you to visit so soon! I'm glad you came." His mother smiled and wringed her hands.
Kai knew the reason for her nervousness. He rarely looked her up and never without a reason.
"I want to speak with you in private." Kai exacted, glancing rudely at the empty-headed bodyguard in the corner.
"I cannot do that. I'm in charge of Ms. Hiwatari's safety." The bodyguard replied with a stiff manner.
"I'm her son. She is in safe."
"You seem very upset." The bodyguard replied in a calm voice, but the message was clear.
"Mother, remove him right now, or I'll convince grandfather to throw you out of the mansion. I'm more valuable to him than you, and you perfectly know that."
The woman pursed her lips in her irritation – Kai pressed one of her weakest points –, but after a moment, she looked at the man in suit and with an insisted nod she dismissed him.
"I'll be standing by the door, Ma'm. Just call me when you need me." The bodyguard said dutifully, then finally left.
"What is it, Kai? You look–"
"Don't start making comments on my appearance!" Kai cut in before his mother could finish it.
"I'm just worried for you. You're such a handsome young man. What will your future business partners think if you show up with scars on your face? That's why you should put an end to this childish–"
"Stop talking!" Kai interrupted again. He was fed up with the expectations his whole family had of him.
"Alright! Alright. I see you want to talk about something important. Let's have a seat, please. I'm listening." Her mother said conciliatingly, and seated herself in an armchair, waiting patiently for Kai to copy her.
The changed tone temporarily calmed down Kai's fury, and made himself comfortable in the other armchair. His mother's room was way more luxurious than his with much bigger space and expensive furniture, though Kai didn't envy it. He had everything in the hotel that the BBA provided the teams.
"Would you like some tea?" Her mother asked after a few seconds.
Kai refused the hot drink with an impatient hand, scolding himself for staying quiet so long. He was not sure where to start, so after another few moments, he gave up looking for intros to the topic and decided to go straight to the point.
"Why did grandpa send me to the Volkov Abbey?"
The air instantly froze between him and his mother. Her face, her whole body tensed.
"Because you wanted to be the best beyblader. And Volkov Abbey happened to be one of the most recognized training facilities in the sport." She said with a nervous smile as if she was repeating a lesson.
"I looked into it. There were plenty of beyblade associations in Tokyo, as well. Even more technically equipped than Volkov's, and they were all closer to our home." Kai argued with a cool head.
"Well. Your grandfather believed that a traditional training would be more suitable for you, and Volkov Abbey was run by him. It was an obvious choice."
"You're lying." Kai narrowed his eyes venomously, and his mother looked at him as if been caught red-handed. "Grandfather has always been a sly man. He would have gladly sent me to other training center to spy on his business competitors."
His mother didn't reply to the aspersion, just sat mutely in the armchair.
"Why didn't you stop him?" He asked again. Kai sensed he was close to the truth, and there was no turning back anymore. He wanted to face his past once and for all. He was done running and hiding away from the possible traumas and shames he had been forced to experience. He hated that he didn't know what happened to him in that cold, sinister place in Moscow.
Kai wanted to grasp, to choke on the terrors that had happened to him, and surmounting them, eventually become stronger, more powerful, if not undestroyable. With the wrath he felt for his grandfather, he would eventually be able to ruin the old man's life before he died. Bizarrely, this imagination caused his skin to prickle with satisfaction.
His mother wriggled side to side with delicate movements in the chair, unable to find a comfortable spot, not expecting Kai's question. When she was finally able to collect herself, she cleared her throat, delaying some her answer.
"Why are you asking these things now? It's already in the past, not important anymore."
The cowardly words ignited new fury in him. 'Why asking?!' 'Not important anymore?'
"Just answer my question. Why didn't you stop grandfather?" His voice was still low, only a whisper, but it was more hateful than ever.
His mother bit her lip, looking at him with fear in the eyes. This was one of her dirty linens his mother carefully hid away, hoping that it would never get out. At the end of the day, even his mother knew deep down that she was a complete failure as a parent. Just like Kai's father was.
"I couldn't… I had no say…" She defended weakly. Kai barely could catch her voice. He felt disgusted by her pathetic attitude.
"You should've stood up for me. You're my mother. Or so they say."
The woman shut her eyes and inhaled, tolerating the harsh questions that her son was throwing at her.
"Your father left not long before that… I was down… heartbroken…"
"Do you think I was not?" Kai leaned forward, his voice was still low but had a dangerous edge.
"I didn't say that…"
"Then why did you let them take me?!"
Kai couldn't contain himself anymore. He jumped out of his armchair, his heart filled with only rage and sorrow. The world narrowed to him with his strong emotions and his frail mother. Maybe it was the first time that he felt so close the loss of his better childhood memories.
She stared at him, gaping helplessly, not providing any comfort to her upset son.
"I told you… I couldn't!" She repeated in despair. "I was weak then. I didn't want to live. I was barely able to look after myself."
"You were not weak, mother. You still are!" Kai turned his wrath and sadness into toxic disparagement. It helped him to stay in control above his strong emotions.
The venomous insult changed something in his mother. She topped pitying herself and looked directly at him for the first time. She stood up from the chair, as well, and glared back at Kai with similar contempt.
"How dare you talk to me like that?! You're disrespectful, again! Just like you've always been since Susumu left!"
"Why do you act like it was my fault? You're the one who's so worthless that you couldn't even make your husband stay! This is all on you!"
This time, the movement was so dynamic that Kai couldn't stop the hand. Her mother slapped him so hard on his face, Kai already felt the burning sensation on his skin.
"You're still just as unbearable as you were as a child! You put all the blame on me for everything! You told me horrible things; how bad a mother I was, how useless a wife I was! That I should have left instead of your father, and how much you hated me for that! You only wanted to beyblade, because you were obsessed with a delusion that if you had been the best beyblader in the world, your father would have eventually come back to you. And when I tried to play with you, you yelled and rejected me, because I was a poor trainer. I couldn't stand it! I couldn't stand you anymore!"
After the heated tirade, the room became silent for a few moments. Only their upset breathing broke the stillness.
The woman tried to calm herself down, wordlessly scolding herself for losing her temper. Kai, on the other hand, processed the things with disturbed shock she said to him in her anger. He had some memories from the times after his father had left them, but he didn't remember blaming her mother so openly.
She adjusted the expensive costume on herself, lips only a straight line, and continued to talk in a more restrained way, regaining her pride.
"Thus, I asked your grandfather to send you to Volkov Abbey. Far away from me."
oOoOo
The disco was half empty when he and the boys arrived. Most likely, they were the first from the beyblade community. They were the so-called "hosts", anyway. Every person there was unfamiliar, rather local lads. The place was topnotch, but Tala had no doubt this was far from the high-class bars. Also, they had to walk quite a lot to get there.
"Why this place?" Tala inquired, searching for a more hidden corner under the subdued lights in the meantime.
"Only here you can order booze without showing IDs. And I didn't have more time to look further." Boris explained. "C'mon, let's explore it."
At first, the locals gave them a side glare, the Blitzkrieg boys were obviously stood out with their snow-white skin, Sergei's board and tall figure and Tala's bloodred hair. The boys didn't mind, though. They already got used to it.
"Yo" Boris greeted the bartender. "We spoke on the phone earlier. We're–"
"Ah, the beybladers!" The middled-aged man flashed a golden smile. He was excited to see them, and Tala quickly figured that the place usually was not busy. "It's an honor you chose my place to celebrate. What can I get for you?"
They all ordered a shot of vodka, just to release some of their tension and loosen up for the night and others' companion. They didn't have to wait long, though, and the first group of competitors got there and joined them, and soon every team eventually arrived.
As Tala checked, most of the girls prepared for the party. From the White Tigers, Mariah's hair was let down, he didn't know she had such a long hair. Alexandra also let down her hair, but she put a braid in it. For his surprise, she arrived with Hilary to the party. Tala guessed that the blonde pumped the Japanese girl up, because she looked totally different comparing to her usual 'good-girl' appearance. However, the most conspicuous person was obviously Julia with her shiny hair, red lips and slim figure.
The boys – just like he himself – didn't make much effort for the gathering. Most of them didn't even bother to change their outfits.
"Aight. Thanks for coming, everyone! Here's ya reward for the long-ass walk ya took to get here." Boris handed out a glass of vodka to everyone from the big plates that he and Sergei brought from the bar.
Some eyes flashed up with excitement and accepted it with a surprised smile; others were less enthusiastic and took the drink only out of respect.
"Oh! Is this free?" Kevin asked, eyeing the clear liquid with suspicion.
"It's a welcome drink. To the championship!" Boris shouted ceremoniously with his own vodka in the air.
"To the championship!" The others shouted back in synchrony, then they all swallowed it.
"Ew! It's disgusting." Tyson complained with several others.
"Well, it's not my cup of tea." Olivier grimaced, putting down the glass and pushing it far away from himself.
The Slavics and some European laughed at their reaction.
"It's a bit strong, but I like it. Don't let me drink too much, Raul."
"Argh! I'm not gonna babysit you again, Julia!"
"Rough and flavorless. It's dope. Is there more of it?" Johnny asked with greediness in his eyes.
"Sure. Just go to that guy and you can order as much as you want." Sergei replied, pointing at the bartender in the distance. Johnny didn't laugh at the joke.
The first drink broke the ice of shyness and released the tension in the beybladers, and in no time, they started to enjoy the party.
Tala repeatedly scrutinized the crowd around him, analyzed his opponents and observed the interactions, hoping he would catch something that could use against them in the dish. His brains and ice blue eyes didn't stop for a moment.
The unusual circumstances, the party created unexpected cliques among the people. First, there were those who wanted to stay sober. They distanced themselves from the louder, animated group, and talked vividly about various, ordinary things. He was not amazed to see in that circle more members from Justice-5, Miguel's Squad and Majestics, and the leader of the White Tigers among others. They usually paid attention to their composed appearance. Tyson's presence, though, was a surprise for him. Of course, the Japanese brat was the loudest in that group.
On his other side, the noisier and more drunken people gathered around. Naturally, Boris and Sergei were found in that companion, the words ran high between them and the Scottish hooligan, but Tala didn't find it serious enough to intervene. The Ukrainian team, the Ragged Force was also there and helped with the mood. They managed to smuggle in two bottles of vodka under their clothes, and they started to pour for anyone who was willing to drink with them.
The third group was the dancers. Some guys joined, like Raul and Enrique, but rather the girls occupied the dance floor. It was odd to see all female beybladers together at once, under the flashy lights. Their hips moved to the rhythm, or so some of them thought. It was mesmerizing to watch, nonetheless.
And there was Tala, in-between the consolidated and less consolidated groups, pretending to be drinking alone. He didn't plan to get under the table, but he was not in the mood to talk to anyone, either. The Bladebreakers' mechanics, Kenny sat near to him in similar awkward silence. He was obviously lost in this place, he didn't even drink the vodka that Boris paid for him. Ill-bred.
It went like this for an hour at least. The people in each group became relaxed enough to have fun in their own way. Tala's head started to buzz with the various noises around him.
"What are you drinking? Oh, it's vodka again? I rather skip that, now." Julia came back from the dance floor for a short break with Alexandra, Hilary on their heels.
"No, it's pálinka." One of the Ragged Force members, Evgeny said with a long-necked bottle in his hand.
"Palinka? What's that?"
"It's like vodka. Just better." Gergely replied, receiving disapproving glares from his teammates.
"Taste it, girls, and decide for yourselves." Johnny came up with the idea, quickly obtaining three glasses for them.
"I'm fine, thanks!" Hilary refused with a rough handwave. She was noticeably tipsy already.
"Hey, Hilary. I'd never think you could dance." Tyson appeared from nowhere, and Tala saw that the other group broke up. The sober beybladers who enjoyed less the gathering started to leave.
"Did you see Kai?" Hilary asked Tyson.
"I haven't seen him coming." Boris said instead of the dragon-wielder who looked clueless. He filled all empty glasses he found near him.
Tyson's eyes swept the club with concern, and Tala wondered if there was something wrong with Kai. The Bladebreaker captain had been out of character, lately. He also started searching for the ignorant jerk, but he didn't see blueish hair in the crowd.
Tala wanted to ask something from Boris, but he was busy handing over the drink to Alexandra. She didn't seem drunk, yet she fumbled with the glass. Her hand kept catching the air beside the glass.
"What the hell?!" Alexandra exclaimed.
Boris eventually grabbed her hand and folded it around the glass. Alexandra laughed in embarrassment at her own clumsiness.
"За здоровье!" The Slavics exclaimed and they all drank.
"Let's go back dancing!" Alexandra ordered with a clap of her hands, and she already pulled Julia back to the dance floor. "Hilary? Hilary! Come you too!"
Tala looked around for the brunette, and he found her talking privately with her own team. The subject seemed serious, because Ray looked angry. At Alexandra's call, Hilary quickly finished speaking and rushed back to the blonde.
"I'm coming, too!" Tyson claimed with Max, and they hurried after the girls as the talking group split up for good.
The music came to a deeper, stronger beat that required slower movements, and Tala's eyes lingered some on the hypnotizingly swaying Spanish hip. Julia's body sometimes snuggled against other girls', and sadly, eventually against Enrique's. The guy's hand quickly found their way on Julia's hipbones.
Tala turned to his friends to inquire if they knew anything about Julia and Enrique, but the reaction of the boys stopped him in his mind tracks. They ogled so fixedly the girls on the dance floor that it was hardly well-mannered.
Suddenly, Ray stepped to Boris and leant closer to him with a vicious look, and for a second, Tala feared that a brawl would explode in the middle of the club, but Ray had a different intention.
"Good job! Your teammate has concussion." The former White Tiger said venomously, pointing in the direction of Alexandra with his head.
Tala saw as Boris stared at Ray then quickly looked back again at the dance floor, where Alexandra danced wildly, this time without the lecherous look. He visibly felt concerned and guilty. When Ray noticed that his words took its effect on the Russian, he left in satisfaction with Lee and Gary.
"Don't worry. She's fine." Tala consoled him with a hand on his shoulder, silently cursing the Chinese.
Although he also started checking the blonde with his eyes, seeking any symptoms for brain injury.
She was dancing just fine, but truth be told, she had had some weird moves since yesterday. Nothing serious or extraordinary that would scream for any obvious disorder, but suspicious enough in the new point of view.
His train of thoughts was interrupted by Kai's sudden exasperated appearance. He arrived with such vehemence, his anger sensibly radiated from his body and made Tala instantly forget about Alexandra.
"Are you alright, Kai? Something happened?" Kenny asked cautiously. Tala heard his voice for the first time that night.
"Oi, Kai! A welcome drink?" Boris asked him, turning away his eyes finally from the blonde.
Tala expected the Bladebreakers captain to reject the offer with an arrogant comment, but for his astonishment, Kai turned away from Kenny's annoying question, and expectantly reached out a hand to Boris. The Falcon quickly served him and himself, and after a swift cling of the glasses, the alcohol already disappeared.
"Are ya plannin' to drink that, dude?" Boris asked Kenny, noticing him still caressing the same glass of vodka in his hand.
"Well… Do you want it?" Kenny blushed with embarrassment, offering it to the Russian.
Without giving any chance to Boris, Kai took away the small glass from Kenny's hand and sent it after his first shot.
Uh-oh. Something must have happened with the rich boy. Tala's interest peaked suddenly, and his brains had been already working on strategies on how to get Kai to speak.
oOoOo
Because of the dancing, Hilary got extremely thirsty after a while. In the loud music, she mouthed Alexandra that she was taking a break at the bar. She didn't even try to talk to Julia, the Spanish girl was too busy with Enrique who held her from behind and moved together at the beat of the music.
The blonde nodded at her in understanding, then continued to dance in a circle with Mathilda, Mariah and Ming-Ming. Hilary didn't have any idea from where the beyblader girls got so much energy. They all had competed earlier on that day.
She sat to the bar and ordered an orange soda for herself. It tasted like water in the desert.
"Hey, can I invite you for a drink?" Two strange men approached Hilary.
"I already got it, thanks." Hilary rejected, then immediately turned her head away, showing that she was uninterested in them.
"Come on. What's your favorite? Wine? Beer? Something stronger?"
The man got closer to her with each question, so much so that Hilary's nose caught the stinky smell of alcohol on him. He put his big hand on her tight and slightly squeezed it.
Hilary's heart sped up with anger and anxiety and saw in the corner of her eye that the other man stood on the other side of her chair. They practically trapped her to the bar counter. She smacked the hand away with a firm move and intended to stand up, but a strong arm didn't allow it. She tried to find Alexandra or Julia in the dancing crowd to ask for help, but she couldn't see them. She looked for the bartender, but he was busy on the other side of the bar. Hilary started to panic.
"You shouldn't sit here so alone."
"I'm here with my friends!" Hilary argued in a sharp manner, hoping that would scare them away.
"Leave them here and come with us instead." The other whispered into her ear, and he stepped so close to Hilary, that she felt something hard on her shoulder.
She jumped up, trying to get away from them. She was now freaking out.
"Can I help you with something?" A harsh voice asked, and hope arose in Hilary.
Alexandra pushed away the two surprised guys from Hilary and stood protectively in front of her. The blonde breathed heavily because of the dance, and Hilary feared that her provocative outfit might also arouse the men's interest. Despite Alexandra's relative tallness, the two men seemed stronger. If they wanted, they could drag her and Alexandra away with ease, and the thought itself already frightened Hilary. She had been kidnapped before, not long after she met the Bladebreakers, and that was already a terrific memory for her.
"Are you her friend?" One of the men asked warily.
The blonde's unexpected and firm appearance might make a strong impression to the womanizers, because they suddenly lost their pushy attitude, and eyed her suspiciously.
"I am. And I saw you were groping her without permission."
Hilary noticed the violence in Alexandra's voice, as if the Russian girl was waiting for the smallest reason to engage into a fight with the two men. Alexandra might be a tough girl, but Hilary was not so sure if she would win against them.
"It seemed to me that she rather liked it." The shorter man retorted in a sulky manner.
"Can't you see she's underaged? Or are you so much in despair?"
Afraid, that the Russian's aggressive backtalk would only escalate the situation something worse, Hilary grabbed the blonde's hand as a sign. Alexandra looked at her with puzzlement.
Fortunately, the two men suddenly changed their mind and reluctantly moved on, disappearing in the other side of the club.
Hilary released both Alexandra's hand and the breath she had been holding in with relief. However, her heart was still pounding, the fear stubbornly clung to it. She still felt the disgusting touch of the man's erection on her shoulder, feeling irrationally dirty because of that.
Alexandra noticed her distress.
"Are you OK?"
Hilary nodded in a not so convincing way.
"Thanks for helping."
"Sure! I told you, you're my little sister tonight." The blonde smiled comfortingly and closed thightly her eye, then she facepalmed herself right after. "I still forget I can't wink."
At Alexandra's abstraction, Hilary halfheartedly tittered. Her body was not ready yet to get over the unpleasant situation.
"Your make-up shifted."
Hilary's hand flew to her face, realizing that tears were falling. She didn't know why she cried. She guessed, this was the way her body released the stress.
"Come with me." Alexandra grabbed her hand, and Hilary followed her without question.
She quickly figured they were heading to the restroom, and she also noticed the meaningful look Alexandra shared with Julia while they were walking through the crowd. The Spanish instantly left behind Enrique and went after them. Hilary's felt warm in her heart. Maybe that was how sisters took care of each other.
"What happened?" Julia demanded as they arrived in the somewhat quieter and surprisingly almost empty restroom.
Through the tiled walls, Hilary still could hear the muffled beats of the music, but the sudden silence helped her to leave the fear finally behind.
"Two jerks flirted with her bit too aggressively." Alexandra explained to Julia while gave a paper towel to Hilary to dry up the last tears.
"Oh, I hate that! Some men are just born to be a dick." Julia rolled her eyes in her annoyance, which indicated the Spanish girl already had the 'fortune' to meet such men in her life.
"Luckily, you noticed the trouble in time." Hilary was relieved that she had finally found her voice, even if it was still shaky. She felt genuine gratitude for the blonde's help.
"It was not luck. I was watching you whole time." Alexandra clarified with incredulousness in her voice. As if she was finding the assumption itself that she was not taking care of her offending.
"Have you not been bullied before when you went out with the girls?" Julia inquired Hilary, while she picked out an eyeliner out of her tiny purse and started to re-do her make-up.
"I think this is her first time to party." Alexandra commented, and the two girls shared another meaningful look above Hilary's head.
"Poor thing." Julia pouted with pity.
"It's not my first time! I was just… on a different type of party."
"Tea party doesn't count, sweety."
"Oh."
The two girls laughed at her, and Hilary also forced a giggle out of herself. It actually helped to relax her muscles this time.
"I just got scared. I've never been in a similar situation before. They became so intimidating so quickly." Hilary spoke, venting out her fear.
"That's why it's important for us not to go alone anywhere. I always go with Raul or my friends to these places. You have to be far-seeing." Julia emphasized it with unusual seriousness.
"Are you far-seeing with Enrique, too?" Alexandra asked cheekily.
Hilary was glad that the Russian changed the narrative to a lighter tone. She didn't want the night to be ruined because of two intrusive nerds. Julia finished correcting her make-up, and now she was adjusting the rouge on her own lips. She was struggling with it for a while, because she couldn't erase the cocky smile easily from her face.
"Yeah. The guy does everything to get me. He already invited me to his mansion in Italy." Julia's lips were deep red again, proud of herself for turning the boy's head so easily. "Speaking of boys, are you two interested in anyone?"
Julia looked at both Hilary and Alexandra, eager to learn anything juicy.
"No. I'm here to beyblade. It's dangerous for me to love." Alexandra replied offhandedly, not impressed by the new subject.
Julia tutted. She was not satisfied with the answer.
"What about you, Hilary? You're not a competitor, you can love." Julia asked with mocking intonation.
"Uhm… well…"
Hilary was not sure if she wanted to talk about this. Sometimes she also was unsure about her own feelings, and what good would come from opening up to girls who were actually not friends but her opponents?
"Is it somebody from your team?" Alexandra asked, suddenly interested.
Knowing well her own body, Hilary looked down at her shoes, hoping it would hide the blush on her face, but it was a poor attempt. Despite not drinking much, the alcohol weakened the control above her body and reaction time.
"I don't want to talk about it!" Hilary protested, hiding her red face behind her hands. "It doesn't matter anyway, because I don't think he finds me attractive. At some point, I thought we were getting close, and he was interested, but the thing is, he's simply not. Otherwise, he'd have already asked me out or something."
Even she noticed the contradiction in herself. She said she didn't want to talk about it, yet she suddenly told them almost everything.
For her mortification, one of the toilets was flushed, and all three of them turned their head to the direction of the sound. Mariah came out and walked to the sink to wash her hands with a cheeky smile on her face.
"Why don't you take first step?" Alexandra proposed, ignoring the pink lady, and Hilary looked at her in dismay.
"The first step. Why don't you take the first step. You keep leaving out the articles from your sentences, it's so annoying. Why are you doing that?" Julia interjected in a surprisingly upset manner.
"I know! Sometimes I forget about them." Alexandra rolled her eye, annoyed too by her own habit.
"How could you forget them?!"
"There are no articles in my language."
"What?"
"Yeah."
"I didn't know that." Julia furrowed her perfectly shaped eyebrows at the Russian, then turned back to Hilary with a swish of her gleaming hair.
"She's right. Not really elegant, but if the guy is so bad and shy, you have to be brave instead of him. Some men are super scared of being rejected." Julia explained all-knowingly.
"Me?! But I'm scared, too!" Hilary argued.
"Okay, who is it? Tell us and we'll help you." The Spanish bargained which made Hilary only stubborn and shook her head. "Is it Tyson?"
"Tyson as shy? Nah. Is it Kenny?" Alexandra guessed, participating in Julia's brainstorm.
The Spanish faked a cough to hide her laughter.
"Oh my, no!" Hilary's denial was so definite and harsh, she felt ashamed for that. Kenny was a good guy and a good friend, after all, but never in her dream she would be interested in him.
"Oh, it must be Ray, then!" Alexandra's face flashed up as if figuring out the correct answer.
"Leave Ray out of it!" Mariah suddenly interrupted with a threatening glare in her eyes, while she was drying her hand with a paper towel.
The blonde answered with a puzzled look.
"He's mine! We know each other since we were kids." Mariah explained.
"Ray's cute." Julia's nodded in agreement, before Alexandra could make any retort. "But it could also be Kai. He's quite handsome, too."
"What? No!" Hilary contested vehemently again, as if she would find the idea itself absurd, hoping that misled the girls.
"Right, he's too sulky anyway."
"I heard he's quite a pain in the ass. Ray never talks ill of his teammates, but I can see he's angry with Kai because of his poor games."
"Too bad for that sexy body."
Hilary had to bite her tongue not to start defending the captain. At the same time, she caught Alexandra glaring at Julia and Mariah with anger that was not reasonable for Hilary at first. Although, when the blonde noticed she was looking at her, the Russian quickly organized her facial muscles and acted naturally. Hilary turned back to the conversation, too, but she saved this moment for later.
"Alright, good luck with the pointless guessing." Mariah said, leaving behind the trio.
"That leaves only Max. Hmm." Julia continued, racking her brains, like this was the most important problem in the universe to solve.
"The one who's dancing continuously jumping up and down? Imagine them kissing." Alexandra opposed, and Julia had a hearty laugh at that.
"Stop laughing at my love life!" Hilary cut in, annoyed with the girls.
"What love life are you talking about, darling?" Julia teased, fighting back a giggle.
"What I've envisioned to myself!" Hilary shot back with feigned indignation, and the girls chortled at her self-deprecating joke. The tiles threw back their joyful laughter, removing completely the bad memory of the two men from Hilary's mind.
Suddenly, Alexandra's hand flew to her head, and she stumbled to the sink, hissing in pain.
"Are you alright?" Hilary asked. She remembered the blonde had a headache already before the party. "Is it your head again?"
"Yeah." Alexandra answered, massaging gently her temple. "It's better, now. It just came and went."
Hilary was not convinced by her soothing words.
"I'll too get a headache if we keep standing in this room instead of dancing. I had a shitty day, I want it to end properly. Let's have another shot, Hilary finally tells us who she loves, then we go back dancing!" Julia shared her plans bossily, and neither Hilary nor Alexandra protested.
Although, Hilary hoped that the Spanish would forget the second part of the plan; she had no intention to share any sensitive detail about her crush. It was difficult enough to deal with her own feelings day by day.
oOoOo
Only some beybladers remained in the club, most teams already returned to the hotel. The party also started to take a wilder turn, Tyson hardly could find people around him who were not blind drunk. He felt tipsy, too. Max and Kenny, his last sober friends also had enough with the event and left a few minutes ago, making Tyson realize that he was totally lost without their companion in the club.
He stayed only because Hilary was still dancing with the girls, and he didn't want to leave her behind alone. Tyson planned to talk to Kai, he wanted to check up on the sourpuss, and he thought they might have some private moments to ask about the captain's worn-out state.
Queerly, Kai had had an unusually dynamic conversation with Tala. The Blitzkriegs captain had listened to him closely and with a frown on his face the whole time. Tyson had been dying to know what the subject could have been, it had made Kai upset in a strange way. Normally, Tala liked talking and goading others into action, so his attentiveness was also weird to see, while Kai became morose and sought solitude. Maybe, this was the next level of the phoenix's frustration.
Tyson had already come up with an idea to approach them and attempt to participate in their conversation, when Kai had suddenly stood up and disappeared. His leaving was as unforeseen as his arrival, and Tala had also vanished from Tyson's sight before he could have asked anything from him.
And so, he was leaning to the bar counter with his back, guarding the remaining high-spirited Hilary, Ming-Ming, Julia and Alexandra, who were still dancing and jumping to the music. Raul, Boris, Sergei, Enrique, Johnny and the boys from Ragged Force were moving robotically next to the girls, but they were clearly too wrecked. Only Raul seemed to be clear-headed, but Tyson doubted that he would be characteristic enough to defend a whole group in a conflict.
Tyson watched Hilary and wondered, when was the last time he had seen the girl so emancipated, it was oddly satisfying to see her gleefully laughing with other girls and dancing all night. It was a good sight that formed a warmful smile on Tyson's face.
Unfortunately, he was not so entertained like the others. He had had enough of dancing and there was no one he could talk to anymore, while the others were having fun. Tyson was approach Hilary and convince her to go back to the hotel with him, when she suddenly left the dance floor with the Russian blonde. They were heading to the restroom again.
The two seemed strangely close to each other tonight. Tyson hoped that Hilary was doing this only out of 'duty' and she wasn't befriending Alexandra. He couldn't explain why, but he couldn't trust the blonde girl, despite feeling sympathy for her.
A finger tapped on his shoulder, and Tyson startled out of his thoughts, only to find a Tala staring with scornful ice-cold eyes at him.
"What?!" Tyson yelled at him in the loud music. When did it become so annoyingly deafening?
The Russian captain leant closer to his ear and yelled back to be heard properly.
"I'd go after Kai if I were you. He just left and seemed labile."
"Why? What do you mean by labile? What happened?" Tyson asked back.
The Russian shrugged casually a shoulder, and it irked Tyson. Kai had been talking to Tala for minutes, the redhead surely had learnt something in that time.
It was pointless to inquire Tala further. Tyson aimed the restroom through the dance floor, where Hilary disappeared with Alexandra. He wanted to tell her to stay there with the others, until he found Kai and talked to him.
Fortunately, she just came out of the restroom alone, although she seemed troubled.
"Hilary, I need to find Kai, something's wrong with him. You stay here, I'll come back for you and we'll go back together to the hotel, alright?"
The girl visibly was too busy with her own problem, because she didn't reply anything to what Tyson had been just telling her.
"Do you know where I can find Tala?"
"We just talked at the bar." Tyson pointed in the direction, but his hand dropped in disappointment. The Blitskrieg was not there anymore.
He heard Hilary growling loudly in her irritation, then looked around, hesitant what to do next.
"I'll tell Sergei, then." She said to herself and left Tyson behind without a word.
"Wait, what do you–"
Tyson dumbfoundedly looked after her, not sure if Hilary heard anything what he had said. He stood there completely perplexed for a few seconds. Eventually, he decided that he would go after Kai. Hilary seemed to be safe for now, and too busy with whatever came up unexpectedly.
Stepping out of the street, Tyson's ear and muscles relaxed in the open air. He finally leaved behind the noise and unscrupulous people. He didn't enjoy this kind of fun. He hoped that Hilary stayed clever enough and didn't get into any trouble while he was away looking for the captain.
But where the heck was Kai? The sourpuss could have gone in any direction.
Tyson checked every route before him, contemplating which one to choose, but not knowing this part of the city, he had no better idea than going back to the hotel. Perhaps, he would be lucky and he found him in his way.
He kept open his eyes, hoping to find something that screamed like a place where Kai would prefer to be. After a few minutes of walking, he noticed a small park with a fountain in the center. There were big, well-trimmed bushes around it, providing a good place to hide in the shadows. Tyson went off the wide sidewalk and aimed the park. It was worth checking.
Stopping at the fountain, Tyson helplessly looked around. Here, it was relatively quiet, but he could still hear the noises of the busy city. Kai could not be seen within sight. He headed back to the sidewalk with disappointment, when he noticed two familiar figures on it.
It was Boris with Alexandra in his hands. The girl seemed unconscious.
"Hey!" Tyson cried out loud, to get the attention of the Blitzkrieg boy.
Boris obviously noticed him, because he directly looked at Tyson. Although, the guy didn't bother to stop. He turned his head back and kept walking hurriedly in the direction of the hotel.
"Boris, hey! What are you doing?!"
Tyson wanted to go after the Russians when the sound of a shaky breath behind his back caught his ear. He immediately spun around and stared into the shadows. Looking closely, now he saw the shape of a young man sitting under a big tree.
It was Kai.
Something seemed off with the captain, his body language was different from the usual one that showed power and ignorance. Meanwhile, Tyson feared that, if he didn't go after Boris and find out what he was up to with a knocked out Alexandra, something bad would happen that he could have prevented and regret later.
He vacillated, looking helplessly between Boris and Alexandra's moving away figures and Kai's broken silhouette in the dark.
Kai was his teammate, his friend. Boris and Alexandra were Tala's responsibility and problem. Making his decision, Tyson turned his complete attention to the phoenix, who was just staring into the nothingness in front of him.
"Is everything alright, Kai?" Tyson asked.
He had to wait a long time for the answer. He didn't dare to come closer to the captain for some reason. His instincts told him he should keep his distance, give space to Kai. Tyson saw how the phoenix was struggling to say anything, and for a moment, he had a disturbing assumption that Kai might be crying.
When the captain finally spoke up, his voice was not his. It was tremulous and weak, fighting back a breakdown.
"I'm having a panic attack."
AN: Okay, so Chapter 26 and 27 originally was one huge chapter, but I found it would be suitable to slip them. They would have been 30+ pages long!
How did you like the party in the story? I wanted to create some neutral, light circumstances for the characters, so we can focus on the character development. These chapters contained lots of talk, talk, talk, and the next ones will be probably the same, but I hope you enjoyed them anyway. These all will be important conversations.
Leave a review, let me know what's your impression while I'm working on the next chapter.
Until then, stay safe and laugh a lot! I'm going to sleep now...