Of Boys and Blades
Part Two
Chapter 23
xXx
Hilary
xXx
The sun woke me up early. I'd forgotten to close the curtains. Stretching, I debated over getting up or trying to get more sleep. This was my favorite hotel room so far. The boys were all in a bedroom with sliding doors. I almost felt like I had my own room on the couch. I yawned. The next match wouldn't start for a few hours. In the end I decided to get up and enjoy a long, refreshing shower.
I was loving Egypt. I really enjoyed all this traveling. It was making me give a lot of thought to what I wanted to do in the future. Definitely something where I could see the world. I dressed in the bathroom and fixed my hair. I never wore a lot of makeup. Just mascara and lip gloss. Any more than that my mother called me a painted whore.
The boys were all up by the time I was finished. Tyson rushed into the bathroom first, pushing Daichi out of the way. The younger boy was left pounding his fists on the door screaming. They gave me such a headache.
"Daichi, shut up! It's not like they're going to run out of hot water."
I sat down with Kenny at our dining area. "What'cha working on?"
"The best strategies for Tyson and Daichi to use against F Dynasty tomorrow."
"Is Hiro at the BBA meeting already?" I didn't see him in the room. The morning of every match there was a BBA meeting the coaches and captains of each team were required to attend.
"Yeah."
The boys were finishing up. Kenny was the last in the shower. I decided to head down for breakfast. Opening the door, I heard a soft thud against it. There was a ribbon-wrapped box hanging from the outside handle with a folded note attached. I pulled it off the door and went back into the room, reading.
In English:
To Hilary,
A goddess whose beauty rivals Cleopatra herself.
From an Admirer
I felt myself grinning. Opening the box I found a simple gold necklace with a beautiful scarab beetle pendant. I let out an excited squeak.
"What is it?" Tyson asked, coming over.
"Do you know who this is from?" I showed him the box and necklace.
He shrugged with a grin. "Someone has a crush on you." He watched my face. "You're red."
"Shut up."
"What's in the box?" Daichi asked, yanking on my wrist.
"Nothing for you."
Tyson took the box out of my hands. "Wear it. It's gotta be someone involved in the tournament. Someone foreign. Maybe we'll see someone watching you." He removed it from the box and stepped behind me, draping the necklace around me and fastening it in the back.
I pulled my hair out of the way. His fingers felt feather light against my neck, tickling me in a pleasant way. I'd never really been touched by a boy like that.
The bathroom door opened and Kenny stopped when he saw us. He looked from Tyson, to me, then pointed, "Is Hilary the girl you're dating!?"
We jumped apart. "What? God, no!" I exclaimed.
"No!" Tyson yelled, then looked at me. "I should feel insulted."
"Then who are you dating?"
"No, I'm not dating anyone, Kenny."
"But you told Emma—"
"She was unzipping my pants. I was trying to get away from her."
"Who's Emma?" I asked.
"Why would a girl unzip your pants?" Daichi asked, curious. "Did you have to go to the bathroom? Were your hands full so you couldn't do it yourself?"
The conversation stopped. Tyson, Kenny and I all exchanged glances.
"Umm... Daichi, do you know where babies come from?" I asked tentatively.
"Yeah. They come out of the mom."
"But how does the baby get there?"
He shrugged. I could tell he honestly had never given it a second thought before.
"What do they teach you in your village?" Tyson asked. He scratched his head with a forced smile. "Daichi, you're twelve, right?"
"Yeah."
"Are you going to tell him?" Kenny asked.
"I think we kind of have to. What if a girl like Emma comes onto him? He won't even know what's going on."
I could just imagine how this was going to go. "I'm going to sit this one out. Have some guy time." I left the hotel room quickly, bumping into Hiro on my way to the elevator. "You don't want to go in there. They're explaining to Daichi what sex is."
He turned and followed me. "Yeah, I don't think I want to be there for that. Oh, hey, Hilary, there was a box on the door for you this morning. Did you get it?"
"Yeah. Any idea who left it?"
Hiro shook his head.
I smiled as we got the elevator, wondering who left it for me. The doors opened and a yawning Tala exited. He was half dressed and his hair wasn't spiked up. "Hello, again." He looked to me. "Good morning," he said with a smile. Tala had really beautiful eyes.
"Good morning," I said softly as we passed.
Hiro shook his head once the elevator doors were closed. "I swear, he shows up to every meeting hungover."
Hiro and I sat down to breakfast and eventually the other boys joined us. "How did that go?" I whispered to Tyson after they'd gotten their food from the buffet.
"Longest fifteen minutes of my life."
Daichi sat down across from me with his plate of food. "Hilary, do you want a penis inside you?"
I choked on my eggs. "This isn't exactly a conversation to have over breakfast, Daichi."
"It just sounds painful. Why would anyone want that?"
"Can we stop talking about this now?" Kenny asked.
Hiro took the lead, facing Daichi. "Look, sex feels good when you're old enough and you're with the right person. You're really young. This is nothing you need to worry about right now, alright?"
Daichi nodded. "So when are you old enough?"
"Eighteen," Hiro told him after a moment.
"How many people have you slept with, big bro?" Tyson asked mischievously.
"If we're not going to talk about your sex life, then we're definitely not talking about mine."
xXx
Tala
xXx
"Where do you want to sit?" Spencer asked me.
"I'm trying to find Kai." My eyes scanned the stadium. I could usually find him by his hair. "There he is."
"What is with him and roof tops?" Bryan asked.
"He used to do that at the Abbey, too. He was always on the roof. Let's find a way up." Together we found a maintenance stairway and found our way to Kai.
He glanced over as we approached, perplexed. "What are you guys doing?"
"We're sitting together. We're a team, right?" I sat down on the ledge, my legs crossed. I had a bag full of snacks and drinks. "I brought baklava!" I split the bag between them. Kai came over for one. That boy loved sweets. "And here." I had four bottles of Sprite I'd filled half with vodka. "Enjoy the match." I took a big drink.
It was time for the battle to start. Max shocked everyone by asking for a team challenge. "Why is he doing that? He and Rick don't seem like they work that well together." I asked Kai.
He shrugged. "It doesn't seem like a good strategy, especially not against Rei and Lee."
Max and Rick started battling each other and eventually they all threw teamwork out the door. This was awesome!I got to my feet. "Go, Max!" I cheered. I'd had a couple of shots back in the hotel room.
Bryan watched me with a sardonic grin.
"What? Max is cool. He was fun to drink with. He can party with us anytime."
"When were you drinking with Max?" he asked, sipping his soda.
"That night I slept with Kai."
"Don't say it like that," Kai snapped.
That made Bryan howl with laughter. Spencer found it equally hilarious. Kai most definitely did not.
"Did you guys know that Max has had sex. He's not as innocent as he looks." I looked over at Kai. "Is Rei a virgin?"
"Last I knew." Kai was watching the battle intently.
"You think they're your only real competition, don't you?" I asked him. "Your old teammates."
"I know how strong they are. We're battling the White Tigers in Australia. You should be paying attention, instead of getting drunk."
"Oh, you are not the one to lecture me about drinking, Kai."
I looked down over the crowd. BBA Revolution was sitting in a section not too far down from us. I spotted Daichi first. I really wanted a rematch with that kid. Hilary was still wearing the necklace. I felt a smile on my lips.
"What?" Bryan asked.
"Nothing." I took another drink.
The end of the battle was intense. The four of them battled until they were absolutely exhausted and it ended in an explosion. In the end, the winner was Lee.
"That was cool," Bryan commented. "I'd love a battle like that."
I nodded. "Yeah, me, too." I patted his shoulder. "Come on, it's time to meet Aya. She says her friends are hot."
Bryan stuck out his tongue and made a slurping sound as we left. Spencer and Kai followed. I wasn't sure if he would.
Now he was drinking the Sprite.
The sun was quickly disappearing over the horizon as we made it to the street market. I saw Aya and her friends purchasing some souvenirs. She waved to us. "Tala!"
She greeted me with a kiss. "Hello. I'm Aya. This is Yasmine, and Sara. It's a pleasure to meet you all."
Spencer smiled. "You as well."
"The pleasure is all mine," Bryan said with a smirk.
Kai gave a small nod of acknowledgement. His Sprite was gone.
We walked through the market making small talk, trying to figure out what we should do. It was kind of late to get dinner and the drinking age was twenty-one so that was out. Yasmine seemed to have taken a liking to Bryan. Sara kept looking from Spencer to Kai, waiting for one of them to pay attention to her.
Spencer's phone went off. "Alyo," he answered in Russian. "Tanya. I'm sorry, mllaya moyna," he went on giving her excuses for why he hadn't called her. Long distance relationships never worked. He should just break up with her so he could have actually some fun. He stepped away from us to continue his conversation. Sara looked at Kai who was more interested in small carved trinkets of Egyptian cats. Figures.
"I like cats," she told him.
"That's nice."
"Oooh!" Aya led me to another stall. "Sunset camel rides. That's so romantic! I've always wanted to do that. Let's go! Please!"
"Riding a camel? I don't think so." I made a face. No. They were big, ugly, smelly, and they spit. I looked at Bryan. He didn't appear enthusiastic about this, either.
Kai drifted over from the cat figures and knelt beside one of the resting camels. He let it sniff his hand before he pet it. What was it with Kai and animals? He jumped to his feet. "Let's do it," he told us, giving me an evil grin.
Aya seemed excited to have an ally.
Spencer returned from his phone call. "So what are we doing?"
"We're riding camels," Kai told him without waiting for anyone else to respond. He went to the tour guide and paid for all our tickets. He smirked in my direction.
I glared at him as the guide began going over how to interact with the creatures.
We began our tour. Riding a camel was rough on the genitals. The way the camel moved felt like sandpaper on my balls. "I hate you, Kai. I hate you," I whined in Russian so the girls wouldn't understand me.
Kai was petting his camel and not listening to me at all.
"Isn't this beautiful?" Aya asked me as we left the city.
"Sure. Lots of sand. Gorgeous."
I heard Spencer chuckling behind me. "So you do have a sense of humor," he said to Kai.
"This is payback for the party."
The pyramids grew bigger as we approached. Yeah, they were pretty amazing and eventually I no longer felt my dick. We made it to our destination and got to take a fifteen minute break to enjoy the view. The stars were starting to be visible in the twilight.
I hopped off my camel. "Is this not bothering you guys?" I asked, rubbing my junk.
"It feels kind of good," Bryan teased.
"Yeah, well, you're a sadist, Bryan."
Kai pet his camel as he took in the view of the pyramids without a word.
Our fifteen minutes were up and we got ready to head back to the city. I got back on the camel.
"It's worse!" I yelled. "It's worse than it was before," I belted in Russian. "This sucks. My balls hurt! My cock hurts! My balls might never be the same again! I'm never going to be able to have children after this! Kai, I hate you."
Kai just smirked like I was music to his ears.
"You're going to scare them and make them spit at you," Spencer told me.
I groaned. This was the worst!
We made it back to the city. Sara and Aya excused themselves and Bryan went off with Yasmine. Spencer, Kai and I headed back to our hotel. My stomach was growling. We hadn't really eaten much before the tournament so we stopped in the hotel restaurant to grab something quick.
"That was awful. Thanks a lot, Kai." I bit into my sandwich.
"For treating you to an amazing romantic sunset camel ride to the pyramids of Giza? You're welcome."
"You're an asshole. A petty asshole."
Kai smiled to himself as he ate his food.
Spencer was texting his girlfriend again.
"She pissed?"
He sighed. "Yeah. I told her I've been busy. She just doesn't get it."
"Dump her annoying ass."
Spencer shot me a glare.
I looked at Kai. "It's been seven months. They've seen each other in person three times. They've kissed and held hands. That's it. Do you think this is worth pursuing?"
"I'm the last person who should give any advice on relationships."
"Do you have a girlfriend, Kai?" Spencer asked.
"No."
"Boyfriend?" I asked with a bat of my eyelashes.
"No."
"Well, what do you have?" I asked.
"A mistake."
Spencer was watching him. "Was it really a mistake, Kai?"
He paused, thinking over his words. "I don't know."
Something about is tone. It kind of made me sad. I looked at Spencer. "Does Tanya make you happy?"
He shrugged. "I'm happy when I'm with her, but not when dealing with this." He gestured to his phone.
None of the girls I'd been with had ever made me happy. "So does the good outweigh the bad with her?"
"I thought you hated me dating her."
"Look, if she genuinely makes you happy, then I'll stop riding you about her, alright. Does the good outweigh the bad?"
Spencer didn't want to answer. Eventually he said, "It used to. I guess I need to end things, huh?"
"Up to you, man." I looked at Kai. "What about yours? You call it a mistake so I'm guessing there were complications. Did the good outweigh the bad?"
"Most of the time."
"Then that might be a mistake that's worth it."
Kai just shook his head.
"Are you going to give me any kind of detail?"
"No."
We finished the rest of our meals in silence and headed back up to our room. Kai was the first with the key card and unlocked the door.
The lights were all on and the doors to the bedroom were closed. I knew we'd left them open. Spencer pulled the doors apart and we were met with the sight of Bryan naked and in bed with not just Yasmine, but Aya, too. "What the fuck, Bryan?" I yelled in Russian. "I slept with her last night." I pointed to Aya.
Bryan smiled. "Hey, guys."
Aya and Yasmine decided they should go and quickly got dressed. Spencer went into the bathroom. Kai had quietly gone over to the living area of our room and was trying not to look at them. I watched. I had zero fucks to give.
Once the girls were gone we all got changed. Spencer took one look at the bed he was sharing with Bryan, then decided to lay on the couch. Kai gave him a death glare.
"Sleep with Bryan or Tala. I'm not getting in that cesspool."
Kai got into my bed.
Bryan never bothered to put clothes on. "No funny business over there," he teased. "I'll watch."
Kai and I both grabbed the first thing we could and threw it at him. "Ow!" He was laughing, though. Turning off the light, I fell into the bed beside Kai.
"Don't get any ideas," I teased, hitting Kai in the arm.
He hit me back harder. "Just keep your fucking hands off me."
My dick still hurt.
xXx
Kai
xXx
Tyson was losing. It was maddening to watch. He was so much better than this! What the hell was going through his head? He was the one to challenge F Dynasty to a team battle, and he was completely failing at working with Daichi. Was he so desperate to prove himself?
"God, Tyson sucks," Tala laughed. "Talk about a fall from grace."
Bryan chuckled beside him. "So much for the world champion."
"Will you two shut up? Neither of you have ever beaten him."
"What, don't like us talking bad about your precious Tyson?" Tala smirked at me.
I flicked him off, my attention back on the match. The hell with them.
Rei's words came back to haunt me. I'd really fucked up, hadn't I? I should've told him. I didn't think about how badly this might all affect him. I thought Tyson would just get over it, use his anger, and push through. He was the strongest person I knew.
I remembered when I'd returned to Bay City from boarding school. Kenny had made the remark that Tyson hadn't been playing consistently since the Bladebreakers broke up. Did he really not think he was any good without us? I needed to talk to him.
"Awful," I said as I watched the end of the battle. Tyson looked completely defeated. The others had joined me on the roof once more. I found a place to jump down to the next level and left without a word.
"Kai!" I heard Tala call me.
I knew which meeting room was theirs. Quickly I made my way to that hall before they came back in. I didn't know what I was going to say but I had to say something. I came down a side hallway to wait. There was a room nearby, it looked like a storage room, full of chairs. I saw Hiro go down the main hall, followed by Daichi, Hilary, and Kenny. Tyson was nowhere to be seen.
After they passed I waited at the corner of the two hallways. Tyson was trailing far behind. The others filed into their meeting room. Tyson saw me and stopped dead in his tracks. I disappeared back down the hall, hoping he'd follow. I waited in front of that storage room I'd found.
"What are you doing?" Tyson asked me, coming around the corner.
Grabbing his arm I pulled him into the room, letting the door shut behind us. His skin felt hot against mine. He looked angry, annoyed, and confused all at the same time. Looking into his eyes I thought I saw longing. Had I forgotten how attracted I was to him? It had been months since I'd been this close to him. Forgetting whatever I was even thinking about saying, I pinned him to the wall, my lips claiming his. He tried to push me away but I wouldn't let him, and finally he relaxed against me. I felt his arms encircle my neck, his fingers digging into my hair and pulling me closer. He was hot and sweaty and god he tasted so good. This felt so right. Why he did he terrify me so much? I wanted this stolen moment to last forever. Fervently we kissed, with increasing desperation. I could barely breath. And then he bit my lip.
"Tyson—"
"You're not going to make this right by kissing me," he hissed with a glare.
I blew into his ear. "Then what do I have to do?" I whispered teasingly.
He pushed me away from him. "I'm serious! What the hell, Kai?"
"Why are you playing so badly?" I asked instead of answering. "You should've won that battle easily. They're nowhere near your level."
He shifted uncomfortably with a huff, clenching his fists. "I'm tired of people asking what's wrong with me!" he growled through gritted teeth. "Don't start acting like you care all of a sudden!"
I licked my lips. I could taste him. And blood. I took a deep breath. "Is it because of me?" I asked softly, voicing the the thoughts that had been plaguing me throughout the tournament.
"Oh, don't go thinking you're so special. The whole world doesn't fucking revolve around you," he spat my words back at me.
"Is it?"
"We were a team," he finally said quietly, refusing to look me in the eye. "You guys were like my family. My real family abandoned me and all I've ever had was Gramps. The Bladebreakers were my family. That was the best thing that ever happened to me. I thought we could get through anything together. But I guess it just didn't mean as much to the rest of you." His eyes were wet. Shit, was he really going to cry over this?
"That's not true," I said after a moment.
"Don't humor me."
"I'm not. The Bladebreakers meant a lot to all of us. Max and Rei don't hate you. They're not mad at you. And neither am I. We just all wanted to see exactly how good we are on our own. Is that a crime?"
"But we were a team! The best team in the BBA! Why would you guys want to win on your own when we could do it together?"
"Yeah, we were a team, Tyson, but the champion has always been you. Did you honestly think we'd never get tired of living in your shadow?"
"So you just want to take me on, too?"
"Wouldn't you, if you were me?"
"Why didn't you tell me?"
I closed the distance between us. "Would you have understood?" I kissed him again, and this time he didn't struggle.
"At least Max and Rei had the balls to tell me to my face. Why didn't you?"
"I tried." I shifted uncomfortably. "The night before."
"Umm... you gave me a blow job. You didn't try very hard."
"I couldn't do it, alright." I pulled away from him. "I just... I guess I just didn't want to see you upset. Happy?"
He kept his face blank. "Kai Hiwatari, if I didn't know any better I would almost think I actually mean something to you."
"Maybe you do."
He watched me for a moment, breathing deeply. "Liar. You're a fucking liar. You've always been."
"I'm not lying about that."
"No. We're not doing this now. Not after all the shit you've said and done to me. No fucking way." He stormed out the door, slamming it behind him.
Taking a deep breath, I closed my eyes. And then I was out the door.
I chased after him. Into the hallway, then into the main hall. This was dangerous. This was stupid. Fucking hormones. Grabbing his hand, I pulled him back into my arms and kissed his surprised lips. "You said you would make sure everything would come down to you and me," I whispered. "I want that to happen. Can you just promise me you'll stop screwing up and make that happen?"
Tyson's resistance was gone. He kissed me back, melting into me. "Okay," he breathed out between kisses. "I will, I promise."
I let go of him, backing away. "We can talk when it's over."
Tyson fought back a grin. "Yeah. After I beat your ass."
I flicked him off as I walked away back down the side hall, a small smile on my lips. Fuck, fuck, fuck. Tyson was something I was never going to get out of my system, was I?
xXx
Hiro
xXx
The worst part of being Tyson's coach was being his brother, too. I was a better coach than a brother, and really sucked when I tried to do both.
I couldn't tell him what to do. He was too stubborn. He had to learn from his own mistakes. And his mistakes had cost him another match. I didn't understand the pressure he was under. I didn't and I couldn't pretend. I'd never been in his shoes. The collapse of the team he'd come to rely on and the betrayal of those whom he considered his best friends had caused him to lose confidence in his own abilities.
And he was just so hard to talk to. Anytime I tried to talk about anything seriously all I would get was a flippant response or a stupid joke. I looked at the door. What was taking him so long?
Daichi was upset about the battle. Hilary and Kenny were trying to cheer him up. Tyson needed to be with his team. I went to get him.
I opened the door, stepping into the hallway. I froze. Tyson and Kai were....kissing? What the fuck?
I ducked back into the room before they saw me. I knew I wasn't meant to see that.
"What's wrong, coach?" Hilary asked, watching my face..
I shook my head. "Nothing. It's nothing. We need to get ready to go to Australia."
xXx
AN: This chapter was so much fun. I think it might be one of my favorites. I knew I wanted to include the scene of Kai with the camel somehow and Tala came up with it. :p