"So far, these are the standings." Kris pointed at the tv screen that showcased our overall scores as of now in the tournament.
"We've got Valt with one win and one loss, Cuza with two losses, and Free and Ally with two wins." She summarised quickly as we observed the screen with her.
Shasa beside me offered a high five which I gladly indulged in. A quiet murmur fell over the group as they discussed the scores.
"Huh, two losses." Cuza said sadly. Kris smiled slightly at him.
"Cheer up, Cuza. You still have a chance to win!" That immediately got the boy back in high spirits somehow.
On my other side was Free. He hadn't said a word to anyone since he walked in which confused me a little, but he still stood next to me and, unfortunately for my heart, hooked his pinky onto mine which eased my worries.
"Do we know the lineup for Round 3?" Shasa asked excitedly and Kris nodded.
"Yup! It looks like Valt will be up against Norman Tarver."
"Norman Tarver?" Valt put a finger to his chin in thought along with Taro and Kit.
"Hm...who was that again?"
"No idea." With that conversation swiftly ended, Kris continued.
"Cuza will be facing Shu Kurenai, or as you previously knew him, Red Eye." The boy jumped and somehow found his way over to me. I let out a small yelp as he hid behind my back from the news.
"You're kidding? That guy?" I smiled fondly at the boy behind me before patting his head with my free hand.
"You'll be fine."
"I'll lose!" He insisted.
"Only if you believe you will." I chuckled matter-of-factly.
"And finally," Kris spoke again. "Ally will be facing off against Free." Now that truly got the room into shambles. The murmur quickly turned into a mixed chatter.
"What?! No way!" I was surprised that the lollipop in Taro's mouth didn't drop. I looked over at my opponent and felt our intertwined pinkies tighten subconsciously from both sides.
He simply smiled at me before intentionally squeezing my finger one more time and turning to leave.
"Let's have a good battle, Ally." He waved from over his shoulder as I nodded even though he most definitely wouldn't have seen it.
"Yeah."
~~~
"Maybe I should put my faith in Valt instead." Brie put a finger to her chin in thought, completely ignoring my frustrated mumbling.
"Don't give up on me!" I wailed at her.
"I've trained with Free loads of times! And I've won a few battles too!" I offered all kinds of reassurance but she still looked playfully doubtful.
"Hmm, yeah. Valt it is." She started walking away but I lunged for her coat.
"Oh, c'mon! I'm not completely hopeless! I just need a strategy. Like I did with Lui!" I pleaded with her and she finally stopped in her tracks.
Her expression was thoughtful as I stood up and got ready for a battle. She raised an inquisitive eyebrow at my actions.
"Seriously? Lui is easy to mimic. I've watched him battle back in Japan almost a thousand times. Shu...is easy for me as well. But you expect me to provide you with training that will prepare you for the top blader in the world?" She scoffed. I doubled over in surprise.
"What?! No, surely you can do it! Right? Please?!" I clasped my hands together. She shrugged.
"The best I can do is give you somewhat of a tough opponent to try out your strategies against. Though, it won't be very accurate." She warned. I sighed and kicked my foot a little.
"Yeah, I guess training for someone like him isn't exactly easy." We were silent for a bit while we contemplated how I would overcome this.
The sun was beautiful on our skin and I almost wished I was enjoying it on a beach somewhere instead of at a bey stadium stressing.
Suddenly, Brie put her hands on her hips.
"Wait, aren't you two literally together?" She deadpanned and I could feel the judgement from behind her mask.
I pursed my lips and avoided eye contact. Curse my heart for beating faster for absolutely no reason.
"I mean...yeah? What's that gotta do with anything." I mumbled my words out from the sheer embarrassment of just admitting that I had a boyfriend.
She rolled her eyes, or at least, I'm pretty sure she did.
"You train together all the time and you know each other! If anyone would know how to beat him, it would be you!" She stated matter-of-factly.
I thought back to all our training sessions together which must have been months ago. They were murky and...I couldn't make out much.
But if Free had some sort of weakness I could use against him, I definitely wouldn't have forgotten it.
"If I'm being honest with you, he knows tons of my weaknesses in battle and I don't think I even know one." I sighed in defeat and collapsed from where I was standing.
The pink-haired girl came over and stared down at me pitifully.
"Seems like he's got you wrapped around his finger." She commented. My head stayed down in shame.
"I would normally disagree but at this moment...yeah." She shrugged again.
"Good luck." She was about to walk off when I lurched up and grabbed her coat.
She looked back and I could feel the confusion radiating off her person but the determined look in my eyes stilled her.
"Wait." My tone was low as the gears in my head turned like crazy. "I might have an idea." She sighed and sat down.
"Go on." I took a moment to collect the thoughts running through my brain as the sudden idea manifested and built itself up.
"Spear Slash." I stated simply. She tilted her head to the side.
"'Spear Slash?'" Her tone was sceptical.
"That one move of yours that gathers momentum by bouncing itself around the stadium before transferring all of the built-up power into one point, right?" At my nod, she hummed.
"I'm pretty sure I've seen you execute it before. I recall thinking that it was similar to one of my brother's moves with his big sword on the top of his bey. But that's just one of your moves, how is it supposed to beat the top blader in the world?"
She asked inquisitively. The creepy grin on my face must have made her more suspicious of my plan as she slowly backed up.
"Here's the plan."
~~~
"And welcome back bey fans!'' The familiar blare of the speakers as the announcer screamed through the mic was loud even from down here on my platform.
I was clutching Athena hard in my hands, incredibly nervous for the upcoming battle.
The battle itself aside though, I was actually quite excited to be facing him in an official match. I haven't yet, have I?
"Nope. I haven't felt the real kind of force from Fafnir since before they left!" Athena chimed into my thoughts. I laughed a little.
"Yeah, bet you're just raving to get a taste of that." I teased,
"Barf."
Suddenly, the platform started rising and the drowned out sound of the crowd became clearer as the hatch above me opened up.
A red light shone down ominously and when I ascended, the announcer gave his usual, wrestle-match introduction.
"What an exciting match we have here, folks! The undefeated, golden champion against the warrior ready to strike down anybody that gets in her way!" He did his usual hype up when I finally made eye contact with Free.
He looked content. At ease. Quite a contrast to what I was feeling before so it also made me relax a little.
We both stepped off of the platform and started walking when the announcer continued to talk.
"Or, as some fans may call her, 'The Girlfriend.' Ooh!"
I almost tripped over my own feet as my face bursted into red. Was it me imagining it or did the crowd scream louder?
I glared up at the announcer's booth before shaking my head and focusing.
When I stepped up to the bey stadium, I noticed Free's tiny smirk.
Yeah, I bet you liked that stupid title. You little, yellow ba-
"Focus." Athena reminded.
"He started it."
"Ready? Set!"
With that, we both got into position. I broke eye contact from him and opted to look down instead. I can't be distracted. I can't let feelings get in the way of a battle.
Especially since Free would never forgive me otherwise if he won a biassed battle. I made sure to click Athena into attack mode earlier and I know Free was watching my every move.
It didn't matter now whether my opponent saw me change her gears or not since I can change mid-battle now.
"3!"
"2!"
"1!"
"Let it rip!"
As quickly as the beys dropped in, they were immediately thrown out.
A collective gasp sounded out as both beys clinked on the ground at exactly the same time.
"Woah, woah, woah! What the heck was that?!" The announcer called out maniacally. "Let it rip and then right back out!"
"Simultaneous ring-out finish. Draw!" The referee called out. I let out the breath I didn't know I had held. I met Free's eye and the amusement was evident.
Looks like we had the same plan: Don't give the other person time to breathe. Of course, it was an obvious plan since we both used time and strategies to win most of the time.
Free with his Drain Spin and me with my tactic of changing gears or building up momentum. So the most obvious counter would be to not let the other person even think.
The beys hadn't even made it around the stadium halfway before colliding.
Too bad I think just a little farther outside of the box. I grabbed Athena and clicked her in again before getting into position.
Free wasted no time in doing the same thing. Up on the screen, large letters spelled out 'Round 2.'
"Ready? Set!"
"3!"
"2!"
"1!"
"Let it rip!"
Both beys only got one bounce in before they collided and bounced right back out.
"Wowza! Again?! This is insane! Neither beys will take even a moment in the stadium before they're racing for their opponent!"
The announcer was quick to commentate as Athena and Fafnir hit the ground. The ref held up both hands once again.
"Simultaneous ring-out finish. Draw!" My eyebrows furrowed but I gave no signs of frustration. I didn't think. I just clicked Athena back in as quickly as Free did and got into position again.
"Let it rip"
Again.
"Rip!"
Again.
"Rip!"
Again! Again and again, neither side gave up as they continued to just collide as soon as they entered the ring.
I panted slightly but was still brimming with energy. I took a good look at my opponent's condition as the big letters on the screen now read 'Round 6.'
Not a sweat broken, of course, but I know my boyfriend enough to see the way his posture was just slightly lazier than usual.
As expected, he's wearing out too. Although this seems like a pointless game of just in-and-out of the ring, each of us are putting our absolute all into every launch we do.
We attack with all the power we've got and we get right back to it once the ref calls the draw. It's...tiring and quite frankly, ineffective.
"You said it." Athena huffed. "What are you athletic freaks trying to accomplish here?! I mean, I didn't take either one of you for being the type of blader to show off your stamina and strength like this! What kind of battle-"
I cut her off as I picked her up from the ground, getting ready for the next round.
"Alright, alright. I get it. I was just warming up." I slightly grinned as the bey was clicked back into my launcher once again.
"It's time to get serious." I exclaimed. She scoffed in reply.
"The look in your eyes changed."
The sudden voice of my opponent startled me enough to almost make me drop my launcher. I looked towards the boy while I gripped the launcher tightly.
"Uh, what?" Intelligent response, as per usual. He tilted his head to the left but there was no smile on his face.
In fact...were his eyes glowing?
They were. They were glowing that eerie gold I saw the other night when he snuck into my room.
"You're finally getting serious. Good." He held up his launcher and his gaze hardened as he waited for the ref to start the round.
I wasted no time in being confused and held mine up into position as well. Is he trying to throw me off? No, his demeanour is way too serious.
I have a feeling this next battle will be our last. I let my aura seep out of me and I knew my purple streak must have been glowing now.
"Then let's do this, just like we envisioned." At the fluctuation of my power, Athena's wispy, giant figure appeared behind me in a battle-ready position.
I nodded while keeping my stormy eyes forward.
"Yeah."
"Ready? Set!"
"3!"
"2!"
"1!"
"Let it rip!"
Athena drops into the stadium and immediately dodges the incoming attack from Fafnir.
"Ohoho! What's this?! Looks like this round won't be the same as what we've seen so far! Athena X swiftly veers out of Fafnir's predictable path and is now circling around the stadium!"
Just as the announcer said, Athena spun strong around the ring while Fafnir fell into the centre, waiting for incoming attacks.
"Athena! Give 'em a Rapid Launch!"
"Just a few more hits in, Athena. Then, we'll have enough to attack!"
According to the plan, Athena circled in for a barrage of powerful hits. That's when Free finally noticed the unnatural glow emitting from the small bey that only seemed to grow as the attacks continued.
"Huh, I feel like I've seen this before." He wondered to himself but my small chuckle snapped him out of his thoughts. He looked up at me to see the small smile adorning my face.
"You have." I clenched my jaw and hoped that this would work out. I mean, I basically just used this move against Lui in my last match. He tilted his head again.
"Spear Slash' right? If I can recall, this was the surprise move that you beat me with once. Your bey bounces around the stadium while hitting only three of the four points on your 'X'. And then, when you're ready to strike, all that power gets transferred to the last point and 'slashes' through your opponent." My jaw fell open.
"How do you remember so well?" I asked as Athena continued to crash into her enemy. He smirked at my shock and I was far too stressed to even find it attractive. (It was.)
"Everyone's an opponent. I wouldn't forget such a powerful move." He stated matter-of-factly. "And I certainly wouldn't have left it at that either. Fafnir, counter!"
At his command, Fafnir spun itself out of the centre and raced after the glowing Athena. I made a choked noise of surprise and shot my hand out.
"Athena, don't let him catch up!" Athena heeded and spun faster to escape the pest on her tail. She banged into the wall which further added to her momentum which Free tsked at, knowing that she's only getting more and more powerful.
"Knock it out of there, Fafnir!" Suddenly, faster than I could blink, Fafnir sped up at an incredible rate and smashed into Athena.
"No way!" I exclaimed as my bey was thrown up into the air.
"We can't burst, the match will be over!" Athena panicked in the split second that she hovered in the air.
Time seemed to move slower as we conversed. The cheering of the crowd grew murky in my ears and the lights blindingly showed off my partner as she spun in the air. I grit my teeth.
"We can't do Wisdom Lock either, those earlier matches will have been for nothing! Focus, partner. Don't burst!"
I held my breath as Athena slowly fell through the air, further adding to the tension in my body.
*clink*
"Drain Fafnir with a ring-out finish! A point for Free!"
I let out a huge sigh of relief but quickly sucked it back in. Too late. Free looked at me sceptical as he picked up his bey.
"Actually, now that I think about it, why was the bey glowing from the start of the match anyway?" Instead of answering, I hardened my expression, avoided eye contact, and clicked Athena in. At my silent treatment, Free did the same.
"Ready? Set!"
"3!"
"2!"
"1!"
"Let it rip!"
"Now, Athena! Drain Spear Slash!" Free's eyes widened at my words.
As soon as the two beys dropped in, they raced towards each other on instinct, one with nothing but the power from its launch and the other with glowing momentum from seven matches prior to this.
I yelled as the two collided.
A bright light erupted from the stadium but I could clearly make out the projections in the air.
A fiery, golden dragon baring its claws at a large woman decked out in full battle armour. As the steel of her spear met the sharp claws, a distinct bursting sound could be heard and the stadium was washed over in light.
I panted hard as the massive output of power we just let out took a huge toll on my body. When I blinked the spots out of my eyes, I finally made out the three pieces of a bey laid out across the ring.
The familiar colours of purple and grey made my heart drop as my whole body seemed to drop in both disappointment and exhaustion.
No way our plan failed. There's no way that it was too much for us to handle. We were always able to handle anything we came up with. Right?
"Who won?" Free's voice cut through my thoughts as I looked up to see the stern look he was giving the referee.
I tilted my head. Wasn't it obvious? My bey was burst into three.
I looked back down to confirm it and my eyes widened to see that Fafnir was also laying out in pieces. I also whipped my head towards the ref in anticipation.
The man looked back and forth between the two beys and the whole stadium seemed to be holding their breaths.
Finally, he shot out his hand...towards me.
"Athena X with a burst finish. With a score of 2-1, Ally Deelo wins!"
I collapsed onto one knee and held onto my chest. My heart was revived! The anticipation almost stopped its beating for a moment.
Relief washed over my body and I was thankful for the crowd drawing out the thunderous pounding in my ears.
After taking a few deep breaths, I looked up only to furrow my eyebrows at the sight of Free's distant figure. He was already leaving the scene. Well that's a strike to the heart.
"Don't tell me he's being a sore loser about our win." Athena scoffed. I shook my head as I watched him step onto the platform that began to descend.
He didn't even turn his back to acknowledge me."
"I don't think that's it." She remained quiet after that as the last tufts of his golden locks disappeared under the stage.
~~~
"Ally!" The airy voice of Honey called out to me as I stepped into the lobby of the arena.
I turned to see the small, blue-haired girl running over to me. I opened up my arms and she jumped into my embrace.
"Congratulations! I can't believe you won against Free!" Her smile was almost as blinding as the collision in the match and I laughed in response.
"Thank you! It was a tough match though." I patted her head lovingly as some of the other members gathered around me as well.
"Seriously, Ally. To win against Free in an official match is an incredible feat! Don't try to downplay it now!" Rickson laughed as he patted my shoulder. I joined his laughter awkwardly.
"I-I'm not! It was an incredibly difficult battle!" Taro came up on my other side with a creepy grin.
"Don't be so humble, Ally! Ahaha!" He chuckled heartily and that's when I slipped away from the strange group and backed up only to bump into Kris.
"Oh, sorry Krissy." I sighed. "They're acting weird." She merely stifled her giggles behind her hand.
"Don't mind them. Probably just jealous. Other than that, have you seen Free since the match?" She asked me while looking around. I did the same with a shake of my head.
"No, I haven't. He left so suddenly." I confessed as anxiety bubbled in my stomach. "I'll try to find him tonight." She nodded her head.
"Please do. Something about him was off today." She sighed and placed her hands on her hips before being led off by the commotion her club members were making in the middle of the lobby.
"You two! How many times must I tell you not to fight out in public?!"
~~~
*Later That Night*
Shasa's a snorer. If I ever told anyone outside of our room, I'd die for sure.
It never bothered me though. I've slept through worse before. And tonight, her loud snores were the perfect cover for my quiet footsteps to tiptoe across the room.
I managed to time a particularly deafening one with the creak of the door hinges. And with that, my escape was successful as I slipped through the small crack in the door and shut it gently.
I let out a sigh of relief before turning to face the brightly lit hallway.
"Where are you off to so late in the night? We've got a match tomorrow, y'know?" Athena's scolding tone was loud in my head and I jumped at the noise.
If anyone could see me now flinching at nothing in this hallway they would break down laughing for sure.
"Athena! Inside voices! We talked about this!" I whisper-shouted in my mind.
"We literally haven't. My question? Oh wait, no, don't answer. Lemme guess, Free?" She snickered teasingly as I sighed.
"Haha, you're a genius. Now that you know, leave me alone." I waved her off as I walked down the hall.
"What, are you just gonna pop into his room? He's bunking with Rickson right now. Don't tell me you're gonna subject the poor guy to you two making out the whole night." I growled at her teasing.
"Like he'd be in his room. I don't think he's ever spent a night in an actual bed before." I told her confidently as I passed Rickson and Free's room.
"So where would he be then? Training?" She wondered genuinely. I smiled.
"My guess is, somewhere close that reminds him of the forest back home. The green rooftop."
Sure enough, after climbing the flight of stairs and quietly opening the door to the rooftop, I spotted a blob of gold amongst the green scenery.
Knowing of his insanely perceptive hearing, I didn't bother concealing my footsteps as I made my way closer to him.
It was a little chilly as I made my way over to the edge of the building.
Of course he was dangling his legs over the side. Even if the building wasn't as tall as a city skyscraper, a fall from this height was still fatal.
My shoes tapped against the decorative tiles before I stopped when I was a metre or so from his back. The cool breeze blew through the line of trees that bordered the square rooftop.
I pulled at my jumper sleeves to create a bit of friction on my arms. The rubbing created a bit of warmth which was tolerable enough.
I reached out a hand to poke at his back when he suddenly grabbed my hand before it could reach.
Now, how in the world did he know I was reaching out. I knew he had good instincts but I didn't know he was psychic too.
"Uh-" My hand was frozen in his grip and he didn't even turn around to see me. Instead, he gently tugged at my arm to bring me forward and I took that as my cue to hoist myself up onto the edge.
I carefully moved so as to not fall over the side of the building before finally settling down beside the boy.
Our shoulders touched and I was surprised to find how warm he was. It was a stark contrast to the almost biting cold around us.
Upon closer inspection, I noticed the veins on his arms slightly bulging out and when I looked up at his face, my suspicions were confirmed.
That creepy, golden glow in his eyes was prominent. He must have been training prior to this. I didn't say anything for a while since 'are you okay?' seemed like a silly question.
Instead, I linked our arms and snuggled in closer, hoping he wasn't salty about his loss or something that he'd push me away.
After another few moments of agonisingly still silence, he finally spoke.
"'Drain Spear Slash' is what you said." He said. I didn't move, I waited for him to continue.
"I ran that move through my head a thousand times after the match and I know why you called it that now. Spear Slash is a move where you need to get hit to gain momentum. Then, you turn that momentum into power. Since I've seen that move before, it shouldn't have been able to beat me. But you changed the move to accommodate my power. That's why you named it after my bey." He finished and looked down at me for confirmation. I nodded my head.
"That's right. Instead of using the walls to gain power, which is both damaging and suspicious, I used Fafnir." I admitted almost sheepishly at my ridiculous plan. He hummed in response.
"Six matches where our beys would just collide without a proper outcome. I should've done something about my suspicions."
"Yes, every new round, I was gaining momentum. Of course, I could've just done it all in one match if you were a normal opponent, but you weren't. Your power varies throughout the match. Sometimes you're spinning strong and other times, you're not spinning at all. So the only time I could guarantee you were at full power was when you launched. That's why..."
I didn't have to finish my sentence for him to get it. It was silent again and I wondered for a second if he was angry with me.
Suddenly, before I could question it anymore, he flopped his head onto mine.
"I'm sorry, I underestimated you." Out of all the things I expected, it definitely wasn't this.
"Uh- what?" I stuttered out and looked up but his head kept me looking out towards the dark horizon.
"I thought that since I've battled you before and have seen all your moves, I would've been able to win. I didn't think you'd take me by surprise despite you doing that every single time you battled. I...I thought it'd be different."
His voice cracked at the last sentence and I felt my heart pump faster.
That's...disappointing. I thought I had worked hard enough so that he would be able to battle me like how he would battle Lui or something but I suppose that was too much to ask for.
"I- uh. I see." I gulped, not really knowing what to say. He shifted slightly and he finally allowed me to look up at him.
I was startled again to see the gold shining brighter than ever. I almost made a noise of shock but quickly pursed my lips shut.
The intense stare he had me under made it hard to give any reaction in fear of setting him off.
"I understand if you..." He didn't finish. I don't think he wanted to say what I knew he was going for.
To bladers, a fair fight where both competitors give their all is everything. Openly admitting that it was a biassed battle is enough to start a fight.
His eyes were heavily focused on mine as if they were searching for something deeper. I broke eye contact first and looked down at the view.
The darkness that stretched over the land didn't give for a particularly pretty one but it distracted me from the burning gaze.
"Well, I'm definitely quite sad that we didn't have a proper battle. Especially since it was our first official match." I said matter-of-factly.
My blunt tone must have thrown him off since I felt his arm tense in my comfortable grip. I let the silence linger for a second, allowing his discomfort to set in just because he somewhat deserves that at least.
Finally I took a breath and sat up with a smile. We made eye contact again and this time, I made sure to give him a stern yet kind look.
"That just means next time we need to have a battle so amazing, bladers will be talking about it for years!" He stared at me with his lips apart and wide eyes.
I noticed the golden glow gradually dying. Good, he's calming down.
"Oh." He blurted out. I waited for him to say anything more but apparently that was it. I laughed at his response and settled back into cuddling him from the side and swung my legs a little.
I'm glad he wasn't hurt or particularly angry about his loss today at least. Actually, he was angry that he lost but in a completely different way!
He was ashamed that he subconsciously held back against me and he probably beat himself up over it during his training.
"It's okay. If you have the resolve to be angry that you didn't give your all rather than your loss, that's enough for me." I sighed and after that, it was quiet for a long time.
Minutes, or maybe even hours, went by of nothing but the wind blowing our hair about and the feeling of Free's warmth.
And then, he finally hugged me back. He almost bowled me over with how aggressively he returned my affections. His previous tenseness was all gone now.
All that remained was the relaxed body of my cuddly boyfriend.
"Sometimes, you're too understanding." He admitted quietly into my shoulder. I huffed out in response.
"It's not often you do something that upsets me. And you already feel so bad about this one thing. I can be forgiving if it's for you."
I stroked his hair with a content smile on my face and he further relaxed into my touch. He grumbled though.
"Seriously...too understanding." And with that, the rest of the night was spent with me confirming my forgiveness again and again until the golden boy finally fell asleep in my arms.
Although, it did give me a heart attack considering we were one the edge of a building.
~~~
Sorry this chapter feels so boring despite it being such an interesting idea. I have to finish this book soon plssss we're so close!!!