Ryuga x King

A Blazing Semi-Final

(Author's Note: Yes, this is a day earlier than usual. I... kinda just wanted to post this one XD.)

King's POV

King walked away from Ryuga, his eyes welling with tears. *Too soft... I'm too soft for him...* The words rang in his mind, piercing him like knives to the heart.

"King..." Ryuga sounded desperate, maybe regretful.

King didn't look back. If Ryuga saw him on the brink of crying, he might think even less of him. Bitterness rose within King. Crying was a normal human reaction to sadness! It didn't make him less of a man or less of a blader! What a stupid thing to think, not just think but push on other people?!

King let out a sigh. *He was abused, of course, he thinks like that.* King shook his head. No, he couldn't make excuses for Ryuga, he should know better. King sat down against a tree. It was in the field just in front of the stadium.

"The next battle will be the Ryutaro Tobio team versus the Toby Zeo team!" King could hear the Blader DJ's announcing quite clearly.

There was a shifting sound like the grass was being moved around. King looked over his shoulder. Leaning against the other side of the tree was a familiar boy with shoulder-length red hair covering his face.

"Reiji?" King tilted his head to the side. "What're you doing out here?"

Reiji shifted a bit. Unlike last time, he wasn't wearing his hair back, though he had two hair clips that made it look like he had a second pair of eyes.

"I'm here for Tsubasa and Yu," he admitted, pushing some of his hair behind his ear to look King in the eye.

"Uh... they're inside," King informed, gesturing to the stadium.

"It'sss loud in there."

"Ah, I see." King dipped his head. "Not a fan of loud noises, huh?"

Reiji nodded. "How are they doing?"

"Oh uh..." King bit his lip. "They lost to Gingka and Kenta in the second round."

"Oh..." Reiji gazed at the stadium. "Why are they ssstill in there then?"

"They're probably with their friends." King smiled, putting his hands behind his head and leaning against the tree. "That's the whole point of Beyblading: spending time with your friends and meeting cool new people. It's fun."

"Why are you out here then?" Reiji asked, tilting his head to the side.

"Oh, uh..." King looked away, letting out a sigh. "My partner and I kinda... had an argument."

"Partner?"

"Ryuga." Reiji flinched. "Oh right, everyone's scared of him..." King glared at the ground. "And he apparently wants it that way too." He clenched his fists, letting out a growl.

"Sssounds about right." Reiji's voice was small.

King looked back at him, suddenly concerned. "What'd he do to you?"

Reiji looked away. "I jussst know how he is. The bessst way to get ressspect is through fear after all." His smile suddenly seemed a little sinister with that comment.

King stiffened. "It's really not," he explained, "Respecting your opponent is the best way to earn respect. That's how I got Ryuga to respect me."

Reiji gazed at him curiously. The brief sinister look disappeared, leaving the shy boy King had come to know Reiji as.

"How do you know he respectsss you?" he asked, an unsure look in his one visible eye.

"I mean..." King's shoulders sagged. "He made me his partner, way before this tag team tournament and he says we're friends." Hope flared within him at his own words. *He respects me... he has to. He never says it but he always implies it...*