Disclaimer: characters by Takao Aoki, HUDSON SOFT/TAKARA/HASBRO, BEYBLADE PROJECT, TV TOKYO, Nelvana.

Thank you to my reviewers Demolition-GIRL-33236, Vina Eldest Siren of Fire, Elemental Gypsy, Deviant Vixen, and Blaze Queenie! And thank you to those adding me and my stories to their watch and favorites lists!

Author's Note: So, do two wrongs make a right? Put Bryan and Garland together and let's find out!

Hope you didn't mind the wait too much. This was mostly finished last week when I published the other half but I've been editing it, and busy with other things. Sorry about the confusion over the "complete" status, I forgot to change that!

FYI, shacked up is a euphemism for having sex. Oh Bryan and his dirty mind… XD

------At Bey High------

by destiny kitty

Wrong, Wrong, Right

I'm not even sure how I ended up there, really. I was just wandering down the hall with some metal scraps the shop teacher wanted delivered to the art room, waiting for Tala to be done sucking Raul's face off so we could go home, when Tala ran by asking if I had seen Kai. I told him that I hadn't and she must have found someone else to yell at for a while; either that or her boyfriend had her shacked up in a bathroom somewhere. Not my business but she seemed a little tense, if you get my drift. Needed some loosening up.

So anyway I got to the art room and there was Tala's little fairy on the ground. At first I thought he was the one crying and the reason Tala had run for Kai, but then I noticed the girl sitting on the floor next to him.

For one crazy moment I thought it was Garland and bolted for her like the love-sick fool I am to see what was wrong. Tears or none I would help Garland, even if she does hate me.

It took about as long to realize that Garland would never sit on a floor sobbing as it did to notice that this girl's soft silver hair was cropped to chin length, and when she picked up her head, those red-rimmed gray eyes were definitely not the amethysts I am used to seeing full of fiery hatred.

At least when I prank Garland she looks at me, talks to me. Notices me.

As soon as Raul realized I was there he ran off, calling something about tissues and begging me to stay with Claude for a minute. I had intended to leave when I realized this was not Garland, but I am not a total bastard, no matter some people's opinion, so I stayed.

It was really awkward. The girl curled up, trying not to seem like she was still crying. Maybe she didn't want me to watch. I am a lot more intimidating than Tala or Raul, obviously. I didn't want her to get more upset, so I put an arm around her shoulder to comfort her.

"What are you crying about, anyway?" I asked her.

She flashed those silver eyes up at me and stammered something about not crying. I said she was, and asked if she was lonely or something.

That seemed to hit a nerve 'cuz she welled all up and started bawling even harder than before, and I really hoped Raul was coming back with those tissues soon, or maybe a towel. But he was nowhere in sight so I shuffled around to find my bandana from the workshop, which I had not used after being banned from the workshop all week by the administration for messing with Garland's locker. It didn't look dirty, so I gave it to the sniffling girl.

After drying her eyes and blowing her nose she said something that definitely wasn't English and unfortunately was not Russian either, so I didn't understand.

Being a blunt kind of guy I asked her what she had said.

She smiled a shaky little smile and said thank you, then after playing around with my bandana for another minute, said it was something he would do.

I don't know this girl so of course I had no idea who she was talking about, and since she had kinda stopped crying for a bit I decided to ask, thinking it might distract her.

It didn't work. She got all weepy again and cried a name at me— "Robert."

Well I still didn't know who that was and was getting annoyed with the tears so I pressed on with my questions, still hoping she would stop crying or Raul and Tala would get back here.

The whimpering didn't stop but she told me that Robert was her boyfriend back home and she really misses him 'cuz she's here in the States staying with her cousin's family for a semester, so she hasn't seen him in over a month and she's super lonely.

I guess I could relate to that. I mean, Garland doesn't return my feelings so she's not really my girlfriend, but I get all achy and weird when I'm away from her for a long time, like over holidays and summer vacation. I suppose that's what people call loneliness, and obviously this girl was hurting, so I put my other arm around her and let her cry into my shoulder for a while.

This round of tears didn't last as long— I think she had already cried herself to the point of exhaustion.

Soon we were just sitting on the floor, me leaning back against a wall and rocking her a bit, she with her head under my shoulder and one hand balled up in my bandana on my chest, so she could mop up her eyes or nose whenever necessary.

Something gave me away, a sigh maybe, because eventually Claude asked what was wrong in my life.

I stalled for a bit, but then decided to man up and admit that the girl I love pretty much hates me.

"I'm sure she doesn't hate you," Claude sniffed, voice whispery from all the crying.

"Yeah, she does," I assured her.

"But you do so many things for her," she argued. "You are a very nice boy."

I shrugged, not really listening, though I wondered how she knew about my exploits chasing Garland when I didn't even know who she was. Then again, I suppose the whole school pretty much knows that I like Garland and she doesn't like me.

Then Claude said something that really caught my attention for the first time. "I will tell my cousin that she is crazy."

"Wait, Garland is your cousin?" I asked really fast, practically falling over to try to see her face.

She didn't seem interested in this shocking news, but elaborated. "Yes, I am staying with her and my aunt and uncle for the semester."

"That's so weird," I muttered. "No offense, but you are nothing like her. Except for the hair."

"She is not ladylike at all," Claude sniffed, then wiped her nose again. "My mother would be appalled at her behavior, it is so improper. Such as the way she treats you."

"Yeah, well, I guess that's why I like her. She's fun, you know? And tough and interesting… and the way she moves… and she can fight! She's just so… amazing… cool, I guess. I donno. I really like her a lot." Between my pathetic attempt to describe my feelings and the fact that I was saying anything about them at all, not to mention it was to someone I had just barely met, I could feel my face getting hot. I shifted uncomfortably.

"It is hard to say exactly why we love someone," Claude said vaguely, reflectively. I didn't look up but nodded in agreement. This was philosophical stuff and I'm not good with stuff I can't see and hold.

"But you have all those reasons. Just tell her, and I think she will give you a chance."

"I don't know…" I protested. The idea of Garland giving me time to explain my feelings was about as unlikely as me finding the words to explain them in the first place. I had been trying to show them for months now and I'm pretty sure all my attempts had just made things worse. How many times had she said that she hated me?

"Bryan, please," Claude pleaded. I glanced at her, and she seemed more upset or worried than I would have expected. "I know my cousin. She is not always as vile as she seems—"

"Ooh, ouch."

Claude smiled, then sighed, dropping her head.

"You gonna to be ok?" I asked impulsively.

Claude shrugged, and sniffed. "I'm just… so… tired, I guess."

I watched her lay her head weakly against my arm, thinking that all this emotional stuff was clearly not worth the trouble. All it does is cause problems. "Want me to take you home?" I pressed. I could afford to be nice to her; she had tried to help me, even if I was a hopeless cause.

There was a noise in the hall and I glanced toward the door across the room, wondering if Tala or Raul were back. This whole closeness thing could be difficult to explain.

Claude nodded quietly, then leaned closer. "Thank you," she murmured in an almost inaudible tone. I turned to see if she was falling asleep and her lips met my cheek.

My eyes jumped wide apart as the feather-light kiss lifted and an explosion of noise from the other side of the room made me jump.

I swore—I hate being surprised—as I whipped around to see who had screamed my name even though I know that voice so well….

Garland was standing in the door. My gaze met hers, watching heart-stopping shock and overwhelming disappointment and livid anger pass through her beautiful eyes. I felt frozen, unable to think of anything to do or say. She looked so upset.

After several deep breaths, Garland spoke. Her voice was quiet, deadly, but still perfectly audible in the silent room. Or maybe I just could not hear anything else. All my being was focused solely on her face, her voice, her eyes.

"I knew," she breathed, "I couldn't trust you. I knew you were a fake. You've been playing with me this whole time, haven't you? Driving me crazy because it's funny to tease the weird tomboy-girl. Professions of love, ha! You wouldn't know love if it hit you over the head."

She flung something at me that clattered against the floor with a metallic ring. "Keep your love, if that's what you call it. I could care less. I will never speak to you again. Do you hear me, Bryan? NEVER."

She turned heel and stalked out of the room.

Out of my life.

Forever….

After what seemed like an eternity, I blinked.

My mind did not seem to be working properly.

I dropped my gaze to the ground to see what she had thrown at me. It had landed near my foot. From this angle, it looked like a twisted piece of silver and green scrap metal.

Car metal.

I recognized it, bleakly, finally, as the rose I had made for her. My last profession of love, the love she had rejected.

I got up slowly, stiffly. "Let's go home, Claude," I tried to say, choking on the words. I'm not sure how much of what I said was understandable.

She protested, shaking her head, because her cousin would be there. I nodded hollowly and stepped toward the door. There was something blue, and something red, near the floor. I blinked, trying to focus.

Tala was holding Kai. She looked like she was asleep. Weird, I thought vaguely. "Tala?" I asked in confusion. Have they been here the whole time?

Tala spoke, and his words included stress and fainted. I was still too overwhelmed to really grasp what was going on but as he lifted her, I moved to help.

My arms still worked; my strength was intact. I cradled her in my arms, my petite adopted sister, and let Tala fetch Claude. A pink-haired head was bobbing around at chest-level. Raul led our sorry procession to Tala's car. Tala had taken charge.

Kai roused herself in the parking lot. Unhappy to find herself in my arms she immediately demanded to be put down, but I did not comply until we had reached the car, where two tall blonds soon joined our group. One took Kai in his arms, folding her securely against his chest and letting her bury her face in his shirt. The other moved around the group, asking questions, more to some of us than others.

Through my fog I found that I could still understand Spencer's voice. I responded in nods and listless shrugs; words seemed unnecessary, too much effort to fathom.

Eventually we went home.

I stayed there. I didn't have the energy to do anything. I was told when to move or eat or sleep. Tala went to school, but Kai did not. She stayed in bed. I heard people talk about emotional stress, though I didn't know if they meant me or her.

Others came and went: Spencer, Raul, Miguel, Claude. Claude tried the hardest to get me to speak, but failed. Kai avoided me. I heard Tala tell Raul that she was exasperated. I couldn't think of a reason why.

The weekend came. I only recognized it because Saturday was the first day that week that did not start with a zombie-like Tala falling out of bed, tripping down the stairs, or walking into a piece of furniture. On the weekends he usually does not move before noon.

I would have slept in but I had exerted so little energy over the past few days that extra sleep was unnecessary. Kai was in the kitchen when I wandered downstairs, so I continued outside.

Even meandering around the yard was too much effort. I sat down on a short garden wall, staring at my idle hands. I had never spent this much time doing nothing, yet I still had no desire to move, to wake up. Something serious was missing, destroyed, and I could not recover without it.

I slumped, one hand supporting my chin, the other on my heart.

Time slipped by meaninglessly as it had all week. I do not know how long I sat there in the yard, watching ants crawl over my bare feet and the movement of shadows in the grass. I did not come back to the present until I heard my name.

"Bryan?"

It was not the voice I wanted to hear; apathetically I glanced up. Claude was back. But there was a second silver-haired figure behind her….

I looked away, chest constricting painfully. Garland! Why is she here?

Claude said something more, about leaving us alone. A mild scuffle ensued, ending with a pair of worn running sneakers stumbling into my line of sight. Garland yelled something at Claude, who did not respond.

Neither of us moved nor spoke for an endless stretch of time. Or perhaps time had stopped. Certainly my breathing had.

Finally, unable to avoid facing the inevitable any longer, I slowly looked up.

Garland was standing rather close by, shoes pointed at me so I figured she was at least facing my direction. Faded sweats covered her long legs, the kind she usually wore while training. Her hands were clenched into tight fists at her side, shaking slightly, and her whole body seemed to be trembling. Letting curiosity take over I glanced up to catch her eye.

She was glaring down at me. We stared at each other for a while, then she raised one fist.

The blow struck me flat across the face.

I took in a surprised breathe, letting one hand jump to my smarting cheek. It was not an entirely surprising move from her, but I had not expected it just then. Our eyes again locked.

Her whole body shuddered, and then she did something truly shocking.

She drew in a sudden choked breath as if trying not to cry and lurched forward into me. Her arms wrapped around my neck and she buried her face in them, against my ear; her shoulders continued to jump as though silent sobs were tearing their way out of her. Tentatively I reached up, curving my arms around her waist, breathing in the scent of her shirt.

I felt my heart skip a beat.

Garland's unsteady breathing quickened beside my ear and she whispered fiercely, "Never do something like that to me ever again."

"Do what?" I asked hoarsely. It was the first time I had spoken in five days.

Was she mad about the rose I had made her?

I wondered what had happened to it.

"Kiss anyone else," she clarified, still in that ferocious half-whisper.

"I've never wanted to," I murmured. It was true. I ached to know that when she left me here alone, I would never be happy again. But she was the one I loved and I wanted to love only her.

Should I tell her that? Was that what Claude had said, way back before I had gone numb?

"I love you," I whispered, hoping she wouldn't get too mad about it. She usually started shouting at me when I mentioned my affection for her. Mentally I cringed, thinking of the trauma to my ears if she started screaming at this close proximity, but held on to her even more tightly. I was not going to let go until she made me.

"I… Iloveyoutoo."

I frowned, replaying the rushed words in my head, then froze.

She…

…LOVED ME?

I couldn't help it; I had to know the truth behind her words. I pulled away slightly, trying to catch sight of her expression. She somehow let me overcome her grip on my neck and leaned back slightly.

Her lips were parted slightly as she continued to breathe unsteadily, face paler than usual, eyes newly worried as I drew away from her. The buds of tears decorated the corners of her red-rimmed amethyst eyes. I wondered whether she had not been sleeping at all or crying a lot.

I put my hands on either side of her face, wiping the tears away with my thumbs, and then pulled her closer and gently kissed her forehead.

She stared at me, confusion clear in her expression. She looked so adorable that I had to bite my lip to keep from kissing her lips.

"What are you doing?" she asked breathlessly.

"Oh," I said, surprised. "I don't want to do anything to upset you."

A slight frown marring her expression, she asked, "What do you want to do that will upset me?"

"Kiss you," I stated frankly. I was starting to feel a little better. She hadn't screamed at me yet, though this was the real test. I gazed apologetically up at her, watching her consider my words.

To my utter surprise and absolute joy, she laughed; climbing into my lap to straddle my hips, she ordered, "So kiss me, you idiot."

I waited one moment for her to change her mind, then locked my arms around her and caught her lips with my own. For the first time ever Garland did not fight or push me away; quite the opposite, she grabbed my hair in one fist to force our mouths closer and pressed her body against mine, holding me with one arm around my shoulders.

Her strength was impressive. I responded with my own, crushing her against my chest, plundering her mouth with my tongue. She pushed her tongue between my teeth, wrapped her legs around my waist, leaned into me as though trying to push me onto my back.

"Finally, Bryan. Took you two long enough."

Surprised by the sarcastic voice, we abruptly broke apart and looked around to where Kai stood, hands on her hips, a towel hanging from one arm. I shrugged and was going to ignore her when Garland called back, "Aren't you late for a pool date with Mr. Sexy-in-a-Speedo?"

Kai bristled, but sure enough we immediately heard Miguel's voice from around the front of the house, calling Kai's name. Torn, Kai glanced from us to the direction of his voice.

"At least go inside. I don't want to deal with complaints from the neighbors about dogs mating in our yard," Kai shot at us.

"Ok bye-bye, kid. Don't drool on Miguel too much," Garland teased sweetly, making Kai blush. She shot another glare at Garland and disappeared from view.

"Someone has a death wish," I joked, gazing at Garland. She smirked evilly.

"Hey, you may be an idiot, but you're my idiot. No one insults my idiot but me."

Grinning, I relented. "I guess I can live with that."

"Am I giving you a choice?"

I laughed. "Hah! You just can't keep your hands off me."

Before she could retaliate or make any threats to do just that, I reclaimed her lips and mouth, making sure she could not say anything for a good long time.

We had a lot of wasted time to make up for.

----------------

Oh my goodness, Bryan. I know you're repressed after chasing Garland around for so long, but did you have to be so long-winded about it? XD

I like Claude so I wanted to pair her up with someone nice. Robert seems like a good guy, stable and such, so I picked him. It works for the story because he's European. *shrug*

*EDIT* Occurred to me that some of you don't know... Kai and Miguel are on the swim team and headed to Saturday practice. One of the pictures I mentioned in the first chapters was of them at the pool.

On a suggestion I'm considering the story from a third angle, that of Claude and Miguel (the back story about how Garland came to accept Bryan's affection as genuine) but I'm not sure if I'll get to writing it .

Oh and if you happen to see the anime "Peach Girl" (which you should because it's worth it) wouldn't Toji make a great version of older teenage Bryan?! 3

Please review!

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