Disclaimer: I claim no rights to Beyblade. No infringement intended.

Blue Jay

Blue had always been his most favourite colour. It was the colour of the sky – freedom. It was the colour of water – unconquerable. It was the colour of Dragoon – thrill and life. It was the colour of Yuriy's eyes – a challenge. It was the colour of Takao's aura – his salvation. It was the colour of Takao's hair – soft and comforting. Blue was safe. Blue was calm. Blue was cold. Blue was faith. Blue was truth.

Blue was heaven. That was probably why the sky was blue.

He lay on the soft grass, motionless. Well, almost motionless – he was chewing on a blade of grass: a subconscious habit he had come to adopt while deep in thought. Not that he was thinking about any deep matter. Lately, his mind seemed to be controlled by only one subject – Kinomiya Takao. A very pleasant subject it was, too, for he never tired of thinking about him.

Demanding… Takao was always so demanding of him. It was one of the reasons that gave him hope.

If Kai was around, Takao had gotten into the tendency of turning the conversation towards him after every other sentence. Kai, not being a very talkative person, would only reply in monosyllables or ignore him completely. That didn't deter Takao though. No, he would persist in demanding his attention with single-minded constancy.

When they would Beyblade, he would turn towards him with bright, hopeful eyes – Come on, Kai! Let's Beyblade! Though I'm not going to let you win! The fact that Kai wanted to defeat Takao more than anyone else was generally well-known. Hence, no one paid any mind to the fact that Kai seemed to be Beyblading only with Takao these days. Kai knew that, lately, even more than defeating Takao, he wanted to dominate him. Moreover, for one so in love with those chocolate-hued eyes, it was next to impossible to refuse them anything.

If he was dragged into 'going around the town with the team', Takao would yet again switch to his attention-demanding mode – Hey Kai, let's go there! It's been ages since I was last in an arcade. And without waiting for an answer, he would curl his warm fingers around Kai's wrist and pull him along to wherever he wanted. It didn't matter that Kai would voice customary noises of protest. No, sir, Kinomiya Takao would have his way. It wasn't a very difficult job really, for Kai Hiwatari was only too pleased to let him.

A shrill scream broke through Kai's thoughts.

Even before he had shifted his head to the right, Kai knew what he would see. He only frowned slightly as the grass tickled his nose, trying to suppress the sneeze and not make any sudden movement.

A small blue jay stood less than a yard away from him.

Kai pulled out a handful of nuts from his pocket, and with slow and careful movement brought his hand towards the bird.

The first time he had seen the bird, he had been eating meat buns. Impulsively, he had broken a few pieces of his meal and tossed them at the bird. He hadn't really expected the bird to eat them – most would have flown away. He won't have felt anything about it – it was a natural reaction of birds. But this little jay hadn't. He had stared at them warily; backed away a little and when Kai had looked away, his black beak had greedily attacked the food. And even demanded more – at least that was what Kai had thought the piercing cry meant. He had shredded the remaining bun into small pieces and with a faint smile, shared his meal with the blue jay.

And from that day onwards, the blue jay would always be here in the late afternoon, demanding to be fed.

Slowly, Kai had coaxed the bird into eating out of his hand. He would throw some morsels on the ground but retain a greater quantity in his hand. For the first few days, the bird would glare longingly at the 'forbidden' food. But eventually, his sense of adventure got the better of his cautiousness and soon – Kai couldn't help grinning when he thought of it – the blue jay was eating out of his hand.

So much so, that now the bird would only eat out of his hand. He won't even touch a crumb fallen on the ground.

Autumn had set in. The grass was cool against Kai's skin. It still retained some dampness from the showers early this morning. The wind had the characteristic pleasant coolness of the season to it – the sort of coolness which was infinitely preferable to the cutting bitterness of the winter's wind. Kai loved the serene softness of autumn's colours – no wintry whiteness, no gaudiness of spring and no variations of summer… just soft browns and yellows everywhere. He often imagined how Takao would look lying on a pile of brown leaves… they would surely do wonders to his eyes. Who knew brown could be such a pretty colour! And he, Kai, stretched out over the tanned body, seeing his image in those wondrous eyes…

He closed his eyes. He could clearly recall his romantic fantasy. Takao's lips were the darker but browner shade of red. Autumn red. Tasting those lips would be like tasting the season itself… hungrily exploring every line and curve and corner… running his tongue along them… moistening them to simulate the dampness after the occasional autumn rain…

"Go Dragoon!!!"

Kai felt happy. It was silly, he thought, to become happy just on hearing Takao's voice. Despite it, he felt that even just listening to him was pleasure… an assurance.

Maybe the bird realized that Kai was thinking of another. Jealous, it pecked the pale hand and let out another scream.

"You'll get indigestion if you eat more," whispered Kai in a matter-of-fact voice, imagining that what the bird wanted was more food.

But the bird was happy now. Kai was looking at him again. That was all the bird wanted.

"Hey, Kai! Wake up! You can't possibly sleep now!!"

"Umhmm…"

"Kai! Wake up! You're going to fall sick if you sleep so much!"

Groggily, Kai opened his eyes. Takao sat straddling him, his legs on either side of Kai's stomach, leaning over Kai. The older boy could feel his hands on either side of his head. And those lips were so close to him… Was he still dreaming?

"So finally you open your eyes!" Takao shifted back. "I've been yelling in your ears, you know!"

"Hn…"

It was twilight now. Takao sitting over him seemed almost ethereal. Kai's still-sleep-befuddled mind wondered if this was an apparition. Even so, it rendered him incapable of answering him with anything more than incoherent sounds. If Takao would move back a little, his hips would just be in the right position to tease him. Kai swallowed hard. Wasn't it growing a bit too warm for an autumn evening? He grabbed the grass hard… much better than grabbing Takao, he tried to tell himself. Oh God!

"Well, let's get going then!"

Kai almost groaned at the loss of contact as Takao got up and jumped away.

"We're going down for sundaes!" declared Takao happily. Kai could see the stars in his eyes. "Oh man! I am feeling way too hungry already! Let's go! I am going to order the hugest fruit sundae they have!"

Kai was grateful for the darkness – and Takao's natural unobservant manner (why would Takao be looking down between his legs, anyway – this isn't what I should be thinking!). He was getting a hard-on, and with the jeans and shirt he had chosen for the day, it would be simply impossible to hide it. Watch Takao suck on the bananas and cherries? Right now, that was a strict "no". There was no way that he would be able to bear this sort of sweet torture. He needed some time alone – at once.

"Can't go," said Kai, wondering if the words sounded too husky, "I don't like sundaes."

And leaving behind Takao, perplexed and crestfallen, Kai dashed off towards the dojo.

It was almost near midnight when he heard noise downstairs. The party had obviously not limited the outing to the sundae shop but had probably wandered about the town till it was time for dinner and then dined out, too. Kai, himself, had forgone the meal in favour of some quiet reflection in his own room. His close encounter with Takao had left him feeling so dissatisfied that it startled even him. Hitherto, he had never had a chance to so clearly accost the depth of his feelings.

Even though the sounds that reached his rooms were muffled, his ears could single out Takao's happy voice.

Was he obsessed with the World Beyblade Champion?

Another reason that he had wanted to think about his feelings was the possibility of their discovery. There had been a time when his feelings that annoyed and worn him out. However, he had gotten used to them now. He had never even imagined that Takao would ever learn of them, and although it was a sad prospect, as long as stayed by his side, Kai imagined that he would be satisfied. He had never thought about the probability of confessing his feelings. Things would get too messy and unnecessarily uncomfortable. It was enough that he could harbour these emotions in the secret depths of his heart and enjoy Takao's persistent attentions.

However, this evening, a painful realisation had dawned upon him. The love he had been nursing had been growing upon him. Unbeknownst to him, it had grown to monstrous proportions. Kai wanted Takao.

It was terrifying.

As he heard the footsteps on the stairs, he left his seat near the window and got into his futon. He shared the room with Takao and he was ill-disposed towards talking to him in his current state of mind. He just needed to sleep on it. Everything would be all right in the morning.

The door was opened carefully, and Kai could imagine Takao peering into the darkness, trying to decide whether or not he was awake. The light from the night lamp was obstructed as Takao probably stood changing near the wardrobe. Kai was painfully aware of each of his movements. His head felt strangely light as Takao slipped into the futon laid out near his own. His breath had not fallen into the quiet rhythm Kai had gotten used to, which meant that he was still not asleep.

He did not know if he sensed his roommate's eyes on him or if it was purely an impulse to look at him, however, Kai opened his eyes and rolled over to the opposite side.

Though dim, the faint orange light was enough to show him that Takao was wide awake – and staring directly at him.

"Hey," he whispered softly, offering a tentative smile.

Kai made no reply.

"I brought back a pack of meat buns from that shop in front of the arcade. You like them a lot, don't you? I didn't know you were still up. Do you want to eat them?"

"No… I'm not hungry. I'll have them for breakfast."

Kai moved to lie on his back and averted his eyes. How many times had he lay awake, gazing at the younger boy? Why did it fluster him so much right now?

"I wish you'd have come."

Was Takao still stuck on that matter? Again, Kai remained silent.

"Is something wrong?"

Kai turned his head a little. "No."

However, his reply only served to perplex Takao even more. If there had been nothing wrong, Kai would have simply rolled his eyes and paid no attention to the enquiry. If Takao was a blue jay, he would be screeching right now.

"Kai…"

"Go to sleep – it's late."

Kai closed his eyes. Don't say my voice in that imploring tone… don't!

The rustling of covers indicated that Takao had sat up.

"You were out with Rei yesterday, weren't you? Did he tell you… I mean… did he say something weird to you?"

It was so unexpected a thing that Kai once more looked at Takao.

"Nothing significant – what could he have said?"

"Oh, nothing… nothing significant."

It was good that Kai was adept at hiding most of his emotions because Takao's reddening face had certainly surprised him. Showing that would probably make it even more difficult to pry things out of Takao. He had been so lost in his own mind that he didn't imagine that Takao had secrets he wanted to keep from him.

"Kinomiya."

Takao quickly lay down and pulled the covers over his head. He should have known that it would only aggravate Kai's curiosity.

Kai got up and pulled at the blanket Takao held tightly about him.

"What is it? Takao!"

"'s nothing!"

"And I am an idiot who can't hold a Beyblade. I am not giving up here." When Takao did not budge, Kai let go.

"I guess I'll just threaten it out of Rei tomorrow."

Takao instantly turned to look at him. "NO!"

Kai looked hard at him. "If you are so insistent… I guess I am just not good enough to know your secrets." It sounded stupid even as he said it but Takao would definitely buy it.

He was right. Takao could not bear to have his feelings doubted. In any case, Kai was extremely curious – what kind of a secret would Takao want to hide from his so badly?

"It's not that! It's not that… at all."

His voice grew faint. He looked at him – longingly? Kai swallowed hard. He knew that look. It was the way the blue jay had first stared at the crumbs of the bun in his hand. Elation bubbled inside him. He was no longer morose or frustrated. He was in control. He held the metaphoric crumbs in his hand once more and he was confident that he could draw the 'bird' to him.

"You say that but it is still something that you need to hide from me, is it not?" Did it sound too melodramatic? "I thought…," a proper pause for effect, "you were my friend."

Normally, saying such a line would have given him goosebumps on a midsummer afternoon. But looking at Takao's eyes widen with desperation made it all it was worth.

"Of course! I…"

Would he cry? He wasn't the sort of guy who was afraid of crying. But Kai would rather not have him cry.

"Sorry. I won't ask anymore. My mistake."

"No…"

Kai did not turn away immediately and he was rather glad for it because the next moment, Takao had moved forward and thrown his arms about him. Kai knew it was an impulsive action. Before Takao could think over it and break away, he brought drew him in towards himself.

"Kai…"

The spontaneous actor felt his mask slipping away. He could not let Takao see his face right now. He rested a hand on the nape of his neck, holding the dark head in the crook of his neck.

"I know," he whispered into Takao's ear. "I know because I feel the same."

He felt warm lips beneath his jaw and loosened his hold on Takao. The latter immediately grabbed his hair and their lips close together. Kai did not need further invitation. He leaned down into the hungry kiss, feeling his restraints break. Simultaneously, he ran his hands down the side of the other boy's slim body, tugging at the shirt.

His suppressed desires had indeed grown monstrous.

Takao moaned into his mouth as he lowered him onto the futon, and reached inside his shorts. Takao's hands had stopped wandering and held on uncertainly to his arms.

Kai broke the kiss and looked into his face, questioningly.

Takao bit his lip and smiled faintly.

Oh well, even if it was too sudden, Takao wasn't protesting, was he? He didn't want to stop – not now.

"I'll be careful," he murmured and disrobed the boy lying beneath him.

He could feel his own body heat up and harden in anticipation. The lightness he felt in his head this time was of an entirely different quality. He was breathing faster.

His hands trembled just a little as he stroked his lovers' balls, uncertain. He did not know what was the perfect method for it or what to avoid.

He looked up at Takao – like him, the pace of his breath had changed. He could see his chest rise and fall. Kai bent forward and kissed him before stroking his throbbing shaft about its root, then gently moving his fingers towards the tip.

"Ah… faster…"

Kai felt a surge of confidence. He wasn't going all wrong about it, then. His fingers remembered the grip he himself enjoyed and closed a little tighter, setting into a faster tempo. He looked at Takao's face – he had closed his eyes and was biting down on his lower lip. Kai gently prised open his mouth with his other hand and caressed the teeth marks with his thumb.

"Don't hold in your voice…" It turned him on incredibly to listen to those gasps and moans.

Takao arched his back as Kai increased his rhythm and pressure. As he felt Takao reach his limit, he pressed near the tip, drawing out a loud breath of pleasure before he finally fell back satiated.

Takao opened his eyes and brought himself closer to Kai. Kneeling between his legs, he lowered his head.

Kai leaned back against the wall, succumbing to the ministrations of his mouth and fingers. The sensations were somewhat unsatisfying at first, without rhythm and painfully random. Kai brought his own fingers to clasp around Takao's, guiding him to set a tempo that felt pleasurable. The slimy wetness was infinitely better than simply the fingers. He felt his head go blank and bliss shatter his body in a few minutes.

He woke up somewhat disoriented. The sun was high up when he rubbed his eyes and sat up. For a few moments, he wondered why he had gotten up so late. Then slowly, the memories of previous night trickled into his consciousness.

It felt so unbelievable at first that he was desperate to find some clue that it wasn't merely a wet dream. Takao had woken up before him and his futon had already been put away.

He lumbered out of his futon, his body strangely heavy and unwilling to move. It wanted to remain lying there, satiated and languid. What a peculiar feeling! Maybe the night before hadn't all been a dream, after all.

Kai stretched his body and yawned.

He went to the window that overlooked the backyard.

Takao sat there with Kyouju, probably discussing the new improvements to his blade.

He wanted to call out to him. He wanted to ask him a lot of questions. But… what if it had all been a dream after all?

It was Kyouju who noticed him first and yelled 'Good-morning'. Takao, who sat with his back towards the window, turned to look up at him, too.

The sheepish grin was confirmation enough.

For the first time in a long time, Kai smiled back at Takao.

Finis

Author's Notes (or an Author's Wilfulness):

1. I purposely did not even try to research the fact that whether a blue jay would be found in Japan during autumn or not. I wanted the blue jay, so I am keeping the blue jay. Period. -_- But I did research a bit on blue. In most religions, it is literally associated with heaven.

2. I would be interested in learning Kai's actual favourite colour. I hope it is blue. In any case, I am keeping it blue, too.-_-

3. Oh, and they are clumsy and unsure. Don't know all the tricks in the book, either. But forgive them – it's their first time (and mine).

4. This story ends here because it was always meant as a one-shot. However, now that it has ended, imaginations of 'what happens next' keep cropping up. I'm still not sure if I want to pen them down, though. Maybe another one-shot? A sequel series? What is your opinion?