Chapter 7 - What Friends Are For

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Dante’s POV

Oh God… oh God. I’m panicking!!! Why is Delta here? Why are Arman, Ichika and the others here!? I mean.. I'm happy that I was able to see my beloved friends again but not like this!! How am I gonna tell them? I can’t just tell them that I quit beyblade? What if they ask me why I didn't come to the battle royal? They will ask so many questions!!!

I pace around the staff’s room as I think hard about what I should do as hot steam starts to appear in my head for thinking too hard. After some time of thinking, my brain isn’t braining. I can’t think of an excuse or any ideas!! This is a disaster!!! I groan as I lean back against the doorframe.

I sigh and take out Dragon from my pocket and caress his blades gently. I wish Dragon was here right now. I miss him.

I stand there for a while, thinking back to my life choices until someone knocks the door loudly. I got startled and drop Dragon but I manage to catch him before he drops to the ground. I sigh in relief and look over to the person who is now standing in front of the door.

“Can’t you see I have a private moment here?” I frown. My friend, who is a waiter like me, just sighs.

“You should stop talking to a bey. People will think you’re crazy. That bey won’t talk to you back, you know? It’s just a thing”

“Dragon is not a thing! He is my best friend!” I said as I put Dragon back gently in my pocket. My friends sigh once again, probably tired of my delusions which I am not delusional!

“Sure… You should go back to work. Our boss will kill you if she finds out that you were just slouching” He said as he left. I pout but sigh. I fix my clothes a bit, and gather my equipment like a pen and a small book to write customers orders. I step out of the staff’s room and take a deep breath before walking towards my friends table. I can do this, I thought.

End of Dante’s POV

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Delta’s POV

I keep watching the staff’s room while half-listening to Arman and the other’s conversation. They are busy talking wild theories about why Dante had started working here and why he didn’t show up at the Battle Royal. Honestly, most of what they were saying was ridiculous. I mean, the stuff they came up with was so illogical it was almost painful to listen to. But I didn't press it further, I was too focused on the staff’s room where Dante is in right now.

My eyes kept drifting toward the staff’s room where Dante had disappeared. Something about all of this didn’t sit right with me. I’m not sure why I cared so much, but for some reason, I couldn’t stop wondering why he left in the first place. Why didn’t he reach out to his friends? Why didn’t he come to the Battle Royal? That question kept ringing in my mind, and no matter how hard I tried to shake it off, I couldn’t.

Then I see a waiter walking towards the staff’s room and try to open it but it seems that the staff’s room is locked. He frowns, seeming to know who is inside the staff’s room and knocks on the door loudly, loud enough that I could hear it from where I was sitting. The person inside the room let out a startled gasp and let out a soft thud. Was that Dante?

What’s going on in there? I wondered.

The waiter manages to make the door open, and talks to the person inside the staff’s room which I suspect is Dante. They exchanged a few words, but I couldn’t make out what they were talking about. They were too far away.

They talked for a minute and the waiter left the staff’s room. After a while, the person I was looking for comes out from the room and takes a deep breath, like he was trying to collect himself. Why is he so nervous about meeting his own friends? I thought but immediately pushed that thought away and looked away from Dante, pretending I wasn't looking when Dante began walking towards our table.

“Hi guyss!!” Dante said to us after he reached our table, his voice had a slight nervous tremble, but it was subtle enough that anyone who wasn’t really paying attention wouldn’t notice. I caught it, though.

Arman and the others immediately stop talking once they hear the blond male speak and look over to Dante.

“Dante!!” Arman stands up with a huge grin, walking over to Dante to give Dante a side hug, one of his arms wrapped around Dante’s shoulder giving him a side hug. “It’s been a while buddy!!”

Dante chuckled and returned the hug, looking a little more relaxed. "Hi, guys!" His smile was warm, like it always had been, as he pulled away from Arman’s embrace. His smile is warm, but there was still something about him that seemed off, even though I couldn’t quite put my finger on it.

“We miss you so much dude!!” Taka said.

“Yeaa, we were just discussing about you” Ichika explains which the others nod. The golden boy expression turns into a surprise and curiosity.

“Discussing about me? About what?”

“Your disappearance!! You didn’t chat with us anymore!!” Taka chirps as he points towards Dante like it was an accusation.

“We didn’t see you at the Beyblade Battle Royal too!! We thought you died or something, but after seeing you here, the ‘you-died’ theory we came up with is obviously wrong”, Pheng explains as he crosses his arms. Dante, who is listening to the explanation, is speechless but also flattered.

“I-i.. thanks you guys. I didn’t know you guys cared for me that much, I'm really flattered..”

“You’re our friend, Dante. We always care”, Ichika said softly, her voice gentle.

“Aww. T-thanks guys!” Dante said as he began to tear up, his emerald eyes started to glisten. Before I knew it, the rest of the group rushed to comfort him, trying to keep Dante from fully crying.

“Hey hey don’t cry Dante”, Pheng said as he began patting Dante’s back to comfort him. Ichika grabs a tissue from the tissue box and gives him the tissue. The whole thing is a bit overwhelming, honestly. I sat there watching them, feeling... awkward and a bit out of place. This was getting really emotional, and, well I’m not exactly one for these touchy-feely moments. But something else tugged at me too, something deeper. I feel a bit.. jealous? Yeah, I think that’s it. Their bond, their closeness—it’s hard not to feel a little envious watching them. I feel like an outsider honestly.

Dante sniffled, but there was a small smile on his face now. “Thanks, guys. I’m good. You guys are the best.”

“That’s what friends are for, Dante!” Arman said with a grin, the others nod in agreement. But a sudden sniffle from across the table caught all of our attention. We all turned to Fumiya, who was hiding his face behind his hands.

“Bro, are you crying? How did you get this emotional? Missing Dante perhaps?” Ichika teased, clearly amused.

"W-what!? N-no, of course not. Don’t get ahead of yourself!!” Fumiya immediately protested, his face turning a shade of red as he tried to defend himself. The others laughed.

Poor guy. He’s been getting roasted and bullied a lot today, but it’s quite funny and amusing to watch.

“Oh yeaa. Delta is here by the way”, Arman suddenly pointed at me which I gave Dante an awkward wave. I haven’t said much during all this.

“Hi”, I said, keeping it simple. What else was I supposed to say?

Dante chuckled and waved back. “Hey, Delta.” His smile was warm and genuine, and for a brief moment, I felt a little more comfortable. Maybe I wasn’t as much of an outsider as I thought. Maybe.

Then Fumiya interrupts our conversation, "Let’s just order something already!!" Fumiya huffed, clearly trying to change the subject. "The spicy cookie challenge and all this emotional stuff made me hungry.”

Dante chuckles as he pulls out his pen and notebook. “Okay okay. What do you guys want to order?”

End of Delta’s POV

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