Jason was at a pretty little café in Venice, keeping a close watch on his target. Mr. Vance was a famed scientist, a US-born physicist who had previously worked at NASA. He'd held high clearance during his time there and was now suspected of leaking classified information to enemy countries.

At present, Mr. Vance led a rather boring but peaceful life in Venice, working as a consultant professor at a nearby university. Jason had been following him for three days now but hadn't stumbled on anything suspicious yet.

"Can I get you anything, John?" asked the barista, her smile warm.

It took Jason a moment to realize she was referring to him, and he smiled back charmingly. "You always this good at remembering faces, or am I just lucky today?"

The barista laughed, her ponytail bouncing. "Depends on the face." She winked.

That was how Jason spent the next half hour chatting with Emma. Business was slow that early in the morning, giving her a bit of a breather.

Jason had slowly steered the conversation toward the university, since he was posing as a 'student' there, and asked questions about Mr. Vance.

Emma knew a great deal about many of the professors at the university, having lived near it most of her life.

It was in the middle of this conversation that he received a call. Jason glanced at the display, almost ready to dismiss it, when he saw the number—and froze in surprise.

Emma peeked at the screen. "Who's Kai?" she asked curiously.

"My brother," Jason replied instantly, though he didn't look up.

What was Kai calling him about? Jason wondered as he stood.

"I'll have to take this call, Em. I'll catch up with you later, all right?" He dug into his pocket for some bills, not even asking for his change as he stepped out of the café.

"Kai? That you?"

"Who else would it be?" Kai muttered. His voice carried that flat annoyance Jason was all too familiar with.

"I didn't think you had my number stored on your phone," Jason teased.

"I don't need to," Kai said. "I have it memorized."

Jason chuckled. "Right, the infamous photographic memory. I bet you've got the entire periodic table stored away too, just in case someone quizzes you at a party."

"As if I'd waste time going to a party," Kai muttered.

Jason smiled, leaning against the brick wall outside the café. "Fair enough." Same old Kai—always quick with a jab. But the tone was off. Heavier, like there was weight under the words. He decided not to poke at it just yet.

"So," Kai said after a pause, "where are you?"

"Venice," Jason answered casually. "City of romance, canals, and overpriced coffee... you'd hate it."

"And when are you coming back?"

Jason tilted his head, narrowing his eyes. Kai never asked that. "Wednesday. And as much as I love this sudden interest in my calendar, small talk doesn't suit you, Kai. You sound pained just forcing the words out. So spill. What's up?"

Kai didn't reply immediately. Jason could almost hear him grinding his teeth.

Finally, Kai said, "Come to my apartment after your trip."

Jason's brow furrowed. "Your apartment? That's... unusual." His voice dropped. "Kai, is everything fine?"

"I'm fine." The reply was sharp, almost automatic.

"You said the same thing last time you called like this, and you ended up with a bullet wound three days later," Jason reminded him.

Jason could practically see Kai rolling his eyes. "You and I both know a lot went wrong for that to happen. I swear I'm fine. Just—drop by when you're back. That's all."

Jason's unease only grew. Kai never asked for things like this.

"Kai—" Jason pressed again, firmer now. "What's going on? I need to know if you're in danger."

"I'm not," Kai cut in, final. He sounded honest, but Jason could never really be sure with him. The training he'd received at such a young age in the Abbey had made secrecy second nature. "Don't make this a big deal."

Jason's jaw clenched. He could hear the stubbornness, the walls Kai always raised around himself. Getting past them was almost impossible.

"All right," Jason said slowly, though the knot in his chest didn't ease. "See you soon, kid."

The line clicked off without a goodbye. Jason lowered the phone, staring at the screen, replaying Kai's voice in his head. The stiffness. The hesitation. And most importantly, the request. Come to my apartment.

Kai didn't have the habit of asking for help unless things were already far beyond him. And that alone made Jason very, very worried.

*****

The Bladebreakers ended practice early that day. With Kai absent, it wasn't hard for Tyson and Max to bully Ray into letting them leave sooner.

"Come on, Ray! We train hard enough every day. Giving us a break today won't hurt anybody!" Max whined.

"And you could go to that movie Mariah's been bugging you about since last week!" Tyson added, wiggling his eyebrows mischievously.

Ray rolled his eyes at their antics, only to be interrupted by Dizzy. "I just checked the reviews, and the movie seems to be as cringe as humanly possible, Ray."

"But Mariah seemed to love it!" Tyson jumped in again, glaring daggers at Kenny and his insufferable bit-beast. "And what kind of boyfriend would you be if you didn't take her to a movie once in a while?"

"Kai's never gonna leave me in charge again," Ray muttered, looking terribly conflicted.

"He doesn't need to know!" Max said eagerly, like it was that simple. But Kai always seemed to know when they had trained and when they hadn't. And Dizzy shamelessly ratted them out all the time.

"All right, all right. Just do your laps and stretches. We'll end for the day then."

Tyson groaned, but Max, ever the optimist, shrugged. "Come on, Ty. We'll be done in less than ten minutes. Let's help Ray maintain some dignity in front of Kai," he chuckled, making Tyson grin.

Twenty minutes later, Tyson and Max were strolling down the street with ice cream cones in hand. Tyson had gone for double chocolate, Max for his usual mint.

"Why would you eat mint? It tastes like toothpaste, dude," Tyson teased.

Max rolled his eyes. "You're just jealous mine's refreshing and yours looks like sludge."

"Sludge that tastes amazing," Tyson shot back. "Besides, you eat like a six-year-old. You even whine like one—'Ray, let's end practice early, He pitched his voice high, mimicking Max.

Max swatted his shoulder, laughing. "Says the guy who doesn't even know how to wiggle his eyebrows!"

They kept walking, laughter carrying down the sidewalk, until Max grew quiet, deep in thought. He glanced at Tyson, hesitant.

"Hey, Ty... can I ask you something?"

Tyson was yet to notice the shift. "Shoot."

"That fight you had with Kai... was it even necessary?"

Tyson stiffened, forcing Max to explain further. "I mean... it's just Kai, right? He's always been like that. Closed off. Keeps to himself. Don't you think... it was unnecessary?"

Tyson stopped walking. "I agree with overreacting, Maxxie, but unnecessary?" he questioned, his voice losing its usual warmth.

Max blinked. "I didn't mean it like—"

"That's exactly the problem, Max. Everyone just shrugs and goes, 'That's Kai. He doesn't talk. He doesn't trust. That's just how he Tyson's voice rose, tight with heat. "And where did that get us?!"

Max's chest tightened. He didn't want to upset his best friend. "Ty—"

"It got him shot, Max!" Tyson's words came out fast, jagged. "The stalkers, the threats, the security breaches—he knew it all and said nothing. Because he thought he had to handle it alone. And we just let him."

Max's breath caught. He remembered it all too well. The bullet had been meant for him, after all. Kai had taken the fall for him, and Max could never forgive himself for that.

Tyson realized where his train of thought had gone, his expression softening for a second, but the fire didn't leave his voice.

"Exactly. But if Kai had trusted us, if he'd told us what was going on, maybe it wouldn't have even gotten that far. We could have avoided going to the talk show altogether, or at least been more vigilant."

Tyson pinched the bridge of his nose. "He doesn't need to be a damn martyr all the time. And if we're really his friends, then it's on us to make sure he doesn't get that chance." Tyson's eyes locked on Max's. "Even if that means telling him to his face when he's screwing up."

Max flinched, guilt flashing across his features. "You make it sound like we don't care about him!" Max shot back, his voice trembling. "Like I don't care."

Tyson exhaled sharply, his tone softening but still cutting. "I know you care, Max. I do. But caring isn't enough. Not with Kai. If we keep letting him walk into the fire alone, then one day... he won't walk back out."

Max looked away, hating Tyson's bluntness, hating how cruel it sounded—but even he couldn't deny the truth in it.

Finally, Max sighed, defeated. "You're such a jerk, you know that?"

Tyson's lips quirked into a weary grin. "Yeah. But you know I'm right."

The two of them walked in silence for a while, the weight of Tyson's words hanging between them. But Tyson, of course, didn't let the silence linger for long. He leaned over and swiped a huge lick off Max's ice cream, pulling back before Max could swat him away.

"Hey!" Max yelped, glaring at the empty streak in his mint scoop.

Tyson grinned, all teeth. "Relax, Maxxie. I just saved you from eating more toothpaste."

Max shook his head, half-exasperated and half-relieved. Leave it to Tyson to hammer him with something so sharp, then act like it hadn't rattled the ground beneath them. Tyson laughed, already walking ahead with a bounce in his step. Max found himself watching Tyson a little differently after that.

Beneath the noise, the antics, and the constant appetite, there was a sharpness there. Tyson saw more than people gave him credit for—far more than he let on. And though it stung to admit, Tyson had seen the truth about Kai clearer than anyone else on the team.

That was Tyson's way of looking out for them all: by being loud, stubborn,infuriating—but fiercely loyal.

Max smiled faintly to himself, deciding he wouldn't trade that for anything.

*****

Words:1770

*****

A?N: Hey guys! soory for the delay!And the small chapter. I did have this much ready yesterday  morning itself, but i thought i could add a small scene to reach my word count. sadly, i couldnt come up with anything, but i nearly wrote the next chapter due to this!

So, what do you think of this chap? Kai reaching out for help is good, even if he doest get it, especially since he's finally realising he cant do everything himself. He still wasnt able to tell jason how important/urget this was, but it's the baby steps that matters! our ice prince will get there, slowly, painfully, eventually. 

There's no hil in this chapter, which hardly happens in my case, missing her! her small oblivious bubble is going to burst soon, and she wont be able to convince herself everything was fine fter the revelation. what do you think hil's reaction would be?

Tyson understanding kai the most, despite being polar opposites is nice. It's nice to see more depth to tyson, despite him being loud and goofy, isnt it?

Finally, VOTE and COMMENT guys! It really makes my day!!!!

Happy Reading!

PS: happy Eid to tose who celebrate!