Marionette ¦¦ Chishiya Shuntarou x OC

Feeling Alive - Part One

Arriving back at the Beach, Kuina spotted the two as soon as they walked in by the pool. While she trusted in their abilities, she would be lying if she said she did not worry for them. They were the smartest people she knew, but they were also with Niragi, the nastiest person she had ever known.

"Hey! What happened? Where's Niragi?"

"Who cares?"

As he let Kurenai down, Kuina held a hand out to help.

"You okay, girl?" Kuina asked. "What happened in the game?"

"I'm fine," Kurenai smiled, though both her voice and her smile were weak. "I'm just really tired, so I'm going back to my room now. Thank you again, Shuntarou," she said, planting a kiss on his cheek before leaving.

Watching her leave, Kuina then turned to Chishiya for an answer.

It was obvious that Kurenai was not fine. She was not her usual cheeky self but rather, quite the opposite. Where was the woman who always had a snarky comment for anything thrown at her? Where was the woman who held such strong sexual tension with Chishiya that it made everyone around them uncomfortable?

"What really happened? And where's Niragi?"

"We played a game in the pool, and she can't swim," Chishiya said. "Niragi refused to help and she drowned. He could still be in the pool, I don't know."

"I've never seen her so broken."

"You should check on her."

"Check on her yourself," Kuina retorted. "I don't know how it works in your little genius brain but let me tell you something, she needs you not me."

Chishiya was hesitant, however.

He would essentially be admitting his own feelings for Kurenai if he were to go to her now, a time when she needed comfort the most. Was he prepared to do so? In a place like Borderland, was it smart of him to be attached to someone else?

His alliance with Kuina was nothing more than a partnership. There would come a day when they would part ways and Chishiya would not bat an eyelash at the thought. Would he be able to do so with Kurenai, however? And if they were to participate in another game together? Would he save her again like he did tonight? What if only one could live?

--

Kurenai was barely holding herself together, making her way back to her room. Her hand was shaking so bad that she had to grab onto it with her other hand just to open the door. She did not bother with the lights, taking only a few steps into the room before her knees gave out.

Tears were pouring down her cheeks as she propped herself up against the wall on the floor. She wrapped her arms around her chest, holding herself tightly as she cried.

She had been trying to hold it in, since Chishiya brought her back to life.

Drowning, and nearly dying, it had all been a little too much for her to handle. The experience was traumatic, yes, but she had gone through things much worse than this. It was the memories she had locked up for so many years finally coming back that tipped her over the edge.

At only eight, Kurenai understood that she meant nothing to her own father. At that age, she knew that in her father's eyes, only her brother mattered because he was a boy.

That was also the year she finally found out just how little she meant to him.

A pool party was forced onto her for her birthday, all because her brother wanted one. She was naive, thinking that since it was her birthday, perhaps her father would listen to her for once and let her have her way.

She thought wrong. Terribly wrong.

He could not care less about what she wanted. He did not give a rat's ass that it was her birthday. All he cared about was that it was another opportunity for him to showcase what a loving father he was.

Successful businessman, building an empire, all while raising two children as a single father. That was his gimmick, and it worked. The public ate it up but they did not know what went on behind closed doors.

They did not know that her father would take his anger out on her when things would not go his way. They did not know that because she was never allowed to do as she pleased even as a child. They did not know that because she was a girl, she was not allowed to be better than her brother because he was the heir.

That fated day, her father sank lower than ever.

Whether it was accidental or intentional, it was not something Kurenai cared about anymore, but she was pushed into the pool by her brother.

An eight-year-old, unable to swim, struggling to keep herself afloat in the water and screaming for her father. She called out to the one person who should be protecting her, keeping her safe. And when she saw him standing by the pool, she really thought he would save her.

For a split second, however, she could see it in his eyes.

For a split second, he thought he could just let her die. Finally get rid of the daughter he never wanted.

Even just thinking about those cold eyes of his, Kurenai's body started shaking so violently that she had to dig her fingernails into her arms to remind herself that it was just a memory. He was not here.

She hated herself.

She hated herself for letting him hurt her still. Stuck here in Borderland, and the scariest thing to her was a memory of her father. And her heart stopped beating just an hour ago.

--

Giving in, Chishiya found himself standing just outside the door to Kurenai's room. He was still hesitant, though. The moment he opened the door and walked in, he would be admitting to himself that his feelings for her were more than...well, more than everything.

With his hand on the handle, Chishiya closed his eyes and took in a deep breath. Was he ready to face all those feelings?

Pushing the door open, he was a little thrown off to be met with darkness. It took him awhile but he finally noticed Kurenai on the floor, her knees curled up to her chest, and she was sobbing like a baby.

Hearing the door, Kurenai looked up with tears streaming down her cheeks.

The moment she saw Chishiya, she broke down even more.

Closing the door behind him, Chishiya walked up to Kurenai and knelt in front of her. He reached out with one hand, wiping the tears from her cheeks. Uncurling herself, Kurenai crawled into his arms and hid her face in the nook of his neck.

She clutched onto his hoodie with both hands, and just like that, she let herself go completely. And he held her just like that, letting her cry. There was definitely no denying that he had feelings for her when it tugged on his heart to see her crying like this.

He just wanted to make it stop.

Was he the light and warmth she had been waiting for all this time?