Make Me Forget (Haitani Brothers x Reader)

2

I never would've thought last night would have ended with me not being able to take that guy out of my mind, replaying the images of what had happened in my head over and over until I fell asleep. Not that I was now interested in him, I just needed to thank him. That was all.

I washed my face, which was still full of smudged makeup, and turned the TV on while I prepared breakfast. Surprisingly, even after all the time I had spent drinking no alcohol, I didn't have a hangover. For some reason, the TV was on the news channel. I didn't enjoy watching the news, especially in the morning. When I took a quick glance at the TV while pouring my cereal to change the channel, I couldn't believe what I was seeing.

The man who had harassed me last night was on the screen.

I quickly looked for the remote to turn up the volume. Apparently, he had gotten into a street fight and was now in the hospital in critical condition. The images that were shown of the moment they had taken him to the hospital were brutal: he was covered in blood from head to toe. The news anchor informed that they were still looking for the culprits. No one had seen them and they had found him on a small street close to the nightclub with no surveillance cameras. They were calling for citizen help.

Well, that's if he didn't wake up. If he did, he would tell them everything, right?

I was shocked seeing a familiar face on the news, but not really surprised about what had happened. I mean, the weird thing would have been if he hadn't gotten into a serious fight. However, this was much more serious than I could have imagined. I couldn't help feeling sorry for him after seeing those gruesome images.

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Kai had taken me on a date to the theatre to watch an orchestra perform The Sleeping Beauty live. When we were getting to know each other, I had told him that I loved listening to classical music whenever I needed peace in my life, especially Tchaikovsky's. I never thought he'd remember. It was this kind of thing that had made me fall for him. How considerate and thoughtful he was, how he always put me first.

He hadn't officially asked me out yet, but something told me he was going to sooner than later. Call it feminine intuition. I hadn't had a good experience with men in the past, so I was a bit wary of him at the start, but if there was one thing I was now sure of, it was that he was the one for me. In the time we had been spending together these past months, the connection between us had only grown stronger, and although I was dying for him to ask me out, I also liked the point we were at right now. I enjoyed having something to look forward to.

I was too stunned to even talk when we got to our designed seats. It was my first time coming to a place like this. I had seen a few orchestras before, but never in such a big and majestic place. The people around us, mostly older people, seemed quite wealthy, but I was too excited to feel out of place.

When the sound of the oboe giving the tuning note finally filled the room, I felt shivers down my spine. My favorite part of any performance had always been the start, when all the instruments were assembling together and it was time for the audience to connect heart, soul and mind to the orchestra.

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-Did you see how the percussionist changed positions from the drums to the glockenspiel during the waltz?

After the performance, I couldn't stop rambling about every single detail that had caught my attention. Kai was listening to everything attentively with a smile on his face.

-All I saw was you trying to hold your tears back.

He teased me.

-I wasn't!

-Oh you're right, they actually started running when I held your hand.

We were in the main hall, both laughing and still sharing our thoughts on the performance when a red-haired woman approached us. She was wearing a very elegant long green satin dress which made her look like she had just come from a red carpet. A man, whom I hadn't noticed at first, was accompanying her.

-Kai!

When Kai turned around to look at her, he looked shocked, his eyes wide open. They merged into a hug as soon as she reached him. When they pulled apart after a few seconds, I expected him to introduce her to me, but he didn't. They started talking excitedly, as if they hadn't seen each other in a long time, completely ignoring their surroundings. Although I had always tried not to be toxic in my relationships, I couldn't help the rush of jealousy that overtook me as I observed them.

Just as a wave of intrusive thoughts was beginning to take over me, I noticed someone staring at me. It was the man who was accompanying the red-haired woman. He was tall, way taller than Kai, and was wearing what looked like an expensive tailored suit. I looked back at the woman and thought about how well they suited each other. It was like looking at a pair of celebrities at an award ceremony. Next to them, I felt all the embarrassment I hadn't felt before about wearing casual clothes.

The man had a small grin on his face, which, added to his height, made me feel a bit intimidated. However, I had always had the ability to appear confident when I wasn't, so I decided to be the one to break the ice and initiate the conversation.

-Are you her boyfriend?

The words almost slipped out of my mouth, like trying to hold onto something that would make me feel more at ease about the whole situation. He laughed at my sudden question and only then did I realize I had probably come off as rude.

-Would prefer "lover". Are you his girlfriend?

He seemed to be playfully repeating my question, rather than asking out of curiosity.

-I guess I'd prefer "lover", too.

I extended my hand to introduce myself.

-Y/N.

Still with that same small grin on his face, he took my hand gently and instead of shaking it, he slowly brought it to his lips.

-Ran.

He introduced himself, never breaking eye contact. Even after he let go of my hand, we stood looking at each other in silence for a few seconds. I tried not to look directly at the tattoo on his neck, but it was the first time I was seeing one placed like that.

-So, did you enjoy the performance?

This time, he was the one who spoke first.

-I did. I really like Tchaikovsky.

-So do I.

Before I could ask him anything else, I felt an arm around my waist.

-Let's go.

It was Kai. Meanwhile, the woman he was talking to grabbed Ran's arm and said something to him.

-It was a pleasure to meet you, Y/N.

-You too.

I replied before we both turned in opposite directions with our respective partners. As we were reaching the main entrance, I looked back. The tall man stood out in the crowd, his arm around his girl's shoulders. Just at that moment, he turned around and caught me staring at him. The small grin he had earlier had abandoned his face, now replaced by a smirk.