Little Do You Know

Sometimes, Protectors Need Protecting

The tissue pushed against Kokichi's cheek as his mum patted away the result of his appointment. He stared into her violet eyes, ones that matched one of his. Kokichi watched as her eyes hardened into a glare, making him flinch and hasten to stare at the fingers picking at each other. "Sorry..." Why he apologised, the man wouldn't comprehend. It felt mandated.

Kokichi heard a gasp before his body lurched forward into a warm embrace. "No no, I'm sorry Kokichi. I'm not mad at you, please don't think I am."

Shaking, the short, lithe man watched as his mum pulled back. Her eyes harboured tears, ones of sorrow and regret. Kokichi sniffed, allowing a tear of his own to fall. Genuine crying. Some would consider that an abnormality for the small man, but they knew nothing of his life. "Mummy..." He whispered, tears beginning to gush from his eyes. "Help me..."

Tears glistened against their cheeks as Kokichi's mum choked on her sobs and hugged him. She squeezed him as securely as she could, the smaller crying into her chest and clinging to her shirt. "I'm so sorry Kokichi, I can't tell you how sorry I am!" Her voice raised to a whispered scream. They couldn't be noisy. "If there was a way to protect you, I guarantee you that I would've done it by now. Nothing hurts a mother more than to see her sweet child in these circumstances."

Hardening his sorrowful expression into a rage-fuelled glare, Kokichi pulled back and wiped his tears. "I'm going to kill your husband." Right, her husband, that's all he was.

"Don't talk like that sweetheart," she sighed.

"Why can't you leave him?"

"It's not that easy..." 

Kokichi huffed, balling his fists in his lap. He stared at his white uniform, tracing the baby-pink trim with his direct vision. She was correct, it wasn't that straightforward. His father had associations within his work, too many to estimate. It would be a perilous journey to escape the man of the home, the man that controlled them.

The bedroom door swung open, revealing Kokichi's father and his disgusted glare behind banana-yellow eyes. "I dare you." All of the hair that coated Kokichi's body stood on its ends. His hands quivered upon hearing the authoritative man's voice. "Leave me for your son, I dare you Arisu."

Kokichi continued to stare at his uniform, terrified to stare his father in the eyes. "Look at your disgusting child!" His father continued to shout, his booming voice shuddering the grey walls. "He's dressed as a nurse with semen in his hair!"

"He's your son too!" Kokichi's mother shouted in return. She stood from her stool, situated across from Kokichi's spot on his bed.

"No son of mine sells his body for money. Especially to men." Kokichi could feel his dad's glare boring into his shattered soul. He felt like crying, but that would be a horrible mistake.

Kokichi's mum stepped forward, her slippers leaving the small man's vision. "You forced him to! You've forced him to for five years! Ever since he turned fourteen! He's had no childhood, he's traumatised all because of you!" Silence captured the room for a brief moment. A deafening slap and a shout broke it, making Kokichi flinch and cover his ears. Too much noise, he couldn't focus, he couldn't think.

Tears poured from his eyes, replenishing the despair-filled streams. He didn't have enough time to collect himself before being yanked from the bed. Hitting the rug, Kokichi grunted as he rolled onto his back, ignoring the pain sparking through his hips.

"The money, hand it over." Kokichi's terrified eyes opened to stare at his father. He stood over the victim, holding out a strong, large hand. With a trembling hand, Kokichi fished around his handbag and pulled out three hundred dollars. His father snatched the money, flicking through it to count each note.