Crescent

Chapter 10 - Beautiful

The two of you sat on the lunch table. While eating you asked him.
"Why me? I mean, I'm average looking, my blood isn't special, in fact I'm no one special so-"
"Do you remember what you said to me after I beat up that one guy?"
"Honestly, nope."
"You said no one was better off dead."
"Well okay I kinda remember that."
"That hit me hard,"
"Don't tell me, you thought you were..."
"Better off dead? Yeah"
You leaned in closer to him. "But why?"
"Because...
You looked at him intently, waiting for him to continue.
"Well since I know your secret. I guess you have the right to know mine too huh?" He said, ruffling his hair in frustration.
"Ugh, well you see, my father was also my uncle,"
Wait what? His uncle is his- the child of an incestuous relationship?
"And my mother was unstable after their marriage, thinking herself as being tainted."
You could understand how she would have felt. You understood it fully. You held his hand tight and he looked at you.
"Do you want me to... Stop?"
You took a deep breath before saying "no, it's fine. I'm fine."
"Well then, it got worse after I was born."
"She hated you"
"It was either she was trying to kill me or asking me to kill her"
There was a silence.

"I- I'm sorry..."
"It' alright,"
"And now she's-"
"I'm going to kill her, and my father, who broke her."
"Your father... Who is he?"
"The second person I hate the most,"
"And the first"
"Me,"

The two of you were silent until he abruptly stood up and left. You followed him but he told you to stay there. He told you to stay away from him. You said no.
"I chose to be with you and so you are a part of my life and my responsibility. This is my choice, you have no say in it" you said to him firmly.
"You will just end up hurt, or even dead. I might do things that my brother-"
"No. You won't. You have not and you won't. I'm going to prove you wrong."
"..."
"I'm going to teach you what you taught me. I'm going to show you, that you are not disgusting, that you are not scary, that you are gentle and kind and beautiful-"
"I'M NOT BEAUTIFUL! DONT CALL ME BEAUTIFUL. DON'T-" he said, falling to the ground. "I'm not beautiful,"
You kneeled in front of him. Gently, you reached for his hands. "STOP! SHUT UP!" He said, moving his hand away from yours, only to have you reclaim it. That was the first time to saw him cry. "I'm not-"
"You are, I know you are. But why? Why don't you want to be called beautiful? I don't understand, why can't you see?"
"Because, I'm the thing that-"
That made his mother no longer beautiful?
"That's not true, Subaru,
You are beautiful."
You stayed with him until the break ends.