I Will Be Your Knight

Chapter 19

Every day brings a new pain. It takes time to get used to Ivan not being there to pick you up after a class. You do your best not to think about it too much, but it's never far from your mind. Once, you follow a complete stranger because he's wearing a trench coat. Your sanity is slowly unraveling.

"Excuse me, (y/n)-san," Honda-san says to you one night when you're at his restaurant. "You don't seem to be your usual self. Is something the matter?"

You don't say anything to him, but tears start leaking from your eyes. 

Honda-san debates whether he should refrain from talking, but he decides this isn't one of those times. "Why don't you go home? I'll still accept your unfinished hours." He places a hand on your shoulder, then quickly walks away.

Your apprenticeship isn't the only place where your performance suffers. You find it hard to focus at work, and your smiles to your customers become less and less genuine. It's hard to pretend to be happy when your life is falling apart. Arthur is the only one, besides Ludwig, that seems to notice anything.

"(Y/n), what's wrong, love?" He almost never used pet names, so you can tell he's really worried.

"It's nothing," you mumble. You know you don't sound at all convincing. 

"Don't even pretend nothing's wrong. Ludwig asked me to find out what's going on. We're worried about you, (y/n)." Arthur crosses his arms and looks at you with worry.

"Ivan...broke up with me..." you say softly. You can't stop the tears from falling, and you wipe them away quickly before anyone can notice. 

"Oh (y/n)," he says in gentle voice. He walks to your register and gives you a hug. He holds you quietly until you stop crying. You explain what happened between sobs. "You need to get him back."

"What?" You look up at him confused.

"You need to get him back," Arthur repeats. "You obviously made him happy. There's no way he can just dump you and run. Go after him. Show him that he means a lot to you too. You can't give up now (y/n)."

You look at Arthur with a blank expression that is soon replaced by determination. You can't give up on Ivan yet. You love him.

"My shift is ending," Arthur murmurs. He leans in and gives you a quick peck on a tear stained cheek. "Think about what I said."

You raise a hand to brush the spot Arthur's lips had touched. Could it be possible Arthur had liked you this whole time? It must have been painful to watch you so happy with Ivan when he wanted to be with you instead. He really is the best gentleman you know.

It takes you a whole week to steel up enough nerve to go to Ivan's house. Each time you try, you manage to talk yourself out of it. Today you don't have any excuse left why you shouldn't see him. You have to prove that your love is more important than anything.

You're about to knock on Ivan's door when it swings open. You step inside and gape at what you see. The house is a complete mess. Books and paper lay littered across the floor, and rustle faintly when the wind blows through the open doorway. A layer of dirt and dust has collected on everything in the living room. You walk across the scattered debris on the floor toward the fireplace. The little Ivan doll has been knocked to the floor, so you pick it up and put it back in its place. What had happened here?

You walk through the house to find most of the rooms in a similar condition. Broken glass, chunks of furniture, dirt, and dead leaves cover the floors of each room. The eerie silence in the house gives everything a creepy feel. The feel is completed by the shredded curtains blocking out the sunlight from filtering in through the windows.