ᴛᴀɪɴᴛᴇᴅ ʙʏ ʜᴇʀ

ɴɪɴᴇ

Akira POV

I woke up with a sharp gasp, my breath caught in my throat. My face was drenched in sweat, and my heart pounded in my chest like it was trying to escape. The nightmare. The same one again. It had been a while since it haunted me like this. Why now? I thought, trying to steady my breathing as I sat up, the lingering fear still tightening around my chest.

I turned to my right, my eyes immediately searching for him. Ciel. He was fast asleep, his chest rising and falling steadily with each breath, completely unaware of the storm inside me. The sight of him—so peaceful, so real—brought a brief moment of calm, but it didn't last long.

I reached out gently, my fingers grazing his face, tracing the contours of his jaw. The feel of his warm skin beneath my fingertips made the remnants of the nightmare feel like a distant memory, though the unease still lingered. I ran my hand through his hair, the strands soft and silky, letting my fingers play with them absentmindedly.

That dream—it felt more like a nightmare. A dark, suffocating shadow that still clung to me, despite the warmth of his presence beside me. I couldn't shake the feeling that something was off, that the nightmare had more meaning than I wanted to admit.

As I gazed at him, I felt a mix of longing and fear. Longing for peace, for comfort, and yet fear that something deeper, something I wasn't ready to face, was waiting just beneath the surface.

''Please don't do this'' I screamed, loudly at the four men standing over me. The main one standing in the corner looking at me. I pleaded with him. I tried fighting them off, but that only resulted in a slap in my face. I bit down on my lower lip, hard as my cheek swelled with pain. I couldn't do anything. These men were gonna rape me and I couldn't do anything I tried fighting as hard as I could until I got tired and just laid there, as they have their way with me. I looked at the main one in the corner with my tears stained cheek. Why would you do this to me I thought.

"Akira," Ciel's voice gently brought me back to reality, pulling me from the dark memory that still clung to my mind.

"Morning," I replied, forcing a smile, but it felt fragile, like it could break at any moment.

"What's wrong?" He asked, his concern evident in his voice as he sat up and pulled me toward his chest. It was then that my body jerked uncontrollably, my emotions crashing over me like a tidal wave. The tears flowed freely, hot and relentless, streaming down my cheeks. That dark memory resurfaced—the men who took advantage, the one person I thought I could trust, the betrayal... all of it hitting me all at once.

I cried into his chest for what felt like an eternity, my sobs muffled by the warmth of his embrace. Ciel just held me tighter, kissing the top of my head, his voice a soft, soothing murmur in my ear, "I'm here."

But it didn't stop the storm inside me. I pulled back, the weight of everything feeling too heavy, too suffocating. I threw the blanket over my head and curled up into a tight ball, hoping to disappear, to escape. But Ciel wasn't having any of it. He pulled the blanket off me, his touch gentle but insistent.

"Do you wanna talk about it?" he asked softly, his voice calm, like he was giving me the space to decide. "Was it a bad dream?"

I didn't respond right away. The silence between us stretched, thick and heavy, as I struggled to hold myself together. But after a few moments, I broke. My voice barely above a whisper, trembling with emotion, I started, "You know why I hate relationships. The reason I didn't want to get into one with you..."

Ciel's hand took mine gently, rubbing my wrist, grounding me in the moment. "It's okay, go on," he encouraged softly, his presence unwavering.

I inhaled shakily, trying to steady my breath, my heart aching with the weight of what I was about to say. "I was in a relationship a couple of years ago. I was about 15 or 16. Remember the guy, Darren?" The name left a bitter taste in my mouth, my throat tightening as I swallowed hard, my fist clenching in an attempt to steady myself.