Ongoing Cycle

53

News spread like wildfire. When [Y/N] heard her parents talking about it as they watched the TV, it felt like she just took a punch in the gut. Her former boyfriend - the very same one she recently broke up with - had just lost his father to...suicide. Standing there in the living room behind her parents, her eyes were glued to the screen that had a picture of the man. Those blue eyes of his were so similar to the ones she saw all the time. That nose too. That just shows how much she paid attention to him...the thought that she knew the curve of his nose. Her lips quivering, she tried to hold her tears back. Crying in front of her parents was a terrible idea.

Also...the fact that they were already putting cameras into the Ideka's family's situation was so disturbing to her. The man died today, for God's sake! These news people needed boundaries and should learn to respect others.

While she was in an internal battle about what she should do about Kuro, her parents leapt to take action first. "[Y/N], stay here," ordered her mother, as the both of them got up from the couch. They put on their coats and headed to the door. "We're fetching Kuro. The poor boy needs somewhere to stay and he would want comfort. You'll help him with that."

Shocked, she could only watch as they leave. When she was alone, she staggered to the floor and finally let a few tears out. She couldn't imagine how he was feeling right now. Sure, he hated his father similar to how she hated her own parents, but the man took his own life... He probably blamed himself for it and could be feeling lonelier than ever.

She couldn't help it. He may have broke her heart, but she still cared so deeply for him. She was actually glad that her parents decided to take him in. She knew they were only doing it to benefit them for their selfish reasons, but it...gave her an excuse to see him.

Wiping her tear ridden face away, she pushed herself up and went around the couch. Making way to the front, she sat down onto the soft cushion, lost in her thoughts. Picking up the remote from the chocolate brown coffee table, she pushed down on her thumb. The TV grew dark and the entire house was silent, without the annoying voice of the anchor. She stayed at that spot, doing absolutely nothing and waiting until they came home.

They came home much sooner than she expected. The moment she heard the click of the door, she sprung up from where she sat and whipped her body around. Footsteps approaching down the hallway, she grew rigid, anticipating for it. The murmurings getting louder every second, the three figures then appeared from the corner.

There he was. Her heart pounding restlessly, she gazed at every inch of his face. His blue eyes rimmed with red, it was obvious that he'd been crying. His face was streaked of dirt and mud and his usual lovely hair was untamed like a lion's. His lips cracked and looking parched, they no longer seemed so kissable. Her eyes dropped down; it wasn't just his face that had dirt all over, his clothes and hands did too.

Her heart broke for him, but now, it was for an entire different reason.

"Dear, please get Kuro to his new room," her mother asked her politely, putting on a facade in front of their new guest. Not that she needed it anyway...since the boy already knew how they treated their daughter.

Nodding obediently, she made eye contact with Kuro. Nudging her head towards the direction of the bedrooms, he immediately followed her after shooting a weak smile. Climbing up the stairs together without uttering a single word, they approached the second floor.

Passing her own bedroom and then her parents' bedroom, they stopped at the last door of the hallway. Opening the door for him, they both stared into the simple room. Plain and bare, it had the bare necessities, which consisted of a bed, desk, drawer, and closet.

She glanced over at him. Despite having lived in a mansion his whole life, he did not seem to mind this. Entering the room, he placed his packed bags onto the floor and gave her a thankful nod. She almost released a sigh of relief to know that this suited him, but stopped herself when she knew she shouldn't care for him anymore.

But...how would that be possible? Could she really leave him like this, when he looked so terribly pitiful?

Before she could regret it, she cleared her throat awkwardly. He looked at her with surprise, but she continued. "Would you....like a hug...?" It didn't matter if he was dirty; she wanted him to know that he was not alone.

In an instant, his eyes grew glassy as he desperately blinked his tears away. Opening his mouth, he finally spoke the first word she heard from him today. "Yes." His voice was raspy and it sounded painful, as if he had ruined his throat from screaming too much. He came up to her and she wrapped her arms around him. They were enveloped in the familiar hug that they knew so well. It felt right...and their bodies were shape to perfectly fit into one another.

His head lowered onto her shoulder this time, and warm, wet tears soddened her shirt, but she didn't mind it. "I don't deserve you, [Y/N]," he whispered.

"I know you don't," she said with a sigh, pulling his body closer to her. Though she was the one offering comfort, somehow, in a way, he was offering comfort right back to her. Which didn't make sense...because he was the one who made her sad in the first place. "I know you don't."