No matter what…

I'll be by your side.

I'll love you forever.

As your sister

Ruby…

I'll protect you.

Always.

The sounds of glass breaking and their father's roaring voice echoed through the walls of the Kurosawa household.

"Ryousuke-san! Stop it!"

"Shut up, you worthless bitch!"

"Onee-chan…"

The younger sister, Ruby, was shaking like a leaf, as her big sister, Dia, held her tight.

"I've got you, Ruby. It'll all be over soon, I promise," she whispered. Another crash of glass into the wall, and Ruby wailed at the sudden noise.

"Onee-chan!" Dia tightened her hold on her sister.

"You're okay, Ruby. You're… you're okay." Dia could feel the lump slowly form in her throat. "I'm right here, it's okay." She choked back a sob, biting down on her lip. She wasn't sure if she was trying to calm Ruby down, or herself. Either way, the sounds of her sweet sister's cries just grew to be too much for her. She quietly cried in Ruby's shoulder, her tears soaking her sister's shirt. The two both whispered the same prayer in their hearts.

Please, God, let this end soon!

It was well past nine in the evening, and Ryousuke went for a drive to clear his head, away from his wife and daughters.

While the wife had the chance, Youko slipped into her daughters' bedroom, and quietly slid the closet door open. Her heart tore at the sight of her precious girls, who fell asleep clinging to each other for dear life. Youko brought a hand to her lips, muffling her sobs as she hunched herself to the floor.

"I'm so sorry, girls… Dia… Ruby… Forgive me…"

Unbeknownst to Youko, her eldest daughter was silently crying at the sound of her mother's pleas, as a single tear rolled down her cheek.

The next morning, Dia woke up in her bed. Her eyes darted around the room before they finally landed on her sister, just as she was sleeping peacefully beside her. She breathed a heavy sigh of relief. If there's one thing that Dia knows about Ruby, it's that she can't stand sleeping alone after a night of her father's bellowing.

The Kurosawa family's status had immediately plummeted after Ryousuke was rumored to have slept with a co-worker from his company. When Youko demanded an answer from her husband, he avoided her, for months. He would leave the house, but whenever he would come back, Youko would beg him to confess his wrongs. He strongly kept refusing, to the point where he had used violence against his wife. Much to their daughters' dismay.

Dia had been used to her father not being around. In fact, she thought it was better that way. Ruby, however, was a Daddy's girl, and always assumed that Ryousuke would change.

Until one day, when he had gone too far.