The Secret: Chapter 7
Disclaimer: I don't own Sasuke or Kakashi.
Author's note: Thanks again for all of your wonderful reviews! I can't express enough how much they mean to me. Thank you also to everyone who has taken the time to read this story so far. I hope you are still enjoying it! :D
Apologies once more for the long wait for updates, but it won't be long before they get frequent again. I promise! So… on with the next chapter, thanks for your patience and please enjoy the next installment! :D
……………………………………………………………………………………………
(Kakashi's point of view for the entire chapter)
"My car is just around the back of the house," I say with a smile, hoping to reassure Sasuke. "There is a hotel about 10 miles away, we'll stay there for the time being until Gin calms down and then we can work out what to do from there."
He nods in response. Instantly when we came through the front gates, Sasuke sunk back into himself and has remained silent since, his eyes resembling those of a terrified rabbit caught in headlights. Perhaps he regrets telling me what he did earlier, but he can't take it back and in my opinion he's worrying unnecessarily about it, he needed to tell someone before he went insane and he almost did. His desperate attempt to end his own life speaks for itself. He can't stay here. He will die either way, by his own hand or via Gin's rage. Although I can understand why he is so frightened, he just did the one thing that Gin drilled into him never to do, if Gin found out I dread to think about the outcome. I hope he trusts me enough to know that this time around I will not let anyone hurt him, even if I have to die myself and I mean that.
I'm about to guide him around the back of the house to my car when I realise I don't have my keys. They are inside.
"Shit!" I gasp, instantly regretting it when the look on Sasuke's face turns a whole shade whiter than usual, the fear in his eyes deepening. It's not a good idea to let him think that anything is wrong at this stage. I want to get him out of here smoothly, bring him to safety then face my fear, phone Gin and tell him what's happening for the time being. I don't think I'll tell him where myself and Sasuke are though, I might as well have a death wish if I do that. He will be raging at first, but then he'll calm down, I know he will. Gin acts on impulse, once he's had enough time to think things over, he won't act quite so impetuously… I hope. It will be best for all of us anyway. Sasuke will have some time away from Gin and the confines of the house, so hopefully he will be able to relax and get some rest without the constant fear of his tormentor abusing him keeping him awake at night. Gin could all too easily do something he regrets to the boy right now, so he definitely needs the time to calm himself down before Sasuke comes anywhere near him.
"Sasuke, I'm going to have to leave you here for a minute. My car keys are inside but I'll be back in no time," I smile to him. "You stay here."
I did think about bringing him inside with me briefly, he's freezing cold standing out there, but I can't take the risk of Gin catching me with him. The boy is cold and soaked through, more than obvious he's been outside. Gin will fly of the rails if he suspects that for a second, Sasuke is not allowed outside without permission. Ever. No exceptions.
He tries hard to smile back at me, but it is weak and forced. He can't hide his fear and I can't blame him either. Leaving him hidden in the shadows wrapped up in my coat, I quickly dart inside and up the stairs, silently praying that I don't run into Gin. The car keys are on top of my desk; I grab them quickly and shove them into my pocket. As much as I want to make a mad dash back to Sasuke, I can't risk having Gin hear my panicked footsteps. I need to stay calm, act as if everything is normal and that I'm not trying to make of with his prized 'trophy'. I quicken my pace as I reach the front door, but the shrill, panicked sound of Sasuke crying my name makes my blood run cold.
"No! Just fucking no!" I cry to myself and sprint out of the door, adrenaline kicking in just as much as previously when the boy was about to hurl himself of a bridge! To be honest, it doesn't surprise me that Gin has found him. We were away a long time and he was bound to have become suspicious. More than likely he was actually been searching for the boy himself. All he needed to do was open the front door and see Sasuke's footsteps running away from the house and mine following in pursuit. I bet Gin knew I would have to bring him back here, I bet he knew and was fucking waiting for us to get back. The anger propels me forward faster than the adrenaline. I want to kick his fucking face in.
To my relief, Sasuke appears from almost out of nowhere, confused, shaking and in a complete state of panic. His breath comes in uncontrollable gasps as he clutches onto me as if his life depended on it. In fact, his life probably does depend on it as I see Gin appearing out of the darkness, his face and cheeks flushed red and his hands curled up tightly into a fist. The relief was short-lived. He doesn't look human; there is a look of pure murder in his eyes of primal instinct like a lion closing in for the kill. I wrap my arm around Sasuke protectively. I'm not going to run away and betray him like last time. Right now I hate Gin more than anyone else in the world. I have to keep telling myself that he's not as strong as he looks, he gets perverse pleasure from beating up a defenseless young boy, how the hell does that make him strong or powerful? It's all an act, a carefully constructed image.
"DON'T YOU FUCKING TOUCH HIM!" I yell at the top of my lungs, my face filling with fury.
"Or you'll do what?" Gin sneers emotionlessly as he steps towards Sasuke at the same menacing pace. I didn't even slow him down! I need to make this bastard acknowledge me! I'm not backing down!
Sasuke stares at him approaching with wide eyes. He takes a step backwards and almost looses his footing when he sees his tormentor raising his fist, ready to strike with a sadistic grin on his face. He loves hurting the boy. He thrives on Sasuke's fear as it spurs him on like a drug, making him crave more and more. It's a thrill to him.
The next few seconds happen almost in slow motion. Gin steps towards Sasuke who is now frozen to the spot, staring into the cruel eyes of his attacker, his limbs unable to move. Without thinking, I push Sasuke out of the way, causing him to land heavily with a thud on the ground next to me. As Gin's fist crushes into the side of my face, at first I feel nothing, the shock acting as a temporary dose of morphine. The metallic taste of blood in my mouth snaps me back into reality, an intense, sharp sting soon follows. He almost fucking knocked me out. It takes a moment for my blurry vision to return to normal as I try to retain my balance, refusing to fall to the ground. This is what Sasuke must feel almost every day of his life. The difference is that the force knocks the delicate boy to the ground pretty much every time. I only just stayed on my feet, Sasuke gets thrown around like a rag-doll.
"Kakashi!" Gin's voice bellows, sounding almost compassionate, sorry even. I'm in too much of a daze right now to know for sure. I feel like I've been hit by a car and the side of my face aches and throbs relentlessly. It's probably already started to swell up. Looking down at Sasuke, he stares back at me, a look of complete bewilderment spreading across his features. I suppose this is the first time anyone has ever taken a punch for him, especially from Gin; that guy's fists are like fucking battering rams. You'd be mad to get in the way of them intentionally.
"Why did you get in the way?" Gin shouts as he offers me a hand to steady myself. "This has nothing to do with you!"
"It has everything to do with me!" I blurt out as I back away from his extended arm. "Sasuke has taken enough beatings from you and I can't bear standing back and letting it happen anymore. If you're going to hit somebody, at least hit somebody who might have a chance at hitting back!"
My heart slams roughly against the walls of my chest as I prepare myself to speak my next words. I don't know how he's going to react. I steady myself with a deep breath.
"Gin, I'm leaving and I'm taking Sasuke with me."
This time it's Gin who almost buckled over and hit the ground. I'm sure that was definitely the last thing he was expecting me to say. He's taken aback, probably in shock for the first time in his life."
"w..w..what?" he stammers.
"I said I'm taking Sasuke with me. He deserves better than this, I can't turn a blind eye to the abuse any long…"
"DON'T YOU EVEN THINK ABOUT IT!" Gin screams, interrupting my sentence, his cheeks flushing red once again from the effort. "THAT BOY IS MY PROPERTY AND HE STAYS WHERE HE IS! END OF FUCKING STORY!"
Sasuke continues to stare up at me from his position on the ground, his jaw wide open. I don't think he really believed me when I said I was going to rescue him, but right now he knows it's true. I've said it to Gin right in front of him and I'm not taking it back.
"I'm not leaving him here Gin," I hiss once again as I walk over to the bewildered boy and pull him to his feet.
"Listen to me right now you idiot," Gin sneers. "If you leave and take that boy with you, I swear you will not receive a single penny from me, you here that? NOTHING! And that's millions Kakashi, we're talking about millions here. Think about your poor mother."
And so, I faced the biggest moral dilemma of my life. If I choose Sasuke, I lose financial security for my family for as long as we live. My mother will never know the life I want her to have and this would be the biggest disappointment in the world for her. When she found out that I was to be Gin's heir, it was the happiest I'd ever seen her. Her eyes lit up for the first time in years, her lips curled upwards into a smile and she wrapped her arms around me tighter than she had ever done before. She has not had an easy life and after my father killed himself, everything became even worse for her financially and emotionally. She's never known what it is like to have money as her life has consisted of sacrificing everything for me so that I could have a happy childhood. This was my one chance to pay her back, say 'thank you' and let her live out the rest of her days in peace and luxury. But then again, Sasuke will lose his life if he stays here, that can't be denied. I can't live with that knowing everything he's been through from such a young age. I can't abandon him, I'm not cruel enough.
I feel his hands tightening their grip on my shirt as he buries his head against me. He knows that Gin has played the 'mother' card against me and he can't possibly expect to win against that. It's Gin's ultimate defense after all and he wins every time. I hear his quiet sobs as he prepares himself for the worst. Betrayed again.
I'm not going to betray him. I care about this boy more than he will ever know. Taking another deep breath and stare back into Gin's cold, emotionless eyes. A small, defiant smile spreads across my lips.
"I choose Sasuke."
End of Chapter 7
………………………………………………………………………………………….
Thank you for reading! I apologise for any bad grammar/spelling/other major mistakes in this chapter, its 2am in the morning and the computer screen has gone kinda blurry lol. But at last Kakashi has finally made his decision, but how will Gin take it? Not well I'd imagine, but you will have to wait until the next chapter to find out! :P This story is far from over mind you, so just that Kakashi has made his decision does not mean that it's the end! :D Please review and let me know if you still like where I'm taking this. More of the secret will be revealed in later chapters, but not just for a while yet. Hopefully there will be some lemony goodness to come too! :D
Again, thank you to everyone who reads this and everyone who has taken the time to review. It means a lot and it keeps me going! :D I'm off to bed, see you next chapter!
Laura xx
