Watching him die was... ineffable. I have no words. He died so... abruptly. It was like, one second he walked into the room and the next he stopped breathing. I almost don't believe he is actually gone.

I'm pulled out of my thoughts when Kyoya places a hand on my shoulder. I look around and notice that we are the only ones here. They've already removed the body and cleaned up.

"Come on Kairi. We need to go if we wanna catch the plane on time."

"Right."

I stand up and follow him outside. We slide into the limo and leave for the airport. We arrive lickety-split and board Kyoya's family's private jet. Shortly afterward, the plane leaves.

As I sit in one of the leather seats, Kyoya sits down across from me.

"Well, we'll be back in Japan in about 13 hours. Ready to be home?"

I smile and nod. I turn my head and look out the window.

"Kairi? Is something wrong?"

I keep looking at the window. "Of course not. Why would something be wrong?"

"Really? Then look me in the eye and tell me nothing is wrong."

I look over at him and open my mouth to speak. Then I quickly shut it when I realize I can't say it.

"That's what I thought. Come on. I'm the one person you don't shut out. Tell me what's on your mind."

When I don't say anything he adds, "Please? We've been working so hard these past several months. Please tell me what's wrong."

I sigh and look down. "It's nothing, really. It's just... it's strange. I know I should feel relieved, but... I don't. I'm just... conflicted."

"Why are you feeling conflicted?"

"Well, on one hand, I know that he was a bad man and that he was mentally and sexually abusive. Not to mention a child molester. But, on the other hand, he was a man who had feelings. I mean, no one else was there to see it, but he didn't want to physically hurt me. When I showed happiness, he was genuinely happy. He was happy that I was happy. And when I was upset, he honestly worried. He tried to comfort me. When I had nightmares, he'd calm me down and help me fall back asleep. I know that he did horrible things, but he was human. And despite all the pain and suffering he caused me, I can't bring myself to hate him."

"I thought you used to hate him? What changed?"

"Seeing him again. When I was little, I couldn't completely understand what happened. As I grew up, I finally understood just what he had done and I was angry. I was so angry with him. And myself. I hated him for doing that to me and I hated myself for going along with it. And then I met my adoptive family. And I finally knew what it was like to be loved. Watching Aiko grow up made me realize that children are so young and naive. They only know what those around them teach them. When I realized that, I learned to not hate myself so much. And then you and the club came along and became my friends. You guys saw good in me and I thought that maybe there wasn't so much to hate about myself. But since all I knew was hatred, I didn't know what to feel or what I was feeling. And then the news came that he was back. And all that hatred and anger came to the surface. But this time, I didn't want to leave. And when I reached out, you all came running. And then he kidnapped me. When I woke up in that room, I knew. I knew immediately that he had me. He came into that room, angry and ready to beat me into submission. I knew that I was gonna have to pretend. I knew I was going to have to bide my time until you could save me. So, I acted. I pretended to be the same little girl that he had trained so well all those years ago. And, he bought it. And the whole time I was there, I realized that he's human. He feels things, just like the rest of us do. And, I found myself incapable of hating him. Watching him die today, I almost feel mournful. Which is stupid. I shouldn't feel sad that he's dead. I should feel safe. I should be happy knowing that he will never harm me or anyone else ever again. I know this, and yet I just feel sadness."

"Hey, it's ok. While I may not understand completely, I can still see where you're coming from. And listen to me, it's ok. You can feel sad if you want to. You're right. He was a person. He was a son to someone. A sort-of father to you. A co-worker to others. Probably a friend to at least one person. It's ok to feel sad over the death of a person."

"You're not upset with me?"

"Of course not. Why would I-"

"Because I'm mourning his death. I shouldn't, but I am."

"Who decides what you should and shouldn't be feeling? No one. It doesn't matter what you should or should not be feeling. What matters is what you do feel. I will never be upset with you for being a human being with feelings. Come here." He pulls me to him and sits me down on his lap. He wraps his arms around me and I lay my head against his chest.

"It's ok Kairi. Today, we mourn his death. Tomorrow, we move on. We leave this part of our lives in the past. We focus on school and the club and our families and wondering what new crazy cosplay Tamaki's going to want." We both chuckle. "Ok?"

"Ok."

Before you all murder me, please understand I hit a big writer's block and got stuck. I knew where I wanted to the story to go eventually, just got stuck on how to get there. But today, I stopped what I was doing and sat down with my pencil and paper and told myself I was gonna write this chapter no matter how long it took. And somehow, I was able to write. Hopefully, I'm past this writer's block and I can start updating again. Sorry for the inconvienence.