Warnings for this chapter: parental neglect, parental abuse (both mentioned), blood (mentioned), death.

Chapter 12: The Storm

Ennea was restless. Sitting outside of the workplace, the mother had her hands clasped together, her head bowing as she prayed for a miracle. She couldn't lose Roku. She just couldn't! What would she do without him? How could she raise Nona and her unborn child by herself? Unable to calm down her nerves, the woman settled with standing up.

With stress building up, she started to pace back and forth. Her mind was screaming. How could this happen?! Today was so normal. How could something like this had happen? How could it happen...?

Slowing her pacing to a stop, Ennea started to feel dread. The reason why her husband was in that condition was because... the reason why her Roku was found on the ground, covered in blood was because...

Reaching into her pocket, the pregnant woman pulled out a small pink oyster shell. The Haven didn't have any way of communication since everyone knew each other. However, many shells found on the beach have been enchanted by the sea creatures of the deep. They say if you split an oyster shell and a couple keeps their halves, it would allow them to communicate with each other simply by whispering into the shell.

Ever since she had been carrying another life inside of her, Ennea and Roku had been using their shells to talk with each other, even if they were miles away apart. And... earlier today, she had used it to call him.

Those previous hours now felt like a dream...

~oOo~

She was at home, resting. Absentmindedly, she rubbed her belly as she thought about her family. She was having Roku's second child. A smile spread on her face as the due date will eventually come with each passing day. Her husband had won the bet, so she would have to give the unborn child a name. Already, she had one in mind, but she could imagine her daughter's slightly disappointed look at the inevitable news. Regardless, she was aware that Nona wouldn't treat her sibling any differently.

Nona. Somehow, Ennea smiled at the name of her daughter. Her first child. Hers and Roku's. She was so happy to give birth to her sweet baby girl. So happy. So blessed. She had made a promise to herself that she'll love her daughter as much as she could, together with Roku. Because it was Roku who had shown love in her life.

She was a foreigner. An outsider. A broken child living in a harsh world. Just an unloved pawn used to benefit her wealthy parents' self-image. She was angry, tired, distrustful. Her past was shameful. So shameful that she would like to bury it and forget it forever, thinking of her life right now. But to forget about her past and try to paint the picture she would like to see was like rejecting the mistakes she had made. And Ennea refused to push her mistakes away. She'll treasure them and used them to help better herself as a person. In fact, she planned to tell her children one day when they grow up.

How their father saved her and changed her. She remembered. As a teenager, she was a difficult child. Feeling unloved, she would hurt others to vent out her frustrations. As a result, she was beaten - hurt. Her vain parents would verbally yell at her, criticizing her worthlessness and blaming her for dragging the family name to the ground. What hypocrites they were, how fallible adults were. For them to believe themselves to be pure and faultless, pushing the blame onto her. How heartless they were when they have only neglected her. It confirmed the loveless life she had been living. Without love, she just felt dead inside. Had he never come, she probably remained unchanged. A loveless girl who couldn't love, living a meaningless life.

She was locked away in the shed, left for dead. When the door opened, her cold eyes didn't see those hypocritical people who claimed to be her parents. Instead, she saw the worried wenge brown eyes of a future prosecutor. His black hair gleamed under the moonlight. Scowling, Ennea pushed him away now that the door to the shed had been unlocked.

"Wait! You're hurt!" he started to follow her, trying to point out her injured arm.

"Leave me alone," she coldly disregarded him.

"No, wait!" he went to reach out for her hand.

The mere contact had her flinched. She roughly pulled her arm away, turning her head to face the older teen. She had a look of fear in her eyes, but she narrowed them quickly, glaring at the boy. She couldn't show weakness. She didn't need any help. "I said LEAVE ME ALONE!"

It was a lie. She did need help. She just didn't want to appear vulnerable. She told him to leave her alone, but inside, she was nearly begging for him to stay. She had no reason to. He was a stranger, she didn't know him. But her heart shook to remind her. I feel lonely.

Her shouting had alerted them. The door sprang open and Ennea froze. It wasn't necessarily out of fear. She was used to their neglect. Still, their very presence would always make her world stop. Out came her father and mother. Already, her father had a look of outrage after seeing that she was outside of the shed.

"What are you doing there?! I did not give you permission to leave!" he yelled, storming his way to her. Any child would be frightened and run away at the sight of him, but not her. No, instead, she stood her ground, becoming tired of it all. Forget tired, she was fed up! "Get back in there, Ennea, or you'll be punished!"

In the past, she would probably rebel. Even now, she does. However, that was before her parents became abusive, back when they were just neglectful. She slowly turned, intending to return to her 'room'. However, she was stopped, a hand had closed around hers. Confusion spread to her face as she turned to look at him, a complete contrast from the way she looked at him earlier. The boy wasn't looking at her, glaring at her parents instead. Why? Why was he stopping her? Especially when she had yelled at him?

Her mother noticed the scene and screeched, "Who are you? What are you doing to her?!"

"I could ask you the same question," the boy coolly replied. "What are you doing to your daughter?"

"She's not our daughter! She's a complete waste of our space and we shall treat her as we see fit!" her father screamed.

"If she's not your daughter, then there shouldn't be a problem if I just take her, right?" the boy questioned with interest.

Stunned by that question, the adults had frozen in shock. Taking the opportunity, the boy adjusted his hand so that he was properly holding hands with her. Without warning, he ran, taking her along with him. They ran, even when they were being chased, using their size to their advantage. They hid a lot, getting further and further away from the adults.

While they had run, Ennea had remained quiet, in complete shock and silently contemplating. Why did he save her? Why did he get involved when it didn't benefit him? Why risk his safety for her, a stranger? Looking up, she was about to open her mouth to speak, but he had beaten her to it.

"I'm sorry if I dragged you around. Are you okay?" he smiled gently at her.

"Why... did you do what you did back there?" she could only ask in awe.

"Because... you looked lonely."

How right he was. Ennea could recall her past, when Roku had stated the obvious, she had burst into tears. She had wailed and lamented. And he was there to comfort her. Back then, she had revealed that she was angry. She was angry at her parents and at the world. She admitted that she had resorted to violence to vent out her frustrations. It didn't make it right, but she didn't care back then, not thinking of other people's pain. She only thought about herself. How she would lash out because she wanted to get someone's attention. She wanted someone to notice her and help her. She wanted someone to understand her and love her.

Shifting to a more comfortable position on the couch, she reached for the photo of her and her husband. Staring at the date it was taken, Ennea smiled. After their meeting, Roku had taken her back to the Haven. An outsider was taken to a new environment. Everyone had greeted her, treating her well and welcoming her as a resident. Slowly healing from her past, the two of them eventually went out.

On their first date, they talked about their dreams. Roku had always been ambitious since he was young. Despite his cool and collected self, he was really a soft, loving person. Ennea had thought it was because of the profession he wanted to do when he grows into an adult. He had talked about his dream of becoming a prosecutor. Even though the Haven was a safe community with no crime, he desired to take the job because the outside world was such a different place compared to the town.

"What made you want to become a prosecutor?" she once inquired.

"You." He had answered that without hesitation it had her taken aback.

"Me?"

"Looking at you, I sometimes remember how I found you - understood what you went through. I'm grateful my parents aren't like that, but..." he glared coldly at the sea. "It angers me seeing that there could be adults like... like...! Like that! Parents who would just... lock away their children and treat them like they were garbage! The audacity of them." After taking a few breaths and calming down, he continued, "That's why I want to do something about it. With experience, I would like to save abused children and bring those adults justice."

Love started to sprout. From friends to a couple. Being the son of the Tsukumo family, Roku had been nervous to tell his parents about his relationship with Ennea. However, they accepted her and gave their blessings, simply wishing they lived a long, happy life. Time passed and soon, Ennea found out that she was pregnant with Nona. The woman tiredly closed her eyes, recalling the memory.

"Roku... I'm scared," Ennea whispered as she place her hand on her swollen belly.

Concerned for his wife, Roku place a reassuring hand on her shoulder. "What for, honey? Is having my child hard?"

"N-No! Just...!" she looked down at the bump in her. "What if... What if I grow up to become a bad parent?" At her question, Roku had a serious look on his face as he listened. "I don't know from my own experience what makes a parent good. I know I've seen and met your parents, and they are lovely, but I didn't experience that. And... you've seen me when we first met. What if I hurt it? What if I say or do something bad? What then?"

"You won't hurt it. Remember, you're no longer a part of that horrible family, you're Ennea Tsukumo." Roku held his wife's face in his hands and pressed his forehead against hers. "You'll be a wonderful mother. I can guarantee you that."

"But what if-"

"In any situation where you wronged our child, intentional or not, quickly return home. Find it, hug it, and apologize to it. We're going to raise our child, together. This life that's trying to be born... will grow to become a wonderful person. I'm sure of that much."

Ennea let out a blissful sigh at the memory. To cheer her up, Roku had given her an oyster shell. They had been communicating with these halves when she was pregnant with Nona. They had stopped using it ten years after their firstborn was brought into this world. Now, Ennea was expecting her second child. Staring at her half, the woman considered calling her husband.

There's no harm in asking him to be by my side for a short while, right?

~oOo~

There was no harm. That was what she thought. Instead, when she called him and Roku had responded, he never came home. She had waited for a long time until she had a sinking feeling that something was wrong. Leaving her home and walking closer to where the Circus was located, it was there she had found him. Lying face down in a pool of blood. Her fears turned into dread. Picking up her pace, Ennea had rushed over to Roku's side, turning him over until he was on his back.

The sound of the doors opening broke Ennea from her trip down memory lane. Doctor Hino had come out and the woman anxiously approached her. "Well? Is he..." Her face fell when she caught the somber look on the doctor's face as her head shook slowly. Understanding the situation, she fell to her knees, sobbing.

"Ennea..." Hino paused, unsure what to say. Her pitying face turned to concern when she saw the mother starting to gasp sharply. "Ennea! Hey!" Dropping to her knees, the doctor gently shook her. "Ennea, stay with me!"

However, the mother's breathing grew heavier as she knew what was going to happen. "The... The baby...!"

Understanding what was going on, the doctor called for her team while lifting the woman in her arms. Hurriedly, she carried Ennea into the room and lay her on a bed. Right on time, her team members came to help, gathering the necessary supplies to start the procedure.

"Everything will be okay, Ennea," Hino tried to assure the mother who started to go into labor.

"No..." Ennea started to sob. "I can't right now... I'm not ready..."

"Shh," the doctor shush gently, getting the damped towel to wipe her forehead. "Don't say that, you'll be okay."

The mother only shook her head, doubtful of the doctor's words. She just kept her eyes trained on the ceiling, trying to detach herself from everything. She had just lost Roku. Her husband was lying dead in a bed just a few feet away from hers. And now she was going to give birth now? She couldn't. Not without Roku. Not by herself. She... just... could-

Crying. Not a loud cry, but soft. She didn't feel much pain. Was it because her baby was premature? Or was it because she had detached herself from the pain? Regardless, she couldn't care right now. She was tired. So tired. Slowly, her eyes drifted closed.

~oOo~

At first, she couldn't make out who it was, but she knew they needed help. She ran over to the figure. However, the closer she got, her concern quickly turned into fear. It was Roku! Carefully, she lifted him up and turned him around so he was facing her.

"Ugh..." he groaned.

"Roku! What happened?! Who did this to you?!" Looking down at his body, she could see four, deep stab wounds on his chest. Dark blood blossomed from those spots and continued to trickle down. He had lost a lot of blood! Turning her eyes back to his pale face, Ennea panicked more when she saw his eyelids close to drifting away. "No, no, no! Roku, don't fall asleep! Stay with me! Please!" she pleaded, trying to keep him conscious.

"It's no use, Ennea," her husband whispered. He turned his gaze to look at his wounds. He had been attacked and remembered it well. That woman. She had plunged those scissors deeply into him. At the memory, Roku's face grimace until he coughed violently, blood spewing out from his mouth.

Eyes widening, Ennea started to reassure him - for his sake and her own. "It's okay, it's okay! Don't talk, don't strain yourself."

Roku merely shook his head. Lifting his chin up so that he was looking at her, he smiled sadly, "I won't be making it. So please..."

Numbly, his arm moved until he touched the bump on her lower abdomen. Ennea's eyes followed his arm's movement and nodded her head, shutting her eyes in utter defeat. She understood what he was trying to say. But she wanted him to live! How could she raise both Nona and her unborn child without him?

Feeling a hand caressing her cheek, Ennea opened her eyes to tearfully gaze at her husband. Like her, he also had tears in his eyes as he looked at her reassuringly. "Don't be sad, Ennea. You... gave meaning to my life... Even as I die... like this... being in your arms... seeing you one last time... I'm happy."

"Don't say that! We're going to save you! You'll raise our children with me, together! We'll see them grow, see them find someone who loves them, and watch them graduate! You're not leaving us! You're not leaving me!" Ennea started to sob heavily, cradling him in her arms.

"Our children... that's right... I won the bet." Slowly, his hand left her abdomen and fell to the pool of red, coating his fingers with sticky blood. "That means... you get to name... our second child..."

"That could happen later! We need to get you to the clinic!"

Roku let out a weak groan when she tried to pick him up. Not wanting to cause unnecessary pain, he was laid back down. He needed help. But Ennea was not going to leave her husband like this! She'll just have to wait for someone as she started to apply pressure on his wounds. After a few minutes, Roku started to move her lips.

"Ennea... I feel tired. I'll just close my eyes for a little bit..."

The woman inhaled a sharp breath, she was close to hyperventilating. Trying to remain calm and not accidentally apply too much force, Ennea tried to keep her breathing calm. He was still breathing. He was still breathing.

"May I... know... the name of my second child?" Roku requested, his eyes closed.

Yes. Yes, she'll tell him! She'll tell him the child's name. Holding Roku's big hand in hers, she leaned close, ready to whisper in his ear. Parting her lips, Ennea uttered the name.

"Ichiro..." Ennea breathed out the name of her son.

Slowly, she opened her eyes to see that familiar white ceiling. For a moment, the woman frowned in confusion, not understanding why she was in the clinic bed. But then memories of what had transpired yesterday came to the front of her mind. Roku's death, her delivery, her son's birth. Sitting up abruptly, the woman was about to get out of bed until Hino spotted her.

"What-! No, you can't leave yet, Ennea!" she exclaimed, pushing her back to bed.

Frustrated that she was told that she couldn't move yet, the mother became restless. "Why not?"

"You need more rest. Just a few more hours and you can leave. It's for the good of your heath," Hino insisted, writing something down on her clipboard. "I'll bring you something to eat." Turning away, the doctor exited the room, leaving Ennea alone.

With a sigh, the woman just listened and did as she was told, not getting up from her bed. Turning her head, she could see the drawn curtains. She knew. On the other side of those sheets was her deceased Roku. At the thought of him, Ennea felt tears returning as she sobbed. Covering her eyes with her arms, she wailed.

He should have been alive, in that bed. He should have held her hand during the delivery process. In her arms should have been her son, healthy and born much later. But no. That wasn't what happened. Roku was laying in a bed next to her, dead. She had to give birth alone. And instead of being embraced by loving arms, Ichiro was most likely asleep inside of a box of glass.

Roku was dead, Roku was dead, Roku was dead.

Hearing the doors opening, Ennea uncovered her puffy red eyes to see Doctor Hino. She had a tray of food in her hands and set them down on the mattress. The mother just stared at the food without much enthusiasm.

"I'll... leave you alone," said the doctor, her tone spilling out sympathy. "Hey, Ennea," she placed a comforting hand on her shoulder, "remember to take care of yourself, okay?"

With that small assurance, the sympathetic woman left the room. Her heels clicked against the marble floor until the bedridden patient could hear the door opening and closing. Alone, the widowed mother stared at her untouched food in silence. After a few minutes, she slowly ate, feeling no enjoyment in the taste of the food. It was bland. It didn't have any taste at all. She didn't care.

More minutes passed by. Then hours. Eventually, having rested well enough, Ennea slowly got up from her bed. Slowly, her feet touched the cool marble tiles. What stood between her and Roku were the white curtains. Pushing them aside, she could see his... corpse, covered head to toe in a white sheet. It wasn't completely white, some areas were stained red. With reluctant few steps, she reached and stood at his bedside. Her arms slowly raised, her fingers pinched on the sheet gently. Gingerly, she pulled the sheet back until she could see his face entirely. Ennea's heart sank.

He looked peaceful, with a warm smile on his face. He almost looked like he was sleeping as if exhausted from staying up all night. However, she knew that was far from the truth. If she pulled back further, she would have seen the vicious stab wounds even if the blood had been cleaned up. As quickly as those thoughts surfaced in her head, Ennea shook them away. She refused to remember her husband like that. That was why just seeing his peaceful sleeping expression alone was enough.

Breaking into sobs, Ennea shakily reached out to caress Roku's cheeks. She was careful not to get her tears on him.

Cold. He was so cold. She was left reminded how it was her fault. She could have prevented this. She shouldn't have called, should have held out a little longer. She shouldn't have let him take the kids to the Circus. After half an hour of mourning, Ennea planted a kiss on Roku's forehead before covering him back up.

With a heavy heart, the mother left the clinic.

~oOo~

The afternoon soon arrived.

Rising up from her bed, Nona groggily rubbed her eyes. She had never slept so late before. Why did she even wake up so late? The answer was as clear as day. There wasn't any ray of sunshine through her window. Wide awake as she got out of bed, the girl ran towards the window sill to look outside. It was completely cloudy. The wind was blowing harshly. It looked like it was about to rain, but she felt uncertain of the chances. Somehow, the lack of warmth today really made her feel anxious.

Nevertheless, Nona dressed up as best as she could. Changing into a white and red plaid dress, the ten-year-old left her room and descend the stairs. She should start with making lunch so that when her parents returned from the clinic, they could eat together. As she cooked some steamed rice and fish, the pitter-patter of rain caught her attention. It wasn't raining lightly. In fact, it was raining heavily as raindrops pelted against the windows. A heavy storm today. While the Haven had experienced plenty of storms before, for some reason, Nona felt uneasy about today's weather. Suddenly hearing the door being opened, the girl perked up. Her mother was here!

Running out of the kitchen, Nona was ready to greet her mother cheerfully. She should be outside with her father standing beside her. However, at the immediate sight of her mother drenched in rain, her feet slowed to a halt, her smile faltering until it was no more. Her mother looked so cold and distant, her face looked dead inside.

"Mom? What's wrong?" she dared asked. Looking around her to see if Ennea wasn't hiding her father, she then inquired, "Where's Dad?"

"Your dad won't be coming back, Nona," Ennea replied, her tone sounding broken and hopeless. "He's dead."

Fun fact, Ichiro is Japanese for 'first son'.