AN: Thanks for the good reviews everyone!!! I was totally expecting to be flamed for the last chapter, so I'm glad you had mercy on me. The rest of the story is nothing like that, but it's still really angsty. R&R.
Chapter 5Ron awoke with the worst headache of his life. He looked around at the dark alleyway where Drakken had apparently dumped him and wondered exactly where he was. Rufus poked his head out of Ron's pocket and stared up at him questioningly. "Don't ask me buddy. I'm just as lost as you are." The last thing he remembered was getting knocked out by Shego's gas bomb.
Kim was lying beside him, unconscious. Ron gasped in alarm when he noticed the cuts and bruises that covered her face, neck, and arms. She wore her normal pants and shoes, but her shirt had been replaced with a baggy green and black tee, most likely Shego's.
"What have they done to you, KP?" His voice wavered emotionally as he gently touched her injured cheek.
Kim's eyes popped open at his touch and stared blankly at him. It took her a second to remember the events that had taken place. Suddenly she sat up and shoved him back, away from her.
Ron's head hit the concrete with a hard thud. "Wha..?" He cried out in surprise.
"Don't you dare touch me! I fucking hate you!" She yelled and straddled his body with her own.
Ron's eyes bulged in shock as hers burned into them with a deadly glare. "W-What's wrong, Kim?" He croaked.
"Don't act like you don't know! You fucking raped me!" She screamed inches from his face. She raised her fist and brought it down into his jaw with a hard blow.
"WHAT!" He raised his hands defensively to his face. "W-What are you talking about?"
"How could you do it, Ron? How could you betray me like that, you son of a bitch?" She screamed, punching him again as he cowered under her.
"I-I would never hurt you, Kim. I don't know what you're talking about." Ron sputtered, trying in vain to avoid her raging fist.
"Let me refresh you're memory." Kim clasped her hands around his throat and squeezed with fury blazing in her eyes.
Ron gasped for breath under her, choking. He attempted to roll over and push her off, but the adrenaline rushing through her body had given her super-human strength. His face began to turn a deep shade of red as his last breath of oxygen was slowly used up. Silently pleading for his life, he stared up at her with tears in his eyes.
Swearing revenge, Kim struggled not to break her grasp on his neck, but she couldn't do it. She couldn't kill him, no matter what kind of hell he had put her through. Despite her justified motive, taking another person's life just wasn't in her. She released his throat and viciously slapped his face one last time. "I hope you rot in hell!" She spat before climbing off of him.
Coughing severely, Ron watched as she rose to her feet and ran away sobbing. "Don't go Kim! Why are you acting like this? I didn't do anything!" He called, when he finally caught his breath. She ignored his cries and continued to distance herself from him as fast as she could.
*****
Kim slammed her front door and leaned against the stair railing, breathing heavily. She had just run several miles to get home. Her family looked up from their spot in the TV room and stared at her.
"Hey Kimmie, how was your mission?" Her mom asked.
"Fine mom. I don't feel well, I'm going to my room."
"Man, you look rough! How'd you get all those bruises?" Jim, one of her identical twin brothers, asked curiously.
"Duh! She got 'em from kicking some serious bad-guy butt!" Tim answered his brother's question.
"Oh…so what's with the ugly shirt?" Jim wrinkled his nose at the green and black tee that hung loosely around her frame.
"Nothing! Just leave me alone tweebs!" Kim yelled and abruptly started to climb up to her room.
"Honey? Is something bothering you?" Her dad asked with a concerned tone.
"No. Sorry dad. I'm just really tired, it's been a rough night."
"Well your mother should really take a look at your cuts before you go to bed."
"Don't worry, it's no big. Shego just caught me off guard. I'll pour some peroxide over them."
"Okay Kimmie-cub. If you want to talk about anything, we'll be right here."
"Thanks dad." She said and rushed up to her room before her family asked any more questions.
Kim quickly ran to the bathroom and turned on the shower. She peeled out of her clothes at lightening speed and stepped under the hot water. Sitting down in the tub, she pulled her knees to her chest and began to weep again. The scalding hot water would cleanse her body, but she knew that it couldn't wash away the pain that she felt inside.
*****
Bewildered, Ron stood in the alleyway and watched Kim run until she was out of sight. His eyes brimmed with tears, not because of the injuries she had inflicted upon him, but from her stinging words. Rufus climbed up to his shoulder and nuzzled against his face in an effort to comfort him. "Thanks buddy." He said half-heartedly.
Ron continued to stare at the pavement for several more minutes, trying to make sense everything. When they went into the warehouse, everything was fine between them. What changed? "Did she say I raped her?" He asked himself aloud, not sure if he'd heard her correctly. The thought was ludicrous. He would never harm so much as a hair on her head. He wondered what Drakken had done to make her think such a horrible thing.
Confused, he shoved his hands in his pockets and aimlessly made his way from the alley. After awhile, he recognized his surrounding and turned in the direction of his street.
"You never thought of me as your partner, bitch! You always use me as the distraction so you can claim the victory and take all the credit." The thought popped into Ron's head out of nowhere. It seemed more like a memory than a thought. The voice sounded vaguely like his own, but the tone was cruel and heartless. He shrugged it off and continued walking.
"Don't try to resist me, KP. It'll only make things worse for you." The voice spoke again. This time Ron stopped and rubbed his forehead, wondering if he was going crazy.
"I'm in control now, bitch. I own you." The words echoed in his mind. He heard himself speaking them, but he couldn't remember the circumstances. Suddenly, the image of Kim flashed behind his eyes. She was naked and crying, chained to a wall. "It was good for me, KP. Sorry you don't feel the same."
"STOP! MAKE IT STOP!" Ron screamed, falling to his knees in the middle of the sidewalk. Several people paused and stared at him briefly before hurrying off. "What have I done?" he muttered over and over again. Hot tears poured down his cheeks as he clutched his head in his hands, not caring what people thought of the scene that he was making.
******
Ron stood awkwardly on the Possible's front porch, second-guessing himself. During his breakdown in the street, a concerned woman had put her hand on his shoulder and gently asked if everything was all right. That was enough to jar him back to reality. Without answering her, he had quickly jumped to his feet and run all the way to Kim's house with only one thought on his mind—he had to talk to her.
Now, standing there with his finger poised to ring the bell, he wondered if it was really a good idea. What would he say to her? How would she react to seeing him again? He turned and started to walk away when the door suddenly opened.
"Ron! How are you? I thought I saw someone come up the steps." Kim's mother said, motioning for him to come in.
'Damn!' he cursed inwardly, observing the open blinds in the window. "Hi Mrs. Possible. Is Kim home?" He asked nervously.
"Yes, she is. I think she just got out of the shower. Is everything okay? She wasn't acting like herself when she got in."
"I think so." Ron lied.
"Oh. Well maybe she's just coming down with something. She mentioned that she wasn't feeling well. You can go up to her room; I'm sure she's dressed by now."
"Thanks, Mrs. Possible." Ron said with a sinking feeling in the pit of his stomach. He desperately wanted to talk to Kim, but he didn't know if he could face her after what he'd done. His feet felt like they weighed a ton as he slowly climbed the steps to her room.