AN: It's a good thing it's winter break so I can get these updates out quickly. Once again, thanks so much for the support! I never expected so many good reviews! Sorry this chapter is really short.
Kim stepped out of the shower, not feeling much cleaner than before. Looking herself over in the bathroom mirror, she observed that her skin was bright red from the scalding water. She cringed at the sight of the bruises on her face, neck and breasts from Ron's torture session.
In the bedroom, she pulled on her bathrobe and stood in front of the dresser mirror brushing her damp hair thoughtfully.
"KP?" Ron said softly, poking his head into her room.
Kim whirled around at the sound of his voice. She couldn't believe that he was actually here, in her room. "Get out!" She growled, keeping her voice down so as not to alarm her family.
"Please talk to me, Kim." He took a step toward her.
She backed up as he approached, unconsciously raising her hands to shield herself. "How dare you come here after what you did! Haven't you done enough damage, or are you back for more? You're lucky that I didn't kill you when I had the chance!"
"Please just listen!" He begged.
"Leave me alone! I never want to see you again!" She cried, pointing to the door.
"I know and I don't blame you. I swear I'll never bother you again after this. But before I go, I just want you to know that I'm sorry for what I did." Ron mumbled with his eyes cast to the floor, ashamed to look at her.
"You're sorry? Oh, well then I guess that makes everything okay." She hissed sarcastically.
"Kim…"
"Look at what you did to me, you bastard!" She ripped open her bathrobe and showed him the cuts and bruises on her neck and breasts. "You raped me! And you expect me to forgive you because you're sorry?"
Ron felt hot tears coming to his eyes as he briefly looked at her injuries before turning his head away in shame. The knowledge that he was responsible for them made him feel physically ill. He placed his hand on her dresser to steady himself for fear of his legs giving out from under him. "I'm so sorry, Kim. I don't know what else to say. I only remember bits and pieces of it from the drugs."
"Y-You were drugged?" Kim stammered in surprise. Oddly, she hadn't given that option consideration. She just assumed that he had finally snapped under pressure. Drakken and Shego could be very persuasive and Ron wasn't the most mentally stable person that she knew.
"I guess it was some kind of mind control thing." He shrugged his shoulders. "The last thing I remember was Shego gassing us, then I woke up in the alley with you. The rest is a blur."
"I…I didn't know…"
"Wait…you actually think I did that to you on purpose? You know I could never hurt you, KP."
"I don't know what to think…. the things you said were so…believable. It was like those feelings have been building up inside you for a long time. I think you enjoyed it and don't realize it."
"That's not fair Kim! How the hell could I enjoy it when I don't even remember it?" His voice rose from her accusations.
"I don't know! Just please go, Ron." Kim flung herself on her bed and began to cry softly into her pillow.
Ron turned toward the door to leave, pausing briefly to look at her one last time. Feelings of guilt and self-loathing coursed through him for something that he hadn't had any control over. He knew that they would never be friends again. One of Drakken's insane schemes had finally worked. He had succeeded in breaking up the Possible/Stoppable team.
Ron knew that he should walk out the door and never look back, but he couldn't stand to see her like this. He walked to the bed and sat on the edge, placing his hand on her back. He began to stroke her hair soothingly as she cried.
Terror poured into Kim when she felt his weight settle beside her. As he ran his fingers through her hair, she was suddenly transported back to the warehouse. "There is one thing that I've wanted to do for a long time," he'd said. She felt his hands on her, pawing and violating her body. It was happening all over again.
"NO! DON'T!" Kim screamed, raising her face from the pillow. She bolted up in the bed, drawing her knees protectively to her chest. "Stop Ron!" She pleaded between sobs.
The tears that had been threatening to fall all evening finally flowed down Ron's cheeks. Her reaction to his harmless touch painted a perfect image of harsh reality. Up to this point it had almost been surreal, like a bad dream, but seeing Kim lose it like this in front of him left no doubt in his mind of the hell he'd put her through.
"It's me Kim; the real me. I wasn't going to hurt you." Ron reached out to place his hand on her shoulder, but she flinched away from him. "You've got to believe me…" His voice cracked emotionally as he wiped the tears from his eyes.
Several minutes ticked away before either of the spoke again. "I want to believe you, Ron." Kim said quietly, breaking the silence. "It's just that every time I look at you I'm back in that damn warehouse and you're…you're…"
"Don't say it." He begged, as if speaking the vile word would make the situation even worse. He leaned over and lovingly embraced her, sobbing softly against her shoulder. Surprisingly, she didn't try to pull away from him this time. "I know you never want to see me again, Kim. So I guess this is goodbye."
Kim put her apprehensions aside and allowed him to touch her, although she made no effort to return the hug. Deep inside she knew that what happened wasn't his fault, but that didn't stop the pain and anger from surfacing every time she looked at him. "We both know that things can never be the same between us again, Ron. I think it will be best for us to just move on and go our separate ways."
"I understand." He nodded, his heart shattering into a million pieces. He planted a light kiss on her cheek before rising from the bed. "Goodbye, KP." He stared at her briefly, burning her image into his mind, before turning to leave.