Disclaimer: I don't own skip beat of any of its character. It's an AU story.
A/N: English is not my first language. Kindly ignore the expected mistakes.
Reluctant Love
Chapte-5-Shattered
Kyoko bit down on her bottom lip nervously and looked over at the clock. It was half-past twelve at night. Hours had passed but Ren hadn't come back yet. She stood up from her seat and started fiddling with her fingers, staring out the window every few seconds.
"Where is he?" She thought as she heard the sound of a car driving in.
"He's late again and he isn't answering his phone. What's up with him?" She panicked as she dialed his number again but it went straight to voice mail. "Damn it!" she cursed.
Something was off. She could sense it. Ren wasn't picking up her calls as usual and it worried her. She had a bundle of things to be worried about though such as….
Ren had distanced himself from her since that day.
He had cancelled their wedding reception without giving any explanation about his decision. Lory was pissed off and demanded reason but he brushed it off like nothing mattered to him anymore.
Aika-chan, her little angelic daughter was gone. He had sent her somewhere in her absence and refused to say a single word about it.
After her short trip to Kyoto, she returned home to find him a completely different person. A week passed by but he didn't get along with her like before.
He started ignoring her presence in the house.
He started coming home later than before.
He stopped responding to her calls or text messages.
He stopped talking to her for no reason. He only talked to her briefly when it couldn't be avoided otherwise, he kept silence when she was around.
She felt broken but she didn't let her patience slip away.
May be, he still couldn't bring himself to forgive her. That man indeed had horrible trust issues but, what else could she possibly do to conquer his heart? She did everything in her power to mend their relationship. She gave up on her first true love and became truly his, just to spend an ideal married life with him. But things didn't seem to work out. May be, she wasn't good enough to make him happy. She was stuck in a messy life with no way out.
Kyoko let out an exasperated sigh. She took her phone off the table and stared at the screen.
Zero new messages from Ren Tsuruga.
She groaned and stared at the window as if her husband was going to magically appear right before her eyes. She sat down on the couch again and turned on the T.V. hoping that it would keep her mind distracted but the sounds coming from the T.V. did nothing to cease her worry.
Kyoko felt her heart beating faster and faster as the seconds passed. She breathed in slowly to calm her nerves down knowing that being stressed out wasn't going to help out one bit.
She called him again but didn't get any positive response in return.
Why are you doing this to me Kuon? Why? What did I do now to deserve this? Did I do something wrong again? Are you fed up with this marriage? What's wrong with you now? At least give me a reason!
She sighed feeling tired and frustrated. "I don't know what happened now. Please God, help me!" She prayed in her heart with all her might.
The light spattering of drizzle began late at night. A few people who were still wandering around outside started leaving the restaurants and bars, shivering in the unexpected, freezing rain. A lone figure oblivious of his surroundings, remained in the dark shadows at the far end of the wooden bar. He sat there quietly, staring blankly into the space before him while the phone in his hand kept buzzing.
Ren Tsuruga had never felt this helpless before. How could he let anyone manipulate him so easily?
How could he let this happen? Where were his senses? Where was his manly power? Why couldn't he protest? No one in his life could ever dare to harm him or his family then how the heck he let this happen now?!
He was a man, a strong man who never surrendered against evil, a man who never gave up on anything without fighting back but now, he had to let go and choose one or else he had to pay the price.
He had to choose, whether he wanted to be a father or a husband.
He was torn apart. He needed both. His daughter and his wife. Both of them were valuable to him as his family but…unfortunately, his fatherly affection won over the obligation of a husband.
Ren lifted a hand to his forehead. He was sweating buckets. "Why does it hurt so much? Where's the anger? Where is my ego? Why can't I just get rid of that evil-witch of a woman for good?!" He gritted his teeth as his jaw clenched. His eyes were as red as blood.
He felt like he was a puppet and people could operate him in anyway.
His wife was constantly calling him but he ignored her calls. He hated doing that to her but, he had to.
His phone 'dinged' once again
A text message flashed on the screen from that horrible good-for-nothing mother-in-law of his!
"Do it fast my dear son-in-law. Your daughter wants to see you. Don't make her wait too much or else…"
Then came another message.
"Do as I say and I promise I'll let your daughter go or else you won't be able to see her face again."
There was another message.
"Let it be a secret. Don't try involving others in this matter or else, your daughter won't survive in one piece."
"I have nothing against you. This is something between me and my daughter. Don't drag yourself into it. Just do it and save yourself from suffering any further."
Ren cursed out aloud while gripping his phone tightly.
He wanted to murder that ugly woman for real. He wasn't afraid of being locked up behind the bars for doing so. She was blackmailing him and he couldn't even punch her in the jaw.
His mother-in-law, Mogami Saena.
She was the one who started it all just to take her worthless revenge on Kyoko. He didn't know why but, she always acted like a sworn enemy to her own daughter. He really couldn't read what was going on in her dirty mind. She was mentally unstable. At least, that much he knew for sure.
That black-hearted woman had abducted his daughter from school before he could reach to pick her up and he regrated it. He should have been there on time. It was his fault and now… his daughter's life was in danger.
His married life was on the edge of destruction. And he? He wanted to burn her alive and snatch his daughter away from her clutches but his hands were tied. One wrong move could take his daughter's life. He was in deep trouble and he couldn't even inform anyone about her evil scheme or else his daughter…
No! he couldn't. He won't.
He might be a strong man but he was a weak father who loved his daughter too much. He couldn't afford risking his precious little princess's life. He had lived his life and now it was her turn. She had a long life ahead of herself to live. He wanted to watch her growing into an elegant lady before his eyes. He didn't want to lose her. She was too innocent to be the victim of someone's needless wrath.
Another text message pulled him out of his trance.
"Hurry up or should I show you a demo of my demonic capabilities?"
That was it. He'd had enough of her crap. He called her and she gladly picked up.
"Oh, my dear son-in-law. How are you doing?" He heard her seductive voice coming from the other end.
"Shut up!" he scoffed.
"Ah! You hurt me! Learn to behave my boy or else…" she laughed.
"You bloody…. Don't you dare!" he roared.
"Keep your voice down dear. You know you can't misbehave with me. Your life is in my hands" she pressed.
Ren's blood boiled. His chest started burning in rage.
"Let me talk to my daughter. I want to hear her voice. Is she alright?" He said darkly. His tone held a clear warning behind it.
"No, you can't talk to her, not until you follow my orders." she stated firmed.
"Saena!" He shouted as he fought against the urge to kill the woman in one shot.
"Watch your language or else be ready to dig your dearest daughter's grave. You know I don't joke around son. I won't give you another chance. Finish your task and get it over with. Until then, your daughter will be in safe hands"
Ren could not believe what he heard. He couldn't say a word and found himself tongue-tied. Could this be real or was he hearing things?
Tears rolled down his cheeks. How could she threaten to harm an innocent life just to get things done in her way? What did she think of herself? She was hurting people for her own joy.
Was she really a human being?
Was she really Mogami Kyoko's biological mother? He doubted that. A mother could never play with her own daughter's life and find fun in her grief.
He wiped his tears and spoke again. "Why are you doing this? Aren't you Kyoko-san's mother? Why do you love to see her in pain? What kind of a woman are you, Saena? Aren't you scared of your deadly end?" he asked as if she would ever pay attention to him.
"Don't lecture me. You're running out of time. If you don't want to receive your daughter's dead body then just do it." She directed as if she owned everything in the world. With that being said, she disconnected the call leaving no room for further discussion.
Ren felt lost.
Suddenly, he felt like all the air was pumped out of his lungs and he struggled to breathe.
His heart was beating painfully in his chest. He couldn't do such a thing. He wasn't as heartless as Saena Mogami. He finally knew that his wife Mogami Kyoko was an honest person, a faithful wife and an amazing mother to his daughter. He had to admit that she was someone he could trust. He still owed her an apology for being such a jerk to her. But now this? He desperately wished he knew some magic that could change everything and turn this disaster into a nightmare.
Holding himself together, he lifted his head up while his eyes slowly focusing on the surroundings. He wanted to lash it all out.
Before him, stood a tall glass filled with amber liquid. With a sneer, he grabbed the glass in his hand and hurled it to the floor. Ignoring the bartender's cries, he stood up and stormed out with the glass tinkling beneath the soles of his shoes.
A sound of screeching tires snapped Kyoko out of her thoughts and she moved the curtains away to look out the window again. She sighed in relief when she was that it was Ren's car. He was finally home. She hurried out and opened the door up, waiting for him to reach the steps. As he came closer to her, she narrowed her eyes in confusion when she saw how serious he looked. "He must be tired," she thought to herself.
Thinking nothing of his stern face, she took his coat and hung it up. Turning around, she almost bumped into him, who was gazing at her with the coldest look ever.
"Mr. Tsuruga, are you okay?" she asked with concern in her eyes as she touched his forehead with the back of her hand.
He looked at her and took her hand, pushing it away from him. It was gentle but at the same time, had an underlined roughness to it. Kyoko felt hurt when he did that but she quickly covered it up and sent him a smile. "Have you eaten anything?" She asked politely as if trying to lighten up his rotten mood or break away the barriers of never-ending formality between them.
Ren closed his eyes and inhaled sharply. She was making it too difficult for him.
"I….need to talk to you." he collected himself and seared for the right words to break the news on her but he failed.
She looked at him entirely puzzled but her heart started racing in anticipation.
His business-like voice rang through her ears and she wondered what he wanted to talk to her about?
"Well, why don't we sit down and you—" she tried to speak but he cut her off in the middle.
"I want a divorce Kyoko-san," he announced calmly.
She froze.
"W-What?" she heard herself saying. She wanted to ask him why? But words didn't come out. She couldn't speak.
"Did I stutter? I said, I want a divorce. I can't carry on with this marriage anymore,"
He wasn't joking. He meant what he said and his harsh words were enough to cut through her heart.
In an instant, he had turned her world upside down. She just stood there shattered as she let his words sink into her system.
That's it for now. Stay tuned for next chapter. I'll try posting it sooner before the end of this week. Let me know what you think. Till then, see ya! Thank you so much for all your support and encouragements. It means a lot to me. Please read/review/follow/favorite. Take care of yourself and have a blessed life.