The Scar: Part Five

Hiei ran as fast as he could to the back of the house. When he got there, he didn't see any sign of Rei. Instead he saw Neko, Rei's black cat, lying unconscious on the ground. It appeared that he was badly burned.

What could have happened?

He rushed inside the hut and there he found Rei in the far corner, crying to herself as she faced the wall. Her hands were covering his face. Hiei noticed that she wasn't wearing her gloves. Her hands looked normal to him.

"Rei?" He saw Rei wiped her tears with the back of her hands but she didn't turn to look at him, nor speak to him. Instead, she tried to control her tears.

"Rei?" Hiei tried again.

Silence. All he could hear was her sobs.

"You must think I'm a freak right now." Rei finally said. "I didn't do it, Hiei. I didn't kill Neko. I didn't! It was an accident! Believe me, it was an accident!" She pleaded. But it sounded like she was convincing herself rather than him.

Hiei didn't say anything, nor offered any comfort. He was rooted to where he was standing, confused on what he ought to do. The high-spirited girl that he knew was now so different. Where was the Rei who always smiled? Who's full of laughter?

"I didn't kill Neko. I didn't kill Neko…" She said over and over again her hands on her face, rocking herself as tears flowed freely from her eyes.

"I believe you." Hiei finally said, a little unsurely.

Silence. Rei tried to calm down once more, but she couldn't. Tears continuously flowed down from her eyes.

"I lived alone for most of my life." She tried to explain her life from the beginning between sobs, "My mom died giving birth to me. I killed her too; I burned her just like I burned Neko. And I burned my father too. I burned him the same minute I killed my mom." She paused, breathing deeply. It must have been hard for her to recall such horrible things from her past.

"I grew up with a woman I didn't even know... She never told me her name. She never touched me nor spoke to me. She only did when she told me about how I killed my mom and dad. She told me about what all the people think of me. She told me that I'm a freak. I'm a murderer. She told me to die. She told me that I should burn myself to death. And all I can do was cry. All I did was cry to myself."

"She hated me. I knew she hated me so much. But I loved her. Maybe because she was the only one I know. And I... and I... And I killed her too. I didn't mean to burn her. But accidents happen; I touched her in my sleep. I never had an idea why she slept beside me that night, but she did and she died. And I never found that out until the next morning. She was lying there. Dead and I couldn't undo anything." Rei endlessly cried, her body shaking.

"And now, I killed Neko. No matter how hard I try to tell myself that it was my hands that kill Neko and not me, I know it was still me! Who am I trying to fool? My hands are a part of me! They're me!"

"I hate my hands! I hate my hands!" Rei shouted, her voice full of bitterness as she slammed her hands to the wall over and over again. As if to punish them for all the things they did that she couldn't control.

Hiei finally got the answers to all his questions, Rei's secrets. He suddenly realized how similar they were. Both forbidden from the very start. Both gifted with fire. Or was it cursed with fire? Then he realized how different they have come to be. He lived his life selfishly while he lived hers to the best she could.

"I'm a freak! I'm a murderer! I'm cruel!" She continued calling herself names.

"No, you are not." Hiei said firmly. He walked to where Rei was sitting. He was about to touch her arm to help her stand when she quickly stood and stepped back from him.

"Don't touch me. I can kill you." Rei warned her.

Hiei saw how scared Rei was, he suddenly felt an overwhelming urge to hold her in his arms until the fear went away. Rei was so full of spirit and seeing her like this made Hiei's chest heavy. She shouldn't feel this way - she was so special.

"You can't touch me! You'll die! Can't you see I'm a freak? I'm a murderer!" She screamed at him.

"No. You are not." He said with conviction. "You are special, Rei. I never met anyone who loves life like you do." Hiei saw Rei's eyes flicker with hope. Hope for what? That she could be a better person? Hiei thought that that was nonsense. Rei can't get any better. She was already perfect.

He saw her wiped the tears from her cheeks. She calmed down a bit.

"You really mean that?" There was a slight frown on her face.

"Yes." Hiei reached to touch his cheeks.

"Don't, I don't want to kill you too." She stepped back.

"You won't. I'm not like most of people." Hiei raised his right hand and showed her his flames. "See? I have a higher heat tolerance than most people. I was born with fire, like you were."

Rei looked at the flame on his hand, considering for a moment. "Can I see your future?" She asked of him.

Hiei thought for a while. "If that's what you want." He finally agreed.

She closed her eyes and concentrated. After a minute she opened them. "You can touch me now." She declared upon opening her eyes.

Hiei couldn't understand why she needed to see his future before she could touch her. But it didn't matter. He reached out and touched Rei's face and thought how perfect it was.

Rei closed her eyes. She had never felt anyone touch her before, and it felt so nice. I know he'll forgive me…

"See? I'm not getting hurt." Hiei said in a reassuring voice. It wasn't true that he didn't feel a thing. He was aware of the slight heating of his hands. He just said those words to comfort her. But for some reason, his words didn't comfort her, she broke down to tears again.

"Why are you crying?" Hiei asked a little confused.

"You'll forgive me, right? I'm so sorry." She said as she smiled sadly.

Hiei couldn't understand what she was saying sorry for. He raised her chin up and touched her lips with his. He was aware of the heat her body was emitting, like she was made of fire. His tongue gently made its way inside her mouth.

"Touch me." Hiei asked her gently as he continued to kiss her. He felt Rei hesitate for a while but she raised her right arm nonetheless. He felt her touched his left neck and in that instance, he could feel an intense burning on his neck. The heat was a lot more concentrated in her hands. But he endured it as he deepened their kiss.

It was Rei's first kiss, yet she didn't know it was what they call a kiss. It felt wonderful, even wonderful than the feel of Hiei's touch, nor Hiei's skin. Rei felt a little lightheaded from the sensation Hiei's tongue and hers were creating.

Then she suddenly stepped back. She pulled away as soon as she felt the wound her touch created on the lower left neck of Hiei.

"Why didn't you tell me you I was getting you burned?" Hiei could see the look of horror in her eyes as she stared at his wound.

"This? This is nothing." He referred to the wound on his neck as he covered it with his right hand, not wanting to worry her. But he could feel the intense pain, still burning on his skin.

For some reason, Rei closed her eyes. After a while she coughed, her hands covering her mouth but the blood that came out of it didn't escape Hiei's eyes.

"What's happening to you?" He was worried. Rei fell to the floor, her cough continuous.

"Rei, speak to me!" Hiei commanded as he knelt besides her, holding her arm. She quickly put her hands at her back.

She looked at him for a moment. Considering. Then she thought she owe him an explanation.

"I'm cursed Hiei. If anyone survived my touch, I will die." Rei confessed, tears threatening to fall from her eyes.

"I knew you would survive. That's why I asked to see your future. I knew you were going to leave tomorrow morning. And I might as well be touched by you and die than be left alone all my life wishing that I could touch someone without killing him or getting killed."

"You made a dream come true for me Hiei." Rei smiled sadly.

She frowned at the wound she made on his neck. "I'm sorry for your wound. It looks really bad. It might leave a scar. And I'm sorry for that too."

"Then let it leave a scar. Don't be sorry." Hiei said, frowning. He couldn't exactly explain what he was feeling right then.

Peacefully, she closed her eyes, a contented smile on her lips. And before she breathe out her last breath, she whispered a plea for forgiveness to Hiei.

Hiei burned her body along with her hut. It was time for him to go on. More than ever, he believed he was cursed himself. It was the first time he let go of his inhibitions and look what happened? He killed Rei himself. Indeed, softening up was a mistake.

Hiei was disappointed at himself and at life. Maybe he was condemned to not to feel for anyone. He silently cursed himself and vowed not to feel anymore of those emotions he had felt for Rei. If there was one thing that resulted from this was that he became more bitter. He hated life more than ever.