Song that inspired this chapter is called Trauma by NF. I recommended listening to this song before reading the chapter.


He was driving down street after street in the area near the club in the hopes of finding Amu. It was extremely late at night so you'd think finding one person would be easy, but to the contrary it was harder than the young man expected.

He'd been looking for over fifteen minutes before he heard the sound of someone screaming nearby. 'God, please don't let that be Amu.' He prayed as he quickly rolled down his window. He was trying to hear where the scream was coming from, eyes scanned the street in front of him.

He made a left hand turn and the screaming got louder. He passed an apartment complex and continued down the dimly lit street. He didn't see anyone on the road, though it was hard to see anything with only one working street lamp as your light. Ikuto then made the decision to park his car and search on foot.

He locked his car door and started jogging down the street. The screaming had stopped which caused a knot of worry to begin in his stomach. He picked up speed and ran as fast as he could, looking all around him, buildings passed by and still nothing. It wasn't until he stopped to catch his breath did Ikuto hear the sounds of someone crying and whimpering.

The young man looked up and noticed a gap in between two large store fronts. He quietly walked forward and peaked around the building. What he saw made his heart stop.

Ikuto stared in horror as a man looked to be violating the pink haired girl on the ground. Amu was sobbing and whimpering as the man continued to molest and abuse her. He couldn't believe his eyes.

It was the heart breaking sight of Amu's tears that snapped him out of his shock. Ikuto's jaw clenched and he could feel his muscles tensing as an intense feeling of rage overtook him. As swiftly and quietly as he could, Ikuto walked behind the vile man and ripped the man from behind.

The man went tumbling backward but had no time to recover before Ikuto nailed a hard punch to his face. Falling to the ground, the man howled in pain, only for Ikuto to kick him in the groin, earning another cry of torment. "You son of a bitch!" Ikuto hollard in rage.

"Who are you?" The older man growled up at him, glaring at him with daggers, attempting to recover and stand up.

"Who I am doesn't matter. " Ikuto trailed off before giving a hard blow to the side of the man's face. Ikuto hit him so hard he fell back and hit his head against the ground. The man looked to be floating in and out of consciousness so Ikuto took this opportunity to tend to Amu.

Ikuto's heart broke as he saw the young women exposed and shaking on the ground. "Amu, can you stand?" He asked as he bent down and kneeled next to the shaking women below him. She didn't respond, she just laid there shuddering and crying.

Ikuto wasted no time and took the initiative, he crouched down and picked Amu up into his arms. He made a mental note to be extremely cautious in case of any injuries she may have. She flinched and started crying even more at the physical contact, but he just shook it off and focused on the task at hand. He needed to get Amu to safety.

He glanced at the man still on the ground before running towards the open street. Running as fast as he could manage while carrying the young girl, Ikuto made the way back to his car. He was startled at how light Amu actually was. He knew she was a small girl but at this moment, she just seemed so incredibly fragile.

When Ikuto made it to his car he struggled to open his passenger door. Once open, he laid Amu inside before removing his coat and placed it on her small body. Ikuto walked around to the drivers side and quickly started the car and drove away.


His mind was racing, adrenaline still pumping through his system. His heartbeat was erratic, there was a throbbing in his head and he couldn't seem to calm his breathing. So he simply drove, he didn't know what to do in this situation, no one taught him how to handle after rape care. He glanced over at Amu briefly, she was quietly crying to herself, gripping his jacket tightly. Ikuto sighed and took the onramp that led to the interstate.

Somehow muscle memory must have brought him back to his house. He can't really recall making the decision to come here. Not that it mattered, he'd make sure Amu got the care she needed whether in a hospital or here at home.

Once, he pulled into his garage, he carried Amu into the house. It was pushing early AM hours and all of the maids and caretakers were asleep. As a result, Ikuto carried Amu into the house and up the stairs. He picked a guest bedroom closest to him before he entered and laid her down on the bed.

Ikuto reached next to the bed and turned on the bedside lamp. For a moment he just stood there, looking at the despondent girl before sighing to himself quietly.

"Amu, I'm coming right back but I have to call someone who can help make sure you're okay." He told her gently, his hand of its own accord caressed the top of her head in a comforting gesture. Amu was very quiet and only nodded slightly, letting him know she heard him.

He hastily walked out of the room and walked down the hall to one of his maids rooms. He hated to wake her up but she was his most trusted maid and he needed her help. She was twice his age and at the moment he felt like a child that needed an adult's help. He knocked on the door and waited for a moment.

The door opened and Ms. Aki appeared in her night robe. "Ikuto sweetheart, what could you possibly need at this hour?" she asked half asleep. The young man opened his mouth to explain but a sudden wave of emotions came over him and he felt like he was going to cry.

How do you explain to someone that you just found the first girl you maybe actually have feelings for laying in an alleyway with a man on top of her. How could he explain that someone had hurt the girl he cared for in a way that he couldn't wrap his head around.

"I just, Ikuto's voice quivered as a few tears escaped his eyes, "I need your help. He hurt her and I don't know what to do. Please help me." Ikuto begged as he fought back tears.

Ms. Aki quickly wrapped him in a tight hug. "Ikuto, honey what on earth. Sweetheart, who hurt who?" She asked him as he sobbed into her shoulder, as if he were a child again, left behind by as his parents went to work and socialize.

She held him for what felt like forever as he quietly sobbed onto her shoulder. When Ikuto started to collect himself, the older maid pulled away. "Ikuto, what happened? What am I helping you with?" she asked once again in the hopes of getting a more elaborate answer.

After taking a deep breath Ikuto explained what had happened; starting from his and Amu's argument at the club, all the way to getting back to the house now. The range of emotions that played on the old woman's face truly showed her age. She was a woman who had seen and been through a lot and she held herself together well. Ikuto knew he made the right choice in seeking her help first.

"Okay love, here is what I need you to do for me. Call the police and inform them of what's happened. After that you need to call the family physician and tell him this is an emergency an why his is coming. Once the police and the doctor are on the way we can go from there. In the meantime take me to her." Aki instructed as she moved to walk ahead of him.

He led Ms. Aki to the guest bedroom where she proceeded to assess the situation and he just lingered by the door. Aki moved next to the bed and Amu turned her head to look at her. Knowing Amu was in good hands, Ikuto turned down the hall to make some calls and left the two ladies alone.

"Amu is it?" Aki asked gently, Amu nodded her head as more tears started to roll down her face. "It's nice to finally meet the lady who has kept the young master on his toes recently. My name is Aki. I'm the head maid of the Tsukiyomi household. I just want to talk with you for a bit. Is that okay?" Amu frowned and more tears fell but she nodded nonetheless.

"Alright, Amu. Ikuto talked to me a little bit about what happened. I just need to know the extent of any injuries. Does anything feel broken or torn? Bleeding anywhere? Ikuto is calling the family physician but I can do what I can to help in the meantime."

Aki reached over and started running her fingers through Amu's hair in a calming motion. Amu's mind, body and spirit were all a mess right now, so she focused as much as she could to answer the kind women.

"Um, I don't think anything is broken but the left side of my face hurts really bad, and I have a bad headache. My wrists are aching and I think I'm bleeding a little bit." Amu choked on her words, the strain from screaming basically killing her voice. More tears poured down her face as she whispered to help ease the pain in her throat, "I think he might have tore me a bit down there, I feel something wet."

Aki nodded and gave the young girl what she hoped was a comforting smile. " Alright, let's get you cleaned up a bit and get you feeling a bit better." she stated as she moved to help Amu sit up. "Stay here for a moment, I'm going to run a bath and get you some clothes to wear. Will you be alright if I leave for a few moments?" Aki asked.

"I'll be okay. Thank you." Amu replied quietly before bowing her head slightly at the kind women to show her appreciation. Aki smiled again before leaving the room.

Amu sat in silence for a while, simply taking in the beautiful guest bedroom she was in. Her mind couldn't really think about anything further than the wall décor around her. If she tried to think about what just happened, Amu feared she may not be able to function. And right now she needed to make sure certain things were taken care of before falling apart.


While Amu was admiring the moon shaped mirror on the wall she heard a light knock on the door. Ikuto stood in the doorway, holding his phone in one hand and a mug in the other. Amu greeted him with a soft hello before he moved to sit down next to her.

"I brought you some chamomile tea with honey." He offered the mug to her which she gratefully accepted. She took a sip and she almost mewled. The warmth of the tea helped soothe her burning throat. Amu glanced up at the man who saved her and felt her heart clench with an overwhelming amount of gratitude.

Amu leaned into Ikuto's side and rested her head on his shoulder. She briefly felt Ikuto tense before relaxing and wrapping his arm around her side in a half embrace. They stayed like that for a moment or two before Ikuto rested his head on Amu's. "I know talking about it is probably the last thing you want to do, but I called the police and an officer is on his way to get a description of the man who did this." Ikuto explained, his hand rubbing soothing circles on her arm.

'What am I going to do? If I tell the officer about my foster father then Ikuto is going to find out about my past. He won't look at me the same after that. He's just going to pity me and think I have issues. I mean I do have issues but I don't want him to know how fucked up I am.' Amu thought to herself, but somehow, after a few minutes of worrying, she seemed to take in their current moment.

Here Ikuto was holding her and trying to comfort her. He saved her and that earned him the reward of knowing the truth, even if it meant he thought differently of her afterward. It was decided. Amu was going to tell the whole truth for the first time to someone other than Rima.

Amu tilted her head up and looked at Ikuto in the eyes. The dark hair man looked over her bruised face, he lifted his hand and gently ran his finger over the newly forming bruises.

"Ikuto." Amu said to grab his attention. She took his hand on her face into her own and sighed quietly. He glanced back to her warm amber eyes giving her his full attention. She took a deep breath before she began.

"I'll talk with the officer, but I want you to promise me that you won't look at me differently after, okay? Promise me that you won't pity me or think any less of me after." Amu begged Ikuto in her ragged voice.

Ikuto stared at her intensely and all he could see was a beautiful young woman who just went through something horrific and here she was, begging that he not look at her differently. But it was too late. He already saw her differently. Not only was she beautiful but she was also strong, brave, courageous and so incredibly selfless. Ikuto couldn't even imagine thinking badly or taking pity on her, that was just absurd.

"Amu, if you think for one second that what just happened will ever make me think badly of you, then you're out of your mind. So fine, I promise because it wasn't ever going to happen in the first place." Ikuto gently chastised her.

Amu didn't reply, she simply turned her face into his chest and nodded.

After a rejuvenating bath, Amu changed into a clean pair of light blue cotton pajamas that Aki brought for her. The bath did wonders for her mental health and wellbeing. Amu was able to scrub herself raw with soap to erase the feeling of her foster father's hands on her. It was hard to shake the memories but she'd manage better now that her skin wasn't crawling.


Once Amu had towel dried her hair she walked back into the guest room to see Ikuto standing there talking with a small group of people. Ikuto took notice of her presence and turned to look in her direction causing everyone else to turn too.

A man dressed in a police uniform nodded his head to her which she bowed slightly back. Next to him stood an older man and a woman who looked to be in her thirties. Amu could guess from the black bag in the older man's hand and the scrubs the lady was wearing that they were medical professionals here to tend to her injuries.

"Um, Amu, this is Dr. Ito and his nurse, they are going to take a look at you and make sure you're okay while I talk with the officer for a moment. Do you want me to come back in after or wait until the doctor is done? Ikuto asked her, he took notice that Amu was starting to look uncomfortable around all of these people that she didn't know.

"You can come back in after, that's fine." Amu muttered, taking a few steps toward the bed to sit down. Ikuto nodded and signaled with his hand for the officer to follow him out of the room.

"Well it's nice to meet you Amu. As Ikuto said, I'm Dr. Ito and this is my nurse Yuki. We work for the Tsukiyomi family but please keep in mind I am under law to keep all personal and confidential information private as well as my nurse, so please don't feel like you can't trust us." The doctor continued on about my rights as a patient for a while until finally asking nurse Yuki to get my vital signs.

The nurse went through the motions of getting my blood pressure, pulse and temperature while Dr. Ito started asking me questions.

"Amu are you currently on any medication?" he asked, when I said no he continued. "Is there any chance of you being pregnant?" The question itself was mortifying to be asked but what made it worse was Ikuto chose that particular moment to quietly step back into the room.

Amu could feel her face heat up with embarrassment, she refused to look in Ikuto's direction but she could feel his gaze on her. "No, Sir." she said quietly before looking down at her hands.

The doctor quickly wrote down something in a black leather bound notebook before continuing his questions. He went on to ask about any allergies, past surgeries or medical family history that he needed to know. I answered him to the best of my capability, it had been awhile since I thought about anything involving my family.

"Alright, Amu I'm aware as to what brings me here tonight but I need to know what is hurting currently." He stated while holding my gaze.

Amu bit her lip and took a mental note of everything she was feeling physically before answering. " My head is still hurting pretty bad. The lights are hurting my eyes and I feel like it's hard to focus. I also think I might have sprained my right wrist. It hurts to move it much. My stomach hurts and...um I think I'm a bit torn down there." She said while gesturing towards her nether regions and her face turning completely red from embarrassment.

The doctor nodded and wrote in his black notebook again. Amu looked away from the doctor and noticed Ikuto standing across the room looking at the floor. He looked to be deep in thought. Amu didn't have time to ponder why before the doctor drew her attention again.

"Okay Amu, let me take a look at your wrist." He asked as I moved my hand into his. He proceeded to move it gently in different directions. That didn't last too long before I yelped in pain.

"Well, you'll need X-rays to know for sure if it's fractured. I'll send in a referral for you to get it scanned tomorrow, I also am going to have you stop into the ER to have a rape kit exam done. I must be done within 48 hour to count as evidence. In the meantime, Yuki can you put a splint on her hand and wrap her up?" he asked his nurse kindly.

"Okay now I need you to look this way for me. This may be a bit bright but please look here at my flashlight." Amu did as she was told and looked at the blinding light. " Good, thank you. There may be a slight concussion as well, I suggest rest, no driving for the next forty-eight hours and don't do anything to strain your eyes." the kind doctor states as he put his flashlight away.

Meanwhile nurse Yuki was set about gathering the things she'd need to wrap Amu's wrist. She set to work and within minutes, Amu's right wrist was put in a splint and wrapped. "Now It's important to keep from moving your hand too much. Take eight hundred milligrams of acetaminophen every four to six hours. It will help with any pain." The nurse instructed as she had Amu lay down on the bed and propped her arm on a pillow beside her.

"okay I need to do a private check on our patient. If you men could please step out for a moment." Yuki instructed the men in the room. they listened and walked out.


Amu looked a bit confused. the nurse noticed this and reassured her. "I just need to see how badly you tore my dear. This will determine if you need stitches or if it will heal on it's own." she explained. Amu nodded and allowed the nurse to examine her. She was grateful the nurse was quick with her exam. Amu was already feeling shacky from the who experience. "It doesn't look too bad. I don't think you'll need to have stitches. Just take it easy and no sexual activity for a couple of weeks." the nurses statement made amu's cheek burn red.

Soon the nurse finished and invited the men back into the room as she packed up her gear to leave.

when the men had been out in the hall, the doctor had updated Ikuto. He had been relieved to hear from as Dr. Ito that Amu would be alright physically, she just needed more rest and to follow up with a therapist.

He ran his fingers through his hair feeling the events from the day weight down on him. He sighed as his eyes traveled to the pinkette seeing how peaceful she looked while laying there, despite the events of the evening.

As the doctor and his nurse finished things up, the officer from before lightly knocked on the door and asked if he could enter.

"Ms. Hinamori, would it be alright if I got a quick statement from you before I head out?" The officer asked Amu. The girl nodded in agreement before thanking the doctor and nurse as they exited the room.

"Alright Amu, I just need you to tell me what happened in your own words. If you could also give me a description of what the suspect looks like and any information you may have on this person, that would be extremely helpful." The officer stated as he took out a notepad and scribbled on the paper.

To say Amu's anxiety was getting the better of her was an understatement. This was her opportunity to tell him. To tell the officer everything that had happened to her over the years. To tell him about all the verbal abuse, physical abuse and now the sexual abuse.

The anxiety was starting to take over, the fear of speaking the truth was making her feel as if she was choking. She had gone so long making up lies and excuses to cover for her foster parents behavior and how they treated her. With her heart pounding in her chest and hands sweating, Amu scanned the room. Her brain automatically searches for a safe place and the only person her brain deemed as safe was Ikuto.

Amu gazed at Ikuto; he was standing across the room, leaning against the wall and looking down at his feet. She knew this would change everything. How he perceived her would inevitably change but she couldn't pass up this opportunity to finally break free of her abusers. If Ikuto didn't want to be friends after this she would understand, but she has to do this for herself.

Amu took a deep breath and began her story. She left nothing out. She told the office about the years of verbal abuse. How her foster parents used her for the monthly check they received for taking care of her. She told him how once they started getting the money they started physically abusing her if she upset them or if she did something that they deemed worthy of punishment. She went on to tell him how they made her start working and would take her money, causing her to have to hide her money in order to buy things to take care of herself.

Amu noticed Ikuto's head snap up and she could feel his gaze on her as she continued.

Amu went into details about how she has been abused to the point where she needed to miss school due to the bruising or possible fractures that went untreated. She also told him about all the black mail and verbal manipulation. How they threatened to send her to juvenile detention if she ever fought back or tried to run away. She went on to explain how they would withhold meals from her and she would have to sneak food when they would fall asleep. And finally she retold the events of this evening. How she managed to get away from her foster parents and that her foster father found her this evening and sexually assaulted her.

Ikuto couldn't believe what he was hearing. It was unbelievable to think that someone as kind hearted as Amu had been dealing with people as dreadful as the Hoshinas. How did she manage to still get up everyday and push through that kind of trauma. To think that all this time she was being abused and he never noticed. That didn't set well with him. He prided himself on being perceptive and noticing things others didn't but here was this woman he claimed to cared about and he didn't even notice that she was being tormented.

He was only now just putting together how much of an asshole he must have looked to her. To be dealing with so much at home and then to have a man pester her at work. Especially when he'd first met her. Her odd behavior all made sense now. Her random flinching at a loud noise, the occasional limp she would have, the heavy makeup on certain days and the reason she always triple counted her money at the end of a shift. All of it was coming together.

A sudden feeling of shame had fallen upon him as Amu brought up that her foster parents took her money if they saw her with it. She struggled to keep her money to care for herself, meanwhile he would blow through his money like it was nothing. How he was so avaricious with his things and position.

Ikuto let out a heavy sigh before walking around to the other side of the bed where he sat on the edge. Amu was still talking to the officer but Ikuto's mind was somewhere else. He was too preoccupied with trying to process everything he had heard.

"I can give you his address but I can't promise that he or my foster mother will be there." Amu said to the officer who was writing everything down.

She gave her old address and the description of her foster parents to the officer before asking if he needed anything else from her.

There were a few moments of silence before the officer finished writing and thanked Amu for the information. "This should be plenty of information to start. When we find them you will be notified. Thank you so much for your cooperation and I am so sorry for everything you have gone through. We'll be doing our best to rectify the situation."

And like that the officer said his goodbyes and Ikuto led him out to show him to the front door.


It was in this moment when Amu was finally by herself she took a moment to just breathe and acknowledge what happened to her today. For the first time Amu didn't cry. She simply acknowledged the terrible things that happened to her.

She glanced at the night stand and it was going on five thirty in the morning. 'I'm so tired. I feel like I could sleep for a thousand years. Or maybe just go to sleep and never wake up.' Amu thought as she leaned back against her pillow.

Just as she was starting to drift off she heard a soft knock on the door. She shook herself awake and sat upright. "Come in." She said quietly.

Not a moment later Ikuto walked in and let the door click shut behind him. For a moment they just let the silence and the heaviness of the day just seep between them.

Before long Ikuto finally broke the silence. "I know that we have a lot to talk about...but you look exhausted and frankly I'm feeling really tired myself. I think it would be best if we both just process and sleep before we dive into all this."

Amu wasn't sure what surprised her more, the fact that he was not asking her a billion questions or that she was upset that he thought they still had anything to talk about. She already went over what happened, she didn't want to reopen that wound again. Sure, he didn't immediately see the truth about her and go running for the hills, but come morning he would see that she brought nothing but issues.

"Listen Ikuto, there isn't anything to talk about. Tomorrow I will go home and we will go about this as if nothing ever happened. I truly appreciate everything you've done tonight, honestly, but I need to sleep. I have work tomorrow " Amu said as she laid back and pulled the covers over her shoulders.

Ikuto felt a spark of anger surge through him. What is she even going on about? Does she seriously think this is something she can just sweep under the rug? That she could just wake up tomorrow and it will be as if nothing happened?

Ikuto scoffed while shaking his head. "What?" Amu asked indignantly. Ikuto took a deep breath and ran his hand through his hair in a frustrated motion.

"Amu, I'm not going to argue with you twice in one night, but so help me God you will not be going into work tomorrow and we will be having a long talk. You can yell at me all you want tomorrow but for right now please just sleep." Ikuto said in a controlled voice.

Amu just stared at him. No reply at all, instead she simply turned her back on him and pulled the duvet covers around her tighter. Her energy was spent and she wouldn't argue with him.

Ikuto let out a sigh before making his way towards the door. Just as he was about to leave he heard Amu whisper goodnight. He couldn't help the small smile that overtook his face. "Goodnight Amu, I'll see you in the morning." Ikuto said quietly before shutting her door.


Ikuto went to his room and changed into his evening attire. He was so tired, so much had happened that he just needed to reset and address things in the morning. Ikuto got into bed and unlocked his phone. He needed to send out a few texts before he passed out.

First message was to Kukai, 'Hey man, I know it's late but I need to ask a favor. I need any information you can get on Amu Hinamori and her foster parents.'

Second message was to his lawyer, 'Apologies about the late hour but I have a personal case I'll be needing your help on. I will be in touch with your receptionist to make an appointment. Best regards, Ikuto Tsukiyomi.

His final message was to Amu's manager letting him know she would not be in tomorrow evening and to find someone to cover for her.

After sending his final text Ikuto set his phone on his night stand and closed his eyes. He was asleep within minutes.

Notes:

Please let me know what you think of the re-edit by commenting/Rewing below! I love feedback and constructive criticism. If there are any grammatical errors please feel free to let me know so I can fix them. Thanks for reading and I will be posting the rest of the chapters soon!