A/N Reddd; Aahh, I'm so glad that people are still reading my story after all this time. w I'm glad you enjoyed the chapter. C: I hope I can continue to write enjoyable scenes. ^^
I am currently in my Psych class, dying because there are tooooooo many people. God, I hate crowds. Fun Fact, I have really bad social anxiety and agoraphobia, so that makes working in groups with a lot of people I don't know really bad. So, that means I am going to start working on the next chapter now to try and cope with this dilemma of mine. xP
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Chapter 23; Running Interference
Tora stands, gripping his phone so hard that it reaches the point of almost breaking before he throws it onto his bed. His face is a mask of dark, primal rage. He almost storms down to the boy's room to confront him, but realizes at the last second that he will have to handle the situation carefully. "She's going to be in a delicate state the entire time he is around. I can't act brashly, or I could lose her, too. I just have to wait. I'll make sure I'm with her at all times. Keep her away from the house, away from him. I can hold out long enough for him to finish his business and leave. I won't let him hurt her again." With that, Tora turns out his lights and climbs into his bed.
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An alarm blares to life as usual Wednesday morning at 5. Kailey sighs, gently clicking it off before just laying in her bed. She closes her eyes, a pained expression on her face. 'All those memories have come rushing back...' She thinks to herself morosely. After lying in bed for a few minutes, she forces herself to get up and go about her day as if nothing is wrong. "Life goes on, right? Just keep on smiling and pretend everything is fine." She whispers into the still room, before slowly making her way to the bathroom-forgoing her usual morning work-out. She gets herself ready faster than usual, wanting to escape the mansion before her nightmare came calling as she knew he would eventually.
Opening the door to her room carefully, she peeks her head out of her door to check if the coast is clear. Seeing no one, she quietly steps out and clicks the door shut behind her. Taking a deep breath to stabilize her breathing, she makes her way slowly down the hall and towards the stairs. She rounds the corner and comes face to face with the smirking face of Gabriel Fortin. She pales and quickly backs up away from him.
He laughs, slowly walking towards her as she continues to back up. "What's the matter, flower?" He laughs again as she shrinks away from him. He raises a hand, reaching towards her and grabbing her tie as she tries to back farther away from him. He pulls her towards him with the tie until they are nearly nose to nose. "Damn, I'm glad I had to come down to Japan on business. You've certainly developed well since the last time." As hard as she tries to stop it, a small whimper bubbles up from her throat as her eyes fill with terror. "How entertaining, you can still manage to keep up that pretty face of yours around other people. However, when alone your delicious fear shows through."
Tora steps out of his room to wait for Kailey like he does most mornings, but as he turns to close his door he sees her down the hall. He drops his bag and quickly makes his way down the hall, the pair having not noticed him yet.
She tries to back away from Gabriel again, but he tightens his grip on her tie again, yanking her head downwards. She lets out a small cry of terror as he starts to grab at her chin with his free hand. Suddenly, an arm grabs the arm that is holding her tie in a firm grip, "Let her go." Tora's voice was dark with fury, and he was visibly struggling to contain his actions.
Gabriel and Tora stare at each other for a minute, before Gabriel concedes and releases Kailey's tie. Tora drops his arm and steps protectively in front of her as she shakes from fear, glaring at Gabriel. He looks at her terror-ridden face over Tora's shoulder and winks, "See you later, little flower." And with that, he saunters down to his bedroom.
Tora watches him until he closes the bedroom door, and then turns to Kailey with a worried expression. "Are you okay? Did he hurt you?" His voice is full of concern as he looks down at her, gently gripping her shoulders and trying to catch her gaze.
Kailey is silent for a few moments, before finally looking up and smiling at Tora. She straightens back up and nods her head. "I am alright, don't worry." Her voice sounds distant and guarded, her smile lacking any true emotion. "Shall we go to school?"
Tora sighs, studying her face and begging with his eyes for her to talk to him. Realizing she wasn't ready yet, he concedes. "Yes..Let's go to school, my princess." He offers her his arm, surprised when she accepts and the two of them walk out of the house and to the waiting limousine.
Mineko watches her son with worry evident in her face after they leave, "There's something wrong..."
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Tora walks into the room of the elite, looking for Kaon and making his way towards her once finding her. It was the lunch hour and he had decided to leave Kailey in the care of Altea while he took care of some things.
Seeing Tora making his way towards her, Kaon stands up with a raised eyebrow, "What is it, Tora-sama? You look troubled." She was more subdued than usual, seemingly real concern underlying her words.
Tora looks at her, surprised at the show of concern that she usually lacks. "I have a task for you. Have you been able to sway Kailey-chan more to your side yet?"
Kaon nods, thinking back at her and the Elite's attempts at befriending the Princess Heiress over the last few weeks. In the beginning, she showed constant annoyance at being disturbed by them, but she was slowly coming to accept their companionship with only a small amount of disdain. She smiles her usual sly smile, "Yes, Tora-sama. She seems to be enjoying her time with us now, a lot more than she did in the beginning. Why do you ask?"
Tora tilts his head to the side, contemplating his options. "Very good. I need you to invite her out for the day, once classes are over. We will not be attending play practice today. Keep her busy until I give you word, for I have some...business...to take care of. Keep her away from my home."
Kaon raises an eyebrow at him, "What's going on that's so important that you are skipping practice?" Tora wasn't known to skip any of the practices, seeing as he was playing the role of Kailey's character's true love interest.
Tora gives her a cool look, erasing any further questions from her mind, "Just do as I say. I will message you when I am ready to retrieve her." Without waiting for confirmation, he strides back out of the room and back towards where he left Kailey with Altea.
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Kailey sees Tora coming back towards the table where Altea and her were sitting. Noticing her friend's gaze has strayed, Altea glances over her shoulder to see what had caught her attention so fully. Looking back at her, Altea quietly questions her before the male reaches them. "Have you admitted it to yourself yet, Huā Láng?"
Kailey jolts, realizing Altea had noticed her wandering gaze. "W-what are you talking about, Al?" She asks defensively, turning slightly pink.
Altea stares at her in that unnerving way of hers, not responding. Her eyes bore into Kailey's, seeming to speak for themselves. 'You know exactly what I mean,' is what they seemed to impart to her. Before Kailey can say anything more, Tora arrives at the table and claims the seat beside her.
"Classes will be starting again soon, so we may want to head there now." Tora addresses Kailey, put looks at Altea with a questioning gaze. When she shakes her head slightly, he sighs softly. He turns his attention back on Kailey, noticing the distracted and distant look in her eyes again, lost in thought. He gently touches her arm, bringing her back to the present time and out of caged mind. "Are you ready, my princess?"
Kailey looks up at him, her eyes unfocused for a moment. She blinks her eyes rapidly, fully 'waking' herself up. "Hm?" She questions, her eyes studying his face in a way that makes his heart beat faster.
Altea stands gracefully, startling Kailey and causing her to look at her friend, "I must take my leave now, Huā Láng. Be sure to eat something soon, for you did not eat anything for lunch today." Altea turns and gives Tora another look, before turning and striding away to her class.
Kailey looks unfocused again, before shaking her head slightly and smiling softly at Tora. "Right, you said class was beginning shortly? Very well, let us proceed." She stands slowly, swaying slightly as her eyes glaze.
Tora goes to stabilize her, but she manages to remain standing. He was growing worried about her, more so than he already was with the arrival of Gabriel. She hadn't eaten her dinner the night before, she hadn't eaten breakfast that morning, and now she had refused lunch as well? The presence of Fortin had her incredibly shaken up, and it was only going to get worse. She had reverted to a more formal and 'proper' way of speaking, her public face being put in full swing as she acts disjointed from the reality around her.
Tora gently guides her through the halls by her elbow, leading her to their class with a clouded expression on his face that even his facade couldn't cover entirely.
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After the last class got out, Kailey was feeling moderately better than she had been. Being away from the mansion and away from him had greatly helped in improving her mood. She still hadn't eaten anything since the bite Tora had forced her to the night before, and she was beginning to feel the effects. There wasn't much to be done for it, however, because she knew she would vomit if she were to try to eat anything. She was angry. Angry with her father, for sending Gabriel to Japan. She wasn't stupid, she knew he was friends with the Fortin family. She also knew that he had his suspicions that Gabriel was the one to cause her hospitalization. She was worried at what he was trying to accomplish by this ploy. She was angry at Gabriel, as well. Angry at him for coming to Japan, for coming for her. He had been the closest ally she had had in England when Takumi was here in Japan. He had drawn her in with sweet words and a calming touch. He had betrayed that trust, he had made it nearly impossible for her to ever trust anyone else ever again. He had turned those gentle touches into harsh intrusions of herself. But above all else, she was angry at herself. She was angry for her weakness, for the effect that Gabriel's presence still caused in her. She thought that she had put that part of her past behind her. She was also angry at herself for cowering like a frightened child, being unable to do anything when he had cornered her that morning. She was angry that she was unable to eat and take care of herself merely because he was close to her. She was angry for being so petrifyingly terrified, that it affected her every thought. No matter what she was doing, he was always there in the back of her mind. She was scared of what he planned on doing to her. She couldn't push her fear aside, because whenever he was near or she even thought of him, her heart kicked into overdrive and she would completely freeze up.
"Kailey-chan~!" A familiar voice calls out for her, causing Kailey to look up to see the petite form of Kaon making her way towards her. Shockingly, Kaon was not followed by any of the other Elite of Miyabigaoka.
Kailey and Tora stop walking, waiting for the snide and conceited girl to meet them. Tora had been extremely silent since the incident that morning, and Kailey was grateful for it. 'Maybe Altea is right. It may be time for me to admit it to myself. Even against my careful guards and traps, Tora Igarashi has managed to worm his way into my heart. I don't know what to do about that, but I can't worry about it right now. Gabriel has to be taken care of. I have to confront him, and soon. I have to get over my fear. I have to...' She thinks to herself, glancing sidelong at Tora as he rests a hand on the small of her back. He looked like he was lost in thought, and she watched him for a few moments.
As if feeling her gaze, he blinks and looks down at her, "What is it, my princess?" A look of concern flashes across his face as they look at each other, but he quickly covers it with a smile.
She shake her head at him, as Kaon joins them. "Nothing, little tiger." She smiles sadly at him, before turning to face Kaon. 'My heart hurts...I don't understand how he has done this to me. It's not fair...Why?'
Tora notices the sadness in her smile and his face grows worried, as he turns to look at Kaon. The small girl stands before them, smirking her snide smirk as usual. "Hello, Kaon-san." Kailey dips her head to the petite girl, giving her a small smile. The girl had begun to grow on Kailey, her snide comments and dark humour drawing her in. Kaon had her own sort of charm to her, and Kailey found herself enjoying her company. In fact, she was beginning to enjoy the company of the Elite more and more.
"Hello. I was wondering if you would like to spend some time together, Kailey-chan? Just us girls." She giggles, holding her oversized stuffed bear close to her chest. "I thought we might go to the mall and relax. Besides that, I thought it might be fun to go shopping together." Kaon seemed very excited at the thought, having taken a liking to Kailey as well.
Kailey laughs softly, "Don't we have play practice now?" Tora watches her, a small smile playing at the corners of his mouth as his plan already starts to work. 'Good, she is already starting to look a bit happier. That happiness must be preserved, don't fail me Kaon. I just need her kept away long enough to make things right.' Tora thinks to himself, contemplating his plan.
Kaon just shrugs, "Eh, we already have all our lines down flawlessly. Plus, do you really want to deal with that creep, Kikuchi-san, again? He's taking his role of the Prince wayyyy too far. I feel bad for you, if I am to be honest."
Kailey laughs again, more genuinely, "I suppose taking a day to ourselves wouldn't be such a bad thing...Thank you, Kaon-chan. I would be happy to spend a day out with you." She smiles at the petite girl as her face lights up.
"Awesome~ Let's head out now, then. Goodbye, Tora-san." Kaon and Tora share a look, and she gives a tiny nod letting him know that she would keep Kailey busy until he was ready.
Kailey turns and looks at Tora, searching his face for a moment before smiling at him. "Shall I meet you back at the mansion later this evening, little tiger?"
He smiles at her, before leaning down and kissing her forehead, "Of course, my princess. Have fun, you two." He watches the way that her face reddens at his sudden kiss. 'Cute...' Kaon begins dragging the flustered heiress away, blabbing on about her plans for their time together. As she leads Kailey away, she looks back at Tora with a look that he can't quite decipher. He makes eye contact with her, raising an eyebrow in question.
In response, she rolls her eyes and mouths 'goof-ball' and gives him her signature snide smirk, before continuing on chatting with Kailey and dragging her off. "I was thinking that we could go look at clothes. Oooh, and maybe some more shoes. I also wanted to get facials and a massage. And I was also thinking about..."
As the two get farther away from him, Kaon's voice grows quieter and quieter until he can no longer hear them. He sighs, realizing that Kaon had realized his feelings. He was happy that she would keep her safe, though. Kaon may not admit it aloud, but she enjoyed Kailey's company. The two of them both enjoyed being sarcastic-Kaon's was just more abrasive than Kailey's. After watching them walk away, Tora turns and heads towards the Student Council Room.
Having been expecting him, Maki bows deeply to his master, "Hello, Igarashi-sama."
Tora dips his head in greeting, and walks through the door held open for him. "My plan is in motion. Gabriel Fortin will pay for hurting my princess." He glances up to see Maki smiling knowingly at him, and he gives a slight growl. "Oh, don't give me that look Kanade. Fine, I'll admit it out loud. I have fallen in love with the graceful heiress to the Royal Family. Now stop giving me that knowing smile, the truth has been outed. Are you happy now."
Maki covers his mouth with a hand as he laughs, "It is just nice to see you happy, Tora-sama. Now, shall we begin?"
Tora lets out a grumble, before sitting behind his desk and pulling a file out, "Yes, we shall."
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A/N This chapter isn't as long as the other one, because I wanted to put the next part into it's own chapter. I may split it into two other chapters, but I haven't decided yet. Maki is happy that Tora has finally admitted his feelings, but meanwhile Kailey thinks it is still a ploy and is hurt that she 'fell' for it. That's all for now, I will get the next chapter written asap.