Ronin Special #1
What Might have been
By: Ghost of the Dawn
Chapter 4: Kento- Part 1
Kento continued to snooze lightly on her shoulder. Robyn let him, not willing to get up herself yet. His arms were comforting even though Robyn was sure he had no idea what she was feeling bad about in the first place. Still, Robyn allowed herself time to bask in the warm embrace. She idly ran her fingers along the forearm draped over her collar bone as she prepared herself for new surroundings again.
"Kento?" she asked quietly.
In response, Kento grunted and pulled away from her. "Yeah, I know," he mumbled as he sat up, legs over his side of the bed. "I said I would do it today."
He rubbed his face tiredly and then got up as Robyn made herself sit up. Kento circled the bed and was about to leave when he must have noticed Robyn had a disheartened look on her face.
"You okay, babe?" he asked, brushing a few strands of hair from her face.
Realizing her mistake, Robyn was quick to lighten her expression. "Oh, I'm fine. I just...had a weird dream."
"I see. Well, you can tell me about it later if you want. But for now, I hope you enjoy this. I'm doing it for you."
With that, Kento left the room still wearing only his boxers and a T-shirt. Robyn wasn't sure what exactly he was doing for her just by leaving the room. But since he was giving her some space now, she wasn't going to complain.
It was still pretty early in the morning so Robyn decided to jump into the shower to help wake herself up. As she let the water rush over her head and back, Robyn wondered just how long she would have to keep doing this. When she reached the end of this strange pattern, would she get to go home? Or would she end up back with Cye again and it would start all over? If she did get caught in an eternal loop, then what did that mean? Should she be doing more than this? Should her time and energy be better spent on how to break this cycle than just trying to fit into these new strange lives?
There was a creaking sound to Robyn's left and her heart jumped when she saw the door to the shower being pulled open. Kento was already strolling in, without his T-shirt and boxers, by the time Robyn found the sense to hug herself and scream.
"What are you doing?!" she cried in a shrill voice.
Kento just blinked at her, standing in the doorway in plain view. "What are you talking about?"
"GET OUT!" Robyn cried. She shut her eyes tight, even though it was too late not to see now.
Kento was startled by the force of her voice and retreated with the sharp clack of the door being slammed shut. Robyn crouched in the shower floor, eyes wide and panting. Her heart was racing like she had just had a near death experience. Even when she closed her eyes she could still see it all. It was forever burned in her memory. Robyn let out a long, heavy breath. It was good, but it was still scary.
Robyn wandered into the kitchen, dressed but still embarrassed. Luckily, the kitchen was empty for the moment. Robyn didn't know what she was going to do when Kento came in. She wasn't sure she could look him in the face without turning bright red after what happened. She could still picture him standing there and her face flushed again.
Her hands were still shaking a bit as she poured herself some juice.
Easy Robyn, stay calm. It was just an accident. Though married men never "accidentally" jump into the shower with their wives. But still, it could have been worse, right? Things could always be worse.
And then, they were.
A noise Robyn never expected to hear reached her ears and rocked her world,. The sources of the noise ran into the kitchen a split second later. Not one, but two little boys barreled into the room, yelling and laughing. Robyn spit out her juice, almost choking on it. One of the identical boys snickered at her while the other tugged on her pant leg.
"Mommy, you shouldn't drink so face," he informed her.
Kento came in next. This time he was wearing pressed pants and a white shirt that hugged his muscular frame. He walked up to the coughing Robyn and patted her on the back.
"You boys giving your mother a hard time?" he accused.
"What about you, Dad?" asked the one who had snickered. "We heard you make Mom scream. What did YOU do to her?"
Robyn's face went beet red.
"Hey," Kento defended. "It's not my fault your mom's on the rag."
"Kento!" Robyn exclaimed, surprised he would say such a thing in front of children.
He just shrugged at her.
"Mommy, what's "on the rag" mean?" the other boy asked sweetly.
Robyn was horrified for a moment, then settled down. "Ask your father," she shot in Kento's direction. "Since he seems to know so much."
Two eager faces turned towards Kento and now it was his turn to look uncomfortable. Robyn smiled at that.
Kento cleared his throat. "Sorry boys, I gotta go to work. Maybe when I get back."
There was a chorus of "aww's" and Robyn herself was a bit disappointed.
"Well, I gotta go get ready," Kento said as he walked over to Robyn and kissed her on the temple. "I got the little mutants ready like I promised I would. Now they're all yours."
"Hey, those mutant are YOUR kids," Robyn reminded. Because they sure as hell ain't mine!
Kento chuckled as he moved out of the kitchen. Robyn was left alone with the two little boys. She looked at them dubiously. Both appeared identical to her eyes. What were their names? How was she going to tell them apart? How was she even going to begin to deal with this?
Come on Robyn, calm down. This isn't so bad. They're just little kids. Don't be scared of them. This is no different than baby-sitting Mei and Channy. Yeah, I'll just think of it as baby-sitting!
Once she put herself in a more familiar scenario, Robyn found it easier to cope. She switched to baby-sitter mode and got the two boys some breakfast. While they were occupied with their cereal, Robyn turned her attention to the discarded backpacks sitting on the counter.
Backpacks meant school. And if Kento was going to work, it was possible Robyn's job was to either see the boys off to a bus or take them there herself. With that in mind, Robyn grabbed the nearest pack and opened it. She rooted around through the papers and assorted garbage inside in search of the name of the school or some clue as to where the boys attended.
Luckily, Robyn found a folder with not only the school name, but the address and contact numbers as well. She quickly jotted the information down, proud of herself for adapting so quickly and keeping her wits about her. She wouldn't be caught off guard by anything in this world.
Something moved among the pile of papers inside the back pack. Robyn ducked her head curiously as she heard more shuffling. Something long and green shot out of the bag and took off across the counter. Robyn screamed.
Both boys looked up. One of them was already scrambling out of his chair.
"Aw Mom! You let him out!" The boy whined as he ran around Robyn's feet and then tried to scramble up to the see the top of the counter.
"What's going on here?" Kento demanded as he came into the room.
Robyn instantly threw herself on him, hugging him tight and burying her face in his chest.
"It-it jumped out at me!" she squawked.
"It was only Godzilla," the boy said as he approached with a baby iguana in his hands. "Mom just startled him, that's all."
"Jet!" Kento barked, holding Robyn protectively. "You're mother told you last night you couldn't take that lizard to school! You are in big trouble now. You go put that thing back in its tank!"
"Yes sir," Jet replied as he trudged off.
"Li, did you know anything about this?" Kento asked the other boy at the table.
Li shook his head, eyes wide in innocence.
We named our kids Jet and Li? Robyn thought to herself. How the hell did Kento get me to agree to that?
"Okay," Kento then said. "Crisis averted. I'm going to have a talk with our son before I head out."
Robyn nodded as he left the room, still trying to get her heart to slow down from her initial shock. She sat herself on a stool by the counter and watched as the remaining child ate.
So now she knew both boy's names. The problem would be trying to tell them apart. So far, Jet seemed to be the loud, disruptive one while Li was sweeter and quieter. She hoped their personalities stayed that way. For today, while she could tell them apart, Robyn tried to memorize what they were wearing.
Later, Kento came back in with a sullen, more humble Jet at his side.
"He has something he wants to say," Kento announced, arms folded.
Jet looked up at Kento's stern expression and then over at Robyn.
"I'm sorry, Mom," he said softly.
Robyn knodded. "That's fine. Now go finish your breakfast."
Jet's expression brightened and he ran back to the table to dig into his toast.
"Well, now I really have to leave," Kento announced. He kissed Robyn again, on the forehead this time. Robyn allowed it each time as she was sure he wouldn't do anything else with children around.
"I'll try to be home at a normal time, but no promises. Then Kento turned to the boys eating breakfast. "Be sure to catch the bus. Your mom doesn't have time to take you to school."
"Okay Dad," the two sing-songed.
Robyn was still trying to get used to being called "Mom" and Kento being referred to as "Dad". She hardly felt old enough for such a title. She watched as Kento walked around the table affectionately rubbing their heads. Robyn had thought before Kento would make a good dad when he got older. It was also the first time Robyn really got a good look what Kento was wearing. An officer's uniform? She could accept that. Being in the police force seemed to agree with Kento's personality. Not to mention he looked really good in uniform. But Robyn tried not to dwell on that so she wouldn't start blushing again.
Kento came back to Robyn, cupping her chin and kissing her lightly on the lips this time.
"Love you," he said hurriedly.
Robyn was a bit lost on how to respond, but managed to get out a "You, too" and make it sound normal. She couldn't do I full "I love you, too Kento". It was too weird. She did love him, but not in the way a wife would love a husband she had two children with.
As she heard Kento close the door, Robyn realized this was the first time any of the guys in these mixed up worlds have gone up to her and plainly said "I love you". For a moment she wondered if there was any implication in that. The other three had never gone out and said it, but Robyn had no doubt that they cared by the things they did say and how they treated her. Robyn had little time to think about this when she was reminded she still had things to tend to.
"Mom, has Dad ever shot someone with his gun?" said Jet, the more rambunctious of the two.
Robyn put her hands on her hips and the two boys listened intently.
"I'm sure I don't know," Robyn responded, going back into her baby-sitter mode. "Are you two done eating?"
The boys nodded.
"Good, now hurry and brush your teeth and get ready for the bus."
The two children did what they were told and Robyn reveled in it. This was better than being a baby-sitter. Whenever she watched Kento's youngest siblings, they always listened to her instructions half-heartedly, knowing she wasn't the highest authority figure. But in this house, at this time, she was. And it was nice for a change to have someone respect her instructions as law. Even if they did look only about 6 years old.
There were only a few minor hang ups with the boys remembering everything they needed for school. But Robyn still managed to get the two out to the bus in time. When the house was empty and quiet, she brushed off her hands proudly. She could do this. No sweat.
Robyn wasted no time getting right to work. She was used to playing the house wife by now and really wasn't minding how much cleaning she had to do lately. The familiar act of cleaning was soothing to her. It gave her a moment to think and gather herself. She was also secretly proud of how domesticated she had become lately. She was going to give Cye a run for his money when she got home.
Thinking of Cye made Robyn stop scrubbing the table for a moment. She missed him. But it was hard trying to figure out which one she missed. Was it the one from her world always watching out for her? Or the one from the other world that would smile at her in such a way her heart fluttered and could kiss her in such a way that it left her breathless?
And what about Rowen and Ryo? She missed them, too. Loved them, too. She wanted to see them and she was also confused about how she felt about them. This whole charade of life and worlds was confusing. Why was this happening? What was the point of all this? As alluring as these wolds may be, Robyn was fighting to remember her own world and not get lost in these fantasies. However, the longer she was away from the place she knew, the harder she found it was to remember it. That frightened her most of all.
The ringing phone snapped her out of her thoughts and worries and she reflexively ran to answer it.
"Hello Robyn! How are you?"
Robyn smiled at the familiar voice, feeling like she had a bit more of an anchor in this world. Almost as much as Cye's mother, talking to Kento's mother seemed to make everything better.
"I'm just fine," Robyn smiled into the phone. "How are you?"
She could hear a lot of noise in the background. Kento's mother must have been at the restaurant.
"Fine, dear," she replied. "Busy here as usual. I was just checking to make sure I was still taking the boys tomorrow."
Robyn's face lit up. That was fantastic news!
"Oh yes! You're welcome to have them if you still want them."
She hadn't meant to sound too desperate, but Kento's mother chuckled anyway. "Those boys have been a handful lately, huh?"
"They've been pretty good," Robyn insisted. No sense trying to scare her off if she was going to take the little monsters off her hands for a day or two. "What time would you like me to drop them off?"
"Any time after noon would be fine. And I'll bring them back Sunday morning. Chun Fa has really been excited about the boys sleeping over. She loves being an Aunt."
"Sounds good," Robyn agreed. Over night? That's fantastic!
"Great! I hate to cut this short, but I need to go. I'll see you tomorrow and we'll talk then. Bye Robyn!"
She hung up and a peculiar thought hit Robyn-- actually, two peculiar thoughts--both involving time. The first one was the fact that she always seemed to wake up in a new place on Friday and was gone before the weekend was over.
The second thought involved age. How old were those twin boys and how old was she? Robyn quickly sought out a bathroom and looked herself over in the mirror. It wasn't a huge change, but Robyn could admit she did look a bit older. So did Kento, come to think about it. So had she now been thrust into the future? Would she continue to get older with each world? With each weekend?
Robyn shook her head. She was tired of trying to find the logic in all of this. This whole thing was both illogical and improbabl. Even to someone who believed in demons and magical armors. However, she still believed she should be trying to find some key to this madness. There had to be an answer to the how and why, she just had to be patient and keep her eyes and ears open.
But for now, she had a life in which she had to pretend. Robyn got back to cleaning and even did some laundry. She had no idea which boy's clothes belong to which boy (who gets the Batman underwear and who's is Spiderman?) but she figured she would just fold it all up and let the boys grab what was theirs.
When she wandered back into the kitchen, Robyn noticed a grocery list pinned to the fridge. Feeling a bit on the brave side, Robyn set about rummaging for keys and something that might be her purse. She checked it for money and then quite excitedly got into the car parked in the garage.
Robyn thought that was awesome. She knew how to drive, but she was always stuck taking the bus or the subway. Having a vehicle to come and go as she pleased was liberating and Robyn throughly enjoyed her drive to the grocery store.
Shopping was kind of fun, too. Cye or his mother did the shopping in her household. At first, it was a bit daunting to Robyn to try and figure out which brand and kind of what to buy. But then she got the hang of it and was driving home happily with a car load of groceries.
A strange tune threw Robyn from her reverie and she pulled over to the side of the road when she realized it was a cell phone. Once safely by the curb, she rooted around the compartment by her feet and pulled it out.
"Hello?"
"Hey Robyn. This is Mary Anne."
"Oh hi Mary Anne," Robyn smiled. She was wondering when the blonde would show up in this world. "How are you?"
"I'm fine," Mary Anne replied. "I was just at the school and your boys are still here. I was wondering if you were on your way to pick them up."
Robyn froze, the color draining from her face. She had no idea her boys only went to a half day of school. But it made sense with how young the boys were. Why didn't she check to see if she had to pick them up and when? Robyn gasped as realization hit her. She was a bad mother!
"I.. I'm just on the way from the grocery store...I'll come right now." Crap! What was that school address? I can't ask her! I'll look like an idiot and a horrible parent!
There was a chuckle from the other end.
"I don't think you'll have room in that small car for two rowdy boys and bags of groceries. Don't worry, I can take them home for you since I'm already here."
"Oh, would you?" Robyn said thankfully. "I would appreciate it."
"No problem, Hon. See you in a bit."
Robyn hung up with a sigh. She was relieved she dodged that bullet. What if Kento had come home and asked her where the kids were? She was so embarrassed she had let that happen.
Robyn wasn't feeling as high or as independent as she had been earlier. Now she was feeling a little incompetent as she got back and started putting the groceries away.
She was only half way done with her chore when the doorbell rang. Robyn didn't even make it to the door before it was thrust open and two rowdy boys stormed in. Robyn smiled when she saw Mary Anne. The blonde looked older in this world, too. Several years older than her.
"Thanks so much, Mary Anne," Robyn greeted her. "It's been kind of a crazy day."
"No problem, Robyn, I was a new mother once, too." Mary Anne smiled. Then she suddenly frowned and yelled out the door. "Jordan! Leave your sister alone!" Then turned back with a tired smile. "Aren't children such a blessing?"
Robyn's eyes widened as she peeked out the door and saw a van full of noisy kids.
Are they all hers? Robyn wondered. Or did she just pick up the whole school on her way?
"I'm sorry Robyn, can't talk. I gotta get these kids home before they tear each other up-- or I do." She gave an odd sort of laugh. "Bye Robyn!"
Robyn gave kind of a stunned wave. She had to admit, she never really pictured herself ever having children, let alone a lot of children. She wondered what it would be like to live in a house that was full, having lived in quiet, empty houses her entire life. She had caught a few glimpses of a full- house family life when she had visited Kento's home. His place was always so much more livelier than Cye's house. It was like a totally different world.
Speaking of totally different worlds, Robyn turned her attention back to the inside of the house and gaped. In the blink of an eye, her clean living room had turned into a disaster area. Did those boys have magical powers like their dad? Tornado powers that messed up everything in their path? Robyn could hear the two children laughing and running in some part of the house as she wandered through the mess, too baffled to do anything else but stare.
Robyn was broken out of her trance when she felt a tug on her pant leg. One of the boys, she believed it was Jet, was looking up at her expectantly.
"Mom, I'm hungry," he demanded.
Robyn's expression clouded slightly. Yeah, I bet your famished after wrecking my clean house.
"Alright," she sighed. "Let's get you a snack."
After feeding the boys some granola bars and apple slices, the two were off again at full throttle. Robyn had now given up. She decided it was impossible to have a clean house and those boys at the same time. She figured if she could just make sure they don't do any permanent damage, then she would have done her job.
It really wasn't too bad. It was easy to ask them if they had any homework and then find something to keep the children occupied. The boys were kind of fun; mostly because they weren't her boys. Even if they did misbehave, Robyn was comforted with the fact that it wasn't something she had to fix. Or, if they did break something, it wasn't hers and she had no emotional attachment to it. Robyn was starting to think that was the way she should go from now on. No emotional attachment. That way, she could slip through these worlds easier and maybe it wouldn't hurt as much.
Dinner time came and still no sign of Kento. Robyn wondered about that, but the boys didn't seem concerned at all so Robyn decided to keep plugging on as normal. She searched the cupboard for what to serve for dinner and listened to the different requests from Jet and Li--however odd. No, they would not be having sushi ice cream for dinner that night.
Pasta seemed to keep the boys happy enough. Robyn was happy also because it was something she knew how to make. She had forgotten, however, how messy it could be and was not looking too happily at the boys as they soiled their hands and faces and clothes. Immediately after dinner, Robyn declared it was bath time and she marched the boys to the tub, helping them peel off their greasy clothes in disgust.
When the boys were somewhat cleaner and happily playing with their tub toys, Robyn went back downstairs to clean up the mess they made at the table. She was almost done scrubbing when she heard the door open and close.
"Is that you, Kento?" she called.
"Yeah," came a tired voice. "I'm home."
Robyn prepared herself for his arrival. All day she could pretend she was just watching someone else's kids. Even if they did call her "Mom" sometimes. But when Kento got home, it made this little family charade a little harder to pretend it away. Kento, however, never made it into the kitchen. Once she was done cleaning, Robyn got curious and went to find him. She discovered his tired body spread out on the recliner in the living room, still in his police uniform, shoes kicked off his feet. His eyes were half closed and he looked like he was about to drift off at any second.
"Busy day?" Robyn asked.
Kento sighed heavily. "You could call it that. Man, am I beat. I think I'll just pass out right here."
Robyn smirked at him. "Well, if you ever get the urge to join the living again, I can heat you up some pasta in the kitchen."
"I'll consider it," Kento replied with a smile. He reached out a hand in her direction. "C'mere."
She took it and allowed Kento to pull her gently closer. However, he didn't stop pulling and was now tugging her down towards his lap. Robyn hesitated for a moment, but let it slide, too tired herself to really fight back much. It was kind of awkward at first. She felt like a little kid sitting in someone else's lap. Kento put his arms around her and pulled her in close. Almost on instinct, Robyn curled up in his embrace; tucking in her knees and resting her head on his shoulder. So this was how it was done. His strong arms and broad chest, his beating heart and rhythmic breath were all soothing to her. It was the warmest, safest place Robyn had ever been and she closed her eyes, not wanting to leave.
"So how was your day?"
Robyn could hear Kento's voice rumble in his chest as he spoke. She paused for a moment at the answer. It had been a pretty crazy day for her. Though it probably wouldn't have been any challenge to the real Robyn who belonged there. Plus, seeing how tired Kento was, she didn't want to bother him with such things.
"It was fine," she mumbled, eyes still half closed. "You know, same old stuff."
Kento pulled her even closer and pressed his face into her neck, breathing her in deeply.
"I love you so much," he murmured into her skin.
Robyn stayed quiet. Here was the hard part again. As much as she hated to admit it, she was getting used to pretending to be a wife and to be in love. But saying it out loud, even for pretend, was something much harder. It made the lie feel worse. It made her feel like she was purposefully being deceptive. And maybe she was; even if she didn't ask for this. Either way, she didn't want to say this out loud to him. It just felt wrong.
Luckily, she didn't have to. Two identically wet bodies came bounding down the stairs, one in a towel and one without.
"Woah!" Kento announced as they both jumped in his lap, leaving water spots all over.
Robyn quickly got up and away, hating to get wet.
Kento flinched a little as the two wet bodies climbed all over him, but he ultimately didn't seem to have the energy to fight it too much. The twins both chattered at him excitedly, happy he was home, while Kento tried to ask the naked one where he towel was. Ultimately, anything he had to say was ignored as both boys clamored for his attention and tried to tell him about their day. Robyn looked on in amusement. It was kind of funny to watch, but she could also see Kento was fading fast. It wouldn't be long before the two boys would have talked him into an overload induced coma. For his sake, Robyn decided to intervene.
"Now boys, your dad is very tired. He's had a long day. Why don't you go up stairs and get dressed for bed so he can take a breather? Then you can come down and say good night, okay?"
"Aww... why does dad always get home right before we go to bed?" asked the boy with the towel. Robyn didn't know which one he was. Now that they weren't color coded, she had no way to tell them apart.
"Do what your mom says," Kento insisted.
Slowly the two children trudged towards the stairs. Robyn felt sorry for them. It was too bad they didn't seem to get enough time with their father. Unfortunately, that was life sometimes. Husbands and fathers often had to sacrifice to support their families. It was something that could be hard for children to understand. If only, Robyn thought, those boys knew how lucky they were just to have a father that loved them in the first place.
Robyn threw a kind smile at Kento who was still slouching tiredly in his chair. What she wouldn't give to have a man like that who worked hard for her. She hoped the real Robyn in this world appreciated him-- that they appreciated each other.
"I'm going to be upstairs," Robyn announced. "If you can pull yourself out of that chair, then there's pasta in the microwave waiting for you."
"You're the best, babe," Kento grinned thankfully.
"I do what I can," Robyn smiled back.
As she moved to cross in front of Kento's chair, she felt a hand pat her butt appreciatively. Robyn turned around, her mouth wide open in surprise, one hand protectively over her offended backside. Kento just winked at her as he slowly pulled himself out of his chair and shuffled towards the kitchen. Robyn glowered in his direction and then set her sights for the stairs.
She found both boys in their rooms in various states of dress and bouncing on their beds. It took a while, but Robyn managed to get them both calmed down, their hair dried, and fully dressed for bed. All the while she wondered how this world's counterpart of herself managed to do this every day. She had only done it for one day and already she could feel the drain on her energy. Bed was starting to look good and it was only 8 o'clock. That Robyn worried about too. She hoped she was getting them in bed at a proper time. She really didn't know much about young children and appropriate bedtimes.
They really were good boys, though. A bit on the hyper side, but not necessarily ill tempered. Just easily excited. They still listened pretty well and Robyn found them quite pleasant to "baby-sit". Both boys looked a lot like Kento, too which Robyn was finding to be quite adorable.
Robyn was just managing to get their toys picked up and get them in bed when the twins perked up at the figure in the doorway.
"Daddy!" One of them shouted.
Robyn had given up completely trying to tell them apart. She looked at the clock and realized she had been wrestling with getting the two boys to bed for almost forty- five minutes. Time sure flew when you were busy enough.
"Daddy! Daddy! Read us a story!" The other boy shouted.
"Yeah! Read this one!" the first one said, pulling out a large picture book.
Kento looked dubiously at Robyn who was now standing next to him. She smiled a bit.
"How about it? You want to put the kids to bed?" she asked.
Kento sighed. "Fine," he relented with a smile, much to the delight of his two boys. "But then I get to come put Mommy to bed, too."
He kissed her wetly at the crook of her neck and Robyn flinched at the tingly sensation his touch made. He chuckled at her and then settled down on one of the beds with the twins snuggled on either side of him. Robyn smiled faintly as she left them, the rhythmic thrumming of Kento's voice reading "The Cat in the Hat" fading as she went to her room.
After closing the door, Robyn sighed in the silence. There were only three other inhabitants of this house and it still made her a bit claustrophobic. She was starting to feel in bad need of some alone time. Robyn wasn't sure how much peace and quiet she was going to get, but she knew she would do well to take advantage of it while she had it.
Letting herself flop down on the bed, Robyn released a heavy breath. Her whole body felt exhausted. It really had been a long day. Without dressing for bed or even turning off the lights, Robyn would have been content just to lay there all night. But the silence could not last forever. After what seemed like too short a time, the bedroom door creaked open. Robyn stayed where she was, just grateful it was only the door she was hearing and not the shouting voices of the two children.
"You look hammered, Babe," Kento's voice reached her as she heard him shut the door behind him. "Long day?"
Robyn mumbled something that she herself couldn't decipher and she heard Kento's chuckle. Then she felt his weight pressed on the bed as he crawled over to her. His hand touched her back, wandering over it and then pressing down and kneading where he felt the muscles were stiff. Robyn sighed in contentment. It felt great after such a day--after all the days she had been having lately.
"Hope you're not too tired tonight," Kento murmured to her.
He was straddling her hips now, using both hands on her back. Robyn was too tired to care how close he was at the moment. She just didn't have the energy to move under the sweet massage he was giving her.
"Why's that?" she asked sleepily.
"You forgot already?" Kento chuckled again. His hand moved up to brush the hair away from the back of her neck. "You came up with the agreement. I spend more time with the kids; getting them up and putting them to bed, and then you spend some special time with me."
Robyn's eyes popped wide open. Boy she had screwed up now. She let her fatigue get her into a sticky situation and now she had to think of a way to get out. She felt Kento put his mouth on the back of her neck, his warm breath brushing on her skin. His touches turned from those meant to relax, to those meant to arouse. A pleasant shock of electricity went through Robyn's body and she jerked up to escape it.
As quick as she could, she pulled herself out from under Kento's hands and sat up, turning around to face him. But before she could even think up something to say, Kento's mouth assaulted hers. Obviously mistaking her actions for something else, he pushed her down on the bed with his body. Robyn's breath caught as she felt the unfamiliar weight pressing down on her. She was pinned, too startled and frightened to move. Kento's body was big and heavy on top of her. There was no way she would be able to push him off.
Kento released her mouth and moved to kiss her jaw and her throat, his hands trailing over her. Robyn wanted to scream, but she couldn't bring herself to. She knew if she told Kento he was scaring her and asked him to stop, he would. She knew he would never do anything she didn't want. But she was his wife in this world. Loving wives didn't freak out and panic like they were being raped when their husbands wanted to spend some quality, physical time with them. If she did that now, what would he think? How would he react to that?
Robyn swallowed the lump in her throat. She was so afraid she wanted to cry. Never had she imagined she would ever be afraid of Kento in this way. What was she going to do? She needed help, but who could help her now?
There was a quiet knock on the door and everything stopped. There was a moment of stillness and absolute silence where Kento paused above her and Robyn had a second to gather her thoughts.
"Mom?" a little boy's voice asked. "I'm scared."
Robyn actually heard Kento grate out a small growl of frustration. But she didn't care. Right now she loved that boy more than anything in the world.
"Coming sweetie!" She tried not to sound too excited as she extricated herself from Kento's hold and danced off to the door. The little boy outside their room looked apologetic for getting out of bed. But Robyn picked him up in her arms and carried him back to his room.
"Now what exactly is scaring you?" she asked as she walked into the dark bedroom.
"Jet said there was a guy with a hatchet in our room and he was hiding under my bed, waiting for me to go to sleep. Then he was going to hack off my arms!"
Robyn stared at the wide eyed boy. Then over at the other one still in his bed. "Where did you hear something like that?" she demanded.
"It was in the movie Daddy was watching," Jet insisted, looking a bit concerned himself. "He mostly hacks up girls. But he might get us, too!"
Robyn let her jaw drop and gaped at them. No child of their age needed to hear about this stuff. She glanced down the hall to see Kento standing in his bedroom doorway. He must have heard the conversation for he grew a guilty look on his face and went back into the bedroom.
"Mom, can you stay with us tonight?" The other one, Li, begged. "I don't want my arms chopped off!"
Robyn heaved a heavy sigh and agreed. The two boys cheered happily and the three of them ended up pushing the boys' beds together so they all could fit in one and all of them be protected by each other.
'I'm being protected, too,' Robyn thought, feeling a bit pathetic. 'Good boys, save Mommy from Daddy. How sad is this?'
The two boys fell asleep on either side of Robyn, but she stayed wide awake. It was a long time before she felt tired. Though fatigued, her mind wouldn't shut off now. She then realized how lucky she had been that her previous husbands hadn't been as forceful or expectant until now. What was she going to do if this kept up tomorrow? What was she going to do if she had to stay in this world another night?