Kyoko clung to Ren , shaking with fear. She felt an odd sense of Deja vu in Ren's arms. A monster had held her like this and raped her..a monster who looked like Ren.. And a monster who had just killed the grudge Kyoko proving that it was definitely not human..
So what was the guarantee that the man before her was not that monster again?
Kyoko's mind went back to that moment when Ren's clone had hugged her. The minute he held her, at the very back of her mind, something screamed at her that this was not quite right...something was terribly terribly wrong. And now she knew what it was..
Mental note to self!, Kyoko thought grimly. Ren clones don't carry his scent!
She closed her eyes, relieved as she breathed in Ren's comforting scent deeply. A scent that she was very familiar with..a mere whiff of which made her feel light headed and warm and fuzzy and comforted.. I could bottle this scent and use it whenever I need.., she thought dreamily, momentarily forgetting that she had just run out of a haunted house.
"Kyoko!", Ren's urgent voice interrupted her thoughts, bringing her back to reality. " I'm here now with you Kyoko! Tell me clearly now what happened there. Why did you scream?"
His arms held her comfortingly as he looked at her feeling extremely worried. Kyoko realized that he must not have caught fully what she had just said about 'being raped by a monster who looked like him'.
She opened her mouth and was about to repeat what she had said when she let out a sudden gasp of pain. Her nails dug painfully into Ren's shoulders and he looked at her in alarm.
Her eyes were half closed with agony. "Aaahhh..unnggghh!", she cried out giving Ren a heart attack.
"Kyoko!", he yelled in shock and alarm. Without a moment's delay he carried the semi conscious woman in his arms and banged the button for the elevator. As he waited in the elevator, he looked down anxiously at Kyoko. She looked normal except for the intense pain on her face which had turned dangerously pale.
Ren gently kissed her forehead. "I'm taking you to the hospital okay?", he told her reassuringly. Kyoko looked at him through half closed eyes, not really taking in what was happening. Just as suddenly as it had appeared, the pained expression on Kyoko's face disappeared and she stopped breathing momentarily, making Ren fear the worst.
Suddenly her eyes widened with fear. Behind Ren ,was his double, his nails abnormally long..and blood dripping from them. The Ren clone gave her a hideous leer which she hoped never to see on the real Ren's face, licked it's fingers with a kind of ghoulish relish and disappeared.
Ren looked around confused as to what had frightened Kyoko but could see nothing. The moment they reached the ground floor he sprinted to his car in the parking and gently put in his now unconscious girlfriend into the car. He rushed to the hospital not noticing the sudden shiver that Kyoko gave out of chilliness..
Ren paced the floor, nervously waiting for the doctor's report. He remembered their last phone conversation. Kyoko had sounded rather jumpy..before she'd let out that unearthly shriek.
What exactly is happening with her?, Ren thought wildly, running his fingers through his hair.
He looked up eagerly when the doctor came out if the examination room.
"There is absolutely nothing to worry about Mr. Tsuruga.", she told him with a reassuring smile. "Mogami san is in perfectly good health physically. She's just under a bit of stress I believe, which may be the reason for her hallucinations."
The smile of relief that had appeared on Ren's face disappeared at the word 'hallucinations'.
"Hallucinations?", he asked frowning. "What exactly makes you think so doctor?"
"Mogami san mumbled something about being raped, while in a semi conscious state.", the doctor replied. "However, her body showed no signs of physical assault of any kind on examination. I dismissed it thinking she wasn't in her right state of mind but even when she was fully conscious she said the same insists there are scratches and bruises all over her body."
She sounded rather sorry for Kyoko and the anxious looking man before her.
"Can I see her now?", Ren asked the doctor. She nodded and without a word he entered the doctor's room.
Kyoko lay on a bed, in hospital attire, staring up at the ceiling, her once cheerful face alarmingly pale and unhappy. She jumped when the door opened, her face breaking into a smile when Ren came over and sat on the chair next to her.
He held her hand and gave it a reassuring squeeze as he kissed her gently. Kyoko sighed with relief against his lips. "You'll believe me won't you Ren?", she asked in a trembling voice. "that doctor doesn't believe me but I really was attacked!"
She was starting to get hysterical so Ren gently took her in his arms shushing her.
"The doctor will discharge you soon and then we can go home and talk about this okay?", he whispered in her ears gently. She nodded against his chest and he kissed her forehead before getting up.
She caught his hand and looked at him fearfully. "Please not my apartment!", she begged him.
Ren was stunned by the transformation of her face. She looked positively terrified. The look on her face made him want to lock her in his room and protect her for the rest of his life.
"Kyoko?", he asked her cautiously and was about to sit down beside her again but she pushed him away.
"Please go and complete the paperwork.", she insisted. "The sooner I get discharged the better!"
Ren got up reluctantly and went to visit the doctor. In half an hour, Kyoko was discharged and Ren drove to his apartment looking at the silent woman beside him every now and then anxiously.
When they were finally in his apartment, Kyoko borrowed Ren's pajamas .
"Can we talk after this?", Ren asked her quietly. She nodded and was about to go and change when Ren let out a sharp cry of pain.
"Ren!", Kyoko ran to his side. He was clutching his arm, but he didn't look too much in pain now.
"Roll up your sleeves!", Kyoko ordered frantically, though her fingers were already pushing up the cloth up his arm. She stared at the deep red cut on his arm.
"When did this happen?", she asked examining the wound. It looked fresh.
"Just now obviously!", Ren replied in a slightly puzzled voice. "I felt it hurt just now didn't I?"
Kyoko stared at him, surprised at his lack of concern for his wound. "How do you think it happened?", she asked impatiently.
Ren shrugged. "I guess it was a cramp or something.", he said .
Kyoko stared at him incredulously. "You call this a cramp?", the surprise evident in her voice. "Ren , this is what people normally call a cut or an injury! In fact I think it is a serious injury!"
Ren stared at his arm and back at her. "Is there supposed to be something on my arm?", he asked her, sounding a little concerned, but not for himself. "Because I can't see any injury on my arm Kyoko!"
His eyes looked genuinely puzzled and worried about her. Kyoko dismissed any thoughts she had about Ren messing around with her when suddenly an idea struck her.
She slowly rolled up one of her sleeves and raised her bruised arm before Ren.
"What do you think ?", she asked him seriously.
"Of what?", asked a completely bewildered Ren .
"Of this!", Kyoko shook her arm violently before his face. But Ren still looked blank.
"Of your arm Kyoko?", he asked cautiously. "I think it's pretty good, but then I'd say that for your whole body."
Kyoko sighed resignedly. "I'll just get changed now.", she said monotonously and made her way to the bedroom.
Ren looked after her worriedly, wondering if he had said something that he shouldn't have said. And why was Kyoko acting so strange?
In the privacy if the bedroom, Kyoko slowly took of her clothes and looked down at her body. THe cuts and bruises were fresh on her skin, and to make things worse, there was a new one.
Kyoko frowned in confusion at the slash marks on the left upper part if her chest. The slashes were not too deep, but deep enough to bleed..and similar to the mark she saw on Ren's arm.
"When did these appear now?", she muttered to herself wearily. She closed her eyes and tried hard to remember...it couldn't have been in the apartment. She would have noticed it then. Then when could-
Kyoko's eyes flew open in panic when she suddenly remembered the excruciating pain she had felt on her chest just as she was going to tell Ren about her encounter with his clone. It had felt as though someone had just pierced her heart with a million needles and was slowly dragging them across her skin.
She put a tentative finger on the wounds and immediately let go as she felt a white hot pain on the same spot.
Kyoko decided then and there she needed a shower immediately! She wanted to cleanse herself off the monster who had tried to mark her as his own.
After fifteen minutes in the shower, Kyoko looked down at her wounds with satisfaction. Though still visible, they were only like faint scars. But the slash marks, she noted sadly, remained the same.
As she dried her hair, Kyoko caught sight of herself on the mirror and stopped dead.
The Kyoko looking back at her was completely free of all scars and bruises.
Is this why no one believes me?, she started to think in panic. Am I the only one who can see the marks on my body? Or on Ren's injury for that matter?
Kyoko dressed up, feeling rather numb. Somehow, she had a feeling that telling Ren the truth was not a good idea. When she had tried the first time, she's landed in the hospital. The second time, Ren's arm was slashed. Wasn't that a warning to her? A warning never to repeat to anyone what had happened to her in that apartment?
Kyoko had never felt more frightened in her life before. Whatever supernatural forces were at work, they could hurt, or even worse , kill Ren and leave no traces behind. No. She had to just pretend as though nothing was wrong.
Which is going to be pretty hard to do after all that's happened tonight., she thought wryly.
Ren looked up when the door opened and Kyoko walked in. She sat beside him and put her hand on his, an apologetic look on her face.
"Ren,", she began." I know I've not been..quite..normal tonight, but well...it's just that I'm a little stressed out."
She paused and gave a sigh, acting out a stressed patient to perfection.
"I haven't been sleeping well lately, being busy with early morning shoots and everything and I just made it worse by watching a horror movie two days ago!"
"A horror movie?", Ren asked surprised. "How does that come into the picture?"
Kyoko laughed. "Oh, you know how I can sometimes be when it comes to a particularly grotesque horror movie. I didn't get any sleep after that experience and when I did manage to fall asleep I'd started to have horrible nightmares about it! I'm so afraid of falling asleep now and as if it wasn't bad enough I'm even starting to imagine that there are ghosts all around! My new apartment just gives me the creeps, what with my being alone and all..I had a weird kind of hallucination that time outside the lift and when I was talking to you on the phone and just freaked out! I..fainted out of shock. I know I should have told you this earlier, but you were busy with your filming in Kyoto and I didn't want you to worry."
She looked down at her lap and remained silent. She didn't dare meet his eyes and waited with bated breath for his response.
I should have thought this out more carefully! She berated herself silently. There's no way he'll buy an outrageous explanation like that!
To her surprise, Ren squeezed her hand reassuringly. She looked up at him and found him smiling warmly at her.
"Well I'm here now with you right?", he said gently. "You don't have to go back to that place anymore Kyoko. I'll make sure you take things easy and get enough sleep. You don't have to be frightened of anything..or anyone anymore. I'll protect you."
Kyoko looked up sharply. Just for a moment, there was something about his tone that seemed to give his words a double meaning. Frightened of anything..did that mean he did not believe her? However she dismissed her fears. He looked pretty convinced and that was how she wanted it to remain.
She was taken aback when Ren suddenly placed a little black box before her.
"Kyoko,", he said seriously. "I meant ever word that I just said. You never have to go back to that apartment again. I want to spend the rest of my life with you. Will you marry me?"
He opened the box to reveal a beautiful diamond ring. It was tiny, but so sparkling and the diamonds were arranged in a pretty pattern that sent Kyoko to her fairyland.
She gaped at the precious jewel before her and could only nod as tears of happiness filled her eyes. Ren smiled and put the ring on her finger.
Kyoko's fears evaporated in an instant when she saw the engagement ring sparkling on her finger. She let out a surprised cry when Ren suddenly swooped her up bridal style and carried her to his bedroom.
He gently lay her on his bed and began to kiss his fiancée. Their tongues engaged in a fierce battle for dominance, their hands wandering around each other unconsciously. Within moments, without knowing how, their clothes lay scattered on the floor. Ren began to trail kisses down her neck while his hands pleasures her breasts. Kyoko moaned and bit back a gasp as pain shot through her body. She realized, in panic that she was sore after the brutal way Ren's clone had raped her. She couldn't continue tonight, as much as she would love to..
She gently pushed away Ren, and cupped his face in her hands. "Ren..you know I'd love to have you make love to me tonight..it's just that, once we start, we don't stop and I really must get some sleep now right?", she said jokingly.
Ren chuckled and rested his head on her chest. "Right. I'm sorry.", He said apologetically. "it's just that I always get carried away when I'm with you. But you really need some sleep. You've had a tiring night already.." he kissed her chest when Kyoko gave out a faint hiss of pain.
"What's the matter?", he asked concerned.
Kyoko shook her head with a forced smile. "Nothing.", she replied. "I just need to use the bathroom."
She got up quickly and went into the bathroom, closing the door behind her.
She looked down at the wound in her chest. It was redder now and was still smarting.
Kyoko sighed as she realized that it would hurt everytime when touched. In fact..Kyoko thought with a small frown, the wound looks deeper now.
Kyoko suddenly felt something cut her finger. She held up her hand and saw her ring finger was bleeding. The ring's band was cracked and had cut into her skin. A trickle of blood ran over the diamonds, marring their beauty. She tried to wash it but was not surprised that her efforts were in vain.
She looked at the ring and sighed." I guess that was all that was left to happen tonight..", she muttered grimly to herself.
Meanwhile Ren was still worried about Kyoko. He had accepted her explanation earlier because her eyes seemed to be silently begging him to do so.
But how much longer can I go on without knowing the truth?, he thought frustrated. What is she hiding from me?
For a moment, and he had hated himself for that, he allowed himself to consider the possibility that Kyoko was cheating on him. Maybe there had been someone in the apartment and she had set up the whole drama so that he wouldn't be able to find out?
But he had dismissed that idea immediately. Kyoko would never do something so sneaky and despiscable . She was much too sweet and innocent to act like some kind of a slut. But something else was wrong and he was going to have to wait until she told him herself.
Ren rolled over,lost in his thoughts and paused. He sat up frowning at the window. The curtain was blowing lightly in the wind. There was nothing there now, but he had the strangest feeling that he had seen the silhouette of a woman by the window in the dark.
Sho read the tabloid with interest. A wide grin spread on his face as he read the news about Kyo. He gave a silent thanks to the unknown black mailer. Thanks to this woman, not only was a leak plugged, but his worries were also gone. Kyo Takaki had been a danger to him and now he was gone for good..
A/N: THANKS FOR READING EVERYONE! Sorry about the really late update! New year resolution: to update more regularly!
cheers all and plz review!