Look Me In The Eye

Lights will guide you home.
And ignite your bones.
And I will try
To fix you.

~ Fix You - Coldplay

Rima came to the next morning, still lying on the floor. She attempted to get up, but felt pain in her body; too much pain. She lifted her head instead, and looked at the clock. It read 5:22, earlier than yesterday.

She felt her clothes, spots of blood in places, mostly near her legs. Rima then grimaced and sat up, feeling many bruises and cuts. She hobbled upstairs to her room.

She grabbed her painkillers and went into the bathroom, swallowed three, and then took a shower. Once finished, she placed band-aids on the deeper cuts and then changed into her school uniform before going downstairs to make breakfast.

Rima finished cooking, ate her portion, and then left the house, not wanting to see her father after last night.

She walked to the store she went to yesterday, for more band-aids and such. As that didn't take very long, she was left withs ages until the school doors even opened. She looked at her watch. 6:27. Another hour and a half, at the least, before she could go to the school.

Rima walked around town, and spotted a small cafè, just opening for the day. She walked over, planning to just order some hot chocolate and a piece of cheesecake, knowing that it would be the most cheerful part of her day.

The hour and a half passed quickly, and Rima was headed to school. She went a longer way, through the more traditional part of town. Rima saw a flash of purple behind her, and swore under her breath. 'I knew I should've went my usual way!' she thought.

"Hey, Rima, wait up!" Nagihiko yelled, running up to Rima, who had slowed down just the tiniest bit. "Good morning, Rima!" Nagihiko said, wrapping an arm against Rima's waist.

"Ow!" She exclaimed, removing his hand from her waist, "Why did you do that, you imbecile?!"

"Did it hurt?" Nagihiko asked, walking in front of her, stopping the blonde from moving forward. She tried to move around him, but he grabbed her arms. She grimaced at the contact. He didn't receive a reply. "Rima, did it hurt?" He asked more forcefully. Rima nodded. "Now, why did it hurt Rima?"

"Because I have a bruise on my hip." Rima lied smoothly, but not smooth enough for Nagi not to notice.

"You're lying Rima, I can see right through you, you know."

"Fine. It's because I fell down the stairs." Rima said, not looking him in the eye.

"Sure," Nagi drawled, loosening his grip on her arms. "Can you tell me that while looking me in the eye?" Rima looked up, making eye contact with him.

"It's because I fell down the stairs." Rima said in a monotone, her left eye twitching a bit.

"You're lying. Now, what's the real reason? And if you don't tell me, I'll tell Yaya about this. And you know how Yaya acts when she wants to know something." Rima gasped.

"You wouldn't!"

Nagihiko smirked. "Oh, but Rima, you know I would."

"I'll tell you, if you let go of my arms. It really hurts, Eggplant Head." Nagihiko let go of her arms, and gave Rima a look that said 'go on'. "Actually, can I tell you after school?"

"I'll need that in writing, please." Rima gave him a look of disbelief. "Well, you're pretty untrustworthy. But I'll hold you to that deal. Now, shall we walk to school?"

"I suppose, Eggplant Head."

The school day passed by quickly, much too quickly for Rima's pleasure. She wasn't looking forward to having Nagihiko finding out, but after what had happened last night, anyone know was better than keeping it to herself.

Their school ended at about 3:30, but Rima was trying to prolong it as long as possible, knowing that it was going to take awhile to build up the courage. "So Rima, you ready to tell me yet?" Nagihiko said from behind Rima.

She jumped in surprise, eyes wide. "What the hell, Fujisaki?! You scared the shit out of me!" She snapped, turning around while getting a few odd looks. "And for the record, no. I don't want to tell you with a bunch of people around, so canwegotoyourhouse?" She rushed through the last part, turning a bit pink.

"Excuse me? I didn't quite catch that. Could you repeat it?" Nagi asked, grinning.

"Can we go to your house?" Rima asked quietly, as more colour rushed to her face.

"Of course we can, Rima! Why didn't you ask?" Nagi said, grinning his head off and pinching Rima's unbruised cheek. She smacked his hand away.

"Don't pinch my cheek!" She said sharply.

"I suppose I won't, sweetie." Nagihiko said, smiling that famous Fujisaki smile. Rima mocked his smile, and looked away in disgust.

"So, when are we leaving?" She asked, looking through her bag.

"Whenever you're ready." Nagihiko answered.

"Well, I'm ready so let's leave." Rima said, gesturing for Nagihiko to walk so she could follow him.

"You know Rima, it takes awhile to get to my house as you know, so do you think we could run a bit?" Nagihiko asked, looking down at her. The small blonde looked up at him, just staring.

"Me? Run? Mashiro Rima doesn't run, she only walks." She answered, before continuing. "Besides, my sprint is more like your fast walking, maybe your jog. I mean, look at my legs." She gestured to her legs, looking extremely short compared to Nagihiko's. Rima did only come up to her chin; they must've looked very odd to people passing by.

"Then I'll just have to carry you, won't I?" Nagihiko said with a glint in his eye.

"WAIT!" Rima yelled, not giving Nagi a chance to pick her up. "If you're going to carry me, at least just give me a piggyback ride. They're comfier." Rima said.

"Alright, just no pulling me hair." Nagihiko said before bending down so Rima could jump onto his back. Once she was on, he grabbed her legs, and ran towards his house.

Since they were running, it cut the time by at least half, taking only five minutes opposed to the usual ten. Once there, Nagi bent down and let Rima get off of his back. "What, no warning before you started running?!" Rima asked, fixing her uniform.

Nagihiko grinned. "Well, it wouldn't have been as fun if I had warned you, would it? Now, shall we actually enter my house?" He asked, and looked at Rima until she answered with a nod. So he grabbed her hand and directed them to the Fujisaki Manor. The home was a traditional Japanese style, with gardens located around outside.

"So, where are we going to talk?" Rima asked, hoping it wasn't going to be somewhere where someone (no matter who) would be able to eavesdrop on the two.

"Well, it's either outside in the garden, or my room. They're probably the two most private places here. It's up to you where, though."

"Which is more private?"

Nagihiko thought for a moment, and then answered. "My room, I'd say. No one goes in there but me."

Rima sighed. 'It would have to be in his room, wouldn't it? Kami-sama, please help me here.' "Fine. Can we talk there?"

"Of course!" Nagi smiled. By now, they were in the house, and Rima was gaping at the decorations.

"Fujisaki, I may hate you, but your house is lovely." She said, still looking around. "Where's your room?"

"It's right here." He answered, pointing to a door on the left at the end of the hallway they had been walking down. The room was painted white, his mother's choice. However, the decor was completely up to Nagihiko, and was mostly purple and blue. His bedspread was a dark blue, and his desk stood in the corner, with his school stuff organized on top. "So, just start talking. I won't judge." He said, sitting on his bed, moving over so Rima could join him.

And with that, Rima told him. She told him about the divorce, the depression, how she had to deal with the abuse. She tried not to cry, but a few tears fell down her face, Nagihiko wiping them away each time.

"Rima, don't you get it? You have tons of people who care about you. Why didn't you tell one of us? How long has this been going on?" Nagihiko asked the small girl softly.

"I d-didn't want pity. Stupid, I k-know." Rima stuttered. "And it's been going on since before, maybe when I was 11. It wasn't often then, just whenever Mama had work really late. He did it to take out his rage." She whispered, as if she was scared that her father could hear her.

"Oh Rima, that's it. You're staying with me." Nagihiko pulled her into his arms, running his fingers through her hair and comforting her as she finally let herself cry; she cried and cried out all the tears from the last five years.

"B-but Nagi, won't your mother freak out?" Rima asked, now finished crying.

"Well, she's not really in town right now. She had to go to Europe for two weeks. But until then, you can stay with me, and then you can find somewhere else to stay, like with Amu, okay?"

"She's going away for winter break, remember? But I'll stay with you anyways, I don't want to spend anymore time even looking at my house. So, what about my stuff? I can't exactly just stroll casually into my house."

"Well, I'm sure I can find you something, and if I can't, we'll just go shopping tomorrow. You've got your uniform too, although it'll need to be washed." Nagi said to her, wiping the remaining few tears off of Rima's face.

"It'll look pretty weird if I walk around with my uniform on during break."

"True. But it turns out that I don't really have any girl clothes that would fit you. I mean, I could lend you some of my clothes for the night if you'd like instead."

"That's fine. I'll just borrow some of yours. But we're going shopping tomorrow, right?" Rima asked, looking up at him.

"Yep. So wait here, I'll get you something. Oh, and are you hungry?"

"A bit, and thanks." Rima smiled slightly, happier than she has been in a while.

Nagihiko returned with some clothes for her, the smallest sweatpants he had (which were still too large on her) and a blue shirt. "I can get you some food after you change, but do you think that you need to go to the hospital? I mean, obviously your father has done some damage to you, especially after last night."

"Well, how would we even get there?"

"Rima, I'm older than you. I can already drive. So, do you want to?"

"After I eat, if that's fine. And sorry for this. But don't you need an adult for it to be legal? I mean, it's already after dark."

"Oh well. I mean, I'd do anything for a pretty girl like you, Rima. And just for the record, it's absolutely fine." Nagi said so she could her him. 'I'll always be here for you,' he added in his head.

There's chapter two, everyone! Thanks to everyone who reviewed, I wasn't expecting that many on just the first chapter! Expect the next chapter tomorrow! (:

DISCLAIMER: I don't own Shugo Chara! sadly.