Were the directions he'd given you false? You stared back and forth between the paper and the house you stood in front of. It didn't seem to fit him. You'd thought he would have lived in a really nice house, if not a really big one. You were standing in front of a cottage that hardly looked like it had two bedrooms in it.
You must have been taking a long time just staring at the house, because Sanji eventually came out to greet you himself.
"Don't be intimidated," he laughed.
You followed him inside, feeling like an intruder. You never should have come.
You looked around. There was a woman making food in the section of the front room that you supposed was the kitchen.
"Hi, [NAME]. I was wondering when you'd come. Sanji talks about you a lot."
You barely heard her words, for you were trying to sort out the odd feelings you were sensing from her. There was a connection there. You wanted to talk to her desperately, but that would be weird. Sanji pulled you out of your thoughts by placing his hand on your arm. You jerked away from him subconsciously.
"Sorry, you just seemed to be in a daze...sorry."
He looked ashamed of himself, and you weren't even sure what he did wrong.
You shook your head. "It's nothing. You just surprised me."
"So, what's this project you're working on?"
Your face heated up in embarrassment, for you couldn't even remember what you were supposed to be doing. Thankfully, Sanji had been paying attention.
"It's for Literature," he explained. "We're supposed to write our take on a classic faerytale or something like that."
"Alright. I'm cooking tonight, Sanji. Hope you don't mind. I wish you would have told me sooner that you were having a girl over: I would have let you have free reign over the kitchen."
Your face heated up further even though Sanji remained as composed as he had been so far in your presence. His mother smiled at you.
"Didn't Sanji tell you how excellent a cook he is?"
You shook your head up at her.
"Maybe you should come over again sometime so you can see for yourself."
All you could do was stare at her.
"Alright, Mom, we'll be back for dinner," Sanji assured her as he took your arm again.
A shudder went through you at the touch, but you allowed it as you followed him back into what you assumed was his room.
"What faerytale are we doing?" you asked immediately, seemingly afraid to step out of the doorway.
"I was thinking Cinderella," he chuckled. "It seems easy enough."
You nodded. It did seem easy enough, and it wasn't like you had any good ideas on which faerytale you wanted to do.
"So, how'll we start?"
You shrugged. "Maybe...uhm...a synopsis. Like...say, out loud, the gist of the story."
"Alright. Sounds simple enough. Want me to go first?"
He sat on his bed, and you nodded.
"You can come in, y'know."
"I..."
You couldn't think of a real reason not to, so you walked in a little ways and sat against the wall so that you were across from Sanji.
"Okay, so, here's how I see it," he began. "This lady lives with her father, but her mother dies. So, her father gets lonely and takes in another wife, who has two daughters of her own. Eventually, the father dies and this poor young lady is stuck with the evil stepmother and stepsisters. But, like, the Prince holds this ball for all the maidens in the kingdom. And, he meets Cinderella at the ball, who's the most beautiful lady there. So, they get married and Cinderella doesn't have to put up with the stepfamily pushing her around anymore. What do you have to say on it?"
You swallowed a lump.
"I...Cinderella lives with an abusive family...and...she is submissive and doesn't think she'll ever get out of that house. So...after a cycle of abuse, the prince brings her to the ball along with every other eligible young woman in the kingdon, but something just...clicks with her. So, after going through a huge search to find her after she ran away at midnight, he finally gets to her. So, she's able to get away from those who are hurting her by marrying her prince."
By this point, you were playing with your pencil, not meeting Sanji's eyes. He probably thought you saw the story weird.
"Wow, [NAME]," he responded after a small moment of silence. "I never heard it told that way before. I wonder what other things are like when seen through your eyes."
You looked up at him, speechless. He was grinning at you.
"Guys, the food's done."
You'd just noticed Sanji's mother standing in the doorway.
As the two of you sat at the table, you found yourself wondering at the food. How could they afford to make such an extravagent meal when they lived in such a modest house with so few possessions?
"So, [NAME], are you new up at this school?"
She was talking to you. You looked up at her.
"No," you replied quietly.
You'd been going to the same school district for as long as you could remember. You couldn't remember when exactly things started changing for you.
"Oh? Well, you must be a wallflower, hmm? It's pretty rare Sanji takes this long to take notice of such a pretty girl."
Sanji was beginning to look embarrassed, and you felt as though a victory had been won. On the other hand, you felt it was your duty to change the subject for him.
"Does Sanji have a father?" you blurted, only considering afterward that it seemed an insensitive subject.
Sanji's mother coughed, covering her mouth as though she'd begun to choke. Sanji seemed taken aback by your question. He looked poised to stand from his seat.
"You feeling alright, Mom?"
She nodded, giving him a small, weak smile.
"I'm fine, dear. Don't worry."
"I-I'm sorry...I didn't mean to bring up - "
"Don't worry about it, sweetheart," she assured you sweetly. "It's sort of a sore subject, but you had no way of knowing."
"Oh, no, no, no...I really shouldn't have brought it up."
You looked down.
Sanji's mother cleared her throat.
"Anyways, I was wondering, [NAME]," Sanji's mother began, "where you got those black eyes from? Your nose looks broken. Did you fall?"
You felt your fork slip from your hand, heard it clatter against the table.
"I-I...I fell...I fell off my...my bike. I fell right on my face."
You looked up, glancing between the two of them anxiously.
Sanji's mother looked concerned, and Sanji's face was an odd mixture of emotions you really couldn't read clearly.
Your hand shaking, you picked up your fork again. What time was it? You were sure you should be leaving soon. However, it seemed only right to show your gratitude by clearing your plate, and you did it in record time.
Sanji stood from the table not long after you and took the dishes to the sink.
"What time do you need to be home, [NAME]? You think we have time to do a little more on the project?"
You glanced at the stove, which displayed a time of 6:04 PM. You shrunk a little.
"I have to get home pretty soon," you told him, your stomach churning.
"Let me walk you there. I can't stand the thought of you walking all that way by yourself."
He smiled at you sheepishly.
"Sorry I let it happen when you came up here."
"I-it's okay. You don't need to do that."
"I want to, [NAME]," he told you firmly.
So, without too much of a fight after that, you were heading back with Sanji.
"It's getting dark," you protested weakly as the two of you turned out of the driveway. "How are you going to get home by yourself?"
"I'll be okay," he replied with a smile. "Are you worried about me, [NAME]? That's so sweet."
Your face reddened, and you stared down at your feet.
"Hey, [NAME]. About the conversation we had? Over dinner?"
You looked up at him, feeling the colour drain from your face.
He lit up a cigarette he'd stuck in his mouth.
"My dad was a jackass," he explained around it.
You must have looked confused, because he continued, "I might tell you the whole story later, if you're willing to share something with me."
You felt a lump rise in your throat.
"When the day comes that you're comfortable telling me why you come to school every day with your beautiful skin marred up the way it is, I'll tell you."
Tears threatened to fall. You weren't at all ready for this conversation, and something in you had known he would try to start it should you take him up on his offer to walk you home. It was almost as if he could read your emotions, because he slung an arm around your shoulders and pulled you closer to him in a display of attempted comfort. It was working. It made you feel better. You felt as though your cold, dead body was filling with warmth for the first time in a long time.
It wouldn't last, you reminded yourself as you tore away from Sanji. You couldn't let him sway you. You knew he wouldn't want to be involved if he knew the truth.
You knew he'd be gone the instant you told him.