"You had to have it all! Well have you had enough? You greedy little bastard you will get what you deserve! When all is said and done, I will be the one! To leave you in your misery and hate what you've become!"
"Had Enough," ~ Breaking Benjamin
V
Shizuru wept until her eyes were swollen and bloodshot.
Her head throbbed in the place of her heart, which had seemingly grown numb. Reito pulled back from their embrace only slightly to swipe his thumbs beneath her eyelids and clear away the dark tear tracks on her cheeks. Her mascara was no match for the sudden onslaught of emotions.
In all honesty, Reito had surmised the identity of the father as soon as it had been revealed that Shizuru was pregnant. He just wanted confirmation from Shizuru herself.
"I see." He whispered, reaching into his pocket and extracting a small square of finely woven material. Gently, he pressed the handkerchief against Shizuru's flushed skin and began to clean the smudged makeup caked around her eyes.
"I don't know what to do." Shizuru croaked out.
"Well, the first thing you have to figure out is whether you're keeping it or not." Reito said as softly as he could. "And if you plan on telling Natsuki."
Deep red eyes slowly drifted to molten gold. Her heart clenched once more, vaguely reassuring her of its presence. Shizuru felt as though she was stuck between a rock and a hard place.
She had heard stories about abortion. It was a worldwide controversy, but she had never given the idea much thought. She didn't have to, but now the decision weighed heavy on her frail shoulders.
Natsuki had a right to know. The baby was hers after all. What if Natsuki freaked out and urged her to follow through with the abortion? What if she wanted nothing to do with Shizuru anymore or the baby? What if she disappeared and left them behind?
Natsuki would never do such a thing.
Her father would probably try and force her to have the abortion if he found out or she told him, especially considering the fact that the baby wasn't Reito's. He would then realize that Shizuru had been lying to him about all of those dates with Reito and meetings at school.
She placed her hand on her belly, and smiled slightly despite her dire situation.
A little being was growing inside of her, a little being that would continue to grow for nine long months. Her little being, Natsuki's little being, their little being.
"If it makes you feel any better, I've always wanted to be an uncle." Reito couldn't help but throw in when he witnessed the small, subtle smile.
Shizuru pushed his shoulder.
If she got the abortion everything would be okay. Her father would never know. Natsuki would never know. She could get on with her life without the troubles of raising a child.
But she couldn't bring herself to make the decision alone.
What if Natsuki found out? What if she hated her afterward? But what if she decided to keep it, and Natsuki was determined to help her raise it? She glanced at her closest friend. His handsome, chiseled features are set in an unreadable expression.
But she could see the overwhelming love and support in his brilliant amber eyes. He would support her no matter what, and she believed Natsuki would do the same.
"I have to tell her first," Shizuru whispered as she allowed herself to be pulled to her feet.
"I knew you would," He smiled faintly before his features grew grave, "But what will tell your father?"
"He will be furious." Shizuru replied. "But I must."
"That's a big risk. What if he throws you out? Or hurts you or the baby? You know how cruel he can be." Reito said.
She made sure to properly dispose of the tests before leaving the safety of the bathroom. She sat on the edge of the bed and Reito kneeled before her.
"I am aware of the consequences, Reito. But just like Natsuki, he has a right to know. He's my father. And whether I like it or not this is his grandchild. He may be lenient." Shizuru knew the end of her little speech was probably a lie, but could her strict father be cruel enough to cast his young, pregnant daughter out on the streets?
"Tell him it's mine," Reito barked, his eyes growing moist at the thought of his best friend being out alone on the streets. "Tell him I forced myself upon you."
Shizuru shook her head and reached out to stroke his cheek, her gentle fingers sliding along his stubble in a smooth, apologetic manner.
"I would never do such a thing. Not to you and not to Natsuki. This baby is rightfully hers and lying about it would do more harm than good. Reito, you're sweet and kind and beautiful inside and out, doing such a thing is simply not in your nature."
"But…"
A finger fell over his lips. "Everything will be alright."
He nodded silently and she removed her finger from his lips and gave him a tight hug. The words fell from her lips so easily.
But did she truly believe them herself?
...
Unfortunately for most, break eventually came to an end.
On the night before school would resume the following morning, Natsuki was sitting on her bed, playing Dying Light and sipping a bottle of beer. Her eyes occasionally flicked down to the phone in her lap. Shizuru had texted her two days ago claiming she wasn't feeling well and couldn't sneak over.
Natsuki had been grumpy for an entire forty-eight hours.
Nao thought it was hilarious. Her father thought it was adorable and teased her to no end about it. Chie kept begging for details of their sexual encounter after witnessing them leaving the party together. Tate was spending an extraordinary amount of time with Reito.
Mai kept insisting Natsuki ask her out. Natsuki would always blush and tell her she was working on it.
Her phone buzzed and she immediately threw down the controller. Crane was left standing in the middle of the street swarming with infected.
Shizuru
Natsuki, I have to talk to you as soon as possible. Will you meet me in the second floor restroom during lunch tomorrow?
Natsuki raised an eyebrow. What if Shizuru was planning on asking her out when she had already been planning to ask Shizuru out?
Natsuki
Sure, is everything okay? You feeling better?
"Natsuki, you can eat if you want. I went to Chang's and got your favorite." Her father said from the other side of the door.
"Okay, thanks." She replied absently.
"Is Shizuru in there? If so, I bought enough for her too!"
Natsuki blushed furiously and tossed a pillow at the door. "No dad, Shizuru is not here!"
Her father chuckled. "That explains why you've had the stick up your ass for the last two days. Just get married and have kids why don't you?"
"Dad!"
"Alright, alright I'm going. But seriously, wrap it up, Natsuki. She's a pretty girl and I'm sure your kids would be gorgeous, but not at sixteen, alright?"
"..."
Her father chuckled and disappeared down the hall. She rubbed her temples tiredly and saw she had a new text from Shizuru.
Shizuru
Ara, Natsuki is worried about me? How sweet!
Yeah, she's alright, Natsuki thought as she waited for the typing bubbles to disappear.
Shizuru
I must go, but I will speak to you tomorrow. Good-night, Nat-su-ki.
Natsuki smiled softly.
Natsuki
Good-night, Shizuru.
Natsuki tossed her phone onto the table and resumed her game, an everlasting smile on her lips.
...
"Are you sure you want to do this so soon?"
Shizuru's fingers glided over Natsuki's name in her phone. She looked up at Reito, who was staring back at her with those molten amber eyes of his. It's been two days since she discovered that she was pregnant with Natsuki's child, and she had made the decision to inform her father only moments ago.
"I have to, Reito," She replied softly, "Sooner or later I will get bigger and it will be impossible to hide."
Reito tilted his head to the side. "Does that mean you're keeping it?"
Though he tried to hide it, Shizuru could detect the hopeful undertone in his voice. She nodded very slightly. She had thought long and hard about during the past forty-eight hours. She couldn't bring herself to go through with an abortion. She was willing to keep her baby and endure all of the hardships that were sure to come with it.
Reito smiled as he reached out to squeeze her shoulder. "You know I will do everything in my power to assist you in any way possible."
She returned his smile. "I know."
He glanced at the clock and sighed apologetically. "I have to go now. Promise me that you will call me as soon as the conversation is over?"
He held out his pinkie.
"I promise." She linked hers with his.
With one last smile at his best friend, the young man disappeared into the darkness of the mansion. A moment later his car engine pierced the air. Another moment, and her rock was gone. She took a deep breath. She'd never felt so alone before.
Her heels clicked on the marble floors of the upper level. The gentle breeze slipping in through the window ruffled her hair. Her heart pounded in her chest. Her hands felt clammy and shook slightly.
Without the usual abundance of hired help littering the manor, the mansion was ghastly silent. She felt the need to look over her shoulder after every step. As she approached the massive double doors of her father's study, her nerves increased tenfold.
She felt the need to vomit but swallowed it back down. She took another deep breath and forced herself to raise her hand to knock on the door.
"Come in." Her father's clipped voice replied.
Shizuru pushed the doors open.
Her father was in his usual place standing before the window, gazing out into the distance. He wore a suit the color of dried blood. He turned to look at his only daughter, his crimson gaze unreadable.
"Is there a valid reason why you disturbed me at such an hour?" He asked.
"I must speak with you," Shizuru forced her voice not to shake, "It is rather urgent."
He sighed and returned to his chair. He folded his hands neatly upon a stack of documents and gave his daughter his utmost attention.
She faltered only slightly when she met his gaze, but she willed herself to remain calm both inside and out.
"I'm pregnant."
Silence. Complete. Unadulterated. Silence. He didn't even flinch. It was almost as if it were old news to him. He continued to stare and it made her feel as though he were staring right through her. His eyes fell to her belly, still sporting that burning gaze. She felt like he was trying to peer inside of her, trying to get a glimpse of the new life growing inside of her.
He leaned back in his chair and sighed after a moment or two. His left hand rises to pinch the bridge of his nose.
"I suppose it was expected considering all of the time you two have been spending together lately. Honestly though, I thought you'd be smart enough to take precautions when it came to it. Apparently not." He snorted in the most un-gentleman like manner.
Her heart sank.
Of course. He assumed the child was Reito's. It made sense. She could lie. She could ride his train of belief all the way down to the station. But it wasn't right. She could lie about many things, but she just couldn't bring herself to lie about the origins of her child's father. She shook her head, slowly, sadly, recklessly.
"Father," Her voice cracked only slightly, "The child isn't Reito's."
A lone tear fell down her cheek as he stiffened once more. His eyes were wide with shock and dark with barely contained fury. He rose very slowly, as if the action pained him. His loafers made no sound on the marble floors. He reached out and forced her to look him dead in the eye. She could see herself, anxious and fearful in his inhuman gaze.
"What. Did. You. Just. Say?" He demanded.
His grip was tight on her jaw. His thumbs pressed the soft flesh of her cheeks roughly against her teeth.
"The baby," She whispered painfully, "Is not Reito's."
The back of a scarred wrist caught the side of her face. She fell to the ground, skinning her knees on the harsh floor. She cradled her rapidly bruising cheekbone tenderly as he backed away and began to pace.
"Of all the foolish things you've done, this is by far the most climacteric! Do you have any idea what you've done? Do you have any idea what this scandal could do to my company?" He shouted, looking every bit near tears. His face was red, his veins protruding from his neck in an alarming manner.
"Everything I've ever worked for, foiled at the hands of a foolish, worthless teenager." He laughed humorously, running his hand through his blonde hair.
He paused as realization hit him. "All of those 'club meetings' were merely alibis! You were sneaking around with some insubordinate little fool. And now you are pregnant with a bastard's child. Oh, how they'll laugh at me."
He giggled uncharacteristically. "I will be the laughing stock of the entire coalition. There is no way the Kanzaki Heir will marry you now. This entire plan, in shambles because of you."
Shizuru shakily rose to her feet. She swallowed painfully, and opened her mouth to say something, but her father rounded on her before she could.
"Get rid of it," He whispered as he advanced on her. She flinched only slightly, and tried not to gawk in surprise when he fell to his knees, clutching her hands for dear life.
She stared down at him, unable to speak. Unable to breathe.
His adam's apple bobbed as he swallowed. "My daughter, grant your father this one wish. Please, get rid of it. Keeping it will only ruin your life. No one will ever know. The family name will be saved. Please, Shizuru."
She couldn't remember the last time he looked at her with so much emotion. Here was a man she barely knew. She'd never sat on his lap or shoulders. He'd never kissed her cheek and chased all of her nightmares away. Here was a man who had laid hands on her on many occasions prior to this one.
Here was a man who was begging her to kill her baby in order to save his company.
She snatched her hands away from his, retreating until her back hit the door. She was appalled. Appalled at his audacity to request such a thing.
"I…I…" She snapped her eyes shut.
"Shi-chan, do it for us. Do it for your mother." He whispered.
He had gone to far this time.
"I will not!" She shouted, her eyes flashing defiantly. "I will not sacrifice my child for the wellbeing of your fucking company! Go to hell."
She'd never cursed before that moment. Or told her father such a thing. Natsuki must be rubbing off on her. Her father's teary eyes morphed back into deadly pits of fire. His blood absolutely boiled beneath his skin.
"Then you have turned your back on me! Get out of my sight, get out of my house. Now, before I do something I will regret." He roared. "You are no longer my daughter. You are no longer a Viola."
With tears streaming down her face and thorns in her heart, the Viola Heiress fled from the room. The sound of breaking glass reverberated throughout the house followed by her father's roars of fury.
"Milk it for all its worth. Make sure you get there first. The apple of your eye, the rotten core inside."
Shizuru returned to her room and threw open her closet, pulling out a bag and stuffing everything she could grab inside. Shirts, skirts, shoes. She retrieved a duffle bag from beneath her bag and began to load it with personal hygiene products such as shampoo, conditioner, body wash, lotions, and perfume.
"We are all prisoners. Things couldn't get much worse. I've had it up to here. You know your end is near!"
She shoved the picture of her and Reito into her bag and paused when she came across the one of her mother. Kaori Viola's deep brown eyes stared back at her shattered crimson ones. She let out another strangled sob as she took the picture and threw it to the ground.
"You had to have it all. Well have you had enough? You greedy little bastard you will get what you deserve!"
The pieces shattered into a million tiny shards at her feet. She threw her school-bag over her shoulder, grabbed the other two, and fled the bedroom.
"When all is said and done. I will be the one, to leave you in your misery and hate what you've become!"
She checked her wallet as she made her way to the front door. She had enough money to pay for a decent hotel for at least a week. She could get by on that until she figured out what she would do.
"Intoxicated eyes. No longer live that life. You should have learned by now. I'll burn this whole world down! I need some peace of mind. No fear of what's behind. You think you've won this fight. You've only lost your mind."
The stars glittered in the night sky, the moon casting her eerie celestial glow on the world beneath her. Her eyes glided to the window where her father gazed out of all the time. He was there, watching her with hate-filled crimson eyes.
"You had to have it all. Well have you had enough? You greedy little bastard you will get what you deserve! When all is said and done. I will be the one…"
With one last look at the devil in the window and the hell she grew up in, the former Viola Heiress fled into the night.
"To leave you in your misery and hate what you've become."
...
Natsuki woke to sunlight beating down on her face and her father's back in her line of view. She groaned and rolled over to avoid the insistent light. Regan grinned sheepishly, barring her impossibly deep dimples with her mischievous smile.
"School's back in session, kid." She said, using her superior strength to drag her only child out of bed and lift her over her shoulder.
"Dad, put me down." Natsuki demanded as she clutched her torso for dear life. Regan would really drop her. She'd done it before, on a sleeping, unaware Nao.
"Are you going to get up?"
"Yes!"
"Are you going to be on time to school?"
"Yes!"
"Are you going to stay at school all day until the final bell rings?"
"Yes!"
"Are you going to admit that Shizuru has you wrapped around her little finger?"
"Yes!" Natsuki paused, flushing deeply. "No! I mean- Gah!"
Regan chuckled as she gently dropped the teenager on the floor. She pat the girl's head reassuringly. "It's okay, kid."
"Will you go make breakfast or something?" Natsuki demanded as she tried to get her blush under control. She was hot from the tips of her ears to the bottom of her toes.
Her father smiled. "Breakfast is already prepared. All you have to do is add milk. Now hurry up, you wouldn't want me to confiscate your bike again now would you?"
Natsuki shot to her feet and grabbed her towel before sprinting across the hall to the bathroom, slamming it behind her. With a fond chuckle, Regan moved down the hall to wake their resident freeloader.
Freshly showered and on time for once, Natsuki clambered down the stairs clad in a pair of Adidas joggers, a plain white T, and her favorite pair of fresh black vans. She grabbed her phone and her backpack from the living room couch. She'd fallen asleep down there the previous night and forgot to charge her phone when she got up to go to bed.
Hopefully Midori would let her charge it during first period.
She was preparing a packet of Ramen when a tired Nao and her bouncy, energetic father appeared. Regan strided over and kissed her on top of her head like she always did before leaving for work.
"I might be home a little late tonight," She said as she ruffled Nao's already ruffled hair, "There's money on the table for takeout. I love you guys."
"Bye, dad," Natsuki mumbled around a mouthful of ramen.
"Nngh." Nao replied, looking in the fridge for something suitable to eat.
Twenty minutes later they were walking through the crowded, animated halls of Fuuka High. Their friends were already leaning by their lockers. Chie was the first to see them. She waved them over.
"Man, everyone's still talking about the party!" Chie exclaimed as they began walking towards the A building where their first period was located.
"Foreal, I had like forty people ask if you were having another one anytime soon," Tate added as he fluffed up his hair. "If you are, I heard some Cardair students were going to come and see what you're all about."
Natsuki whistled as they entered the room and filled their seats. Cardair was one of the baddest schools in the nation, well known for its high drug use, street racing students, and over all ruthlessness. If Cardair students were interested in her parties, she figured she must be doing something right.
"Didn't someone get stabbed over there just the other day?" Mai said as she sat down and crossed her legs.
"Yeah, by a teacher I heard," Chie snickered. "For not raising his hand to ask a question."
Natsuki snorted as Midori shuffled in looking as tired and hungover as the majority of the students in the room. She just couldn't wait to see Shizuru again.
...
When lunch rolled around, Natsuki ditched her friends, claiming she had to use the restroom, which wasn't a complete lie. She ignored the lovesick looks people were casting her as always and focused on the task at hand.
She entered the second floor bathroom and couldn't help but smile when she saw Shizuru leaning against the counter. She cleared her throat to make her presence known. Shizuru's head snapped up.
"Natsuki," She breathed as she crossed the room and wrapped her arms around Natsuki's neck, pulling their bodies flush together. Natsuki wrapped her arms tightly around her waist, trying to feign off the blush that was lurking beneath her skin.
She'd never blushed so much in her life, before she met Shizuru of course.
When Shizuru pulled back and Natsuki got a good look at her face, she frowned. Shizuru's eyes were swollen and slightly bloodshot. No amount of makeup could hide that. Her hand rose on its own accord and trailed across her cheek.
"You look like you've been crying." Natsuki said in a soft voice.
Shizuru smiled weakly. "I've had a rough few days. That's actually what I wanted to talk to you about."
Her crimson eyes slowly wandered around the bathroom, searching for any eavesdroppers. When she found none, she looked deep into Natsuki's beautiful green eyes, framed by long dark lashes. The gentle slope of her nose and the full curve of her lips were stunning.
She hoped her baby would look like Natsuki. She hoped it had her eyes.
Her eyes were always so expressive, even when cold. She could see the strength in her gaze, her soul through those windowpanes. She suddenly knew, that without a single doubt, that Natsuki would make a wonderful father. Whether it was right now or in the future, though, was the question.
A tear escaped from her left eye. Natsuki caught it before it got far. "Shizuru?"
Shizuru bit her lip and whispered, "Natsuki, I'm pregnant."
"What?" Natsuki's brows furrowed as she took a step back, causing Shizuru's heart to jolt. The tawny-haired teen allowed more tears to fall.
"I'm pregnant," She choked out, "And it's yours Natsuki, the baby is yours."
...