Hello again everyone! It's moi, with a new oneshot xD Because I'm just that type of person to throw out new stories when I should be updating my other ones... This was a nice break away from the other ones, though. So, I feel as though this has helped to feed into my muse a little bit.

Although, I should warn you now...this is not a story about happiness. This is a story about reality. This deals with a rather triggering subject: domestic violence. I had to do a speech about a non-for-profit organization and I chose domestic violence as the topic I wanted to focus on since I feel so strongly about it. However, upon further research and looking in to it, I realized how serious of a topic this really truly was. So, I wanted to write something to act as sort of like a PSA. Although, I wanted to present a situation that most don't think about when it comes to domestic violence case that is just a real and existent as any other case. I've never been in a situation like this, though, so I'm sincerely sorry if something I portray isn't correct. I'm trying to work the best I can with what references I do have available to me.

Given the nature of this story, there are some rather triggering scenes, so keep that in mind when you're reading. This is also a story where I'm allowing the circumstances to dictate how the characters act, think, and feel the best I see fit and most natural for their personalities. So, I'm sorry for any OOCness, but this is the last time I'm apologizing for it.

If those warnings I gave you don't sound like your cup of tea, then seriously, don't waste your time reading something you know you're not going to like and read another one of my stories or one that some of the other immensely talented writers on here have provided. Otherwise, if none of what I've said so far has turned you away, then please continue on with an open heart and an open mind!

Italics means thoughts

KUROGANE POV

Disclaimer: I do not own Tsubasa Reservoir Chronicle or the characters. It is all the property of the lovely ladies of CLAMP. I just own this plot twist~

I stare down at a fresh, new bruise that forms next to the other older ones on my arm. The sounds around me sound blurred and melted together while I obseve my inured arms in front of me. Nothing looks different. It blends in.

"Kurogane!" My eyes snap open and I'm torn back to reality when hearing the unfamiliar sound of my full name being used by his soft (now crazed, however), musical voice. My vision shifts from my multi-colored limbs up to his panicked, sapphire eyes while he stands in front of me, barely a few inches away from my face. I gaze back into his eyes, unresponsive but still alert to him.

"Are you still alright!? How much does it hurt? Are you gonna be okay!?" Fai yells out speedily, expression shifting between severe worry and concern. His wave of question finally gets my mind working enough to respond to him.

"Yeah, I'm alright. You can calm down," I reveal to him, seeing his muscles relax a little with some relief washing over his face, but he still seems completely lost in his frenzy. My body feels raw and there's a dull soreness ringing in all of my muscles and bones. Everything just feels exhausted.

I watch his eyes scan all over me until another presence in the doorway draws my attention over toward it. A doctor now stands there, looking over his clipboard for a few seconds before he peers up to us.

"You're Suwa-san, yes?" he asks sounding professional while he begins to make his way into the room toward us.

"Yeah, that's me," I reply back while I watch him pace closer to us. Fai finally pulls away from his close proximity of me and turns toward the other, instantly speaking up again.

"Doctor, is he alright!? Is everything okay?" Fai interrogates loudly, drawing the doctor's attention toward him.

"Yes, he's just fine. He's in stable condition," he explains then recasts his vision back to me. "However, the most serious injury you have is that your ankle is sprained and your shoulder was a little dislocated. We put your shoulder back in place when you got here and we'll give you a splint for your ankle. Otherwise, you're just a little banged up and you have a few minor cuts everywhere else." He pulls up his clipboard again and readys his pencil, expression growing more serious when he looks up from it. "Now, can you please tell me how this event occured? How did you receive these injuries?"

I stare into his eyes for what seems like an eternity before it sinks in what he's asking. I'm not really sure what to tell him, honestly. Although, he's waiting, so I better say at least something.

"I-"

"-He fell down the stairs! It was awful!" Fai cuts me off, irises filled with panic again. The doctor slides his attention over to the blonde again, urging him to continue with his expression. "I was walking out of our bedroom and I saw him trip as he was about to walk down it. It was so scary...!" I notice a small glint in his eye, as though they're beginning to water at the memory of the scene. "I ran down to his side as soon as I could and he was unconscious! I was so scared that he was dead! I called the ambulance immediately after that! I'm so thankful that he's alright," he eventually finishes, voice cracking a bit at the end.

"So, you're saying that he fell forward when he fell down the stairs?" the doctor queries, seeming to be a bit discreet with his words. I notice Fai's eyes narrow at him and he seems taken aback, the mood around him suddenly seeming guarded.

"What exactly are you trying to say, doctor?" he retorts back, a little bit of venom dripping in his words. The doctor shakes his head in reply then returns his eyes back toward me.

"You must be thirsty. Would you like something to drink?" he asks me kindly, but before I can answer him Fai cuts in again.

"Yes, of course! I'll go get you some water to drink Kuro-tan. I'll be right back," he announces, hurriedly pivoting around and rushing out the door to search the hospital.

"He's quite an energetic guy, isn't he?" the doctor asks, but not to me or anyone specifically. His eyes narrow a bit then lock on me while he leans down a bit, trying to get more closer to my level I assume. "Now that we're alone, I want to discuss some things more openly with you. It's true that you fell down the stairs?" I nod, remembering the feeling of my body going down after feeling two hand-shaped pressures being thrust against my chest. He continues.

"There's a rather large bruise that's lined along the top of your back, starting at your shoulder and almost going completely across your upper back to the other shoulder. It's in the shape of a line, almost as though you fell onto your back rather than straight forward."

The hospital room blurs in front of me, shifting to the sight of me falling down and Fai's expression in front of me, shifting from rage to extremely horrified and regretful in just a moment before everything goes black.

"Suwa-san, I implore you to please answer me. Do you feel safe at home?" His voice snaps me back to the hospital room and to his face. I stare at him, taking a few moments for his words to sink in. Do I feel safe at home...?

I feel my eyes close and my chest grow tight and tense. The darkness behind my eyelids begins to shift again into a scene that I'm not unfamiliar with.

I throw my head back and chuckle at Syaoran's words while he repaints a memory from earlier. Sakura and Syaoran laugh together in front of me as well, quieting down all together when we feel the need to laugh die.

"Yeah, I remember when that happened! That was such a crazy month during our freshman year of college," I chuckle out watching the other two in front of me calm down from their own laughing fit.

"That was just last year, Kurogane-san," Sakura giggles out.

"Yeah, but a lot has happened since last year. It seems like forever ago," I say, noticing Syaoran nod in agreement.

"That is true -a lot has happened between Fai and me as well," I say aloud, not really directing it toward them.

"That's right, Fai was supposed to be moving in with you. It's been three months since you guys made the decision. Is everything going alright?" she asks, expression seeming to lose its original light.

"Yeah," I answer back, feeling the corners of my lips tug up a bit into a small grin against my permission. "He's completely moved in now. It's just getting comfortable with all the changes from here on out."

They stare back at me, not really mumbling a word but instead giving me expressions of what seems like mild concern. Why do they look like that? I open my mouth to ask them what's up but I'm cut off before I can ever begin by my phone's ringing.

I pull it out of my pocket and check the caller ID, chest warming a bit at the vision of Fai's name lighting up the screen. I answer the call and put it up to my ear, nearly grinning to myself at the thought of getting to hear his voice. The line connects and-

"Kuro-sama! Where the hell are you!?" his voice yells into my ear, making me wince a bit and pull the phone away a bit. Wait, what?

"What are you talking about, Fai? I told you that I was going to go hang out with some friends for a while," I explain, completely lost as to where his newfound rage came from.

"Who are you with?" he interrogates, voice still sounding harsh through the phone's speaker.

"I don't see why it's really all that big of a deal," I tell him, quickly receiving a retort.

"Who?!"

"Sakura and Syaoran. It's no one that you don't know," I respond, narrowing my eyes at his attitude. "I don't see why you're making such a big deal about all of this."

"You've been gone for a while! I was getting worried about you!"

"It's only been about two hours!"

"Well, I'm sorry that I am just concerned about my boyfriend's well being! Excuse me for having emotions! Fine, just don't come home!" he wails back, voice cracking a bit through the speaker. There's silence between us except for the broken up sounds of his hushed crying on the other end. A sigh breaks out of my lungs and I feel my chest clench, not wanting to hear him sound like that.

"Alright, fine. I'll start heading home right now, okay?" I assure him, starting to gather my things together.

There's a sound of him sniffling before taking a few seconds to answer. "...Okay." We disconnect from each other and I pick up my book bag only to remember that there are two other presences still here. I look up to tell them I have to go, but caught off guard when I'm met with two rather concerned looking faces.

"What?" I question, noticing them seem to glance at each other awkwardly before returning their attentions back to me. Syaoran's finally the one that speaks up.

"Kurogane-san, are you sure that everything is alright between you and Fai?" he asks almost hesitantly. I narrow my eyes at them, unsure was to what he's trying to get at.

"Yeah, we're just fine. Why do you ask?"

"No reason," he responds quickly, disconnecting from my eyes and looking to the side immediately. I purse my lips, but decide it's not really worth trying to dig further into right now since I have another problem at home that requires my attention more at this moment.

"Okay, then I'm heading out. I'll see you guys later," I tell them, turning on my way to leave. However, another voice stops me in my tracks and make me turn my attention back to her.

"Kurogane-san," she smiles dismally when she realizes she has my attenion, "Just remember that if you ever need to talk to someone, we're always here for you." I blink, then offer them a short smirk.

"Yeah, I know. I'll catch you two later," I insist again, finally pivoting away again after they wave a short goodbye to head back to the frenzied blonde at home.

At that moment, I should have realized that something was definitely wrong; that something wasn't completely right about the situation I was walking in to. I never would've realized that that moment and onward was going to completely change my life around more than I ever thought possible.

His hand crushes bitterly into my cheek again, jerking my head to the side with a stinging reminder of his hand's shape.

"Absolutely not! Are you stupid?! What the hell are you thinking?!" Fai yells into my face, making me purse my lips while I stare into his enraged, sapphire eyes. I open my mouth to speak, but it takes a while for my voice to finally come out.

"I just thought, that I'd like to give going back to college another shot. I thought that it might be good for me," I remind him softly, watching his expression twist in anger again. He draws his hand back again and I unconsciously draw back, eyes closing a bit to try and prepare for another blow. However, he must have noticed my reaction because his eyes widen a little bit with realization and he lowers his hand down. He sneers and clicks his tongue, placing his hands onto his hips while he refuses to look down at me.

"It sounds as though you're joking. No one could ever take you seriously when you speak of silly things like that," he says into the air, but obviously directing it toward me. His words make my belly flip a bit. I try to speak, but my voice refuses to come out so I just snap my jaw back up. He finally returns his eyes back to me.

"I mean, just think about it, Kuro-darling. There's a reason you dropped out of college in the first place. You just aren't made for it. You don't have the right type of intelligence. You're life smart, but that won't get you through something as vast as college." I stare up at him, feeling his words break down my resolve the more and more his gentle voices fills my ears.

"Your grades started to drop during the middle of your sophomore year, and that's hardly scratching the surface of college level classes. You were doing more harm to yourself than you were helping. I hated seeing you come home all the time looking so broken." He moves closer to me and leans over so he's more on my level. "You dropped out because you couldn't take it anymore, right? What makes you think that you can take it now? You haven't really changed or grown since then. You'll fail just like you did then, Kuro-love. It's just not worth it. You're not smart enough to make it through college. Leave that to me. I'm the brains and you're the brawns. We can create something together that will be amazing, but we can't do that if you go and waste your energy and time on something that you're no good at anyway. You'd be worthless going back there," he eventually finishes, voice no longer continuing.

His words slice through me, making my chest feel shredded and my heart feel clenched. At some point, I disconnected my attention from him and began to stare helplessly at the ground.

His hands tangle into mine, the coldness always seeming familiar compared to my heated hands. He comes down to my level and bends down to where his eyes can reach mine. A tender grin lines his light pink lips and he gazes up at me with what looks like care.

"It's alright, Kuro-rin. I'm here and I'll always love you. I'll never judge you for anything such as that. You're more than that to me," he tells me sincerely, wrapping his arms around me and pulling me into his hold, protecting me from everything around us. I close my eyes and just shamefully hide in his arms.

Fai shoves me again and I nearly stumble onto the ground. I don't say anything while he yells over me, mad again for some reason. It seems like anything I do can make him mad nowadays, even insignificant things. I feel as though I'm tiptoeing around everything I do and say when I'm with him. I growl to myself quietly, frustrated and irate with myself for becoming this way. Never before was I like this. I always stood my ground and didn't take shit from anybody. But, in the face of the one I love, I seem to lose everything and grow weak. How did this happen, exactly?

I suddenly feel Fai's fists pound mercilessly into my back, the pain increasing as he drills into the same raw spots that are beginning to bruise. I try to keep my grunts low so he doesn't notice and I just keep trying to walk away so he will finally just give up on this. Although, he doesn't and I'm thrusts into the wall without warning, the thud of my body rattling the wall behind me.

"Aren't you going to say something?! Stop acting like such a coward! Be the man that you so often brag about being!" he screams into my face the best he can despite my trying to avoid eye contact. He knows that I won't hit him. I can never hit him. I'd hate myself forever if I ever hurt him like that. We used to be able to just give each other punches to wake each other up from our stupidity, but now's different. Me hitting him wouldn't be helping it at all, it would just hurt him.

"You're such a disappointment!" he screams again, beating his fists onto my chest. He always seems to get more like this toward the end of college courses. Perhaps the stress of all the finals and homework just stesses him out so much that he feels he needs some sort of release... One of his blows connects with my face and jerks my head to the side. Why does he do this to me...?!

I feel my eyes widen at that thought.I think I know why he does this to me, honestly. Sometimes I just forget that there's a past behind his actions.

Fai told me a long while back that life has always been this chaotic for him. He grew up in an abusive household all throughout his childhood and early teenage years. His dad apparently torutured him, his brother, and his mother on a consistent basis and instilled fear into them everyday. Eventually his mother gathered up enough courage to escape with Fai and his brother when they were fourteen years old and ran away to a shelter. Not long after that there was news about how his father was found dead from alcohol poisoning in his home.

It's left a painful spot in Fai's heart and he told me he's always felt like there is a hole inside him since those times. That type of abuse is the only way he knows how to handle problems and how to release his anger. He wasn't taught any other way. I don't think he does any of this on purpose. In fact, I don't think he even realizes that he's just recreating the world that he escaped as a kid. He's trapped and can't get free, even though I can see in his eyes that he's trying. This isn't his fault.

I reach for him and notice his eyes widen a bit in surprise while he jolts away from me. My arms wrap around him and I hold him tightly in an embrace, just wanting to comfort him and remind him that there's still someone here that cares for him and loves him.

"I'm sorry," I whisper, feeling his body relax in my hold. "You're okay now. I'm here." After a few moments of standing there together in silence, he eventually wraps his arms back around me and calms down, body molding into mine. It's alright. I'm here...

I just wanted to take a shower as quickly as I could and get dressed before Fai came in to the room, but instead I find myself sitting on the end of the bed with a towel wrapped around my waist. The only light source is from a crack in the door leading to the bathroom which dimly alluminates the room. However, I stare into the darkness, eyes lingering on the bedroom door longingly. I don't want to be in here right now...

Two slender hands snake around from behind me and wrap around my shoulders loosely while Fai leans onto my back. He plants a few soft kisses on the back of my neck, making me almost want to close my eyes at the tender sweetness of it.

"Yuu..." he murmers softly into my ear, "let's do it~ Let's make love together...~" I want to wince at the thought but refrain from doing so.

We've been referring to each other by our birth names for a little while now, so I'm getting used to him calling me by that now. I kinda miss the nicknames, but these names mean a lot more to us because very few people, if any, know these names. Exchanging these names was kind of like a promise ring to us. We're binded together now.

His lips brush over the back of my neck again and he places a mixture of short and long kisses along my shoulders and neck. It sends shudders down my spine, especially when he runs his velvety lips over the places he knows are most sensitive for me. However, they don't bring excitement like how they used to so frequently. Rather, now all they bring is the chilling sense of knowing what he has in mind.

"Yuu, c'mon. Let's do it," he insists again, nuzzling the space beneath my jaw. I continue to stare into the darkness of the room without any emotion.

"I'm not really in the mood right now, Yuui... Can we hold off for another night?" I request with bitter hope.

"Mm, but I'm in the mood to do it right now," he purrs into my ear then rests his chin on my shoulder. His fingers slide down my back and slip under my arms around to my chest where he runs his fingers over my nipples. I breathe in softy, recognizing the familiar feeling this is. I don't want it...I don't want to right now... "I want you to make me feel good... I want to be one with Yuu."

"Yuui, I don't feel good... Please, I don't want to right now," I try to plead subtly hoping that somehow, just somehow, the message will get through to him this time.

He continues to run his hands all along my chest and sides, trying to find every place he knows will usually soften my resolve. Even if I don't want to do it a lot of the time, he still manages to find ways to get us in to it. Sometimes he just takes me himself and forces himself on me. Other days he just leads it all with either urging it enough out of me or just taking me in himself. I don't hate being with Fai like this. I love being able to make love with him, but this isn't making love anymore. It's all about the physical feeling we get rather than sharing our emotions with each other. Right now, we're just fucking.

"Yuu..." he moans quietly into my ear, allowing a thin string of warm air to follow after it. A few more minutes pass on with him urging me on with his hands and tender voice while I continue to deny him gently, hoping it'll be enough at some point. Eventually, he stops speaking and slowly draws his hands away from around me. I wonder momentarily if this is one of those lucky nights that he lost his drive and I may just get to sleep without worrying or feeling pain.

That hope is soon lost.

I feel my head jerk forward when he slams his fists into the back of my head, stars filling my vision before I feel him clench onto my hair and drag me back forcefully to the bed. The crackle of pain in my head steals my attention away to where I'm barely aware of what's going on. Although, something lurches in my stomach when I know what's coming. The sound of a dwarer opening and something rattling around sends cold chills biting down my spine and carves a deep pitt in by belly.

My vision finally begins to clear again and his darkened form gradually takes light in front of me when he stands above me on his knees. He peers down at me with narrowed eyes and lips pressed firmly together in frustration. I stare up at him, pain throbbing slicingly in my head.

"You've been so cruel to me lately, Yuu. All I wanted was to share my love with you and you just keep pushing me away. You deserve punishment, so I'll give it to you," he tells me threateningly, moving closer toward me. I don't move. I just lay there gritting my teeth behind pursed lips in hopes he won't notice.

The feeling of cold metal clasping around one of my wrists sends violent chills down my spine. There's a brief sound of rattling as he wraps the other end around the bed post before tightening it in place on my other wrist. He pulls away and I feel my heartbeat pick up, hearing it pound in my ears while he moves down my body, drawing his hands along with his movements. I'm tensed and I feel my fists unconsciously clenched tightly, knowing fully well what's coming. It's happened enough times like this to be completely predictable.

The cooler air around us bites at the skin of my legs when the fabric covering them is peeled away and tossed to some forgotten corner of the room. When did things get like this...? Why? Another article of clothing is pulled away from my legs and he slips his fingers up under my shirt, lightly running his nails along my belly which I find to be a cruel irony of what's to come.

My mind races to the point where I can't even pay attention to the space around me and I feel my breathing pick up into short gasps, almost as though I'm hyperventilating. I briefly wonder if he takes my breathing as anticipated excitement.

His cool, slender finds slip underneath my leg and he lifts it up onto his shoulder while the bed underneath me begins shifting. There's a moment of stillness, but I can't process what's going on since my nerves have completely messed up my senses. However, that indecision shatters when there's a searing pain that slices through my hips and up through my spine. I grunt a bit, gritting my teeth together into a grimace. The burning continues, increasing in intensity when his skin scrapes against mine in an unsteady rhythm.

I wonder, amidst all of this, if I had just agreed to do this with him instead of fighting it would it have been gentle and loving; almost reminiscent of our love making in the past. Could this have all been avoided if I had just finally took initiative and returned his urgings and gestures? Would we go back to how we used to be?

Either way, these are things that can't be answered right now. The pain begins to subside a little faster than it did last time. I must be getting used to these feelings quicker. Before long, I may just come to accept it with ease altogether at some point. For now, though, I just moan to the rolling of his hips and gaze up at him through the pained haze of my vision to make it seem like I'm enjoying this with every fiber of my body. This is alright for now. This is the least I can do for him.

I lay amidst the shattered remains of what used to be the dinner plates we were eating on not too long ago. I don't feel the sweet sensation of oxygen entering my lungs, but rather two lithe, yet strong hands clasped harshly around my neck and pushing into the ground. I don't try to fight or gasp for air, for my gaze is trapped within in the blonde's above me.

My reflection flashes a bit in his enraged irises and I can see the tranquil calmness on my expression while my lungs remain unreplinished with air. It's a weird sight, but I forget about it soon after when it just becomes the vision of him glaring down at me. The sapphire blue of his eyes entrap me, clinging on to me tightly and refusing to let me wander. I should be thinking about escaping his hold, but I don't. The only thought that's crossing my mind right now is how beautiful his eyes are as he stares down into my own. He's so beautiful...

I notice his eyes suddenly widen in horror when realization floods his eyes. He tears away from me with a deep gasp and throws himself back on to his hands. I gasp for air greedily, panting deeply to fill my body with the much-deprived feeling. After a few seconds, I recast my gaze back over to the blonde while pushing myself up into a sitting position. He stares at me with wide eyes, still appalled and pained until he throws his face into his hands without warning, allowing bitter sobs to rip into the space around us.

"I-I'm so s-sorry!" he whimpers out, seemingly to no one but really meant for my ears. He continuously murmurs that phrase out while drowning himself out by his own sobs. I stare at him at a loss for words, my heart clenching at the sight of him.

Really, this all my fault. I had been thinking a lot lately and brought up to him after we done with dinner that I thought we should perhaps take a break from each other or move in to separate apartments for a bit so we could take a moment to truly assess our feelings toward each other and our futures together. However, I shouldn't have expected him to take it well (honestly, I didn't think he would) and earned a dinner plate thrown in my face before it fell and shattered on the ground underneath me. I tried to argue my claim and get some space between the two of us, but he kept throwing plates at me while screaming out things in rage. Eventually he just came at me and we fought each other for a bit. I didn't want to hurt him though and somehow he got me on the ground and towered over me to wrap his hands around my neck.

I caused this, so I should be the one to be apologizing.

His apologies begin to finally fade into the sobs and I take that moment to crawl over to his side, wrapping my arms as gently around him as I can before pulling him into my firm embrace.

"Yuui, please don't cry like that. Look, I'm really sorry... I didn't mean to hurt you like that. I shouldn't have acted on impulse like that. It's just been...a bit rough around here lately and it caused me to think in such ways," I explain to him softly, running my fingers through his hair.

"I-I know...and I'm t-trying s-so hard to stop a-and change..." he weeps out, voice chopped by his sobs.

"I know," I assure him, holding him tighter. I know he's trying. If he wasn't, he wouldn't have realized what he was doing and stopped back there. I honestly don't think that he is crazy or insane; rather, I think that he's just lost. I truly believe that it'll all be alright at some point. That's why... "That's why I promise you that I won't leave you. I'm sorry for making you worry like that. I really do love you, Yuui."

There's a little chuckle that breaks through his crying and his tone changes to a more relieved sobbing. "I love you too, Yuu..."

"Su...an... Su...a...san... Suwa-san!"

My eyes pop open and the world shifts around me back into a hospital room.

"Huh...?" I halfway slur out, still not entirely back to reality. The doctor from earlier sighs in fronts of me and stands up straight.

"I'll ask you again: do you feel safe at home?" he repeats, voice sounding more urgent and serious than before. I stare at him, feeling my lips begin to move before a faint movement in the doorway steals my attention over to it. Fai slips into view from around the doorway, expression coming across as rather threatening while his gaze pierces into mine.

"I..." stumbles out of my mouth. I notice the doctor cock an eyebrow at me and try to peer out of the corner of his eye before I speak again with a small grin. "I'm just fine, and I feel completely safe at home, I assure you." He purses his lips at the end of my words, seeming to be unsatisfied with my response.

"Well, alright," he mumbles, "I need to go run some more blood tests to rule out everything." His eyes never disconnect from mine while he shifts to leave, only to stop himself before he turns away. "But, here. Take this," he commands, placing a notepad and a pen down of the bed beside me. "If you for any reason feel you need to ask something or just tell us something you need, please don't hesitate in writing it down for us. We'll take care of anything, I promise you," he clarifies before smiling perturbedly and finally turning to make his way out of the room.

The blonde and he pass each other with Fai shooting a hard expression toward the doctor as he exits the room. However, a wide grin instantly bursts across Fai's face and he practically skips over to me.

"I got you a bottle of water~ Sorry it took so long. It took a while for me to find a vending machine," he explains sitting down beside me and handing me the bottle. His attention shifts down to the notepad at my side and a rather unsettling grin lines his lips. His fingers slip up under it and he picks it up, unaware that my eyes remain trained on it while he brings it up and away from me. "This thing is just getting in our way," he chimes out, leaning over and tossing it in to the trashcan a little bit away from my bed.

I force my expression to remain unmoved and unchanging while the sight of the notepad disappearing into the can makes my stomach drop and refill my body with the emptiness it was feeling when we first got here. Whatever was in me before that moment was completely silenced and smothered, almost as though I somehow lost a valuable oppurtunity.

His arms snake around me and he pulls me into his embrace, bringing my head to his chest. "I'm so glad that you're alright, Yuu. I was so scared, but I feel so much better now. I love you so much..." he tells me, fingers caressing through my hair. I don't reply, but I nuzzle his chest instead and I guess that gets the point across enough. We remain there untalking and just nestled in each others' presences. The only sounds I can gather is that of our breathing and his heartbeat. Upon listening to it closer, I begin to think that its rhythm seems rather awkward an uneven.

A wry smirk curls on my lips at that thought. Then again, my own heart's rhythm probably isn't much different than his. We probably beat at the exact same, offbeat rhythm. Two broken existences syncing into one...

My smirk softens into a small grin and I allow my eyelids to close and block out all the light around me. In this world that I've grown accustomed to, my thoughts are allowed to speak to each other without interruption or criticism unless it comes from me. In here, I know I'm still alive and that I'm alright. I feel safe at home. Nothing's wrong. I'm alright...

I feel the grin on my lips drop.

I'm alright.

Again thank you all so much for taking the time to read this fanfic! I sincerely hope that you enjoyed it or at least got something out of it!

Please remember many people are dealing with this incredibly serious topic. Most cases of domestic violence are never reported to the police and only end in tragedy. If you are a victim of domestic violence or you know someone who is, I beg you to please find help or find a hotline that will help you through it. This isn't something to be taken lightly!

Please, take care guys!