Seraphine

thirty four

Seraphine 

Damien doesn't let go of Seraphine's hand the entire drive to the estate, however short it is. She'll squeeze it randomly, whenever an unpleasant thought screams in her mind, and he'll always respond with a squeeze of his own. 

It's this little game they play during the ten minute ride, and it soothes Seraphine. The small routine they've created grounds her every time she feels like she might drift off into her thoughts and memories, and she's filled with such love with every returned squeeze that by the end of the drive, her tears aren't sorrowful--they're hopeful. 

Damien presses a button on the roof of the car and the silver gate that awed Seraphine the first time she saw it--and still does--groans as it opens, signaling their arrival. 

Anxiety swirls in her gut as Seraphine unconsciously tightens her grip on Damien's hand, and the professor glances over before squeezing her hand for the last time. 

"You'll be okay, darling. I'll be right there, to protect you from those heathens," he jokes, and Seraphine tears her gaze away from the large mansion to smile at him. She doesn't know how his heart still skips a few beats whenever she aims her smile at him. 

"Those heathens are your brothers, Damien," she teases right back, though her voice is small and hoarse. She shies away from him, but Damien only snorts out a laugh as he parks the car outside the now opening garage. 

"Still heathens," he grumbles, and Seraphine shakes her head with a small chuckle. She realizes she laughed and goes to do it again, just to prove herself that she can, when the inner door swings open and the rest of her professors come storming out into the pouring rain. 

All of their gazes are trained on her, and Seraphine is suddenly hyper aware of her terrible appearance. Her hands fly around her body, patting down her hair and swiping at the tracks on her cheeks her tears left, before Damien reaches over and gently takes one of her wrists in his larger hand. 

"Don't," is all he says, with a sad smile, and Seraphine can't help but listen. He nods once, presses one last kiss to her knuckles, and then pulls away. He comes right back after a second and kisses her palm, and then her fingertips, and then the inside of her wrist, until she's giggling, and his face brightens at the sound. 

"Are you ready, darling?" He asks, his voice low, and Seraphine's smile dims. She searches his eyes, but finds nothing except patience and concern. She blows out a breath and turns her gaze to the other three, and finally nods.

Damien exits the car after turning it off, and quickly rounds the vehicle before opening her door. Seraphine goes to step out when they both look down and realize that she doesn't have any shoes. 

For some reason, Seraphine barks out a laugh. She doesn't see the three professors' eyebrows shoot up, their confusion rising exponentially. 

"Sorry, I'd forgotten," she finally says, still staring at her bare, dirtied feet. Her gaze follows the curve of her ankle up the length of her legs, and finds the large tear in her dress that shows her red lace panties. The tear goes up to her stomach, and another one above it reveals her red bra. The dress is completely ruined, that's for sure, but Seraphine is grateful it's not ripped in half. There's still something covering her broken body.

Tears flood her eyes as her hand comes up to brush her hair and finds it knotted, the once silky strands bringing her nothing but pain as she tries to tug through the knots. A cry escapes her lips when she can't force her fingers through one particular knot, and Damien surges forward, dropping to his knees in front of her, pulling her hand away from her hair. He reaches up to grasp her other hand and brings them both to his lips. 

His kisses calm her heaving chest and her racing mind, but the tears keep coming. "D-Damien, I don't--" 

"Enzo, go get a blanket," Damien calls, loud enough for the other three men to hear, and Seraphine turns and watches as the smallest one takes off back into the house. She locks eyes with Luca through the window and quickly ducks her head, shame and embarrassment washing over her body like a tidal wave. 

"Damien, I c-can't--" 

"You can, and you will, Seraphine." His voice is harsh, and her eyes widen. She goes to pull away from him, but he holds fast to her hands. "Darling, you need to. Let us help you, please." He begs, and Seraphine sucks in a breath at the image searing into her brain right now. 

Damien, on his knees in front of her, begging. 

Unconsciously, she leans in closer to him, and then she's nodding, agreeing to whatever he's asking of her. God, she would've done anything for him. 

Damien squeezes her hands, and instinctively, she squeezes right back, and he grins. Seraphine blinks, glances down at their intertwined fingers, and smiles softly. She dares another squeeze, and he returns it within a second. 

"Thank you," she murmurs, and Damien hums. 

"Anything for you, darling." 

At that moment, a shadow falls over Seraphine, the figure blocking the light. She sucks in a breath, sits up straighter, and turns. 

She tries to ignore the way Enzo gasps aloud at her appearance, and simply holds her hand out, reaching for the gray blanket he's holding. 

"Thank you, Enzo." She says, tugging the damp blanket over the car door and wrapping herself in it tightly. She can't even bring herself to cringe at the wet spots on the blanket, thanks to the rain, but she sighs once she's all snug in the semi-soft blanket, and looks towards Damien. 

He's already standing, his arms outstretched to her. Seraphine tilts her head up to find his eyes and she smiles gratefully. He grins wolfishly back down at her, and she manages a small chuckle. 

"Don't keep me waiting, darling," he sings, and she waves her hand at him before lifting both her arms and leaning forward. Damien bends down and gathers her in his arms, much like Nico held her the first night she was here. 

That feels like so long ago, Seraphine muses to herself as she rests her head on Damien's shoulder, finally looking at Luca, Nico, and Enzo all in turn. She gives them a sad smile before dropping her eyes to the ground and watching it move as Damien carries her up to the garage. 

Her vision blurs before she realizes she's crying, and she tries to blink the tears away but they keep coming. 

It's going to be a long night.