Metanoia

Chapter Thirty-Nine

"Do you have makeup on your neck?" Rindou asked, pulling away for a second.

Oh shit.

Oh. Shit. Indeed.

I opened my mouth, but nothing came out. Rindou gently grabbed my jaw, licked his thumb with his other hand, and rubbed it on my neck. "Rindou, let go of me, please–"

"Shut the fuck up," Rindou growled. "What the fuck is this?!" He took the napkin from the table next to us, grabbed the flower vase, and carefully dumped some onto the disposable cloth. Rindou quickly and swiftly removed the makeup that covered the bruises on my neck.

This was inevitable, as I had anticipated. No matter what happened, it was bad. It was difficult for me to swallow the lump in my throat, and I couldn't control my tears when I noticed his face drop as if someone had just passed away. I could feel the weight of disappointment settling in the room like a heavy fog, suffocating any hope of a positive outcome. The silence that followed was deafening; the tension was palpable. All my efforts to hide my emotions were futile as I sat there, completely exposed and vulnerable.

"Rin–"

"Who did this to you?" Rindou asked in a harsh voice. His eyes glistened with anger and righteous indignation. He towered over me, waiting for the answer I couldn't give him.

'We had just gotten good...Why did this have to happen...I should've kept him away from my neck.'

So many things were running through my head as I looked at him. I could tell this was hurting him as much as it hurt me...maybe even more. I knew I had to talk to him, and I had to be honest. "I–"

"Who fucking put bruises on your neck, Elyana!?" He exploded, tightening his grip on my jaw. I could feel the anger radiating from him. I gulped, trying to ignore the fear rising in my chest. His eyes were cold and hard as he waited for my answer.

"Rune," I sobbed out. "He...He did it."

Rindou's breath hitched, "What the fuck do you mean he did this?! You saw him again?!"

"No!" I cried, "he was the reason why I hung up the other night. H-H-He was standing outside a-and he..." The words caught my throat, and there was no easy way to tell him that Rune was coming for them. I attempted to take a deep breath, but my lungs couldn't allow me to. I knew I couldn't hide the truth, but I still found the words difficult to form. "H-He said that hes c-coming for you guys...he–"

"Elyana, don't fucking lie to me!" Rindou interrupted, enraged.

"I'm not lying!" I shouted at him, "Rune is returning for you, Kantou, and me! He said he's going to fuck me and make you watch!" I grabbed his shirt and dug my face into it, sobbing ever so heavily. "He's coming back...and left his mark to prove it..."

The only sounds I heard were the soothing sound of the ocean waves, my sobs, and the door opening to the private room.

"Pardon, but is everything alright? Are we ready to order?" The waiter asked from behind Rindou.

"Nah, we're good. We were just leaving." Rindou grabbed both of my hands and put them down, "Im calling a meeting, and you're going to tell us what you know." He reached his hand inside of my purse and picked up my keys, "then I'm going to kill him."

I immediately shook my head, "Rindou, please–"

My whole being jumped when he punched the table, making everything on it shake and tip over. "Rune fucking hurt you!" My heart ached when I saw Rindou's eyes well up with tears. "He hurt you, and I wasn't fucking there," he croaked. Rindou looked away, trying to hide his emotions. He clenched his jaw, sniffling. "Let's go."