Such a Softer Sin [COMPLETE]

Such a Softer Sin Chapter 13

"Well then...shall we go for some breakfast?" He asked with a smile as he held up the key, trying to break any tension left over. Lila felt her stomach growl at the mere mention of food and she nodded with a smile, before looking over to the couch where a sleeping Rocco lay.

"Shouldn't we wait for Rocco?" She asked quizzically. Murphy snorted and shook his head.

"Nay love, he'll sleep like the dead 'til the afternoon." He said, giving her a somewhat shy smile, still feeling tentative about even talking to her. She felt her chest constrict hearing him call her love again but she didn't bring it up. It made her happy and she knew if she said anything or made it obvious she was shocked, he would act like a spooked animal. She wasn't sure he even knew he had done it since it was such a habit.

She remembered her harsh words the night before, telling him she wasn't his girl. It sent a jolt of guilt through her body. Of course, technically she wasn't his girl, or Connors. But she had enjoyed that endearing term. It only made her mad in the moment because the of what had happened, telling people she belonged to them, like some kind of fucking dog, it rubbed her up the wrong way. She thought about mentioning it to him at some point, telling him he could call her that and apologising. Now the anger had faded, she remembered the heartbreaking look on his face once those words left her lips, visibly recoiling like she had smacked him. She knew what had happened wouldn't just vanish, it would loom over them like a dark cloud ready to spill over and rain down on them. But she wanted to fucking try and go back to normal. She knew they were sorry and it wouldn't happen again, and she hoped that was enough, like an umbrella to shield her from the downpour.

They all got up and got dressed, once again matching with their jeans and black tops. The boys wore their long sleeve tees and Lila put on a black sweater. It wasn't just for warmth, she wanted to cover to bruises Murphy had left on her because she couldn't deal with the questions, not just yet. She also hated how Murphy's eyes wandered to them and how she could see the pain behind his eyes, knowing what he had done to her. She wasn't sure if Connor had picked up on them yet, if he had he hadn't said anything and she was grateful. Murphy didn't need to feel any more guilty than he already did and she wasn't sure how Connor would react to seeing the marks, she didn't want a repeat of the night before. She put her messy hair up in a ponytail, as usual a few strands framing her face, and she slipped her boots on.

The walk to the diner was strange, Lila once again could feel the dark cloud above them. Normally the boys were all smiles and full of laughter, they'd touch her hands and arms or briefly wrap an arm around her shoulder or waist. But this time, even though she was in the middle of them, they kept a slight distance. Usually they were so close it was right in her personal space and she didn't mind it. The boys were reluctant to touch her, despite their hands itching to reach out to her. They thought it might have been too soon for that, even with Lilas words of asking for things to be how they were. They were not sure if she would be ready for that just yet.

"Tá sé seo chomh fucking Connor crua (This is so fucking hard Connor)." Murphy muttered over her head to his brother, his face looking like a sad puppy.

"Cád é? (What is?)" Lila asked, glancing up at the darker haired twin amused that he had obviously not meant for her to know what he had said. Murphy's eyes widened in shock and Connor barked out a laugh next to her at his brother's luck.

Not every Irish person could speak Irish, in fact, it was rare these days. The language was dying off with only a few regions still speaking it. Their Ma had insisted they learn it along with the other various languages they had learnt and they really hadn't expected Lila to be able to speak it. Murphy lowered his head as his cheeks flushed, it only made her more amused, she always got a kick out of teasing the boys and embarrassing them.