Hidden Beauty (Under Reconstruction)

Chapter 18

  I walked to the mirror, disappointed to see there were no signs of foul play, everything was right. Though, my skin seemed to have a bit of discoloration. A dream. Just a vivid dream. One small part of my head disagreed but, I ignored it. I threw a glance at the clock, 6:40 a.m. Still early.

  I poked around Cain's room a little, finding nothing interesting. I was holding a little metal ring when the patter of feet upstairs scared me. I dropped the ring and looked up, smiling ruefully. Kids.

  I dropped to my knees and stuck my hand under the bed. I grabbed the ring and was pulling away when my mind blanked. I stared at the bedpost, a foreboding feeling rising within me. There were claw marks and peeled back wood on the post. Hahah. Just like in my dream. Dream?

  Was it a dream? It was wasn't it? Of course. Just cause the wood's scratched. But, maybe I should investigate further.

 I snagged a flashlight off the dresser and flicked it on, casting light under the bed. A little bottle glinted as the light splintered off it. Eh? I pulled out the bottle and looked closer at it.

  It had a pure white label wrapped around it center, minuscule words following the bottle's curve. I squinted closer at the biggest word.

 Cortisone

Cortisone? I reached into my memory of 10 grade human science. Reduces inflammation and is used as a painkiller. Inflammation is swelling. Swelling you can get from getting punched in the head or knocked out.

   But.. Cortisone wouldn't completely deflate the bump. I delved deeper into my memory of last night, remembering exactly the place he hit me. Not the front, but... the back. I reached up a shaky hand and touched the back of my hand, patting my head gingerly.

  Sure enough, on the back-side of my head a speed knot had formed. I pushed a little and winced.

Damn.

  So much for being a dream. My hope faded and I wondered on what to do next. Shou-

 *Knock Knock Knock*

 The door was pushed open and I put my hand behind my back, trying to be non-nonchalant. Cain stood in the doorway, emerald eyes half closed. That was, until he saw I was already up.

  "Oh. You're up." He pointed out, voice gruff with sleep and sounding hot. At that thought I blushed slightly and nodded.

  "U-um, yup." The bottle was barely concealed behind my back. I'm sure any other girl would have jumped into his arms, crying about how scary it was. Not me. I was going to investigate.

  "Well..." I trailed off. He looked at me suspiciously.

 "What's in your hand?" Cain questioned, trying to look behind me. Think!

 "Nothing." I lied smoothly. It seemed smooth but on the inside I was surprised at how hard it was to lie to him.

 "Kat." He said sternly. I knew he would find out soon but, not this soon!

 "It's woman supplies." I shrugged with a smirk. His eyes widened and he backed out of the room, mumbling, "Sorry I ever asked."

  He shut the door and I let out a breath. Thank god. I pulled the bottle back out and stared at it in disgust. Great. He was here, beat me, threatened me, and drugged me. But, no proof.

  I punched my hand into the bed.

 Might as well dig more, I thought. I bent over to peek under the bed again, flashlight in hand.

Another small bottle glinted with light. Jesus, you have to kidding me.

I blindly threw my hand under, grasping for the bottle. It's surface was cold. I pulled it out from under and studied it for a moment. An makeup bottle. My shade. Oh god. I fled the room, passing Cain in the hall. He gave me a suspicious look, but didn't stop me.

I made a quick stop in the white room and snatched up some clothes, before sprinting to the bathroom. I peeled my clothes away. I turned on the water, everything down in a rush. I felt some tears skim down my cheeks, scared of the bruises I would have.

The hot water relaxed some of my tense muscles. But, as I was beginning to warm up inside, my blood ran cold. I looked down at my arms, watching as the bruises came to life as the make-up washed away. Oh god, no. I ran my hands through my hair shakily and sat in the corner of the shower, the hot water still kissing my skin.

Throughout the shower, more bruises appeared. A few were splayed across my stomach and hips, discoloring the skin in a blue-ish hue. I glanced down at my legs and grimaced, seeing they were bruised as well.

God, even when I'm knocked out? I clenched my fist, driving nails into my palms. The water still beat down, but it's warmth wasn't comforting anymore. My eyes started to water and I let go. I cried quietly for a while, just sat in the corner of the shower, sobbing.

I picked myself up and went through my shower routine, not even paying attention. I stepped out of the shower, putting on my clothes without a glance. I sucked in a deep breath and turned to the mirror.

The breath I had been holding came out as a strangled sob. My porcelain was now battered. There was a deep purple ring around my right eye and my lip was busted. There was a purple mark climbing up my left cheek. I still looked like me, but abused.

  How was I going to hide this from Cain? I looked down at my shaking hands. My wrists were a little swollen and clearly showed redish-purple marks from where the cuffs rubbed against my skin.

I spun around looking for some measure of cover. I spotted a hoodie hanging on the knob of the closet door. Sighing, I pulled it off the handle. There was a Linkin park emblem embroidered on the front and I smiled. At least it isn't too conspicuous. Just a girl wearing a hoodie. Maybe.

"Oi! Kitkat? Ready to go?" Jake sang, passing the door. I breathed in a deep breath and stared in the mirror, desperately wanting to throw a punch and shatter myself. It was sick. I threw the hoodie on and pulled it down to conceal my face.

 Please forgive me for my future lies, Cain.

Please.

Especially the ones I'm about to tell.

"Yeah, I'm ready." ~