A/N: Hehe sorry for taking long to update 😬
But wth guys?? +7k votes?!?! Thank you so much!!! <3
(Your POV)
You ran upstairs, your breathing agitated as you stumbled through the corridor. Finally, you made it to your room and you were quick to swing it open.
"Of course you wouldn't want to go against them... After all, what could I have expected from such a coward like you?" You heard Akiro's voice whispering in your ear.
"You're just so naive!" It shouted.
Your parent's argument and Akiro's words ran inside your head, haunting your every thought.
It was official now. The little hope you had had was now gone. No. Your parents weren't changing.
Knees giving in, you fell on the cold floor, silent tears running down your cheeks. Burying your head in between your legs, you shut your eyes and rocked yourself back and forth.
Why?
You inhaled and exhaled quickly as those thoughts plagued your mind. You felt like you were suffocating as you gasped for air, your nails digging into the hardwood floor.
Just why did everything have to fall apart?!
You slowly stood up, knees wobbling as your whole body shook. Stumbling over to your window, you were able to open it though not without some difficulties. Placing your hands on the windowsill, you gathered up the few strength you had left and pulled yourself upwards.
Your breathing hitched upon looking down at the ground, your vision going blurry. Had it always been this high?
You gulped and reached for the tree branch. First, you placed one foot and then the other, your grip on the tree so tight your knuckles were turning white. You took a deep breath and began climbing down.
You smiled weakly as you got closer to the ground but the tears welling up in your eyes were making it difficult for you to see properly. You even tried to blink them away but it didn't make much difference and your foot slipped.
It all happened so quickly, you barely had any time to react as you lost your hold on the tree branch and came tumbling down. The fall knocked the wind out of you as you let out a loud groan.
Eyes closed, hands sinking into the soil, you cursed such profanities you were sure it would've shocked anyone who knew you.
Rolling on your side, you managed to stand up, your whole body trembling. You had to lean on the wall to catch your breath and waited for your vision to stop spinning. You were sure you must have gotten a concussion.
It was then you heard the front door open. You were completely still, praying whoever had opened the door wouldn't go to the back of your house since you were sure you had no more energy left to hide. Luckily, whoever it was soon got back inside and you let out a loud sigh of relief.
After a few minutes, you finally managed to stand up straight on your own and, without even thinking about it, you found yourself running, allowing your feet to take the lead.
You soon found yourself in front of a house you knew too well. You frantically rang the doorbell.
"Please, please, please," you mumbled over and over, tears welling up in your eyes as the seconds ticked by.
Your mind was haunted by thoughts. Everything that had been piling up these past weeks now suffocated you. Akiro's outburst, Kaori going off-the-grid, your mother's mood swings, your father's control... It was all too much.
The door was then swung open as the warmth that the house emanated immediately reached your skin. Without even waiting to greet him, you threw yourself onto him and buried your head in his chest, your arms wrapping tightly around his waist as if you were afraid that he would disappear and leave you all alone on that cold winter night.
"(Y/N)?" Karma stammered, his voice full of shock.
"I'm so sorry, I'm so sorry," you choked, tears running down your cheeks. "I-I didn't know where else to go."
Karma's eyes were wide in shock as he took in your appearance. You were full of scratches and your hands, knees and elbows were covered in blood and dirt. Your hair was probably a mess and your face was full of tears.
All of a sudden, you felt a strong pair of arms sweep you off your feet and carry you bridal style. Karma pulled you inside, his lips pressing tightly together as he stared straight ahead. His eyes were lost in thought and you were sure you could see the gears turning inside his head.
Karma then placed you down on the sofa. His eyebrows were furrowed, his jaw clenched and his face had contorted into one full of anger and fury.
"What happened?"
You remained silent as his mercury eyes were locked on your figure, waiting for you to answer him. You immediately looked away and nervously bit your bottom lip. You felt embarrassed honestly. Embarrassed that he had to see you in this state. Embarrassed that you were always dumping all your problems on him. You didn't want him to worry but here you were...
"Who did this to you (Y/N)?" He insisted, his voice low and dripping with venom as a dark aura seemed to emanate from him.
"I-I fell."
"Was it your parents?"
"No, no, I-I really did fall," you stuttered as your whole body began to tremble.
You knew he meant well but, because of the condition and mental state you were currently in, the only thing his anger was doing right now was scaring you.
Karma seemed to pick up on this as he turned around so that you couldn't see him. You saw him let out a loud sigh as the tension in his fist, which had been clenched so tightly his knuckles had turned white, slowly dissipated. He then took a deep breath before turning around and facing you once again.
His eyebrows were still furrowed, his jaw was still clenched and his mercury eyes lacked that familiar mischievous spark but he at least no longer had that murderous glare on him.
Karma proceeded to crouch down so that you were at the same height. It was dead silent as he took your hands in his and slowly began inspecting your injuries. After a few seconds, he stood up, your gaze lingering on his figure as you watched him leave the room.
"I just think that, from now on, it's best if I'm in charge of her education."
"I mentored Akiro as I saw fit. Ever since elementary school, Akiro has been at the top of his class. In fact, he was such an exceptional student that he skipped a grade."
You inhaled sharply, your father's words ringing inside your head. Your father... he hadn't changed...
The only reason why he had been slowly paying more attention to you was just because you won. You won the ice skating competition and you achieved third spot at finals. If it weren't for that, he still wouldn't have acknowledged you.
You slowly shook your head and hoped this was all just a bad dream. But it wasn't. This was real and you were suffering the consequences.
All this time, you had been wrong. You had misunderstood the whole situation. Your father wasn't changing. He had only been paying attention to you because he wanted to take you under his wing, to mold you into his ideal child. Just like he had molded Akiro...
You shuddered. Now that Akiro left, your father was putting all those expectations and all that pressure on your shoulders.
"He doesn't care about me," you mumbled.
Your father didn't care about your well-being nor your mental health, the only thing he wanted was for you to win and come on top.
The sound of footsteps getting closer took you out of your trance. You watched as Karma entered the living room with bandages and ointments to heal your injuries. Grabbing a towel, he began cleaning your wounds.
"(Y/N) is going to become an actress, whether she likes it or not." Your mother's words now haunted you.
She hadn't changed, had she?
"Why do you think there was never a contract involved? Why do you think there were no consequences when we broke up? If there's one thing I'm certain of is that the fake relationship was all your mother's doing. It was all your mother's idea and the studio still has no idea."
You closed your eyes, realization dawning upon you. The only reason why she had acted nicer was to manipulate you, so that you would do as she said without complaining. Just like she had manipulated you into agreeing to the fake relationship, now, she was manipulating you into pursuing acting.
You took a shaky breath. Even though you had tried to be cautious, even though you began to suspect their behaviour... You had inevitably fallen into their trap.
You had fallen for your family's appearances.
Neither of your parents had changed. The only thing that did was their methods to control you...
You restrained a sob from escaping your lips, the sound making Karma's mercury eyes glance up at you for the first time since he had started treating your wounds. His brow creased upon seeing the way your lips trembled. The two of you locked eyes and it was then that you broke down crying.
You pulled him into a tight hug and buried your head in the crook of his neck, your hands desperately clutching his shirt, afraid that he would disappear if you were to let him go.
"M-My parents were arguing," you stammered, your whole body shaking in fear. "They didn't know I was listening in on their conversation and-" you choked – "they-they haven't changed." Your voice broke at the last part.
In between sobs, you managed to tell him everything that had happened. You blurted it all out.
You told him how your mother's only wish was to control you and puppeteer your life whilst your father wanted to force you to follow in his footsteps, especially now that Akiro had left.
You told him how stupid you felt for falling into their traps and ever believing things could improve. You even revealed that Kaori had decided to leave and go off the grid and what exactly happened with Akiro that day he came to pick you up. You told him the way he had lashed out at you, his outburst scarring you even days later.
"I-I'm so sorry for not telling you." You shook your head over and over. "I-I just didn't want to-to dump all my problems o-on you and-and-"
You continued crying as you let out all that frustration, all that grief, all that anger. Everything that you had been holding back.
Karma didn't say anything, simply allowing you to vent. To finally get it all out. To say everything that was on your mind, everything that had been bothering you, all those thoughts that had suffocated you and left you restless. And, it felt nice to be listened to. After all those betrayals, it felt nice to have someone to confide in, someone who you could trust blindly.
The two of you stayed like that for a few minutes, basking in each other's embrace. You slowly allowed your eyes to close as you took in a deep breath. And, just like all those other times you were close to him, you were able to perceive that familiar scent of strawberries that you had lately begun to associate with home.
You exhaled loudly. You still couldn't believe how naive you had been. You still couldn't believe how easily you had fallen for their appearances despite knowing how toxic your relationship was. But, the worst part was that, despite always being on the receiving end of their mood swings, you still had hope that the future could improve...
You just couldn't help it. As soon as your father showed you any interest, your mind would go completely numb and you would do anything it took just for a glimpse of his praise. You cursed yourself for feeling like this. You should have realized he was playing with your mind. Just like he had played with Akiro's all these years...
And your mother... You always fell into her traps. As soon as she showed you that more loving side of hers, you would immediately get transported to the past. Your mind would go blank and you would do whatever she said in hopes that the mother from your childhood would return. But she never did because... no matter how hard you tried, no matter how much you put up with just to please her, that controlling mother that had tormented you ever since you were eight would always be there...
_________________________
An hour or so had gone by and by then you had managed to more or less calm down and clear your head.
"I should get going now," you whispered as you sadly averted his gaze.
"You're going back?" Karma said and you were quick to take notice of the way his jaw had tightened.
"I have nowhere else," you mumbled.
There was a brief silence as Karma stared at you.
"You can always stay here."
You pursed your lips, a part of you wanting to take that offer but you knew it was madness. First of all, you were underage and weren't supposed to be living alone. You also had other responsibilities like school and all your extra-curricular activities. And lastly, if you were to leave or run away from your parents, you wouldn't move in the neighbourhood right next to them.
"Thanks but-... I can't." You bit your bottom lip.
"So you're just going to go back there?" His brow furrowed in disbelief.
"Yeah." You looked away in shame. "At least for the time being." You paused."But you don't have to worry about me, Karma," you tried to reassure him, "I was naive and I allowed them to play with my feelings. But now I know the truth and it's going to be different, I promise. So please, trust me."
Karma didn't look very convinced but the look in your eyes made him understand that your parent's conversation had opened your eyes and you were no longer going to fall for their appearances. You were now more determined than ever to not make the same mistakes again and, until you came up with a solution, you would have to go back to your house.
"Fine." He eventually gave in though you took notice of the way his fist clenched even tighter as he bit his tongue, as if he wanted to say something else but was stopping himself from doing so.
It was dead silent as Karma walked you home. You didn't even try to utter a single word, your mind too preoccupied as it pondered on your parent's conversation.
The two of you eventually reached your house and made your way to the tree.
"You sure you aren't gonna fall?" Karma arched an eyebrow as you silently nodded your head.
You soon began climbing and you focused all your attention on the task. Every single one of your movements was calculated and precise, not wanting to fall a second time that night. However, as you were halfway there, the sound of the leaves rustling made you stop. You gulped. There was no wind so why were the leaves moving so much? Oh no. Were there animals sleeping there? Had you woken them up?
"You okay?" You suddenly felt the soft tickle of Karma's breath on your neck which had you squirming and nearly made you fall.
Luckily, your redheaded boyfriend had quick reflexes and was quick to catch your hand and pull you towards him. Karma had his arm wrapped around you, your head pressed against his chest as you listened to his steady heartbeat.
"Wh-Why are you up here?" You stammered in disbelief as you slowly pulled away, making sure not to fall this time.
"Just wanted to see if you were okay you slowpoke." He teased.
You couldn't help a smile from forming at the corners of your lips, glad that he was back to being his usual self.
Karma helped you climb up the tree and it didn't take long before you safely arrived at your bedroom. You tiptoed inside, relieved that your parents hadn't caught you. You then turned around to your window to bid farewell but as you approached him, you hesitated, part of you not wanting to be alone.
"Want me to keep you company?" Karma read your mind.
You silently nodded your head and he was quick to sneak inside. The two of you took a seat on your bed, Karma's finger tapping against his knee as he chewed on the inside of your cheek.
"You've been awfully quiet this whole time," you whispered.
"When I opened the door and saw you like that-" he mumbled – "believe me, I wanted to kill someone." His mercury eyes were darker than ever and the intensity and seriousness in his tone took you off guard.
"I'm sorry." You looked away.
"Why are you apologizing?" He frowned.
"Because this is my fault," you sulked. "You warned me... Akiro warned me... Even Kaori did," you took a deep breath and looked away, "but I didn't listen. I kept hoping that things were going to get better and look where it has taken me." You chuckled miserably. "You were right, I shouldn't have been so naive to think everyone was going to magically change."
Karma remained silent. From the corner of your eye, you saw his jaw clench, his eyebrows furrowing in discontent upon hearing your words.
"Look princess," he lifted your chin so you were looking straight into his eyes, "don't take those words to heart, kay?"
"Huh?" You blinked in confusion. "But you were right."
"When it comes to your parents, yeah." He exhaled loudly. "They abused their power and you let them get away with it."
"I know." You looked away in shame.
"But-" he paused, as if he were searching for the right words to say – "but that doesn't mean no one's capable of change."
"You think so?"
After everything that life had thrown at you, Akiro's betrayal and breakdown, Kaori going off the grid, your parent's control... Well, you couldn't really say you were full of hope.
"You said so yourself, didn't you?" He arched an eyebrow. "Koro-sensei... Your brother... Himura... They all changed."
"I suppose." You fiddled with the hem of your shirt, not very convinced.
"And... believe it or not but... spending this year with you," he looked away and chewed on the inside of his cheek, "I guess it changed me too..."
You remained silent at Karma's words, the raw honesty that he was showing you right now throwing you a bit off guard.
Karma knew you were feeling down after everything that had happened with all the people you loved. Karma knew you were heartbroken by the harsh reality you had had to face. He knew you were at your most vulnerable which was why, right now, he was allowing himself to be vulnerable too, just so that you wouldn't have to go through it alone...
This was enough to make your heart skip a beat, still not used to this side of him since you had only seen it very few times. He always made sure to hide it pretty well but at this exact moment, he was letting his guard down, just for you.
"Thank you Karma." You smiled softly, that thought warming up your whole body.
"I love you, okay?" He mumbled and cupped your face, his fingers trailing across your lips. "Now go get some sleep." He kissed the crown of your head.
Your smile suddenly fell as you realized what he meant. He was leaving.
You watched as Karma stood up and walked to the window. So without thinking, you bolted from your seat, your body practically moving on its own as you took a hold of his hand. He turned around in surprise as your eyes hesitantly searched his.
"Stay?"
It was just a word and barely even a whisper but it managed to convey all your emotions.
That loneliness that you had been suffering from ever since you were eight. That feeling of betrayal that had consumed you as the people you loved left you one by one. That fear that overcame you when you realized Akiro was slowly turning into your parents and was starting to place all his frustrations on you. And last but not least, that grief you now felt when you came to the realization that your family was broken beyond repair.
All those feelings you had repressed for so long finally came out and the thought of finally dropping the façade, of forgetting your family's appearances once and for all was comforting.
Karma stared at you in silence, his mercury eyes gazing at your face. Just like you, Karma was also familiar with those feelings of loneliness, betrayal, fear, grief... He understood perfectly well how you felt, he understood how much emotional baggage that single word carried because... because he too had experienced it.
"You-You don't have to if you don't want to," you were quick to say, seeing as he wasn't saying anything, "you can leave if you want. I was just being silly after everything that's happened and I wasn't thinking straight. Plus, my parents will certainly catch me and-"
"If you want me to stay, I'll stay," he interrupted you.
"But what about-?"
"I'll leave as soon as the sun rises," he shrugged nonchalantly.
"But I can't just ask you to-"
"Ne (Y/N)-chan," he interrupted you once again, "don't think too much about it. You want me to stay or not?"
"Yeah," you meekly whispered.
"See? It wasn't that difficult," he teased as he took off his shoes and laid down on the bed.
The two of you soon got inside the covers as you cuddled closer to him, wanting to experience that warmth you always felt whenever you were together.
There was a comfortable silence as you stared into those mesmerizing mercury eyes, your hand playing with his soft red locks as a small smile graced your lips.
"Take a picture, it will last longer," Karma whispered, a small smirk playing along his lips.
You smiled. Those were the exact same words he had told you the day you had realized your feelings for him and you couldn't help but let out a carefree laugh, that same laugh Karma heard that day he saw you ice skating, that day he fell for you.
The two of you continued talking for a little while but exhaustion eventually washed over you. You were both physically and mentally exhausted after everything that had happened. But despite everything you had gone through, you were actually positive about the future, no longer feeling suffocated after realizing what had been tying you down all along.
All this time, you had been so focused trying to mend your relationship with your parents, you had failed to realize you had already found a family. The end class, Koro-sensei, Karma, Kaori... They were the ones who actually cared about you, they were your family.
You yawned and snuggled closer to Karma. You had been so obsessed yearning for your parent's love and approval that you had failed to open your eyes and see the bigger picture.
It was then that you promised yourself you wouldn't make that mistake again. You wouldn't allow them to keep toying with your feelings. It was time you finally stood up for yourself once and for all.
A/N: Finally!!! Reader realizes the truth!! I've been waiting to write this scene for soooo long now!!!! Though it's a pity one of the stepping stones towards her final realization came at the expense of her relationship with her brother (with whom she wants nothing to do with right now)