So that I wouldn't arrive unannounced, I called Klaus to let him know that I was on my way.
He didn't sound surprised to hear from me so it made me wonder if he had spoken to Kai.
Would Klaus know where he was?
I was optimistic that I'd get some answers from him, and if not, I knew that Kiara would be on my side and help me find Kai.
Yet again, I spent my time calling him as I sat in the shuttle, hoping and praying that he would evenually answer.
It frustrated me that he wouldn't just talk to me. Two minutes was all I needed to know that he was safe and well but he couldn't even give me that.
As much as I loved him, I was ready to throttle him. I wanted him to feel what I felt, the heaviness weighing down on my cheast and the feeling like I couldn't breathe, and once I'd caused him a slight bit of misery, I'd wrap my arms around him as tightly as possible and never let him go.
Speckles of snow began to fall as I peered out of the window and it concerned me that it might hinder my attempts at finding Kai if it got any worse.
My wristband bleeped and my heart almost burst out of my chest.
Was it Kai?
No, it wasn't. Haldon had sent me a message and I screamed in vexation, balling my fists as I slammed them into the seat of the shuttle.
Begrudgingly, I read the message to see what he could possibly want.
Thanks for returning my shuttle. Please pop by later so that I can check you over. Emrys would really like to see you too - Medic Haldon
I rolled my eyes at his request. I didn't need checking over, if anything, he needed to prep a healing pod for after I found Kai.
I didn't respond to his message, but it gave me an idea. If I sent Kai a message, he would most likely read it and it didn't really matter if he responded or not.
Would I be crossing the line if I threatened him with my life? Would he come out of hiding if he thought that I was in danger?
I shook my head, appalled at myself for thinking such thoughts. When he's ready to speak, he'll let me know, but for now, there was no harm in me looking for him and fighting his case in the hope that I could exculpate him.
I pulled up outside Klaus' house and he was already waiting for me at the front door.
I felt drained and a little light headed but I plastered on a fake smile and waved at him as I climbed out of the shuttle.
"Come on, little earthling, let's get you inside." He smiled softly.
I was surprised at the small chuckle that left my mouth. He still had to call me an earthling no matter how low I was feeling and it felt quite refreshing to feel a slight moment of humour.
I sat down at the kitchen table and Klaus placed a plate infront of me before sitting down with his own.
"I know you want to talk and I know it's important, but this dessert has been on my mind since I found out about it. I would bet my life on the fact that you haven't eaten this morning so I must insist that we eat first and discuss after, ok?" He smiled, raising his brows.
Was he for real? Was this dessert really that important to him?
I sighed, exasperated, but complied with his demands and ate the god damn dessert.
"You really didn't have to wait to eat this, you know?" I muttered.
"Are you kidding me? We entered into an unspoken pact to eat every dessert on the menu for the rest of our lives. When a new one comes out, you and I must try it together. There's no going back now, Daisy. Never."
Well, that's it then. Kai can't force me to go back to Earth, not when I have an obligation to Klaus. If I left, he'd never be able to eat a new dessert again. I couldn't do that to him, it wouldn't be fair, I thought to myself as a grin formed on my face.
"You understand?" Klaus looked at me as if he knew what I was thinking.
"I do." I nodded as we smiled at one another.
He was on my side and it took dessert for him to tell me. I wasn't sure why he had to tell me in code but I got the message loud and clear.
"Thanks for that." I stated once we'd finished eating.
"You're welcome. Someone has to look out for you, haven't they?"
"Mmm."
Now that food was out of the way, Klaus and I went into the living room to discuss why I was here.
We sat opposite each other and I was itching to find out what he knew.
"How are you feeling after last night?" Klaus spoke softly.
"You mean after my accident? I'm absolutely fine."
"Did Haldon discharge you or did you leave on your own?"
"I borrowed his shuttle and went home. There was no one around and I wasn't exactly going to stay there when I didn't need to." I admitted.
"So you stole his shuttle?"
"Borrowed." I corrected him.
Klaus cleared his throat.
"You do realise that you can get locked up for something so small, don't you? You could even send yourself off there and surrender if you felt guilty enough." He smirked.
"Like I said, I borrowed it. He's got it back now anyway, I didn't think he'd mind."
"What happened with Kai?"
I looked down at the ground, all humour sucked out of the room and I rubbed my eyes before speaking.
"He left me. He's so ashamed of himself that he believes I'd be better off on Earth. He said he's brought shame upon his family and he won't ever be able to live with me knowing that he might one day hurt me again."
"You're not ashamed of him?" Klaus wondered.
"There's nothing to be ashamed of. Why does everyone seem to think that a shove to the ground is so grievous? It wasn't his intention to hurt me and if Kordin didn't ask me to accompany Emrys to Earth, then he wouldn't have been so wound up in the first place. Then there's the fact that he bruised my face and didn't call Kai to let him know. It isn't his fault, none of this is and I won't stop until I find him."
I didn't realise that I was shouting until Kiara ran into the room.
"Daisy, are you alright?" She muttered.
"No, Kiara. Kai has rejected me. He's gone. I don't know where he is and he's ignoring my calls. He wants me to go back to Earth with Emrys and forget about him and I don't know what to do." I sniffed.
"Nooo. No, no, no, he wouldn't do this, I know my brother and he wouldn't just leave you. He's literally waited years for you. There's no way he would give you up so easily." Her voice cracked.
She looked over at Klaus as she sat beside me, engulfing me in a warm embrace as my tears resurfaced for the millionth time.
"Where is he, Klaus?" Kiara spoke sternly.
"I don't know. No one does." He shrugged.
"Is this because of last night?"
I nodded my head. "Apparently it's an unforgivable act to hurt your soulmate and he can't forgive himself." I murmured.
"You've got to be joking? Years and years ago, way before our time, a minority of men used to hurt their soulmates. They would get together in secret and see how much pain they could inflict before they critically injured the women. It had gone on for years but because the women were too afraid to speak out about it, nobody knew a thing. Eventually, a reporter got wind of it and started documenting their crimes. She eventually made it public knowledge for everyone on Zandara to see and put them to shame like they deserved. The men were furious though and the reporter was found dead a few months after it all came out. All of the men were questioned about their crimes, and the one thing that they all had in common was that their abuse all started accidentally."
"How does abuse start accidentally?" I spat.
"One of the excuses that I was told about, was that one guy dropped a knife and it landed in his soulmates foot. Something inside of him triggered the abuse cycle and from then on, he continued hurting her. After everything came out, any zaviour that had been found to hurt their soulmate, whether accidentally or purposely, was automatically smeared with the same brush as those men. The stories have been passed down to every generation and no matter what incident happens, everyone will look at you in disgust, and shame is plastered on to you and anyone associated with you. Some say it's a defective gene, and my guess is, that Kai thinks that theres something wrong with him."
"Hang on a minute. Are you saying that Kai believes he has a defective gene that will make him want to abuse me because he unintentionally hurt me?"
"Stupid, isn't it." Kiara nodded.
Finally, someone has explained the ins and outs of why something so small has blown up into something so monumental.
Kiara's story was heartbreaking. I couldn't imagine being trapped in such an abusive relationship but it isn't exactly something that is unheard of on Earth.
"Kiara?" I looked up at her.
"Yes?"
"Is there something else that might be bothering Kai? Yara was going to say something about his past, but Kordin stopped her. Did anything happen when he was younger? Something that has triggered this reaction from him?" I wondered.
She looked over at Klaus again, and they both stared at each other for a moment before looking back at me.
"I don't know anything about what happened, but I know for sure that Kai isn't anything like those monsters in the story. I don't care what anyone says, he shouldn't be ashamed of himself and I will shout it from the roof tops if I have to."
Just like me, Kiara didn't realise that she was shouting until Atlas ran into the room.
"Kiara, baby, what's wrong?" He breathed.
Kiara explained my story to Atlas and filled him in on every detail but as expected, he couldn't see things from my point of view.
"Are you fucking kidding me? You saw what happened, it was an accident. Kai would never intentionally hurt anyone unless someones life was at risk." Kiara raged. "You see this, Daisy? From such a young age, they drill it in to your mind and make you think that it is unacceptable to make a mistake and hurt someone you love accidentally. There's no wonder he doesn't trust himself around you when apparently, accidents turn you into an abusive asshole. How fucking ridiculous is that?"
I was so relieved to hear Kiara stick up for Kai, and what she said was true.
I'd never heard such ridiculous assumptions in all my life, but everyone, barring Kiara and I, seemed to believe that ancient beliefs were gospel and wouldn't have it any other way.
"Did you know that Earth is full of abusive men and women? It doesn't start as an accident, it is a learned behaviour and the abusers crave the power that they hold over their victims. It isn't just men, it is women too. Humans also hurt each other for fun. Some women like it when their man gets a little rough but it isn't something that brings shame upon them. Maybe.." I paused momentarily, deciding on whether it was my place to say anything. "Maybe, zaviours should stop forcing ancient beliefs on children and instead, teach them that if abuse was to occur in a relationship, then it is ok to speak out and seek help. Teach them that it isn't ok but accidents do sometimes happen and people can unintentionally hurt someone without turning into an abusive maniac."
Atlas stayed quiet, a look of realisation in his eyes as he thought about what I'd said, but something changed and he looked down on me, shaking his head.
"I'm sorry, Daisy, but I don't believe that the people on your planet can be compared to the people here. We are worlds apart, so different in what we do. We are not the same and I don't believe that for years, our ancestors were wrong."
I couldn't expect him, or anyone else to instantly change their beliefs that were drilled into them from a very young age, so I understood why he didn't agree with me, and that was ok.
If someone told me that fruit and veg were bad for me, I wouldn't believe them either.
I didn't see Klaus leave the room, but when he came back, he had a message from Haldon.
"I'm sorry to interrupt, Daisy, but Haldon would like you to go to the medical centre. Something about Emrys being unstable and difficult."
I sighed, pinching the bridge of my nose. "I can't. I've got to find Kai. I want to help Emrys, I really do, but there's nothing more I can do for him unless I return to Earth."
"Don't worry, Daisy, I'll find Kai." Kiara spoke softly.
"Why?" Atlas interrupted.
"Excuse me?" I hissed.
"Because he isn't what you think he is, Atlas. Everyone else might have given up on him but Daisy and I won't. If you don't want to help me, then you may as well go and see your parents or something. Our plans for today have changed." Kiara said calmly, holding her head up high, refusing to let Atlas' opinion on Kai bring her down.
I stifled a grin, extreamly proud of Kiara for sticking to her morals and not letting anyone else change what she believed in.
Atlas was speechless, looking at Kiara in disbelief.
Her stance didn't falter and a moment later, he rolled his eyes with a huff and walked out of the room, head down with his hands in his pockets.
She sure told him.
"Will you guys be alright?" I wondered. "You've only just found each other, won't this pull your bond apart?"
Kiara winked at me with a grin. "Don't worry about that. Our bond has been well and truely bonded."
"What?" I furrowed my brows. "Ooh, ohh god. Kiara, too much information!" I covered my face while shaking my head.
"You need to get to the medical centre before Haldon loses his shit with Emrys." She chuckled. "I will call you the minute I have information on Kai. You aren't being forced to leave Zandara just yet so don't let this stop you from living your life. Everything will be fine." She stated.
"Thank you, Kiara. I don't know what I would do without you. You're the only person on his side and I can't tell you how much it means to me."
She hugged me tightly. "We're family. I'll always have your back."
The pain in my chest had dulled slightly knowing that Kiara was going to help me.
I found it strange that Klaus hadn't agreed to help with Kai, but at the same time, he didn't refuse either. He was sitting on the fence, holding his cards close to his chest, almost afraid to let anyone know what he was thinking.
"You don't think I'll be forced to go back to Earth do you?"
"We'll talk about it later. Just try not to worry, ok?"
"Ok." I breathed.
Trying to get through the day without worrying was going to be a massive challenge.
I couldn't just switch my feelings off, and until I'd spoken to Kai, I'd be living in constant fear that I'd eventually be forced to go back to Earth.
Once I was ready, I thanked Kiara again and left. Klaus had done another disappearing act but I made a mental note of his stranger than usual behaviour and set the shuttle to take me to the medical centre.
With any luck, Haldon would have some super potion that would dull my emotions and I'd be as happy as Larry for the afternoon.
If not that, then something to keep me awake. Tiredness was beginning to kick in and I wasn't sure how long I'd last before a nap was needed.
_______________________________________
Hey guys 👋
Don't you just love Kiara?
I hope you're all well and enjoying your Christmas break.
I'd love to know what you've all been up to on your side of the world? Feel free to let me know 😊