Shattered Inside (Yandere!Cheater x Reader)

XXXIX

"You guys have a pretty home!"

The two teens were walking along the bustling sidewalk, on their way to James' home to hang out after a long tiring day of school. His eyes flitted from one interesting place to another, not really paying it any mind because he saw this scenery every single day from the bus windows. Kayla on the other hand seemed amazed at the almost paradise-like liveliness of the neighbourhood her friend lived in. Even after a few months of having been forced to get rid of her spoilt nature, she still felt like she had seen next to nothing of the real world outside and the many humans that inhabited it.

James noticed the way her grey eyes lit up whenever they passed a dog and its owner, Kayla once even having stopped and asked if she could pet the golden retriever. The owner had laughed and allowed her to pet his dog to her heart's content. Even though James found her child-like behaviour incredibly adorable, the possibility that they might arrive at home hours later than he intended if they kept stopping at every turn always remained in the back of his mind.

Next time they passed by a lively dog that barked at the pair to gain their attention, James just grabbed his friend by the hand and pulled her along before she could dig her soles into the cement once again. Letting out a disappointed sigh, she looked after the dog with her own eyes resembling those of a sad puppy. Their hands remained intertwined for the rest of the walk, and neither really thought about changing that fact.

When they finally arrived in front of James' house, a relieved sigh escaped the boy's lips. Turning over to the girl whose attention was somewhere else once again, he asked with a posh voice, "Is my abode not too small for your liking, Lady Kayla?" A teasing grin appeared on his lips after a playful scoff escaped her throat.

"I didn't like our mansion, anyway. I prefer cosy spaces more than luxurious ones," she answered as he lead her across the front porch to the entrance door. Her eyes gazed at the pretty flowers decorating the front porch, and then they turned to the few gnomes that lived next to the flowers and bushes. "But it definitely takes a lot of time to get used to..." Her eyes darkened a little bit while she sighed. Turning her attention back to James, the smile on her lips turned bitter. "You know, I wasn't always this... normal..."

Pressing the doorbell, he looked at her quizzically. "Not... 'normal'? What do you mean?"

"Money... money can do bad things to people— especially to those who are in the process of growing up," she explained through multiple pauses of insecurities. "It's... uhm, it's hard to explain if you haven't been there yourself. And well, you've almost been there, James."

"Uh, what do you mean with almost?"

"Before money could spoil you as a human being, you were taken away from it—"

Before Kayla could finish her sentence, the door was pulled open to reveal a woman standing in the door frame. "Hello! Hello, you two," you said as you wiped your hands off on your apron.

Kayla's eyes were wide in shock and in awe; she hadn't seen you in years — not ever since that one day you personally picked James up from kindergarten yourself. You, the young beautiful woman she had seen as a young child, were standing in front of her, now only not as young as you used to be — but that didn't matter, really. There was still some sort of grace and poise to the way you moved, along with the wrinkles not taking away from your beauty at all but instead adding to the appearance of a wise and loving woman.

"Mom, this is Kayla," James mumbled, snapping the girl out of her trance. Jolting, Kayla raised her gaze to look you in the eyes once again; grey clashed with warm (E/c). She shot you a small wave.

"Welcome, welcome, Kayla! It's very nice to meet you. I'm James' mother, (Y/n) Davis." Smiling at her sweetly, you were able to discern her features to be quite familiar — like you had seen her before, years ago. Alas, nothing came to your mind.