"No, don't!" Ace cried out as she watched Ryoma click the handcuffs into place. A feeling of defeat ran through her body, making her slump back.
She shuddered, feeling the steel of the handcuffs on both of her wrists. "W-why? Isn't one handcuff enough?" She asked, her lips quivering.
He removed his hand from holding down her arm, an indifferent look on his face. "This is for your own good." Even his voice was monotone.
"Ryoma, why are you doing this?" She tugged at both of the cuffs, wincing as the cuff on her left wrist brushed against her cuts.
He took a glance at the nightstand, pulling its drawers open and taking away anything that could potentially assist her in escaping. "I'm protecting you." He answered, narrowing his eyes as he searched. "How did you unlock your cuffs again? The first time, I thought it wasn't secured properly. But the second time? No. You definitely unlocked it yourself."
Ace tugged at the cuffs again. "How are you protecting me by doing this?"
He turned his gaze toward her, scowling. "You didn't answer my question."
When she pursed her lips and remained silent, he stood back up and leaned over the bed. "Answer me." His voice was demanding, authoritative.
Turning away from him, she gasped when his hand forcefully pushed on her shoulder, forcing her gaze back to him. Just from his touch, she could almost feel the power rippling through his muscles. If he were to hit her without holding back.. She shuddered at the thought.
His steely red eyes bore into her. "Tell me. I don't want to hurt you." Anything.. but hurt you.
"I.." She shut her eyes and shook her head. "Please don't.."
When she heard him shifting back, she braced herself for an assault. Just like all the other guys, they had forced information out of her, whether it was blackmailing or physically hurting her, it didn't matter.
But the hit never came.
Gingerly opening her eyes, she saw that Ryoma had taken a seat on the chair, holding his hand to his forehead. "God.. Ace, why do you have to make this so hard for me?" He groaned, frustrated. "I.. I can never hurt you.. Why do you always provoke me?"
Startled, the girl stared at him for a moment before sitting up, the cuffs holding her hands back. "W-what do you mean?" She asked, her voice wavering a bit.
He sighed. "All that I'm trying to do is protect you. Why do you make this so difficult for me? Trying to run away.. Not listening to orders.." He roughly ran his fingers through his hair. "Why?!"
Frowning, she watched the male stare down at the ground. "Ryoma.." She pursed her lips. "I.. I don't need protection."
He slowly brought his gaze back up to her. "I know you're strong, but after I learned about what you went through as a child," He bit the inside of his cheek. "I don't ever want something like that to happen to you ever again. You're too good of a person to go through that type of suffering."
She shook her head slightly. "What I went through.. Made me into who I am today. I'm constantly.. Trying.. To prove that I'm.. no longer..." Weak. She trailed off.
She drew in a few breaths, feeling a surge of disappointment and sadness flow through her veins. I'm not.. lying to myself, am I?
"I don't ever want you to go through what I went through.. But I say that too late.." Ryoma said, his voice low and dull. "Forced to cover up who I am as a person. Forced to come up with a fake image of myself to please others. You're constantly struggling to prove to yourself and others that you're stronger. But how long does this struggle have to last? When will you finally be able to accept who you are, what flaws you have? When will this internal fight end?"
YOU ARE READING
Fixation
General Fiction[Completed] "I thought I changed. Perhaps that was just an illusion I believed in." When Ace transfers to a new school, she sees this as a new opportunity to start a new life. After all, a new place where nobody knows who she is nor her past won't b...
