Fixation

Chapter 56: Burnt Out

"Raiden, you're late."

Ace walked down the stairs with Raiden a few steps in front of her. "Well, my apologies." He said, taking a glance at the guys who waited around in the living room.

"Sorry, I was drying my hair." She said, frowning.

The guys perked up, staring at her in surprise.

"You're joining us for dinner?" Ryoma questioned, his gaze turning rock hard. "What if you try hurting yourself again?!"

When she reached the bottom of the stairs, she gasped as Evan charged at her, pulling her into a tight hug upon contact. She stumbled, grasping onto the handrail to avoid falling. "What were you thinking..?" He uttered, his voice sounding strained and hurt.

She became acutely aware that she was receiving stares from everyone in the room. Looking down at the boy, a soft smile graced her lips as she gently stroked the top of his head. "I.. wasn't thinking straight. I'm ashamed that I even tried doing something like that."

The boy nuzzled his cheek against her. "Don't ever do anything like that again, okay?"

Surprising herself, she returned his embrace, nodding slightly. "I won't."

"That's a relief." Allian sighed, relaxing his tense muscles.

"Give her some space, Evan." Kai said, standing up from his seat. "The food's getting cold."

The boy reluctantly complied, releasing her and taking her hand, pulling her along to the dinner table.

Raiden rose an eyebrow at the boy, smirking in amusement.

She took a seat by the dinner table, staring at the food that sat in the middle of the table. Nearly four filled plates of various dishes, its steam beginning to subside.

The bowl in front of her was filled with rice. "That's.. A lot of food." She said, biting the inside of her lip. She wasn't hungry at all.

As the guys seated themselves, they shrugged as they began to eat, grabbing portions of the entrées into their own individual bowls with their chopsticks.

"Take whatever you want, Ace." Kai said, smiling.

She merely stared at her bowl, reluctantly taking hold of her chopsticks. She glanced to both sides of her. Evan and Ryoma were sitting beside her.

She frowned. "Yeah, I can't finish this. I'm not very hungry either."

Allian brought his up eyes to her. "You need to eat, Ace."

Ryoma grabbed a piece of meat with his chopsticks, dropping it into her bowl. "It's okay if you can't finish it, but you need to eat something."

She forced herself to pick up some rice and the piece of beef he'd just dropped into her bowl. Soon enough, she became painfully aware that everyone was watching her, waiting for her to take her first bite. She grimaced. "Do you guys need to watch me?"

"Of course." Raiden said, smirking. "We need to make sure you eat something."

Sighing, she brought the food to her lips, stuffing it into her mouth. It had a very pleasant flavor to it.

Satisfied, the guys resumed eating, occasionally taking glances at her as she ate slowly with small bites. Her thoughts gradually drifted along with the silence.

She thought about the life she was living, and how she would last if she were to continue. Would her mind break down into submission, stopping her from having thoughts of escape?

But have I really not broken down into submission yet? Am I just deceiving myself?

I already told Raiden.. I don't care about what happens to myself. The only thing I care about is my family. As long as nothing happens to them, I don't care about my own well-being.