POLY (UPDATED 04/22/2023)

Chapter Eight

The car ride home was silent, despite Yohani attempts to keep a conversation going. She blabbed on and on about everything she saw in the mall and how Greg should allow her to do a bit of online shopping and so on.

Kitten sat in the back, head against the window as she pondered on how Greg and Zach could be brothers. They were two different human beings. One was possessive, dark, and manipulative. The other is sweet, caring, and pure bliss.

Or maybe that's a facade. What if this is just a setup? What if Greg and Yohani played innocent just for Kitten to leave Zach and enter another troubling situation? Or what if they help prove to Zach that Kitten was a worthless nobody?

What if he's waiting for them back at the house to pull Kitten away and torture her?

Kitten inhaled a sharp breath, hiding her tears away from the couple in front of her. Is any of this real?

The car came to a stop and her eyes laid upon the mansion that was meant to be her safe haven. That was meant to be her new home and provide her a new life.

"C'mon Kitten, I'm running us a bath," Yohani giggles.

Kitten could barely let out a sound as she climbs out of the car and wobbled her way inside. If Zach is in here this is the end of her life?

She watched as Yohani bounced upstairs and Greg carried the bags in by himself. Both of them not having one care.

Slowly, Kitten looked around for any sight Zach. She sniffed the air for his cologne, she checked the couch for any heat spots.

Greg stepped into the house before his face was casted with confusion. He watched as Kitten stumbled aimlessly about with her scanning eyes. What was she doing? Did she lose something?

"Everything okay?" He asks and his heart sunk when he saw the fear in Kittens eyes.

"Nothing," she gasped before rushing up the stairs.

Guilt started to set in because he knew they would have to talk about it later on tonight, first he needs to secure the house. Keep both of his prizes safe.

"Kitten you're taking forever, we need to take a bath before Greg gets dinner started." Yohani pouts as she walks into Kitten's room.

Kitten turned to her with a fake smile trying not to show much emotion. "I'll take one in the other bathroom, I need some space."

Yohani frowns as she takes a step towards Kitten who turns away. Holding her shaking hands together. Trying to keep her emotions at bay, Yohani simply walked out of the room and to her bathroom.

Kitten sighed and gathered her clothing to go take a bath. Maybe she needs a hot bubble bath. What if Zach comes in to drown? Kitten shakes the thought out of her head.

Walking into the bathroom, Kitten runs a shower instead. Allow the steam to fog up the glass and the hot beads of water to give her a different pain to think about. Cause her mind to actually make thorough thoughts.

Greg and Yohani will never hurt her, Kitten knows that. She thinks. If they wanted to hurt her they would've done it when Zach beat her. When he was hovering over her with the wildness in his eyes and cocaine on his breath.

Kitten's tears meld into the falling water trying to get Zach out of her mind. Especially him getting on drugs. It's crazy how he was just so perfect and the two were making plans to get married and move away to a house surrounded by nature.

Then he got addicted to cocaine and more drugs and just started spiraling down.

Kitten sticks her head under the water in another attempt to get Zach out of her mind. If he stays out of her head she'll be on task with the situation at hand.

Yohani walks down the stairs in her pajamas, squeezing the ends of her hair to get the last drops of water out.

"Hey, how was the bath with Kitten?" Greg asks as he stood in the kitchen.

Hopefully she opened up to Yohani and they'll be able to come to a resolution to the problem.

"She did not want to take a bath with me, something about her needing space today, I think I might have over did it at the mall." Yohani pouts.

Greg gave a supportive smile as he set the stove, yet he was puzzled. They had such a great day, what was the problem?

"Don't feel that way, I think something triggered her at the mall and she doesn't know how to deal with it, so giving her space is what is needed, but don't feel down baby girl." Greg gives words of support.

Whatever it was that triggered Kitten at the mall he was sure he could bring her back down to earth.

The sound of footsteps coming down the stairs caused Greg to look up at Kitten who stood in his long sleeve sweater and some knee highsocks. She simply lifted up her hands with a tear stained face and Greg immediately engulfed her into his arms.

"You okay butterfly?" Greg asks.

"Just hold me a little while longer," Kitten mumbles and goes deeper into the hug.

Yohani smiles softly forgetting that Kitten needs to be adjusted into their relationship. She didn't know why she thought everything would be magically fixed since Kitten was in their relationship.

As they pulled away, Yohani beckoned Kitten to her side. Her heart humming as Kitten eased her way over and slipped into her arms.

"I need for the both of you to answer a question for me."

Greg and Yohani pause their movements and turned to Kitten. They stared intently as Kitten adjusted herself in her seat.

"Greg..."

His heart pauses as he watched Kittens eyes water.

"Are you Zach's brother?"

Shit. Greg turned to Yohani who let out a nervous chuckle, awaiting for Greg to say something. He felt Yohani eye him, encouraging him to answer, but, his heart was racing as his mouth began to dry.

What does he say?

"Yes," Yohani took the initiative, "he is Zach's brother, but that doesn't make a difference to things."

Kitten scoffs, "to you."

The tears welding in Kitten's eyes made Greg's heart break as she pulls away from Yohani. Wiping away her tears. He needs to say something to her anything to calm the fire before it reaches a blaze.

"Yknow what, maybe I, like, moved too fast into something I don't fully understand with people I don't fully know and I don't want this anymore," Kitten announces.

Yohani tried to calm her down with some sweet words, but Kitten didn't want to hear anything. Yohani's throat was just closing up while her mind focuses on the thought of losing Kitten.

She kept reaching out for her, but Kitten continued to stray away. Not wanting to be touched or held by Yohani. Yohani felt her heart withering away.

"Kitten please listen it's -"

"No! I don't want hear anything from two liars, I'm done." Kitten stomps away with tears in her eyes.

Greg has nothing to say. He said nothing through it all and that itself speaks volumes. He and Zach are working together to keep Kitten grounded.

She's not going to stay grounded for another man ever again.

"Greg go upstairs and talk to her!" Yohani yells as she sobs.

Greg continued to stand still not fully functioning. Yohani continued to call him, but Greg was too far gone.

He can't lose Kitten for this. He has to grasp a better understanding. He has to buy her a gift. He has to keep his perfect diamond.