The lady in Red (REWRITTEN!)

Chapter 26

One-hundred, and twenty minutes. That's how long I waited, and that's how it took me to calm my nerves and stop crying. I feel my body doesn't belong to me anymore. I can't bear to see my own reflection in the mirror. It reminds me of everything I don't want to remember. My body ached every time I moved, so I refrained from moving. I hadn't realized the impact of the fall had split my knee open on both sides.

Reece, where are you?

I toss and turn by every second, generating so much discomfort along the way. I turn to my bedside and look outside of the window. I walked away from a fight, but I could never just walk away from reality, no matter how hard I try to ignore it. The past follows me everywhere I go, invading my senses when I'm in my most vulnerable state. Mr. Kapoor only lead me to a bitter truth--the truth that defines me now. I'm broken, and I will always be broken. 

I don't know how long I've been out, but a faint touch suddenly awakens me from my sleep. My body jerks slightly from the touch, and I open my eyes to find Reece standing in front of me. I sit up sharply on the bed, and the first thing I see is his shirt.

Bloody white shirt.  None of us make a move or speak. I take that moment to observe him. A burning desire to ask whose blood is painted on his shirt is strong, but I don't ask. My eyes scan his face. There's not a scratch on any part of his skin. The blood doesn't belong to him. The blood belongs to someone else. My eyes well in tears. 

"Reece." He pulls at my arm in one swift movement, and I'm in his arms in seconds. I've been strong for a very long time, but all my restraints are lost in this very given moment, and I let go completely. He holds me still while I cry into him, already staining his shirt dirtier than it already is. 

"Reece," I call out of him again. His fingers find their ways into my hair, and he gently tugs until I'm looking at him. His eyes are cold, stony, and empty. He's looking at me, but I can tell his mind is elsewhere. He's quiet, but not distant. And this shirt...he wears it proudly. The blood does nothing to him, but it taunts me. I reach for his shirt, but he grabs my hand before I could get anywhere near his buttons. His fingers press into my skin a little too hard and a little too deep, and I wince quietly. My eyes meet his.

"Let me look at you," he says, softly. He touches my lips first with his fingers, brushing it lightly, and I feel them visibly shake. It's much more than the temperature dropping in the room. It's not fear. It's anger. There's still a boiling rage inside of him, wanting to come out in its full power. I don't understand the reason behind his threatening rage. But, I see it in his eyes no matter how hard he tries to hide it. His fingers trail down my collar bone, to my chest, and it continues to feather down, all while keeping his eyes locked on mine.

His eyes were the epitome of dark secrets hidden. It was all a box wrapped with a ribbon that's potentially hard to unravel and open up. I knew the Dean family for the longest time since my escape from within Massachusetts. They remind me of light. Reece reminds me of the dark. Reece is the dark.

His fingers leave a trail of fire down my shoulders as he skims them in the most gentle-like touch. What's it going to take to crack down every bit of walls he has up? And if I do crack every bit of bricks down, what am I going to find behind it? What kind of a man is he really? What's he hiding?

What's his secret? 

"What did you do to him?" I find myself asking, lifting myself halfway from the bed. His pupils dilate, and I fear he won't give me the answer I desire. Something flares in between us, something I can't explain. 

"Not enough." There's a slight twitch in his jaw before it's gone. It's as fast as it came, but I'm not immune to it. Reece grabs my hand, gives it a firm squeeze, and pulls my body to the bed's edge before picking me up bridal style. He quietly leads me to the bathroom and puts me down until I'm standing in front of him. Then he sits me down on the toilet lid until I'm facing him when he goes down on his knees. Here, we are face to face, and I get a clear image of him under the soft white light. His eyes scan my face until they land on my lips. I've seen what my lips look like in the mirror. Kapoor split it open from giving me a rough push. I look down, embarrassed, but Reece lifts my chin until I'm looking at him again. 

"Let me look at you." Under the light, his eyes tell a clear story. It's red, like the color of the blood on his shirt. For the life of me, even though there's a lot of room for fear, I can't look away from him. I let him see me the way I am right now, just like seeing the real him right now. Something's happening here. Something I can't comprehend. His fingers go back to touching me, but I grab his hand to stop him with my shaky fingers. I see what's happening here. I feel it now.

"I'm okay, Reece. Look at me," I urge him, grabbing his face. 

"He touched what's mine," he says' so eerily quietly, my insides shake. 

"I'm okay, I'm okay," I chant. But, Reece is so distant all of a sudden. He doesn't hear me. I can see the darkness surrounding him. I'm losing him, I know it. Hoping to bring him back to me, I lean forward and smash my lips against his. The impact of the kiss immediately brings tears to my eyes from the searing pain, but I kiss him anyways. My body instinctively forces me to pull away because the pain radiating throughout my whole mouth is unbearable, but Reece pulls me in closer before I could pull away. He dominates the kiss with his fingers into my hair and I let go of myself completely. 

"I didn't get to kill him. I could have killed him," he mutters against my lips. I pull away slightly with tears in my eyes. Would he? I see the determination in his eyes and it's no accidental. His eyes fall to my knees, and he exhales sharply. I grab his hand and squeeze firmly to bring him back to me again. 

"Reece."