Capítulo 32: She Felt Secure Seeing Him So Close to Her

As Kyoya was still facing the abusive mother, countless small heads poked out of the doors of the wards inside the pediatric section. Nurses began to usher the little ones back to their respective beds but some of them were stubbornly refusing the instructions.

"You... scoundrel!" The woman's face flushed in anger, her words stuttered as she was intimidated by the mysterious man's dark vibe. "How dare... you slander me? I'm just educating my child!"

Kyoya sneered as his eyes narrowed dangerously. He walked step by step toward the woman, each of his movements was languid yet it carried a vicious air. The women shrank in fear.

His eyes glinted in menace. In a low voice, he announced, "I could easily make you disappear from here. Want to try?"

"You..."

The woman's face turned pale white. She suddenly collapsed on the floor, her teeth chattering as she stared at the man with wide eyes.

Kyoya gave her a look of disgust. He waved his right hand. In a second, two bodyguards stood beside him.

"Throw her out."

"Yes, Young Master."

Under the astonished looks of the people who were looking at the drama unfolding, the bodyguards grabbed the woman and without any mercy, they began to drag her away from the floor. The woman wanted to struggle yet the men in black's grips were so tight she failed miserably.

In an instant, the ward became quiet. The nurses were speechless. They were surprised by the sudden turn of event.

Excuse me, mister... This is a public place. For you to act like that...

Forget it. The most important thing is peace ensued.

Kyoya turned around. His dark gaze bore onto the child who was still sobbing. His little face was wet with tears as he stared at him with a myriad of complex feelings in his big and round eyes.

This look... he was familiar with it.

It was filled with confusion, doubt and regret before it gradually turned into fear.

As Kyoya watched the little boy in silence, he didn't notice the subtle movement by his side until he felt a familiar warmth enveloping his hand. His eyes flickered in nervousness as he slowly turned his head to look at her.

He forgot that she was here.

Did she... found him weird just now? For acting rashly toward a stranger?

As he was fidgeting inside, her smile greeted his sight, sending a warm breeze to his heart.

"Thank God you acted quickly, Kyoya," Shouko hooked the corners of her lips into a small smile. "If not, I didn't dare to imagine what would happen."

Shouko then averted her eyes from his face, looking at the little boy who was blinking his round eyes. She slowly crouched down, stretched out her hands and wiped his face.

"Did you hurt somewhere?" She asked in a soft voice.

"I... My Mom... She..." The little boy pursed his lips. As if he was too overwhelmed with the change of events, he drooped his head down while both of his hands fiddled with the hem of his hospital pajamas.

From the slightly lifted sleeves, Shouko caught sight of dark bruises. Her body went stiff for a moment.

"Yuuya, let's go and treat your wound first," One of the nurses reacted once she saw the boy's current downcast expression. "Then, I'll read you a bedtime story."

The boy called Yuuya nodded once before he followed the nurses. Both of them disappeared at a corner.

Shouko slowly stood up, her eyes were still looking at the turn of the hallway where the boy tailed the nurse. Her brows knitted slightly as she recalled the bruises she had seen.

"Thank you for your help, mister," The remaining nurse faced Kyoya with gratitude. "And we are sorry for allowing a commotion to happen inside this hospital."

Kyoya waved his hand, indicating it was alright. "That woman is the boy's mother?"

"Yes," The nurse admitted with an uneasy look. "I know we shouldn't talk about the patient's family but... Yuuya's mother has always caused a ruckus whenever the little one being admitted to the hospital. At times, we would be at a loss of what to do."

"What happened?" Shouko finally regained her focus. She looked at the nurse. "Did he really... being abused by his mother?"

Kyoya looked at his little wife. Even from a glance, he could tell she was distressed with what had happened. He took a step toward her, placed his palm at the small of her back, silently offering her comfort.

"That boy... Kuraki Yuuya, has always been admitted here ever since he was really young," The nurse swept her gaze toward the boy's ward, her eyes were full of concern. "He has trouble with his body so he appears smaller than most of his peers. His parents always complain about the treatment cost... but, it got worsened when his father suddenly ran away leaving him with that woman."

"That..." Shouko was surprised, she didn't expect that besides suffering from the abusive behavior of his mother, he was abandoned by his father.

A nasty feeling crept in her heart.

"Poor child," The nurse heaved a sigh. "We have always wanted to help him but the welfare council here is useless. Whenever that woman faking her tears and saying she only has him, they would back away. I'm afraid over time... it would be too late."

Shouko and Kyoya remained stood on the same spot even after the nurse had left to attend to her task. From the way they looked, one could easily see that both of them were disturbed by what the nurse had said.

After a while, Kyoya turned to look at his wife. Shouko's eyes were still directed at the hallway where the little boy's ward was placed. Her brows knitted as a helpless sense of sadness lingered in her eyes.

Kyoya held her hand, slowly guiding her back to reality.

"Shouko."

Shouko pursed her lips. She blinked back her tears before she tilted her head to his side. She tried to smile but her lips curved up awkwardly.

Kyoya pulled her into his arms. He stroked her head, each of his movement was laced with tenderness.

Shouko didn't reject his touch. She raised her hands and gripped each side of his sweater. Her long hair fell down, obscuring her face from being seen.

"Kyoya..." After a long period of silence, she finally called out to him.

"En?"

Shouko choked back a sob. "Let's go back?"

Without much thought, Kyoya nodded. "Okay."

Their original planned to visit Little Haruki was pushed back to later. Kyoya silently brought Shouko back to her ward. Both of them were in silence, no one wanted to talk.

Even without her telling him, he understood what had bothered her.

Ever since before, Shouko would always react like this whenever she saw or knew any child who got mistreated by their parents or guardians. He would always see the same reaction whenever she interacted with the children who were abandoned in the orphanage they frequented for charity.

Her sense of security was low. She might appear calm and happy on the surface but only he knew how much this kind of thing bothered her.

Especially when she knew about him.

Kyoya shook his head. This wasn't the time to dwell in the past. He stared at her back, she was walking slowly toward the bed with her head lowered down in low-spirit.

"Shouko."

Shouko paused her step, she turned her head to look at the man standing behind her. His dark gaze was so profound as he bore his eyes on her, making her unable to say anything.

Both of them looked at each other in the quietness of the private ward.

His eyes were as deep as a lake, slowly luring her into them until she lost her sense of time. She was enchanted by those dark orbs. Even if one might find him intimidating, she didn't feel that.

Instead, she felt secure seeing him so close to her.

It was a different kind of security that Ono and Aunt Masako brought to her.

Her lashes fluttered when she realized they had been looking at each other for a long time. Flustered, Shouko averted her eyes from his. She looked at her hands that were clenching the hem of her hospital pajamas.

"Sorry..." She softly muttered out the word even when she herself was confused with the apology. "I think... my mind is in a mess right now..."

Kyoya closed his eyes, opened them back and took steps toward her. Shouko had yet to react when he gently pulled her toward him, enveloping her in his embrace. Her view was changed to the sight of the base of his neck.

"Kyoya..." Shouko was startled by the sudden hug. The heat of his body diffused to hers.

Kyoya grunted softly. He pressed her head to rest on his chest as he slowly savoring the feeling of her soft body against his.

"Today is quite tiring," He said after a moment of silence. "You should go to sleep first. We should leave everything for tomorrow."

Shouko held her breath. Her eyes felt hot again. The care and concern in his voice were directed to her, making her felt a surge of warmth in her heart, easing the invisible burden on her.

"Okay," Shouko nodded.

Kyoya smiled faintly. He patted her head twice before he let her go.

"Go to sleep. I need to speak to the bodyguards," He led her to bed. Once she was settled down, he tucked her in with the blanket. "I'm just outside if you need anything."

Shouko looked at his pale face and then to the vast bed under her. Even though this hospital wasn't as big as the ones in the city, it still had spacious private wards for those who wanted it. Her hospital bed was slightly smaller than her King-sized bed in Rosy Mansion which meant it could easily fit two persons.

Recalling Kyoya's words in the morning, Shouko cast her shyness aside as she made a resolve in her heart.

"Kyoya."

Kyoya had just headed to the door when she softly called his name. He stopped, turned around and gave her his full attention.

He could see her cheeks reddened with blush, earning his confusion.

"The bed is big. You don't have to sleep on the couch. Then... good night!"

Once she had done speaking, Shouko quickly covered her entire body with the blanket and turned her back on him. Her face was hot as she thought back of her words. She pursed her lips hard.

Argh! It's so embarrassing!

Kyoya was dumbfounded with her action. He had yet to fully register her words when she suddenly wrapped herself with the blanket, turning into a cocoon.

Then, her words came back to his mind.

Slowly, the corners of his lips curved upward.

"Alright," Kyoya resisted the urge to hug her again. He placed both of his hands inside the pockets of his pants. His eyes landed on the bump on the bed. "Good night, my wife."

Then, he left quietly after he switched off the lights.

Shouko blinked her eyes.

What did he say? Wi... wife?

Argh! What have I done? Why did I invite him to sleep on the same bed with me?

As Shouko was wallowing in her embarrassment, the uneasy thoughts that lingered in her mind dispersed.

She didn't think of the urgency and anxiety that drove her to run into the fire.

She didn't think of the helplessness she felt when she saw the little boy being scared by his mother.

She didn't think of anything.

With a small peace of mind, she drifted to her sleep as her exhaustion caught up to her. Her slow and steady breath slowly filled the room. The heaviness in her heart subsided as she slept peacefully.

Outside of the ward, Kyoya spoke with the chief of the bodyguards. The man that was in his mid-40s stood straight in front of his master.

"The gas leaked due to poor maintenance?" Kyoya frowned hearing the man's words. He crossed his arms, displeasure flashed in his eyes. "Hold the person-in-charge responsible."

"Yes, Master," The man, Chief Manabe nodded.

Due to something that could be prevented by quality maintenance, a tragedy occurred today. Leakage of gas could easily destroy the whole building if things go wrong. They were lucky it only badly affected the restaurant. Even though the stores next to the restaurant were caught in the fire too, the spread stopped there instead of swallowing the whole building.

The buildings in the shopping district were just one-story which had tremendously had helped them.

The shopping district was developed by Kashino Corporation. Even though the investment was small compared to the other development plans but Kyoya wasn't one to let it be in a mess. Each shop lot would be inspected regularly to ensure they could provide the best service to the patrons.

For such a thing to happen... he would definitely settle the accounts with those responsible in this matter.

Ryota, who had been informed of the incident in the evening chuckled coldly before he said a few words, "I smell rats."

"It's time to purge the rats," Kyoya looked at Chief Manabe with a meaningful glance. "We've let them roaming freely for a long time."

Chief Manabe nodded. He knew what to do.

Kyoya gave the older man a few more instructions before he told him to leave. Chief Manabe gave a respectful bow, spun on his heels and headed toward the elevator. He had many things to be done within a short time.

"Wait."

Chief Manabe paused in his step. He turned around. His master was looking at him with a complicated gaze.

"Is there anything else, Young Master?"

Kyoya glanced at the closed door of Shouko's ward. He nodded silently.

"That woman, handle her well," Kyoya said lowly yet there was a trace of murderous intent in them. "Pay the local welfare council a visit."

Chie Manabe shuddered inwardly. Without questioning the younger man, he nodded.

"Understood, Young Master."

REFLEXIONES DE LOS CREADORES
hansora

I'd like to ask, do you guys this story seems off somewhere? The plot or the writing?

I'm just thinking because I'm afraid it's going downhill. My mood could be affected with the condition of my hand so please tell me if there's anything I should pay attention to.

Enjoy :)

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