Dubiety [Rei & Sachi]
Rei hadn’t realized the tears he’d been trying so hard to hold in were falling until he felt a soft brush of lips over his cheek. Sachi. She was kissing his tears away, lips pressing just under the path of a tear and stopping it in its tracks. He could feel his face beginning to heat up at the sensation of her lips against his skin but he made no attempt to pull away from her. It was warm in her arms, almost unbearably so, but did not make him feel physically uncomfortable. He hadn’t felt that way around Sachi for a long time. She was… warm and kind, soft and gentle. If anything, he felt safe. It was a feeling he hadn’t felt in a long, long time and it made his chest ache in longing when he thought about her.
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Sachi felt Rei stiffen beneath her. The action was enough to make her regret her words immediately. Already she could feel her throat growing tight, her eyes growing watery, her face growing hot. She should have remained silent. Everything had been fine until she'd opened her mouth and said those incredibly stupid words. Hadn't she promised herself that this wouldn't happen when she'd left Japan? Idiot, she cursed herself - grimacing outwardly as she thought it. Idiot. Stupid idiot. Why did she have to say that? It wasn't as if Rei was going to declare his feelings for her in some grand, sweeping gesture and then ride off into the sunset with her. They were little more than awkward teens, the both of them - grasping at the coattails of adulthood with one hand while dragging their childhood along with the other.
"I do." Sachi's voice was just as soft as his. Beneath her hand, she could feel his skin grow warmer with each passing second. She wanted to get away from him. There was no reply. He wasn't responding. There was no look of kindness, no happiness. Not even a smile. If anything, he looked shocked and nervous. Sachi's stomach turned. At once, her face fell. There was a look of intense pain on her features, followed by one of sadness. Then, just like that, she wiped all of it away with a well-practiced mask. It was a talent - one long-learned from growing up in a family that berated her at every turn. Even her eyes barely betrayed anything of her real emotion. Sachi fixed a crooked smile on her lips, as if she'd told a particularly bad joke. "Don't worry about it. It's not that big of a deal. Just forget it." Despite her appearence, her tone of voice was full of pain. It was a lie. A particularly bad one at that.
His hold was tightening on her. At once, Sachi felt trapped. Panic took hold in her chest. "L-Let me go." She didn't want to hear him tell her that he was flattered, but didn't feel the same. She didn't want to deal with the pain of rejection yet again. But still his grip didn't loosen. Did he really intend on keeping her this way? Even if she was comfortable in his hold on some level, Sachi couldn't stay there any longer. Not when she knew it would end with her in tears. "Let go!" Her hands braced against his shoulders as she leaned away from him. Still nothing. Digging her nails into the fabric, the artist used what strength she could muster to get away from him. It was, seemingly, enough. Popping out of his hold, Sachi fell backwards with a yelp. And, just like last time, she caught herself against something - the coffee table, to be precise. Magazines went flying. A few fell from their stacks onto the floor. It might have even been called a mess had her apartment actually been clean. But that wasn't the worst of it.
No, the worst was the scream that came from Sachi. It was one of fear and pain, mixed together to create something that sounded like a panicked animal. Unlike her lucky break with the workstation, Sachi had hurt herself this time. Both mugs of tea had overturned - jostled by her fall and Sachi, in her reaction, had braced her hands against the table. The minutes between her making the tea and her escape from Rei had done little to cool the liquid. Already, the artist's skin was reddening in a way that seemed painful. Sachi drew in on herself, blinking back tears as she gazed down at her hands. Her livelihood. "No..." The word came as a sob, followed quickly by the same word repeated over and over as her breathing grew sharp and shallow.












