Ren quietly carried Tsubaki to the couch in the living room. He had thoughtfully turned off the stove before carrying her bridal style outside of the kitchen. Tsubaki was still clinging to him. Her hands wrapped tightly around his neck.
Ren adjusted his seat on the couch to let her feel more comfortable. She was still crying even though the sound of it had turned lower. He stroked her head gently, heart aching with the continued sound of her crying.
When the same thing happened twice, he didn't dare to brush it off as an unimportant matter. There must be a reason why Tsubaki suddenly cried like this and attached herself to him in such a way.
He tried to think of reasons but he couldn't find a plausible one. It might be related to what happened to him three days ago but he felt doubtful as that thought alone wasn't enough to make her being in a crying mess like this.
Tsubaki stopped crying after almost half an hour went by. She tightly clenching his front shirt into fists. She quietly buried her head in his chest.
"Tsubaki, sweetheart..." Ren opened his lips to speak as he continued rubbing her head. "I don't want to make you cry again but... could you tell me why did you suddenly cry like this?"
Tsubaki flinched in Ren's embrace. She closed her eyes tightly. Her lips were still quivering. She knew she had caused unnecessary worry to her husband but she couldn't help it. Since she dreamed the nightmare yesterday, her heart would creep with fear and uneasiness when she couldn't find him next to her.
Should I tell him? Should I?
"I'm not forcing you, love," Ren spoke again. He gently placed his lips on the top of her head. "Whenever you're ready, you could tell me. I'm here. I'm not going anywhere."
Hearing his heartfelt words laced with worry, Tsubaki felt guilty. Her husband was truly worried about her. She weakly looked up, meeting his dark eyes. When almost all people could only see the cold in the dark pools of his eyes, she could see the warmth and love that only belonged to her.
"I... I just..."
Tsubaki paused right after she started speaking. Uncertainty flickered in her eyes. Ren curved up his lips. He leaned down and kiss her forehead.
"Go on, sweetheart." He smiled. "I'm here for you."
Tsubaki pursed her lips. She shouldn't keep this thing from him. It would only make him blindly worrying about her. And she wasn't being fair to him when she had always urged him to share his burdens with her. Tsubaki steeled her heart as she spoke.
"I dreamed of something... something terrible."
Ren knitted his brows. He tightened his grip around Tsubaki. Despite the budding fear in his heart when he heard that, he asked softly, "What dream?"
Tsubaki lowered her head. She tried to calm her heart. Ren patiently waited for her to open up. Rushing into anything won't bring anything good to them.
"I think... it's a scene of an accident..." Tsubaki looked at him again. Only by seeing his urging nod did she continue. "I don't remember the place but... I saw one car... totally crashed... people running around the scene and I was standing there..."
Tsubaki unconsciously tightened her hold on Ren. She closed her eyes again. She felt suffocated. It was like she was drowning in a dark abyss.
Seeing how her face turned paler, Ren spoke, "It's okay, sweetheart. Don't think of it. Just stop if you can't stand it any longer. I don't want you to recall the nightmare."
Tsubaki shook her head. She refused to bow under her fear.
"I don't know what but... I tried to walk over to the car... it was... something made me really scared... I walked and walked but..." Tsubaki paused again. This was the part that made her totally terrified. Her lips quivered as she continued, "The car exploded and I screamed."
Silence fell once Tsubaki ended her words. She once again buried her head against his chest, seeking protection in his warm embrace. Ren quietly kissed the top of her head repeatedly, trying to soothe her even though his own heart enveloped with fear.
He didn't know whether the nightmare Tsubaki told him was a part of her lost memories or it was simply a nightmare. But for her to be terrified and weakened to such a state, he doubted it was only a nightmare. He was fairly certain Tsubaki dreamed the part of when she got into an accident.
But, a car exploded in front of her? Whose car was it?
Ren knew the accident involved three vehicles. A car was totaled once it crashed on an incoming truck. Tsubaki was in a taxi when the driver suddenly tried to escape from the two vehicles but only to crash into a tree. Til now, he didn't understand why did Tsubaki was in the taxi. At that time, he was with Mr. Sagara's men. They forced him to enter a van to follow them back to the city.
A taxi?
A thought flashed in his mind. Ren stared at Tsubaki in shock when a terrifying idea came to him. He was wordlessly looking at her while fear kept clawing at his heart.
No... It's not it... right?
"Ren?"
Sensing the unusual gaze, Tsubaki looked up. Her eyes were puffy because of her crying earlier. She was confused when she saw Ren was absentmindedly looking at her with fear clearly written on his face. His face was as pale as her.
"Ren? What's wrong?" Tsubaki asked softly. She waved one of her hands in front of him but Ren didn't react.
Why does he look so scared?
As Tsubaki was thinking, she was startled when suddenly Ren leaned down and claimed her lips into his. Tsubaki yelped but Ren didn't stop. It wasn't his usual gentle kiss. This time anxiety and desperation laced in his kiss, making Tsubaki more confused.
"Ren... Ren... what's wrong?" Tsubaki asked when she successfully escaped from his intense kiss.
Ren didn't say anything. He just quietly looked at Tsubaki's little face before he kissed her again. The chilly air turned warmer.