Previously... In Reo's dreams...
...
Hank hit Myeong mercilessly and mindlessly. He was so blinded by drunkenness, his blows flew everywhere, turning everything into his target, the furniture, the shelved toys, the night lamp, the dressing mirror. Everything shattered with Myeong-Suk.
Reo rolled into a ball in the corner as he watched the bloody assault on his mother. His little heart pounding, his tears running, his lips quivering, his entire being quaking with terror.
"Run, Ray! Run! Get out of here!" Myeong screamed, but little Reo couldn't get his terrified legs to work.
The drunken brute flung Myeong hard against the wall on the side and then grabbed the violin on the floor.
Smash!!! He broke it to bits on her head.
The discordant sound of the shattering violin echoed loud in Reo's head.
Myeong collapsed!
...
******************
...
'Mom!', Reo called out, violently jolted awake from his hellish nightmare.
He sat still in the dark, on messy sheets, panting, his heart racing, his head banging and his entire body sweating profusely.
Then he realised it was only a dream. Another flash of his painful past.
"Another nightmare...", he murmured, breathing heavily.
His palm found his traumatised forehead. He gently rubbed his aching head to soothe the pain. Then he took some deep breaths in the dark to calm himself.
...
Finally calm, Reo turned on the nightlight to reveal a luxurious bedroom. Rich, classy and stunning. Its decor was a delicate mix of antique French provincial style and exotic Asian style.
Reo's taste revealed his mixed race. His father was a European sailor who worked aboard a merchant ship and spent most of his time on the high seas until he and all he was worth sunk together with his master's ships. The pain of the devastating loss turned him into a brutish monster and a drunken wreck with too much time on his hands. He took out his frustration on his wife, Myeong, celebrated Asian violinist, angelic performer and Reo's mother.
First, it was the complete grounding...
Then the ridiculous arguments over nothing...
Then the drunken beatings and batterings...
...And if only the story ended there, Reo's nightmares wouldn't be so haunting...
...
***
Reo took the cup of pills on the antique bedside table by him and swallowed 2 pills as Damien had instructed.
"Nightmares again...", he sighed, looking up at the gold trimmings and the intricate mural of his Parisian ceiling with genuine disappointment.
His fingers raked back his silky and thick black fringe.
"I didn't dream of her tonight...
Ciara...
I wish I did...", he whispered with heavy eyelids.
...
He pictured Ciara's beauty.
For that brief moment of their meeting, her flawless face had managed to burn deep into his brain, for reasons unknown to him.
"She has mom's bright smile...
Bright as the golden sun rays...", he whispered, recalling Ciara's golden smile in the spring gardens.
"Yeah. Just as bright...", he mumbled to himself, staring into space at Ciara's image engraved on his brain.
...
...
Reo got out of bed, put on his robes and bedroom slippers and walked through the grand design, antique furniture and priceless pieces of art in his large bedroom towards the balcony. There, he leaned on the golden railings of the balcony overlooking the pretty gardens.
The air smelled like fresh roses and the refreshing spring dew.
He drew in another deep breath of fresh air to soothe the burning scars in his heart and clear his chaotic mind.
His robed silhouette leaned there on the balcony, staring up into the starry night with Ciara.
His beautiful, dark, sparkly pools reflected the shine of a thousand stars beneath curly locks of hair...
The curly locks looked extra fluffy tonight. Result of his tossing and turning in the bed. They waved softly with the gentle wind...
Dishevelled hair had never looked so perfect on a person.
His excellent profile peaked with a pointy nose and descended into glorious, beauty-spotted, pink lips...
Handsome would be an understatement for Reo...
However, his dark pools narrowed with pain, getting shrouded by long lashes...
His pink lips parted with a cloudy sigh...
"Ciara...
You didn't show up tonight...
Why didn't you come?...
Why won't you call me?...
Why won't you show up in my dreams?..." he asked the quiet stars.
Then he recalled Bono's words. "Don't be blue. It's just the first day. She's bound to show up soon. No one, not even an anti-fan can resist your charms.", he had said, flashing the sweetest smile in the world.
"Yeah. She probably was busy or something. Don't sweat it.", Domino chipped in as well, giving him a friendly pat on the back.
"No one can say no to you, Reo. You're sexy af! 3-time Sexiest Man Alive, remember? And even if she doesn't show, Dude! There's plenty of fish in the sea and plenty of seas to explore.", Zero added with a mischievous smirk.
Even Neo felt Reo was overthinking. "You worry too much.", he had said, privately showing his affection when the other members of the band weren't looking.
...
"The guys said that, but I just can't help feeling disappointed... Haaa...", Reo sighed, facepalming.
"I guess getting that tiny break from the night terrors after so many painful years has raised some hope in me...
Hope that I can finally rest from this torment...
Hope I just can't let go of...
Ciara...
Are you my cure?...
I don't know, but I would much rather dream of you than face dad's violence again...", he whispered to the stars.
...
*******************
...
Meanwhile at a Certain Girls' Bathroom at Prestige High School...
...
"Aaaaaahhh! Help!! Someone!! Why is no one coming?!! Why won't the door open?!! Aaaaahhh!!", Sonia cried out, still covered in shxt and hanging on the tips of her now dead toes, in the same disgusting spot hours after Ciara had left her.
Priscilla and Susan, still linked by their ponytails shifted uncomfortably on the cold floors. They had managed to get themselves to the exit door of the bathroom, only to find it locked from the outside! They couldn't get it open.
"It won't open! Ugh!"
"That person that came in definitely did something!"
They complained, totally devastated.
"Ugh!!! Why won't anyone come?!! Aaahh!!", Sonia screamed out of frustration.
...
(Well, here's why no one is coming...)
...
Hours Ago, During Lunch Break...
"Don't EVER mess with me again.", Ciara had issued her last warning and bounced out of the girl's bathroom like a mafia boss. She gagged for a second as she stepped outside. Then she shut the bathroom door carefully, ensuring the towel scrunched underneath the door to soundproof it remained in place. Satisfied, she bounced off to the cafeteria.
The next visitor to the bathroom was 'Sick Laura', the nickname Sonia and her clique had given the frail freckled asthmatic kid they constantly bullied. The very kid they got the vomit from.
The moment Laura spotted her suffering oppressors, she grinned. Her silver braces glimmered with mischief.
"W- who's there?... Hey, please help... Get me out of here.", Sonia called out, unable to see who just came in from where she was restrained.
Priscilla and Susan joined her, calling out and tilting their heads as much as they could to get a peep at the evasive visitor, painfully tugging on their knotted ponytails in the process.
"Please help us! Ow! Oww! Ouch! Please! Ah!", they cried.
The visitor's response was a suppressed snicker.
"What are you snickering about? Hey, didn't you hear me? Please help. I'm stuck! C'mon! Please!", Sonia called again.
Laura snickered into her palm again and then ducked behind a hidden corner to avoid being spotted.
She lifted her phone and clicked the 'Record' button. Then she squatted, quiet as a mouse, except for the suppressed snickers, happily filming the comic scene as Sonia struggled in puke and Priscilla and Susan battled to get off the messy floor.
Satisfied with the footage, Laura walked back to the exit door of the bathroom. She tucked in the soundproofing towel underneath the door properly to ensure the bathroom remained soundproofed, and then walked out, shutting the door behind her.
And Click! She turned the key in the keyhole, locking the bathroom from the outside, and then slipped the key into the pocket of her pleated skirt.
Next, she took the 'Out of Order' sign in the broom closet and displayed it in front of the girl's bathroom with a lovely Bracey smile.
"Perfect.", she giggled with glee like a Christmas elf before skipping off to the rest of her pleasant day.
...
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MORE BOOKS BY THIS AUTHOR:
- Tutoring The King of Entertainment (romance, comedy, drama, CEO, showbiz)
- Thirsty Royals: NEW (romance, comedy, drama, action, villain, R18)