I sat up in bed. Yuri was still napping. Another sound of glass breaking made me jump from the bed. First, I sat with the door partially open trying to hear what was going on. I couldn't understand a word of it though. A sigh escaped my lips as I opened the door. When I walked by the living room, I could see that Ren was no longer on the couch. There was no sign of Mai either. I moved into the kitchen to find Ren running his hands through his hair as Mai sat picking up the shattered glass. I dropped down beside Mai to help with the glass. She became startled when she saw me. Ren too was now looking my way. However, I didn't raise my eyes to him. Whatever was going on, it was clear that he was throwing a tantrum like a child. No matter how angry one gets it's not an excuse to throw things and watch another clean it up.
"Lena! What are you doing? Mai can take care of it!" Ren's words didn't stop me though. Suddenly I felt a jerk on my arm. In one motion he pulled me up to my feet. Due to the quickness, I clenched my hands around the glass. Instantly I dropped it due to the pain. I watched as blood droplets hit the floor. Slowly I opened my hand, there was now a small gash on my palm. Before I could even process the situation, Ren had wrapped my hand with a dish towel. "It's my fault. I'm sorry. Mai grab the med kit out of the bathroom." he said as he stared at my hand.
"Ren? What happened?" I asked softly. It took a second but his eyes quickly landed on mine and his facial expression went dark.
"Why do you want to learn our language?" Ren asked emotionless. I could quickly tell this was him asking as my captor. My eyes dropped to the floor. This was about me learning their language? What changed from two seconds ago being worried about my hand to now interrogating me? Mai walked back into the room with the med kit. However, before she could reach me, Ren's arm stretched out in front of her. My eyes went back to the ground. "Speak!" he spoke in a very deep demanding tone causing me to jump a bit.
"I just thought it would be easier..." I began but he quickly cut me off.
"To what?? Gather information?? Send it back home to your brothers?? To your military?" Ren spat out. I rubbed my forehead with the back of my other hand.
"How, Ren??? There's no access to anything here. Not even a television. Hell there's not even a book to read! And better yet to who? I have no connections to the military!" I yelled.
"Your father was..." Ren began. I threw the towel that was wrapped around my hand at him.
"My father was a drunk! He...there were no war buddies coming around or any that we knew. The man was the only one to survive and he died when I was 12. I have no military connections!" I yelled. My cheeks were burning hot. Ren's emotions had clearly shifted but it was like he had no way to respond. Mai passed by him freely and we sat down to fix my hand. I glanced back at Ren who's face seemed as white as a ghost. Something I said must have triggered the reaction. My guess, he had lost friends in the field as well and my words had brought the memories back to the surface. The same expression had plagued my father repeatedly before he'd go on a bender. "Ren?" I spoke softly. Quickly, he turned to the door but stopped.
"Mai may teach you our language. But i suggest you don't show your knowledge of it to anyone..." he said. Before I could utter out a word, he was gone. I looked at Mai.
"Was this really just because of me?" I asked. Mai seemed hesitant to speak. Instead she just shook her head no. "Then what was it?"
"The...his grandmother. He did not take kindly to her wanting me to spy and report back. When I first brought up teaching you, before I mentioned her, it seemed like he had no qualms with it. Then once I brought up my new change in position...he lost it." She answered as she finished with my hand. I rubbed the bandage with my other hand.
"Has...has he always been so temperamental?" I asked. Mai shook her head.
"The young master is very good at keeping his emotions in check. I've never seen him like this. The man never shows his emotions to anyone. At most, we've only seen him take to drink in his room alone. Usually after a long tour." She answered as she left to put the med kit back. Good at keeping his emotions in check? All I had seen was the complete opposite. A broken man who seemed angry and confused. Though when i first met him in that field, he was a completely different person. A sigh escaped my lips.
The rest of the day was uneventful. Mai and I took care of Yuri. In our spare time, she started to teach me their language. Starting with the basics. Different greetings, how to say what my name is, or how to ask someone theirs. Then dinner arrived and after telling the others to leave we continued some more while eating. Mai found my accent to be quite charming, but i think she was just being nice. There was a lull in the conversation when Mai piped up.
"Can I know more about you, Lena? I've told you the main points about me but I have yet to learn much about you." she asked.
"Ah...sure. Well I'm a teacher. I'm 26 and unmarried. I have 3 younger brothers whom I miss very much..." I paused. Mai's worried face brought me back to the conversation. I shook my head. "Um...there's not a whole lot to me, I'm afraid. " i said while I shoveled food in my mouth. A tear landed on my hand as I brought another bite to my mouth. Mai placed her hand on top of mine.
We were very quiet the rest of the meal. Yuri was ready for a bottle and our nighttime routine. Not feeling up for more conversation, I told Mai I had it and that she could turn in since we were too. This seemed to disappoint her a bit but she understood. I began to sing a lullaby to Yuri as her eyes fluttered. Towards the end of the second time through, she had fallen asleep. I continued the song as I placed her in the crib. All the energy left my body as I sat on the edge of my bed. I laid back on the bed and dangled my feet barely across the floor.
"You have a beautiful voice..." a voice said. I sat up quickly. It scared me a first, but then I realized who's voice it was. I grabbed one of the pillows and chucked it at him.
"Give me a heart attack will ya?!" I yelled in a whisper. Ren easily dodged my pillow bomb. He sauntered in from the doorway towards me. The smell of alcohol crept in my nose. A sigh escaped my lips causing Ren to stop in his tracks. Though it was dark I could see his fierce eyes locked on mine. He began to walk again but this time towards Yuri.
"Will you sing for me?" he said as he stared down at Yuri. Once he kissed her forehead, he turned back towards me. I wasn't able to gadge his mood. It seemed to be very finicky like a trigger haired switch. My brain told me to sing but my stubbornness kept me silent. I can't stand alcohol. Along with how he acted earlier and he had that same look my father would have before coming home the same way. Ren seemed to move in a blink of an eye. His hand on my chin now.
"Another bad night dealing with grandmother?" I asked. His lips pursed together as he let go of my chin. Turning his back to me he began to strip his clothes. "What are you doing?"
"What's it look like? I'm getting ready to go to bed." Ren answered as he stumbled from taking his sock off. I jumped to my feet and began to leave the room but his hand caught my wrist and flung me backward onto the bed. Before I could say a single word he was on top of me. "I asked for a song. You said no. I figured I could just lay by you and you go to leave?? Why don't you want to be near me? Is it about earlier? Cause I'm sorry. I'm sorry for losing it." He said with his nose barely above my own. This man's words and actions were starting to give me whiplash. He had seemed so calm, composed, and almost cold when I first met him. Now he seemed irrational and almost child like. "Lena.." he whispered. His warm breath gave me goosebumps but the stench of alcohol made my stomach twist. Ren's lips had now moved to right above my own.
"Stop." I said as I tried to push him off of me but he didn't budge. "Ren please, I'm going to get sick!" Again I tried to push him off. This time he allowed his body to be moved and I jumped back to my feet. I didn't have to puke but if I had to smell it any longer I would have. My hand gripped at my stomach trying to pull myself together. "Ren...please go shower and brush your teeth. Try to sober up a bit and then we can talk."
Ren stood up not saying a word. I thought he was heading to the shower. But as I sat on the bed I heard the door open and shut. He left??? After all that?? The house was silent. I shook my head and laid back on the bed. Surprisingly, I fell asleep quite fast. The amount of time, however, was not long. There was a loud crashing sound that seemed to come from the living room. Now what? I quickly moved from my bed and to the hallway to see Mai opening her door too. She was staying in Yuri's nursery since it wasn't being used anyway. She gave me a questioning look to which I shrugged. The two of us made our way to the living room. We found Ren sitting on the couch with the painting, that we had fought about me hanging the other day, was destroyed in the center of the room. Mai went to say something while moving towards him but I stopped her with my arm.
"Mai go back to bed. I'll deal with this." I whispered. She went to protest but I gave her a shake of my head. There was hesitation from her at first but she gave in and went back to bed. I made my way towards the painting and gave it a nudge with my foot. "You know...it wasn't easy to hang that." I said. His eyes barely looked at me then his eyes darted away. I noticed that his hair was wet and I could smell aftershave. My guess was he had listened to my advice and took a shower. Moving past the painting as best I could, I made my way towards him. My foot caught on the frame though and I began to fall. I braced myself for impact and closed my eyes. The ground never came though. I could feel warmth and strong arms around me. Ren had caught me. I slowly opened my eyes to meet his staring into mine.