#me changing this chapter last minute after having worked on it for a month 😿

[braineater444]

To Be a Princess

Chpt 3

Last/Next

TW: Disordered eating, Violence, Not proofread (just tell me and I’ll correct any mistakes)

A/N: This isn’t crazy because I’m going through a lot and just want happiness for a moment lmao. Short and sweet.

Hajime munches on his own salad and watches as you finally finish separating out all of your lettuce and eat only the cucumbers and other small things. He smiles.

“The villa we bought… it’s almost done.” Hajime breaks the silence. You have no idea what he’s talking about. “Haruchiyo is going to be watching you here while Mikey and I go see the progress today.”

“Who the fuck is Haruchiyo? And why can’t I come?”

“You’ve met him before. And I just don’t want to bring you. You’ve been… difficult lately.”

So, you’re being punished? “Whatever.”

“You know, I don’t really like Haruchiyo. He’s a bit- If he wasn’t bringing Mikey I would’ve had someone else do it.”

Huh?

✮✮✮

You do recognize Haruchiyo. A scarred face with a bright pink mullet and blonde roots starting to show. The man who drugged you on your night out. Your one perfect chance to run that he didn't let you take.

“Why do they always have me doing stupid shit. I am not a babysitter.” He huffs as he falls into the plush cushion of the couch right next to you.

“Because you look like that.” You respond flatly to words that weren’t aimed at you. You’re sure you’re right, though. Look at him. Without the scars he still would look crazy.

His head turns to meet your gaze. There’s a moment of quiet consideration before his lips crack into a crooked grin. He raises his hand slowly to meet your mouth. Suddenly the nail of his thumb presses into the gash on your bottom lip hard enough to draw blood and make you jerk to the far side of the couch.

“At least I don’t look like you, right?” He quips and smiles to reveal unusually straight and bright teeth. “Guess that’s why you couldn’t go either.” He shrugs.

Your brows furrow.

“What did he do that for?” Haruchiyo prods. He turns his body to face you and curls up on the couch. His head rests on the cushion and he waits for you to tell the story with a closed smile and a glimmer in his big, blue eyes.

It’s a visceral thing to recall. Your face aches at the memory.

“A couple of days ago, we got into an argument.” You can’t recall what about. “I took the elevator down and he followed me, so I ran and tried to knock on the neighbors doors, but nobody answered.”

Hajime was pissed. You can still feel his hands almost pulling out your hair as he dragged you back home. The burn of the carpeted hallways against your knees and your throat raw from screaming. It never quite leaves you.

Haruchiyo snickers and shakes his head.

“When he caught me, he slammed me into the wall, so I think that’s how my lip was busted. But my eye,” You point at the black eye and cut that sits right under it. “He punched me once and his ring sliced me pretty deeply.” You can still see the anger on Hajimes face so clearly in your mind.

Haruchiyo is keeled over in tears from his laughter. It’s not that funny. At least not to you.

“Are you fucking dumb? No one lives in this place.”

It’s obvious now. No cops were called. Neighbors certainly would’ve heard your screams. But no one came to help. No one will come to help. It’s been a slow realization.

“We thought about starting to rent it out later this year but I couldn’t tell you shit about what’s going on with that. I doubt it’ll happen now, with him beating you up in the hallways and stuff.”

✮✮✮

“She can’t come to my place? Why do I have to stay here?”

You can hear bits of what Hajime is saying over the phone.

I’ll be back in the morning…I don’t trust you….

“Whatever.” Haruchiyo rolls his eyes and hangs up before Hajime finishes talking and immediately calls someone else.

“I’m stuck at Koko’s place with this girl. Come over?” He smirks at something you can’t hear. “Yeah, okay.”

✮✮✮

Ran is an objectively beautiful man. Even the absence of a soul behind his eyes adds to his allure. It’s a shame. Ran could model, but instead he’s this.

“Hajime is going to kill both of you.” You giggle as you watch Ran pour one of Hajime's favorite expensive wines into Haruchiyos mouth. It slightly overflows and starts to trail down his chin before Ran catches it with his index finger and licks it off the digit.

“He’ll kill Haru, not me. I was never here.” He speaks playfully as he turns to you. Haruchiyo sits behind him on the too big kitchen table rubbing his leg against Rans. “Open up. Your turn.”

You don’t really like Hajimes wine but you do as you’re told. Your head is tilted back and your mouth hangs open in wait, but before the splash of the dark red wine hits your tongue, you feel the warmth of Ran’s hand on your neck holding you steady.

It feels good to do something that you know will piss that man off even if it’s just swallowing down his favorite nasty drink.

After Ran takes his own swig he says something about how good the wine is, but you don’t hear it. What you do hear is his next statement:

“I would never let that happen to my face.” Both he and Haruchiyo laugh when your only response is a middle finger.

So, Ran knows he’s good looking.

Haruchiyo leans into his friends chest and Ran embraces him with the bottle still in his hands.

“Yeah, but it makes sense for Koko. Remember that uhh… The guy?” Haruchiyo looks up at Ran who’s still lost in grimacing at the marks on your face.

Ran shakes his head. “What guy?”

Haru pulls out of Rans arms to really look at him. “The blonde one? With the- uhmm. The ugly hair.”

Rans brows knit closer as he tries to remember. He nods as if he’s following, but you can tell he’s still confused.

“Koko stalked him for a while. What was his name?”

“The faggot with the burn mark across his face?”

“Yes!”

“I don’t know.”

“Well, Koko- NO. Girl!” Haruchiyo turns to you with wide eyes and a smug grin. “Before you, there was this like… guy. And I don’t know if they were dating or not but they definitely broke up and- uhm…” He looks to Ran and snaps his fingers trying to remember what happened.

“Yeah.” Ran sounds much calmer. “A couple years ago, it ended between them and Koko went and beat the guy about it.” He shrugs and takes a sip of the wine. “They weren’t together, but Koko was obsessed with him so when the guy didn’t want anything to do with him he lost it.”

“I remember after that he got worse. So I think it makes sense why he’s weird now.”

Ran thinks for a moment and then nods. “They used to be best friends before they got separated, then I don’t know. I see the guy sometimes and I think he remembers me.”

It would’ve been nice to know this before getting this far in.

“You think they fucked?” Haru muses.

“I hope. For Kokos sake.” Ran scoffs.

✮✮✮

“What would you do if I tried to leave?” You can’t tell if you’re being serious when you ask and Haru doesn’t seem bothered enough to answer aloud.

He only pulls up his shirt just enough to flash the gun tucked in his waistband. Without looking, Ran says “Be good.” And you can’t tell if he’s talking to you or Haru with the way his eyes never leave the tv screen.

“Shooting me doesn’t really seem like the solution.”

The man shrugs and rests his head on Ran’s shoulder.

“You’re too malnourished to get very far anyway.” He teases.

He’s right. You drop it.

You have no idea what movie you’re watching. It’s late and you’re a little tipsy. This is the best life has been in a while. Why run?