Chapter Text
~ Kaori's POV ~
- "Mother! Please father wouldn't want you-"
CRASH!
My mother threw the glass and then looked at me with anger in her eyes. I prepared myself for what was about to happen.
- "Mother!"
- "You disobeyed me, young lady." - My mother, Rei said dangerously.
Shock registered in my eyes and I froze in midair, my hands shaking. "Mother?"
- "A good little girl does what her mother tells her to do. This behavior deserved PUNISHMENT!" - She screamed in disgust, shooting up so that she towered over me menacingly.
Stepping back in fear, Kaori tried to fight back the tears that threatened to drown her. "Mother, I'm sorry-"
- "SHUT UP! SORRY DON'T CUT IT, YOUNG LADY! YOU ARE A DISGRACE! WHY DID I GET STUCK WITH SUCH A HORRIBLE DAUGHTER!" - She grabbed me by my long yellow hair and slammed my head against the table repeatedly while shouting at her.
Water gushed from my eyes and a sob escaped my throat. "Mother, I'm sorry! Please forgive me!" - I pleaded miserably and sobbed even louder, pleading with a woman who I doubted still had her heart.
I then was thrown across the room with my head bleeding.
What happened?
Right, I told my mother I wanted to have a haircut. But she didn't want it. She wanted me to live the life she wanted. After my father was gone, she changed herself a lot. She became very cruel to me, if not a monster. When I mentioned my father or did something she didn't like, she would hit me badly like that.
She wanted me to have good grades at school. I did.
She wanted me to transfer class. I did.
She wanted me to come back home right after school. I did.
She didn't like me to go play with my friends or Pokemon. I tried not to.
The only ones who could protect me were Professor Okido, Shigeru-kun (if I was out of home), and Pikachu, my father's Pokemon if I was at home.
But when she wanted to hit me, she always ordered her Ruffresia to use Stun Spore on Pikachu so he couldn't help me with anything.
Just like what she was doing then.
- "Now my dear, I got you a beautiful dress, can you put it on for me?" - She showed me a frilly pink dress that showed almost my entire back. "Mother... I don't like th-"
Not again. I hated all the dresses she gave me. They always exposed my back. I just wanted to wear normal clothes. I did like dresses but those ones were horrible to me.
- "PUT THE DAMN DRESS ON AND THEN COME OUT!" - She screamed. I didn't want to be thrown again... so I put the dress on in my room, then walked back to the kitchen to see my mother, holding a whip.
- "Mother?! What is the wh-whip for?!"
- "Why do you think?! It's for you of course!" She gave me an evil smile.
- "Turn around." - I did what I was ordered, ready for the pain. She whipped me a couple of times until she was satisfied. I wanted to scream, but my voice couldn't do it. So he sucked it up and bared through the pain. I tried to stand up. When I succeeded, a maniacal glint blazed in my mother's eyes as she launched her arm from behind her head and smashed his glass against the side of my head. Wine dripped through my hair and bits of glass stabbed through my skull and pierced my flesh that oozed blood like a geyser. "You have no right to mention his name you bitch." She hissed hatefully, looking like a demon to me.
Still in shock from the intensity of the hit, I raised my hand as though in a dream to touch my head. Staring at the blood seeping through my fingers incredibly, I looked up to see her reaching for the potted plant on the table, bringing it behind his head. "Now get out of my house." When I didn't move because of the pain, an enraged glint steeled in her eyes, and spit flew from her mouth uncontrollably, "GET OUT!" she roared, launching the plant straight towards me as I ran for my life, taking Pikachu with me, slamming the door shut just as my father's favorite pot shattered all over the floor.
Through the walls of the house, I heard my mother's screams of outrage and the sound of more glass breaking as she threw them against the walls. Now, more than ever, all I wanted to do was curl up in a ball and cry until everything around me disappeared into the nothingness I wished she'd become. But I knew I had to get away. I had to leave.
- "Mother, goodbye." - My tears shed down along with my blood.
Steeling her heart and gathering any courage I might have had, I ran. I pushed my legs until they burned with exhaustion and my lungs screamed for air. She ran until she found herself in front of Professor Okido's research lab.
A headache hit me as the consciousness left me, my eyes seemed like being emotionless, and I collapsed on the street, hugging Pikachu. I could hear Pikachu's panicking voice and someone's footstep.
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~ Shigeru's POV ~
When I was researching about Eievui's 8th Evolution with my grandpa, Blacky suddenly ran out. The moment she came back, she seemed very panicked.
The only time she panicked like that was when Kaori was injured at school.
Kaori!
- "What's wrong? Is something wrong with Kaori?" - I asked worriedly.
- "Bla-Blacky!"
She nodded in panic then pointed outside.
I hurriedly ran outside, followed by my grandpa. The moment I was at the gate, I was in shock to see Kaori bleeding and Pikachu crying.
- "Kaori! Kaori!" - I called her name many times but she didn't wake up. Her body was beaten up. Her dress was no longer pink, but red. I could see many scars on her back. Her head was bleeding too.
- "Kaori! We need to bring her to the Pokemon Center!" - My grandpa said as I carried her on my back.
- "Pi-Pika-Pika..."
- "Bla-Blacky."
At the Pokemon Center
- "Professor Okido?" - Nurse Joy asked.
My Grandpa and I stood up.
- "We looked at Kaori-chan, she seems to have whip markings all over his back. That is what made her bleed so much, the bruises are equally bad, they haven't healed much. There are some glasses on her hair, it looks like someone threw a glass at her head."
I was totally in shock.
But who could do those to her but her mother? Every time I asked her about that, she always brushed them off and told me she was fine.
Kaori...
.
.
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I entered Kaori's room as soon as I was allowed.
No signs of her waking up.
I sat beside her bed and sighed. He looked at Kaori's extremely pale face. I felt like my heart was being stabbed. She looked thinner than before. There was no pink hue on her cheek like usual. I even could see her cheekbone.
Why didn't I notice?
Why did I believe in her words saying that she was fine?
I could not stand to see her like this.
I would do everything for her.
It should have not been like this.
I held her hand with both my hands as Pikachu and Blacky sat on her bed. Pikachu looked like he wanted to cry. So did Blacky. I closed my eyes.
Suddenly...
- "Shi-Shigeru-kun?"
I was startled as Kaori opened her eyes slowly, calling my name.
- "Kaori, you're awake! I will call Nurse Joy!" - I happily said as I was to leave her hand.
- "Don't go..."
She shook her head and held my hand tightly.
- "Okay, I won't go. Pikachu, Blacky, can you go and get my grandpa?"
- "Pika/Blacky!" - The two Pokemon happily smiled and ran out of the room.
- "I'm sorry, Shigeru-kun."
What?
Why did she apologize to me?
She didn't do anything wrong!
- "Eh?"
- "I'm sorry..." - Her tears fell down.
- "Calm down, Kaori. What happened to you back there?!" - I asked.
She seemed to be hesitant to answer.
- "Kaori... Please tell me..."
- “Nothing-” - She stuttered.
- “Don’t lie to me Kaori… What’s wrong?” - I asked, "I’m worried about you.”
- "I... It's nothing... It's just..."
She was cut off as I lunged toward her. Automatically, she put his hands up to shield herself, the adrenaline from her shouting only adding to the spike of fear she was experiencing. “Shigeru-kun, I-”
She was cut off when my arms encircled her.
When was the last time she had been hugged?
When her dad left?
Why did that hurt so much?
- "Did your mother hit you?" - I asked worriedly.
She replied with a nod. I really wanted to punch her mother. What kind of mother she was to hit her daughter like that? Was she even human?
Looked like she knew that I was mad at her mother.
- "It's not her fault. It's mine..." - She turned away from my eyes, "I disobeyed her... so she hit me... Don't be mad at her..."
- "HARUNO KAORI!" - I was mad at her now. Why didn't she worry for herself?
- "Even if you disobeyed her, she shouldn't have hit you like that! Please care for yourself more!" - I let her go slowly and helped her sit up.
- "She kicked me out... I just want to get away, far from this place. I don't have any good memories here except for you and Professor Okido..."
Pikachu and Blacky came back with my Grandpa, Nurse Joy, and Lucky.
- "Kaori-chan, how do you feel?" - Nurse Joy asked.
- "A bit hurt, but I feel better now." - She smiled.
- "I see. You should stay there for a while so your wound would heal."
- "Lucky." - Nurse Joy's Lucky gave Kaori some medicine.
- "Thanks."
With that, Nurse Joy and her Pokemon left.
- "I heard that you wanted to get away from Masara Town?" - My grandpa asked.
- "Yeah." - She nodded.
- "So she is the one who hit you."
- "Yeah." - She looked down and nodded again as Pikachu sat on her lap.
- "I get it. How about going to Alola Region? My cousin is the principal of Pokemon School in Alola." - He suggested.
- "Wherever can do. I just want to get out of here..." - Her voice was so sad that I wanted to hug her until her pain was gone.
- "Okay. I will help you book the ticket to Alola, Kaori. When you are discharged, come to my research lab."
- "I get it, Professor."
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When she was back to sleep, I came back home with my grandpa. I thought a lot about her. And I had to decide the most important thing to me: Going with her to Alola Region or not?