Chapter 42: Don't Go

We were back home now, and I stood in the middle of Angel's renovated room. The bags of clothes were sprawled everywhere as the maids carefully folded them according to color and stacked them in her walk-in closet.

The room was exquisite. The kind that every child would want. It had everything, from games to a small sports room, to the most magnificent doll house I had ever seen. Angel was asleep downstairs, and I had left Sin with her. Not just because I was curious about the new room, but because I needed to be away from Sin for a bit.

What had happened earlier, and honestly, a lot more had started to mess with my head. I needed a bit more time to be alone and to drill it into my treacherous mind that this was nothing but a charade.

The way he held me, the way he consoled me, the way he was so protective of me, the way he smiled at me, it was all because he wanted to keep up with this charade.

And maybe because he was a gentleman, too?

I shook my head and pushed my fingers through my hair. I let out a shaky breath and blinked rapidly as if I was trying to get rid of the memories that had dominated the quiet ride back home.

If I let myself think of it, I couldn't help the smile that tugged at my lips. From the way he had stood for me, to his hands around me.

A sudden knock on the door jolted me back to reality, and I looked up, my lips parting.

Sin was by the door, his body half resting on the now open door, his hand resting inside his pockets, his eyes as cold as ever.

That. That was exactly the reason why I had to get rid of these stupid thoughts that kept ringing in my head, telling me that there could be something more. That there could be some meaning in everything he did. For me. And to me.

"You should come down for lunch. It is almost dinner and you have your own clothes to arrange."

I swallowed. I was hungry, but would I be able to sit with him right now? With every operating system in my body going crazy?

"I... I will come in a bit. I just..."

"I don't think you are busy," he said, his eyes scanning around. "They know how she likes her things. Come down with me."

Against my own will, my legs started to move towards him. He didn't move till I finally got to him, and he let his eyes fall on me. He let them dart across both of my eyes before they went lower, drinking me in.

I expected him to say a word, something at least, but he only turned away and walked down the stairs.

I closed my eyes, one hand coming to my chest in order to stabilize my breath. I sighed, then slowly went down behind him. Angel was sitting on the dining chair, her legs swinging. She looked like she had just woken up, and I crouched to ruffle her hair.

She giggled, and I took the seat to her left, avoiding sitting too close to Sin. He looked up, his eyes meeting mine, and for a split second, I felt almost like I should offer him an explanation.

Before I could decide, he turned away, his eyes going back to his food. We ate in silence, except for Angel's talk and giggle sometimes.

I wasn't sure if it was just me, but the tension in the room was thick, and a lot had shifted. Maybe more than a lot, but I could just be delusional, too.

Sin slowly dropped his fork, then closed his eyes as he took slow breaths. He leaned back, then opened his eyes, his lips sucked in.

"Are you okay?"

He gave a small shrug. "A headache. I will be fine."

"Daddy is sick?" Angel asked, and I could hear the worry of a child for the only stable family she had.

"No, baby. I will help him up so he can take a nap. Trust mummy to take care of him."

Sin met my eyes but said nothing. She sniffed and nodded, then turned back to her father. Her eyes looked very close to tears, her lips slightly pouted.

I stood from my seat, then came to Sin and gave him my hand. I expected some kind of resistance, but he gave me a smile and accepted it, then slowly stood up. His eyes squinted lightly, and I wrapped my hand around him, my eyes turning to him.

He met my eyes too, then sighed and just went along with it. Possibly because I looked determined to not let go, or maybe because Angel was watching us keenly, her eyes blinking slowly.

I led him slowly out of the dining room and started to turn towards the stairs when a loud screeching sound reached our ears.

I turned, my hand leaving Sin, but my other hand still holding his. The door swung open, and the butler suddenly ran in, out of breath.

"S... Sir. Madam Larissa is here, and... she is holding a gun."

Sin's brows immediately furrowed, and he gestured to Angel. "Take her up."

The butler immediately obeyed, and I stood there, my chest heaving, my fingers tightening around Sin. He didn't try to leave my hand and just stood there with me, his brows furrowed.

The door swung open merely a minute after the butler took Angel away, and Larissa walked in.

She looked like a wreck, her hair all over the place, her chest heaving. Her dress was slightly torn, and she had tear streaks all over her face, her eyes dark and puffy.

Her eyes fell on me, then our hands, and she gave a small smile. A humorless smile.

"Did you really move on? With her?"

Sin moved forward, my hand still holding his. "What do you want?"

She chuckled, moving further in, her eyes thin as she examined the place. "I don't know at this point. You didn't change a thing. Were you keeping it so I would remember home? Hmm, Sin?"

Sin's jaw clenched, and I wasn't sure if it was the headache or something else, but something passed his eyes, and he looked a bit more vulnerable. Maybe she had struck a chord. Maybe she was right. He had been waiting for her.

"Leave."

She chuckled, shaking her head. "You killed my husband. You killed Aldo!" One of the glass figurines came crashing under her hand, and I took a step backward. "Did you want to acquire me so bad that you would make me a widow? That you would take every single thing away from me? Did you want me to kneel and beg and..."

"Yes," Sin said, his eyes darting to hers. "I want you to kneel and beg. But I didn't kill Aldo. He wasn't worth a bullet. And right now, you aren't either."

Her eyes thinned, and she nodded. "Where is my daughter?"

"You walked out that door and left her crying on the floor. You have absolutely no right to call her your daughter."

She went silent again, then started to laugh. The tears rushing down her face betrayed that laugh, however, and I swallowed.

I felt a little sorry for her. She was horrible, but still... she had just lost her husband.

"Do you really not care about me, Sin? Everything we had? The way you loved it when I caressed your cheek, the way you would melt into me when I kissed your forehead, the way we both loved cooking together. Those twisted toasts that I showed you."

I swallowed, my eyes turning to Sin. His eyes were low, his chest heaving. It was their thing, after all. That was probably why he never ate. Because it was their thing, and I was a wannabe sitting where I wasn't supposed to.

"You don't remember?" She asked, her eyes filling in on him.

He swallowed, then started to turn around.

"Sin!" She yelled, stopping him in his tracks.

When we turned to her, this time, she had the gun on her head, tears rolling down her cheeks.

"Larissa."

"What do I need to wait for? My husband is dead, and I am here, begging you. You don't even remember. You have moved on. Maybe this is the only way I ever will."

"Don't," Sin said, his voice low. "Drop the gun."

She shook her head slowly, then closed her eyes, adjusting the gun against her head.

Sin suddenly started to run to her, but my hand around him only tightened, stopping him halfway between the both of us.

He turned to me, his eyes wide, his chest heaving. He looked down at my hand, then at me, his lips parting.

A single tear rolled down my cheeks, and I swallowed, meeting his eyes.

"I can.. make twisted toasts, too. Don't go."