Chapter 27 Pain Under Rain
Chapter 27 Pain Under Rain
KIARA'S POV
I am walking down the road with unsteady steps.
Every step feels heavy, as if I’m not carrying my body forward, but my memories. Tears refuse to stop flowing from my eyes. The rain has grown stronger, and both Ria and I are completely drenched.
Once again… Once again, I am walking through the rain out of helplessness.
For the first time in my life, I fell in love.
With my heart. With my soul. And that very person… turned out to be my criminal.
I can endure anything. Every pain, every loneliness, every accusation. But I cannot forget that night.
That night… That moment… That fear…
I cannot forgive him, Never.
Holding my tiny child in my arms, the way I survived every single day of my life, only I know that truth.
The days when the world looked at me like I was nothing but a burden.
I cannot forget, Never.
I hate you.
My steps keep faltering, yet I continue walking.
The rain crashes against my face, mixing with my tears as it runs down my cheeks. The cold has seeped deep into my bones. My fingers are numb.
Ria is crying in my arms. Her tiny voice pierces straight through my chest.
“Shhh… baby…” My own voice is trembling as I whisper.
Finally, I reach my dad’s house, My legs almost give up. I stop in front of the gate.
My clothes are completely soaked, clinging to my body. My breathing is uneven. My heart is pounding violently.
I press the doorbell.
The door opens, And there Dad is standing in front of me.
The moment he sees me, he freezes in shock.
His eyes widen.
“Kiara… child?” His voice breaks as he speaks.
That’s all it takes. I completely fall apart.
My tears burst free.
I start sobbing uncontrollably.
I can barely remain standing.
Without wasting a second, Dad steps forward.
He pulls both Ria and me into his arms.
Holding me tightly against his chest, he says—
“What happened, my child? Why are you here like this… drenched in the rain?”
The warmth of his embrace reaches me for the first time in years. As if, after so long, I have finally found safety.
Supporting me, he immediately takes me inside.
The door closes behind us.
About ten minutes later, I change my clothes and come to sit in the same room once again the room where my laughter once echoed,
where I used to dream, and where life broke me for the first time.
The room is the same but I am not.
I change Ria’s clothes with my own hands. Her tiny body is trembling from the cold. I pull her close into my arms. A thick blanket covers both of us, and a heater hums softly beside the bed, but the cold that has settled deep inside my soul no heater can warm that.
Dad sits on a chair in front of me, There is worry in his eyes, but perhaps he still doesn’t grasp the full truth.
In a slow, heavy voice, he says, “Kiara… now tell me what happened, my child.”
I try to steady my breathing, My throat feels tight, as if the words are stuck there, choking me.
Lowering my eyes, I say, “Dad… that man… whose daughter is Ria… the one who destroyed my life…”
My voice begins to tremble, “…He is no one else… it’s Neil.”
A deep silence spreads through the room. Dad’s eyes widen in shock, “What?”
That single word hangs in the air. I nod slowly, “Yes, Dad… it’s true, The DNA report confirmed it.”
For a few moments, he becomes completely silent. As if this truth is not easy for him either.
His fingers grip the arm of the chair tightly.
Then he asks, “What do you want to do now, Kiara?”
I respond instantly, as if years of anger are bursting out of me, “I will never see his face again, Never, Dad, I hate him.”
My arms tighten around Ria even more,
as if the only way to protect her from the world
is to pull her inside myself.
Dad takes a deep breath, His voice softens, “Kiara… my child… I know… I wronged you in the past.”
His eyes drop in guilt, “But today… I only want what’s best for you. After my wife passed away… you are the only one I have.”
My heart starts pounding harder, but old wounds reopen inside me.
He continues, “This is your home. You can stay here as long as you want.”
Then, after a pause, he adds, “But… Mr. Martin is a very good man. There may be some reason, You should talk to him about this.”
A fire ignites in my eyes, “I see a good future for you with him, Kiara, You both look good together. You love each other so much.”
That’s it, That’s all it takes for the last thread of my patience to snap.
Angrily, I say, “So what you mean is, Dad… that I should leave this house?”
My voice rises, Tears begin to spill from my eyes. He immediately says, “No, sweetheart, This is your home Stay here peacefully.”
He understands then, that he won’t be able to make me understand.
Saying only that, he stands up, His steps are slow, as if his heart is heavy too.
The door closes, And I… I break.
My lips begin to tremble, I start sobbing uncontrollably, Holding Ria in my arms, I pull her tightly against my chest.
“I won’t let anything happen to you, my love…” I whisper, kissing her hair.
My tears keep falling onto the blanket, This room, this house everything that once felt like my own feels strangely foreign today.
TO BE COUNTINUE...!!!