It was a living hell.
That was all Butch could think of
it as, and that’s all it was to him. A complete hell, which he couldn’t escape
from.
“Hey kid?” He snapped back to
attention, and looked towards the person who had addressed him. “How much?”
Butch added up the items quickly,
“One hundred yen please.” He accepted the money and then once again fell back
into his thoughts. He had originally thought working on his dad’s stall would
take his mind off Rae, but it just wasn’t the case.
He lazily watched the people
walking by the stalls, occasionally someone stopped to look at one stall or
another. Suddenly something caught his attention, and he turned his head
slightly.
Rae and her father stood at the
stall beside his, her father was haggling was the owner, but Rae was quietly
watching Butch. Their eyes met almost instantly, and a million raw emotions
were silently exchanged between them. Then her father turned to leave and she
sadly tore her eyes from his, turned and followed him.
Butch let out a breath he had been
unaware her had been holding, and swore to himself. Some way to get her off his
mind.
He was suddenly aware he was being
watched and turned to find other stall owners, and some customers, watching him
accusingly. He sighed, he was still a criminal to them. Somehow, despite his
and Rae’s objections to the contrary, the town seemed to have decided he had
kidnapped her.
If he thought he had any chance he
would leave again. Try just once more to get away.
He had another customer, he served
them on automatic pilot, his spirit still trapped within her eyes. The pain he
had seen there was definitely reflected in his own eyes, but in her eyes was
fear. He didn’t care enough to fear any more, he had killed, anything that
happened to him he deserved. But her fear made him more angry then anything
else. She shouldn’t have to be afraid of her father, she shouldn’t have to
worry about being forced into a marriage with someone she didn’t love.
[I have to see her again] He
thought to himself desperately.
~*~*~*~
The moon filtered in through the
open door of the balcony, painting the room a dusky silver. It was just after
midnight, but Rae was still wide awake. She stood in her silk robe, leaning
sadly against the rail, staring at the stars.
“Like Romeo and Juliet isn’t it?”
She started at the sudden voice, and looked down. Butch stood in the shadows.
A smile grew on her face, “How did
you get in?” She asked him softly.
“Climbed over. Coming down?”
She nodded, and quietly tiptoed
through the house to the back door. He had moved to the very far end of her
large garden, where evergreen trees shadowed everything. She made her way
across the slightly damp grass, not caring about the cold.
She reached him, wrapping her arms
around herself for heat. “Butch, you know you aren’t supposed to be here. You
could get arrested.”
That was true. He had been made to
sign a contract saying he would stay away from Rae, her father and their
property. He shrugged, “I can’t help it.”
She shook her head sadly. “We have
to except it Butch. I don’t want it to be like this, but what can we do?”
He moved forward and wrapped his
arms around her. She sighed and rested her head against his shoulder. “I don’t
know what we can do, all I know is that I would like to see you sometime,” He
told her as he stroked her hair slowly.
“I want to see you too, but how
can I? I’m practically a prisoner here.” She looked up into his deep brown eyes
sadly.
He bent and kissed her softly.
“Just let me stay with you a while now.”
“But what’s it going to help
Butch? A while now will become longer later, and then later even longer. But it
won’t be the same as being with you.”
He didn’t say anything, but
tightened his grip around her. She sighed blissfully into his chest and closed
her eyes.
Suddenly the garden flooded with
light, they lost their embrace as she turned, but kept close. The bright light
that shone around the area was almost blinding, but the silhouette of a man was
clear, and as their eyes adjusted to the sudden light it became clearer it was
Rae’s father. In his hand was a shotgun.
“Dad?” Rae asked shocked, she
stepped back so her back hit Butch’s chest.
“Rae, get over here now.” Her
father’s voice was low and dangerous, his eyes shone like a man possessed.
“Daddy, you can’t kill him!” Rae
exclaimed, feeling her body shiver, although not from the cold.
“Rae!” Her father snapped, the gun
held steadily before him. “I said get over here.”
“Go,” Butch whispered in her ear.
For a moment she didn’t move, then she slowly walked forward, her body blocking
the trajectory of the gun.
“Move.”
She shook her head slowly, but her
father grabbed her arm and pulled her away, with such strength she was thrown
to the floor. He re-aimed his gun to Butch’s chest slowly.
Butch watched silently, oddly
unafraid. Was this really the man who welcomed him into his house for so many
years before? He was sure the man Rae’s father had been was long gone.
He watched as his finger tightened
on the trigger. From that second everything seemed to happen in slow motion,
Rae, whom maybe they both had temporarily forgotten about, was suddenly
standing directly in front of Butch. Before he could do anything, there was a
sound of a shot and her entire body jolted with the shot. Her body fell back
onto his chest limply, and he caught in shock.
He stared at her pale face, her
eyes closed as if in a sleep, and then looked down at her shoulder, which was
pulsing blood from it steadily, her once white robe was now deep crimson. Her
chest wasn’t moving.
“Rae?” He muttered softly, in disbelief.
She had to open her eyes. She had
too! But she didn’t. She lay there silently. An angel in his arms.
He looked at the man who stood not
too far from them who stared at his only daughter incredulously. Butch found
his voice again as he glared accusingly at him. “You killed her! You bastard!”
He sank to the floor, holding her in an embrace.
“No!” Her father whispered
unbelievingly. “I didn’t… I… I…” Then he fell into silence, and stared at Butch
with hollow dead eyes. Slowly he rose the handgun to his own head.
Butch winced at the sound of the
shot, but didn’t tear his eyes from her face. “Rae, please be alive. You have
to be!” He held one of her wrists in her hand feeling for a pulse. “Rae,
please.” He was surprised as two clear drops of liquid fell onto her hand, but
he ignored them, as he continued to search. More tears continued to fall down
his face, as neighbours who had heard the gunshot burst through the house.