The night wrapped around Lena like a heavy, humid blanket as she stormed out of the Airbnb.
The door slammed behind her with a bang that echoed down the quiet residential street.
Streetlights cast soft, amber pools on the damp pavement from an earlier drizzle, reflecting off parked cars and the occasional puddle.
Cicadas hummed in the small trees lining the sidewalk, their song blending with the distant murmur of city traffic.
Lena's legs carried her a short distance before she collapsed onto the edge of the driveway, her back against the low concrete wall.
Her bandaged arm throbbed in time with her beating heart. Tears streamed down her face, hot and angry, mixing with the cool night air on her skin.
She wiped at her eyes roughly with the back of her good hand, smearing the moisture across her cheeks.
Her brown curls, loosened from the chaos of the evening, stuck to her damp forehead and neck. The slap from her father still burned on her cheek, a physical echo of years of pain.
Footsteps approached from behind.
Lena didn't turn, but she recognized the rhythm. Kaito slowed as he reached her, his sneakers scuffing softly against the driveway.
He hesitated for a second, then lowered himself to sit beside her on the cool concrete.
The warmth of his body cut through the night chill.
For several long minutes, they sat in silence.
Only the cicadas and their breathing filled the space.
Lena stared straight ahead into the darkness, processing the whirlwind of rage, grief, and exhaustion crashing through her.
Eventually, she turned her head slightly, her eyes red-rimmed and weary.
"I'm sorry you got dragged into that mess."
Kaito kept his gaze forward for a moment before replying, voice steady and low. "I'm glad I was there. Gave me the chance to punch your dad for hitting you."
Lena stayed silent, letting the words settle.
She pulled her knees closer to her chest, wincing at the pull on her bruised thigh.
"I didn't mean it," she said finally, voice cracking. "When I said I hate him. Even if I want to hate him… it just takes so much energy out of me. I hate what he did. But I just can't hate him, no matter how hard I try. Because he's still my dad. And there's still a part of me that loves him."
Kaito turned to look at her fully. His dark eyes were soft in the dim light, reflecting the distant streetlamps. He didn't offer empty sorry's or rush to fill the silence. Instead, after a long pause, he asked hesitantly, "Do you want a hug?"
Lena chuckled weakly, the sound watery and surprised.
"I'm nineteen and you're asking to hug me. Nobody has ever asked me that before."
"I'm asking you," Kaito said simply.
She looked at him, her expression cracking.
"Yeah."
Kaito shifted closer and wrapped his arms around her. Lena leaned into him, her strong frame trembling slightly as she hugged him back.
Her face pressed into his shoulder, the fabric of his t-shirt absorbing fresh tears.
She sniffled, the sobs quieter now but no less raw.
They stayed like that for a long while. The cicadas continued their song. A gentle breeze rustled the leaves overhead. Kaito's hand rubbed slow circles on her back, careful of her injuries.
When Lena finally pulled away, she wiped her face again, leaving faint streaks. Kaito didn't press. Instead, he leaned back on his hands and launched into a story, his tone shifting to something lighter, almost theatrical.
"When I was a kid, maybe seven or eight, I was playing with my friends in the living room. We were pretending to be pro wrestlers—jumping off the couch, slamming each other with pillows, the whole thing. I went for this big dramatic move and crashed straight into my mom's glass coffee table. Shattered it everywhere. Glass everywhere. My dad heard the crash and came running in, face red like a tomato. He starts yelling and chasing me around the house with a slipper in his hand. 'Kaito! Get back here!' I was terrified. I ran into the kitchen, dove under my mom's skirt like it was a fortress, and held on for dear life while she tried to scold him."
Kaito demonstrated with dramatic gestures—mimicking his younger self running in circles, arms flailing, then diving dramatically to the side as if hiding under an imaginary skirt.
He added sound effects: exaggerated yells, a high-pitched "Papa, nooo!", and the imagined crash of glass.
Lena's tears slowed. A genuine laugh bubbled up, then another. By the end of the story, she was smiling properly, the heaviness in her chest lifting just a fraction.
"You actually hid under her skirt?"
"Like my life depended on it," Kaito confirmed, grinning. "Mom saved me that day. Dad still brings it up when he wants to embarrass me."
They sat a while longer, the conversation drifting to lighter topics—silly training fails, weird foods they'd tried in Japan, the absurdity of the lake incident.
The night air cooled slightly, carrying the faint scent of rain on the horizon. Eventually, Kaito stood and offered his hand again.
"Ready to head back in?"
Lena took it, standing with a small grimace.
"Yeah. Let's go."
They walked back inside together. The living room lights were still on, casting a harsh glow.
Kaito paused in the hallway. "I'll check on things. You head up if you want."
Lena nodded and went upstairs to her room, closing the door softly behind her.
She sank onto the edge of the bed, staring at the floor, processing everything in the quiet.
Downstairs, Kaito walked into the living room.
The scene was tense.
Thomas sat on the couch, holding a makeshift ice pack to his bruised and bleeding face where Kaito's punch had landed.
Elena and Mia hovered nearby, patching him up with antiseptic and gauze.
Thomas scowled deeply when he saw Kaito.
Kaito approached without hesitation, stopping a few feet away.
His voice was calm but edged with steel. "You should bang your head into a wall to knock some sense into yourself. Why marry someone? Why make vows of love if you're just going to cheat anyway? A man should always be loyal to his wife, and his wife to him. You should be ashamed of yourself to call yourself a husband and a father, because you clearly aren't either of those things."
Thomas opened his mouth to retort, but Kaito continued, clenching his teeth.
"If you cheat on your wife once, you'll cheat again. You aren't going to change unless you want to, and it's clear you don't want to. At least if you cheat, have the decency to stay single, reflect, and not immediately go find a new wife and have new kids. Men like you are the reason why women don't feel safe."
The room was dead silent except for the faint sounds of the kids upstairs. Elena and Mia exchanged uneasy glances. Kaito exhaled sharply.
"I'm going home. Take care of your family—if you still can."
He turned and left without another word, the front door clicking shut behind him.
Elena stared at the door for a long moment, then at the man she had once loved.
Something snapped.
She smacked Thomas hard over the head with the back of her hand.
"Tomorrow, you two are finding another Airbnb. I'm not doing this."
She walked upstairs without looking back.
Mia turned to Thomas with an angry, disappointed expression. Without a word, she followed Elena upstairs, leaving Thomas alone in the living room with his bruised face, his regrets, and the heavy silence of the night.