What have you done?

"Tonight I saw a side of him I've not seen in a long while"

• Koen •

"Well?" Ivy said expectantly
"Well what?" I asked, sitting down
"Well what's going on?" She asked

"You tell me, Inara's the one ignoring Kane" I said
What was she playing at?
"It's... a little complicated" she sighed
"Clearly" I said

"She thinks... well... she overheard Kane and Dea talking. And she heard Kane say that someone meant nothing to her, that she never had. Then Dea leant in to kiss him" she reeled out
I sighed, dropping my head into my hands

"Yeah he told me about the kiss" I said
"What?" She asked
"No, no... they didn't kiss. She tried to kiss him. He pushed her back" I explained
That explains why she's avoiding him.

"She did say she just left" Ivy muttered
"And as for saying that stuff, he wouldn't have said that about her" I said knowingly
He's fell for her
He'd even admit it now

He was always so intent on pushing people away
But he likes her, he might even love her.

"Really? Because she heard what she heard Koen" Ivy said
"Yeah and she thought she saw what she saw and she didn't, did she? I'm telling you Ivy, she's wrong about this. Kane adores her" I said

"Then you need to tell her that" Ivy said
"Yeah, is she home?" I asked
She nodded
"Yeah, but I have to go to work" she said
"It's fine, I can go alone" I said, grabbing my keys

• Inara •

"Nar, there's a boy here for you" Ethan said, opening my door slightly after he knocked

• Inara's Outfit •

"I really don't wa-"
I cut myself off, turning around from my desk to see Koen in my room.

Koen Prescott was in my fucking room.

"Hey" he said
"Keep this door open yeah" Ethan said casually, before leaving

Koen sort of... hovered... unsettled
"Do you want to... sit?" I asked, gesturing to the chair
He did so, sitting silently

"So..." I started, leaning on the back of my chair
"Look, I know you're mad at Kane-"
"Oh, Koen please, don't. I really don't want to talk about it-"
"No, listen to me" he interrupted me, catching me off guard

"Kane didn't kiss Dea" he said
"How do you-"
"I talked to Ivy" he said
"When did you tal-"
"The important thing is they didn't kiss Inara. And he didn't say those things about you. He wouldn't have" he assured me

"It sounded a lot like he did Koen" I said sadly
"He wouldn't. Do you even know what he thinks of you?" He chuckled, like he really couldn't believe it.

I said nothing
I didn't know what to say
Because we hadn't had that conversation
We hadn't asked each other what we were to each other now?
Where we wanted this to go.

"He liked you before you two even began this entire... fake relationship" he said
"What?" I asked
"He'd deny it over and over" he laughed

"But the way he looks at you, it's obvious. And that night after your birthday when you stormed out of the diner-"
"How do you know about that?" I asked

"We were there. You were obviously too wrapped up in your argument to notice us. Tommy was a dick, you walked out and then we saw you start walking home all by yourself. Then Kane left" he explained

"And did what?" I asked
"He followed you. He tried to explain it in a way that didn't sound weird" he laughed, remembering back
"But he followed you in his car, to make sure you got home safe" he explained

That's how he knew where I lived.
He followed me? To make sure I was safe?
"I asked him why he didn't just offer you a lift but, well... you know Kane" he shrugged
"Then when you broke up with Tommy and he turned up with Mallory under his arm the next day, Kane called him out on it, they got into a huge fight that day... barely spoken to each other since. And then you went and dragged him into a closet" he chuckled.

He stuck up for me?
"Why... why didn't he tell me any of that?" I asked
"I told you, it's Kane. You know how shut down he is, he isn't going to tell anyone anything about himself unless he has to. That's what surprised me about you, you broke him open" he said

"He told you about his dad. He's... happier, brighter, you've brought him out of this darkness he was in" he said

"I feel the same way about him" I said honestly
"No one's ever made me feel the way he does. No one makes me feel special the way he has. Oh I feel like such an idiot Koen" I groaned
"Just call him, please. He's losing his head, nearly cost us the game the other night too" he said

"Yeah... I heard" I mumbled
Another thing I felt guilty about
But at the time I justified that guilt with my anger
And now... now all there was, was guilt.

"Call him" he smiled comfortingly
"He doesn't know what he did wrong" he said
I pulled my phone out
He'd done nothing wrong
He didn't kiss her.
Koen's right, he wouldn't say those things about me

Not after everything
I was just too scared to let someone in again.
To trust someone
And I was stupid for that.
Because Kane wouldn't hurt me.

I rang his phone, but it only went to voicemail
I rang him three more times but nothing came through
"Where is he?" I asked
"Home. You want me to drop you round?" He asked

I nodded
I'd never been to Kane's house
But I needed to see him. I needed to make it right.

• Kane •
- 1 Hour earlier -

I'd stayed in my room for most of the night
Dad was downstairs, drinking and watching tv.
I tried to finish my reading, readying myself for college

But the words only blurred into one
All I could think of was Inara

I checked my phone again. Nothing.

I'd text, I'd called
Ivy told me not to go round. What else can I do?
Why didn't she want to see me?

"Kane! Kane!" Dad shouted
I sighed, getting up and opening my door slightly
He was still downstairs
"Kane, get down here!" He shouted.

I shut my door again, locking it
Fucking idiot

I sat down, only to hear him stomping up the stairs, trying to open my door
"Open the door... son!" He said urgently
I ignored him, before a banging hit my ears and I realised he was trying to break the door down

"Stop" I called back
"Open the door" he slurred again
"Dad, stop" I said again, ripping the door open

He stood drunk. He stood angry
He stood clearly wanting a fight
"Go back downstairs" I said simply
"Don't tell me what to do. I'm your fucking father" he said angrily

"Just-"
He punched me
Hard.

"I said don't fucking tell me what to do" he stumbled out, pulling his arm back to hit me again
I stopped it.

I didn't like fighting back to him. I didn't want to hurt him back.
But sometimes it was too much. And I didn't want a fight today.
I didn't want a black eye
I didn't want a beating.

"You fucking little..."
He hit me again. And again
Until I punched him back. And he staggered back on his feet, surprised
Before he laughed

A hard drunken laugh that told me what I already knew
That this was going to escalate.

• Inara •

I felt nervous in the car, playing over and over with the ends of my hair
I didn't know what I was going to say
Or rather how I was going to say it.

That I want him. That I've fell for him
That I think I'm falling in love with him.
That I'm... sorry.

"It'll be alright you know? Kane will forgive you" Koen said, offering me a smile as he drove
He turned down a road, one that surprised me as I didn't think Kane lived in this area
I'm not sure where I imagined him living
But I didn't think it was so... close to my house.

He stopped the car. Outside a nice house
A house with ivy crawling up the walls
A house with a bright blue door and otherwise beautiful appearance

It would be. If it weren't for the dozen police cars parked outside
Me and Koen rushed out, Koen tried running up the steps, only to be pulled back by a police office
Whilst I stood shocked. Frozen

I couldn't move
I couldn't comprehend what was going on.

A man was dragged out of the house, tripping over himself as the police guided him
His face was a mess, blood all over his shirt
"What have you done? What have you fucking done?" Koen shouted angrily, trying to get at him

The man said nothing, being forced into a police car
He... he's Kane's dad.

I looked up at the house, everything falling into a dreadful place in my head
"Kane..." I let out quietly, before instinct kicked in
"Kane" I shouted, trying to get past Koen and the police
I made it up the steps, into the house, before another office grabbed me, pulling me back into the foyer as I protested

"Kane. Is he alright? Where is he?" I asked panicked
"Miss, please go back outside" he said, urging me to the door
"No, I want to see him. Kane" I shouted
"Kane!" I shouted again, as he tried to pull me to the door

An office came down the stairs, giving the one holding me a look
He pulled me to the side, out of the way rather than outside
I was confused until more people began coming down the stairs, holding... a stretcher

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