The Raven and The Dove

Chapter 9

Silence takes over for a while, Caleb still holding her chin as his eyes roam over her slowly, taking in every bruise, however tiny they may be. He felt his anger slowly growing, the more bruises he was able to spot, and seeing her look away from him, as if ashamed, doesn’t help his mood in the slightest.

“Are there more?” he asks slowly, finally letting go of her chin, though not allowing her to move.

Melia doesn’t respond, but subconsciously twitches her right hand towards her left side. She quickly stops herself, however, but he’s already noticed it. Letting out a small sound of annoyance, he grabs the hem of her tank top and lifts it up to right underneath her chest. He knew he was crossing a line, by doing that, but to his surprise she doesn’t stop him.

The sight causes him to hold his breath. Normally, he would be focused on her body, taking in her curves and slightly defined abs, but right now he can only see the bruises, wounds and scars littering her torso, complete with a big black bruise on the left side of her ribs.

“What the hell?!”

He stares at the bruise for a while, resisting the urge to touch it, just to make sure it was real. He didn’t want to hurt her, after all.

Letting out a frustrated groan, he lets go of her top, watching it fall back in place.

“Melia..”

She still refuses to look at him, so he grabs her chin again, lifting her head with surprisingly little resistance. She knew she had to give him an explanation, somehow.

“Don’t worry, I’m just a bit clumsy, is all.” she says, a smile on her lips as she lies easily.

She figured he wouldn’t be convinced, but she had to at least try, right?

“You should know, since you saved me from falling down the stairs.”

She lifts her hand to his cheek, stroking a finger along his cheekbone and down his jaw as she meets his gaze again, stepping in. If all else failed, she could probably find another way to make him forget.

Caleb, however, doesn’t fall for it, grabbing her wrist as he raises an eyebrow.

“Do you really expect me to believe that?” he asks, his tone almost cold.

He was angry, that she wouldn’t tell him, especially since she had all the signs of abuse on her body. But who was abusing her? Whose ass did he need to kick, to make it stop?

“Who did this to you? You look like you’ve been beaten with a bat, or something. And this…” He points to her neck, not wanting to touch the angry red area.

“Did someone try to choke you?!”

Melia looks away again, this time a sigh escaping her as she surrenders. Well, she didn’t have to tell him everything, right? Just a bit would probably satisfy his curiosity.

“I got in a fight.” she mumbles, barely audible, but she knows he’s heard it from the hissing sound he makes.

“A fight?” he asks in disbelief, letting go of her and stepping back a bit to look her over.

“A fight made you look like that? How is that even-?”

He stops talking, when he suddenly realizes something is off. He looks her over again, his eyes lingering a bit on her hair as he gently grabs a lock and swirls it around his finger. Her hair wasn’t its usual colorful self. He hadn’t noticed at first, because he’d gotten so used to seeing her walk around with differently colored hair, but it was dyed in a reddish brown color. It suited her, but it was odd to see. 

That wasn’t the only thing, though. Something else was off, but he can’t quite put a finger on it, mentally cursing himself for not paying more attention. 

Tilting her head slightly, Melia looks at him in confusion, when he stops talking. At his gesture, her mouth forms a small ‘o’ as she realizes what caught his attention. Of course. Her hair was different. She had actually forgotten about that. 

“Image change.” she says, half-heartedly, a small smile on her lips.

Her words cause Caleb to immediately let go, not realizing he was still twirling the lock of hair around his index finger.

“It suits you.” he mumbles, looking away a bit.

“I’m sorry.”

The words escape her mouth, before she manages to stop them, and now she finds herself mentally sorting through explanations, as he predictably asks why she’s apologizing.

“For trying to lie about the bruises.” she elaborates, motioning slightly at herself. 

A small laugh escapes him, devoid of any humour. Did she actually just apologize for something like that? 

“I appreciate it, but there is really no need.” he says, rubbing his neck awkwardly as he looks away.

“I shouldn’t have pushed it. It’s your business.”

Melia bites her lip, looking down a bit, then glancing back up at him. Oh, how she wanted it to be his business, too. To not have to hide anything. She had to, though. There was nothing she could do about that.

She shakes her head lightly. “No, it’s fine. I don’t want to lie to you.”

“You sure?” Caleb sounds hesitant, but he can’t quite hide the small smile on his lips.

Simply nodding, she smiles at him, placing a hand on his chest. Her action is rewarded as he presses her lips to her forehead, both of them letting out a small sigh.

“I’ll come by tomorrow.” he mumbles, slowly moving his lips to rest his forehead against hers.

“Please get some rest.”

He felt like he had to leave. They were already going way too fast, and there was no way he’d be able to stop himself if he stayed much longer. She needed rest, and he was sure as hell not going to be the reason she didn’t.

Melia lets out a small giggle at his words, quickly regretting it as she winces slightly. The painkillers seemed to be wearing off. She calms her breath, straightening herself as she looks at him.

“I will, as long as you promise to bring ice cream tomorrow.” she says teasingly.

This time it’s Caleb’s turn to laugh, as he agrees to bring some. He lets his fingers run through her hair lightly, placing another kiss on her forehead, before moving so she could move away from the door and let him out. 

“I’ll see you tomorrow.” he says, flashing her a bright smile, despite the turmoil inside of him.

Melia nods, returning his smile, but as she closes the door, her smile quickly fades. What had she gotten herself into? More importantly; what had she gotten Caleb into?

This did not seem to have a happy ending.