Rin left the awkward date without saying much. She could not speak. Selene's question still echoed in her head.
Can I be your first love?
Rin had frozen on the spot. She did not know what to say. Everything happened too quickly. It felt like being in school again, when a teacher suddenly called her name and asked a question she was not ready to answer. Her mind had gone completely blank.
Selene walked her home afterward. She stayed right beside Rin the whole way, calm and quiet, as if nothing unusual had happened. When they reached the front of Rin's place, Selene told her she would wait a little longer for her answer and give her a good night kiss before leaving.
Rin stood there with her heart beating too loudly, still unable to process everything that happened. Selene stood close, patient as always, as if waiting for Rin to catch up to the moment.
The next day, the dining room felt unusually empty. There was no sign of Akari or Shion. Shion had been forbidden from appearing by Master Hoshino. He said he did not want to see her presence anymore.
After everything Shion had done to gain his approval, he treated her like this.
Some father he was.
Rin stood in front of Akari's door, holding a tray of food. A maid stood beside her holding another tray meant for Shion. Rin knocked softly. Akari did not answer. After waiting a moment, Rin pushed the door open.
The room was dim. The curtains were drawn, blocking out the morning light. Rin set the tray on Akari's table, then walked to the window and pulled the curtains open. Sunlight spilled inside. Akari's room looked the same as always, filled with flowers, flowers Shion's crush had given her. Even her bed had flowers arranged around it.
Rin realized Akari had lived her whole life centered around Shion.
"Close the curtains, cousin," Akari said quietly from her bed.
"The flowers need sunlight. You cannot let them wither," Rin replied. Akari did not move.
"I wonder how my sun is right now," Akari whispered. She stayed still, her voice weak.
Rin stepped closer and gently helped her sit up. Akari's body moved like it had no strength of its own.
"You did not come out for breakfast, so I brought it to you. Breakfast served in bed," Rin said, trying to sound cheerful. She was doing her best, even though she had no idea how to comfort someone grieving.
She carried the tray from the table and placed it on the bed in front of Akari. Then she set the chopsticks in Akari's hand. Akari stared at the food but did not lift her hand.
"Will Rei even be able to eat now," Akari said. "She lost her whole world. She is probably starving herself, crying, wishing for a miracle. I keep thinking that if I could take her place, if I could carry that pain for her, I would."
Her voice trembled. Tears began to fall.
Rin watched her, trying to hold back her own tears. She was not close to Rei's father, but she knew the feeling of losing a parent. Pain like that never left.
"Right now, nothing can heal her," Rin said softly. "Unless her papa rises from the dead."
Akari pressed her face into her hands, and Rin sat beside her. The two of them broke down together.
Their crying filled the whole room, echoing through the quiet morning.
After dealing with Akari and somehow convincing her to eat a little, Rin finally felt she could breathe. Akari was barely eating, but at least she was eating something. Rin stood up to adjust the tray when a soft knock came from the door.
Rin walked over and opened it. The maid stood there, still holding Shion's food tray untouched.
"What happened? You did not give Cousin Shion her food?" Rin asked.
"Lady Shion refused to eat," the maid said. "She said she wants you to attend to her."
Rin's face twisted into something she herself could not describe.
What did Shion want now.
Did Rin look like the personal maid of both sisters.
She glanced back at Akari, who was nibbling weakly at her food. This was the one whose girlfriend's father had died. Shion was not the one grieving a father.
Then again, Shion was the one who killed him in the first place.
Rin sighed.
Of course Shion wanted her.
Because why would anything in this household ever be normal.
…
"Can you please stop staring at me while you eat? Why does everyone stare at me like some kind of..." Rin trailed off. She had no idea how to finish that sentence as she lifted another spoonful toward Shion's mouth.
Feeding Shion felt strange. Rin still did not understand how things reached this point. Shion was clearly still trying to impress her, even while her whole world was falling apart. Her father had shut her out. The clan lord had not made any announcement yet, like something was stopping him from passing judgement.
Then there was Selene, who wanted the butterfly attached to Shion. Rin had noticed it staring at her the whole time, pulsing faintly with awareness. She tried her best to ignore it. If she could kill it without risking Shion's life, she would have done it immediately.
And there was still the Akarawa clan. They would want revenge. Daichi had been a beloved character in the real world, known for his kind nature, a loving husband and father. Now he was gone, and if there was no justice, the Akarawa would pursue it themselves.
"So did you figure out anything about how to help me with the butterfly," Shion asked suddenly.
"No. I have not. I do not have any Intel," Rin said. Selene had refused to tell her anything last night, which only made everything worse.
"About today, I do not think I can be with you to help search through the butterfly and black stone history stuff. I have to be by Akari's side." Rin glanced at Shion while feeding her. "I hope you understand, cousin Shion."
Shion did not answer.
"Cousin Shion, are you okay?," Rin asked softly.
There was something different in her eyes. The next moment, Shion grabbed the tray and threw it aside. Food scattered across the bed sheets. Before Rin could react, she was pushed down, her back hitting the bed as Shion pinned her.
"What are you doing, Shion. Let me go," Rin said, struggling beneath her.
"Now you call me Shion without the cousin. How cute," Shion murmured.
Her fingers traced slowly from Rin's chest, to her neck, and then to her lips. Her voice shook with something unstable.
"You let her kiss you. Like it was normal. Like it was something you do every day. I am the one you should be kissing like that. You stole mine and made me lose my mind. You have no idea how much I love you, Rin."
Her grip tightened. Rin tried to break free, but Shion held her down with unnatural strength.
"The way she kissed you. Did you enjoy it huh? Enjoy it so much that you got addicted to it. That first kiss... I was not prepared. So now I will show you what a real kiss feels like."
Shion leaned closer. Her breath brushed Rin's lips. She was seconds away.
"Stop this. Do not you dare," Rin said, her voice sharp.
Shion froze. She could not move even a finger. Her mouth hovered just inches away, but it would not close the distance.
"How are you doing this? Why cannot I move," Shion asked, eyes wide as she struggled.
For a moment Rin was surprised. But then something twisted inside Shion's expression. Her body jerked. She broke through the invisible compulsion, her hand rising toward Rin's throat.
"You. So this is why Selene is drawn to you. Because you and I are the same," she said, laughing in a broken, eerie way.
Rin's eyes widened. Shion was not in control. The butterfly was.
Shion's hand moved to Rin's throat, fingers tightening. Rin gasped. A sharp panic rose in her chest.
But thankfully, Rin had met Mai at the Maiden Club yesterday. Forcing Mai to zap her was a good idea.
Rin summoned lightning into her hand and released it.
A bright crack filled the room. Shion fell to the floor, unconscious. Rin staggered back, coughing for breath.
Without wasting another second, she ran out of the room, her heartbeat loud in her ears.