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nNext to him sat a teenage girl with black hair who was around the same age as the boy. Just like him, she was holding a game controller in her hands, yet her face was filled with visible frustration.

n“Kyle, stop it!” Marie complained, looking at him. “You can’t just keep using the same move over and over again! That’s cheating!”

n“If it was cheating, then why would they put it in the game?” Kyle argued cheekily. “Besides, since you know what I’m doing next, you should be able to stop it!”

nOut of sheer frustration, Marie began to mash all the buttons she could, hoping for it to do something, but in the end, the low kick that Kyle’s character would repeatedly use, continued to decrease her fighter’s health until a large K.O. appeared on the screen.

n“Hahaha, I win again!” Kyle jumped up and cheered. When the match came to an end, Marie scoffed at his cheap tactics, yet she was ready for a rematch. She had always been quite the competitive person, but the two teenagers stopped what they were doing when they suddenly heard the sound of the door opening.

nSomeone had entered the hotel room, and without saying a word they had headed towards the main bedroom, which they locked behind themselves.

nUsing the remote, Kyle quickly turned up the sound of the game, while sneakily moving over to the door, trying to make as little noise as possible. Marie, seeing this, shook her head, but in the end she was just as curious, so she decided to do the same. The two of them stood next door, eavesdropping on the ensuing conversation.

nInside the other room, a black haired woman in her early thirties was pacing up and down. She looked to be quite panicked, and at the same time she was holding a cold pack to the side of her face.

n“Kiki, will you calm down, he won’t be able to find you here. I’ve made the reservation under a fake name, so nobody should know that you’re here apart from me.” The voice of a second woman tried to calm down the first.

nThe one sitting on the bed was a blonde haired woman who, despite being a few years older than her friend, still looked to be in her twenties. She had been blessed with good genes, which made her quite an eye turner, even though her years as a model were long since over.

nShe exuded a presence of kindness, like a real life angel. People would often describe her as someone who would instantly lighten up the room just by being there. Her voice alone was usually enough to calm anyone down, and in this instance, once again, it managed to work its magic.

nEventually, the woman called Kiki stopped pacing up and down, and put down the ice pack, revealing a large black eye. Unfortunately, that wasn’t the only bruise plaguing her body, merely the most recent one.

n“It will be okay. I promised I would look after you…you know that. I’m so sorry, for bringing you into all of this, this is all my fault.” The blonde haired woman apologised as she stood up and gave her childhood friend a giant hug, which just caused a waterfall of tears to run down her face.

nThe sobbing continued for a while, and it was then that Kyle started to feel bad for listening in. When he turned around, he saw that Marie had teared up as well. The teenage girl was clenching her fists, trying to stay strong.

nNot saying enough, Kyle gently took Marie by the hand, and guided her back to the TV. Both of them sat down, neither one in the mood to continue their game. Marie wiped away her tears with some kitchen paper, the teenage boy had grabbed, for lack of a better alternative.

n“This isn’t the first time this has happened, is it?” He asked in a low voice, as he slightly turned up the volume so that their mothers wouldn’t suspect them of having eavesdropped. “Is it getting worse… the hitting, I mean?”

nKyle understood what had been happening, and why Marie and her mother had moved to this hotel. Even though he was young, he wasn’t completely oblivious to these things.

n“Yeah… and I’m afraid that it’s only getting worse with each passing day. The hitting has become harder. I hate that I can’t do anything about it…” When Marie said these words, she started to curl up into a ball and covered herself. She placed her head into her knees as there was more to what she wanted to say.

n“It’s not just that, Kyle… I’m scared, I’m really scared. Recently, he’s been staring at me in a really disturbing way… Whenever he grabbed me, my mum ran up to him and dragged his arms away. However, that only makes him furious, and so she ends up getting hurt even more… I’m scared what happens if Mum dies and not just that… if that does happen… then what happens to me…”

nA recurring pattern.

nMeanwhile, Kiki Degrace was being comforted by Kyle’s mother. Her childhood friend was the only person she could rely on during these hard times. She had paid for the hotel room and without asking for anything in return, the adult woman had simply handed over the keys, allowing the Degraces to stay in a safe environment. She had promised Kiki to do everything she could to help her, but it wasn’t that easy.

nIn doing so, Marie and Kyle had become close friends. They had known each other before that and had often played together, but not to this degree. After having spent so much time together, they practically felt like siblings and looked out for each other.

nThe relationship outside of school then grew to one in school as well, but what Marie had just said now, it was the first time she had spoken these words. It was the first time she had told him how scared she was.

n“Marie, I promise I will do everything in my power, to make sure that never happens.” Kyle said as he gave her a big hug, making her cry fully.

n—–

nGary gulped hard, because it didn’t take a genius to figure out that this story wouldn’t have a happy ending…

n******

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