Kirito was going down, into the depth and looking above. He could see a depressing yellow tint in the water, he couldn't hear anything. He opened his mouth as he decided to clench on the ropes of his brain but there was nothing but water.

His head was throbbing-- Ready to explode. He could see a faint memory of his childhood present before him. A near-death drowning experience he had managed to escape was coming to haunt him again. But just like that time, he could see a saviour coming towards him.

Though it wasn't a blonde head.

The next thing he remembered was coughing his lungs beside the little pool of his. Vivian was sitting beside him, dressed in a her undergarments.

After he felt more comfortable and was back to his senses, he noticed her attire.
"What are you wearing?" Kirito looked at her.
"Mom said I can show you my skin since you're my husband." Vivian winked.

"Aren't you embarrassed at all?"
"You don't like me anyways so--"
Kirito pushed her down and got on top of her "Doesn't mean I'm not a man. I can violate you this very moment."

"I feel kind of guilty" Vivian blushed slightly.
"And why is that?"
'Because I want you to... violate me.' She thought.
"Nevermind."

He moved away and decided to do something more productive; for instance-- changing clothes.
"Hiomi, are you scared of water?" Vivian asked all of a sudden.

"Why do you think that?"
"Because, when you were drowing, you seemed as if you've gone through that before too."
"I'm not scared of anything--" Vivian interrupted him as she brushed his hair.
"You don't have to say your mind."
"I am not," He slapped her hand and walked towards the door if the bathroom.

"You should stop. I'll say it again. You and I-- we don't click."
"You know, real feelings don't just magically fade away."
"Then make them magically fade away because they are bothersome."
"Feelings?"
"Feelings."

He walked out of the bathroom. She ran after him "Why do you think that?"
"Because I need to feel nothing."
"But why?"
"Listen," He turned towards her "Can you stop bothering me? You're fucking annoying-- Always asking questions! Are you so curious about everything?!"
"No. I'm only curious about you."

"Then kill yourself with that curiosity and serve that drink of death to me next." He walked away mid conversation because he was done but Vivian was not. Because in his eyes-- She had seen pain.

Into him, she had seen someone else.
And she didn't know who it was.
But she wanted to know him, to touch him, love him.

So she walked towards him and sat beside him, on the bed. She didn't say anything but her presence was an assurance than she would listen.
"So, you won't leave me alone?" Kirito stated the obvious.
"I can't. That's just how I am."
"What do you want?"
"I want to know you. Something happened in the past right?"

"It isn't so complicated as you're thinking it is. I was a high school student at that time. One day, I wanted to be alone so I went out for a walk by the lake. It was covered with cherry flower petals.

I was walking beside the lake at night, looking at the cherry blossoms and somebody pushed me. It was dark-- I couldn't see their face and I went straight into that lake. I couldn't breathe and felt like all the water was going inside my lungs. I felt like I was gonna die. It felt as if someone was pulling me down into the dark.

The more I struggled to break, the stronger they pulled. When I finally got tired, my vision got blurry and I saw a white light coming towards me.
When I opened my eyes, I was back on the ground. My head was still muffled and my vision was hazy. I felt light-headed and about to pass out anytime.

I looked up and saw a blonde haired chick with blue eyes. She didn't look Japanese. I never saw her after that again. Today's incident just reminded me of that."

"I see. Is that all?" Vivian asked.
"Yeah."

She sat beside him and touched his head. She gently caressed his head and looked at her. She smiled "I'm jealous of her."
"Why?"
"Because she got to save you."

He slapped her hand and moved away "If you were there in place of her, I'd have killed you with me."
"No, you won't." She smiled.
He smirked "You don't know me. I can a scar my hands with blood."
He looked at his hands "They look better this way." She chuckled.

He slept on the bed as she lay on the sofa 'Honestly, I'm jealous. Because it feels like all women can satisfy your except me. Your voice is different when you talked about them. I hope you meet someone you love.

I'm sorry it's not me.'

She closed her eyes and before she knew-- She was fast asleep. When she opened her eyes again, it was morning already. Kirito was getting ready.
"Good morning, Hiomi." She smiled.
"Yeah whatever" He wrapped his watch around his wrist. She tied her hair into a lose bun and got up. He stared at her hair but suddenly his phone buzzed. It was a text that read:

'Goodmorning honey'

Kirito turned back and kept the phone into his pocket.
"I've fired the housekeeper, so you'll be cleaning up the entire apartment by yourself."

"We had a housekeeper?" Vivian asked.
"...I'm going to work. Till I'm back-- I want everything cleaned." He ordered and slammed the door on her face.

She stood at the door for a while and looked at the doorknob he had touched few moments ago. She touched the doorknob with a smile and opened the door. She peeked out into the halls outside.

Kirito had left. She sticked out her tongue and closed the door again.
"What does he think-- I can't clean? I will show you!" She wrapped a bandana around her head and grabbed a mop. She started scrubbing the floor. She cleaned the floor, the sofa, did the laundry, changed the sheets, dusted the windows, the doors and everything else kept in the rooms.

She opened the cupboard. The lower half of it had her stuff and the upper half had Kirito's stuff. It was just his clothes. She looked at them. She grabbed a pair and ran towards the bathroom.

After she took a bath, she jumped in front of the mirror wearing an oversized white shirt and blue pants.

"I'm Hiomi Kirito! The meanest guy that ever existed on this planet!" She said to her reflection. She raised up the collar of the shirt and sniffed it.

'This is such a calming scent
Smells fresh
Like the scent of dew drops on new leaves of Lavender'

"Nothing may separate us but the wrath of the Lord." She said to herself and looked into the mirror "Together we will be, in rosen meadows or prickly roads."

She pressed her hands on the mirror and looked into her eyes.
'I have to do something before I can't'

Kirito was walking towards his office when he heard his name and turned back. It was Ellois Kurosava, his uncle or his mother's brother.

"Why are you here?" Kirito asked as he followed Kirito towards the lift.
"Well I was just here to ask you if you liked the party." He said.
"Yes, it was fine."

"But you left so suddenly. I didn't even get to meet your wife. Did something happen?" He asked.
"No, I just wasn't feeling very well. I'm not used to loud music." Kirito replied.
"Ah- That reminds me, I never got to meet that girl. She had such a strong stage presence and really powerful voice." He said.

'That bitch was my idiot wife.' Kirito thought. The lift's door opened and Kirito stepped into it. He stepped in with him.
"Get down." Kirito crossed his arms.
"But why?"
"It's for the VIPs"

Kurosava laughed.
"I'm not joking." Kirito stared into his eyes.
Kurosava stopped laughing and slowly stepped down.
"Have a good day, Mr Kurosava." Kirito smirked as the lift's door closed. Kurosava smiled at him.

Even after Kirito was gone, Kurosava was standing outside the lift. He punched the lift's button and left the scene. Kirito didn't that day's work and decided to go back home at eleven.

But when it was half an hour past ten, he called Erika.
"Yeah Eri. I can't come today, I'm tired. Let's meet tomorrow. It's a weekend. We'll go on a date."

"Okay. But what about her?" Erika asked. She had kept her phone on loud while applying nail paint on her finger nails.
"She?" Kirito chuckled "She'll be busy scrubbing the floor for a while so don't worry about her."

"Okay honey~ See you tomorrow."
"Yeah" He kept his phone aside and got into his car. It was eleven when he unlocked the door and walked inside.

"I'm back--" He was dumbstruck as he looked around. Everything was clean and tidy. It didn't stink anymore and something smelled really good. Kirito got inside and was surprised beyond words. Vivian stood by the dining table which was filled with different sorts of dishes.

"This is--" He seemed short of words.
"That's Italian and continental. I can cook traditional Japanese cuisine too if you want me to." .
"I thought you can't cook."
She laughed "Yeah-- It seemed you didn't like it so I changed that for you."

"So, you'll change anything I don't like?" He picked up an egg roll from a plate.
"I will"
"Can you change yourself if I say I don't like you?"
"... I can try." She laughed nervously.

He dropped the egg roll back into the plate "You're disgusting."

"What?" Vivian looked at him.
"Cheap and disgusting. Don't you have any pride? Change this, change that-- What all will you change?"
"Then what I should do? What can I do except changing for you."

"Why not just die." He smirked and walked away towards the bedroom. Vivian looked at the food and sat at the table with her head held down.

'Why do you keep saying that? Do you want me dead so bad?'

- To be continued

Kirito Hiomi
My Heart Hates Me