The Angel Within

"So. . . " Philippe started slowly, looking from Runa to Jareth. "You're dating your teacher?"
"No," Runa said automatically over Jareth's "yes". They glared at each other and Jareth crossed his arms, sitting back on the couch.
"We are dating," he confirmed.
"Not by choice," Runa muttered, also crossing her arms.
Philippe's brows rose. "Uh. . . Okay. So, you're dating but you're. . not?"
Runa leaned over and picked her glass of water off the coffee table. "That about sums it up nicely."
"My ass," Jareth muttered under his breath.
Philippe rubbed the back of his neck, confused. "Right. Well, this is different."
Runa's brows rose this time. "I know you haven't been in town for very long, but I figured you'd be used to weird shit happening by now."
"Country roots never really leave," Philippe shrugged with a smile. His face grew serious once again as he leaned his arms on his knees. "What really is going on between you two?"
"In short?" Jareth started a little grumpily. He wasn't sure if he liked this kid or trusted him, but if he was Runa's brother, he wasn't a threat. And that was just fine, but it didn't hurt to make things clear. Crystal clear. "We're in--"
"Nothing that needs to be discussed outside the two of us," Runa interrupted with a sharp glance at Jareth. "Ever. There's no need for anyone to know."
Jareth gritted his teeth, seething. "What in hell is your problem?" he snapped at her, uncrossing his arms and sitting up. "All I want to do is help."
"Fine," she conceeded. "Then help us ruin my parents, not my love life."
"Ruin" she had said. Fuck, that had hurt like hell. Jareth's chest felt like it had almost caved in.
He swallowed, pushing back the hurt. He rubbed a hand over his face, sighing. "Fine. If you want it that way, then that's the way it will be."
Runa's brows rose fractionally. She hadn't expected him to give in so easily, but he seemed pretty pissed as it was. Besides, their "relationship" just didn't matter right now. If she could deal with the hell that was her family first, then she would deal with the drama that was Jareth. Until then, he just took a backseat. Hell, he wasn't even in the car.
"So what are we going to do?" Jareth asked. "Where do we start?"
"Well," Runa answered, "I've just been grooming Philippe to make it to the top. Once Wallace accepts him and makes him heir, I was thinking poison."
"I hope you're joking," Jareth said seriously, not amused. "Who's Wallace?"
"My father," Runa nearly spat. She glanced at Philippe before looking down at the floor, spinning her glass in her hands. "Our father. A-number one asshole of the decade." She looked up, finally, staring straight ahead. "But I was serious about the poison."
The room went silent as the weight of her words hung in the air. Jareth and Philippe shared a look, knowing she was serious, but wishing she wasn't. However, if they were going to demolish the company, Wallace was going to have to step down first. That was going to be a problem. From the way it sounded--and also from the book titles lying around--it didn't look like he planned on vacating as head anytime soon.
"You're going to have the family business rammed down your throat, too," Runa added. "It's gonna suck ass, but you'll have to learn quick and adapt faster." She shook her head, sitting straight. "But I've told you all this before."
"Is it really that ba--" Jareth started only to be cut off again, but this time by a knock on the door. It was loud and there was a thump against it, like a forehead smacking on it.
Runa's brow's rose high and her eyes brightened. Sloppily, she put her glass on the table, sloshing the water there. Standing quickly, she pulled the straps of her shirt up, smoothing it down and ran her hands over her hair, her cheeks flushed. All of her actions just pissed Jareth off. Why was she so nervous?
"Who is it?" Jareth asked quietly.
Runa shot him a glance, her eyes instantly going back to the door. "It's Les." She bit her lip as Les called her name from the other side of the door. "Don't say anything, okay? I'll explain it."
Jareth stood as she walked past him, grabbing her arm gently but firmly. "It's a little late for him to show up, don't you think?"
Runa's eyes turned hard. "Les is always welcome here. Time doesn't matter."
Jareth's grip tightened. "Does he normally show up this late?"
Runa jerked her arm away from him as Les called out to her again. He sounded so tired. "I told you," she said, continuing to the door, "Les is welcome no matter what time. Get over it."
Runa unbolted the door, unlocked the locks, undid the chain and turned the knob. Les nearly fell on her, but she was used to that. It looked like he'd pulled a double-shift at one of his jobs again. He was beat, sweaty and ready to pass out. it was something Runa was used to, and she certainly didn't mind taking care of him, but it was going to be awkward as hell with Philippe here and Uniteare.
She pulled Les across the thresh hold, already pulling an excuse out and making sure it was air tight. "What the hell did you do today?"
"A lot," he grinned, his eyes drooping and expression exhausted. "Double shift."
Runa set him against the wall and locked her door again. "I kind of figured."
"We having a party?" he asked as she turned around.
Jareth was standing rather awkwardly just inside the living room and Philippe was sitting in one of the chairs, watching them with a worried expression.
"Is he alright?" Philippe asked, glancing back and forth between his sister and the new man in the hallway. Despite being private, it seemed like she had a lot of friends.
"He's tired," Runa answered, going over to the tall man with blond hair. She pulled him off the wall and helped him out of his jacket, then started taking off his shirt.
"Hey!" Jareth exclaimed, rushing over to them and separating them with forceful gestures. "Why are you undressing him?"
Runa gave him a confused, but hard look. "I always do this. It's none of your concern." She pushed him out of the way and finished pulling off Les's shirt. She undid his belt too and that made Jareth hiss, but she just shot him a glare. Taking Les's bag from him, she hefted it over her shoulder. "Do you want something to eat or do you want to just go to bed."
"Bed," he puffed out. "Just bed. You can tell me why in hell Uniteare is here and who that kid is in the morning."
"Done." Runa didn't hesitate to lead him down the hall and into his room, leaving Jareth and Philippe in the living room. She didn't bother to turn on the lights. Instead, she let him plop onto the chair by the dresser as she pulled off his belt and turned down the covers, patting the pillow to get any dust off. When she had the bed ready, he sat on that and she bent to take his boots off.
His hand on her head made her pause for only a fraction as she pulled the first one off. "Why are you so kind to me, Runa?"
Runa smirked, but knew that he couldn't see with her head bent the way it was. His hand began stroking her hair and she did her best to calm her heart. She thumped his boot to the floor, loosening the laces on the second. "What are you talking about? I'm always nice to you."
"I don't deserve it," he sighed.
Runa's head jerked up, concerned at the tone in his voice. "What happened? Something with Karen? The twins? Is Kenny okay? Becca?"
"No, babe," he soothed, his hand cupping her face. He rubbed his thumb under her eye, lightly touching the bruise. "They're fine. It's just you. I'm worried about you. You didn't go to school and you're more bruised than normal. What is it that you're not telling me?"
Runa stared at him for a second before going back to untying his shoe. She had done this before. She had warred with herself about telling him, about laying it all out on the table. In the end, she just couldn't do it. She couldn't trap him like that. He was so wonderful, so kind and caring, he would make her priority if she told and he had enough to deal with.
"Don't worry about me," she told him, pulling off his boot. "I can handle my own problems. You've got enough on your plate. I'm just glad nothing's wrong."
"Liar." He fell back onto the bed, grabbing her arm and flopping her down on top of him. He pushed her hair back behind her shoulder, tucking it behind her ear. It was soft and silky against his stomach, untainted with the beauty products Karen liked to use. "You're such a bad liar. Why won't you tell me? Me of all people?"
Runa held back her sigh. Something must have happened. He was upset, desperate almost. She laid her hands on his chest and then placed her chin on them, staring at his face as he watched her. "You of all people don't need to know."
In a surprised movement that scared her, Les grabbed her arms and flipped her, pinning her to the matress. He let go of her wrists, but grabbed her face, forcing her to look at him. He knew she would turn away if he didn't, but being this close to her with so little clothing between them was a shock to his system. But he had Karen, so he shoved away those new, insane feelings and focussed on the problem that had been bothering him since they were kids.
"Where do these bruises come from?" he hissed quietly. Man, he was beat, but he sure as hell wasn't letting this go anymore. She was marked all over. He had let it go for years, but this time . . . This time he couldn't. She had even passed out in class. He'd had enough of being kept in the dark.
Runa fought his hands, but he held firm, so she turned her eyes away. "It doesn't matter."
"It matters to me!" he barked, then lowered his voice when he remembered that they weren't the only people in her apartment. "It matters to me. Please," he begged. "For once, tell me what in fuck is going on."
She pushed at his chest, her heart pounding erratically, but he barely budged. "It's nothing, Les. Seriously. Linda just--"
Les let go of her face and levered himself up on an arm, using his other to pull up her cami and reveal her stomach. Her shorts were riding up too, already revealing more bruises. "Linda isn't strong enough to do this!" he hissed. "You would've kicked her ass if she had even tried. Tell me what's going on!"
Runa stared at Les's desperate face, his worried eyes and his hurt expression. He was so upset by this. Part of her was happy that he cared so much, but the other part wished that it could all just disappear. Things were past that point, though, and she knew that. There was too much that had happened too often, too much that Les had seen and too much between them to hide it anymore. But runa needed time. She just couldn't bring herself to shatter Les's image of her yet. She couldn't. She needed to gather her strength first.
"Not now," Runa whispered, giving in. She stared at him, her eyes watering just from the thought of having to tell him. "A little more time, Les. Give me a little more time."
"I've given you enough, don't you think?"
His expression was hard, angry, and Runa swallowed. She had never been scared of Les before, but now she was almost terrified. His look was accusing, stubborn, and she wasn't sure if he would understand.
"Please, Les," she begged, tugging her shirt down and gripping the hem. "I- I need time to sort out what to say."
Les stared at her for what seemed like a long time, taking in her defensive posture, the way she wouldn't look at him and tried not to see her as the wounded animal. Pinning her like this made him feel like a dick, but he wanted to know so badly who had done this to her so he could take it out of their hide. She didn't deserve this. She deserved someone who would love her, cherish her and treat her with respect. He didn't care if it was family or a new friend or even some other guy, he was going to fucking kill whoever it was that gave her anything less.
Finally, he pulled away from her, sitting on the edge of the bed. He hung his head in his hand, giving in to her. "Fine. Tomorrow, Runa. I want to know by tomorrow. Lay everything on the table, okay? I can't do secrets anymore. Not with you. Anyone but you."
Runa had sat up and was staring at him with astonishment. "Les. . . . What happened?"
"Nothing," he answered automatically, not even looking at her. "I've just figured out a few things, okay?"
Runa stared at him for a little while longer before standing and making her way to leave. Without thinking, Les reacheed out and caught her wrist.
"W-What?" Runa whispered, her heart practically jumping out of her chest.
"Good night, Runa," he settled.
Runa closed her eyes, gently pulling away from him and walking to the door. "Good night, Les."
When Runa got back to the living room, she had almost forgotten about Uniteare. Of course, his presence was a thorn in her side, so it wasn't as if she could ignore him when he was in her apartment. She did her best, though. She walked right past him and sank onto the couch, wanting to kick him out and go back to sleep.
"I've decided to spedn the night," Jareth anounced.
Runa didn't even look surprised. "Have you?"
Her voice came out tired and worn, but Jareth ignored it to press his point. "I still don't know if Philippe is really your brother or not and I ceratinly don't trust Mr. Perfect and Dreamy sleeping in the next room, so I'm staying."
Runa was too tired to argue. Instead, she pulled her blankets over her and laid down on the couch, turning her back to them. "Fine. Whatever. Sleep with Philippe."
Shock echoed through Jareth's system. "R-Really? You're not going to fight me on this?"
"What's the point?" she told him. She had had enough arguing for one night. "You're not going to listen anyway. I might as well just save my breath and let you stay."
"You were in there a while," Philippe pointed out, redirecting the subject. "What happened?"
Runa curled into her blankets more. "You'll find out tomorrow," she whispered.
Yes, Runa thought. Both Les and Philippe would find out what secrest she'd been keeping hidden for years. The secrets she'd only let a few choice people know. After that, all of the men in her life--those who mattered and those who didn't--would know just how dirty she was, just how messed up her life had been, and just how depraved her parents really were. When all of that was over, maybe one of them could find a way to save her, because she was tired of trying to save herself.