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When Rea opened his eyes, he was still in the arms of the man who saved him. He observed his surroundings quietly as Taurent knocked with his foot on the big door in front of them. “Dear, help me open the door,” he called out lovingly.

The door was opened by a gorgeous woman who seemed to be made out of rubies. Flowing red hair, painted red lips and in red silky night dress that revealed a lot of her skin. Rea turned away in shame. This woman was in such an indecent state in front of a man but she was so stunning that he could not help but admire her beauty.

"My lady, it's cold tonight," a soft-spoken voice said behind the woman. Two delicate girls that appeared to be twins in the same clothing rushed to her. One of them covered her body with a long fabric.

"Love, I have been waiting for you. It is very unusual of you to be home this late and you brought another kid home again?" The woman gasped. Her voice went up a pitch higher, "Let me remind you that this house is not an orphanage. You have been bringing outsiders who have nowhere to go to our place and your reason is always because they are beautiful! What nonsense!"

Rea flinched, feeling as if he had obstructed the life of another's. He wanted to explain himself, but what was there to explain?

"My dear Sasha, your tone of voice does not compliment your beautiful being. You upset me," the blonde said as he stepped into the house with a frown on his face and continued, "I will be tending to this child in one of the empty rooms upstairs. Do not disturb us."

Rea wasn't sure if this was what people like him could call a house. Mannequins covered almost every space on the floor, dolls big and small lined up against the walls with beautifully made dresses. Smiles were carefully carved into their faces complimenting their big, glistening eyes. They were so masterfully crafted, they could have been real people. But they weren’t. They were just empty shells made as playthings for children.

Rea was brought into a well-kept room and was placed on the floor near the bed. Taurent carefully folded up Rea's trousers, revealing his crushed legs. Rea watched as the man pulled up his sleeve and took in a deep breath.

Taurent uttered something under his breath that went unnoticed by Rea, "Ugly."

A knock on the door caught the attention of the two and a boy in brown bowed his head lightly, "Master, the lady asked me to go here to see if there is anything I could assist you with."

Even after the man had told her to not disturb them, she dared to send another. Even so, Taurent smiled and nodded, "Ask Jean to help you bring in anything that could bind this boy, a rope or shackles and also bring me the cleaver. Be careful not to hurt yourself."

Rea panicked, he stuttered, "S-sir?"

Taurent softly hushed him, "Worry not, I am just trying to help you to get rid of these legs of yours and make another pair for you."

Another pair? Rea's breathing started to speed up, What did he mean by making another pair? The boy tried to calm down by distracting himself, but nothing could distract him from Taurent cutting his damp trouser with a pair of scissors he fetched from a nearby table.

Two boys came into the room with a rope, handcuffs and a cleaver. The older boy, who seemed to be the one called Jean, looked over at Rea with worry in his face. The two boys were in fact as curious and as scared as Rea, but they did not dare to ask Taurent what he was about to do.

"Jean, Oli, restrain him to the legs of the bed, hold him down and make sure he doesn’t scream. We don't want to disturb the lady or the neighbors."

They nodded and quickly went to Rea. Jean closed Rea's mouth as tight as he could while Oli frantically shackled both of Rea's wrists to the bed and held him down.

Taurent held the cleaver in his hand, held down Rea's legs after tying them above the knee tightly. The time was slow as Taurent held up the cleaver and the metal glistened. Rea could not help but struggle. He was tied back at home and now he was restrained again in another person's house. As the cleaver swiftly went down, an unbearable pain surged up. Rea screamed but his voice was not allowed to escape his lips.

Jean's grip became tighter and Oli held Rea down with a newfound strength in his arms. Without waiting for another moment, Taurent successfully chopped his two legs from the knee down. Blood splattered to his face and Taurent quickly made sure the rope was tight enough to reduce the flow of blood.

The pain rushed from his lower body to his entire being. He shook uncontrollably as if he was electrified, tears streaming down his face. He clenched and released his fists a couple of times in a panic, as if it could make him forget the feeling of agony.

Taurent on the other hand was just observing Rea's frantic behavior. He didn't blink his eyes or take them away from the boy. The man just stayed still as if with his stare could make the pale boy calm down. Oli and Jean decided not to stare at the master but instead put their gaze somewhere else.

After a while, whimpers and sobs were the only sound in the room. Jean and Oli slowly let go of Rea. He shut his eyes tight, did not want to see the after effect of what had happened. The only thought that crossed his mind was his legs were gone.

He heard the shuffles of steps quietly leaving the room but Rea still sobbed, biting down on his lower lips. Taurent asked him in a gentle voice if the pain was unbearable. Of course it was unbearable, he had just lost both of his legs, but the way Taurent spoke to him made him feel that he should act stronger.

"No," Rea whimpered.

"Why don't you open your eyes?"

Rea's heart wanted to shout and cry but he complied. He slowly opened his eyes. He thought he would see his bloodied legs but instead he saw his lower half was already carefully covered from his waist down with a dark cloth. Taurent brushed his black hair and complimented him softly, "Good boy."

"I am no doctor so I will call one to come check on you while you are sleeping, alright? Oli and Jean will bring a painkiller and a change of clothes. After that, go to sleep. If you need anything just call for me. I will sleep here tonight."

As the master of the house had said, he changed into new clothes, took a painkiller and was brought to the bed to sleep. Just in one night, a lot had happened. His parents died, he left the house he had stayed in since his birth and was taken in by a wealthy blonde who cut his legs off? Was his life a joke? A nightmare would be fitting.

Rea carefully shifted, attempting to find a comfortable position. The bed was soft and the blanket was warm. He wished his mom could live in such luxury. Even with all of the nice things that surrounded him, it was hard to fall asleep. He looked to his left to see that Taurent was fast asleep in a chair beside the bed.

Suddenly, the lady came in and tapped the master's shoulder. Rea quickly pretended to be in deep slumber. He heard the lady ask Taurent to change and sleep properly in their room but Taurent refused. In a hushed voice the two bickered, but Rea could hear them clearly.

"Sasha, I told you not to disturb me here. Go back to your room." Taurent's voice was angry.

The red lady answered, "Why are you like this? As you bring in another outsider, you would ignore me and would not give me any attention. Am I not your wife? If you want to have a child, I can give you one so come to our room. I even dolled up for you tonight."

Taurent sighed and walked to the door, "Sasha, I don’tt like to repeat myself. Get out."

Rea peeked and saw the back of the lady as she stomped out of the room. Her hair flowed behind her like silk. Then Taurent closed the door.

"Outsider," he mumbled. Taurent saw Rea was looking at him, and he straightened up. He went back to sit on the chair and smiled, "Don't worry about it. Sleep."

Rea turned back and closed his eyes. Should this be a dream? Did he want to go back to how he lived his life or should this be real? Rea contemplated his options and eventually let the exhaustion take over him, and he fell into the abyss where his dream was nothing but a place full of darkness.