My eyes opened again and the sight that beholden me was a brick wall. I was laying down in what appeared to be an alleyway behind a dumpster and it was night out. What the hell is happening? I thought I was dead, so why am I here? Was that all just a dream? It had to be, I surely died back there, there’ll be no way I can survive. Even if I did, how the hell did I even end up here?
I was shocked when I looked over at my injured arm and it was all wrapped up in bandages, that’s when I freaked out. My arm that was clearly injured seemed to be healed, this has to prove that wasn’t a weird dream of some kind. That shit actually happened, it still doesn’t feel real. But why am I alive? Doesn’t Runasi always kill the people who failed. So why am I still alive? My head also had bandages on it and when I touched it, my head started hurting. God, did Runasi really keep me alive? But why? I’m so fucking confused right now.
I struggled to get up from the ground, my legs wobbled and were shaking once I stood up. I fell down two times, but after ten minutes I got up successfully and was able to walk out of the alley. My heart dropped as I went out into the street to get a better understanding of my surroundings, I was just behind the Yurinami Fight School. Why was I behind here? Did Yurinami have a part in this? Right now, it’s not the time to worry about that. I have to get back to my family and tell them the bad news, that Eric is dead. Mom probably knows that already, as she usually checks the kill history at the bank. I don’t know how I’m gonna explain my absence for so long. It’s already hard on me that I saw Eric die in front of my own eyes, it’s gonna be harder to explain the sight I saw to them. Everytime I blink I still see his body in my mind. It’s never gonna be scrubbed away from my mind, it’s a stain that’ll never rub away.
Though I need to get back home now, I’m not sure if i’m physically able to take the sewers back home but I’ll try. I limped over to the manhole cover and miraculously was able to get it up. I took the ladder down, and was now on my way back home. During the long walk back home I was able to actually think to myself of the things that just happened. I’m the first person to land a hit on Runasi Haruhiko. To think I, a sixteen year old, would be able to pull off a feat like that. It’s almost something out of a work of fiction, like one of the books Alice would read in the corner of the room. I always wanted to sit down and read with her, I still have the chance to do it. Alice and I always didn’t have much in common, but I would like to change that. Maybe I’m thinking like that because I don’t want to lose another sibling. Before it’s too late, I should at least try to do it.
I reached the ladder to the apartment complex and climbed up it. It took longer than usual due to my legs still aching from my fight. I managed to get up from the manhole cover and turned and faced the apartment complex and immediately noticed something off. The door was left wide open. It’s never like that, so why the hell is it wide open? Maybe someone forgot to close the door? Yeah, maybe that’s it. I limped over to the complex and limped inside. Another horror of the day greeted me, the receptionist was shot in the head with blood splattered on the wall behind him and his head layed face first on the keyboard of the computer. What the fuck was going on? Don’t tell me.
There was crying from kids all around the building, they were screaming and the wales from the children were horrific. The worst sound you’ll ever hear in your life. After picking up on that, I immediately ignored all of my injuries and ran all the way upstairs to check on my parents. With every floor I passed the cries and screams got louder, until I heard the distinct voice of Alice crying.
¡NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO!
PLEASE FOR THE LOVE OF HOLY FUCK LET THIS NOT BE REAL!!! THIS CAN’T ALL BE HAPPENING ON THE SAME DAY!!!
I ran the fastest up the stairs until I hit my floor. The only other step that I needed to take was to go into my room and confirm my suspicions. I ran around the corner and busted down the door.
It was happening.
This was real.
My eyes were not deceiving me.
I came to the right conclusion.
On the floor were the bodies of my parents, shot in the head and laid flat on the floor. Above the bodies was Alice sobbing and crying hysterically. She didn’t even notice me.
I fell to my knees and lost all emotion, just complete shock. My mind just could not keep up with all that has happened.
“They said everything will be ok!” Alice waled. “They lied!” Alice was holding her mom in her arms. Mom had a bullet through her stomach and heart. Dad had a bullet shot in his eye and throat. They were no doubt murdered, and Alice was forced to watch it. So were everyone else’s kids, they were forced to watch their parents die in front of them.
“Where were you!” Alice screamed at me, shoving me to the ground. “Why didn’t you come back!? Why weren’t you home!? Why didn’t you bring Eric with you!?”
Alice was screaming so loud her voice was cracking up, she looked at me with complete anger and sadness. The desperation to find answers to why this happened was heartbreaking. But, I didn’t feel the same way that she did. Even though I should, why am I not even shedding a single tear? Have I become so desensitized to this!?
“Alice” I said almost in a whisper. “We need to leave.”
“No! I’m not leaving mom and dad here!” She said going over to mom and hugging her lifeless body.
“Alice, we need to go now!”
“No!”
“Please Alice don’t make this harder for me and you.”
“NO!”
“We have to leave them behind! Before any more of those people come back to do a double sweep!”
“I don’t care! I’m not leaving them here to rot!”
“WE’RE LEAVING NOW ALICE!”
Alice looked up at me, completely terrified of me. I shouldn’t have yelled at her like that but it was the only way I could think of to get my point across.
“Looks like we missed one.” A man behind me said. I quickly turned around but I was immediately hit with the but of the bun the guy was holding and was brought to the ground. They hit me directly in the eye.
“Just shoot em and let’s get out of here.” Another guy shouted from the hallway.
“Fine.”
“Don’t hurt him!” Alice yelled, running towards the guy.
“Get the fuck away from me! Little shit!” The guy said.
The guy whipped Alice with the but of the gun and she fell on the ground and was bleeding from her mouth.
“DON’T YOU HIT HER!” I screamed in a fit of rage. I got up from the ground and rushed at the guy and he pointed the gun on me and my vision went black.
My vision returned to me when I was standing over the two bodies of the men who killed my parents. I had a hammer in my hand dripping with blood with the men’s skulls caved in and their brain being exposed. I dropped the hammer in disgust and turned away and saw Alice cowering in a corner. Did I do this? Was I in a full black out rage? God, I didn’t know I was even capable of doing this.
“L-L-L-Lee?” Alice quivered.
Alice was curled up in a ball in the corner with tears streaming down her face.
“Time to go. Now!” I said, wiping the blood off my face. I walked over to Alice and reached my hand out to her. She flinched a little when I did that, it made me realize for the first time in my life that I was being feared. It took a second for her to grab my hand. We grabbed a backpack in the room and grabbed food, drinks, and weapons. Also other essentials like a flashlight, a lighter, and some books for Alice to read. We also grabbed the sleeping bags on the floor. Once we were done packing up, we walked out of the apartment complex, once again passing the other crying children with no other place to go. I want to help them, I just don’t know how.
“Where are we gonna go?” Alice asked sniffling.
“I don’t know.” I responded as we were walking down the apartment stairs.
“Oh.”
I knew that she didn’t have the most faith in me, but right now she had no choice. We got to the entrance of the complex, passing by the receptionist’s body. I clutched onto Alice’s hand.
We walked out of the apartment complex and into the night. I took Alice directly into the sewers. My plan was to hide out in the sewers and sleep there. We both went down the ladder, and I took the usual way I’d take to go to Yurinami school, but instead of stopping at the manhole cover I’d take to go to the surface. I kept going, turning a right and a left then going straight. After taking those directions, I saw a glimpse of light coming from around a corner, and I heard people talking. I immediately took cover with Alice behind something as I thought these people were gonna harm us.
But after ten minutes, I realized that the voices were very happy sounding, they were laughing and singing. Overall, having a great time. It made me feel very sad, as I wished that it were my family having that same feeling. I took a big risk and decided that we should at least see what's around the corner. I took Alice’s hand and mustered the courage to see.
“No!” Alice said to me. “I don’t want to take that risk! I don’t want to lose you!”
“Don’t worry.” I said. “Everything is going to be ok.”
“That’s what mom and dad said before they got shot.”
“This time, I’ll keep that promise!”
After I said that I took the steps forward and peered around the corner. There were people around a campfire, three tents around the campfire, and a board that connected the two sides of the sewer. This had to be a friendly community right? By the glance I took around the corner, I saw about five people. Didn’t know how many were boys or girls but that’s not important. I took a deep breath and walked around the corner to announce my presence.
“Hey!” I said from the dim light of the campfire. The people freaked and scrambled around until they looked up at me and saw how young I looked. They probably didn’t take me as a threat.
“Oh my god kid!” A guy with a white beard and raspy voice said. “Don’t scare us like that!”
“Sorry.” I responded back. “It’s just been a bad day.”
“Is that a girl?” A woman with red hair asked, pointing at Alice who was wrapped around me.
“Yes. She’s fourteen, and I’m sixteen.”
“Oh my god.” The guy with the white beard said. “What kids these days have to go through.”
“Look I don’t want to bother you too much, we’re just looking for a place to sleep. Can we just sleep here, only for one night.”
“Sure, yes you can.” The woman said.
“Absolutely.” The man said.
“You can stay with me!” The woman with the red hair said. “If you’re ok with that.”
“Yeah, that’s fine.”
I slowly approached the group of people. The man with the white beard approached me and shook my hand.
“My name is William Vertan.” He said to me,
“Lee Pulpis” I responded back. “And this is my sister Alice Pulpis.”
“Hey.” William said, reaching his hand to touch her head. I placed my hand on his arm and pushed it away.
“Don’t touch her.” I said firmly with a deadpan look.
“Sorry, didn’t mean to tick you off.” He said backing up.
“Hi Lee and Alice, my name is Nancy Zention.” The girl with the red hair walked up to me. “I hope you guys will enjoy our company only if it is for a night.”
“Nice to meet you. Nancy.”
Alice didn’t say anything and only hung on to me tighter. The other three people also introduced themselves, an african american guy named Derek Kink, another woman named Elayna Vill, and a quiet guy named Henry Ether. They all seemed friendly and nice. But, I’m not too willing to trust them. After everyone introduced themselves to me and Alice they all went into their respective tents. The only one that didn’t was Nancy.
“Alright.” Nancy said. “Since everyone is gone, I’ll show you my tent so you can stay for the night.”
“Thanks.” I responded.
“No problem.”
She took me and Alice to a tent that was not too far away from the campfire and opened it for me to see inside. It wasn’t very big but it would fit all three of us. She showed which place we can place our sleeping bags and we did just that. Shortly after that, Nancy went to bed as me and Alice layed down to go to bed for the night. I closed my eyes but I immediately opened them back up when Alice spoke to me.
“Is Eric dead as well?” She asked.
I took a moment before I could respond. “Yes.”
“I figured. Guess he really wanted to go through with it.”
“Unfortunately, yeah.”
There was nothing else after that for a little while, until Alice rolled over to face me.
“I hope he burns in hell.”
My heart sank when she said that, an innocent girl like her wishing something like that. I just wasn’t used to it. But I would be lying to myself if I said I didn’t feel the same way. He went out of his way to throw out everything in his life, and died for it. I tried to convince him, I did, but it was all pointless. He couldn’t snap out of his delusion and he died horrifically. I didn’t tell Alice about my fight with Runasi Haruhiko. She didn’t need to know. Thankfully Runasi kept me alive for whatever reason he did that for, otherwise. I wouldn’t be here for Alice.
Right now, she is the only important thing in my life146Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ2BObpjmbPu
