Alice didn't want to wake up. But continuing to slumber, with the sunlight leaking through the gaps of her curtains, and the commotion coming from downstairs, was just impossible.

Her pillow was still damp with tears. She could taste the salt on her tongue. Alice couldn't remember anything from last night, except for the slamming of doors, the shouting and stumbling, and the blows to her back as her father released all his pent up anger. And then everything was just a haze through blurry eyes of tears and fading in and out of consciousness.

"6:30." Alice mumbled to herself, staring at the luminsescent numbers on her alarm clock. Any second now, and she'd be forced to get up. The muscles in her back were sore. School today was going to be horrible. Not that it was any better any other day.

"Alice!" She heard her father snarl, followed by a loud crash. A ceramic plate, probably.
"Coming." She mumbled into her pillow. Abuse was what she woke up to, what she was a victim to, and what she fell asleep to. Her father was her hell.
Alice stood up, her head pounding, stars flashing in front of her eyes. She stumbled out her door. The memories of last ngiht's beating flashed in her mind. Tears sprung to her eyes, and she blinked them away. No, she wouldn't cry. Crying meant she cared enough to get hurt. She didn't care. Because soon enough she would be out of that hell hole. Soon enough, she'd turn eighteen. And she could leave it all behind once and for all.

Downstairs, her parents were arguing. Her baby brother, Lucas, was in Alice's mother's arms wailing as he was jostled in the flurry of shouting and yelling. Quickly, she ran to his aid and scooped him from her mother's arms. Not that her mother, Leanna, noticed anyway.
"It's okay, Lucas." Alice cooed softly. "Alice will take you out later, and make everything better, okay?" There was a ugly red mark on the baby's cheek. Her fathe robviously hadn't been very gentle last night in his drunken stupor.
Alice's back still ached, and walking was a pain. She was still in the clothes she was in when she came home the night before; a blue tank top the colour of her eyes, and grey faded jeans.

"Alice, get you fucking ass in the kitchen right now, you dirty piece of scum!" Her father had always been one with words.
"Coming." was her reply.
"What are you doing, holding that bag of shit?" He referred to her brother as that always. He was ungrateful, and saw anyone apart from himself as grime on the bottom of his shoes.
"That's your mother's job. But then again, she's ust as much of a worthless cow as you are." He took as swig from an unlabelled bottle.
"I don't want you to come home today. Go sleep in the park or some shitty place. Don't btoher coming home until tomorrow night, unless you want me to give you a replay of last night." He remembered how he had punched her and strangled her the night before. It was crystal clear in his mind. Her father's lips twitched into a dark smile.
"Oh, and take that shit faced baby with you. He ain't worth no crap." Her mother began yelling again. Alice took her leave. Grabbing a ajcket discarded on the floor, she hurried out the door, holding a crying one year old Lucas all the way. He was only beginning to crawl; he couldn't defend himself against anything. Lucas needed Alice.

Now a good 6 blocks away from the house at a park near the side of the road, she sat down on the grass. Lucas had now stopped crying, but his cheeks were still blotchy and covered with tear trails.
Alice sighed. "Lucas, what are we going to do?"
He gurgled in reply, happier than he ever was in the house.
"Alice, is that you? Oh Alice, dear!" Esme rushed over to the two of them. Esme was Edward and Emmet's mother. She was one of the few people who knew what Alice went through, and she had long ago vowed into secrecy.
Esme had watched on in horror as the beatings got worse over time. and when Lucas was born, Esme so nearly cracked. It was only Alice begging, and sobbing uncontrolably on her kitchen floor, did she not tell the authorities about the going-ons in the Brandon houshold.
The bruises on Alice's neck were visible beneath her curls of hair.
"Alice, what happened? Are you alright? Do you need anything?" Esme fussed over her as if Alice was one of her own children.
"He beat me again last night. It was better than the other times though, I didn't collapse." Alice tried to give Esme a reassuring smile, but could only manage a grimace. A sharp pain shot thorugh her again as she tried to stand. Lucas' weight unbalanced her, and Esme grabbed her arm to steady her.
"Come, Alice. Stay with us for a couple of nights. Please." Esme had always been a mother figure to her. The whole family was like her own. They all knew, but vowed to silence. Carlisle, Esme's husband, was a doctor and could treat her injuries. It was how she had met the family. She had run blindly from the house, with a head injury, and blacked out in the park, only to be found by an astounded Carlisle.

The Cullens', Swans' and Hales' had all been magnificently welcoming. They were very tight, and almost like a big family. Alice loved them all. Especially a certain blonde haired, blue-eyed southern gentleman. A southern gentleman named Jasper, Jasper Hale.

JASPER'S P.O.V

"Boys! Alice is here! Come say hello!" Esme's voice filled the whole house. She was like a second mother to me. I grinned, and bounded down the stairs, followed by Edward and Emmet. They laughed raucously, shoving eachother all the way down.
"Hey Alice!" I swept her into a tight hug. She hissed between her teeth. I relinquished my hold of her immediately, my brow furrowed.
"It's fine, just a little battered and bruised." She gasped, yet still attempted to sound non-chalant.
"He beat you again?" I wanted to hurt him for hurting her. I wanted to do something. But that would just hurt her further. That is something I could never do. I loved her. In a way she would never return.
Bruises were visible on her neck. Black and blue covered her neck. He had strangled her. The monster had hurt her in such ways. I wanted to kill him.
"Lucas and Alice will stay here for a few days, if you don't mind." During the period of time of my distraction, Rosalie and Bella had filtered into the room. They both gave Alice looks of sympathy.
"Come on, Alice. Let's get you changed." Rosalie carefully took Alice's hand and took her upstairs, while Bella took Lucas and took him to the kitchen to give him something to eat. The poor kid looked starved. Alice looked no better.

"We can't stand by and do nothing." I was seething. Emmet put a restraing, yet comforting hand on my shoulder.
"Bro, we can't do anything. Just wait a few more months. She'll be eighteen, and can move in with us. Lucas can come too, his parents wouldn't miss him anyways." Edward was always the voice of reason.
"Fine." I grudgingly allowed them to drag me upstairs, to where I could hear Alice and Rosalie conversing. Her bell-like laugh was calming, soothing. I sighed and closed my eyes. She was beautiful, perfect. In ways she couldn't see. And one day, some lucky guy will have her. Oh, how I wished that lucky guy could be me.

BELLA'S P.O.V

"That's a good boy, Lucas." Lucas was adorable. Like Alice, he had dark hair and deep blue eyes. He was like my son, or nephew. I loved him to pieces. Edward came into the room and wrapped his arms around my waist, planting a reassuring kiss to the top of my head. I smiled and leaned back against him. Lucas sat at the table in his chair, experimentally attempting to spoon his own food unsuccesfully.
"He's going to grow up into an amazing person, that boy is." Edward loved Lucas to pieces too. He would one day show the boy how to ride a bike, how to play catch. We'd be the family that he never had. All of us.
Emmet, Esme, Jasper, Carlisle, Rosalie, Jenni, Robert, Edward, Nessie and myself; we'd be there for Alice and Lucas when no one else was.

Lucas turned to look over at us with twinkling eyes. I smiled and tucked a loose strand of hair away from my face.
"Let's get you fed and cleaned up, buddy." Edward began feeding him, while Lucas gurgled happily. I went upstairs to find some clothes to change him in to after his bath. We always had a box of things for Lucas and Alice. They stayed here more than their own house!
Alice had changed into a pair of shorts and a brand new shirt that Rosalie and I had bought for her on our last shopping trip.
"Bella! There you are! Where's Lucas?" Alice was a ball of energy. The bruises were much less obvious, covered with powder and make up now.
"He's downstairs with Edward. I was just going to get the bath ready for him." I smiled. She mouthed a quick 'thank you' and gave me a watery, grateful smile before dashing back into the spare room that was prepared for her and Lucas.

Alice had been through a lot. And we would be with her every step of the way. We were her family. We would save her when no one else could.