Hey guys. I've been noticing a lot of comments about parts of the story that doesn't match up, so Im going through all the chapters and fixing a lot of errors. This is also going to help me with continuing the story because I was having a head time remembering everything and where I wanted the story to go. Thanks for sticking with me, and I hope this process will clear up any confusion you may have about to story. As always, please leave your comments and questions. :)

The Last Star

Some people say that everything happens for a reason. I personally think that this could be true to a certain point. For the longest time I thought that it was completely naive to think that every little choice you make can change your life forever. I thought that your life had one route and there was no room for change, that you couldn't control the outcome of your life. I soon found out that I was terribly wrong. This is the story of how I found my purpose in life.

Chapter One

I wake up like every other day, smacking the alarm clock to shut it off and flipping back over to close my eyes for "just a couple" of minutes more. Sadly these minutes never come because I know that I am wide awake and I have to get up and get my little brother up before he is late for day care. This used to be my moms job. She used to wake me up with a big smile on her face and tell me that the sun is shining brighter just for us. Then she would wake up my brother and change his diaper before making breakfast for all of us. I would sleepily walk down the stairs to the kitchen table still in my pajamas to find my father reading the newspaper with a cup of coffee steaming next to him.

"Good morning darling" he would say as I would sit down across from him. "Beautiful day today" I would mumble something about having to get up and he would just chuckle at me.

Soon my mom and my little brother, Andrew, would join us. Mom would set Andie down in his high chair and start cooking something for all of us. After we ate, Dad would clear the plates, grab his brief case, and kiss us all good bye on his way out the door to go to work. This is how it had always been, and it worked for all of us. We were happy. We had nothing to worry about.

I shook myself from the past and got up to change Andie. I walk down the hall to his room and see that he is already awake.

"Good morning baby boy" I say to him as I pick him up and give him a kiss on his forehead. " somebody smells stinky!" I quickly get him changed and dressed in a red onesie. All the while Andie is giggling and talking in his own language that is a mixure of real words and noises. He has no idea of the troubles we are in since mom died. He doesn't know that dad is drinking himself to death. He doesn't know that we could lose everything we own. He doesn't know that he is all I have left that is pure and good. He is innocent.

Once Andie is ready I walk back to my room with him on my hip and set him in the bouncer I have set up in my room so I can get ready. I quickly go into the bathroom to brush my teeth and hair and put on some light makeup. I take a few seconds just to look at myself.

"What am I going to do?" I ask myself softly. My inner voice laughs and says 'the only thing you can do. Keep going for Andie'. I know it's true. It seems like everything I do now and days is for Andie. I had to take a year off of high school, putting me a year behind, after dad quit his job so I could take care of everyone and bring in enough money to keep us going. I don"t have time to go out and do the things that normal 19-year-olds do.

I sigh and move back to my room to pull on a black tank top and a pair of worn out jeans. Andie starts to fuss so I go over to him. He reaches out to me so I'll pick him up. I hold him close and just breathe. His red hair is nothing like my brown hair. He looks nothing like me except for his eyes. We both have the same blue eyes that look like the ocean just after a storm, like my mom would say. I smile sadly as I think of her. She died a litle over a year ago from a horrible freak car accident, just a few months after Andie was born. My dad blames himself for her death and I don't think he will ever recover from her death.

I glance at the clock and see that we have to be out of the house in a half hour so I put him down and finish getting ready. One last look in the mirror before I take Andie down stairs for breakfast. I look at myself roll my eyes. I'm not much to look at really. I mean sure I'm above average height but that's about all that's special about me. I have major curves that make it obvious that I'm not skinny but I'm not overweight. My brown wavy hair reaches my mid back is pulled back in to a high ponytail because it's so hot outside. I hear a crash down stairs, tearing me from my thoughts, and I grab my phone and Andie before rushing down stairs.

"Annie, baby girl, daddy needs your help." My father calls out to me. I hurry into the kitchen and see that he had fallen and was obviously drunk. I look at him at see that he had been trying to get in to the liquor cabinet again.

" dad what happened?" I ask as i put Andie in his high chair at the table. Andie looks at dad and starts to cry. "shhh honey its okay dad was just being silly and he fell" i say as i pick him up again and try to calm him down.

" It doesn't matter what happened Annie, just help daddy up." Dad says. Quickly put Andie back in his chair and move over to help my father up. As I reached for his arms I could smell the liquor stench on him. I don't say anything because I know that nothing will change, nothing ever does.

'If only mom was here' I think to myself, 'She would know what to do'. I set my dad upright and help him walk to the living room so he can sit down and sleep.

"Thanks baby girl. You know I love you right?" He asks.

"Yeah dad I know." I say as I bring him a blanket of the back of the couch.

"You look so much like your mother. So beautiful." I could see the sadness in his eyes. i know this isn't his fault, its nobody's fault. Mom died and left me here to take care of them. Its not dad's fault that he couldn't take the pain of losing her. I know that I have to be strong for them, I can't let go because if i do, Andie will have no one to take care of him.

I snap out of my thoughts because I hear Andie crying again. I hurry into the kitchen and go over to him. "what are you crying about little guy?" i coo at him. He stops crying and reaches for the stove. "Food" he says with a grunt.

"I know you hungry, let me fix you some oatmeal." I walk over to the counter and start making Andie's breakfast. While it cooks, I make a snadwich for my dad for when he wakes up. A couple mintues later, the oatmeals done so I dish some out for Andie and let it cool a little before giving it to him. I don't even bother with a spoon because I know he'll just use his hands..

While Andie eats, I take the time to take a bottle of liquor from the cabinet and pour it down the drain. I've been doing this every morning, I have to do it one at a time so that dad doesn't notice. I check on dad and see that he is fast asleep so I clean up the house a little bit before getting ready to take Andie to daycare. I threw a load of clothes in to the washer then went to grab Andie and double check that we have everything. I grab my backpack, keys and Andie's Diaper bag before taking his hand and guiding him out the door. Once i have him safely buckled in his car seat we head to his day care with only a few mintues to spare.