Chapter 1: Growing Up

Ryan grimaced as he examined his new bruises in the bathroom mirror. Mike, his father, had just come home drunk, again, and Ryan had forgotten to pick up his toys. Kayla, his 10 year old sister, walked in moments later. She was 2 years younger than Ryan, but they had always been the closest. She had come to live with Ryan when Kayla's real mom left her with her fatherwhen she was a baby. Mike was not capable of raising a 1 year old by himself so he handed her off to Dawn to raise. Dawn had not been happy about this arrangement at first, but if Mike kept bringing in the money, she didn't complain.

Ryan and Kayla had become close over the years even though they were not blood related.

"Is it bad Ry?" she asked meekly.

"No not really. Just stings."

Ryan and Kayla learned over the years, the signs to look for whenever Mike came home. The incoherent mumbling, the wobbly steps he took, and that strange laugh were sure signs that he was drunk. He was fine when he was sober. Sometimes he even took them out for the day and they actually had fun with him. Those were the good times. Ryan, Kayla, Trey, and Mike...just laughing. He was always saying that he was sorry for what he did afterwards, but they knew better. They would try their best to stay out of his way when they saw the signs, but sometimes they couldn't help it.Ryan had knocked over his puzzle as he was putting it away and Mike was not happy about it. He smashed in Ryan's cheek pretty good and took his belt and hit him in the back. They had learned to protect each other whenever Mike had these rages and smuggled in a first aid kit from school when the nurse wasn't looking.

"Here let me." she offered, taking out the cotton balls and peroxide and gently dabbing Ryan's bleeding welts. Ryan flinched once the peroxide touched his skin, but soon relaxed.

"There. That should do it." Kayla concluded, packing the peroxide and cotton balls back into their proper place.

"Thanks." Ryan smiled.

Ryan loved having a sister around. Trey, his older brother, 13, was never in the house much. He was usually out with his friends somewhere. Sometimes, he would bring Kayla and Ryan with him and they would go share a smoke somewhere or get high, but Ryan tried not to do it that much. He didn't want his sister to live like this.

"C'mon, we better get to bed," Kayla said."You don't want dad to get even madder."

They walked down the hall to their room as quietly as they could. They passed their mother's room and saw that she was staring lazily in bed and had a glazed look over her eyes. Ryan and Kayla had seen that look all too often and knew she'd be out for a few days. Kayla knew Dawn was not her real mom, but she was the closest thing she had to the real thing.

Once inside their room, Kayla slid the kit underneath her bed, making sure no one would find it. They both quickly slid into bed to escape from this nightmare that they called home. Their room was relatively small,with two beds on separate walls, a desk, small closet, and a dresser, but Ryan and Kayla didn't whine. They knew they were lucky to have a bed, let alone a room, at all.

"G'night Ry. Love you."

"G'night Kay. Love you, too."

4 Years Later

"Mom, what's going on?" Ryan yelled,walking out of his room. His dad was bound with handcuffs at his wrists and being led out the door by 2 policemen. Another stayed in the house to explain the situation.

"Ryan, SHHH!" glared his mother, turning her attention back to the cop "Now tell me what the hell is going on here!"

"Your husband has been charged with an armed robbery. A trial date has not been set yet, but you will be notified when it is." the officer explained.

"Wait just a fuckin' minute! You can't just come in here and take my husband away!" Dawn slurred, an empty beer bottle in her hand.

"Now ma'am, calm down. It will probably be within the next few weeks."

"Yeah, yeah, yeah." said Dawn, flicking him off.

"Well, g'day to ya, then." he said, retreating towards the door.

"Mom...what happened?" Ryan asked again, cautiously.

"Oh, your dumbass father fucked up again! Why is he always doing this to me?" she wailed, falling into the sofa.

"It's gonna be ok mom. I'm here." soothed Ryan, sitting down next to her, rocking her.

Dawn continued to whimper in Ryan's arms until he led her back to bed. He then walked into his own room to find Kayla still sleeping.

'She can sleep through anything',he thought, and gave a slight chuckle.

"Kay, c'mon honey. Wake up." he whispered, rubbing her shoulder.

"Hmmmm..." she groaned groggily, the slightest slit opening in her eyes.

"Baby, dad's been arrested for armed robbery. His court date hasn't been set yet." Ryan said rather bluntly.

"What's gonna happen?" Kayla asked, now fully awake, sitting up.

"I don't know. We won't know anything for a couple of weeks."

"Oh." was all she said, looking down at her sheets.

"Let's go. I'll make us some breakfast."

Ryan and Kayla walked into the kitchen, and Ryan took out some eggs and bacon. Kayla absolutely loved his eggs, and even if she didn't, she didn't have much choice but to eat them. Ryan was the only one who really cooked in their house. Kayla helped him as often as she could. She knew that Ryan was only 16 and he was carrying way too much responsibility as it is.

They sat down to eat their breakfast as Trey walked in the door. He was 17 now and out of the house more than usual, since he could now drive.

"Hey guys, what's for breakfast?" he asked, scoping the kitchen for scraps.

"There's some extra bacon in the pan." Ryan said.

"Excellent. Hey, what's the matter Kay?" Trey asked, seeing her sullen face.

"Dad got arrested this morning." Ryan said shortly.

"Oh, I see." Trey nodded and kneeled down to her level. "He'll be alright, sweetie. This isn't hisfirst run-in with the law. I bet he'll be gracing us with his presence anytime now."

"Really?" Kayla asked.

She knew she was being stupid, but she cared about him. He was her father and the only real parent she had left.

"You betcha." Trey smiled and winked at Ryan. He knew Trey had only said that stuff to make Kayla feel better. The truth was, their dad could go to jail for a long time. Trey and Kayla hugged for a second and he took off again.

2 Weeks Later

Kayla, Ryan, Dawn, and Trey sat in the courtroom awaiting the jury's verdict.

"We, the jury, find the defendant, Mr. Mike Atwood, guilty on all counts."

"NOO!" bellowed Dawn and hung her head in her hands.

Ryan, Trey, and Kayla watched as their father was led away in handcuffs.

"Mr. Atwood, the court hereby sentences you to7 years with the possibility of parole in5 years."

Kayla buried her face in Ryan's shoulder as Trey tried to console Dawn.

Ryan and Trey had always been the ones to go to for comfort. They had never been good at showing their emotions, but everyone seemed to run to them with theirs.