Hatred. That was the only word that echoed through her mind now. Today couldn't have gone worse, Ivan had lost his temper with her AGAIN and had ended up smashing a vodka bottle over her head, knocking her out for the remainder of the daylight hours. Nataliya lowered her thin, pale body into the warm water of the bath tub slowly.

She sighed.

"I hate you…" she mumbled closing her violet eyes tightly. "I hate you." She repeated louder as tears began to flow from her eyes.

"I HATE YOU!" she screamed dragging her trusty knife across her wrist several times until the water became a light red from her blood.

The girl repeated her mantra of I hate you over and over until the room became slowly darker until all she saw was black. Until all she felt was emptiness, loneliness.

*o*o*o*

Great. Just fantastic. Alfred thought to himself as he walked into his dysfunctional home to find his little brother, Matthew, passed out on the sofa with a rolled up dollar in his hand and two lines of crack on the coffee table. He heard yelling from outside, awesome his parents were fighting again.

The teen made his way to the stairs lighting up a cigarette only to be stopped by the drunken voice of his father.

"And where *hic* do you think you're going you little punk ass?" he slurred, grabbing his shoulder.

"Don't touch me." He replied blowing smoke into his father's face, earning a smack to the back of the head.

"Rude ass kid! You *hic* should know better! I'm your father!"

"Then act like it, dick!" Alfred hollered as he climbed the stairs slamming his door behind him.

He plopped down on his bed sighing and pinching the bridge of his nose, taking a drag from his cigarette.

"It's a wonder how I've lasted this long…" he mumbled to himself. His blue eyed gaze turned toward the window to look across to his neighbor's house. What's-her-face? Oh, right Nataliya. He had heard rumors about her home life. Apparently it was brutal-made his life seem easy.

He sighed again putting his cigarette out while lying back on his bed. One day he'd be out of this hell.

*o*o*o*

Morning came all too quickly for Nataliya. She was exhausted and all she wanted was to sleep. But the booming voice of her "brother" made it impossible.

"You stupid bitch! What do you mean there is no vodka?! Tell me you are lying, da?" said man yelled from the kitchen as the frail rose and readied herself for the day- pulling on skinny jeans and an oversized grey hoodie.

"I-I'm sorry!" her sister, Katya, replied. God, that woman really needed to not cry at everything.

The Belarusian descended the stairs quietly, slipping into the kitchen undetected as the verbal abuse on her older sister continued.

"And you," Ivan said, stopping her dead in her tracks "I told you to come to me last night, why didn't you syestra?" the man's cold aura surrounded Nataliya as he approached.

"I was tired…" she answered nonchalantly.

"No excuse!" he boomed striking her across the face "When I want I get, da?"

The girl didn't even as much as flinch at her brothers words or hand. Just stood and bared it. That's all she could do. That's all she had learned to do.

"I have to go to school Ivan…move." She shoved past him grabbing her backpack, slinging it across her shoulder making her way toward the school.

*o*o*o*

The school day had dragged on painfully slow. Not like Alfred wanted to go home but.

It was finally last block and the young man sat himself down in a seat by the window, by where Nataliya normally sat. He gaze out the window leaning on his hand noticing that the sky was beginning to cloud over and it was starting to drizzle.

"Why are you sitting here…" the sudden cold voice of Nataliya brought him back to reality.

"Huh? What?"

"Why are you sitting here, Jones." She hissed, seating herself in her regular seat across from him, loathing his existence.

"I dunno…try something new?" he smirked at the silver haired girl before him. Alfred examined her. Her face was beautiful, flawless. Her eyes a frozen shade of violet. Her skin was like white marble and her hair shone like that of the snow. She was actually quite beautiful…and misunderstood…like him. All anyone ever saw of him was the 'hero' persona he put out. No one could see under his mask of happiness. No one ever saw him crack.

"Something new?" she scoffed burying her face in a book, glancing at him over the top of the pages.

"Yeah!" he replied happily "you seem like a cool person!" he laughed but then fell silent when his brother entered the room and decided to sit next to him.

"Hey, Al" Matthew said wrapping an arm around him "How's it going?"

"Not now Matt…" he warned with edge in his voice, shoving his arm off

"OOOH c'mon, Alfie~" he giggled

"Matt, you're high…get off!" The teen yelled shoving him to the ground, anger in his eyes.

"All you had to do was ask." The younger replied punching him hard in the arm, then walking away.

"You're not who you say you are….are you." Nataliya said after a long silence, setting her book down.

"And what would you know about it? Huh?" Alfred hissed, annoyed.

The girl remained silent but instead pointed toward her brother who was laughing and smiling across the room.

"What about that douche?" he said looking out the window to see the down pour of rain.

"I know a mask when I see one Alfred…because he wears one too." She mumbled in a low voice picking up her book again.

The boys head snapped back to look at Ivan, then at Nataliya. How? How did she see through me like that? How long has she known?

Alfred stared at the white haired beauty before him. Examining every feature. Right down to the faint bruises of hands on her thin neck.

It was obvious to him now that things in his life could be much worse…Nataliya was in hell every second of everyday.

He had to help her. He HAD to. But how…how could he save this fragile angel.