Summary: Zexion is being horribly abused by his father and after moving several times because of his "witchcraft" and having almost everything in his life go horribly wrong, he thinks suicide is the only answer. Based on the true story of myself and a personal friend.

Disclaimer: All characters belong to Square Enix.

"I stole my father's gun and by the time you read this, I will be long dead.

I can't explain why I am the way I am, or why a father can't love his son unconditionally. I just can't do this anymore. Life… is so painful. My father, the bullies at school, everyone who's ever come in contact with me… they all aim to shut me out or shut me up. With the exception of a select few, everyone I've ever met has either hated or feared me. I give up. You can all move on with your lives and pretend I never existed. I won't be an embarrassment or a burden to you any longer. Dad, I hope you can find peace in the fact that you won't have a sinner for a son any longer. If there is a next life, I hope it is better than this one, and if I end up in hell, Dad, I'll see you there.

Demyx, I'm sorry. You're the only person in this world I cared about, and you're the only one who kept me going this long. You're the one bright light in a very dark place and I thank you for being there as long as you have. Know that I love you, and I hope you find someone who can make you truly happy.

-Zexion

P.S. To whoever finds me, the things I have with my body, the photographs and recordings… give it all to the police. I've been collecting them for years and it's time something be done about it. My final wish is for my father to rot behind bars."

I looked down at the note in my hands, rereading it for the umpteenth time before taking a safety pin and attaching it securely to my shirt. Everything was falling into place now. I'd said my goodbyes to the only person who mattered and I was ready to go. Finally, I would get the peace I'd wanted all my life.

I looked down at the revolver I held in my hands, all set, fully loaded, and ready to fire. This was it. This was the end. I took a deep breath and smiled as I put the gun against my temple. Goodbye… Demyx.

Six Months Earlier:

"No, Dad!" I screamed as my father, who was nearly twice my size, picked me up and flung me over his shoulder. I pounded my fists against his back and kicked my legs, struggling to free myself from his grasp. "Please don't do this again!"

"Shut up, you little witch," came the curt response as I was suddenly plunged into the freezing cold water in the bathtub. "It's time to cleanse these demons, boy."

"Plea-" My cry was cut short as he put his hands around my throat and forced my head under the water. I clawed at his hands, but his grip was so strong. All I could do was wait for him to stop.

"Repent, boy," he said as he lifted my writhing form from the water. "Ask the Lord for forgiveness and repent your sinful ways."

"I haven't done anything wro-" I tried to say before he forced my head under the water yet again. I wasn't a witch. How could I ask forgiveness for something I hadn't done… for something I wasn't sorry for?

"Repent!" he shouted as he brought me up coughing and sputtering. "Last chance."

"Dad, please!" I cried, kicking and trying to wriggle free.

"The demons hold you strong," he breathed as he pushed me beneath the surface of the water one last time.

As always, I held my breath until my lungs burned, still clinging to a hope that my father would come to his senses and pull me up. However, as always, he held me under until the bubbles stopped rising, until the last of my air was gone and my body forced me to take a breath of whatever was available. The water entered my lungs in a painful rush, my voice failing me as I tried to scream. Maybe this time would be the last time. Maybe this time, I would finally be freed from this life. This is it, I thought. After all this time, this is finally going to be the end of me. I smiled at the thought as the world around me grew dark.

I felt like I was flying, like I was soaring higher than anyone could reach me. In an instant I was gone, my eyes closing in death. But of course… he wouldn't let it keep me for long.

The pressure of his hands on my chest was the first thing I felt before I expelled the water from my lungs and took the first good breath of air I'd had in several minutes. I wondered briefly exactly how long he'd let me stay dead this time before looking up to see him standing over me with a Bible in one hand and a golden cross in the other.

"Be sober," he began to read as he extended his cross toward me, "be vigilant; because your adversary the devil, as a roaring lion, walketh about, seeking whom he may devour." He flipped to a page with a post-it note sticking out of it and said, "Thou shalt not suffer a witch to live."

"I'm not a witch," I croaked, my voice hoarse and quiet.

"There, there, son," he said, looking down on me with a small smile. "We'll let the Lord take care of it."

He turned around and left the room without another word, leaving me cold, wet, and shivering on the bathroom floor.

A/N: This story is very personal for me because it's sort of a mesh between the real events that happened to a dear friend of mine and events in my own life. It's a heart-wrenching story of physical and emotional abuse and everything that happens is, for the most part, very real. I plan to spice up the "witchcraft" to fit Zexion and more of a fictional setting and put in a few personal touches here and there, but other than that this is exactly the monster that my friend and I had to face every day. Religious fanaticism can be a very powerful force, and a very brutal and unforgiving thing.

I don't know how often I will be updating this one, because I'm also working on two more of my own creation, and there's also the fact that writing this has me in tears most of the time. Expect more, but I can't really say when. Thank you for reading and for anyone out there who is suffering from any kind of abuse for any reason, remember that there are always people out there who love you and care about you and it does get better. I am a living example that it does get better.