I own nothing. Enjoy! Warning for described child-abuse.


"David," Kali said gripping my hand.

"Shh," I said softly, "I'll protect you."

Kali and I climbed out of my car, which was now parked in front of my house. I could feel Kali starting to shake. Having Kali so afraid of going to a place that was supposed to be safe was the worst thing. And I was the one bringing her to this place. If she got hurt it was my fault.

"Before we go in I need to do something," I said pulling my cell phone out.

"What is it, big brother?" Kali asked cocking her head to the side.

"If something bad happens I want you to find Amizio. Try the school first then his house. Do you remember how to get there?"

"Yes, but I don't want to leave you alone with him."

"Kali, you have to leave if I tell you to. I know how to handle him."

"You'll be hurt really badly though."

"I'd rather be hurt then watch him hurt you."

"David."

"Do as I say, Kali. It's for the best. Now stand still. I need to send a picture of you to Amizio."

Kali sighed sadly but stopped moving. I took the picture quickly and turned toward the house. We walked calmly into the ouse. I made sure that Kali was behind me the whole time. Our Father should be home and if we weren't careful it wouldn't end up well. If I could get Kali upstairs we could avoid this for a few hours.

"Dave," an angry voice rang out starling both Kali and I, "Did you pick up your sister?"

"Yes," I said knowing I couldn't lie.

"Get in here."

Kali gripped my hand and let out a soft whimper. I knew that she was afraid, but it would be worse if she hid. We walked into the kitchen and saw our Father sitting at the table. From the look in his eyes I could tell that he was already angry. Every bone in my body was yelling at me to get Kali out.

"Kali," Father said staring at her, "Come here."

I watched as Kali slowly moved in front of him. Before I could react Kali was laying on the floor. She looked up at me with tears in her eyes and blood on her lips. I tried to get closer to Kali, but Father punched me causing me to trip and fall in the living room.

When I got back into the kitchen Father was kicking Kali in the stomach. I pushed FAther away from her and tried to catch her eyes. Once I realized she wasn't going to look up I turned my attention back to Father. He looked so much angrier than before.

I didn't have time to block the punches, I barely had time to cover my head when I felt the kicks. The last time I had seen him this angry was a years ago when Kali moved out. It took awhile, but I heard the front door slam shut. I let out a soft sigh hoping that Kali was going to get to Amizio without much difficulty, and that he would take care of her.

"Get up," Father said deadly quiet.

Closing my eyes I let out a pained groan and stood up. I wondered how long it was going to take for me to heal this time. Maybe I wouldn't be playing football for awhile. This whole thing was getting way out of control. I only had to wait until I was eighteen and both Kali and I were leaving.

"Where is Kali?" Father asked getting in my face.

"I don't know," I said softly.

"Don't like to me. I know that you know where she is. Tell me now."

"I don't know."

Father growled angrily and pushed me back down. Listening closely I heard him go upstairs and slam his bedroom door closed. Sighing once again I closed my eyes and let myself relax slightly. Kali was safe, for now, and Father had locked himself in his room for at least the rest of the night.

Kali sohould be with Amizio now, and as much as I wanted to send them a message I didn't feel up to it. I didn't een know if I coudl get to my room. Out of all the beatings I had taken this one was the worst. I don't remember the last time I felt so afraid of my Father.

Groaning softly I used all of my strength to lift myself up. Once I was up I looked around the kitchen and sighed. I needed to try to keep Father from getting too angry. Going to the cabinet under the sink I got a few cleaning supplies out and went to work on the floor.

When I was down cleaning I slowly went up the stairs into my bedroom. Locking the door behind me I gingerly took off my shirt and went into the connected bathroom. As I stared into the mirror I watched the bruises start to form. The more I watched the more disconnected I felt.

"Kali is safe," I said to myself.

Normally after a beating I would start txting Kali, but this time I coudln't. If Kali knew how hurt I was she would race back, and if she came there was no telling what would happen. This time I had to be strong on my own. I had to do something to keep Kali away from the house.

Shaking my head I turned on the hot water and let the bathtub fill. I stripped myself and slowly got in the tub. the water burned my skin as I got in, but I didn't let it bother me. My body felt so tense and I needed soemthing to relax before it started to hurt even more than it did.

After taking a few deep breaths I closed my eyes and let my mind wonder. Almost instantly I started to think about Kurt. The way he looked at me when I threatened him, but if it got back to Father I knew that it would hurt not only me, but Kali.

Kali hated that I was hiding myself, I hated it too. It had to be done though. If everything went to plan though, Kali and I would be moving out of this house as soon as I was eighteen. Then when I graduated we're moving out of this state. I had already been accepted to a college so everything was in place.

I opened my eyes when the water started to get cold. Rolling my eyes I got out and grabbed a towel. As I went into my room I gently patted myself dry. Once I was done I climbed under my blankets and let out a content sigh. It was nice to just be able to lay down and not worry about anything for a moment.

Reaching over I pulled my iPod out of a drawer. When it was on I started to play a mix that Kali had given me. Kali had always had a talent for singing and had been in her schools glee club. Maybe I coudl get her to join glee club and she'd be out of the house more.

As I listened to Kali singing I heard my cell phone go off I picked up the phone and saw that it was Amizio. Sighing I saw that he was asking if Kali was going to stay there tonight. It wasn't until now that I realized how good of a friend he was. I felt better knowing that he was the one taking care of my sister.

'Kali is worried. And so am I,' Amizio wrote.

'I'm fine.'

'If you're fine come stay here tonight.'

I shook my head at that. I needed to be here incase something happened with Father. As much as I wanted to be some place that I knew was safe I had to be here. The more Father focused on me the better things were for Kali. I also didn't think I could get down there in one piece.

'Amizio, get away from Kali and call me,' I wrote quickly.

"Hey," I said answering my phone.

"Kali told me what's been going on," Amizio said softly, "Why didn't you tell me about your dad?"

"Couldn't. Look, I want to go to your place, but I can't. Just keep Kali there."

"Are you that hurt?"

"Yeah."

"Dave, maybe you should call the cops."

"No. Please, Amizio, everything will be fine. Just take care of Kali for tonight."

"Fine. I don't like this though."