A/N: Well … I hate to say this … but this is the last chapter. I am not too pleased about how I ended it, but I suck at writing endings, so … you guys are going to have to deal with it. I am sorry though! I hope you guys liked my story and that it wasn't too bad or anything. Please R&R&F and let me know how you thought the ending was! Thank you!

Disclaimer: To own or not to own Naruto … that is thy question … yeah. I do not own Naruto! ^-^

"Never give up, no matter what." – Too lazy to look up a real quote ... hehe

I ran. I ran as fast as I could to try to get down stairs. After Takashi had lunged, I maneuvered out of his way and ran passed him. I had to try to find something to defend myself against the knife that he had. Since my bat was out of the question, my only other hope was to make it to the kitchen to grab a knife or to go to the living room and grab an empty beer bottle. As I ran down the stairs, I heard Takashi right behind me.

"You can't run forever." I heard him say, but I ignored him as I turned toward the living room, but as I made it into the room, I was pushed. I landed on my knees and quickly got back up, turning toward Takashi. He wore a sinister, smug smirk that I wanted to rip right off of his face.

"I've had enough of you and your mother. You die here." I raised my eyebrow. Did he really expect me to let him kill me? Tch, yeah right. I thought as I saw him lunge with the knife aimed at my stomach. I grabbed his wrist and moved it out of my way so the knife wouldn't get me and I kneed him in the groin. He gasped, but didn't fall to the floor. He, instead, kicked me in the stomach, making me release my grip on his hand with the knife. He pushed me backwards and I had to grab onto the couch to keep myself upright. But as made sure I didn't fall on the floor, I didn't see the knife heading for my arm. He made a laceration on my upper, left arm. I kicked him in the stomach and stepped back a few steps, seeing how deep the cut was. It was pretty deep and it was bleeding pretty badly. 'Shit.' I looked back up and saw Takashi seething in anger. I looked at the table and almost smirked. I glanced at Takashi and I dove for the empty beer bottle, as I grabbed it, I threw it at Takashi, hitting him on the head. The glass broke and Takashi dropped the knife. I ran forward to get the knife before Takashi could. I bent to pick it up, but Takashi saw what I was planning on doing and kicked my stomach again, but as I fell backwards, I realized that I had managed to get the knife. I stood up and pointed it at Takashi.

He didn't care if I had a knife or not, he lunged again. I aimed the knife for his stomach and it went straight through. I heard Takashi gasp in pain. His eyes were wide as he felt his stomach as he stepped back. But I didn't wait for him to recover; I ran forward and punched him as hard as I could in the face. He stumbled backwards and hit the wall. I put my hand around his throat and aimed the knife for his stomach again, but he stopped me with his left hand. He kneed in the stomach and pushed me back. I tripped over my feet and fell on my back, dropping the knife in the process. I tried to get back up, but Takashi put his hands on my throat and took my hands into his so I couldn't fight back. I glared as he tried to suffocate me.

"How does it feel to be on the brink of death?" He asked me as he reached for something out of my sight. I said nothing, trying to figure out how to do this. But my thoughts were stopped by a sudden searing pain in my right shoulder. My eyes widened and I turned to see the knife plunged into my shoulder.

"Ah!" I yelled as he pulled the knife out and put it up to my face. He pressed it against my cheek until a small cut appeared, bleeding slightly. 'I need to stop this NOW!' I thought as I tried to knee him again, but he was sitting on my stomach, making it impossible to knee him in the groin or anywhere else for that matter. My right arm was hurting like hell and I could barely move it. My left arm was holding his right, making sure I could still breathe.

He brought the knife to my neck and pressed against my jugular. My eyes widened as his smile widened.

"Nothing to say? Hmm … then let's make it fast, shall we? I have other matters to attend to." 'Mom!' I thought as he raised the knife and aimed for my chest. I couldn't move my right arm because of my shoulder and my left arm couldn't reach his in time. 'Sorry mom … Itachi … Sasuke …' I thought as I closed my eyes. I waited for the pain, but it never came. I heard a surprise gasp and then a crash. The weight left my body and I opened my eyes to see Takashi on the table that we had and my mother standing over him. She looked over at me and smiled a small smile and gave me her hand. I took it and I hugged her, being careful not to hit her stomach wound.

"Mom … I am so sorry." I said into her chest.

"No, I am sorry." She let me go and we both looked at Takashi. He seemed to be knocked out.

"I'm going to get the phone to call the cops." I said. She nodded and took the knife away from Takashi, just in case he did wake up.

"Go ahead; I'll make sure he stays knocked out." I nodded and ran/limped my way to the kitchen, holding my right shoulder. I grabbed the phone and dialed the Uchiha's number. I waited for a moment and then I heard Sasuke's voice.

"Hello?" He asked. he didn't know my home number, but I didn't really care at the moment.

"Sasuke … I need you to get your dad and bring him over … now." I breathed, taking breaths because of the pain in my right shoulder, left arm, cheek, and throat.

"Are you okay?" He asked me. 'I don't have time to answer your fucking questions!'

"Not now … just hurry. And get the ambulance here too …" I heard Sasuke talk to someone and then I heard Fugaku speaking to me. I sat down on the stool because of the amount of blood loss. I was getting lightheaded.

"Suzuki, I need to know what is wrong. Are you and your family okay?" I was about to answer, but then I heard a gunshot. My eyes widened.

"Suzuki? What was that?" I dropped the phone and ran into the living room to find my mother on the ground with a gunshot wound in her chest.

"Mom?" I asked as I walked toward her, but stopped when Takashi spoke.

"No you don't. I told you what would happen, now you will watch her die." I glared. I was not going to watch my mother die! Takashi smirked and walked forward. 'Big mistake.' I thought as I lunged at him, taking him by surprise. We landed on the floor and the gun left his hand. I made a move for it, but he grabbed my by my hair and dragged me back.

"Damn it!" I yelled as Takashi tried to choke me again, but this time I punched him in the throat, making him stumble backwards. I took this chance to make my way to the gun. I grabbed it and turned around just as Takashi got to me again. I aimed the gun, but me moved my wrist just as I shot, missing him by millimeters. He stood up, taking me with him and tried to get the gun out of my hands. He pushed me into the wall, trying to disorient me, but I kept trying to shoot him. he kneed me again, but I barely felt it since I was focused on keeping the gun and making sure Takashi didn't get it and kill me. I leaned forward, making Takashi fall on his back and me landing on top of him. I pulled the gun away from him and stood up, aiming the gun at his heart. He stopped moving and looked at me. I smirked.

"What's it like when you know you are about to die?" He glared, but then smirked. 'Why is he smirking?' I thought as I pulled the trigger. I didn't move or breathe. 'What? How?' I thought in disbelief.

"I only put two bullets in. One for your mother and one for you." My eyes widened as I realized why he smirked. He was holding the knife again and I had a gun that didn't have any bullets in it. I dropped the gun and ran toward the kitchen. I made it to the kitchen and went for a knife, but I felt a pain in my right shoulder again, but form behind this time. He had stabbed me again! I turned around and he lunged, pushing me to the floor. He aimed the knife for my head, but I moved just in time and the knife hit the floor right where my head had been. He snarled at me and decided to cut me to death. He slashed my stomach, cutting through the wrap that I still had.

"Ah!" I yelled as he kept slashing my stomach and arms. I was bleeding profusely now and if the Uchihas didn't get her the fuck now, I would bleed to death. Takashi finally got tired of cutting me and took aim again. I was too lightheaded to know what the hell was going on, but I knew he stopped cutting me, so I brought my knee up again, but missed. Takashi brought the knife down, but stopped a meter away from where my heart was. My door busted open and his eyes widened while I gave him a small smirk. He glared and made me stand up, putting me in front of him and he put the knife to my throat so he could use me as leverage. We waited for maybe a second when I saw the Uchihas: Fugaku, Itachi, and more of their relatives. Sasuke was a little too young to carry a weapon and be a part of the police, so he wasn't here. I saw Itachi's and Fugaku's eyes widen in shock. I probably looked like hell. I had multiple cuts to my arms and stomach. I had a few on my throat and cheek, but the deeper cuts were on my arms, but the stab wound on my right side wasn't helping either.

"Stay back or she is dead." Takashi said.

"We don't want anyone here to get hurt. Just let her go and you will live." 'That's nice, but I would rather have him die and painful death by your guns, thank you.' I thought sarcastically. I saw Itachi look at me with worry, but I just stared at him.

"I want you all to back up. NOW!" Takashi yelled as he pushed the knife to my throat with more force. They did what he asked, but their guns were still pointed at us.

"Suzuki, how are you doing?" Fugaku asked me. 'How the hell do you think I am?' I wanted to ask, but thought better of it.

"… mom …" I said looking toward the living room. Fugaku nodded at his men and they left, leaving Fugaku, Itachi, Takashi, and me in the kitchen.

"We'll get her, don't worry. Takashi, this can go either way; you can let her go and you live or we can shoot you were you stand right now." I felt Takashi laugh.

"You won't shoot me, you might hurt Suzuki here." He said with a smugness that radiated off of him. I wanted to puke, faint, lie down, sleep, but Takashi was making it fucking hard. 'How the hell can I get out of this mess? I … Itachi!' I thought suddenly looking at him. He looked at me with confusion in his eyes. I motioned with my left hand a little, trying to tell him to shoot when I counted to three. I saw that he understood, but he didn't want to.

"Suzuki, I-"

"Trust me …" I said and I saw him think about it quickly. He nodded at me and I smiled at bit at him. Takashi noticed the interaction between us and pressed the knife harder against my throat.

"Ah!" I yelled, making the two Uchihas in front of me stiffen.

"Enough silent talk between you two. I am not going to jail again!" I saw surprise in Fugaku's eyes, but I saw anger in Itachi's. 'He knows.' I thought as I held out a one to Itachi, nonchalantly, so Takashi wouldn't see. I wiggled a bit, making Takashi hold me a bit tighter.

"Stop moving bitch."

"Why did you … pick my mom?" I asked him. I felt his smirk.

"She was a grieving widow. The perfect person to control." I seethed in anger and held out another finger, showing two to Itachi. Fugaku knew that we had something planned and didn't stop us. I got ready to move.

"I hope you rot in hell you … bastard." I said. He laughed.

"Who said I was going to hell? I am not the one dying." I smirked, but he didn't see. 'We'll see about that.' I thought as I elbowed in him in the chest.

"Three!" I yelled as I dove for the floor, looking at Takashi. I saw surprise as he got shot three times in the chest. He looked at me and then he fell to the floor, dead. 'Finally.' I thought as I felt my eyes shutting from losing so much fucking blood and from moving too fast since I was low on blood. I felt someone beside me and pick me up.

"Suzuki, I need you to hang in there." It felt like Itachi was talking to me from far away.

My world started to blur and I felt like I was in a different world. I felt like I was floating on clouds, listening to sounds that were far away and I could barely hear them. My world was starting to fade into the blackness, drawing me to sleep. I wanted to sleep, my body needed to sleep, and I felt like it was a good time to sleep. I slowly closed my eyes as I felt myself being put on some kind of stretcher.

"Stay awake Suzuki." I heard someone say. Who? I had no clue, but whoever it was sounded desperate.

"I'm tired." I said vaguely.

"You can sleep later, stay with me." But I was so tired, why didn't he want me to sleep? I heard people's voices, but I couldn't make out what they were saying. I was getting jumbled phrases and muffled words.

"… too much blood loss …"

" … can't save her …"

"Any …. relatives?"

I didn't know what they were talking about, but I felt like it was urgent for some reason. Finally, all the voices and sounds were blocked out by two doors that shut. I felt like I was moving, but I didn't care, the beeping sound that I was hearing now was making me even more tired.

"Her pulse is falling!" I heard. 'What's that about?'

"She's going into cardiac arrest! Stay with me Suzuki." I heard a man say, but his voice sounded like he was whispering to me from a mile away. I had closed my eyes a while ago, sleep finally taking over, but for some reason, I couldn't fall asleep.

"Suzuki … why didn't you tell me?" I heard someone say in a sad voice. My heard felt bad for how sad the person sounded, but I didn't know who he was or what he was talking about.

"I should have been there." I narrowed my eyes, even though they were closed. He sounded so familiar and his voiced was getting louder too.

"Don't die." 'Itachi! I could I forget! I am a fucking idiot!' I yelled at myself, now not feeling so tired. I slowly opened my eyes and saw a paramedic putting wired on me. He saw that my eyes were opened and I saw a small sigh of relief.

"That's a girl." He said, drawing Itachi's attention back to me. I looked at him and saw the sadness, but also the relief.

"I … won't die …" I said weakly. I saw him nod, but then I felt my heart suddenly beat faster, making me see black spots.

"Shit! Hurry the fuck up, she needs stitches. She's losing too much blood!" I heard the medic say just as I passed out from the blood loss.

'I feel like shit. What did I do, get trampled by a heard of bulls or something?' I hurt everywhere. My legs felt like they weighed a million pounds; my stomach felt like it got chewed by a fucking bear; both of my arms felt like a demon cat decided to play with my flesh; and my throat felt like I got punched in the jugular a few times and then burned with a iron. 'What the hell- oh shit.' I thought as I replayed what happened with Takashi in my head. He had finally snapped … but I wasn't able to get there before he stabbed my mother. Kami, I hope she is in better shape than me.' I thought as I finally was able to move my fingers and toes a bit. I could feel bandages around my right shoulder, my stomach, both of my arms, and a thin bandage on my throat. All in all, I was fucking lucky to be alive. I decided to slowly open my eyes to see where I was at, although it was pretty obvious I was in the hospital.

I slowly opened my eyes and realized I was right. The walls were white, there was a window to my right, a small nightstand to my right, a bunch of machines to my left, and Itachi to my left too. 'Wait … Itachi?' Itachi was sleeping in a chair with his head in his left hand. I smiled softly. He had stayed with me. My head turned toward the door after hearing someone come in.

"Ah, you're awake." I nodded, but said nothing as Sasuke pressed a button to call the nurse.

"How are you feeling?" He asked me.

"Like shit." I said, noticing my voice was a bit hoarse. I touched my throat and noticed that I did, indeed, have a bandage on it.

"You received about a two hundred stitches to you cuts and your stab wound." 'Wow … two hundred.' I nodded and glanced at Itachi, asking the question without actually speaking.

"We've strayed all night. I left for breakfast." I nodded.

"…Thank … you." I whispered. I thanked him for everything and he knew it too. He nodded and the door opened again, but a bit loudly this time, waking Itachi. He opened his eyes and saw I was awake. I gave him a small smile, but the nurse started to talk to me, making me look at her.

"It's good to see you are up Suzuki. How are you feeling?" I touched my throat and shook my head, indicating it hurt to talk.

"Of course. It will hurt to talk for a while, but it will get better once your cut gets better." She said. I nodded and the nurse looked at Itachi and Sasuke.

"Your father told me to tell you guys that once Suzuki was ready, to get a statement from her. Not now of course. Now, Suzuki. How much pain are you in. One being no pain and ten being unbearable." I thought for a moment, I wasn't in actual pain, but I was just uncomfortable. I showed a five and she nodded.

"Okay, I will be back in a bit to give you some food. We will discuss you leaving in the morning if you are feeling better." I nodded and she left as quickly as she came. I looked at Itachi and Sasuke to see them looking at me. I didn't know what to say to them, they knew about Takashi now … even the abuse. I sighed and looked away from them.

"Why didn't you tell us?" Sasuke asked. Itachi had yet to say anything and I was beginning to think he was mad at me. I sighed and saw a pad of paper with a pen next to it. I grabbed it and started to write.

I am sorry, but he threatened that if I told anyone, he would kill my mother. I couldn't risk that.

Sasuke looked at Itachi, making me narrow my eyes. What were they hiding?

"I'm going to tell your friends how you are. They have been asking about you, but they aren't allowed in yet." I nodded at him, knowing fully that he didn't want to tell me something. Once he was gone, I looked at Itachi to see him staring at me. 'What are you thinking?" I asked myself as I tried to read his eyes, but they were secretive.

"Ita-"

"I am so sorry." My eyes widened. He sounded so … so broken. I stared at his eyes and saw that they were wet. 'Tears.' My eyes softened, he thought I was going to die. I wrote down something and showed it to him.

No, I am. I should have told you, but I was too afraid. It's NOT your fault!

He shook his head.

"I should have followed you to make sure you were okay. You looked so scared. It's my fault you are in here." I glared and wrote again.

STOP! Stop blaming yourself. It's not your fault that bastard was abusive and it's not your fault that I hid it form you. You are not to blame here … it's me.

He stared at me for a while and then nodded a bit. I knew he still blamed himself, but he was willing to let it go a little bit. I smiled and wrote again.

Thank you for trusting me about the whole shooting thing.

Itachi smirked a little bit, but said nothing. I looked out my window again and suddenly thought of something. 'Why didn't I ask before?!' I felt so bad for not asking before. I quickly wrote something down and showed Itachi, hoping for good news.

How's my mom doing?

Itachi looked me in the eyes and didn't look away for a long time. My eyes widened in realization. 'No … it can't be…' My heart started to raze, making the machine beep faster. Itachi stood up quickly and walked over to me. I shook my head, making the tears go away.

"No …" I said holding my head. My mother did not die! I couldn't lose both of my parents! I just couldn't! Itachi sat down on my bed and pulled me into him. I didn't hesitate and I put my head into his chest, fisting his shirt with my hands. 'My mother … she … she couldn't have died! She … wouldn't leave me alone!' I thought. Itachi continued to hold me, expecting me to cry, but I couldn't. I promised my dad … even now … I couldn't break that promise.

"No … no …" I said over and over again. Itachi said nothing and let me fist his shirt like it was a life line. He continued to hold me until I fell asleep, thinking how the hell I was going to move on and where I was going to stay. I didn't have any other family … I wanted my mother back … I wanted my old life back like it was when my dad was alive.

҉ -( Awesome symbol I am using to make it a different day!)

"Hello Suzuki. How are you feeling today?" My nurse asked me as she walked in with a clipboard. I had gotten up around nine in the morning, with Itachi gone. I hadn't expected for him to stay another night and I wanted to thank for him for giving me some space. I woke up feeling numb and I didn't feel like taking to anyone.

I looked at the nurse who came in and sighed.

"I am fine." I said simply. The nurse nodded and wrote on the clipboard.

"I need to check on your wounds and if they are doing fine, you should be able to go home later tonight." 'Home … what home?' I thought as I nodded. She undid the bandages on my arms and looked them over. The deep slashed I had were still a bit red and were taking a while to heal, but they were healing ... very slowly. She then looked at me neck. Talking had been a bit easier when I woke up, but I didn't really need to talk much, so I didn't; only when the nurse asked me questions.

"Your neck is looking a lot better. Your arms are going to take a bit to heal, but they are looking good too." I nodded.

"Alright, let's look at your stomach, shall we?" I lied down and she undid my bandages.

"You bruises are healing very well. How does this feel?" She asked as she pressed on my ribs a little. I winced in pain and she nodded.

"Alright, I'll talk to the doctor, but it looks like you are leaving later today." She said smiling. I nodded and looked out the window.

What now? My dad was dead, my mother just died, and no home to go back to. I mean, sure, I could go back … but live on my own, in the house where Takashi killed my mother and tried to kill me? There was no way in hell. I didn't want to bother the Uchihas anymore. I felt horrible for not telling them and for hiding the abuse. I called them last minute, hoping they would get to my house in time to save my mother and me. They were like another family to me, but I didn't know how to face them again. They knew something was wrong, but they trusted me to tell them on my own time, and look what happened. If I had talked to them sooner and asked for help, Takashi would be in jail and my mother would still be alive.

"Hey." I snapped my head to the left to see Sasuke walking in. I nodded at him. He walked over to the window nad sat on the ledge.

"How are you holding up?" He asked me. I looked at him, trying to come up with the words of how I felt.

"I'm sorry." his face showed shock and confusion.

"You shouldn't-"

"I should have told you guys, but I didn't." I saw him think over what I said and I saw him narrow his eyes.

"This was not your fault." I shook my head, it was my fault. I didn't do anything to prevent it when I should have.

"If I went to you guys, it would have ended differently." I said.

"You didn't know how it would end. You were protecting your mother."

"And look where that got her!" I yelled.

"You did your best, stop blaming yourself because you aren't the one to blame. If you want to blame someone, blame that monster."

"Yeah … look where that got me." I said looking away from him. I heard him sigh and I glanced at him.

"Listen, it is not your fault, no matter how much you believe it is. It's Takashi's fault. You need to trust me on this." 'Trust you … how can you still trust me?' I knew he was right, but I still felt horrible for not telling them.

"Okay." I finally said. He looked at me and gave me a, 'I know you still blame yourself, but as long as you are okay, I am okay' look. I gave him a small smile and we fell into a comfortable silence until he spoke about me leaving.

"When can you leave?"

"Today." I stated as I looked at him. He nodded and gave me a small smile. I raised my eyebrow in question.

"I'll see you later. Get some rest."

"Wait-" I started, but the door shut. 'What the hell was that about?' I thought as I lied back down. 'Guess I'll find out later.' I thought as I closed my eyes, not thinking about later.

I woke up a bit after three in the afternoon and soon after, my nurse came in with some of my clothes.

"Let's get the wires off you and get your dressed to go home." I nodded, I hated hospitals anyway. They were always so dreary and boring as hell!

After I got dressed in some sweat pants and a T-shirt, the nurse helped me walk a little, even though I could walk fine.

"Looks like you're good to go. I'll take you down, people are waiting for you." I raised my eyebrows, but said nothing as we left the room I was staying in.

We took the elevator down to the main floor and we walked to the waiting area. As we went through the doors, I saw Mikoto, Fugaku, Itachi, Sasuke, and my whole volleyball team. Sakura saw me first and stood up and ran over to me, grabbing me into a hug.

"I am so glad you are okay!" I smiled and hugged back.

"Me too." She let go and the rest of my team hugged me.

"It's good to see you on your feet Suzuki." My coach said. I nodded at her.

"We just came to see how you were, we have a game to get to. Feel better." I nodded at them and wished them luck. Once they were gone, I looked over at the Uchihas. Mikoto hugged me gently.

"It's good to see you doing better." I smiled at her.

"Alright, let's get going, it's going to storm soon." Fugaku said. We all nodded and I walked beside Sasuke and Itachi to their car. I sat on the right side beside Itachi, looking out the window. The drive back to their house was about an hour and a half. After a few minutes into the drive, the storm started; rain fell hard and the thunder roared, but storms were soothing and started to make me tired. I felt my eyes start to get heavy and I leaned on Itachi. I put my head on his shoulder and closed my eyes. I felt him look at me, but he didn't say anything.

I woke up as we pulled in to their garage. I yawned and looked at Itachi.

"Sorry."

"Don't worry about it." He said as I got out of the car. We headed inside and went to their living room. I sat on the couch and put my knees into my chest. Sasuke and Itachi sat next to me while Mikoto and Fugaku sat across from us. Fugaku looked like he wanted to ask me questions, but seemed hesitant. Mikoto, on the other hand, seemed like she wanted to hold me. I knew what they were going to talk about and I didn't really want to have that conversation, but I knew I would have to sooner or later.

"Suzuki … can you explain?" Fugaku finally asked. I looked at the floor and sighed.

"Where do you want me to begin?" I asked softly.

"When did it start?" I stayed quiet for a moment, thinking of where to start.

"After my dad died, my mother was upset and so was I. After a year or so, my mother met Takashi. He helped my mother get over my dad, but he seemed to only care about my mother; he didn't try to console me at all. Instead he gave me gifts and money, trying to buy me over. He seemed okay to me, but as long as my mother was happy, I didn't care. When she was with Takashi, she was happy; I was happy for her. They decided to get married about two years after, when I was about thirteen or so. That's when things changed." I said taking a breath. I didn't want to talk about it, but I knew I would sooner or later and the sooner I got it over with, the better it would be.

"Shortly after their wedding, I started to notice that Takashi was yelling at my mother, telling her how useless she was. It stayed at yelling for a while, but one day I noticed that she had a split lip. I confronted him about it, but he blew me off, telling me I was too naïve to know anything. I knew better though and I kept an eye on my mother. One time, I walked in on him hitting my mother in the face. I stood up for her, but he yelled at me and my mother took his side. I knew then that she was either in denial or she was too caught up in her 'love' for him. I told him that if he hit my mother again I would go to the cops … but he laughed at me. He said that if I did, he would kill my mother. The horrible part about it though, was that he was friends with every cop in Konoha before you guys came. They wouldn't have arrested him anyway, no matter how much evidence there was. If my mother had told them that she accidently hurt herself, they wouldn't question it.

Takashi had never hit me until recently. I don't even remember what it was about, but he slapped me. I knew then I was in trouble. He didn't care about my mother or me and he certainly didn't care whether I was in pain or not." I said.

"It got worse when he realized that his cop friends were leaving and that new ones were replacing them. He made sure that I wouldn't tell the new cops what he was doing. Then I realized it was you guys that were moving here and taking over. I thought I could finally tell someone about it, but he kept threatening my mother's life … I didn't want to take that chance. I … I am so sorry." I said looking to the floor. I, no matter how many times I said sorry, felt horrible about not telling them.

"You should not blame yourself. He had been doing the exact same thing to other people and he knew what he was doing." Fugaku said. I looked at him and nodded, even though I still felt bad.

"Enough of this horrid conversation. Suzuki, you are more than welcome to stay with us." My eyes widened. they were going to take care of me and … let me stay? That was a little … too kind of them.

"I couldn't-"

"No, you are a daughter to me and you are staying." I smiled, it looked like I didn't have any choice in the matter, but I was okay staying with them.

"Thank you … all of you." I said looking at them all. They smiled.

"Alright, tomorrow, if you are ready to go, we can go get your things and move them here. For now, you can borrow anything you need. Okay?" Mikoto said standing. I nodded.

"I am going to start dinner. Let any of us know if you need anything." I nodded again, standing. Fugaku smiled at me and then left the room. Sasuke and Itachi led me up to the second floor, to the guest bedroom. It was right next to Itachi's and had a view of their backyard. They had a small lake with a small island with a tree in the middle. It was a lovely sight. This was my new home and I was okay with that. The Uchihas were great people with good hearts. I thanked Sasuke and Itachi and they left me to go about my new room.

My room had wooden furniture, dark blue carpet, dark blue walls, a big bathroom that had tile on the floor, and a balcony that over looked the lake. All in all, it was perfect.

Later that night, I had gone to my room after dinner to have some peace to think over things. I sat outside and smelled the wet atmosphere. The rain had gone, but I could still see some lightning in the distance. I leaned on the railing and sighed as I looked at the clouds that were moving off.

'I miss you guys.' I missed how my mother used to come to all my games before Takashi came. I missed how my dad played tag with me, letting me catch him, but him never catching me; he said I was just too fast for him. I shook my head, he was such a bad liar and he knew it too. Not having my mother around anymore was going to be difficult. I couldn't talk to her abut college, about school drama, and about how volleyball was going. Sure, Mikoto was there, but it wouldn't ever be the same thing. I sighed and left the balcony. I couldn't live in the past, it wasn't healthy and it would only make me depressed. I had to … to think of the glass half-full instead of half-empty. I was still alive and I had people that care for me. I still had a future ahead of me and I shouldn't give up on it. I shut the doors and got dressed in the pajamas that were in the dresser. I smiled, they were guy pajamas. I didn't care though, guy clothes were always more comfortable. Once I was dressed, I got ready for bed and lied down on the queen bed. I turned off the lights and closed my eyes.

I gasped and shot up in bed. 'It was only a dream … only a dream!' I said to myself. I shook from the shock and from being so scared. I dreamed that Takashi had come back to finish me off. I knew it was absurd, but it felt so real … I felt like he could walk right through my door any moment and kill me without a thought. 'That's it.' I thought as I got out of my bed and quietly walked out of my room, making no sound. I walked over to Itachi's door, thinking about knocking or if I should just get something to drink. 'I shouldn't bug him … it's really late.' I thought as I turned away from the door, about to make my way to their kitchen, but then his door opened. I turned around and saw obsidian eyes, worried. I ran up to him and hugged him. I didn't care if I was being too clingy, I was sad, angry, scared, and needed a hug. He hugged me back and closed his door.

He led me to his bed and he sat down with me.

"A nightmare?" I nodded and hugged my knees.

"Do you want to talk about it?" I shook my head; I didn't want to, it was still too real. He nodded.

"Okay. You can sleep here tonight." He said, I looked at him and saw him staring at me. I slowly nodded, accepting. He got up and let me get comfy, in his bed, and sat down next to me.

"Do you want me to stay?"

"I …. don't leave … please." He nodded and stayed next to me. I closed my eyes, but I kept seeing Takashi with a knife. I sat up, making Itachi look at me again.

"I … keep seeing him … with a knife." I said. Itachi knew exactly who I was talking about and thought for a moment before he started to open his mouth to talk, but I stopped him.

"Itachi … please … just … just-" I didn't know what to say, but Itachi pulled me into a hug and I accepted.

"It's okay to cry." He suddenly said. My eyes widened and I pulled away a little bit, looking at him.

"What?"

"I know about your promise." I shook my head, not knowing what to say.

"How?"

"You just told me." I laughed a bit, letting tears run down my face.

"Sneaky bastard." I said as I hugged him. I felt him laugh a little and he hugged back. I cried into his shirt, not really caring if his shirt got soaked or not, he was, after all, the one whom told me to cry in the first place. This time, I didn't argue. I felt like my dad would understand and it felt good to let go of all the emotions I had held onto.

I cried for a long time, slowly getting more tired. I was almost asleep when I felt Itachi lie down, still holding me. I snuggled into him and fell asleep from the steady beating of his heart and the warmth that he emitted. I fell asleep with a small smile on my face.

After a while, I started to get more comfortable with the Uchihas and living with them instead of my mother. Her funeral was a week after her death and Itachi stood with me and let me squeeze his hand so I wouldn't cry. I didn't cry in front of anyone besides Itachi, he made it easier to let my emotions go and he helped me move on. I had gotten my things from my house, with the help of Sasuke and Itachi. I stayed home from school for about a week so I could get my act together and start to move on. I went to the last volleyball game and cheered my team on from the bench. We played against Mist and we won by a land slide. After a bit, I was getting used to my new life and embracing it. I was moving on, but I would never forget my parents. The Uchihas were amazing people and I came to see them as my real family. Except for Itachi. Itachi was different. He let me sleep in his bed whenever I had a nightmare, he was comforting whenever I cried, and he was a great guy.

Itachi and I were becoming really close, more than friends and I didn't mind at all. Sasuke was an amazing brother who didn't mind Itachi and me being together and I was thrilled.

My life was finally becoming right and I was happy. I hadn't been this happy since I lived in Tokyo. Yes, I had my sordid memories, but those memories would help push me to be the happiest I could be. My parents were always in my mind, from morning 'til night, and they helped me strive for a perfect life. And with everything the Uchihas had done for me, I was getting my perfect life that I imagined.

I always thought that people could never be so vile and go so low and abuse women. But after meeting and living with a monster who had done exactly what I thought would never happen. Not getting help from people was a mistake that I will live with the rest of my life, but with everything I went through the last few years, I learned that if you ask for help, you will get it. Not doing anything because of a worthless threat that a fucker said is absurd. Abusers are cocky, arrogant, bastards that think that their victims will do exactly what he/she asks. But if the victim goes and gets help, they prove they are more than some petty victim. Even though I didn't get help right away, I fought back and showed I wasn't going to take it anymore.

I sighed as I walked home from school, it was the last day and I was now on summer vacation. I smiled as I walked into the Uchiha house and took off my shoes. Sasuke had stayed after to talk to Naruto about having a part at his house. I hadn't seen Itachi after school, so I decided to head home without him. I walked into my room and dropped my bag in the closet. I turned around and noticed something was off. I raised my eyebrow, realizing that my balcony door was open.

"Hello?" I asked, but got no answer. I slowly made my way over and my eyes widened at the sight.

"Um … what are you doing?" I asked with a smile as I walked onto my balcony. Me smirked at me, making me raise my eyebrows.

"Hn." I shook my head and hugged Itachi.

"So, what is all of this anyway?" I asked looking at the table that had water, chicken, cheese, and some other food. Itachi walked me over to the table and we both sat down. He still hadn't answered my question.

"Ita-"

"Happy birthday." My eyes widened. How the hell did I forget my own birthday? I smiled whole-heartedly at him.

"Thank you … for all of this and everything you've done for me." I said. He nodded and we began to eat.

As we ate, I stared at Itachi. He was a great guy and he was now working for his dad, helping protect Konoha. I was extremely happy to be his girlfriend. I wanted to be with him forever and I knew he felt the same because he told me when he thought I was asleep one night. I was happy and I knew that my life was only going to get better from this point on.

Sorry for any grammar errors you may find! I hope it was okay and that my ending wasn't too bad! R&R&F please! Thank you all for reading and staying with me until the end! Love you all! ^-^ Cookies for everyone! Ja ne!