AN: Hello again, I just wanted to say that I really appreciate the reviews people leave on the story, so thanks. :)

Just to let you know, now that I've reached chapter ten of this story, I'm going to work on my other ongoing story 'We Only Part To Meet Again', until I reach chapter ten on that story, and then I'll come back to this. Sorry about that!

So here is the new chapter and even though it's quite short, I hope you enjoy it. :)

I peered round the frame of the door into the toy room and my hopes rose when I saw him sitting in the corner, playing with a blank puzzle. I sighed. What was I doing here? Would he actually help me? In any other situation I would have turned back around and gone straight back to my room, but...I was desperate. I sucked in a breath and walked into the room, and took confident strides towards him. When I reached him, I stood in front of him and waited for him to look at me. But he didn't. I blushed with embarrassment at being ignored.

'Near?' I called out. He still didn't look up at me, but after a few seconds of awkward silence, he responded.

'What do you want?' He asked slotting a puzzle piece into its rightful place. I scowled slightly.

'I wanted to ask you about a problem that I have.' I figured that if I was going to ask him, I might as well be honest. After all, he was most likely going through the same thing as I was. This thought clamed me down slightly. I felt a sort of bond with this person as we were experiencing similar problems. However what he asked next made me rethink my evaluation of him.

'Why are you asking me?' I internally cringed at this question. He was so intimidating! Even though he was younger than me, and despite the fact I was standing over him as he was sitting down on the carpeted floor.

'Erm, because I feel like...you might be able to relate,' I mumbled. This apparently caught his attention as he stopped what he was doing and looked up at me with the blank, neutral stare that he had always adopted.

'And how is that, please tell me?'

'Well, you see, it's about...Mello.' upon saying his name, I shuddered. This didn't go unnoticed by Near. I stayed silent, expecting Near to say something, but again he said nothing, just continuing to stare at me. I decided to just come out with it, but my heart was now beating ridiculously fast, and my palms were beginning to get sweaty.

'Erm, well, you see...I have noticed how Mello seems to bully you, and I was just wondering how you deal with it, because, you see...Mello is also kind of bullying me as well, and it's quite hard to ignore, so I was just wonderi-'

'Mello doesn't bully me.' He interrupted me. What did he mean Mello doesn't bully him? It was a well known fact in the orphanage. Did I hear wrong? But...everyone always says that Mello hates the fact that he is second best to Near?

'But, Mello always harasses you?' I blurted out in my confusion. Near turned away from me again and went back to his puzzle.

'Correct. However, I wouldn't term it as bullying. Mostly because of the fact that I don't let his harassment bother me, and generally, Mello is just a fly that buzzes around one's ear a lot. I just ignore the buzzing, if you see what I mean.' I scowled again. What the hell? What's this about a pest? Surely if he ignores him, then Mello would get violent? That was just how Mello worked, wasn't it?

'Well, surely Mello is violent towards you if you talk to him with that attitude?!' I cried. Near peered up at me again, with an inquisitive look embedded in his expression.

'Why would Mello act aggressively towards me? He respects me too much to resort to vicious attacks,' He stated.

What?

What?! What was he talking about?

Mello didn't bully him or wasn't aggressive towards him? Irritation and anger began to build up inside me.

If Mello didn't hit Near, or attack him, then why did he do it to me?! Could Near be lying? Or was I the only one Mello had decided to hurt? But what about the boy Mello had driven to killing himself?

But then I realised.

That was the fundamental difference between me and Near. He was clever and I was not. Where Mello sees him as a rival, it's nothing more than competition between them, yet in my case, Mello saw me as just a weak and stupid animal. Tears burned at my eyes.

So if Near wasn't bullied by Mello, then there was no one I could talk to? No one to help me? No one who understood? My throat began to constrict at the stress.

I was all alone.

Left alone to suffer the torment from Mello. Left alone to suffer the wrath of his fury. My emotions raged around inside of my shell. Why me?!

All alone.

Near had brushed off my questions, but still, he must have realised? He must have realised the violence Mello was inflicting on me? Couldn't he tell by my questions that I was the brunt of Mello's vicious nature?! However, he had clearly ignored by plea for help! I clenched my fists and realised my whole body was shaking. I didn't look to see if Near had noticed the inner dialogue that was occurring inside my head. I didn't care. He was so selfish! All he cared about was himself and his position on the league tables! He didn't care enough to help someone who was helplessly suffering at the hands of his rival! No one cared!

I ran out of the room, away from Near. Away from the carelessness of humanity. I dashed towards my own room. With the four walls that bordered a space of emptiness. The emptiness that was waiting for me, void of any human life but mine. It made sense; I lived a life of solitude, I lived a life of loneliness, and I guessed that life wanted me to stay that way. It wanted me to suffer in silence, to be alone.

I had to suffer alone.