Author's Note: In this chapter, I'm gonna try to make it first person (in Vincent's view) because I want to see if it will helps me improve emotions, attention, and sarcasm.

There may be times when I switch back to the old fashion way in future chapters because of certain cases. I might just use first person in this chapter. I don't know.

"First I'll kill you, then I'll kill you some more. Mwahahaha!" Joey said, acting like an idiot.

"Dude! That made no sense," I said as I kept my eyes on the screen.

"You mean that didn't make ANY sense," Joey corrected, as the space guy he played punched the samurai I played in the face.

"Whatever!" I quickly deflected the next punch by blocking it with my samurai's sword.

In case you don't know, Joey and I were at the arcade, playing a video game called "Fight or Die". I know what you're wondering. How did I get Lenny to let me out into the city again after what happened almost a month ago? Turns out he cooled eventually. Joey and I are now what you'd call best friends. From the first day Joey started coming to my school, we started pulling pranks on Bruner and his thugs every now and then. Actually, we mostly just pranked Bruner.

Although we're pals, I still haven't told Joey I was rich. I guess I'm just too chicken to spit it out. I haven't even invited Joey over yet even though I go over to his house hundreds of times. I didn't ask him over to my house because of my aunt and uncle's dangerous and unstable behaviour, and because Joey would find out I had lied about my name and my family's wealth. Stupid money. Stupid aunt and uncle. I can't even have a friend over because of them.

Don't tell him I said this. Joey is sorta poor. The apartment he lives in really needs some repairs, but it somehow has the feeling of security and love from a family member in it. At least to me it does. I know this sounds cheesy, but it is the truth. From my point of view, Joey is the lucky one. I would trade places with him if I could, but... I don't want him to suffer the beatings so it wouldn't really be a such good idea.

Even though I'm the one living in hell, I can't help but to feel sorry for Joey on a few things. Not long after I started chilling at his house, I found out his dad had died of cancer just a few years ago. His mother has been doing better, he says. She has a cool boyfriend, Doug. I really like him, and so does Joey. Joey actually thinks of him as a dad, even though Doug and Mrs. Allen aren't married.

I have a blast with Joey, but I'm still cautious when it comes to some public stuff. After all, I don't want my aunt and uncle to find out about me sneaking out. They actually think I'm in a bunch of clubs! And they're supposed to be geniuses! They had to cut back on some classes because I'm in these "clubs." The only reason they didn't remove me from the fake clubs is because I already told father about him. They couldn't even beat me up because the teachers would get suspicious. After the stunt Jonathon made when I was late getting home because of the fire on the school, a teacher phoned them and asked some questions. Check mate! Now they can't do that much to me. Unfortunately, I still have a busted rib. At least it's almost healed.

Father and I haven't talked that much. We've only talked three times these past three months, and most conversations are no longer than five minutes. I sometimes worry he forgets about me. One time, we didn't see or even talk to each other for three whole years! That's the ultimate record so far.

Sometimes when I'm out in the city, I "borrow" money from the family fortune bank account. It is the FAMILY account, so it's sort of my money, too, right? It isn't exactly stealing, right?

Oops! I got off track. Let's go back to when Joey and I were at the arcade.

"Hey!" Joey exclaimed.

"What?"

"You did that on purpose." Joey pressed the jump button to dodge the samurai's sword.

"It's a video game, Joey. The only rule is to win."

After a few minutes, Joey defeated me. I almost had him! Oh well, I'll get him next time. He just got lucky, that's all.

"Hey Vince, what day is it?" Joey asked as we walked out of the arcade, and down the sidewalk, which was pretty crowded because there were so many people.

"It's Tuesday, I think."

"No, I mean, what's the date?"

"September 1."

"Already?"

"Yep."

"It's nice out. It still feels like summer. Do you agree?"

"Yeah, I guess you can say that."

"Can you keep a secret?"

I didn't say a word for a moment. I thought about the question for a moment then replied, "Sure, why?"

"There's something I want to show you, but it's a secret. It's sort of a family secret."

"Really?"

"Really. So can I trust you?"

I didn't have much of a family secret to tell Joey, except that we're the well-known V family and that we're in a witness protection program. Well, maybe not in the witness protection program exactly. The government just keeps a close eye on us, is all.

"Yeah... sure."

"I'll show you right now if you'd like."

"I got nothing better to do, so why not?"

"Alright, let's go."

0000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000

"C'mon, kid. I don't got all day," the bus driver yelled.

"Please, give me a minute. It's in my pocket somewhere," Joey said as he searched his pockets.

"Joey, I thought you had some cash with you," I called out from a bus seat near the back.

"I had money I swear. Wait... shoot!"

"You spent it all at the arcade, didn't you?"

Joey remained quiet. His expression answered my question.

"I'll take that as a yes."

Joey frowned and started to stare at the floor. I let out a sigh, then got up from my seat.

"Here." I put some money in the bus fare box, then walked back to the seat I was in. Joey followed. I sat near the window while Joey sat at the right side.

"Sorry," Joey apologized as I made room for him.

"No big deal. It was my stupid idea to go in that arcade in the first place."

"Still..."

"Don't worry about it. Can you tell me more about this 'secret spot?'"

Joey grinned a sly smile. "You'll just have to see for yourself."

00000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000

Man, was that a trip. I lost count on how many bus stops we got off on. We probably should have taken the subway. When we took a bus that went clear out of the city, and in a forest area, I thought our journey would be over, but boy was I wrong.

Joey ran straight out of the bus, and headed towards the strange trees that were bundled ahead of us.

"C'mon, Vince," Joey hollered as he pushed a bush out of the way.

"Wait up!" I hollered back as I tried to keep up with him. I wish we didn't rush so much. I'm starting to run as fast as him because I'm so used to running away with Joey when Bruner is about to beat the crud out of us after we insult him or pull a prank on him. I still have trouble keeping up with him, though.

000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000

I bet nobody has done more running than me. I ran so much from my aunt and uncle when they're about to beat me, that I probably would have broken a record. Now all this running adds another huge chunk to my total. Joey didn't stop until we reached near the bottom of the rocky peak. It looked pretty high up. It was pretty small for a peak, but I couldn't help my mouth dropping.

"We're gonna climb that!" I panicky whined.

"No, of course not. I know an easier way. Follow me." Joey ran ahead to the right side of the peak.

"Slow down." I hate it when he does this.

Up ahead, I spotted Joey standing in front of some bushes. I grew curious as I caught up with him. At first, the bushes weren't anything too special. They were, well... just bushes.

"Why'd ya stop," I asked as I bent over the plants.

"Check this out." Joey pushed down the two bushes, revealing some small hole. "Follow me." Joey started to crawl into the hole.

I stood out there for a moment, not knowing if I should crawl in that hole or stay out of it. It just looked kinda creepy. Yes, I was sort of being a wimp, but if you had been with me you probably would have agreed. I finally stopped standing there like an idiot and crawled into the hole.

The tunnel I crawled into was a bit dark, making it kinda creepy on the inside. The tunnel was so narrow and so small, it was hard for me to crawl in, but after a while I got in the hang of it. Whatever Joey was showing me, it had better be worth the run and crawling into a creepy tunnel.

Finally, I reached the end. It looked like some type of cave-like room, maybe, except there was a big hole in the ceiling with a rope ladder dangling from above.

"What took ya so long?" Joey had his arms crossed as if being impatient with me. Maybe he was. I couldn't tell for sure. "I was worried you were gonna chicken out."

"And come all this way for nothing? Yeah right."

"Glad you've came."

"You brought me all this way to show me some type of cave?"

"Of course not! What I want to show you is up this ladder."

I was quiet for a minute as I stared at that ladder in horror. It looked pretty high up, and the ladder didn't look too sturdy. I gulped then asked, "You're serious?"

"As serious as a heart attack. Are you afraid of heights or something?" Joey asked kindly. "Cause if you don't think you can do this, we can just turn back and..."

"NO! I came all this way and might as well finish what we started," I outburst without thinking. I didn't want Joey to think I was a wimp. He's a true friend, but I still had the thought of him thinking of me as a coward. I guess I wouldn't blame him.

"Good. You can go first."

How do I get myself into these messes? Ugh. After standing there for a while, I started to climb the rope ladder.

Don't look down. Don't look down. Don't look down, I repeated in my head over and over and over again until it bounced around in my head like a ball bouncing around a tiny room.

I kept my eyes on the top. The small shake from the ladder rocking back and forth gave me some anxiety as I made my way up. I must have been crazy to do this. I kept worrying about the ladder snapping off and collapsing with Joey and me on it. My hands and legs felt shaky as I climbed this screaming ropey death trap. At long last, I climbed out of the hole and onto some land. Sweet, sweet land. Great, now I really am a coward.

I got to my feet and gazed out ahead of me. The sight was beautiful and amazing. I actually started to be hypnotized by its beauty. There were enchanted trees that were perfectly lined up, and covered many parts of the area. A perfectly paved grey stone path lined from where I was standing, clear to the falls ahead. There were falls that ringed round a watery hole, making the bottom of the falls into a huge lake. A radiant golden light surrounded the enchanted forest, making the place glow. I couldn't figure out where this light was coming from. This place almost looked untouched by humans, except for the stone path. I can't believe no one knows about this place except for Joey and now, me.

"Glad you like it," Joey said as he pulled himself from the hole, and walked over to me.

"I can't believe this! How could no one not notice this!?" I turned my head toward him.

"Dunno, but it's better this way. It's my duty to protect this place. My dad said this spot's secret has been passed down from father to son from generation to generation, and so on. I don't want people messing it up."

"Does anyone else know about this place besides us?"

"Nope. Not even my mom. My dad was the only person who ever knew, but he's gone now. It's just you 'n me."

"Does this place have a name?"

"Yes, it's called Northsky Falls."

"That sounds like a nice name. Did your father name it?"

"No, I don't know who exactly named it. My pop died just before he was gonna tell me. I think my great, great, great grandpa named it."

"Wow, he sounds interesting."

"I don't know much about him. Some stuff about him was lost in history so I don't know much about him. I think he discovered this place while doing research on Skaths."

"Skaths?"

"I think they were extremely powerful creatures that lived on this planet since ancient history. Maybe even before Cetras."

"How much info do you have on 'Skaths?'"

"That's pretty much it. Hardly anything is known about Skaths. Hardly anyone has heard of them. If my grandfather didn't research them or if dad didn't talk about them, I probably would have never heard of them. Most people who know about the Skaths think they were extinct a long time ago or are just a myth. Since people thought my grandfather was a fool, they laughed at his research. The poor guy died being laughed at."

"I bet he was disappointed with his own research. If that happened to my father he would... too, be disappointed." I suddenly regretted what I had said. I vowed to not let father get in the way of my happiness.

"Your dad?"

I turned away from him then said, "He's... a scientist. He teaches a student I think." I quickly decided to change the subject. "So, do you mind showing me around?"

Joey was quiet for a few minutes. His face was blank. I couldn't tell what he was thinking or what he was thinking. I started to get worried so I go closer to him. "Joey?" I uneasily called out his name.

"Race you to the falls," Joey suddenly outburst as he took off running.

"Hey! You got a head start," I complained as I joined up in the race.

00000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000

I panted once I stopped in front of the great shore. I wiped sweat of my forehead, and turned around. Joey panted as he walked by me.

"I... guess... I won." My sentence was broken up from trying to breathe.

"You... just got lucky." The panting was also breaking Joey's sentences.

I finally fell backwards and lied on the sandy shore. Joey mirrored my action, and joined me on the ground. He relaxed and caught his breath. After we were finished heavily breathing, we started to laugh.

"You can act like an idiot sometimes, J. Ya know that?" I joked.

"Yeah right. You're a lot more of an idiot than I'll ever be," Joey said, returning the joke.

"Ha, you wish."

"What? You can't admit it?"

I chuckled a bit. "Whatever. Let's not let this ruin our fun, okay?"

Joey sat up and turned his head towards me. "Fine, but you'll have to face facts tomorrow anyway." Joey stood up and started to take off his shirt. I quickly jerked to a sitting position.

"W-What are you doing!?"

"I'm going swimming. What does it look like?" Joey removed his pants and was now only wearing boxers. I stared at him for a moment. He made his way to the lake, and stood there at the shallow part. The water went up to his knees. He glanced over his shoulder, then asked, "Are you comin' or not?"

Heck no I wasn't coming. I couldn't come. If I got wet my aunt and uncle would kill me. Second, I had a busted rib. Third, I have scars, cuts and bruises hidden under my shirt and pants. I couldn't show Joey that. He would suspect something, so I shook my head.

"C'mon. It's just water. It's not gonna kill ya," Joey called.

I didn't move a muscle. I just sat there like a statue. I figured Joey would take no as an answer and swim by himself, but I was wrong. Instead he walked over to me and tugged at my arm. "I promise you won't drown."

I pulled my arm away and looked away from him. I just wanted him to leave me be.

"Oh, it's about that busted rib, isn't it?"

This kind of caught me by surprise. He helped me make up an excuse without knowing it. "Yeah."

"Oh, sorry. I forgot." Joey slipped his clothes on, then sat by me like he was doing earlier. "Maybe next time."

I knew there wasn't going to be a next time. I couldn't risk it. But I still said, "Sure, maybe next time. It's a shame, really. This is probably the last day to go swimming until summer next year."

We stared ahead at the falls and the shore. The lake was a lot more like a beach then a lake once the sun set. The sky had already turned into a golden colour from it being evening. The sight was beautiful. I could almost look at the sunset forever. Not a single world was spoken for a while until Joey asked me a question that caught me by surprise.

"Vince, do you believe in God?" Joey asked without looking at me. He just kept his eyes ahead of him.

I, who was lying on the ground, quickly jerked to a sitting position again. This time, I did it so suddenly that pain shot through my busted rib. I grunted a bit, then finally recovered enough to ask.

"W-What did you say?"

"I asked if you believed in God?" This time Joey's eyes were facing me.

I didn't know what to say. I was worried about my answer. I didn't want to tell Joey I didn't believe in God, because I was worried he was a Christian. I also didn't want to say I did either.

"Well, do you?" Joey asked again.

I looked down and was silent for a bit. My body felt a bit shaky inside because I was worried about what would happen if I answered.

"To be honest... no," I said in a very low tone once I got the guts to say my answer.

"Why not?" Joey didn't sound mad. He just seemed a tiny bit shocked.

"I don't know. I-I... I guess it's because of some stuff."

"What kind of stuff?"

"Well, there are some things that really bother me. If there is a God, then why do we have so much suffering in the world? Why does he leave people hanging when they're in trouble even if they are his followers?"

There were more questions I wanted to ask, but I just couldn't. Why didn't God save me from the demons I have to live with? Why didn't he protect my family? Why does he let me suffer with this much pain?

Joey was quiet for a few minutes. Maybe he was thinking about the question. Maybe my question left him speechless.

"God sometimes helps us. We just may not realize it," Joey finally said. "After all, he does bless us in some ways. He blesses us with things like family, friendship, and other great joys in our life."

He should speak for himself. The only thing I had out of what he said was friendship, and only friendship. I have low self-esteem. I don't even have much of a family. I have hardly anything.

"I'm sorry. I just can't believe. I just can't. What sometimes scares me is what is goin' to happen to us when we die?"

"I guess I can't make you believe. I shouldn't force this on you. Look, wherever we're going when we die, we're going together, got it?" He put his hand out toward me, waiting for me to shake with him

A small grin formed on my face. "Got it." I grabbed his hand and we shook.

"Promise?" He asked with our hands still held together.

"Promise." I released my grip and pulled my hand over to my side.

"I want you to make one more promise."

"What is it?"

"Promise me we'll be friends forever. Our friendship is to be never broken. Nothing is to get in our way. Not even growing up. If we can't physically be together then we'll be together in spirit. Our hearts will be connected no matter how far we are apart. We can't let ANYTHING destroy our friendship. Got it?"

"Yeah, friends to the end."

"No... forever."

Joey was quiet for a few minutes. "One more promise."

"Again with the promises?" I sarcastically questioned in a gentle tone.

"Please, this is one of the most important promise."

"Okay, sorry. What else do you want me to promise?"

"Don't change the way you are. No matter how old you get."

"Joey, I'm gonna change when I'm older. You know that."

"Why should you change? You're fine the way you are. I don't want you to change."

Does he really mean it? I don't understand. How could he like someone like me? He does want me to change!? But... I'm a nobody.

"I promise."

"Don't turn into a person who is cruel to others. Always help those in need. Don't let tragic events in life get to you. Make sure you move on when something bad happens. Promise me!"

"Okay."

I glanced ahead of me and saw that the sun had lowered a bit since I last glanced at it. I glanced back at Joey then asked, "What do you want to be when you grow up?"

"I want to be an inventor," Joey cheerfully replied. "I want my inventions to help people in the world. Maybe some of my robots can assist handicapped people. What do you want to be?"

I didn't know what I wanted to be. I was so used to my future being chosen by my family, I haven't got to put much thought into it. "I don't know yet. I would like to travel to new places, though. It would be nice to use this pleasure to give some people a hand. See what I'm saying?"

"Travelling, huh?" Joey grinned like he always does when he's about to crack a joke. "That would be nice. I'll be going with you."

"What?" I didn't think I'd heard him correctly.

"I said I'm going with you. Even if you have to stuff me in your suitcase and carry me along, I'm not leaving you."

I held in my laughter, trying not to encourage him. "C'mon, Joey. How am I gonna fit you?"

"That's what we need to figure out." Joey crossed his arms on his chest then smiled.

"There's one more thing I want to show you."

"What is it?"

Joey stood up and started walking ahead. "You'll just have to follow me and see."

I jumped to my feet and ran after him, "Hey, wait up!"

Sorry if some stuff in this chapter was chessy. I wanted to just get it done. I'm almost to the part of the fanfic where it gets really interesting and I will do better once I get to exciting parts. Let me warn you, later on in this fanfic, it will get more violent and graphic. It won't have much blood in it or anything for a while but I just wanted to warn you. I hope you enjoyed this fanfic. Sorry if there are some mistake in this chapter. I was to lazy to finish checking for mistakes. If you want, you can correct throught you reviews so I can correct a word later, but go easy on me. Please review.