Evan Turst

I awoke in my bed at home, the warm covers of the bed giving me ample amount of warmth. The sun shines through the open window as that aerie silence permeated throughout the house. I got up, stretched my legs, and got dressed for the day. My clothes consisted of jeans, socks, a t-shirt, and boots. I walked into the kitchen, only to find my family absent. I walked around the house for a while, looking for them. The bed in both my parents' room and my sister's room were empty. It was only when I heard a muffled scream from the basement did I realize what was happening. I grabbed my father's rifle from the display and loaded a magazine, chambering a round. I crept down the stairs, careful not to put too much pressure on the creaky boards. The screams got louder as I slowly opened the door without a sound. I peeked into the basement. It was a place I was never allowed to go, and at this moment I realized why.

The room was covered in blood, most of it dried, but there was still blood that had yet to dry. In this room there were three people. A man, a woman, and my sister tied to a chair. I silently approached the man, stabbing him in the neck, ripping out the rifle's bayonet from his neck, the man fell face-down and bled to death. The woman punched me in the stomach. I fell to the ground, pulling on her ankles. She 1fell down as I grabbed the bayonet and drove it through her stomach.

"Get away from my sister!" I shouted as I aimed the rifle at the two adults and fire two shots through each of their heads. I ran over to my sister, releasing her bindings. She hugged me so tightly, as if she never wanted to let go of me. "Who did this to you?" I asked, hugging her back.

"Mommy, and Daddy! I forgot everytime the sun came up, but every night they would take me to the basement. Then they'd hurt me all night. But tonight they were too long and so you saved me!" She began to cry as I dressed her wounds. Once she was alright I took her back to bed as I prepared breakfast. She awoke from her sleep just a few hours later. We ate brunch in silence.

I felt something soft and hot against my cheek. I felt it again, and again. I opened my eyes to see Trifa lying asleep next to me. I tried to get out of bed, only for a streak of pain to shoot down my spine. I sat back down. 'Christ that hurt. It looks like the fight from yesterday really did take its toll. I put my mask on and walked to the kitchen of the cabin. I looked in the refrigerator, finding preserved fish and meat. I looked through the pantries and found some basic baking and cooking supplies. I started to cook some fried fish. I heard some noise from the bedroom as Trifa emerged from the room, rubbing her eyes with a yawn.

"So you want me to see you in that way?" I asked with a sly grin.

"What?" Trifa asked as she looked down at what she was wearing. She only had her underwear and bra on. She tried in vain to cover the rest of her body and ran back into the room. "You ass! You could've told me that sooner!" She shouted from the other side of the door.

"I wouldn't have been as funny if I had!" I countered, flipping over the battered fish. It sizzled as the oil began to fry the coating, a delicious scent wafting into the air as I heard Trifa emerge with her second set of clothes put on.

"This better, you fucking prude," she shot back, taking a seat in a chair.

"You hungry?" I asked, putting the finished product onto a serving tray. I placed it in the middle of the table. She snatched up half of them and began devouring them immediately.

"Hey Evan… did you have a nightmare last night?" She asked.

I paused and took off my mask. She was now looking up at me, her fork and knife sitting on the plate. "Why do you ask?"

"I heard you crying in your sleep and mentioning your mother and father. Is that why you're heading home?" She asked, a genuine look of concern on her face. I smiled back, trying to reassure her that everything was alright, but she wasn't convinced. Her brow furrowed as she leaned in. "Ev, I don't know why, but these past few days made me realize something. I don't want to see you die, I don't want to see you hurt. And most of all I want you to be happy, so please be honest with me."

I sighed. For some reason I couldn't lie to her like like this. "My family… aren't the kindest people. And I had a nightmare about them," my voice began to waver as I held my face in my hands. I felt a hand rubbing my back as Trifa rested her head on my shoulder.

"Don't worry, you have me now," she whispered as I finished crying. She grabbed a tissue and wiped away some of my tears. She gently pressed her lips against mine. I could feel her holding me tightly.

"How did you sleep?" I asked.

"Ugh, it took me a few minutes to fall asleep. But I had you to hold onto, so it wasn't that bad after that," Trifa said with a smile. "So what is this settlement we're going to like?" She asked as I began to eat the rest of the fish.

"It's a small trading town that's well fortified so it's a safe place to sleep. Also, it's a great place to get news on the bigger settlements since all the merchant caravans pass through there. So we can know how to proceed from there. My house is only a day's walk from the settlement too," I finished, eating my breakfast.

"Good! So it won't be long"

I nodded as I took the dishes and put them in the sink.

"So why are you going to your home if you don't like your family?" Trifa asked.

"Because my sister is there and I don't want her to be without me for too long. It's been a year since I've seen her," I said running my hand through my dark brown hair.

"I can't wait to meet her."