Thanks so much to all reviewers! You all rule! I'm sorry if this is kinda depressing! It's supposed to be! Anyway! Sorry that there hasn't been any romance so far! I think Mai'll come in next chapter… maybe.

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"Serenity! Come on! We're leaving; I've got your suitcase!" Mrs. Wheeler called up the stairs. Serenity and Joey ran down.

          "Where're yah going, Mom?" Ten-year-old Joey asked. His mother hesitated.

          "Out."

          "When'll you be back?"

          "Tonight."

          "Can't I come? Please?" He begged.

          "No, Joseph."

          "It's Joey, Mom!"

          "I don't care what your name is." She said sighing, "Come on, Serenity."

          "I want to stay with Joey!" She protested. Her mother shook her head at her daughter. Joey chimed in.

          "Mom! Please! You don't have to pretend anymore! I know you're leaving Dad. Can I come with you? I won't mess anything up! I'll just go pack my bag! It won't take two minutes, I won't waste any of your time!"

          His mother looked at him for a long time. It was a mixture of pity and frustration.

          "You've already wasted my time, Joseph. Ten years of it." She said quietly, then dragged the wailing Serenity out the door. Joey ran to follow, but she locked the door after her. Joey ran to the window, it was locked too. He quickly picked the lock, and hopped out into a rose bush.

          "Ow! Mom! Serenity! Wait!" He ran after them in a panic. His mother's car began to pull out of the driveway. Joey chased after it screaming 'Serenity!'. But soon his short legs couldn't keep up to the fast car. They drove out of site, and he fell to the ground crying. His baby sister was gone. The light of his life, the one he loved the most. She was gone. He didn't even know her address to send her a letter. He could never find her. He screamed at the sky. People passing by stared at him, one lady came over to ask him whether he was lost. He shoved her aside, and ran off to home.

          Once he got home, he ran into his and Serenity's room, hoping for her to be there, hoping it was all just a dream. He looked on the top part of their bunk bed. Her pillow was gone, but her My Little Pony sheets were still there. He flopped onto her bed, and buried his face into the sheets. It still smelled like the Watermelon-Blueberry shampoo she used. He closed his eyes, and imagined she was sitting next to him, he could imagine everything about her. Her laughing eyes, her smiling mouth, her thick red hair, her clean pressed dress… He lay there for hours until at five o'clock he heard the door open. He ran out. She was back! He knew it! She had to be! But it was just his father. His father was obviously drunk. Joey was pretty used to this. Zachary Wheeler sat down at the high wooden table in the kitchen. Joey ran up, and pulled himself up the tall stool to sit across from his father. They sat like that for and hour, Zack staring at the table, and Joey staring at him.

          As the clock ticked to six o'clock Joey glanced at the refrigerator. Dinner was always at six. His mother had been obsessed with schedules, and no matter what was happening in their lives dinner was at six. Joey waited for his father to make dinner, clinging to this one part of his life. If dinner was at six his mom wasn't gone. Life could still go on. He watched the clock. Six-fifteen, six-thirty… dinner wasn't coming. Joey got off his stool resolutely. He and his dad didn't need Mom. He, Joey, would take care of both of them better than his mom ever had. He went over the counter and began peanut butter and jelly sandwiches for both of them. He was incredibly meticulous; he spread the peanut butter perfectly evenly, and cut the crusts off the bread. Once they were made he poured two glasses of milk and carried them to the table. He was careful not to spill a drop of milk on the way. He began carrying the plates over, one in each hand. His mother had always told him to use two hands to carrying something, but if he was going to be as adept as his mother he would have to be able to carry a plate in each hand just like she did. This proved to be a mistake, he tripped over his untied shoelace and one of the plates fell to the ground and shattered. Tears welled in the young boy's eyes as he waited for a reprimand from his father, but his father hadn't even looked up from the table when the crash sounded. Joey remade the sandwich and put it in front of his father.

          "Here, Dad." He said with a bright smile. He then sat down across from him again, and began eating his own sandwich. His father continued staring at the table. "Dad! You really need to eat! You need three square meals a day." Joey said, quoting his mother. His father ignored him. "This sandwich is full of protein!" Joey continued in vain. "It's on whole wheat bread and has something from most of the food gr-" Suddenly his father had reached out and slapped hard on the side of the head. Joey's stool toppled over, and Joey fell to the ground, his temple bleeding where he had been struck.

          "GODDAMMIT, BOY!" His father shouted. "YOU'RE JUST LIKE YOUR WHORE OF A MOTHER!" Joey stared at him in disbelief. He couldn't believe it; his father had just hit him. It didn't click, it couldn't be right. He sat there staring at his father, not feeling any pain, just a numb disbelief. His father stormed off. Joey washed the dishes, wrapped his father's uneaten sandwich in tinfoil for later, still with blood dripping down his cheek. He went to bed afterward and lay in the dark staring at a family portrait. It had him and Serenity sitting in between their parents. Everyone was smiling, everyone loved each other. A few hours later his father came in. He picked Joey up wordlessly and carried him to the bathroom.

          "How'd this happen, Joey?" He asked lightly touching the wound.

          "You hit-" Joey began, then looked at his father's face. "I fell down" He finished. His father nodded.

          "And if anyone asks about it, what are you going to tell them?" He asked, smiling like a shark.

          "That I fell down."

          "Good boy." He then cleaned the cut carefully and put a bandage on it. Then he carried Joey back to his room and set him carefully back into bed. "Goodnight, Joey"

          "Goodnight, Dad." Joey closed his eyes and drifted off into a disturbed sleep.

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"Joey! Hey, Joey! Hellooooo, Joey! Joey? EARTH TO JOEY! JOEY! WAKE UP!" Joey was slightly aware of someone shouting at him. He opened his eyes a crack to see Yugi's worried face about an inch away from him.

          "AHHHH!" He yelled and leapt away from him. "Don't scare me like that, Yug'!"

          "Sorry, Joey, but I you were tossing and turning in your sleep and mumbling stuff. I think you were having a nightmare." Yugi said.

A nightmare. Yes, there was nothing else to call it. The first time his father had hit him. The start of the abuse… Joey gazed into the distance thinking of his dream, the dream of the worst memory of his life.

          "Joey? Are you okay?" Yugi asked him. Joey snapped out of it.

          "Oh sure, Yugi. 'Course I am." He said grinning. "So what's up for today?"

          "Well Teá and Tristan called and they want to go to the pool, sound good?"

          "Uh… well… I suppose…"  

          "Great! Do you have your swim trunks?"

          "I think I got a pair in the car… yeah."

Just then Serenity came in.

          "Yugi? It's Tristan on the phone he wants to know if you're up for the pool."

          "Tell him that we'd love to!" Yugi said, happily.

          "Sure thing!" Serenity said, then went back to tell Tristan the good news.

          Right when the three of them were leaving the game shop, the phone rang.

          "I got it!" Yugi hollered up to his grandpa. "Hello? Game shop. Wow! Hi! Nice to hear from you! Mhm... Yeah! Wow, that's great! Yeah, I can't wait! Okay! Three-thirty? Sure! Great! See you then! BYE!" Joey and Serenity stared at him.

          "Who was that?" Joey asked him. Yugi giggled.         

          "I'll tell everyone at the pool! This is such great news!" He bounded out the door with Serenity and Joey behind him. They walked to the pool and saw Teá and Tristan waiting for them.

          "Hi, guys!" Teá said, grinning. Serenity and Yugi gave enthusiastic greetings, while Joey only gave a small wave. They all changed into their bathing suits, and were sitting around the pool. Joey had his jacket buttoned over his chest even though it was 85o that day.

          "Aren't you going swimming, Joey?" Tristan asked.

          "Nah. I don't feel like it." He said, dejectedly.

          "You're crazy, Joey!" Teá said. "It's so hot today!"

          "I know." He said, stubbornly.

          "Fine. Have it your way." She said, sighing.

          "I have really great news, you guys!" Yugi said, excitedly.

          "Oh?" Teá and Tristan said. "What?"

          "Well I just got a call… and Mai is coming to visit!" Joey began laughing.

          "So where's the good news, Yugi?" He asked.

          "That is the good news! She said she's never really seen Domino except in Duel Monsters Competitions and she wants to visit all of us and see the real Domino City! We're picking her up at the air port tomorrow at three-thirty!" He cried. Joey rolled his eyes.

          "Yipee." He said sarcastically. "I can't stand that woman. She's always putting me down, or being selfish, or…" He trailed off realizing that no one was listening to him, they were all talking about how great it would be to see her again. He sighed and put his feet into the pool. Tristan suddenly shoved him into the pool from behind.

          "Damn you, Tristan!" He yelled spluttering. He hopped out of the pool, and pulled his sopping wet jacket off. All the people around him gasped. Teá even gave a small cry. His chest and back were covered in scars and yellow bruises.

          "What happened, Joey?" Teá asked breathlessly.

          "Huh?" He looked down at his chest. "Oh these? Just what comes of being a klutz, I guess. I tend to fall down a lot." After these words he dived into the pool to stop their staring.