"Trancy!"

"Wha…?"

"Get your butt up! It's dinner time!"

Ugh. I opened my eyes to see Nichole's father staring at me. He hated me more than anyone I had ever met, and was saying something. "S-Sorry…" I said, sounding a bit muffled.

Her father had been cold from day one. Of course, he was hardly ever home, which helped. At least a little anyway…

I dragged myself downstairs and to the kitchen. Apparently here, in the future America, you EAT where you COOK! I know; it scared me too. But sooner or later I got used to it.

Bella and Nichole's Mother had already taken their seats. Oh no. That means...

"You know I'm still not saying it." I say, as coldly as I can muster from my tired mouth.

"I am well aware…" Nichole's mother said. "Just sit down until then and be quiet please."

I nodded and sat down as they all praised God for good things. I hated this part of the day. Not like I didn't despise any other part of the day anyway. It was so stupid to me. Why praise someone who had taken everyone I had ever cared for so far away from me?

Finally they finished their bloody prayer and I could finally eat. Steak and potatoes today.

"May I have wine?" I asked in my good-boy-super-polite-happy voice. "I know you have some…"

"No." The father replied gruffly. He was already digging into his steak. "We ran out."

"That's a lie." I hissed and pointed at the refrigerator. "Your wife bought more today. Three bottles actually. Then she drank half of the red one."

"Alois!" Nichole's mother glared at me then looked down at her plate as her husband stared at her evilly.

"Sarah….It's been a month…please stop…" He said, putting his hands on her's.

I shifted uncomfortably in my seat. Bella did the same. It was so awkward always here. I felt like I didn't fit in.

"I know…I will try….I just miss her dearly." Nichole's mother said, looking over at me. "Yes, you may."

Nichole's father shook his head at me though. That meanie. "No! You're still young."

"Come on!" I complained, "At my mansion I was allowed! This juice is pathetic, just like those eggs you made me eat!"

"Alois!" Nichole's father snaps, his sharp voice scaring the crap out of me and making me silent. "Be quiet and eat your dinner now!"

I picked my fork up and started eating but as I did-

Stab him.

I close my eyes and feel myself begin to shake. Not again. I would NOT hurt the man! He was Nichole's father! No matter how much I despised the man, I could never ever hurt him!

Stab him. Stab him. Stab him.

"Alois…?" Bell's voice seems like an echo as my own voices scream in my mind. "Y-You okay…?"

Stabhimstabhimstabhimstabhimstabhimstabhim

I shook my head and gripped it tightly. "A-AH!"

STABHIMSTABHIMSTABHIMSTABHIMSTABHIMSTABHIM

Alois….

Wait….suddenly in that mix of vile voices was a single one I knew. That one I would know from thousands of millions of others. The one that sounded like silk out of all the rough unforgiving ones.

"N-Nic…hole…?" I muttered out loud.

STABHIMSTABHIMST-

Alois….calm down…Please, for me…

"I…I will…Nichole…" My vision was getting rather hazy. "D-Don't….leave me….please…"

"Watch out he's gonna fall!"

I remember the feeling of falling over and nothing else after.

Oh Alois….I-

…..

It was dark by the time I awoke.

"Erm…" My head was thumping like some out-of-whack clock, and it was painful to even think.

"You're up!"

I turned my head (bad idea, it hurt even more) to see little Bella staring at me. Her little hazel eyes glistened in the dimly lit room. Wait, dimly lit…?

It was so dark! I quickly (despite the pain) closed my eyes shut and hugged the cover and myself. I HATED the dark! It was too scary!

"Eloise…?"

Excuse me?! Did she SEROUSLY just say that?! "It's Alois, stupid!" I yelled, keeping my eyes shut and trying to slow my heartbeat down somewhat. "Is it that hard to say?!"

I heard Bella whimper as she talked. "I-I'm sorry! I didn't mean- I'm sorry!"

I opened my eyes a little bit to see her. She was in a cute little pink nightshirt with penguins on them. She was also clutching a small white lamp in her arms. Tears stung her cute round face and made me feel bad.

"Okay, okay, just don't do it again alright?" I keep hugging the covers afraid that some monsters would appear and take me to Hell. Not that I didn't belong there anyway of course…

She nods. "O-Okay!"

Suddenly, a flash of thunder sounds over the world, and it even makes ME jump up. However, Bella's reaction was different.

"AHHH!" She screamed and leapt up right onto my bed.

Now get one thing straight. Had I not know the little brat and she was some random street rat, I would have yelled, screamed, cursed, hit, done anything really to get her as far as possible. But I didn't. Instead I wrapped her in my arms and hugged her.

"It's okay! It's only thunder…."

Little Bella hugs me tightly, and I have to keep reminding myself that she was Nichole's younger sister.

"A-Alois…" She muttered and I felt her shake. "It's dark and there are noises outside scaring me!"

"I-I know…" I said. How the hell could I comfort her when I myself was nearly reduced to tears?! If I was in my mansion, I would have ordered Claude to just do something and put a bloody candle aflame.

"Make it stop! Nichole always did!" She is really scared right now. In fact, she is pressing her little knees in a VERY SENISTIVE PLACE on me, but I put up with it. Somehow.

"Well…Nichole is no longer here…." I said, to myself more than anyone. "She's…gone…"

Bella raises her head and looks up at me. "D-Did you and Nichole love one another?"

"PISH POSH!" I screamed louder then I wanted. My voice roars along with some bloody thunder, and the little girl screams so loud I feel like taking a gun to my head.

That's when the parents walked in.

"Bella!" Nichole's mother snatched her from my arms and hugged her tight. "I thought you were asleep! Oh my Lord…"

A flash of thunder passes and I can see myself in the mirror or a second. I look like a monster. I was shirtless (they must have put my pjs on while I had been unconscious) with all my scars clearly visible to even a blind person. My stitches from my stab wound that damn Ciel gave me seemed to shine brightly. My hair looked wild, like the lighting that was going wild outside. And my eyes.

My putrid, ugly, disgusting eyes only one person had ever loved.

"Alois was being nice Mommy!" Bella said, her small voice cracking. "He hugged me and told me everything was alright!"

I stared, speechless. Nice? Me? Yeah right. What's next? Claude was going to sing a love song?!

"Thank you Alois." Her mother said, smiling for once in her life at me. "I didn't hear her…It's late. We all better sleep."

And with that, she leans over to me and kisses my forehead.

After the two girls had left, I felt the place she had kissed me. The same place Nichole had on her last day. Of course, the most memorable was the accident we had while we had been fencing. But that had been a…pleasant accident.

I lay down and sighed. I swear Nichole had talked to me or something. She had done something from wherever she was to tell me I was okay and to calm down.

So she was (more or less) still around.

So I wasn't still alone.

So I was still loved.

"Nichole…?" I muttered out loud. "You still here…?"

I heard nothing in return. But swore I had heard her before…at least….I believe I had…