Alone

When i walked to those doors, i was in heaven. Memories rushed back into my head, and i was so overjoyed i almost knocked Charlie over by tackling him with a hug. Nothing else in the world mattered at that moment. We made our way to the kitchen, Charlie running his motor mouth the whole time. Me and him were closer then Ryan and me, and we had a secret bond since we were little kids. I idolized him, in a way.

He pulled up a bamboo chair up to the kitchen bar, and i sat down happily.
"I cant believe you found me" He laughed, shaking a margarita for himself.
"Well, it was pretty harsh. It took forever" i smiled, my stomach growling.
"Oh, sorry Win. You must be famished. What would you like?" He smiled, walking to the huge refrigerator
"Gingerale?" I asked, drumming my nails on the table. He nodded and looked through the many shelves of the fridge. he closed the door and slide it to me like a bartender.
"How did you escape?" He asked, pouring the drink into a glass.
"We did what you told us to. We studied and checked out every book at the University about the Alcatraz prison. You were right in all those letters. They were genius" i smiled, cracking the bottle open with my teeth and spitting the cap out on the counter.

"So true. That's how i escaped. I remembered from the stories mom used to tell us. Remember those? About if we didn't stay in our beds the inmates would get us? Because they made a hole with like, forks and stuff to escape?" He laughed, sipping his martini. I smile softly at the memory.
"Dude, i totally remember that. Mom was a crafty old bat, wasn't she?"
"Cheers to that!" he laughed his belly laugh. We raised our drinks and we clinked them like a couple on new years. We put them to our mouths and drank festively. I put the bottle down and wiped my mouth on my polo sleeve.
"And, to and to the Alcatraz topic, we actually did dig our way out. Kinda. We saved some metal spoons and chipped through the walls, then climbed to the roof of it. We met at the roof and hitch-hiked all the way here" I smiled proudly. "And it was alllllllllllllll my idea"

Charlie showed his straight teeth and grinned.
"Of course it was. You were always the smartest one of us three"
"Nooooooooooooooo" i blushed, messing around with the bottle cap.
"Yesssssss! You were always the first to ride a bike, and always got the best grades." He punched me softly.
"Ya ya, whatever" i flicked the cap at him, hitting his wrist.
"And you were always the strongest. You always beat us in races"
"That ones true, i admit it" i said, flexing playfully.
"If you don't mind me asking, what did they make you do at the University? What kind of work?" He asked, this time seriously. I thought about it.

"Well, for me, they made me stop bullets in mid air sometimes. It was like a game to them. One hit me once" i said, holding my sleeve up showing a little scar.
"And this other time, they made me take away kids thoughts. About there parents, there past lives. It was terrible. And the worst part was, they beat this kid so hard for trying to get away, he was about to die. I could've saved him. But they made me put a force-field around myself so he couldn't get to me. I saw him die" I said, tearing up. Charlie looked at me with pain in his eyes.
"Was it at least good for something? Like, did it give you any extra abilities?" He asked, trying not to hurt me mentally. I nodded.
"Well, they made my stamina increase. We ran some of the way here, and i didn't even get tired. Me and Ryan are almost never hungry or thirsty either" I said, wiping my eyes. He nodded.
"Well, at least that's good. I guess it was actually good for something, like they said." Then suddenly, memories came rushing back to me. I had to tell Charlie about them.

"They tortured us for fun sometimes" i whispered, my voice barely above silent. "They locked me in this place they called 'The Hole.' It was barely bigger then this counter" i said, pointing to the surface of the table.
"They kept me in there for weeks at a time, without food and water. It had no beds, bathrooms, anything. Just pitch black. It was like hell. I tried to kill myself, but i had nothing to do it with. So i just sat there. After we escaped, i started having brutal nightmares. And now i cant sleep without someone holding me. Like a baby. Or watching me at least. Its pathetic," i said, tears falling again. He looked at me sincerely and wiped my cheeks.
"Do you want me to keep watch tonight so you can sleep for once peacefully?" I looked at him, eyes big. "Would you?"
"I would be a terrible brother if i didn't. And besides, your my favorite sister" he teased, standing up. I laughed and coughed, rubbing my eyes, to weak to reply, 'I'm your only sister you noob.'

I followed him up the stairs, slowly but surely. "I made a room just for you" He said, turning the corner and quietly opening the first room next to the stairs. This door had a purple bow on it. I smiled at it, and walked in. I gasped. There were huge french windows, two old fashioned wardrobes, a vintage oriental rug, pictures of our old family, and i huge bed with drapes above it.
"Charlie, its amazing!" I cried, in love with my new room. I twirled onto the bed. "Where did you find the pictures?!"
"I went to the house we grew up in. Its still standing, believe it or not. I found all of this, and brought it here" He smiled. He had his hands behind his back mysteriously.
"What you got there?" i asked, trying to look at his back. He pulled out an ancient old stuffed penguin. I gasped and took it softly.
"You found Jem my old penguin?" I whispered, stroking its flippers.
"Ya, it was on the floor. I thought you might like it" he smiled, flipping his hair to the side. I hugged the toy close to me, squeezing it to death.
"Thank you so much. For everything. This is like a dream" I smiled, looking up at him. He nodded, and pulled up a antique chair from the big mahogany desk and sat on it, placing his feet on the bed. I suddenly fell how tired i was. I yawned, and looked that at my pillow, were new silk pajamas. I ran my hand against them, feeling like a freaking princess. I walked to the big bathroom, putting them on, noticing the bathroom sink, toilet, and bath tub were all made of something resembling jade. I came back and slipped through the sheets, setting my head on the feather pillow. Charlies quiet hums mixed with the gentle beating of the rain made a perfect lullaby.

I didn't have a single nightmare that night.