My first night in the Home was as unbearable as I'd expected it to be. After talking to Brian and the brief meeting with Howie, I fell asleep. It had come so easily for me since I was physically and emotionally drained by then. When I woke up, total darkness greeted me. Not a single ray of light in the room except for the dim glow of the street lamp that had faintly made its presence known from the window. My visibility was minimal but I saw no point in being able to see what was surrounding me since I don't even want to know it. In that split second, my thoughts went back to my room. But then I realized that I had been spending the last four days in the hospital. And then remembering what happened there and finding out I had Darla, I realized I was sleeping for the first time, here, in this Home. Reality sinking in, I realized that I'll be spending the rest of my nights alive in this place. I was, for the first time, truly scared; of what was now, what was then, and what as to become of me in the future. Do I have a future? I felt my stomach churned, then remembering that I had not had anything to eat and had most certainly missed my first dinner there. Hungry and alone, I wondered how my family were doing back at home. ~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~ Nick cursed himself for sleeping that afternoon, now he found himself wide awake in the middle of the night. His thoughts were of his family and AJ. The center of his life, now gone. How was he to stand alone all of a sudden? He willed for sleep to come but instead, he heard someone whimpering. Shocked, he stayed still and listened as the whimpering became more audible. It was Brian. He was tossing and turning in his bed, calling out for his mom. Nick realized that his friend was having a bad dream. "Momma…come back…don't…leave me…I don't want to die…I don't wanna die…I don't wanna die…" Hearing Brian cried out like that scared Nick. Brian was so positive when he met him earlier that Nick was beginning to have faith that one day, he would be able to accept his misfortune and embrace it and live the rest of his life being happy. He definitely wasn't counting on Brian to fall. He saw Howie slowly crept out of bed, still weak from the 'session' he had that morning. Nick saw that he was holding on to anything that could support him until he reached Brian's bed. "Brian…wake up…wake up buddy, it's just a bad dream…come on now…" Howie's voice so soft and calm that Nick had trouble making out what he had said. Brian however, kept squirming in his bed as his sobs died down. "Hey, there you go…it's all right Rok, all a bad dream…" Howie coaxed as Brian pulled himself up to a sitting position, composing himself. "I can't take this anymore D…I want out…I don't want to stay here anymore!" Brian cried as he willed his tears to stop. Nick laid very still, closing his eyes yet listening to every single word uttered. "Calm down…you're not thinking straight." Howie coaxed. "Aren't I? What are we here for D? What are they doing to us? It's my turn tomorrow and you know what they're gonna do right? It's not helping us D, I don't want to be used like this!" Brian cried in frustration. "Remember what Kevin told us? We can't ruin this for him." Howie reasoned. "Screw Kevin! He's not the one going through the torture! He's not the one dying!" Brian protested and he ran his fingers through his sweat stricken flocks. "But Kristin did and you know he's hurt like any of us here. We can't do this to him, not now." Howie pointed out. Nick couldn't help frowning. He couldn't understand what they were talking about. Why was Brian so upset? He was so cheerful earlier on. He even offered to help him survive in this place. "Why are you still here D? After what happened, why didn't you try to get out?" Brian asked, ignoring his reasons. "And go where Bri? No one's waiting for me out there. They're all in heaven…I'm just waiting for my time, and then I'll be reunited with them." Howie replied sadly. "D…I'm sorry, I didn't mean to bring it up." Brian apologized, regret evidently clear in his voice. "It's okay, I know you didn't mean it. Look, we have to get some sleep, you especially need a lot of rest for tomorrow. Just hang in there all right? It won't be this bad forever." Howie replied, sounding genuinely positive. "I don't want to die." Brian said all of a sudden. "Then you won't. You will get well and see your family again. I will take the dying part from you, there's nothing more I want in this world than to die, so let me be the one. You just worry about getting well." Howie giggled. Nick didn't find anything amusing, in fact, he got scared. "I'm going to be very crappy tomorrow." Brian whined. "I know. Been there done that," Howie joked. Brian chuckled. Nick was even more confused. "Come on, lets go back to sleep, I don't want our new friend here to hear this, he's gonna be shock if he do." "Yeah, poor guy, it's gonna be tough for him." Brian sighed. "It's always tough when you're the rookie." Howie agreed. "I'll introduce him to you properly tomorrow." Brian said. "Cool. I will be nice again by then." Nick listened as the bed sheet rustled loudly in the stilled room. Both boys now settling to go back to slumber land. What had just happened? Were they keeping something from him? Why didn't Brian's mom came for visits? Why does he sound like he was totally deprived from the society? Nick closed his eyes, blocked everything away. He tried to remember and pictured his room, imagining he was in his own bed, in his own room. Nothing had change. The twins were sleeping and both mom and dad were just two doors away from him. He pulled the blanket up to his chin, pretending to smell the same comforting smell of his room. The tears had started to fall, feeling lost for the first time. Darla- somehow, the sickness buries more than just death upon its' victims and Nick was determined to find out what they were exactly. ~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~ "Are you going to stand there forever or wake him up?" Howie asked as he watched Brian stood at the foot of their new room mate's bed, doing nothing. "You remember about that guy I talked about a lot from school?" Brian asked, his back still facing Howie. "The one you play bball with?" Howie asked, wondering why it had anything to do with not waking up the young man. "Yeap, that's the one." Brian replied, nodding his head slightly. "Okay…" Howie replied, unsure where the conversation was going. Brian moved to the side of the bed and placing a hand on his shoulder, shook it gently. He watched as the serene face contorted into that of pain. "It's okay…time to wake up now…" Brian whispered softly, not wanting for him to wake up startled. His eyes opened slowly, squinting as if trying to adjust to the surrounding all over again. "Rise and shine bro." Nick woke up to a fully blown headache pounding in his head. He quickly acknowledged it as a sign of lack of sleep. He was only able to find slumber somewhere at five in the morning. Brian sounded like nothing he was last night, but now, he was determined not to be fooled. "Can I wake up later? I'm too tired." "No can do Nick. Rules. We have to be down for breakfast in fifteen minutes and you've not taken your shower yet." Brian explained as he waited patiently for his friend to get up. There were so much needed to be explained and taught or the circumstances would be ugly. Nick frowned and pushed himself to a sitting position. His world was surrounded in darkness immediately and he felt his body slumped to the bed once more. He was in a lot worse condition than he thought. And it was only supposedly to be the start. "Try getting up slower this time." Nick felt a hand rested on his left shoulder, encouraging him to get up again. He opened his eyes and found Howie looking down at him, a small smile carved on his lips. His brown caring eyes boring into him. This was the Howie he heard comforting Brian last night. "Come on, we'll help." Brian said, offering a hand. Nick took the offer while Howie gave a light push from the back. The dizziness never left him and he felt himself blacking out for the second time, but the hand that had pushed him never let go. "Just close your eyes and breathe slowly. It will pass." Howie advised. Nick listened and did as was told and found the dark spot that had formed in front of him disappeared. Finding his composure again, he opened up his eyes. "There ya go, all brand new!" Brian giggled. "Thanks." Nick croaked as he rubbed the back of his neck from the displeasure of the stiffness. "Just doing what we can to help." Howie replied. "D, this is him." Brian said all of a sudden. Howie frowned. "I don't get you." "This is him, this is Nick Carter, the guy I told you about." Brian explained. "Oh." Howie's eyes widened in excitement, finally getting to meet the guy that Brian had praised a lot. Then the excitement changed to that of sorrow, finally realizing that he was here because of Darla. Poor boy. "I've heard a lot about you." Howie smiled, shaking his hand. "Oh really? Don't get offended coz I never heard him talk about you, but that's just because he disappeared one day and we never talk again." Nick joked. "Yeah, and he could have the decency to mail you a letter huh?" Howie chuckled. "I'd rather email but since we're not allowed to use one…" Brian added. Nick shook his head, maybe, the day wouldn't be as difficult. ~*~*~*~*~*~*~ "How come Brian couldn't come with us?" Nick asked as he followed Howie down to the kitchen. He saw a few other boys with identical white scrubs walking down the same path. They all looked the same, Nick thought-pale and very sick. "He has his session today, he can't eat before the session." Howie replied as he eyed the people. "Oh." Nick replied, unsure of what to say next. He needed more than that, he was still in the dark. He wasn't told about going for 'sessions' before. "Look, I know you're still confused. But I promise I'll tell you everything after breakfast okay?" Howie said when he realized he had been ignoring his new friend. "It's okay. You seemed distracted, why?" Nick asked. "What? No…I'm just looking for a friend, he's been sick for the past few days, I just wanna know how he's doing." Howie explained. Nick just nodded. They arrived at the kitchen area, about a dozen rows of long tables stretched in the room, each table could accommodate about fourteen boys. Howie motioned him to the one right at the back and he sat next to him. "Now we wait until they serve us." Howie informed and Nick once again just nodded his head. At least, they were served and not made to line up a long queue to get their food. He doubt he would be able to stand that long. Soon the seat next to him was quickly occupied and by seconds, the table was filled. Everyone was either talking to each other or withdrew into their own little world. The boy next to him was amazingly bubbly. "Hey, you're the new kid right?" He was spotted with the same messy bangs as him only that his hair was almost red. His eyes were of grayish green and his skin was definitely paler than his. "I guess so." Nick replied, smiling a bit, remembering his mother's advice about how the first impression mattered the most. "I'm Brad Pitt." Nick took his offer for a handshake. "You wish Brad." Howie scoffed as he shook his head. "Hey, he was taking my bait!" Brad pouted. "That's just coz he thought you're crazy." Howie smirked. "This, Nick, is Bradon Warsley. Never, and I mean NEVER take him seriously." "Nick Carter." Nick introduced himself. The smile on Bradon's face disappeared. "THE Nick Carter? The one Brian had been talking about?" Bradon exclaimed. "Seems like I'm very well known in here." Nick joked. "Yeah well, Brian said you could take any of us in bball." "Brian ain't lying." Nick giggled. "We'll see about that Carter, we should have a game one day." Bradon said seriously. "Yeah, you wish Bradon." Howie rolled his eyes. Nick had wanted to ask why was that so farfetched but decided not to when a boy slumped down facing Howie. He was about as tall as Nick and had dark crew cut hair. His features were dark, well shaped arched eyebrows shielding deep ocean blue eyes and cheeks that blushed above pale skin. Nick figured that he was handsome before Darla took him in. "Hey, I almost give up on you." Howie said to the boy cheerfully. Nick figured he was the friend he had been looking for. The boy looked up to meet Howie's and then to him. "Is he the new guy?" He asked. "Yeap. Nick, this is Mark. Mark, Nick." Exchange of nods followed. "Do you have a room yet? I could use a roommate right about now." Mark asked out of the blue. Howie was puzzled. Mark already had one. "Markus, you know Shane is gonna be so mad at you if he heard that." Howie chuckled. "Yeah man, he's gonna be so hurt that you wanna kick him out." Bradon added. "How is he anyway? Still sick?" Howie asked. Nick listened to the conversation attentively. So the sick friend was called Shane. "No…he's just tired of me I guess." Mark replied, still staring down at the table. Howie wanted to ask more when the familiar ringing of the bell rung through the room. Kevin was standing in the middle of the room, seeking attention from them. The buzz quieted down and then total silence. Nick searched for the sound of the bell and found Kevin. He was awed by the sudden deafening silence. Everyone seemed to be paying attention to him and Nick figured that would be the best thing to do. "Can I have your attention please?" Kevin cleared his throat. Normally, he would started breakfast with a few jokes and then a prayer but today, he was the bearer of bad news. It wasn't the first time that he had to break the news to them but no matter how many times he had done it, the ache only grew bigger. "Shane Roysten passed away last night in his sleep." Kevin announced grimly. Gasped were heard through out the room. Howie was looking at Mark with questions in his eyes. When realization sets in, it turned into that of sympathy. Mark had his head bowed, the expression on his face hidden, but the wrecked of his body told everything that needed to be said. Nick looked at Howie, his eyes were glistening with unshed tears. Nick had never met Shane and the sudden pang of pure sorrow and sadness that he was feeling surprised him. Then it dawn upon him. Shane was just one of the hundreds in that room. He was just another casualty to Darla. And now, he had paid his sentence and death had come for him. Soon, it would be another one of them. Different boy, different name, but of the same fate. Kevin waited patiently for the crowd to settle down once again before continuing. It pained to see them cry. The group that he was in charged of was not younger than sixteen and not older than 24, and yet, they had cried so openly for the lost of this boy whom they had considered a brother. "As you all know he had been sick for quite some time now…the outcome is inevitable…but Shane had left peacefully in his sleep. He is no longer hurting." Mark was in a wreck. His cries were silent and lonely and Howie got up and squeezed to the little space next to him and pulled him in a hug. It helped. Mark felt safe once more. He had woken up at one in the morning last night to remind his room mate to have his medication but he never woke up. His pale face felt cold to the touch. It had taken him fifteen minutes to realize that his friend was dead and that he needed to alert one of the volunteers. They had taken them away immediately and was to never be heard of again. No service for this young man. No proper burial. No final goodbye. The silent, lonely cries now turned one of true desperation and lost. His wailings could be heard across the room. That one voice of pure sorrow was enough to make everyone else in that room to shed their tears. ~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~ And so that was how I started my first morning. Like Bradon had told me later that day, the Home was where 'one comes in and another goes out'. That day, I came into their life and was accepted into the brotherhood, while Shane Roysten left only his friendship behind and never to return. ‘Truth’ Things were bad back in our room. Howie was too busy mourning for his friend and I was left confused. When things hit rock bottom, the only way to go is up, right? Well, that day, I found out that there was no bottom to hit. What we suffer just goes on. We were at the edge of the cliff and a hand pushed us down and we fall, and fall, and fall. ~*~*~*~*~*~ Kevin entered the examination room and as expected, found Brian struggling to put his clothes back on. The 'session' had been tough on him lately. Sometimes he wondered why he had even bothered to be there and witnessed unjust. It started out as volunteering, helping the sick and giving back something worthy to the public. Besides, life wasn't a bed of roses for him out there. There was no one to call family and the house that used to sheltered him was taken away from him, leaving him homeless. At least at the Home, he had a roof over his head. Perhaps, if things didn't get so complicated, he could just close both eyes and ignore the sufferings and just do what he was suppose to do there. But who said Life was ever fair? He had to fall in love. And she had Darla. "What did he do today?" Kevin asked as he distanced himself from Brian to give the young man some privacy. "Same stuffs." Brian whispered faintly. "It won't be long B, I will get to the bottom of this." Kevin replied, disappointed that he couldn't do much for the boys under his care. "So you said." Brian replied coldly. He was tired. After the pain he had went through that morning, he doubted if Kevin would ever get to the bottom of anything. "You don't trust me?" Kevin asked, hurt. "Let's just face it Kevin, we're going to die. There's nothing you can do to change that." Brian replied. "That doesn't mean they can treat you like this! They are watching my every move B, I can't risk it right now. I will have to come up with something tight." Kevin explained, wishing that he could pour out everything right then and there. Brian sighed. He wished he could believe the man. But reality was something that kept him grounded. Kevin had been like God's sent to ease their problem and brought a new ray of light in times when all they ever think of was death. However lately, those hope that he had clung to for so long seemed to fade. You don't have to risk anything Kev. You don't have to do anything." "You know I do." ~*~*~*~*~*~*~ Howie had been staring out of the window for almost an hour and Nick was getting restless. He doesn't know what to do or what could have been done to comfort the young man. He wished for Brian to come back soon, maybe he knew what to do. The door swung open minutes later, Brian entered with Kevin and as expected, Brian looked as sick as Howie had been the previous day. Nick shuddered at the thoughts that his turn would come soon. Brian immediately made his way to Howie. Kevin had explained to him of Shane's death as they walked back to the room and Brian knew how close Howie was to him. They had been neighbors since they were kids and after what happened to his family, Shane was the only link to his childhood left. Now, he was gone too. Without saying a word, he rested his hand on his shoulder and gave it a little squeeze. Howie turned to meet his gaze, eyes swollen and red met the dazed blue ones. "At least, he's free from torture now right?" Howie asked, as if to console himself. "The lucky bastard." Brian joked. Howie smiled. Kevin went over to Nick who was sitting on his bed, looking lost and confused. The poor boy, Kevin thought. He hadn't found time to explain everything clearly to him. The Management at the Home had made sure that he was occupied with other areas of his job to prevent him from getting acquainted with him. But Kevin was unfazed by it, he knew somehow, that he could get through the young man and get him on his side. "Are you okay Nick?" Kevin asked, sitting at the edge of the bed. His thoughts interrupted, he blinked and looked at Kevin. Recalling the conversation he overhead between Brian and Howie, he made it a point to remember to ask him about Kristin when the time was right. Somehow, there was something that Kevin was hiding. "Hmm?" "Are you okay? You seemed.spaced out." Kevin smiled. "Just thinking." Nick replied short, feeling uncomfortable all of a sudden. He hadn't had much for breakfast, probably to uncomfortable to feel an appetite when everyone else was mourning. "I know it's kinda confusing right now, but I will explain to you what you need to know okay?" "Can you tell me now? I really need some answers." Nick asked as his fingers went up to the temple and subconsciously massaging it. "Are you getting the headaches?" Kevin asked, concerned. He noticed that some of the color on the young man's face had gone. He was slowly but surely turning like everyone else in the Home, pale and deathly. "Yeah." Nick replied, brushing it off as nothing serious. "Well Nick.what I am about to tell you might sound.shocking.and you might not believe me.but I tell the truth and I mean no harm." Kevin started, unsure of where to start. "Ever wonder why my mom never come for a visit?" Brian asked as he and Howie approached his bed. Nick just looked at him expectantly for an answer. "No one ever gets visit here Nick. No one." Howie said, his eyes bore sadness and yet Nick could detect a hint of frustration in it. "What do you mean?" Nick asked, already feeling like as if his head was about to explode. How could his parents not visit? He needs them so much. "Nick, what the brochures said, the ones I gave you in the van yesterday.they are true.but what people don't know is, there are two such Homes like this one. Both look the exact replica of the other. You can't tell which is which basically." Kevin explained. "You point being?" Nick asked. "One of the Home is at the other end of the town, up North. Over there, patients are treated with kindness, they get to go out in the courtyard and play a game of bball or two. They get to watch tv, hang around with other patients.basically, living as normal as they can be.friends, relatives, families, come for visit every other weekend." Kevin continued. "How come we get no visits here?" Nick asked. "Because, this Home.prison.is a cover up. To everyone else out there, this place never exist. There is only one Home for Darla and it's not here." Brian replied grimly. "What are you talking about? I don't understand. What the hell is this place then?" Nick asked, already feeling the throbbing of the headache getting worst. "When they found out we have Darla, they did some tests and they rate your chances of survival. The not so lucky ones will be sent here.made into lab rats.guinea pigs.whichever you want to be called.and for the sake of all mankind, they try to find a cure by studying us. That's what the sessions are for." Howie replied. Nick shook his head, willing for the nausea to disappear. "You're kidding right? What is this? Some fucked up Disturbing Behavior re-enactment?" "I know it's hard for you to accept this Nick.but it's the truth.I've been trying to expose them for the longest time but I think they know I am up to something. They watch everywhere I go, who I talked to.I was almost caught once and I can't risk it again. But I will get them exposed." Kevin declared, his thoughts already on Kristin. "How.how did you know about this other Home?" Nick asked, still unconvinced. "They made me go there once by mistake and I found out the truth. The made me sworn to secrecy or they will kill me. You know I'd rather they kill me than living in this lie but I figured, if I stay alive, I could end this once and for all." "Why can't you go to the police?" Nick asked, unsure of what to expect. In his head, he kept telling himself that he was dreaming, that he would wake up and everything would be normal as normal could be in that Home. "They have the Mayor supporting this, that's how high this syndicate is. They have all the rich people to fund the experiments. You trust no one but the people of this town and they are whom we have to expose this to. But like I've said, they are watching me, I can't do this as open as I damn well pleased." Kevin explained, his voice turned hard and desperate. "Who else know about this?" Nick asked. "Only those I trust to keep this a secret. You will know them as you get along. I figured, since Brian knows you so well, that we let you in on this." "This can't be happening to me." Nick cried, head hung low, his fingers dug deep on his scalp. The door swung open suddenly but Nick didn't bother to look up and see who it was. He felt Brian and Howie moving away to their own beds and Kevin stood up. "What are you doing here Kevin?" "He's not doing well, I came in to take a look." Kevin replied casually. "Next time, just call the nurse, they know what they're doing." "I was about to. Why are you here anyway?" "I'm taking Nick Carter. The session will begin this afternoon." Nick looked up for the first time. The man was dressed as a doctor with his white long jacket and stethoscope hung across his shoulders. The name tag spelt "Dr. Kroeger". "What? He can't have it today Charles, he's sick!" Kevin protested. "They're all sick Kevin, that's why they're here in the first place." Dr. Kroeger replied. "Give the guy a break Charles, he's new and it's only his first day today." "Look, you're just a volunteer here, you know nothing about this okay? The session will only help him to live longer. "Please, I really am not feeling well, can I have it another day?" Nick begged. He was afraid. He had seen Howie and Brian went through the 'session' and he knew that it wouldn't be pleasant. And he knew, that whatever it was they were going to do to him, it will not make him any better. "It's not my shot Nick, come on, we have to go now." Dr. Kroeger approached the bed and Kevin moved away reluctantly. Brian and Howie looked on helplessly knowing there was no way their new roommate could ever escape. Nick got out of the bed and the wave of nausea hit him like a brick. Before he knew what was happening, he felt Kevin's strong arms pulling him up. Everything else went in a blur. The next thing he knew, he was in the examination room and Kevin had left him there to face the nightmare. ~*~*~*~*~*~ A tight slap landed on his face without warning and in his daze, landed on the cold floor with only his boxers on. They had made him stripped off his clothes for a full body examination. "Let that be a reminder that no one here, and I mean NO ONE go against the rules of this Home. When we say you have a session, you damn fucking go for it. You DO NOT give some lame excuses of being sick, understand!" Dr. Kroeger yelled, wagging his finger in his face. Nick nodded in fear. His head throbbing even harder now after the hit. He felt the tears coming but forced them in. God knows what will happen if he started crying. "Get him started." Dr. Kroeger ordered his two assistants. Both men literally picked him up from the ground and lay him on a metal table. Something was stuck to his middle finger and connected to a machine and as soon as it was switched on, it read his heart beat. Different joints of his body was pasted with white circle pads that was linked to what looked like thin wires and they too were connected to a machine. Once everything was done, they left. Dr. Kroeger returned soon after and went over to the machine. "Just breathe as normal and we will get this over and done with in no time." Nick nodded, scared to disagree with the man any more. He saw him turned a button and immediately, he felt small, faint tingling sensation throughout his body. It was almost ticklish and yet it felt static. Nick closed his eyes and tried to breath as calmly as he could. "Good.now we'll get the show on the road." Every few seconds, people passing by the examination room would hear the screaming of a young man getting louder. The screams would turn to desperate pleadings and begging for someone to stop what he was doing. And then, it would turn to soft whimpering and ultimate surrender. If they had heard carefully, the could hear his haggard breathing filling up the entire room, fighting for dear life, wishing not for himself to stop breathing. Unfortunately, no one passing by that room even cared. ~*~*~*~*~ AJ couldn't contain his excitement any longer. Just the sight of the five year old reminded him so much of his purpose being in the Carter's household that Saturday morning. Everyone was hyped, a very contrasting atmosphere than a few days ago. Today they would be reunited, even if it was for a mere hour or so, it would mean everything to see his bestfriend again. After the argument he had with his father, their relationship had turned for the worst. AJ knew that his father was only trying to do what he felt was the best for him but nothing, not even a deadly disease, could separate him from his bestfriend. "What do you have there squirt?" AJ asked as he eyed the young blond from the corner of his eyes while trying his best to braid Angel's hair. Nick had been an expert at doing it and was damn proud of it too. "I got something for Nick." Aaron smiled, hands on his back, hiding something from view. "Oh yeah? Wanna show it to AJ?" He asked, eyes concentrating on the winding braids of hair, careful not to miss a step. "Angel sweetie, could you not move so much? AJ is really bad at this." "Nick do it better!" Angel laughed, shaking her head again, much to AJ's distress. "Nick does it perfect, that's why you can't mess this up for me okay? I don't want to spend my time listening to him bugging me off about it." AJ sighed as he secured the braid with a pink fluffy hair band. Aaron shoved the piece of paper just in time after he was done securing both braids. It was a picture of the Carters with a small blond boy hugging the tall blond one. It was simple, nothing artistic about it, but it caught his breath nevertheless. Will Nick be able to hug the twins ever again? They were the most vulnerable to the disease, he doubt they would even be let in to see him. "It's the best drawing you've done so far! I'm sure Nick is gonna love it." "He can paste it up in his new house." Aaron smiled. A simple line that caught his breath yet again. "This will always be his house Aaron, always." He saw the rim of tears glazing over his eyes and yet the young boy smile. "I know." "Aw, AJ, did you do those braids?" Jane exclaimed as she entered the living room with Bob. Somewhere deep within her, a faint voice was saying 'that could have been Nick' but she brushed it aside. "You think it's good enough? I could do it again-" "It's perfect." Jane cut in, eager to release the young man from the tension. A smile played around the corners of her mouth, somehow AJ being nervous was a rare opportunity not to be missed. "Seriously?" AJ asked, still unconvinced. His eyes studied the dark brown braids in suspicion. "If it makes you feel any better, I do worse than yours." Bob assured as he approached Aaron and ruffled his hair. "That's good enough for me." AJ claimed, sighing a sign of relief. "What have you got there AC?" Bob asked as he took the piece of paper for a better look. "I drew all of us, Nick too." Aaron beamed. Jane looked at the picture and couldn't trust her voice to say anything without quivering. What if the twins were barred from seeing their brother? How would they explain it to them? "It's very nice AC, I'm sure Nick will love it." Bob replied, handing the drawing back to his son. Putting on a smile to hide the bitter taste of sadness away, he quickly shifted his attention to Angel. "And you my little princess, looks lovely this morning. We will have a good time today." Bob exclaimed. "Okay then, since we're all ready to go, I would like to suggest that we have breakfast at Mickey D's before we head there; we still have an hour to waste." AJ declared, looking at them with expectant eyes. "That's a good idea, I just have to grab the keys and we're off." Bob disappeared into the kitchen. The telephone rang as Jane was about to walk out of the house, the twins and AJ had already made their way to the old Honda parked outside. After debating with herself if she should answer it, she let out a tired sigh and reached out for the receiver. "Hello?" "Good morning, can I speak to Jane or Bob Carter please?" "I'm Jane." "Mrs. Carter, I'm Doctor Bernette from the Home for Darla." "Oh yes, how are you Doctor? We are on our way there to see our son." Jane smiled, forgetting that the doctor couldn't see her. "I am fine, thank you for asking. I know you're not due here for another hour or so, but something came up and I need you and your family to come down immediately." "Is something wrong Doctor?" Jane asked, her palms felt clammy and she felt sick all of a sudden. What could be so urgent? Was Nick having difficulties adapting to the home? "Unfortunately, yes. Nick's condition is rapidly getting worse and we're worried for him." Jane's heart almost stop. "What.what could we do to help?" "Just be there for him. That's more than enough." ~*~*~*~*~*~ Well, if you've been paying attention, you know that I didn't die on that examination table. If I had, this video wouldn't be made, you wouldn't have heard my voice and our story might never have been told. If fear is what you're feeling right now, then half of my mission is achieved. Perhaps, you might want to take a quick breather. For I'm afraid, you might be unable to take in what I have in store for you next.