My eyes flutter open while memories flicker inside my head, like the light do, when there's a hurricane. I'm lying in a bed.... Wait a minute.... That's not my bed.... I'm wearing these green nurse clothes. I take a step out of bed. Something stops me. What is that? It feels like Father's arms, pulling me back.

"Take off my shirt." I say.

I hear no response.

"Beat me, make me die, for all I care." I mumble.

I still hear the rumbling noise that the air conditioner makes.

"Go!" I yell, "Listen to me!"

I still hear no answer. I hope it's not Father.... I know it's not Father... I look back, wondering what it was. I see all these tubes hooked onto my arm.

"Shoot! I'm in a hospital! What the heck?" I yell, infuriated by the situation.

"Alli!" Kennedy yells.

"What the heck? Why am I here?!" I ask/yell.

I hear sobbing.

"Get back in bed, Alli." Kennedy mumbles.

I do as told. I see all these tears, streaming down Kennedy's face.

"Did Thomas break up with you?" I ask sympathetically.

"Allison Mitchell. Are you stupid? Probably not? Are you serious?" Kennedy asks, a little angry with me.

I nod, raising my left eyebrow.

"It's you, Alli. You're.... You..... You never told me how your Dad beat you." Kennedy mumbles quietly.

"HOW DID YOU KNOW?!" I ask.

"I kind of spied on you." Kennedy replies.

"Who was with you?" I ask.

"Ellie, Susan, and Joe." Kennedy mumbles, "All of them are still here. Joe's in the bathroom, Ellie's grabbing you Chick-Fil-A and Susan's calling someone."

"Who?" I ask.

"I don't know." Kennedy replies.

"Father will KILL me now." I mumble, gulping some air.

"He got arrested." Kennedy mumbles.

"Good. He needs to die." I mumble.

"Allison!" I hear a deep voice yell.

I turn my head instantly. Joe walks into the room. He gasps at the sight of all my numerous facial bruises. He runs towards me. He puts his hand on my forehead.

"Are you okay?" Joe asks.

"Why wouldn't I be?" I ask in reply.

"You just got beaten into pieces, Alli." Joe replies, sweat dripping down his face, looking practically flawless.

"I'm okay." I mumble to Joe.

Joe glares at me, examining my body while trying to look mad.

"Why didn't you tell me!" He asks.

"You didn't need to know. You have too much on your plate, Joe." I reply quietly.

"And?" He asks.

"And I thought it was normal." I reply.

"Just tell me everything, Alli. No more secrets. Please?" Joe asks pleadingly, taking on the role of an overprotective boyfriend.

I look into his eyes with fear.

"Please don't tell me that you called the police." I mumble.

"Kennedy did. I called the ambulance." Joe replies.

"But..." I start.

"I don't care if my parents find me. Wait... I do care, but if there's a choice between saving you and having my parents find me I would choose to save you. And I did." Joe replies.

"Say what now?" Kennedy asks.

"What?" Joe replies like an instinct.

"You just confessed a problem with your parents. First was Alli, then you?" Kennedy asks.

I glare at Joe; worry and concern fills my emotions in the most uncertain way ever. It just makes me want to vomit, right in Kennedy's face. I try to talk, but nothing comes out of my mouth. It's infuriates me, more than ever; vomiting on Kennedy is what I want to do right now.

"Don't." I mouth to Joe.

"It's a long story." Joe replies.

"Just tell?" Kennedy asks.

Joe shakes his head; glaring at Kennedy and I at the same time with his lizard-like eyes-terrifying both of us as Kennedy and I glare at Joe.

"Oh great." Kennedy says, sighing while shaking her head exactly like Susan and I used to do when we watched Kennedy and Thomas kiss.

Ellie suddenly runs into the room with six bags of Chick-Fil-A and seven drink containers in her hands, creating huge, red blisters in between each of her fingers. She takes a glance at me, studies me, then brings me my Chick-Fil-A.

"Oh my God. Alli, are you okay?" Ellie asks with concern, glaring at me while slowly studying me from head to toe.

"Seriously?" Kennedy asks, "Everyone does the exact same thing and the exact same time; monotonous people are not popular for a reason! Hashtag get your facts straight because there is a difference (#GetYourFactsStraightBecauseThereIsADifference)!"

Kennedy's anger over the stupidest thing really bothers me. I mean, I don't understand why everyone seems to care about me when they really don't; just pretending to care just to be incredibly polite, which every single parent, abusive or non-abusive, has taught their kids when they were very little. I stare at Kennedy.

"How long was I out?" I ask.

"Just overnight." Joe replies, "You were lucky."

I just glare at him.

"Why does he care so much?" I ask myself in a soft voice-so that I can never be heard.

"Alli!" Susan yells, "Why is your dad so mean?"

"Finally. Someone who says something different." I mumble in relief.

"What do you mean?" Susan asks with ignorance, shaking her head and shrugging at the same time.

"Oh my God! Susan! It's obvious! My goodness gracious! Kennedy, Joe and Ellie asked, 'Alli! Are you okay?' Goodness gracious, thank God you didn't do it!" Kennedy yells, running around in incredibly small circles; making sure that everyone sees her craziness.

I glare at Susan, who glares at Kennedy, who glares at Joe, who glares at me. There is this sudden moment of awkward silence that surrounds us; preventing us to talk and paralyzing our mouths in the process.

"What now?" I ask, looking at the sky with a feeling of uncertainty; not paying attention to anything else: the tubes, the monitors, the hospital bed, and the other people: Kennedy, Joe, Ellie, Susan, and myself; being unaware of everything else around me, not even my own body.

"I will survive." I mumble, "Until Mom, up in heaven, punishes Father; maybe killing him, or banning him from Earth, or making him fly in a plane (he's afraid of heights)."