Aubree was gone.

Not gone.

It was a Sunday morning and Aubree had asked if I wanted to join her because Marco and her were going out with the rest of the boys. I had said no because I promised the twins that I would catch up with them so last night before I slept, I made sure that I had texted the twins telling them that I was going to have a skype call with them the next day. Also, just as I walked into my room when I came back from the mall, I had received a text from Derek asking if I got home safely which I had replied that I was home, safe and sound.

"Thea, are you up?" I heard my dad on the other side of the door ask with a light knock.

"Yeah!" I answered. "I need to get up and brush my teeth, though."

"What are your plans for today?"

"I'm going to skype my step brothers for a while," I answered back whilst getting off the bed and headed towards the bathroom.

I waited for an answer from my dad but then I heard heavy footsteps descending the stairs as I headed inside the bathroom and quickly did my morning routine. I tied my hair up in a messy bun whilst heading towards my bed, taking my laptop off the nightstand and placed it on the bed gently. I turned on my laptop, started the Skype app and waited for it to load before going on one of the twin's contact and clicked on call. I waited for it to ring whilst I laid down on my stomach, sighing.

"Thea!" the twins exclaimed, shirtless as soon as they accepted the call.

"My eyes," I groaned, covering my eyes as I heard them mumble something before getting something.

"Okay," the twins chirped simultaneously as I opened my eyes as they both wore black t-shirts.

"How's mom?" I asked, grabbing a pillow from behind and hugged it comfortably.

"She's fine," Kody answered.

Before Keith could say something, I heard their door open and a man I could recognise from a mile away in a white t-shirt appeared, his blonde hair tousled unattractively with a cigarette dangling from his lips. He walked inside the room as his eyes landed on their computer screen.

"Thea Pearson," my step-dad said with a sly smirk.

"Remove yourself from the twin's premises," I snarled with hatred.

My step-dad glared at me, wanting to say something but then Keith stood up, covering the screen as Kody muted themselves. I frowned, bemused until I saw everything, my stomach dropping. Once Keith moved out of the way, I saw Kody's lips moving with a lot of hand gestures and by the heavy breathing, I could tell Kody was shouting at him whereas Keith was holding Kody back from doing anything stupid to their dad.

My heart was beating against its cage as I watched Kody released himself from Keith's grip and landed a punch on his dad's jaw. My jaw dropped, almost hitting the bed sheets as I watched their step-dad clench his fists. With my own eyes, I saw their dad land a punch on Kody's stomach hard as I watched Kody double over, holding his stomach.

In one swift move, Keith stood in between them, telling their step dad to leave as I watched his finger point towards the door. My heart ached for Kody since their dad had never landed a finger on them. I bit my trembling lips as I watched their step-dad leave, putting a middle finger up at me before disappearing.

Keith helped Kody towards the bed as I watched him comfort Kody. Kody nodded, his eyes landed on me as he mouthed something that I couldn't make out. I watched Keith nod as he unmuted themselves.

"Kody, are you okay?" I asked worriedly, tears threatening to escape.

"I'm fine, T," Kody answered with a weak smile. "I think we have to go but thank you for checking up on us. We miss and love you."

"I promise to call back soon," I promised with all my heart.

Keith gave me a little wave before they both blew kisses towards me. I gave them a small smile and kissed the camera before they hung up. I immediately closed the laptop as I let small tears slide down my cheek, one by one. I laid on my bed for at least half an hour, thinking whether to tell my dad or not but it was a personal thing.

If only my mom knew what kind of person my step-dad was.

I quickly got off the bed and made my way downstairs to see my dad sitting on the sofa with Anastasia peacefully. I bit my lip and made my way over to the sofa and joined them, wanting to feel comfort from my family after witnessing what had happened to the twins. My heart still ached for them, wanting to run out of the front door and head towards the twins and hug the shit out of them but I knew that they wouldn't want me to do that, not at this moment.

"Something wrong?" my dad asked worriedly as he looked down at me. I realised that tears were sliding down my cheeks again as I snuggled into his side even more for warmth.

"No," I answered quietly, letting my eyes train on the plasma screen.

"Thea, if something's happening then I think you should tell us," Anastasia whispered with sympathy.

"Everything's fine," I lied.

They both looked at each other, not believing me but all they did was nod then continued watching. I didn't need someone to pry into my business, not yet at least. I needed to make sure the twins were okay, especially my mom. I bit my lip and sighed heavily, earning a few worried looks from my dad and Anastasia.

After the movie they were watching was finished, I headed towards the kitchen and poured myself a cup of water as I saw Anastasia whispering something to my dad. My dad mumbled something back then nodded as he kissed Anastasia before she disappeared to the back. I watched my dad walk towards me as I let my index finger circle around the edge of the cup in front of me.

"Thea, I know something's wrong," my dad whispered as he sat on one of the stools in front of me. "What is it?"

I frowned, not wanting to tell him anything.

"Nothing."

"Thea-"

"Stop asking, I don't want to tell you!"

I exploded.

I could feel tears, again, brimming my eyes as I clenched the glass cup of water tightly, not daring to look into my dad's eyes. My heart thundered against its cage as a lump was climbing my throat. The way that my step dad had laid a finger on one of the twins made my heart throb and my anger boil.

I clenched my jaw and without looking back, I ran.

I ran towards the front door, ripped it open before escaping. Escaping the suffocating atmosphere as I headed down the street, unaware of my pyjamas. I ran as fast as I could, my surroundings becoming a blur, adrenaline pumping through my body, hoping that the twins would just appear out of nowhere and hug me, telling me everything was okay. I could hear distant calls, calls for me but I ignored them like they didn't matter to me. I never once looked back.

After a few minutes of running, my adrenaline was beginning to fade as I stopped, huffing and puffing. I took in deep breaths, my eyes darting around my surroundings but nothing was familiar. Right there and then, I knew nothing of my surroundings. I looked down at what I was wearing which consisted of a unicorn onesie, barefoot as my face flushed with embarrassment but relieved that no one was there to witness anything.

I bit my lip, fearful of what might come after me. I had no idea where to go and my heart was beginning to increase its beat again, my breathing becoming heavy as my eyes darted around again. I tried to search for anything familiar but nothing was ringing a bell. My legs started to move on their own, forwards to somewhere I did not know. I made sure to walk nearby trees, covering my figure from any strangers so I didn't get kidnapped or anything bad like that. I secretly hoped someone, anyone I knew, to find me before the sun were to set.

I stood behind a tree, contemplating on whether to go inside a house and ask to borrow their phone or not, in case it was a bad idea to intrude. I sighed, letting myself breathe and let my heart settle down before doing anything that was going to put me at risk.