I woke up to complete silence in the apartment, which instantly made me uneasy. My mother's usually up and ready at six in the morning, and it was about nine now. She doesn't bother that much to be quiet. "M-mom?" I asked. No answer. I silently got out of bed, and went over to her room. I slightly knocked on the door. "Mom?" I repeated. Again, there wasn't an answer. A surge of panic rushed through me as I instantly opened the door. I was relieved to see that she was there, asleep. "Mom, wake up!" She didn't react. I saw a bottle of something on her dresser, and I checked it. "Hollywell's sleeping pills" was on the label. I went back to my mom, shaking her. "Wake up! Mom!"

She suddenly woke up, a bit dazed. "W-what? Did something happen?"

"Mom, did you take sleeping pills?"

She looked at the bottle in my hand, thinking. "I-I....might have." She admitted.

"Why?"

"Isn't it obvious? I couldn't sleep. I was too worried about you, Alice."

I sighed. "I'm alright, mom. Should we go have breakfast?"

"Yes, I'll make us something." I would've said that I'd do it, but she interrupted me. "No, Alice, I'll cook. How about pancakes?" She didn't wait for an answer, since she knew I love pancakes more than anything. She was finished with them in about an hour. It takes a bit, but she makes them really carefully. My mom took her seat, while I took mine opposite hers. I looked at the window behind her absentmindedly when I saw something move. Something, or someone, was moving there.

"Please let it be a bird, please let it be a harmless little bird. Just a little bird." I thought to myself. Then, suddenly, his face was in the window.

I screamed, and my mom immediately looked up, worried. "What is it, Alice?" she asked quickly. I pointed at the window, but when she turned around, he wasn't there. Sneaky son of a bitch. She looked back at me, and put her hand on my forehead. She gasped. "Alice, you're boiling! No wonder you screamed, you were probably hallucinating! Go to bed, now!" I did. Hurray, sickness, congrats for coming at the worst moment possible. Now my mom thinks everything I'll say in the next few days is all hallucination. She'd have an explanation for anything I might see. I fell asleep while my mom was out getting medicine.

"Alice...." I heard a voice, and it woke me up. It wasn't my mom's.....but it wasn't David's, either. My eyes snapped open, to see a little person sitting on my bed. I squinted, since my eyes were still getting used to the light. It.........it was...Sophie!

"S-Sophie? W-what are you doing here?"

She smiled. "My big brother brought me here!"

Big brother......"Is your brother...David?"

She smiled widely and nodded. "He took care of me when the bad people left!"

"What bad people?"

She looked sad. "The bad people who worked at the dark house!" So the workers at the asylum....

"Why were you at the a--the dark house?"

She frowned. "They took me away from mommy and daddy......."

"Did you love your mommy and daddy?"

"No. Daddy was always drinking, and he screamed at me and mommy. He hit us, too. Mommy tried to protect me once, but daddy took a knife. He put mommy to sleep...." she looked sadder, then continued. "Daddy said it was my fault that mommy was sleeping. He didn't put me to sleep, but he was still screaming, and hitting me. I took the knife one day, and I used it. I wanted to put daddy to sleep, and he was screaming. He fell asleep, and I knew that we could be a happy family. I put daddy in the armchair, and I mommy on the sofa. I made them food so they could eat when they woke up. Then the bad people came. They took me away, and put me in the dark house........" A six-year-old killed her own father. A few weeks ago, I wouldn't have believed it. Now.......it's different. It's sad to think that not all people have loving families, but I guess that's how fucked up the world is these days. I heard my own mother come in, and Sophie jumped out of the window. I didn't know if I actually was hallucinating or not, but I ignored it. My mother gave me some medicine, and I went back to sleep.