-Alex's Point of View-

Have you ever heard the saying, "Everything is different behind closed doors?" Until today, I didn't understand the meaning of that statement clearly. Before, I just blew it off thinking, "Oh, well my family is almost the same as we are out in public. There's no way that anybody could be any different than the way that they act at home." Oh, how close minded I was then. Oh, how I didn't let anything break the path referring to that statement.

"Why didn't you tell me before?" I asked, staring at May as she sat in the corner of what used to be the living room, a cup of coffee in his hands as she had her knees pulled up to her chest.

"Tell you what?" She asked, her eyes slightly confused as she sat her drink down on the dark wood floor.

"You didn't tell me what went on at your house. You just made it all seem like that it was small daily things. Nothing ever happened. Jack told me what happened when you two were younger. Why didn't you tell me what they were doing to you? Why didn't you tell me so that I could help you?" I begged, staring down at her with eyes filled with sympathy and regret for never asking what went on.

"Alex, after you live through it so long, you just get used to it. It's your family. You don't feel like dealing with it every day. You just want to shut it out. Besides, my family is in the news so much that if something like that had ever gotten out then half of the city would be devastated. How do you think it'd look if the front headline read, 'Richest family in Maryland is not what we thought them to be'? What if it was your family that had to deal with that?" She asked, sitting up and pulling her hoodie sleeves over her hands.

I felt a hand being placed on my shoulder and turned around and looked to see Jack standing there. He nodded in agreement with what his sister had said. I could see their point vaguely, but it didn't make sense. Why would you hide something like that when it was endangering the lives of the children, the mother, and the father himself?

"I guess I see your point. I just don't understand though..." I said shaking my head and taking a seat. Jack slid down the wall beside me and wrapped an arm around me.

"Outside, everyone is different. We see different things, we think different thoughts, we all come from different backgrounds. Shut the door to where you came from and you see a new different perspective of the people that you came from. Everyone has a different life. Some come from broken homes, others suffer depression or maybe some other uncontrollable disorder, others live semi normal lives. You just never know until you experience it yourself," Jack said and I looked at him for a moment before nodding.

I just never thought the most perfect guy would have to live a life such as the one I found.

~~~

"Tom? Tom, where are you?" I called out, walking through the wooded forest, looking, searching for my older brother. He hadn't heard my calls for some time now and I was beginning to wonder where exactly he had ran off to.

"Tom?!" I yelled, as loud as my eleven year old voice would call. There was still no repsonse from the elder man that I looked up to. I wandered around through the woods and stumbled on every branch and twig in sight. When I had finally fallen is when I found him.

"L-Lex, what're you doing?" Tom slurred, clutching a dark brown bottle in his hand. He always had a bottle similar to that in his hand. He had ever since he was older enough to do things that only "grown ups" were allowed to do. He walked towards me, stumbling on his own feet and almost barely catching himself before he fell.

"I-I was looking for you. Where did you go?" I asked, looking up at him.

"I went to get some more drink. I didn't think you'd wander off this far, Lex," he said.

"I'm sorry, Tom..." I said looking down and he grabbed my chin and held it up to where I was looking him in the eyes.

"Don't be sorry, Alex. It's not your fault. I should have told you where I was going. Now how about we go back to Dad and see what he's up to?" He asked and I nodded my head before wandering with him back towards the house.

~~~

"Alex. Alex wake up," I heard Jack's half asleep voice call as he shook my shoulder gently and then getting more rough.

I opened my eyes only to have them open up to the darkness of the night. I could see Jack's brown eyes watching me carefully, a worried expression on his lips as he stared at me. I stared at him for a moment before saying, "What happened?"

"You were having a nightmare. You kept saying Tom and rolling around in your sleep. What were you dreaming about?" He asked, his look of worry still not leaving his doe brown eyes.

"It was from when I was little. My brother, Tom, and I were walking in the woods and he disappeared. He ended up coming back later with a beer in his hand, but it had still scared me that he had disappeared..." I trailed off.

"I know you've told me bits and pieces of your brother, but I never asked... How did Tom pass away?" Jack asked and I just took a deep breath.

"Remember what you said earlier about everyone's life is different?" I asked him and he nodded his head before I continued, "Well we're not too much different, in a specific sense."

Confusion swept his eyes as he looked at me and said, "What do you mean?"

"Tom passed away when I was twelve from alcohol poisoning. He drank himself to death. He was drunk every single day and he didn't dare to shy away from alcohol one bit. I've always had the fear that I would end up doing that myself, but yet, I continue to drink without a single care. I guess hearing about your father earlier brought back the memories..." I said, feeling tears prick my eyes every so slightly, but I wiped them away quickly.

"I'm sorry to hear that, Alex," he said softly, wrapping his arm around my waist and pulling me close to him.

"It's fine, Jack. It's perfectly fine..."

Notes

Title Credit: Hospital For Souls by Bring Me the Horizon
EmptySighsAndWine