Nights with Alex

I pulled my knees up to my chest, hiding my head underneath the bed's rough linen sheets. It was almost completely dark except for the small light glowing from the south end of the room. A strange smell permeated through the house, leaving a musky scent. My bed creaked under me, its weak baseboards begging to support my body weight. The room was empty, except for the bed and I. A few voices could be heard though the walls, and some downstairs in the apartment below. From the room outside, I heard the occasional sound of a bottle opening, and sometimes even the sound of glass breaking. I assumed it was my dad, Bill. I only saw him when he would come in the middle of the day and give me a food bar and some water, and almost always say the same thing: 'Your lucky you gettin' this, girl. Now keep quiet, I’m busy tonight.'1

One night when I was trying to sleep, I heard my door creak open. It scared me, because I knew Bill was busy most every night. 'Bill?' I whispered into the air. The door let some light shine through, and a boy much older than me walked in. He shut the door quickly. 'Hi. I'm Alex. You probably haven't met me, but I live here too.' I said hi back, still nervous. He came and sat near me, and I kept my guard. After he talked to me for a while I became less scared. He told me he was my brother, and that Bill didn't want me to have a brother. I asked him why not. He said he didn't want us to meet because he knew we would be friends. I also asked him where he stayed in the house. He wouldn't tell me. I wanted to find it. I had never really left my own room much, so I had no idea where it could be. I tried to find it once, but Bill caught me. He had grabbed my elbow with one hand and yanked it in the air, lifting me off the ground. In the other, he had this strange bottle, one that I had never seen before. I couldn't get a good look at it. 'Bill, my elbow hurts,' I kept saying to him, but he just looked dazed off. Eventually he looked at me, mumbled, threw me back into my room, and shut the door.2

On special nights, my brother could come and sneak through my door unseen. I never knew how. Those nights were the best. On those nights, I didn't feel so alone. We could sit and ponder together. And that made such a difference.3

One time he actually brought the same bottle that Bill had been carrying the night he caught me sneaking out of my room. It was oblong shaped, full of a dark liquid. It took him a while to open it. It looked as if someone had jammed a giant earplug down the front hole. He said this was normal, that most of the bottles in the room looked like that. I always suspected that's why Bill broke them- I would be very frustrated if everything I drank had a giant earplug plugging it up. I would break it too. I told my brother this, and he just laughed and told me that it was a possibility. After a long wait, he finally had the plug out of the hole. 'This will make you feel better,' he told me. I ended up taking a sip. It tasted really bad. But after a while I got used to the taste, and it even started to taste good. 'See?' He repeated every few minutes, as I had started to get dizzy. I don't know how he knew I was going to feel better. But no doubt, I did. It made me forget all about this place. I really liked it. The next time my brother came to my room, I told him that I knew why Bill liked it so much. Maybe keeping us in these rooms made him mad and he wanted to forget all the mad feelings. My brother told me I wouldn't understand. I asked him if he could get more of the drink. He said he would try.4

I was surprised how sly my brother turned out to be. Bill had caught me right when I walked out of my room. How could he not only sneak out of his room but also grab some of the drink? 'I know how to avoid Bill. Never try. You don't know.' He had told me during one of our conversations. 'Please.'5

I agreed I wouldn't.6

This had all been quite long ago. I hadn't seen Alex in a while, and it worried me. I wanted to go find him, but I had already told him I would not attempt to leave the room. Not only did I want to talk to him, but I also wanted some of the drink he always brought. Lately Bill had been forgetting to bring me my food bar and water, and the drink would help ease the pain in my stomach.7

The night grew longer and my stomach cramps worsened. I shifted in my bed and pressed against my stomach with my arms. 'Please, Alex.' I whispered to myself, as if I could talk to him through the walls of the room.8

Suddenly, a loud noise came from the room outside. It wasn't like one I had heard before. A loud, blaring noise came from the side nearest to the door, and then many footsteps. 'Don't move!' a deep voice called. 'Wha.. the fuckin...' I heard Bill's voice, soft and unwary. More footsteps came. 'Sir, come with me.' a different mans voice repeated a few times, stern and powerful. 'Wh.. fuckin..' Bill said quite soon after, a bit louder and much angrier. The footsteps stopped. 'Sir, don't move.' Now, there was more clicking. 'SIR! Put the gun down, now!' the stern voice yelled. Much of the noises from the apartment below had quieted, emphasizing the action from the room Bill was in. Finally, a loud pop sounded. Many of the men yelled, and very much soon after there was another loud pop. I heard Bill moan, and that was the end of it. More footsteps shuffled, and a few men began to talk. 'Search the house. Report on anything you may find.. We're lucky he was as drunk as he was, he couldn't aim worth anything..Good job Sergeant...' It came and went, varying in tones.9

Finally, the noise grew closer, as it reached the entrance to her room. The doorknob rotated, as if they were struggling to get in. What did they want from Bill? Hopefully, they had found Alex. Maybe they told Bill we could leave, and then Bill could finally not need the drink? A mixture of happiness and nervousness filled my stomach. They also could be friends of Bills. Maybe they came to break bottles with him, or help him break the bottles. After a minute or so, they finally slammed open the door.10

Two or three men in blue uniforms now stared at me. One of them mumbled. I shifted in my covers, now in a cradle position. They looked at each other, and then proceeded to come toward me. They stopped and looked at me again. 'Oh wow....’ One of the men said under his breath. Another pulled a black box to his face, stepped away, and pressed a button into it. 'We found a child, around nine, in one of the rooms. How should we proceed?'11

While he talked to the black box, the man closest to me shifted toward me. 'It's alright, you know. The mean man isn't going to keep you in here anymore. Are you hurt?'12

'No.' I said in a quiet voice.13

'Is there anyone in the house with you?'14

'Yes. My brother. Alex.'15

The man speaking to me motioned to the man with the black box, and then turned toward me again.16

'Alright. Let’s get you out of here.' He reached out his hand. I took it, and then slowly dragged myself out of the bed. We walked to the room outside. It was more than I had imagined- Big drawers lined against the side of the wall. A fluffy chair sat in the middle, next to a rug. On top of the rug was a large mass, covered by a blanket. I couldn't wait to talk to Alex. He would probably be mad I left, but I could finally talk to him about where to find the drink, and ask him where his room was.17

I turned to study the room more. I gasped. In one of the doorways, Alex stood, smiling. I unclasped the mans hand. 'ALEX!' i screamed, running toward him. I threw my arms around him. 'Alex, can you believe it?! I saw the outside room! And look, all the drink, I see how you could take it all. It must have been easy.' I pointed toward the many bottles on the counter. 'I'm so glad you're here, Alex. Did the men find you? Where is your room?' He had a blank expression on his face. 'Alex?'18

The men in the room looked at us, confused. 'Alex. What's wrong?'19

Alex turned toward me. 'Listen, now, you trust me, right?'20

I nodded. 'Of course.'21

'These men don't want us to be friends either, just like Bill didn't. They're bad. Very bad. They are going to lock you in a room, just like Bill did to us. I will just be in a different room than you. Do you understand?'22

I stood, with a shocked expression. 'Y..Yes.'23

The men still looked at us, confused. I looked back at Alex. He just nodded, and looked toward the men again. One began to come toward us.24

'Who are you talking to?' he asked.25

'Alex..'26

He looked back at the other men. 'You're going to have to come with me.. Don't worry, we will get you out of this bad place.'27

'What? You can't.. You can't take me away from Alex!' I hugged Alex tighter. 'That's not fair!'28

The man peered at me, then whispered something to the man behind him. Immediately, they both came toward me. One restrained my legs. The other grabbed my elbows, like Bill had done.29

'What? Let go of me!' I kicked as hard as i could, but the man was much stronger than I was. 'Please! Alex! Help me!' I called out, turning to him for reassurance.30

But he was no longer there. He had gone.31

'Alex?' I said in almost a whisper. 32

'Get her out of here.. Uh,' One of the men stated softly, his voice breaking at the end. 'Send her to a psychiatrist.' He had an emotionless yet confused expression on his face. 'What did this man do...'33

They carried me outside, and into one of the police cars. 'What are you doing?! Where is Alex?' I screamed at them. They had taken Alex, just like he told me. Alex was right. They were taking us to rooms, where we would be locked up. 'Alex!' I screamed out. I kicked and pushed, but they still held me too tightly.34

'Please, Alex, find me!' I screamed out as they restrained me in the vehicle. As soon as they let go of their grip I attempted to jump out, but the belt they had around me was too tight. 'ALEX!' I screamed louder. I felt tears forming in my eyes. I wanted some of the drink. I just wanted to feel better, I wanted Alex to be here with me again. 35

'Please Alex.' I whispered again as they shut the door of the car. 'Please.'36