"Alexandra, can you bring your sister over here please." my dad asked. I looked up from my doll and looked at the kitchen where he was putting plates on the table. I groaned and stood up, not happy with having to stop my play time. I put my doll down and walked over to the crib in the corner of the room.

I looked in the crib and saw it. It stared back at me with wonder in its eyes. I just frowned at it. I didn't like it. It was so loud all the time and it was too much work for me and daddy. It took mom away from us. It reached its little arms out to me and cooed. I rolled my eyes and reached down to grab it. I was surprised to feel how heavy it was. It wasn't this heavy the other day. It must have gotten fatter over night.

I carried it in my arms over to the kitchen. I saw my dad look at us and smile. He walked to me and pick up Alicia. It smiled as dad picked her up and put her in a seat. I ignored them both and walked to my seat where a plate with food was sitting in front it. I sat down and picked up my fork.

My heart sunk when I saw what he made. It was just some potatoes and Brussels sprouts. I saw dad sit down and pick up Alicia's spoon as he fed her. He made weird faces as he tried to get her to eat. He even made train sounds. It looked dumb. It was dumb to enjoy stuff like that.

I stabbed a brussels sprout and put in my mouth. I stared at dad and Alicia as I chewed the green vegetable. I saw something missing out of the corner of my eye. I looked down and saw Dad didn't have a plate in front of him. This made me begin to worry.

"Hey, Dad, why don't you have a plate?" I asked. When he heard this he stopped. His eyes just became tired and sad. He then shook his head and smiled down at me.

"Well the rations delivery is a bit late so they only gave us so much. I don't want to waste any since I ate today." he said simply. I just stared at his blue eyes. I knew he was lying, but I didn't want to hurt him. He thinks I don't know what is happening, but I know. The fighting has made things harder for us. When Mom left, we had to rely on the soldiers to give us food. Mommy was a nurse and helped people. She always told us to be happy, but its hard nowadays.

I looked away and kept eating my food.

5 Years Later

I stared at the board game in front of me. So far I was winning. Alicia only had a few pawns and a rook. I, on the other hand, had my queen, pawns, and rooks. I waited for the 7 year old in front of me to make a move. She sat there in one of dad's old shirts. It covered most if not all over her body. Her blue eyes scanned the board, thinking of a way to get out of the check I put her in. Her eyes then lit up in excitement.

She reached over and moved her pawn to take my queen. She laughed in joy knowing she took my queen. I just shook my head in disappointment. I was hoping she would be smarter than that. I grabbed my rook and moved it up a few spaces, putting her in a check mate. Her joy faded quickly when she realized she just lost. I could see tears beginning to form on the edge of her eyes.

"Don't start crying cause you lost. Take this as a lesson on how to become better." I said. She sniffed and rubbed her eyes.

"B-but how did you win? I took your queen. Why would you sacrifice it like that?" she asked, her voice breaking slightly. I just shook my head and stood up, dusting off my shorts.

"Sometimes you have to sacrifice important things in order to move forward and win." I said. I head muffled footsteps come from Dad's room. I looked over and saw him walk out in a Militia uniform. The sight almost made my eyes water.... almost. He wore a green suit with a few patches on it. He went into boot camp a year ago, but I didn't think he would actually go through with it. He didn't want to fight, but it was the only way he could protect us and give us a home. The Militia have a policy to assist families who have a loved one join. We were losing food and time, so he joined them to give us more.

"What's wrong Hun? I thought I looked good in this thing." he joked. I just smiled and went to hug him. I placed my head on his chest as he held me. I hummed as he ran a hand over my back. I felt him kiss my head. That only made me embrace him harder.

"I wish you didn't have to leave today." I said out loud. He chuckled.

"You know Birthday wishes don't work if you say them out loud." he said softly. I just ignored him and kept hugging him. I heard Alice come up from behind me and hug us both. I didn't look down at her. Dad did, however. He let me go and knelt in front of Alicia. He wiped away the tears that were running down her face with his sleeve.

"Hey there lady bug. What you all sad about?" he asked as if he didn't know the answer. She just sniffed and looked down.

"I don't want you to leave us." she cried. He just sighed and pulled her into a hug. I just stood there and stared.

"You don't have to worry about anything. Your sister is sixteen now, so she can totally take care of you. She is a big girl, so she will protect you, okay?" he said. She nodded and let him go. He stood up and looked at me. His face became serious and his eyes transformed into a man of worry and sternness.

"You will protect her, right? Promise me you will protect your sister." he pleaded. I just stood there and nodded. He shook his head and gabbed my shoulders.

"Promise me. Tell me you will do anything you can to keep her safe. Tell me you will both be alright." he said on the verge of tears. I pulled his hands from my shoulders and looked at him straight in the eyes.

"I promise I will protect her and keep us both safe." I said. He sighed and I could see a weight lift off of his shoulders. I then heard a honk come from outside. We both knew what it was. He stood up straight and tried to adjust his tie. I stopped him and moved it for him. He smiled proudly as I put it in place. I smiled back and patted his chest. He turned around and walked to the door, not before giving Alicia one last kiss on the head.

I watched him walk to the truck and hop on. Me and Alicia stared at him ride off in the sunset. Before he disappeared into the view he called out to us.

"I'll be back! Just wait for me!" he yelled. We both waved, knowing he will be alright.

1 year Later

I watched them lower the coffin into the ground. I felt my sister squeeze my hand harder. I sighed when they began to cover it in dirt. It was supposed to be sunny outside, but somehow a rain cloud came in over the town. I don't understand why it always rain at these things. If it was God's tears then I don't want them. I'm already trying to hold back mine.

They managed to finally cover the coffin. No one spoke to us. They probably thought it was best to leave us be. They're smart, cause if they tried I would've punched them. All I wanted was to see his face again, but it was a closed casket. I felt Alice rub her face on my coat. I would have stopped her, but I wasn't in the mood to be mad.

"W-what now A-Alex?" she asked softly. I just sighed and pulled her close. I didn't know what to do now. We lost our father and our means to support ourselves. I had to find a job or something. All I knew was that I made a promise to him, and there is no way in hell I'm breaking it. I heard Alice sniff again. I knelt in front of her.

"Hey, don't worry. We'll be fine. I promised Dad I will protect us, okay. I promise things are going to be okay." I said. She just sniffed and hugged me. I felt stiff as she cried into my shoulder. I just knelt there with her hugging and crying her soul into me. I couldn't help but hug her back. I couldn't help but cry as well.

I woke up with my heart beating a mile a minute. I looked around and saw I was in my room. I looked down and saw Christian half naked in my bead. He snored softly as he lied on my bed, his arm out stretched where he was probably holding me. I smiled and lied back down on his chest. I put an ear over his heart and heard it beat softly. Before I knew it I was mushing my naked body to his while slowly slipping into darkness once more.

Author's Note

This one was kinda interesting to write. During things like this ya need to listen to some sad music to get ya in the mood. Hoped yall enjoyed Alex's background.