Alexander:

I woke up to the sound of my aggravating alarm going off, the early morning sun shining through my half curtained off window, the sun rays hitting off of my face.  I was tempted to stay in bed, but the events of yesterday and my alarm told me otherwise.

As I jumped out of bed, my feet hit the chilled oakwood floor with a loud thump causing me to cringe with the sudden shot of pain that shot through my leg.

As I walked out of my room, I looked over to Brooklyn's room to see that the door was closed and that there was no sign of movement.  Being the 'lovely' brother I am, I decided to let her have a lie-in.

I made my way to the landing and opened the bathroom door and grab the brush.  Once I gave my hair a quick brush, I walked over to my sister's room and knocked on the door.

There was no answer.  "She must be asleep", I thought as I grabbed the door handle.  As I opened the door, I could see Brooklyn lying in bed.  She was wide awake and she was smiling at me!

"Hello, brother!"

"Let's go down for breakfast, OK?"

"OK, brother"

Brook stood up and limped to the bathroom, her limp reminding me of Molly.

"Did you hurt you leg?"

"Yes, I fell out of the bed last night, that's all"

"Oh, OK"

As we made our way downstairs, I noticed that Brook was acting strangely, smiling at the wall and mumbling to herself.

As we got to the the kitchen cabinets, I opened one on the right-hand side, where all the cereals were stored.  I ended up selecting 'Fruit Loops'.  I opened the fridge and pulled out a carton of milk, yesterday's events playing through my mind, as I tried to put the pieces together like a jigsaw.  I turned around and could see Brooklyn starring at me with that same deranged and outlandish smile on her face.

"Something's wrong"

As I sat down and began to eat, I kept glancing at Brooklyn.

"Something is seriously wrong"

It didn't feel natural, or right, the way she looked at me or the way she spoke to me.

When I finished, I got dressed into simple and casual wear and headed out with Brooklyn to walk to our new school.

"Bye, Mom!", I shouted as I waved and turned around to walk down the path that lead out of the estate, to school.

As we walked to school, the silence accumulated in the air, leaving a heavy and unsettling feeling lingering in the air until Brooklyn broke it with a peculiar question, worrying me even more.

"Don't you ever wonder what it's like in father's eyes?"

"What do you mean?"

"I wonder why...", was the only reply I got as she took longer strides in-front of me, passing me out.

As we got to our new school, it was like any other boring school.

White, plain, simple-minded cream walls.  There were dark brown Quoins at each corner of the building, and the roof was crow-stepped gables.  In the centre, there was a round glass pane window.

Although the school was boring, the garden was quite alluring; there was freshly cut grass, and wooden benches were evenly distributed throughout the garden.

People filled into the school, trying to get to their lockers.

I looked over at Brooklyn to see that her face was pale, her breathing becoming heavy as she began to slowly shake her head.

"Are you OK?", I asked, beginning to worry once more.

"Ahh...yes, all's good"

I nodded my head, sceptical at the way her weak, sick-looking form turned to a look of pure hatred and resentment.

As we walked into the school, we met the principal.  She really was a gracious woman, her hair tied into a tight bun.  She was dressed in a royal blue suit.
We also met the deputy principal.  Now, he was a lot different; he always wore a scowl, his black hair was slicked back, and he always had his arms crossed.  Both of them, however, were OK in general.

The day rolled on and we met with Violet and met some new people.  As the day progressed, Brook began to change, her once usual happy-go- lucky self turned into a miserable and quiet person who usually zoned out.

By the end of the day, Brooklyn looked completely drained of all life, dragging her feet as we walked down the hallway, looking up at the ceiling mumbling under her breath.  Her eyes had a dead and dull look to them.

"Hey, Brook, are you OK?", Violet asked, concern in her voice.

Before Brooklyn could reply, a medium sized girl walked over to us, flicking her blond hair, puckering her lips as she stuck out one hip giving her that basic girl persona.

"The name is Bella", the girl said, sticking her hand out for me to shake, her long nails scraping me as we shook hands.

"Alexander"

As I looked over my shoulder, I could see Violet looking downcast as she started to shift her feet awkwardly.

"Oh, look, it's the one and only Violet Vanderbell, and her friend PENELOPE and her disappearing acting".  Bella was now laughing so hard that she leaned on one of the lockers for support as her other hand was rapped around her stomach.

"Please stop", Violet said, in a barely audible voice

"Sorry, I can't hear you".  As Bella spoke, she put her hand to her ear as she walked over to Violet, raising her other hand.  Before Bella could do any damage, Brook ran right into the back of her, causing Bella to lose her footing and trip.  But that wasn't all! 

Brook grabbed a fist full of Bella's long her and pulled with all her force, earning a small whimper and cry.

"People like you make me sick!", Brook said, as her eyes filled with hatred and displeasure as she smiled down at the now whimpering Bella.

"Woah, Brook!"

Violet and I cried as we lifted Brooklyn off of the traumatised Bella, who was now holding her hand to her now throbbing head.

"We're sorry, but we need to go",  I attempted to say, as I grabbed Brook by the hand and ran, Violet running beside us.

"Brook, what the hell!", I screamed as the realisation that my own sister just attacked someone sank in.  As I turned around, I could see that the colour had returned to Brook's face, her cheeks now displaying a light shade of rose pink.

Her eyes were regaining a bit of life, but soon glossed over.  Tears began to fall, as she began to breath heavily.

"Look, Brook, I'm sorry, I didn't mean to shout"

Brook shook her head as Violet caught up with us.

"I couldn't control my actions.  It was like someone or something was clawing its way into my thoughts".

"Oh, Brooklyn!"

As Violet spoke, she wrapped her arms around Brook, embracing her.

"We'll figure this out, together..."

End of Chapter 19