Jax's Point of view

"The night is getting deep. I have to go, my parents are waiting for me," I explained to them, as my heart started to palpitate faster. I felt discomfort that night like there's something bad might happen.

"Oh! Come on Jax, it's still 9, let's have fun," Jett insisted and wrapped his arms around my neck.

"I'm serious, I have to go" I looked at them one by one with a serious glare. My skin was getting pale from nervousness.

"Jett, let him go. It must be urgent," Elijah said and pulled Jett's arms around my neck.

"Thanks, guys, I promise next time" I fixed my bag and left them. I immediately took the bus, rocking my feet feeling anxious about it, hoping the bus will drive faster. But It wasn't, because of passengers leaving and getting in.

When the bus stopped at my destination, I run fast as I could while my heart was beating so bad. I tried to think of something good but it won't. My mind is filled with bad thoughts.

When I arrived home, I stopped at the front door. Everything was so quiet that makes me nervous. I slowly turn the doorknob and open the door.

"I-I'm home" I was stuttering from fear.

When I stepped in, no one greeted me, and my sister never welcomed me. Then everything was getting suspicious. The things were intact and nothing was missing.

As I came into the kitchen, my lips fell open as I was stunned into my place. My eyes widened when I saw my parents were surrounded by blood right in front of my eyes.

I run towards them and tried waking them up, but their body was cold as a corpse. I felt mixed emotions as I lift them in my arms; I remembered my siblings and so I run upstairs searching for every room.

When I arrive at my sister's room, she was there. Half of her body was lying on the desk, while her lower body was sitting in the chair.

I came towards her, and all I ever saw was blood coming out of her mouth. Her hand held a crayon with a coloring book in front of her.

As tears filled my eye, I began mumbling curses. I came to search for my brother, and I found him in the tub submerged himself in his blood. I fell to my knees as my world shut down. I never knew what I felt at that time. I was sad and angry at the same time.

"DAMN IT!" I yelled as I punch the floor, letting my anger out. Tears were falling on my cheek as I continued to punch, my knuckles starting to get bleed, but I never felt the pain on it. I was hurt emotionally and mentally.

My tears run out as I leaned on the wall, watching their bodies laying on the floor. 'What am I gonna do now?' I thought to myself.

I called the police and report everything. As the police officer asked me some questions, I wasn't able to answer him properly. I was distracted by my thoughts and emotions. I never thought I was already crying in front of the police officer.

"Sir, I can send you to a psychiatrist to help you cope yourself and you wouldn't be drowned by sadness. And if there's something you need, you can call me anytime." the police place his note in his pocket and tapped on my shoulder before leaving.

After everything happened, I never eat for days, thinking about my family, wishing they were still here beside me, joining me to eat my meal, bond with each other, and march with me on stage after college.

I still have many plans to do with them, but they left me. And I'm blaming myself for everything. If I had just gone home earlier, maybe the tragedy won't happen.

On the day of the murder, I called my relatives, yet they just hang their phones on me. I stayed at my friend's house, but I couldn't sleep properly.

Everything I saw flashed through my mind, or even when I'm asleep, they became nightmares. Every night I cried. I never went home, because I don't wanna remember how they were killed on the floor. It was a nightmare for me.

"Jax, how long do you plan on staying here?"

"What question is that, Jett?" Elijah answered him and rolled his eyes.

He came to sit beside me and look at me. Elijah and Jett are the older ones in our group. They are 25, while the others, Zander and Oliver, are 22, while I'm the youngest, 20.

"Jax, it's been a week since you never go to school, you should go."

"I don't want!" I shouted in anger and bit my lower lip as I force myself not to cry again.

"Don't you shout!—"

Elijah glared at Jett to shut his mouth, so Jett wasn't able to finish what he was about to say. The door opens, and as the others came in, Jett welcomed them and saw me. They all looked worried.

"This isn't gonna work if you'll gonna be like that forever," Oliver said.

"Why don't we just bring him to a psychiatrist to know how to handle Jax with everything that happened to him," Zander added.

They all looked at me, with a look of 'are you ok with that idea?', so I looked at them one by one. I can read from their faces how worried they are, so I agreed with it.

***

"So I did some tests on him and question him about everything."

My friends were there, all of them were listening carefully to the psychiatrists, from their faces, they all look so distressed.

"Jax is suffering PTSD or Post-traumatic Stress Disorder, this is a kind of behavior that may occur in people who have experienced or witnessed a traumatic event, just what Jax told me about his past, he suffered anxiety and depression with this, he said he gets easily irritated, he doesn't wanna see something that reminds him of his past, and he also told me about his nightmares and getting some flashed backs about his family," the psychiatrists continued.

Everyone looks at me pitifully. "Is there anything we could do to help him get better?" Elijah said

"Yes, there is an anti-anxiety medication and therapy. In that way, he would get better, although it takes a long time to make Jax fully healed and moved on from his past."

Everyone nodded as a response. I stayed quiet and just wait for them to finish.

After that, the psychiatrist provided me with a drug to take about my anxiety. Everyone escorted me to go back to Jett's place. They bought my medication and even scheduled me with a therapist. Everyone was working hard on their part-time jobs, so they could be able to provide for my needs.

Months later, they told me about going to school again. After all, they were desperate for me to finish college because they weren't able to, because of financial problems. So instead, they supported me in my education.

And in that school, a woman named Athena keeps on popping in front of me. I got into trouble every time and she always pops out of nowhere, which is very creepy.

My behavior in school was different when I got home. Elijah, Jett, Zander, Oliver, and I hang out sometimes and enjoyed ourselves with a simple life. Not until we knew a guy named Benjamin Wilson who wanted to kill me.

My brothers were alert and protected me from that man. At first, I thought he was the one who killed my family, but my brothers investigated him, and turn out he was not. He just wants to kill me and that's it. We don't know what was his true intention on why he would kill me.

"Jett, you must leave our group," Elijah said with a serious face

"What?! Why?!"

"Don't involve yourself in this matter because your girlfriend is pregnant. It's very dangerous. You must go."

"But Jax needs me. I need to protect him too," Jett insisted.

"Your child's life might get involved and your girlfriend might be in danger. Listen to me Jett, just this once listen to me," Elijah said as he glared at Jett. Jett was speechless and just nodded his head.

Starting that day, our lives are getting in danger. We went out to buy some food to eat in the middle of the night, but then Benjamin's gang saw us, they were bringing a deadly weapon, and all we could do was run away from them.

As we run on the street, getting chased by Benjamin's men in the middle of the night, Zander and Oliver stopped.

"You guys go, we're gonna stop them"

"Dude, shut up don't do it!" I shouted at them. They just look at me with a worried faces.

"I'll do it" Elijah insisted.

Oliver places his hands on Elijah's shoulder. "No, Jax needs you, you need to be with him and escape him." Oliver's gaze turns on me.

Elijah sighed before he nodded as a response. Like he doesn't have any choice.

"Bro, make sure you follow us after, okay? I'll be expecting you home," I said, as tears were falling on my cheek. But they just both smiled at me, then Elijah and I departed.

As we were running, I couldn't help myself burst into tears 'cause I know they won't come back home.