The bunk bed is kind of like this but instead they are more like slots. They are not this open.

Read on.

It is fair to say that in the great entirety of life, death was the dark spot while surrendering to pain was the end line. And that is how the end found me.'

- Alex Woodly

That day when Alex drops at my house, I feel a little strange. I mean, yeah, he's just a boy but I can't help but super-clean my house, which was something that I am good at. Also, just to make sure he doesn't freak out with my over-charismatic family, I've begged - I mean- asked my mother not to drop home from work. And also, I've kicked out my siblings out of the house.

"This is unfair!" My little sister, Jade says, puffing up her cheeks because she believes it makes her look angry and scary, "I have the right to speech. I have freedom to chose. You can't just...just kick me out!"

"Exactly!" Max, my brother says although he is too young to understand what 'kicking out' means. He's just staring wide-eyed at Jade. He does whatever Jade does which isn't very productive.

"Just, c'mon guys," Frey, my fourteen year old brother coaxes. He's kind of like a life-saver to me. I can't even count how many times he has saved my butt but honestly, that guy is a masterpiece to me. I don't really understand him.

"I'll treat you to ice-cream," Frey suggests.

"Yes, ice-cream!" Max pumps his fist and jumps up.

Jade glares menacingly at him.

"Oh-no," Max lowers his fist and stares uncertainly at Jade, "I-uh-I meant no ice-cream. No ice-cream!" He says weakly. Even a six year old kid is scared of Jade and she's only nine.

Jade turns towards me and gives me the 'I'll stick your head in the sludge pile,' glare and then, turns to Frey.

"It better be an expensive ice-cream." She mutters under her breathe. Frey sighs in relief.

"Sure, now run along."

The expensive ice-cream got Jade and Max walking. Frey turns towards me.

"You know, I spend more on you than I do on me. When are you going to start paying me back?" He asks, raising his eyebrows.

"When I learn gardening."

"Not happening."

"Exactly."

He gives an exasperated sigh and shakes his head before walking over to Jade and Max and holding their arms while crossing the road. I smile. My siblings are dorks.

I walk inside. I live in a double storey house with four bedrooms, three bathrooms, one kitchen and living room and three balconies. I live here along with my parents and my three siblings. All of my siblings share this gigantic room with one wall with which is just wood carved hollow to form four bunk beds along with stairs and everything. All of us sleep there. Needless to say, we don't have anything known as 'privacy' in my house.

I go and sit at the dining table and I briefly wonder whether Alex Woodly would kill me with a knife that he brought or kill me with my own knife. I think I made a mistake by letting my siblings out.

Suddenly the door bell rings, so obviously I jump like a cat drenched in ice cold water and of course, I hit my foot on the dining table and why wouldn't half the cutlery clatter to the floor? It has no reason not to. I sigh and clean up a little before getting the door.

Alex stands outside, looking like his usual 'I-am-an-uncomfortable-emo-kid.' He wears a brown wool coat, a black shirt, black pants and brown boots. His long bangs tumbles into onyx eyes and his pale skin looks like fresh paper. I glance slightly at his lips and wonder whether he has some lip disease. They are just so pink...

He coughs and my eyes fly back to his.

"You're early," I say. I did not expect him to come over until thirty minutes or something.

He scrunches his eyebrows together and glances at his watch. I don't think he is aware that he is biting his lips while seeing the time.

"It's four-thirty one. If anything, I'm a minute late and that's because you opened up late. I rang the bell exactly at four-thirty."

I blink. Is this guy for real?

"So..." I trail off, "You were - were you waiting until it was four-thirty to ring the bell?"

He taps his fingers against his thigh and avoids my gaze, biting his lips. I want to tell him to stop doing that but I realize it would sound weird.

"I mean," He starts and then, runs a hand through his hairs exasperatedly, "Yeah." He says it in a 'duh' kind of way.

I bite my lip too, but I do it to keep myself from smiling, "If you were waiting outside, you should've have come in earlier."

"You told me to come at about four-thirty."

"I did not say precisely four-thirty."

"Oh." It's all he says, before diving into his antiques- tapping his foot, clicking his fingers, biting his lips. How have I not noticed his habits before?

He looks so cute just being uncomfortable, I almost want to let him stay out longer but I decide to let him in to show my hospitality. When he walks in, he stares baffled at the house. I don't blame him much, I doubt his house would be as warm.

My house is just bustling with liveliness. Even when there's no one at home. There are warm sofas, hand-made paintings, several dozen photos, some toys that come in chips or something, many books, a complete LEGO city made by Frey, when he was six. My mother doesn't remove that - the architecture is so amazing. Jade and Max keep on making amendments to that.

Our house is painted in warm and bright colours- blue, brown and cream. In all this, Alex seems quite different.

"Do you have siblings?" He asks.

I nod, "Three. Two brothers and one sister. I'm the eldest."

"Whoa, cool." He says.

"What about you?" I ask, thinking I already know the answer but I was wrong.

"One," He says, "She is my half-sister. Ellie. She lives with my father, though. California."

I am about to comment on the distance and I am thinking of asking him whom he lives with when he continues.

"So, where are we going to do the project?"

"Oh," I blink, "We can do it in my room. Come on."

I lead him into my (not completely my) room. I tell him how we sleep there and his eyes light up- first in excitement and then, in yearning.

"It's kind of cool," He says, "I've always wanted a bunk bed."

"Believe me," I say, "After a week, it isn't cool."

He nods but doesn't say anything, so we just decide to get on with the project. As humiliating as it seems, we have only written one line. We haven't even discussed the beginning and ending of the story. We haven't even decided upon the narrating character.

"So, let's start with the basics. The main character should be male. You okay with that?" I ask.

Alex shrugs, "I honestly don't care but I don't think D'cruz would like that. She's a feminist ballista."

I snort. Feminist ballista. Honestly, this guy...

"But there are three guys in the group. She has to be fine with the male perspective."

He shrugs again, "Do we need to have concrete details like gender? Can't we just made the character genderfluid?

I did a double take, "Say what?"

"Genderfluid. Not bond by any gender," He says, picking at the edge on the beanbag he was sitting on.'

"I know what genderfluid means but-" I shake my head, "Actually, that's a really good idea."

He almost cracks a smile and says, "Well, then let's get writing."

We decide quickly on basic details. There was a bit of tension while selecting the name.

"So, unisex name..." I ponder, "How about Alex?"

Alex coughs.

"Oh, right. Something good, then like...Skylar?"

Alex frowns, "Too fancy."

"Alexis?"

"Too great-y"

"Great-y isn't even a word. But Jordan?"

"Too preppy."

"Angel?"

"Too angelic."

I sigh in defeat, "You tell me then."

Alex scrunches his eyebrows and bites his overtly pink lips. I wonder how soft they are.

"Sam!"

I look around, seeing if there was any 'Sam' around. There wasn't.

"What?" I ask, bewildered.

He just rolls his eyes, "Sam, as in the name. The unisex name for the character."

"Oh..."

He huffs adorably and runs a hand through his hair. He looks at me, then straight in the eyes.

"You're hopeless."

I smile slightly, "So, are you."

We write a good load and eventually, we leave it as it is. We order some food which Alex is doubtful about at first.

"It isn't poisoned, is it?" He asks, eyeing the pizza.

I smile as brightly as I could, "It definitely is. I asked Pizza Hut to poison it and they obliged and didn't arrest me."

"No need to be so sarcastic." He says, taking a bite of the pizza.

"No need to be so...so, you know, Alex-y."

"Alex-y isn't a word."

"Neither is great-y"

"You're hopeless."

"So are you."

Halfway into our food, I notice something wrong. There is a storm outside. Now you may wonder, 'Gee, Harl, how did you figure that out?' Actually, it was Alex who figured it out. He noticed that the windows were rumbling slightly and the doors were closing and opening on their own. And also the power went off. That is what got us moving.

We shut the doors and windows because holy Hephaestus, there is a big storm outside. Its probably the worst I have seen. I actually noticed a tree branch flying in the wind. The rain was pouring but the winds were too strong to feel anything.

"Guess you're not going home tonight," I sigh.

"Guess I am not." Alex says although he doesn't seem too upset about it. He is just munching his pizza and emptying my fridge. I don't mind his scavenging if he doesn't touch the nutella.

"So-" I am cut short by my cellphone ringing which surprised me because I thought the storm would make it impossible to connect signals.

I pick up the phone. It is mom.

"Hello?" I say.

"Harl! Oh finally! I was getting so worried-" The rest of her voice fades in as the connection momentarily weakens.

"-Dad and I will stay at office tonight. Let your friend stay tonight, too. And-" The connection fades again.

"-Your siblings. They are in the house, right? Don't let them out. Two people have been found dead in the storm. Take care-" This time her voice fades completely and a dull beep filled the air in our house.

My eyes widen and I slump down onto a chair.

"This can't be happening... " I say, pulling at my hair.

Alex frowns at me, "What's wrong?"

"The storm... my siblings are out in it."