Once Akari was done, he put a bandage over it, and cleaned everything. A thought came to my mind. "Hey, Ri....um.." "Yes?" He asked, looking at me. I looked back at him. "What are we gonna tell our teacher tomorrow...? About this..?" Upon this, he sighed, and closed the medkit. "I...don't know. But we can come up with something. Like...maybe you just fell down the stairs, or our dog accidentally clawed you." I thought on this for a minute. "Yeah....maybe."
*****
After class, the teacher-a tall, slim woman with dark hair, and light eyes-pulled me aside to talk to me. Her eyes stayed focused on the bandage the whole time. "Kiyoshi....what happened?" She asked me, concern laces in her voice, and shown in her eyes. "Oh, this? I was playing with our dog and he accidentally clawed me." I lied, using the excuse Akari had come up with. She scanned me for a minute, as if trying to tell if I was being honest. "...and what type of dog is he..?" "He's a pit bull. Sometimes, when we play, he gets too excited." "Right...well, take care of that, ok? And know that I'm always here if you need to talk. About anything." I nodded. "Good. You're dismissed, then.." "I'll see you on Monday, Ms. Henry." I said before leaving, on my way to find Akari.
****
Later, I found him waiting at the gates, ready to leave school. Once I stopped in front of him, he looked at me. "Did Ms. Henry..?" I just nodded. "But don't worry, I used the dog excuse you came up with." "Well...I guess we'll have to hope she believed it." I nodded, and we started walking home. Once we got there, the same cycle started. The yelling, the hitting. But this time, they took it too far. Our mom suddenly held me back, pushing my back against her so I couldn't escape, no matter how much I struggled. Our father dragged Akari into the kitchen this time, and gave him the same treatment he'd given me yesterday. Except he did it more than once. I fought and struggled harder and harder, shouting, with angry tears carving a path down my face. My anger then exploded, and I had no memory of what happened next, other than hearing pained screams and frantic protests.
*****
I could feel gentle hands resting on my cheeks, and I slowly blinked my eyes open, only to be met with pink ones. It was Akari. And he looked a bit pale. "Hey..." He spoke to me softly, his voice barely a whisper. "W-what happened...?" I asked, trying to sit up so I could look around. He helped me, but didn't answer my question. So, I looked around. And what I found was terrifying. Our house was now turned to ashes and rubble, as if having been destroyed in a fire. Then, I saw two lifeless forms a few feet away. Both face down on the ground. One was charred to a crisp, and the other had bones bent and broken in the wrong angles. My eyes went wide, and I swallowed, sure I was probably as pale as Akari, or possibly more. "D-dont tell m-me...." I stuttered out, terror in my voice. Akari just stayed silent, and placed a hand ok the back of my head, the other on my shoulder. He then pulled me toward him, and hugged me tightly, trying to offer comfort and support. I gripped his shirt tightly, as if I was scared he'd disappear when I let go, as if he was my only lifeline. And I couldn't stop muttering out "I'm sorry....so sorry....", over and over. Sure, I had hated our parents, but I hadn't ever meant or wanted to lose control. To actually kill them.
****
A few minutes later, police sirens could be heard, and I pulled away enough just to look at my twin. "W-whats gonna happen now...?" But, before he could answer, he looked at something that was behind me, and I followed his gaze. Only to find a man standing there. He wore a black suit with matching pants and shoes, and he was wearing this black helmet thing. Only later would I find out who he was. But he crouched down in front of us, and offered a hand. "Poor, young little things....all alone in the world now. No one but each other....how sad." Akari and I just listened, too shook to speak. "Such a shame, isn't it? Two young boys, left all alone. Ah, but what if I made an offer of sorts?" Akari and I shared a look, unsure of what to say. The man continued. "What if I took you both in, hm? Think about it. You two wouldn't be alone. And I could take care of you." And that was the day everything changed....but it wasn't for the better.