They Don't Know About Us

Chapter 8 - BONUS CHAPTER

10 years ago...

Jake's POV

I was at Chase's house today like most days. We had always been best friends so it was hard for our parents to keep us away from each other. Even if they did we always found a way to sneak out and meet up someplace - usually the park or someone's house.

Today though we had organised to meet up to work on our math homework with our parents knowing we were doing it. After all, it was homework and not painting our robots new colours. It wasn't the hardest homework either so we didn't really need each other's help. I was fine to work out subtraction and addition now. I think it was more the idea of spending as much time together as we could. Plus, I always loved the cookies Chase's mum made for us.

By the time five o'clock came around, it was time for me to leave. Chase and I packed up as slowly as we could to get in a few extra minutes. We even hid in the laundry room so that they couldn't take me away.

"Chase, Jake really has to go now. Come over here this instant." Chase's mum yelled at us from what was most likely the entrance to the house.

"Fine. Coming mama." Chase and I reluctantly walked over to where my mum was waiting for me at the door. Usually she came inside for a bit but she probably had started dinner early and wanted to keep an eye on it.

I said my goodbyes and thank yous to Chase and his mum, then my mum and I got into her car and started driving to our house. It wasn't a quiet trip home either. No, my mum wasn't yelling at me but there was rain and it was falling down hard. I know my mum was scared of driving in the rain because three years ago she had a car accident because she couldn't control the car. Luckily, she didn't get hurt at all, just a bit of shock.

The rain wasn't the only noisy thing about the trip home. In fact, the rain probably just contributed to the loud singing my mum and I were doing to the songs we knew that had come on the radio. We knew we probably both sounded terrible, but it was just fun being able to muck around.

Once we got home mum knocked on the door and we waited for it to open. After a minute or so it didn't open so I just looked at my mum.

"Mum just get your keys out so we can get inside. It's cold."

"I thought your father might open it because he got home early but I guess we may as well." She told me.

So mum got out her keys and unlocked the door before stepping inside. We both took off our muddy shoes and left them beside the door.

"Desmond why didn't you open the door for us?" My mum called out into the house. When no one answered mum sighed loudly and said something about him probably still having a shower.

She told me to wait in the lounge room while she went to go get my dad because they had something to tell me. Were we finally going to Disneyland?

I think it was only a few minutes later, maybe not even, until I heard a piercing scream. My bet was that dad had ripped his trousers again. He always seemed to do that by accident.

Hoping to calm my mum down a bit in case it was his trousers being ripped, I ran up the stairs to my parents room. I opened my mouth to say something about how we can afford to get dad new pants but I stopped when I saw my parents weren't fighting.

They might have been fighting before but they weren't now. They also wouldn't have been fighting with each other.

There was blood. Everywhere.

I could feel the tears filling up my eyes and slowly starting to run down my face.

They were both on the floor near each other.

Eyes open and the colour red spilling out of their chests.

Pale. Still.

I knew they were gone now but I was frozen to the spot. How did this even happen? What do I even do now?

My thoughts came to a stop when a man wearing a black jacket, pants, mask, shoes - the whole black everything - came into view from the cupboard. He hadn't seen me yet but I immediately knew he killed my parents. He did this to them.

I could see the shiny gun poking out of his jean pockets as he looked through my mum's bag for her wallet. He was going to kill me next when he saw me standing here and I did not want to die. I'm only seven. I'm too young to die!

It was really hard to not stay here with my parents but I couldn't help them anymore, I could only help myself. Please forgive me for what I'm about to do mum and dad...

I ran down to the kitchen as quietly as I could, being careful to not hot anything that would make too much of a noise. What I was doing would mean I would lose everything. My parents were gone now though and the anger that had built up inside me wouldn't let this man get away unharmed.

I went into the drawer where we keep all the random bits and pieces like take away menus that don't really go anywhere ad took out the lighter. Luckily for me the house was made up of mostly carpet and it was easy to set up the flame onto them.

I started at the back of the house and set all the furniture with soft fabric alight before doing the same to the carpeted floor. When I got to my room I knew there was so much I wanted to take with me but I didn't have time. I grabbed my biggest coat to stay warm, my teddy bear and a picture of my mum, dad and I. That was all I needed. Then, I ran to the door put on my shoes and kept on running down the street.

I don't know where I was going but I kept running. It was still raining so I tried to protect my teddy bear and photo under the coat but it wasn't really working. I had to find somewhere to go that was sheltered.

Looking at the houses down the street I was in, I contemplated whether or not I should go ask someone for help. After seeing a random guy break into my house and kill my parents I probably shouldn't be trusting strangers but I could've died minutes ago anyway so I was willing to take the chance.

Walking up to the closest house, I knocked on the door and waited for someone to come. After a few seconds of waiting and elderly woman came to the door and said to me,

"Sorry we don't want the cookies today."

What?

So I walked up to the next house and the next... and the next. Everyone thought I was either selling them something or trying to sneak into their house and rob them. Great community we have here. Some people didn't even open their doors.

The past two houses no one had answered their door so I was about to leave, realising I didn't have much luck in this street but a girl, probably around my age, maybe younger, answered the door.

Her eyes were bright blue, her light brown hair clung to her face and she was in baby pink flannel pyjamas with bunny slippers.

"Mum, someone's at the door." She called back into the house. Then she turned back to me and said, "Hi I'm Grace. What are you doing walking around so late?"

Tears began to spill down my face again as I realised that finally, someone might help me.

"I-I need an ambulance... and the fire brigade." I told her. Once I had said that, her mum came rushing to the door, tying her hair back into a ponytail. She looked at my tear stained face and gasped at the sight of me.

"What's wrong sweetheart? Come in, come in." She ushered me into their house and I sat down on the couch with the girl Grace while her mum called the ambulance to my address.

"It's probably too late now anyway." I told Grace. She gave me a big hug.

"It's the thought that counts. What's your name?" She asked me.

"Jake."

"Well Jake, I'm going to take care of you from now on. Don't you worry."

She smiled at me and I couldn't help smile back.

***

A/N: Hey guys! So I tried giving you guys a chapter of what happened the night Jake moved in with Grace and her mum. It's not that long but I hope you like it! Please vote, comment, share. What would you like to see happen next?