It was a chilly winter morning as a lone girl sat by the window, quietly watching as the fresh snow fell onto the ground. The day had yet to start for most people so the snow was left untouched. But soon outside there were two figures waving at the window where the girl sat.

 

“Hey look it’s Sirius and Kane! Get up and let’s go out!” Said excitedly by the girl

 

“Jeez Ria it’s still 6 A.M let me sleep…school is cancelled today so I’m sleeping in.” groaned her sibling as he covered his ears.

 

“Fine I’ll let you have your beauty sleep but guess you’re missing out on gifts the Sirius brought.” said Ria with a slight laugh as she left the room.

 

“Hey! Wait for me I changed my mind I wanna come too!`` shouted Rivin as he hurriedly got up.

It didn’t take long for Ria to get dressed and ready to go outside and greet her friends.

 

“Morning Ria, you're up early today.” said the older of the two, Sirius. 

 

“Morning you two! And yeah I couldn’t waste a free day like this lazing around in bed unlike a certain someone.” she rolled her eyes towards Rivin who just walked out of the door catching his breath.

 

“Jeez you could have told me you were coming so I could get up, anyways what brought you here this early?” Asked Rivin in between breaths. 

 

“Oh yeah by the way, happy birthday to you two! Me and Kane both picked out some things to give yesterday.” Sirius said with a smile as he gave two beautifully wrapped presents to the two siblings. 

 

Ria and Rivin’s eyes both lit up, as Rivin was thanking the two profusely, Ria grabbed both Kane and Sirius to give them a hug, but when she slightly tightened her hand around Kane’s arm she heard him slightly react in pain just before she felt him pull back his arm. 

 

Everyone looked confused and stared at Kane, Sirius looked more worried and immediately asked in a serious tone

 

“What’s wrong? Are you hurt? You usually don’t react like that just by being slightly pulled.” 

 

Kane didn’t reply and only looked down.

 

“Kane, I’m your brother and I know you through and through. What happened?” Sirius asked again. 

 

Finally Kane spoke up 

 

“Uncle lashed out at me again while you were gone…” 

 

Sirius had yet to speak when Ria had ran back inside their house without saying a word, Rivin on the other hand told the two to get inside as to not stay out in the cold any longer. 

 

As they sat down in the living room and removed their jackets, Ria came back with some cotton balls and some bandages. She then sat next to Kane and said

 

“It’s best to clean that cut before it may get infected.” 

 

Kane complied and took off the roughly put together bandages he made to reveal a slightly deep cut that ran near his wrist to halfway across his arm. Ria immediately got to work, she disinfected and put proper bandages on Kane’s arm. Soon she was finished and left to clean up. 

 

“You really should learn how to ask for help whenever things like this happen, that looks like a pretty bad cut afterall.” Sirius said worriedly. 

 

Ria then came back and added 

 

“Yeah we aren’t that far away so I can always help, if not then my parents can help too since they work in the medical field as well.” 

 

“Thanks so much, but hey don’t let me ruin the mood. Sirius and I took so much time picking out your gifts after all.” Kane said as he looked at his brother.

 

The mood lightened once more as Ria and Rivin both opened the gifts that they received. 

 

They both were surprised and speechless, Ria had received a custom made paintball gun set and Rivin received a high quality videography drone. 

 

“I…how…” Ria could barely put together a sentence while Rivin was once again thanking profusely 

 

“Weren’t these so expensive???” Rivin said still surprised 

 

“Yeah I heard these go for at least a hundred dollars…?” Ria added.

 

“Our parents didn’t really mind as they have the ability to easily afford these, plus we had noticed you both had your eyes on both of these things.” Kane explained.

 

Sirius nodded and soon said to Ria

 

“Yep, I had seen you always had to borrow gear or sometimes miss some of our games because you had no gear of your own when we played paintball. So I thought of giving you this so we can play without worrying too much if you would have the proper gear.” 

 

He then turned to Rivin

 

“As for you, Kane noticed you liked photography and videography but always had a hard time reaching some spots, so he suggested giving you a drone so that you can take photos or videos without hassle.” 

 

“Thank you so so much! But still don’t expect me to go easy on you two next time we can have a match!” Ria said jokingly at Sirius and Kane.

 

“Where do you think we should go to make the most of this day?” Rivin asked.

 

“How about we go to the park to hang out since we don’t have much to do anyways? Plus you can test out that drone there.” 

 

Everyone else agreed and quickly ate breakfast just before heading out to the nearby park to make the most of this snowy day. They soon arrived at the park which was still empty, all that could be heard was the snow under their feet and the conversations the group had. But this peaceful atmosphere was soon interrupted as Rivin ran full speed towards the deep pile of snow and jumped onto it, scattering the snow all over the place. 

It wasn’t long before his sister jumped onto another pile and got snow all over Rivin who was just beside her.

 

“Hey what was that for??” He yelled 

 

“Aww is little Rivin mad I got his pretty face all dirty?” Teased Ria as she was getting up 

 

“Who wouldn’t be?…” he said, annoyed as he prepared to throw snow back at his sister, yet Ria anticipated that and immediately moved out of the way. 

As the snowball missed Ria, it hit Sirius who was quietly sitting nearby just watching the others. 

 

“Is that an invitation for a snowball fight? Then bring it on!” He said excitedly 

 

The three started throwing snow at each other as laughter could be heard from them while they were running around the field of snow. Just a few metres by a bench was where Kane sat reading a book as he wanted to stay warm and not covered in snow. But to his dismay Rivin threw a snowball at him as he invited him to join, not wanting to turn it down he threw a handful of snow back at his eagerly waiting friends. 

Hours passed and the group became more and more tired after all the running, they simply collapsed onto the soft snow to try and catch their breath before heading towards the nearby shop to warm up and eat lunch. It wasn’t long before they went back to the park just to simply relax a bit more before they had to go home. They spent hours just chatting and catching up with what had happened since the last time they met, since school had them swamped with work so they didn’t really have time to meet. They got so carried away that they didn’t realize it was soon getting dark.

 

“Oh the sun is setting already? Jeez the day goes quickly when you’re having fun.” Said Kane

 

“Yeah I guess we have to head home now or our parents will surely give us an earful about staying out at night” added Ria in an annoyed tone 

 

“Well let me and Kane walk you two home then, as a sort of thanks for helping earlier. So what do you say?” said Sirius as he offered his hand to Ria 

 

Rivin leaned towards Kane and whispered 

“If he thinks he is being subtle about having a crush on my sister he very much isn’t…”

 

“And your sister is just as bad for being THIS dense, these two really just need to confess because we keep getting caught in the crossfire and I’m sick of it…” Kane whispered back 

 

“Hey, what are you two whispering about there?” Sirius asked as he turned towards them

 

“Nothing future brother-in-law~” Rivin said as a tease 

Ria turned bright red and could simply stutter

“F-forget this, let's just go home…” 

 

“Oh wait! Let’s take a picture first, we haven’t had a group photo for today yet.” Rivin suggested. 

 

Everyone agreed and they all took some time to take pictures just as the sun was about to set.

 

The group then walked home in silence, it was already dark when they finally arrived in their neighborhood. The street was completely silent as everyone was either inside or still at work, which was for the better since no one would have wanted to see what happens next. 

The silence was soon broken by the sound of a gun being loaded just before someone grabbed Ria and pointed the gun at her.

 

“Drop all your things or…or I’ll shoot.” Said a man in a slurring voice 

 

The group froze as the gravity of the situation hit them, they instantly turned around to see what they were against. They saw a ragged looking man who had his arm around Ria’s neck threatening to shoot her if they didn’t do what he ordered. 

 

“RUN YOU IDIOTS! I’LL KEEP HIM BUSY!” yelled Ria at the top of her lungs as she slammed her back at the man who instantly fell down. 

 

Out of pure panic Kane grabbed Rivin who was still in shock and ran as fast as they could. All they heard were gunshots but they weren’t sure who shot them and they didn’t intend to find out. 

 

While the two ran, Sirius immediately tackled the man as he was getting up to shoot either him or Ria, unfortunately the man saw Sirius as more of a threat and aimed to shoot his chest but missed and hit his shoulder instead, Ria had once again slammed him to the ground. 

 

“FUCKING HELL SIRIUS LEAVE! YOU’RE INJURED JUST LEAVE ME!!” Ria once again shouted while in another fight for the gun with this intoxicated man. 

 

With no options Sirius ran, he ran without looking back. With adrenaline pumping through his body he managed to ignore the pain as he ran for cover in order to call for help. He dialled the emergency number he knew of and immediately started telling details in a panic. 

 

“Hello, what's your emergency?”

 

“Please help my friends and I were attacked by this stranger and I got shot, this stranger was armed. We are at-“ he was suddenly cut off by the sounds of fast gunshots and then silence. 

 

“-we are at ————— street.” 

 

“Ok sir please do remain calm and find a safe spot to hide. Help is on its way.” Said the person on the phone just before they hung up. 

 

Sirius sat alone in the small hiding spot he found as he tried to stop his shoulder from bleeding, the few minutes of silence were deafening to him and this wait for help felt like an eternity. But at last he heard sirens blaring from a distance, he collected the little strength he had left and ran towards the street to flag them down. 

This moment of relief may have felt like heaven to Sirius but nothing could have prepared him for the sight he saw. The white snow was then stained a shade of red, and the once fighting figure of his friend now a motionless body on the road. He felt lightheaded and the shock wore off as realization took its place, this was just before he himself collapsed from the pain. 

What followed was flashes of people begging him to stay awake, try as he might and yet everything soon turned black. 

 

Not too long later, Kane and Rivin rushed to the hospital with Ria’s parents. There they saw both their siblings fighting for their life and they just stood there unable to do anything, the stress caused Rivin to break down as Kane himself struggled to keep his emotions under control. Kane had managed to help Rivin get up and go to the waiting room where they both didn’t utter a word and simply broke down in tears. That night the pair refused to leave the hospital to the point that they fell asleep and the nurses just gave them a blanket as they knew this day was just too much for these kids. 

 

The next day Kane woke up first, not wanting to wake up Rivin he slowly pushed him aside and got up to see Ria and Rivin’s parents both talking to someone. He decided to eavesdrop as no one had noticed him yet. 

 

“I have good news and bad news, which would you like to hear?”

 

“We’ll have the good news first please.” The parents replied 

 

“The boy, Sirius Alistine is now on his road to recovery as he just lost too much blood which led to him collapsing. We have supplied the needed amount to return it to normal and he should wake up either tomorrow or today.” 

 

Ria’s parents remain silent as they brace for the bad news.

 

“The bad news is that the girl, Eleria Hallow unfortunately fell into a coma and had to be transferred to an ICU. She sustained 3 gun shots to the chest, abdomen and shoulder. They all have fortunately missed her heart but had hit other vital organs, I’m sorry but please stay in contact for further news.”

 

The doctor slightly bowed his head before leaving. Kane was relieved to hear Sirius was fine, but he still felt deeply saddened about Ria…She had always been like a sister to him and he knew how much she meant to Sirius and Rivin as well.

Meanwhile Ria was fighting a losing battle against death, she had sat alone in the dark void that is her subconscious ever since the incident. 

 

“I guess I really pushed myself too far…” she silently thought 

 

She knew it wasn’t long before her body would give up, and yet all she could do was sit in silence waiting for her final moments to inevitably come. But in the stillness of her subconscious she suddenly heard something, a muffled voice crying from a distance. Yet no matter how far she tried and chased it, it never seemed to come closer, so she just listened. 

 

“Please wake up…I don’t want to lose you too…please.” 

 

“Rivin, I'm here! I can hear you!” She shouted but it was all in vain, no matter how hard she tried she couldn’t even open her eyes to look at him. “I’m here please stop crying…” she pleaded only to be met with an unfamiliar voice.

“You know he can’t hear you.” She suddenly heard a stern voice behind her.

 

“W-who is there?” She said as she turned around in a panic

 

Her brown eyes met with this figure’s golden eyes, she knew what was to come yet refused to accept that she had run out of time. She stood there frozen as the figure held out his hand.

“Eleria Hallow your time is up, please just take my hand so we can leave in peace. Neither of us want to use force here.” He said calmly

 

“I don’t want to go yet…not until I’ve at least said goodbye…” she said as she slowly accepted her situation. 

 

“As you wish, I will lend you strength but we will leave as soon as you’ve finished.” He replied before Ria was finally able to slowly open her eyes.

 

She was met with the harsh brightness of the ceiling lights, but soon her eyes adjusted to the light and she saw her brother crying just beside her. She had never really seen him this emotional since he had always kept his negative emotions hidden, but now it seems he just broke down. 

Ria couldn’t do much but lightly move her hand to try and get his attention, it wasn’t long behind he began to wipe his tears and looked up to see her slightly awake. 

 

“Hey did I startle you?” She said almost whispering 

 

Rivin didn’t say much and only nodded with a light smile.

 

“I’ll go get help just stay put” he then said as he was getting up from his chair

 

Without skipping a beat Ria said “no…it’s too late anyways.”

 

“I’m sorry, please forgive me that I can’t stay longer…be strong for me.” was all she could say before she found herself back in her dark subconscious 

 

“That’s all I can give you, now please don’t hesitate anymore.” The figure said as he once again offered his hand, Ria held it without second thoughts and soon she was gone. 

Meanwhile Rivin ran outside into the hall and yelled for help, where he was soon met with nurses and doctors that rushed into Ria’s room in an attempt to save her.

 

“Sir please step out.” Said one of the nurses as she closed the door and curtains, leaving Rivin to his own thoughts. 

He sat on the floor defeated as he heard the doctors try their best to bring Ria back, but their efforts had all been in vain as the room fell silent. 

 

“She was right there, how did she slip away…why did she leave me too.” Rivin thought to himself as he was struggling to process what had just happened, the silence was torture for him, he wanted to run away from the truth but he couldn’t. 

He could hear murmurings from inside the room as the doctors and nurses were trying to think of what to say when they inevitably had to face him and the others. 

Yet the echoing silence had already told more about the situation than what words could say. Rivin just sat there staring blankly at the adjacent wall, he had never thought he would see a day where he would be alone once again, and yet here he was, forced to accept his own situation with no one to lean on. 

 

Not too far from Rivin was Kane still oblivious to what just happened, he was peacefully reading just beside his brother as he waited for him to wake up. And just as the doctor said, Sirius groaned as he slowly regained consciousness. 

 

“What happened…?” He said while trying to process his situation 

 

“You passed out from blood loss, also apparently you broke your shoulder so it’ll be in a cast for a while.” Replied Kane while trying to hide his worry.

“I’m quite surprised mom and dad haven't visited yet, I haven’t even heard a single word from them since they allowed Ria and Rivin’s parents to take care of us while they are away.” He added 

 

“Yeah they left the country last week, remember? They wouldn’t be back for a month or two. Why they left us at our worthless aunt’s house…” he said annoyed while looking at the still bandaged cut on Kane’s arm 

 

Kane rolled down his sleeve to hide yesterday’s incident before saying

 

“But hey I already packed our stuff to move into the guest room at Mrs and Mr Hallow’s home, they thought it would be best if we didn’t stay at our aunt’s place while you are still recovering. Mom and dad had already promised to cover any major expenses for the both of us.” 

 

Sirius simply let out a sigh of relief at the fact they can finally escape the hell that is their aunt’s house, they had no other living relatives so their parents were forced to always leave them there oblivious to the abuse they had to endure from their drunk uncle and cousins. 

 

“Anyways, how is Ria doing now? I haven’t really heard any news about her since I passed out.”

He asked

 

“I really don’t know since Rivin basically forced me to stay here in case anything were to happen to you, he is still pretty shaken up after what happened so I just listened” Kane replied with a hint of sadness as he hadn’t told the full truth.

 

“I see, I’ll just go visit her when I’ve recovered more then.” He said with a hint of worry 

 

“How about I check on her? Her room isn’t that far from here anyways, plus I think Rivin seriously needs a break.” Kane suggested as he got up from this chair 

 

“Ok then.” He replied 

 

Kane nodded as he left the room. 

 

“Kane you’re still an awful liar as always…” Sirius whispered to himself 

 

It didn’t take long before Kane was near Ria’s room, as he walked closer he noticed Rivin was sitting on the floor seemingly motionless. When he finally reached Rivin he noticed his eyes were still red from so much crying, Kane braced himself for what he was about to face.

“Rivin what happened…?” Kane worriedly asked

 

“She’s gone.” Rivin replied blankly 

 

Kane froze, it was as if he had been drenched in cold water. Those two words felt like a direct stab to his heart, before he knew it his tears had started falling like rain. He had been holding back his tears all day and it was at this moment that he too broke. 

Ria was the first person apart from his brother that had treated him as if he actually mattered, and now she too had left. 

He offered his hand to Rivin who was still on the floor crying.

 

“Please get up, you know she hated seeing others cry because of her…” Kane said as if trying to cheer up Rivin 

 

“How would you know…you’re not her…” he replied in a cold voice

 

“Rivin please just come with me, sitting here won’t make things any better.” Said Kane as he was trying to pull Rivin back up. 

 

Rivin immediately pulled back his arm and shouted 

“CAN’T YOU UNDERSTAND?! SHE WAS ALL I HAD!”

 

Tears began to fall from his eyes once again. 

 

“She was all I had…our real parents left us to die without as much as names…” he said in between sobs

 

Kane only stared in shock as he had never really known much about Ria and Rivin’s past before they met, they both had hidden such past under their once cheerful smiles so well that he never noticed. 

 

“I’m sorry, I’ll leave you be then…” said Kane who turned back and headed back to Sirius’ room 

He walked back with a defeated look as he himself didn’t know what to do, he had never seen Rivin like this for the many years he had known him. It’s like something in Rivin left along with Ria as he now seems like a totally different person. It didn’t take long for him to reach his destination and as he opened the door, he saw that Ria’s parents had already told Sirius the news. 

 

“I’m back…” he said while refusing to look at anyone 

 

“We’re going to leave you two be…” said Mrs. Hallow as she signalled for them to leave

 

They silently left the room and just as they closed the door Sirius silently cried, Kane could only sit in the corner as he tried to compose himself. 

 

“I’m sorry I lied…I just…” Kane trailed off as if trying to find the words to say

 

“It’s alright, I can’t imagine what I would say either.” Sirius replied 

 

The room fell silent once more, neither of the two knew what to say. They both just went to sleep to try and rest, neither dreamed that night.