My dad, as far as I remembered, was a tyrant, an alcoholic and unfaithful to our mother.
Our mother, something Uzumaki (I can't remember her name because she died when I was 4, and Naruto never told me her name) was always the beacon of hope. Whenever our dad would take out his old belt and whip me or my brother, my mother, beautiful and brave, would stand in front of us, or cover us with her body as the doom whip came down hard on her once flawless skin, leaving red, bloody scars.
She has never worn short sleeves for that reason, Naruto told me, because she didn't want our dad to be caught. She said that if dad was ever caught, we would all be dead since there was not much mum could to support two children.
Then one terrible night, our loving mother died.
There was no warning, nothing at all, except the fact that our father was being surprisingly gentle with his family that night. We even laughed with him for the first time since I was born!
Yet that night, Naruto had quietly shaken me up, tears running down his face. The rain pelted down on my window all night, and it took me ages to finally fall asleep, despite the flashes of harsh, white light.
"Rui," he whispered, stroking my hair.
"What is it, nii-chan?" I cheerfully called, knowing how much "chan" annoys him.
"M..mother is...dead."
With that, a loud clap of thunder shook the very foundation of me as a person.
"M..mother is...dead."
I couldn't even think. Those three words blinded me, and all I saw was a cruel fluorescent, as shocking as the lightning that lit up the night sky.
A few years later, I learnt that she was dying from a terminal illness, and the night she died was an overdose on the medicine she was supposed to take. She wanted to take more and hopefully extend her life.
At least that's what our father said.
Because as soon as our mother was buried, he married another woman. She appeared to be sugar sweet, and very gentle. Yet behind that thin mask, she was an absolute demon, one set on to the world to torture and maybe even devour children. A witch, as many fairy tales would call her.
After 3 years with her, we learnt to be independent, and once we were ready, Naruto and I began to plan our escape from the prison we called home. And this is what happened on the night.
***
"Rui, it'll be alright, I have everything packed. You'll be carrying the green bag there and I'll be carrying the duffel, yeah?" Concerned indigo eyes under the dark cover of the night glanced at me unwavering, despite the boldness of his plan. Nodding my head hesitantly, I reached and felt around until I found his warm hands. He squeezed reassuringly in response and in that moment I was not afraid at all, because he, my big brother, will be by my side no matter what.
"But Naruto, they're going to find out, and..." he didn't let me finish before his other hand clamped down on my mouth. He glanced around the corner of the dark alley, eyeing the dimly lit road and the low apartment block at the end of it.
"We'll run up there, grab everything we need and come back down before they come back. Don't think, just move," he pulled me into the streetlight gently but firmly and into the apartment.
"Nii-san, I have a bad feeling about this," standing before the black door that I had once foolishly called my safe haven, my legs trembled and I could barely stop a shiver going down my spine.
"Don't think, just do it," with one last smile, he pushed open the apartment door.
"Oh, honeycakes, I thought you would never be back," a sickly sweet voice greeted us, along with lights too bright for an empty house.
***
"So, honeycakes, may I have an explanation as to why me and your father has to wait until twelve thirty for you two to be home?" The devil's sugar-coated voice rendered me unable to speak. The seven years old me could only look to my nine-year-old brother, whose lips was in a tight, determined line when his hand holding mine was sweaty and trembling. Our father was trying, and failing to hide his old belt behind his back. I often imagined that if one bothered to look hard enough, they could see small flecks of dry Uzumaki blood.
"You two good for nothing, shitheads and absolutely fuck, last named after your weakass bitch of a mother," some part of me marvelled at how my stepmother could get all that out in one breath, "get your asses into your room!"
I was the one who grabbed Naruto's hand, turning a blind eye to his seething anger and ran into our parent's room.
***
"We need to get out of here," Naruto said breathlessly as soon as the door of our room closed. I took a deep breath and arranged the beds.
"You're not thinking of sleeping here for another night, right?" he called in disbelief. I ignored him and kept arranging the sheet and blanket. Slowly, he began to understand.
"Oh Rui, you are smart," he said, delighted, and started to arrange his.
"Why thank you," I smirked, and gestured towards my bed. It was made so that it looked like someone was under it.
"And tonight, we escape this hell hole."
***
"Moma, Papa, goodnight!" I called sweetly, peeking at the living room. The words were bitter poison in my mouth, and I instantly closed the door the moment I saw my stepmother approaching my grinning father in a nightgown.
Do it in your own bedroom, goddamnit.
"Are they...?" Naruto whispered once I turned back to him. I nodded, and silently, with a key I had stolen, unlocked the window to the balcony.
"Not yet," Naruto put his hand on mine when I was about to draw the window back. I paused and realised that there was no sound coming from the living room.
Shit!
Fear passed between us, and in perfect synchronisation, we both dived under the covers. We barely made it when our father opened the door.
"Oi, which one of you has the windows key? And why are you sleeping together, aren't you two too old for that? If I hadn't known better I might think that you two are incestuous!"
Naruto trembled, but I held on to his hand and quietly, slid a key outside the blankets.
"Here, Papa. I just wanted to open the window slightly because it's-"
"No, brat!" he stormed, and reached for the key, "oh no, not tonight." With that, he walked to the window, locked it and exited the room with a hard slam.
There was a horrible silence, then I sighed in relief. Naruto looked at me confused, but soon his eyes lit up with joy and admiration as I dangled another key in front of him.
"This is the master key Mummy left us," I smiled, and holding on to his hand, unlocked the window with a soft click. He hurried under the bed and grabbed our bags just as I arranged the bed. This time, he helped me pull the window back, and we both sneaked out on to the balcony.
"I got this," he whispered and got out a grappling hook from his bag. My eyes widened.
"So that's what the hundred was for," I whispered excitedly, eyes wide with wonder as he attached the hook to the ledge, and tossed the rope down. We both knew how to climb down ropes from our PE classes, so we both got down to the streets very fast.
It was then, when we looked up, that tears of happiness filled our eyes.
We were finally out of hell.
Sasuke was beyond surprised when we knocked on his door at 4:30 in the morning, looking tired and sleepless. But the shock passed quickly, and because both Naruto and my best friend, he offered us a place to stay. Ever since that day, I've never heard from my father again.
YOU ARE READING
Doppelgänger (SasukexOC)
FanfictionMy life was normal, up until the moment everything was ripped from me. A month later, I was given a second chance, a rewind button. He was everything I ever needed and wanted in my life. But is he really what I craved and prayed for, or will he drag...
