I braided my blonde hair carefully. I hated my hair. I always have. It too short for me. I can barley put it over my shoulders, and it's so curly! I've always wanted long hair and I never got it. If hair was the simplest of my problems. I pulled on some shorts and a plain t-shirt. Night would be falling soon, and I wasn't going out anywhere any time soon.

I looked out my window. Three girls were walking down the street, hands held together. Tears stung my eyes. Eliana, Mady, and Kate. Eliana and Mady used to be my best friends, then when Kate showed up, the bullying started. All three of them bullied me until I was afraid to get out of the house. I told teachers, but they did nothing, I told every adult and no one did anything. My parents got involved, when the problem wasn't fixed, we moved. Yet here they were. In a new town, thirty minutes away from our old house. I closed the blinds and fell onto my bed.

The past was repeating again. It was all going to repeat. I didn't want it to happen all again. It was bad enough the first time. I pulled a blanket on top of me and fell asleep in seconds.

When I woke up it was pitch black outside. I looked at the time, 11:30 PM. I slept for a long time. I walked carefully down the hallway to my parents room and peeked in. They were asleep too. I went back to my room.

I didn't want to go back to sleep. I didn't. I opened the blinds and looked outside. No one was on the street. I let go of a breath I was holding. I turned around and got my blanket, I figured I would just get a book and read again. I felt a breeze run into my room. I snapped around.

A boy was climbing through my window.

"WHAT-"

He jumped towards me and covered my mouth with his hand.

"You want to get us killed!" He hissed. Killed? Saids the boy who is in my room!

"You climb through my window what kind of stocker are you!" I yelled, but he kept my mouth covered, so it sounded more like "mmmmmmm ommm"

"Yeah I know, I missed you too." He said. Missed me? Who me? I pulled his hand from my mouth.

"Who are you? And you better tell me or I'll scream, and my parents will come running in." I told him. He had a dreamy look on his face.

"Parents, miss me I saw. Never told you, probably so you wouldn't get any ideas." He said.

"Who are you." I said strongly.

"Philip, your brother." He told me.

"I don't have a brother." I told him. He got a faraway look in his eyes. The one that told me he wasn't here anymore.

"I bet they never did. They didn't want you to end up like me, wanted to keep you away from all of them. They failed in their new city, so they had to move back here." Philip said.

"We just bought this house, what are you talking about?" I asked, more confused than ever.

"Oh no, this was your room before. Until you were maybe six? Well let's see, I was nine when I left, so no, you were seven. I left and bam you all moved." He told me.

"I don't believe you." I told him.

"Fine, don't believe me, but ask our parents. Go to the last room on the right and open it. It was my room before." He said.

"No that room is-" I cut myself off. I had never been in that room before. It was always locked up, and my dad always got mad when I asked about it. "This isn't real." I said.

"I used to think life was a dream, I had dreams to be this amazing kid with super powers and I would go and save people. That was one of the reasons why I ran away. When I went to the real world, imagine my surprise." He told me. I stared at him for a few seconds.

"I don't believe you. Get out of my room." I told him. He looked a little hurt, but didn't say anything. He leaped out of the open window. I didn't see him leave the yard or anything, but I didn't sense his presence.

"It's all a dream." I told myself, but even as I said it, I knew it wasn't.

The next morning I woke up with a goal in my mind. I was going to go and see what was behind that door, no matter if I got yelled at or anything. I pulled some black leggings on and a sparkly purple shirt on. I pulled my hair into a ponytail and hurried downstairs. It was a Sunday morning, so my parents would still be asleep. I grabbed some homemade cake and a glass of milk. I quickly finished up my breakfast and washed the dishes. I felt like I was stalling time, so I would not have to go and open up the door. At last I couldn't wait any longer.

I tiptoed up the stairs and hurried down the hall way. I reached the last door, the door that was always locked. I pulled out a body pin. I had unlocked these kinds of doors hundreds of times, I could do this. I quickly picked the lock. I stopped a moment before I opened the door. I took a deep breath and opened the door.

All my worse dreams were confirmed.

That random boy was my brother. My brother Philip. The room was clearly a boy's room. The walls were painted navy blue, giving it a darker feeling. A wooden bunk bed was in the corner. Why a bunk bed, I didn't know. Until now I thought I was the only child. Bows and arrows used for archery were on the wall all over. Cars were thrown in the closet. Clothes filled the drawers and closet. Clothes for boys. Footsteps raced behind me, just as I found a picture. A photo was tapped to the wall. My parents were there, younger, but I knew it was them. I found myself in the photo, I looked about five or so. I didn't have one brother. I didn't have two brothers. I had three. I never knew of it ether. Three boys were in the photo. I recognized Philip, he had shorter cut hair though, and he actually looked happy, he looked about eight years old. A year before he left, I remembered. One of the other boys looked older, maybe twelve or so. He had a faraway look in his eyes, like he wasn't coming back after this, maybe that is what happened, but the look in his eyes was different, he looked sad. The other boy was younger, he looked like me. A mob of blonde hair, he looked about me age too, about five. I flipped the photo over. It had words written on the back.

Samuel ~ 11 years old
Philip ~ 8 years old
Henry ~ 6 years old
Willow ~ 6 years old

I started putting the pieces together. I had three brothers, Samuel, Philip, and Henry. If Henry and I were the same age, that means we are twins. I didn't just have brothers, I had twin too.

"Willow..." My parents started. 

"You lied." I said coldly. "You lied about my whole life." I added even colder than frost.

"No- We thought we were protecting you." My father tried.

"From what!" I yelled. "Millions of people know they have siblings, why should I be any different?"

"Philip told you, didn't he." My mother asked. I didn't responded." The window swung open and a figure jumped through the door and landed standing up next to me.

"Oh yeah I did, and you have around two minutes to explain everything before I take her away." Philip said.

"She wouldn't go with a boy like you." My father said coldly towards Philip.

"Oh yes I would, because then I would get answers." I said.

"Fine." My mother said. "It all started the day after that photo was taken."

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Author's Note

This was the original short story, and the story will now continue.

The short story was originally called , A Photo To The Past but I messed up when making the covers so it changed.

Word Count: 1425