Chapter 2: Please Don't Leave Me

I'm so useless, I couldn't even handle taking down one bad guy and now my parents had to pay for it with their lives. I should've been stronger, pushed myself harder, I should've let go of my feelings for Shi in that moment and taken Anthony down.

We are taking a limo to our hotel, Troy is refusing to speak, I bet he too thinks that this is all my fault. Des is trying to get his ring off, he's pulling and trying to get his finger unswollen but it's just making it worse. These must be fihis, that would explain why we cannot take them off. Cerberus is in my lap, staring up at me, lovingly, I'm trying to keep him as quiet as possible so then either Des or Troy won't get annoyed on top of heartbroken. Anne is in the front seat; I can see her keeping an eye on me in the rear-view mirror. I'm very grateful that she's around, though I also just want to lie down in my bed and cry, then my mother will come in with cookies and try to cheer me up. The tension in here is suffocating, I just want to run, it feels like everybody is staring at me! They all know that it's my fault my parents are dead, it's my fault for being so weak, for not killing Anthony when I had the chance. Now he has a Northrop Grumman B-207 Raider and his army is at an unbeatable size, yet still manages to remain in the shadows. Does this attack mean that he's ready to launch his takeover on Earth? All of those poor innocent souls as well, they're all being tortured and turned into minions with no control over their actions.

We arrive at the five-star hotel, we all get out of the limo like we're arriving at a funeral. There was so much more my parents wanted to explain in that video but didn't get a chance to, like the fact that they don't want to have a funeral, they want to be turned into crystals and be placed around their home. Except now, there is currently no home to put them in.

"Let's go in together," Anne takes my hand. "I promised that I wouldn't leave you, and you know that I always keep my promises."

"Thank you," I am handed the lease connected to Cerberus. Though, I doubt that he would leave my side anyways.

We are admitted into our rooms, I get my own, Des and Troy are sharing a room though. I'm also given the keys to my private gym, and am greeted with a card that says, 'Free Service 24/7'.

"This place is so nice!" Anne hands me a mint from the front desk. "I wonder what your room looks like."

"I wonder what Cerberus's area will look like," I add.

We ride the elevator to our floor and the doors open, the carpeting looks pure gold, there's fancy paintings all over the walls and the lighting is perfect. How does a hotel have so much funding for just design alone?

"Let's have a sleepover!" Anne jumps in joy once we get to the outside of my room. I can tell that she's acting all joyful to help boost my spirits, and I really appreciate it. "I wonder what the food here is like."

I laugh, "Me too, I bet it's all gourmet." Des gives me a dirty look and Troy smacks him. He's probably mad that I'm acting so happy and Troy understands how I'm actually feeling despite him not saying a thing.

I unlock the door while Des and Troy are taken to their rooms, Anne and I walk in, Cerberus is being held tightly in my arms and Orthrus is running from side to side, his two heads can't decide where to go first.

Anne gasps at the view, "This place is beautiful!"

I walk over to an area full of gifts, "Are these mine?"

"They're probably for Cerberus," Anne suggests. "Like dog toys and treats."

I grab one of the boxes and shake it, it sounds empty. I set down Cerberus and rip off the wrapping paper, it falls to the ground and he immediately jumps on it and rips it up even further. It's a dog collar with Cerberus's name on it, I guess that I'll never know what was inside the rest of my gifts. I start to tear up and Cerberus rolls onto his back, showing me his stomach and smiling like the adorable little puppy he is.

I bend down and pet him, "Who's a good boy? These gifts are for you, want to open them?"

Cerberus barks, I set down another present and he tears the wrapping paper to pieces, Anne picks up Orthrus and starts investigating the rest of my hotel room.

Cerberus hastily finishes unwrapping all his gifts and quickly passes out on the couch, laying on his back with his feet in the air, twitching every few seconds. He looks so cute; I just want to cuddle him! Oh yeah, I wonder where Anne went. I start wandering around the place and it is giant, it feels like it is around the size of three football fields, I'm pretty sure there's also a pool in here somewhere as well.

I found the pool and it is huge, I think it's the same size as an Olympic pool. She's not here but I see little wet footprints in the ground, so she has been here. I must've been opening those gifts for nearly two hours; I wonder why Des and Troy never came over and nobody came to visit me yet. I walk to my room which is upsettingly far away from the front entrance, although I'm pretty sure that the hotel room goes around into a giant circle, so I probably ended up taking the long way around. I open the door and see Anne taking a nap on my bed, cuddled up to Orthrus. I grab one of the blankets out of a cupboard and lay it over top of her. She had quite a big day, and tomorrow we'll be transferred into a whole new class with students who have been in that class much longer than us. We'll be ripped to shreds, faster than how fast Cerberus can rip that wrapping paper.

I plug in her phone and leave the room, shutting the door behind me. I guess I should start considering dinner. I take the shorter way back and it takes me no time to get back to Cerberus, I was looking for Anne for nearly thirty minutes and I could've just gone the other way! I sit down next to Cerberus, he shifts his body to lay his head on my lap, I start petting his belly. I look at all the gifts and I notice a book, it looks like a textbook for school. I reach for it, trying to not disturb Cerberus as much as possible. I manage to pick it up with him adjusting at all, I flip it over and read the title, 'Using Your Companion as Your Battle Partner.' This one must've been for class tomorrow; I'm guessing that everyone has probably received one already.

Anne comes running into the living room from the long way around, I guess that she doesn't know about the short way yet.

"Lexus, I'm so sorry, I fell asleep!" She jumps next to me, I quickly put Cerberus onto my lap. Orthrus comes running in, stumbling over his tail. "My mom is blowing up my phone and I really need to go home."

I feel a tear roll down my cheek, why am I crying? Her mother is scared and wants her home, I shouldn't be so greedy!

I grab her sleeve, and gaze into her eyes, mine are all teary, "Please don't leave me."

"I know I promised," Anne looks at me, upset. "You can come with me, or maybe my mom will let me come back after dinner."

"I thought we were going to order some fancy dinners together," I cry. Why am I doing this? I'm acting so clingy and controlling, I hate it! Her mother is worried about her, she almost died, I shouldn't be acting like this. She isn't my puppet; she's my friend and I should be letting her live her life. I look away, "I'm sorry."

"Lexus, you're in pain, I don't mind spending time with you, especially when you need me," Anne comforts me. "I will try to come back later, if she doesn't let me then I'll video chat you."

I hug her, "Thank you, I'm sorry for being like this."

Anne picks up Orthrus and walks to the door, she turns around and says, "It wasn't your fault," and leaves.