Hey there. Uh, if you've read enough of Carlyle High School then you should know me as Alexis Lexus. Heir to the Lexus family fortune. Yeah. Well, if you haven't heard of me, then hello. I have long, light purple hair, my favourite colour is white, and I really hate the cold. This is my story.

    It all started back when I was seven years old. I was visiting my best friends house. We were sitting around, inside, bored out of our minds when the doorbell rang. I got up to answer it while my best friend, Lexia, went to the bathroom. We were the only ones home, her parents were out. I opened the door. It was a man. He had brown hair and his blue eyes looked friendly.

    "Hey there," he said in a nice way, "What's your name?"

    "Alexis Lexus," I said. Suddenly, he grabbed me. One arm around me with his other hand over my mouth. The only sound I managed to make was a meek yelp. He carried me away from my house and he forced me into the trunk of his car. He slammed the trunk shut and it hit me on the head, knocking me out. I lay there in the hot trunk unconscious. I was seven years old and I was kidnapped. Little did I know that it would change my life forever. I was still out by the time the man arrived at his safe location... where ever that was. I never did find out where I was held. He lay me down on a bed in a small room. He then left the room and he locked the door. I came to a few minutes later. I groaned softly and I struggled to get my eyes open. I sat up, which I wish I didn't do, because my body was aching really bad. I look around, trying to comprehend what had just happened to me. Oh yeah, I was taken from my home. My eyes became heavy with tears as I realized that my Mommy and Daddy and Lexy would be worried sick about where I was. I then started to cry. I was seven, so I really cried a river. Like a baby. I just sat there, on the bed, and cried. I barely heard the sound of the man unlocking the door. He came barreling into the room.

    "HEY!" he yelled at the top of his lungs. I gasped and I ceased with my bawling. Tears fell from my eyes, but I no longer made any noise. This man was so scary.

    "I w-wanna g-go h-home!" I said, looking at him. He was out of focus because my eyes were raining tears.

    "Well, too bad. You aren't going home and you probably won't be for a while."

    "B-but I-I w-w-wanna go h-home!" Then the man hit me on the head.

    "Zip it, you little brat!" he yelled in my face. I did my best to resist crying out. Although a few hiccuping wails made their way out of my mouth. My body shook as I sniffled. The man left the room and he locked the door again. I just sat there until after what felt like an hour or two, then I was overcome by sleep. I calmed down and my eyes stopped watering. I lay down on the bed. At least it had a blanket.

    Some time later I was shaken awake. It was a woman this time. She had long blond hair and pretty green eyes behind relatively thin black glasses.

    "Hey there," she said nicely, unlike the man who brought me here. "Your names Alexis, right?" I nod. "Here, Alexis, I brought you some cookies." She held out a small plate of a few Oreos and a glass of milk. I hesitated. "It's okay, they're fine. I just thought that you would be hungry after your nap." Hello? I'm seven, I don't take naps anymore! I didn't actually say that, but I felt like I wanted to. But instead, I just hugged her. "Oh," she exclaimed.

    "Thank you," I say. She looks at me and she smiles.

    "Your welcome." She hands me the plate of Oreos. I chomp down on them and I drink the milk. After I'm done, I wipe off the milk-mustache that had formed over my upper lip. I wanted more, but I decided that I shouldn't ask because I'm their prisoner. "All done?" she asked. I nod again. "Good." She stands up and she starts to walk out the door.

    "Hey," I say. She stops and looks back at me. "You're nice." I smile at her and she smiles back.

    "Thanks... Alexis." She walks out of the room and the door locks behind her. Suddenly, I'm tired again. The nice lady said the cookies were fine, so I think nothing of it. I think that it must just be my bedtime. I yawn and stretch and I lay on the mattress. I pull the blanket over me. I close my eyes and fall asleep, with a smile on my face. I was happy that I had cookies for dinner.

    The next morning, I think, because I have no sense of time, and there isn't a watch or a clock in the room. I wake up and I stretch and yawn. That's when I notice that I can't see. I feel around in front of me. I feel my face, and I just fell my face. Then the door is unlocked and opened. I see light come into the room. It's the nice lady. She reaches up and light fills the room suddenly. I groan and I cover my eyes.

    "Sorry," she says softly. "Did I wake you up?" I shake my head, my eyes still covered. I slowly uncover them and I blink a few times. I hear the door slam shut. After my eyes are done adjusting I see that she is still in here. I glance up and I see a lone light bulb with a small string next to it. I guess that's how she turns the light on and off. She sits down on the floor and she smiles at me. "I have some breakfast if you're hungry," she says nicely. It's a bowl of oatmeal. I like oatmeal. It smells heavily of cinnamon. My favourite. I take the bowl. It's a bit warm still, but it's also a bit cold. Aw. I decide to eat it anyway. She hands me a glass of milk and I drink it down.

    "Thank you," I say with a smile. I really like her.

    "You're welcome," she says with a smile. I suddenly feel like wearing the blanket as a cape. I don't know why, but I just do. So she ties it around just below my neck. "There, now you look just like a superhero."

    "What's your name?" She gasps quietly. I think I may have asked the wrong question.

    "I'm sorry, Alexis, but I can't tell you that." She hugs me. "I'm sorry." Oh yeah, I'm kidnapped still. She pulls out a small camera and she takes my picture.

    "What'd you do that for?" I ask.

    "So I can send it to your Mommy and Daddy so they know that you're alright."

    "Oh." She stands up to leave. "You seem nice," I mutter, not looking at her. She stops and looks at me. "Why would you take me from my home?"

    "Alexis, I'm sorry." she starts to walk out but the man comes into the room.

    "What are you doing?!" he yells at the nice lady.

    "I was giving her breakfast," she says to the mean man.

    "She's supposed to be tied up!" he yells and she backs up a step.

    "You can't do that! She's only seven!" This was the first time I have seen the nice lady yell at someone. At least it was at the mean man and not me. Then the mean man grabs the nice lady by the throat. She drops the bowl and it shatters on the floor. I cover my ears and I groan.

    "I will decide this! Now, If you think that you can boss me around, than you have another thing coming!" I watch is dismay as the mean man shoves her on the wall. I totally forget that the door is open this whole time.

    "Run Alexis!" the nice lady says. "GO!" Now she's yelling at me. Telling me to run. But I know, that if I want to see my Mommy and Daddy again, I have to leave her behind. I run out the door. I'm in a house. I run out of the house and I look around. I'm in a forest, but where? That's when I'm grabbed from behind. I look and it's the nice lady. "Come on!" she says. We take off running. I do my best to keep up, but I keep tripping and skinning something. She picks me up and we continue running away. She really is nice. We get to a road and she doesn't look both ways before crossing. Then I hear a loud bang. I look back and I see the mean man with a gun. Then, the nice lady falls down. "Augh!" she yells. I fall out of her arms and I land on the soft, wet earth on the other side of the road.  get up and she looks up at me. "Run Alexis!" she says. She stands up. "Ru-" I hear another bang. Red liquid splashes all over me, and I watch in absolute horror as the nice lady falls onto the ground, shot dead by the mean man. I'm frozen in fear, but I let out a sheer scream that sent birds scattering. The mean man comes toward me. I remember what the nice lady said I run. I run into the trees and not down the road. I have to do everything I can to get away from the mean man. I run deep into the woods, uphill surprisingly, and I climb a small tree. I hide up in the thick, leaf-covered branches. I hear nothing, so the mean man must be getting rid of the nice lady's body. That's when I start to cry quietly. That lady was nice to me, and the mean man killed her. I fell a sudden breeze and I shiver. I feel a sudden breath of wind and I shiver. I look up and the daylight is disappearing. Then, in the last light of dusk, I see a snowflake fall down. I forget that I'm wearing the blanket from the bed and before I wrap it around me, I hear a wolf. I whimper and I get out of the tree. I make my way back down the mountain toward the road. But, I do it slowly to make sure that the mean man is gone.

    I make it back toward the road. I don't see any cars so I fall asleep by the road, with the snow coming down. I cuddle beneath the blanket. I do my best to retain my body heat. I don't want to freeze to death! The next morning, I'm pretty covered in snow. I wake up. I look around. I see just snow covered woods. Then I see a fresh pile of dirt. It's the nice lady's grave that the mean man made. I walk over to the pile and I say a prayer.

    "I'm sorry the mean man shot you," I say. "You were nice to me." I wipe my eyes and I continue to walk down the road. I hold the blanket close to me. Then I hear the sound of a car. It's coming from behind me. I look behind me and I see a car coming down the road. Is it the mean man? I put my hands in the air. The car slows to a stop. The driver gets out. It is a man, but he isn't the mean man. In fact, he looks real young.

    "Who are you?" I ask.

    "I'm Aaron Soto," he says. He has blond hair and green eyes, behind black glasses, like the nice lady, only he talks funny. "Who are you?"

    "Alexis Lexus," I say.

    "You're the kidnapped girl?!" he asks. Oh, yeah. I am. It all comes back to me and I burst into tears. Aaron hugs me.

    "Come on, Alexis," he says, "Let's get you back to your Mummy and Daddy." He carries me to his car and he puts me in the back seat. "Don't worry. I know you miss home, right?" he asks me and I nod. He seems nice. He carefully shuts the door and he has the car heater on. I like the warm feelings. He gets in the driver seat. "You buckled in?"

    "Yep." He drives me home in a sea of warm air. I'm finally going home, and it's all thanks to Aaron Soto. He sure is nice.

2: The Life of Zandra Benz

    Hello. I am Zandra Benz, principal of Carlyle High School and this is a story about my past.

    It all started back when I graduated college with a teaching degree. I was 24 years old. I was waiting for my parents to show up, but they never did. I guess they never cared about me. I have five older sisters. You know what they say, the first child has the most pictures. Then the second has less, and third even less, and so on. Since I was the youngest of six, I guess they just made sure I was alive. I barely made it through school. I had to wear glasses and all of the other kids picked on me. It made me sad and angry at every one of them. But, I held my head up high, and I pushed my way through. But to do so, I had to totally change the way I was... who I was. I talked to no one, no one talked to me. I never did anything to attract attention. I got rid of my glasses and I had to work to buy contacts. Then, after a style change, from going to trendy and hip, to "solemn and boring", as some called it. I always wore dark coloured business suits, like I worked in a government office every day. I kept my hair back neat, every day. I blended in with the working class, even though I was only 14. So, back to when I graduated.

    My parents weren't there. They had forgotten about me. I decided that I would leave this dreaded city, and drive somewhere else. I packed everything I had, and I drove. I drove, and drove, not stopping. Until I came to the city called Carlyle. I moved into a decent neighborhood town home, and when the opportunity arose, the local high school need a principal. i walked up to the superintendent, and he laughed when he saw me. A young woman, aged 24. Being a principal of a high school?! It was insane! It was crazy! He said, "It couldn't be done."! So I took a deep breath, and I started over. The first day of school, I walked to the building and I unlocked the doors. I walked to the office and I placed my name on the desk. I straighten my brightly coloured shirt. Instead of my boring, business self, I would go back to the way I was. The first day was the hardest. I had to give a speech to all of the students. I was so nervous. That and it's not like any of the students paid any attention. This was back when Carlyle High was a really problematic place. After the first few months, when I barely had any control, I knew that I had to do something. That's when my reputation turned. I became known as the "meanest principal in the world." But I'm not mean, I just have to enforce my authority. I'm only mean, because I have to be. You have to exert your command in order to take control. And I went back to my business self. Always wearing dark clothes, always scaring the students into doing as they're told. I knew that I had taken over the school. The school board was proud to see a change in the school and they thanked me. I've been principal ever since. Then I met him.

    His name was Karl Benz. He was the owner and manager of a local business. He was so handsome, always crisp and secure. He always did things the way they were supposed to be. So proper. He saw the same qualities in me, and before I knew it we were married. A bit later, Mercedes came onto us. Oh, I was so happy. Karl and I raised her the way we were. But we did raise her as a child and it... well, you know... it had its ups and downs. Then, on Mercedes' 10th birthday, I found out that I was pregnant again, with Korra. I was so happy. Karl was too. Mercedes, well... she was 10, but she was happy too, that we would have a sister to grow up with. We were going to be a happy family. Then, on the day I went into labor, Karl was at work. I was only the way to the hospital, and I called him. He said he would come and meet us there. He never did. I was holding Korra in my arms, with Mercedes there with me, when I got another call. Karl was driving along the road, and he was hit head-on by another car. He was killed instantly. My heart stopped. My whole world was destroyed. I cried. That's all I did, was cry. Mercedes cried too. Korra did not. I cried because Korra would never know her father, and I knew that... someday, I would have to explain to her... what happened to her father. One day when she was 3, she asked where Daddy was. I had to tell her the truth. So I took her and Mercedes to the cemetery, where Karl was buried. At first, she didn't understand. But then Mercedes explained to her that he was killed before she was born. If you think that raising kids is hard, try telling them that their father died, and that they'll never know him.

    It was the hardest thing, I've ever had to do. But, that leads us to where I am today. Single mother, working hard, watching over a few hundred kids. Two daughters, and the students of Carlyle High, the school where I am principal.

3: The Early Life of Aaron Aston

    Hey there. I'm Aaron Aston. I'm 16 years old, and I'm a Sophomore at Carlyle High School. I have a girlfriend, Lotus Elise, but right now, I'm going to focus on me. This is the story of my past.

    I was born one fine July day back in 1998. It was sunny and warm, as my father told me. Mum went into labor and he rushed her to the hospital. I was born perfectly healthy. Yay me. I had a decent childhood, I mean hey, my parents were decently rich. Dad was a hard working businessman, always away on trips. Sometimes they would last a week, sometimes even a month. So he never really was there for me when I needed him. He was with us for maybe a total of about a month of all 365 days of the year. Leap years too. But it did make me sad that Dad was never there. And then, the day I was 4, my Mum died. She was fine, but she always seemed to be sad all of the time. The doctor said that he couldn't find an exact cause as to why she died. My father was upset when he heard that she passed. He had to work... and he missed the funeral. The only person who was there with me, was the only maid we had in our small mansion. Her name was Melody, and she practically raised me through middle school. She was only 10 years older than I was, so she raised me like a big sister would, and even though with her raising me, and I sometimes gave her hell, we were still the best of friends. But the day of Mum's funeral, when I asked the doctors as to just why Mum had died, I told her what they told me. "She simply lost the will to live." Then until I was 7, I was mad at Father. I blamed him for Mums death. He was never there for Mum and I so she just gave up.

    Melody was strong. Even through all of the hardships of our lives, she helped me through. She taught me lessons and the basic stuff they would teach in a normal elementary school. Then came the day when I was 11. Melody was 21. I woke up and ate breakfast. Melody wasn't around and I looked for her. I eventually found her. She was passed out, drunk, in the upstairs bathroom. I tried to wake her up, only she was really out. Father later came home that day. Melody was recovering from her hangover. Dad was so mad at her, that he fired her. I was so sad to see her go. I didn't want her, the lady who raised me, to leave. I still remember that day.

    "Melody, don't go!" I cried. I ran to her and I threw my arms around her waist, crying my eyes out. She bent down and she hugged me.

    "I'm sorry, Aaron," she said softly. Her breath still smelled a bit like alcohol. It smelled bad.

    "I don't want you to leave!"

    "Aaron," Dad said sternly, he grabbed my arm and he dragged me away from her. I was crying my eyes out while Dad dragged me away. I watched as she stood up, and she walked down our driveway, never to return. After we were back inside, Dad let go of my arm and he walked up to his room, to pack to leave for another trip. I stomped up to my room and I slammed the door behind me. I threw myself onto my bed and I cried for God knows how long. After a bit, I heard my father slide something beneath my door. I looked up and it was an enrollment sheet for Carlyle Middle School. I was angry so I took the paper and I crunched it up and I threw it into my trash can by my desk, where I saw a big wrapped gift. I looked at it questioningly. The tag said: "From Melody, to Aaron." She had left me a gift. I undid the ribbon and I removed the paper. I gasped when I saw what it was. It was a small laptop computer. At that moment, I looked out the window and I saw Dad getting into his car, heading for the airport. I looked back at the laptop and I opened it. It was already on, with a paused video on the screen. I pressed the play button. It was Melody.

    "Aaron," she said on the screen, "I'm sorry for coming home drunk, and I just want you to know, that I hope that if you're ever mad at me, that you can forgive me." I was in tears watching the video. "I left your father an enrollment sheet to get you into Carlyle Mddle School. But I leave you this laptop with this message. Also, in the files is all of my contact information. Aaron," she put her hand on the camera lens, and I put my hand on the screen, over her hand. "Aaron, I want you to know that I'm sorry. But I'll always be here for you." Looking closely, I could see a tear fall down her cheek. I was sad to see her go, and she was sad to leave me. I cried a bit more and I dug the enrollment sheet out of the trash. I straightened it out the best I could, and I flipped my desk lamp on, and I took out a pen, and I filled it out. I then used the laptop, nervous at first, because at the time, I didn't know how to use one, but I figured most of it out quickly, and I e-mailed her to come back, and to help me get into Carlyle Middle School. She came back the next day and she hugged me. Then, I gave her the paper, and she drove me to the school. My first day as a 5th grader would be the next day. Before I walked into the school, that day though, Melody put her hand on my shoulder, and she looked me in the eyes.

    "I will always watch over you," she promised. I didn't want to look like a baby, so I held back my tears and I hugged her. Then after one last long look, I turned around and walked inside. And the rest, is history.

4: The Story of Freddy Fiat

    Yo, I'm Fred Fiat. Before you shower me with hate, because of what I did to Concettina, let me at least be the first to say, that I have no regrets.

    So, I was born, and I had my early childhood. I don't remember much of it, but then again, I ain't gonna tell you much. Cuz I don't feel like it. I'm sitting here, in the Juvenile Penitentiary, because of what I did to Donata Pagani. I still have no regrets. I just want a woman to love, only no girls want to love me. Come on, what's wrong with me? It's not like I wanted to be like this. Fine, alright. You win. I was beaten, okay? I was beaten, most of my childhood. I was beaten by my parents, and by my so called friends in school. No one wanted to be friends with Freddy the crybaby, or Freddy the creepy guy. I hated every day of my life. I was an orphan. I was raised at a boys orphanage until I was 7, and some parents finally adopted me, because I was the last one left, before the place was shut down. Mom and Dad hated each other, and they hated me, so I hated them. I just hated everyone and everything. I hated the world all through school, until that day in 8th grade. I saw the most beautiful girl. I just wanted her to be my friend. I walked up to her, and she glared at me, making me sad, and angry.

    "What do you want?!" she demanded.

    "I just... wanted to say hi," I said meekly.

    "I don't care, get away from me, freak!" She turned around, and she walked away. I became angry. So I ran up behind her and I grabbed her. She let out a squeal, and I hit her.

    "Why won't you be my friend?!" I cried. Before she could answer, I lost all control and I started to beat her up. I was yanked off of her by three teachers. Then, she didn't look as pretty. As it turned out, I put her in a three day coma. When she recovered and came back, I was still in trouble. I walked up to her and she cried out and tried to run away, but I grabbed her arm. "I'm sorry!" I said to her, but she screamed anyway and it got me in more trouble. She said I hit her again, but I didn't mean to grab her so hard. She got me in more trouble for no reason. I glared at her as I was dragged away from her, in complete rage. "I hope you die!" I yelled at her. The next day, I was told she committed suicide. I was known as the guy who made the 14 year old girl, kill herself... and I never knew her name. I felt so guilty, only no one knew how I felt, cuz no one would believe me. I said I was sorry, and no one believed me. It was on that day, that I promised myself, that I would find a girl, who would believe me. And to this day, I still haven't found one who would believe me. I thought Concettina, or let alone Donata would believe me, but they didn't and it made me mad. Now, I'm serving jail time, and I won't be let out until I'm 25. I'm 17, and I have to be in prison until I'm 25. When girls find out that I've been in prison, then no girl will want to be mine, let alone go out with me.

5: The Tale of Kyoya Toyota

    Hey there. I'm Kyoya Toyota. Right now, I'm 15 years old, and I'm a Freshman at CHS. There's this girl, Natsuki, who loves me, which is... ya know... nice... and all, but I keep telling her that I want to focus on getting through school and college right now. Maybe when we graduate, we can date afterward. But enough about the present, let's take a look back into my past.

    I was born late at night on a cold November day. My parents said that they were only slightly upset that I came so late. Mom was hoping that I would wait until morning. But, I couldn't help it. I was ready when I was ready. Anyway, my parents were very successful scholars, so they raised me the way they were. To be the smartest. I wasn't one of those super-genius kids who went to college when they were 11, but I was still smart. I was in the Gifted class since I was in 4th grade. I've been obsessed about learning since as long as I can remember. But through middle school, I was teased, and made fun of. Nerd, smarty-pants, freak, smart-ass, they called me. Thank goodness that I didn't need glasses like my parents did, because I saw the same people making fun of this other kid who wore glasses. They made fun of him. But they stopped when he began to make fun of me. So I was the reject, who nobody wanted to have as a friend, until the 8th grade. The first day of Gifted, and there was a new girl. She wore glasses, and she was also in the Gifted class. I thought that she looked like she would become very successful. I wanted to tell her that, and when I did, she said I looked cute. She loved me! But, I was worried about my studies. So one day, she came up to me and she asked me out on a date. She did look good, I will not lie, but I'm not interested in dating. So, sadly, I had to decline.

    "I'm sorry, Rebecca, but I'm more worried about my studies," I said. She gasped.

    "W-What?" she asked, her eyes watering.

    "I'm not interested in dating, but we can be friends." For some reason, she began to cry. "What?"

    "Kyoya... you're breaking my heart," she said crying. She turned around and she began to walk away. "And besides, it's: 'I'm worried more about my studies!'" She corrected me, and a moment later, she ran off, away from me. I felt sorry for hurting her, but I had to be honest with her. Later, when Dad picked me up, I told him what had happened.

    "I think you made the right choice," he said. During the drive home, I contemplated on whether or not I did make the right choice. I don't want to hurt anybody, and I never meant to. The next day, I overheard someone say that "This Rebecca girl is suddenly cool." I wondered what they meant, and then I saw her. She had gotten rid of her glasses, and had replaced them with coloured contacts. She totally changed her entire personality. She looked totally different. I walked up to her.

    "What the hell do you want?" She glared at me.

    "Rebecca?" I asked, to make sure it was her.

    "Yeah, that's me. Now what do you want," she began to ask, but she added, "nerd?" I didn't know what to do. I tried to think of something to do, but I couldn't. Then I decided that I should just apologize, but before I could, a bigger guy came up to her.

    "This nerd botherin' you, Becca?" he asked her.

    "Yeah, babe," she found a boyfriend, "this nerd is." The bigger guy glared at me, and he began to pop his knuckles.

    "I'm sorry," I say and I run away, fearing for my life. Rebecca has hated me ever since. I still see her every once in a while, but she's much different now. She's dropped out of the gifted class and she's failing some other classes. I've seen her outside smoking cigarettes. She's destroyed her life. She could have been successful. Sometimes I wonder... if it's my fault. If I had just said yes to her, she might have stayed the way she was. But instead of smarts, she prefers drugs and sex. She's ruined, and it's my fault.

6: Yin Yamaha's Young Years

    Hey There. You recently heard that I had enrolled in CHS, right? Well, I guess since you're here and you want to know more about me, I suppose I can tell you. But you have to promise me you'll keep this between us, right? I have to be able to trust you. Okay? Alright, I guess I'll start when I was 5.

    I lived with my parents and my twin brother. His name was Yang. We had a lot of fun together. One reason why we always depended on each other was because our parents... well... they weren't always there. I know they loved us, but for some reason, they just couldn't always be there for Yang and I. The Yamaha family was just like that. But then one day, suddenly, I remember Yang waking me up, and I couldn't breath. Our house was on fire. Yang helped me get out. We were able to get out just before it collapsed. But we couldn't find our parents. We thought they had gotten out before us, but when the morning came, that's when we were told that Mom and Dad never made it out.

    Not wanting to go to the orphanage, Yang and I lived off the street from then on. Stealing food and clothes to survive. I know, I must have hurt a lot of people. Emotionally, anyway. But that's how we survived, by relying on each other and working together. Then, when we were 10 years old, they made us attend a middle school. Yang didn't really want to go, but I thought that maybe it would be nice. So I became obsessed with learning new things while Yang was the kid who everyone avoided. Naturally, since we were twins, that means that people avoided me too. We were in school until a year later.

    I was on a rooftop, reading my textbooks when a friend of mine came running over to me. She told me that Yang was with some other guys and that they had been in a car crash. We hurried to the scene, and again, that when I was told... that Yang didn't make it. He was killed instantly. I was left alone. The last of my family was gone. I didn't cry at all. At least, not until I stopped running. I didn't know what to do! I just ran away! I was all alone. I then survived off of stealing again for a while until I heard of this place called Carlyle. It was a town over from where I lived in Nottingham so I decided that I would go there and start a new life. I kept my name simply because I wanted to hold onto the happy memories I had of my family. They're all I have left.