Chapter 1.2 - "Alone, cold and heartbroken..."

The days past slowly, all I could really think about was Doc, he was my only friend. I did manage to accomplish some things before Doc came back, some which I am very proud of. I made sure each day to go outside, if only for a few minutes, to regain my appreciation of nature. I also managed to complete four paintings, they're not masterpieces per se, but they'll surely bring in some money. I still haven't been able to look in the mirror though, it's still too overwhelming.

There was a knock on the door, I rushed down the stairs, fixed my hair a bit, then opened it with a smile. "Doc, so great to see you aga-" I stop speaking, taken aback by the six strangers I see who are accompanying Doc.

Doc notices my discomfort immediately, and rushes to my aide. "Snow! Hey, so, these are my brothers I was telling you about..." He enthuses with a nervous smile, obviously afraid I'll be mad. I can't believe he brought all six of his brothers here... He knows how hard this is for me! Ugh! I think, but I simply flash a fake smile and wave to them.

"I told them how you were still.. Er.. Adjusting, but they were dying to meet you." He says, causing me to blush. Awe how sweet, I guess I'm literally some kind of freakshow now, I just can't keep people away from me. I think, feeling my heart sink.

"How about I introduce you to everyone?" He suggests, I nod and watch as he points out each one of his brothers.

"This is Greggory, the oldest. He's the.. Erm.. Well.. Grumpy one." Doc starts, pointing at his brother.

"Watch it!" Greggory snaps, then turns to me. "It's a pleasure to meet you, Snow White." He says, giving me a small smile. I nod thankfully, giving him one in return.

"Next is Henry, Greggory's twin, but they're exact opposites." Doc continues, pointing at Henry.

"Hi Snow! I'm just so happy to finally meet you! This is so exciting, it's not every day that Grim Valley get's new residents..." He says, his chipper voice trailing off at the end. I laugh slightly at his enthusiam, and wave politely.

"This is Bash, he's- Well- Shy..." Doc says, smirking at his brother.

"Am not!" Bash detests, then turns to me, blushing. "H-H-Hi S-S-Snow" He says with an innocent smile, he seems to be more nervous than I am.

"Hello" I say songfully, smiling sweetly at the nervous boy.





"And this is- Ugh, Sammy, can you at least try to keep your eyes open?" Doc snaps at his sleepy brother.

"Sorry... Hi Snow." He says, yawning lazily.



"This is Spencer..." Doc says, motioning towards his brother. He reaches out to shake my hand, but Doc stops him. "Uhh... You don't want to shake that, he's sick... Like always." Doc says, Spencer shrugs and wipes his nose, I smile faintly.

"And last but not least, we have our youngest brother, Dylan. He-" Doc is cut off by the boys voice...

"Call me D, would ya?" He demands, scowling at Doc. Doc rolls his eyes and continues...

"Fine. This is D, the runt of the family." Doc says, and all the brothers snicker.

"Shut up!" D snaps, crossing his arms angrily.

"Well Snow, it's been a pleasure meeting you, but we really must go. We have a successful farm to run, and I understand you have some... Business to take care of with Doc..." Greggory teases, all the brothers crack up a little, exchanging looks with one another.

Something about the way he said "business" put me off, I wasn't sure why, but along with the laughing... I just knew something was up.

"It was a pleasure to meet you all as well, Greggory. Thank you for coming!" I say happily, and wave as they all leave, watching Dylan- I mean D- trail behind the pack.

"Snow, I'm really sorry. They just wouldn't take no for an answer!" Doc apologizes, looking down at the ground nervously.

"Don't worry about it." I say softly, giving him a reassuring smile. "Care to come in?" I ask, motioning inside. He nods and follows me inside the house.

"So, have you been working on some paintings?" He asks.

"Yes, actually, I have!" I say, proud of my accopmlishment.

"That's great! I'll take them with me when I leave." He says.

"Thanks again for that, it's really means a lot." I say sincerely, gazing into his eyes.

I've always been drawn to those pale blue eyes of his, they just seem to be filled with such emotion, they're beautiful really... Well, everything about Doc is beautiful, his face, his body, his hair, the way he's so accepting of the way I look, and- What am I doing? No, I know what I'm doing, I'm setting myself up for failure. Why am I torturing myself, he'll never love a girl like me. Ugh! Snow, how could you be so stupid. Didn't you hear how they laughed at you? You're a joke. A big fat joke.

"Snow? Snow? Are you okay?" My thoughts are interrupted by Doc's concerned voice.

"I- I- I can't do this. You should leave." I say, looking down at the ground shamefully.

"But Snow... Did I say something-" He asks, sadness is in his voice.

"Leave!" I snap, then cover my mouth, shocked by my own tone.

His jaw drops, he looks at me briefly, but then shoots up and runs out the door.

I swear under my breath, slamming my fists on the table, tears stream down my face. I go to wipe them off, feeling the disfiguredness of my bone structure. My heart sinks, and I just sit there. Alone, cold and heartbroken.

The days passed, Doc continued to show up, but I never answered the door. I was afraid. Afraid to face him. Afraid of how he might judge me. Why was I so afraid? Because he's all I have- Well, had. Now I'm alone, a true monster, locked up in it's dungeon. I suppose it's where I belong.

I was starting to become content with being alone, but Doc just wouldn't give up. Every single day at noon he would appear at the house, and it just became too heartbreaking. I finally had to do something about it. So, I left. In the middle of the night, I just left. I had no idea where to, but I just had to leave.

I ran and ran until I came to a beautiful pond with a waterfall, and decided to take a rest. It was very dark, but I wasn't afraid. I was safe at last, and maybe someday I would be able to remove his face from my mind.

Suddenly, I heard a rustling in the bushes, and hopped up nervously. "Who's there!" I called out reluctantly, but all I got in return was the same sound, which was getting increasingly louder.

"Dylan?" I asked, you could tell by my voice how surprised I was, he was the last person I'd expect to see here.

"Snow!" He called, and ran over to me.

"What are you doing here? Shouldn't you be in bed?" I asked, staring at the small boy.

"I come here every night, I always have, it just... Relaxes me." He said, looking over at the pond. "A better question would be, what are you doing here?" He asked, there was a slight bit of accusation in his voice. "You know, Doc hasn't slept in days, you're all he talks about! I've never seen him like this, you've done something to him..." He said, looking down to the ground.

I've done something to him? I didn't do anything! I was just protecting my heart. I didn't want to get hurt. "I don't want to see Doc again." I say stubbornly, crossing my arms.

"But... He misses you." Dylan says simply, looking down at the ground, overcome with sadness.

He misses me? What? No he doesn't. But- But what if he really does? Could my appearance really not bother him? It- it has to... But what if it doesn't? I can't believe how little credit I gave him, automatically assuming he's a jerk. I need to find him... I- I need to talk to him... I need to get out of here.