Years passed by drenched in blood, and time didn’t exist any longer. Alis was growing taller and learning more, but his emotions stayed the same. Every week a new person would come to Mr. Keller’s home, and Alis would be forced to the basement to have his blood drawn. Alis didn’t put up a fight, lest he be locked away for days without food or water. Alis felt like he was a leaf, forever drifting through the air, longing to grab on to a surface to save himself from falling, but he couldn’t see anything at all. His arms were numb to the sensation of the needle’s prick, and his neck was scarred from the bites of vampires. Mr. Keller was happier every day with his ever growing wealth, and he treated Alis as though he were nothing more than a plant. Alis dreamed of the songs of the spirits that he held on to as tightly as he could, but he couldn’t stop the melody from seeping from the cracks in his fingers and disappearing into nothingness. Ten years had passed.

Alis laid in bed, drowsy from his blood being drained. The moon was bright that night, shining like a torch in the sky. Alis slowly rose from his bed and gazed outside at the horizon. There were no other houses nearby, just nature and calm. Alis tried to open the window, but he was faced with a fact he knew long ago: It was locked. Alis stepped outside of his room and saw that the fireplace was alight, as it was every night. Mr. Keller was asleep on his rocking chair with a bottle of alcohol fallen to the ground. It was completely empty.

Alis thought, “Hm?”

Slowly Alis inched down the stairs which creaked under his feet. He flinched, but Mr. Keller didn’t move. Alis still didn’t dare breathe a breath of relief, and he finally made it down the stairs. Carefully, Alis made it across the hardwood floor toward the front door, and then he saw a bell hooked on top of it. Alis took a swift breath, and slowly unlocked the door. It clicked softly, but Alis thought it sounded like a boulder had crashed down a mountain. He then thought, “Screw it!”

Swiftly he swung open the door and the bell sounded, and Mr. Keller’s eyes widened slowly. Once he felt the cold air enter his home, Mr. Keller dashed toward the entryway and looked at the door wide open, with nothing but the darkened night welcoming him. He dashed outside and screamed, “Alis!”

Alis sprinted through grass that was taller than him, and his breath was as rapid as a storm. He looked back constantly, each time seeing the house disappear into the distance. A torch was dashing around the house, and Alis knew the hand that held it. Alis smiled wide and ran until his legs gave out and he fell over the grass. He was atop a hill, and down below he could see never ending forest and towns so far away they were barely noticeable. The sky was clear and millions of stars looked down on him. The air was fresh and chilling, but Alis didn’t care if he was shivering. His smile was never ending, and tears dripped down his cheeks. He spread his arms wide and cried, “I’m free!”

Alis laughed for the first time in ten years and it felt so good that his heart nearly burst. His bluish grey eyes twinkled like a star and he hugged himself tightly as he smiled. Alis jumped up to his feet and looked behind him again. He could still see the torch dashing around, and it seemed to be getting closer. Alis sprinted down the hill and ran into a forest. Branches cut him as he crashed through the brush, and then he found a tree, large and old. He sat against it and held his knees close to his chest, and prayed that he would turn invisible. Every sound was amplified, as mice sounded like elephants, and bugs were like sirens. Alis’ couldn’t help his eyes from dropping heavily, but as soon as he had drifted asleep, his heart would start racing and he’d listen closely for any footsteps. Yet, he never heard anything.