Mom and Dad always seem to be fighting. They never stop and it's normally for something small and insignificant, like what to watch on TV. This is really starting to get me down and depressed. It's even starting to affect my schoolwork. Not once have they asked me how I feel about something, it's always fine, I don't want to do this or I want to do that, never it's fine Paul, what- what do you want to do? My so-called friends are useless. They simply stopped coming to my house under the pretext that they don't feel comfortable being there when my parents argue. Which we can't really blame them for, because I too would be uncomfortable in the same situation. Ashley takes it harder than me, she just can't handle arguments, but what kid her age could. She's only 9 years old, how could they leave her locked in her room while they argued? I sometimes think we would be better off if we left. I don't know where we would go, but it has to be better than where we are now. Maybe we could go live with Aunt Jane, ok, so she's not doing much better than our parents now. But I'm sure she would stop drinking if she had to start taking care of Ash and me. It's starting to get worse now, they won't even talk to me. They both sit there and drink. They drink until the early hours if the morning. Then they don't get up early enough to work and end up rushing. Then they attack us, so far it has only been verbally. I don't know what I would do if one of them laid a finger on Ashley. I would just lose it; I wouldn't be able to control myself. I love him too much for something like that to happen to him. I would rather die than see my little sister beaten like some kind of animal. I don't know what to do anymore, I don't know how much longer I can hold on.