Page 26 of Back to Willow

I was proud of him because it was his way of getting some independence and showing our dad that the emotional blackmail wouldn’t work. However, things soured quickly. One morning, thinking they’d already be out, Mason came home to pick up some belongings of his, since he had been staying with some kind of friend for a few months. But my dad was still at home.

They immediately started arguing, with my dad following Mason around the house, throwing insults at him as he headed to his bedroom.

“Where do you think you’re going?” my dad bellowed. “Answer me!”

“Out,” Mason answered.

Alright, I need to step in before the situation gets worse,I thought, feeling the urgent need to de-escalate the situation.

“Mase,” I called as I opened my bedroom door.

My brother stopped and looked to his right side, fixing his eyes on mine. Dark and sunken bags framed the bottom of his eyes, his stubble had grown, and his oily clothes gave him an unkept look. It worried me because I could see how tired he was and couldn't do anything to help.

Double shifts at the shop to save money for his apartment, he had said last week.

“Shouldn’t you be in school,kiddo?” he rasped, sounding as tired as he looked.

“Just about to leave.” I paused, looking at my dad’s fuming face. He was holding it in because of my presence. Even within these four walls, appearances meant everything. But I wasn’t going to stick around just to let my brother be a target again. “Do you need a ride?”

“Liam, go to school,” Dad gritted. “Your brother and I need to have a conversation!”

“Actually,” Mason started, completely ignoring him. “That’d be awesome, kiddo. Thank you!” His hand raised, landing on my shoulder. His movements were slow, and when he touched me, I noticed the tremors. They were light, barely there, but I could feel them.

Was he hungry?

“I’ll meet you downstairs in five. Let me just get some things.”

I didn’t move, though. I knew better than that. Without another word, my brother walked up to his room at the end of the hall as my father followed closely. Once inside, they shut the door, and automatically, the yelling began.

Did he honestly think just because of the wall, I couldn’t understand what was going on?

“I am not going to fucking law school!”

“Look at yourself! You’re going nowhere with your fucking life. You’re fixing cars when you could be studying at one of the top universities in the country!”

“I am not living off your money, am I? I thought the problem was me being lazy! But nothing is ever fucking good enough for you.”

“You need to get your shit straight, come back home, and finish your education. What will people think of this? You look like a homeless person. Anaddict!”

Mason let out a sarcastic laugh. “That’s all you care about, isn’t it? Fucking appearances,” he countered. “What will people think? I don’t give a fuck about any of that! Why don’t you care more about the fact that I could be struggling? How am I making ends meet? Do you even care about anything other than your own ass? This is just shitty parenting!”

A slow and deep thudding sound pierced my ear through the thin walls.No.It was more like a dry and dull echo, followed by a pained groan that made my skin crawl. Then silence.Could it…Instinctively, my feet took me closer to the door, and I pressed my ear to the cool wood, but all that could be heard were the harsh breaths inside.

“Look what you made me do!”

My heart sped up at the realisation of the possibilities—what it could mean. That was all that took for me to burst inside.

Mason was sitting on the edge of the bed, cradling his face with an enraged look. At his feet sat a black duffel back with a few clothes spilling out of it.

“Me?” He was still laughing sarcastically.

“Mase,” I cut in, cautiously.

“Even if I did your bidding and went to law school, I’d be miserable trying to meet your unrealistic expectations! I’d rather be that homeless guy you say I look like rather than live under the roof of someone whopretendsto care for me.”

“Get out,” Dad yelled. “Get the fuck out of my house, and don’t you dare come back. You hear me?”

“Gladly,” Mason growled in return.

---