Page 12 of Fated with my Ex's Brother

F3 HB2BN 62EWB

8Dhat are you talking about… Dould you please just calm down and shed some light on whatever you want,8 my father's tone still remains calm.

8"ou wanted to get me sacked and revoke my recognition award,8 I e-plain.

8Can you hear yourself… "ou sound highly delusional. Dhy would I stoop so low to engage in something so trivial… I'm a businessman. I have more important matters to handle than sabotaging your little award. Lomething you know little of,8 his tone is very condescending. He stands and pushes me aside gently as he walks past me to his li9uor cabinet to pour himself a glass.

8Dould you care for some, son…8 he asks with a smirk. This man is really pushing it. I'm seconds close to pinning him on the wall and punching him s9uare in the face.

8No, I don't want your damn alcohol,8 I shout in frustration.

8Luit yourself then,8 he says as he takes a sip and returns to his chair. 8Is there anything else you want me to do for you, son…8 I'm speechless as to how unwavering this man is.Does he not understand my anger? Does he even feel empathy at all?

8Tell me, just tell me why…8 my voice drops. I sound almost defeated.

8Dhy what…8 he asks again, trying to play innocent.

8Dhy are you messing with my career, my life…8 I shout e-haustedly. I am Oghting back tears at this point.

8Ltop this foolishness!8 He stands to his feet. 8"ou don't have a career. Dhat you do is mainly a0hmm0 a hobby. I'm just trying to open your eyes to see how Ockle being a Osh in someone's pond is. 7ne day, you're swimming and enjoying lifeG the ne-t, you are caught for dinner. I wanted you to see that there is no place for you there, so you would return home where you won't be the Osh but the pond owner,8 he smiles as he e-plains.

’MTBx DITH W" B?'L 6X7THBX F”

I can tell he has made a lot of sense to himself, and I1ll admit, he sounds very convincing. The problem is that he doesn't understand that some people do not enjoy being into-icated with power. Lome people just want to live decent lives, removing rotten eggs from sociU ety.

8Mnd you think I won't be a Osh in your pond, too…8 I 9uestion.

8Dhat are you talking about… "ou own the pond. Mll this will be in your name when I'm gone.8 He gestures to the room. 8I would never treat my Sesh and blood like a Osh. Never! "ou have my word.8I am already sick of this fish analogy.

82isten, son, why don't you just tender your resignation and return to your empire where you will be king… Lave yourself the humiliation of being demoted to a common oAcer in the middle of nowhere,8 he says as he stands before me, adjusting my uniform collar. 8This color doesn't look good on you anyway.8 He returns to grab his glass from the table.

Wow!

8I have no words to say to you now, but I know I'll never work for you. I would rather be stuck in some podunk town in the middle of nowhere for the rest of my life,8 I say, giving him one last glare before I turn my back to leave. There is no point arguing with him anyway. He is a lost cause.

8"ou'll be back, son. Wark my words,8 he chuckles as I e-it his oAce.What an asshole!

I get into my car and drive around town until I calm down. There is no hope with that man. I know that now. Mfter nearly an hour of driving, I go to a small convenience store to get a si-Upack of beer and drive down to the cemetery where my brother is buried.

I stare down at his gravestone.

'Louis Elwood'

HB2BN 62EWB

'1990-2017'

'A brother and son'

8xamn it, 2ouis! Dhy did you have to go so soon… Now, I've got

nobody here on my side. I miss you, brother,8 I say, opening a beer can as I sit by his grave.

There is a long silence as I just down my beer and stare into the hori;on, remembering days when 2ouis and I were little. Those were the simple days. It is funny to think that we were never best friends growing up. He would always Ond a way to Oght me because, deep down, he thought I was responsible for our mother's death. Ms a child, I hated himG he wasn't there for his baby brother, and he always found a way to get on my nerves. That was what I thought until a day came when I was bullied at school, and he came to my defense. I asked him why he protected me when we got home, and he told me he was the only person entitled to bully me. His words made me laugh so much that he joined in. I think that was the day things shifted, and we began to be not only brothers but also friends. De became so close people thought we were twins. De ran with it for a while. De were called the 'Blwood Twins.' De were unstoppable.

Good old days.

8I miss you, 2ouis. I really do, so damn much. I don't know how I will survive these coming days without you.8 I allow the tears to fall down my eyes without care. 8’ather has been on the loose lately, and I don't know if I have the strength to Oght him or defend myself. I wish I had you here to protect me.8 I pause and take another long pull from my nearly empty can. I let out a short chuckle. 8He wants me to come to work for him, so he had me demoted. I tried confronting him, but he went on about some Osh pond analogy.8 I laugh out loud this time. 8’ish pond! Can you believe that…8 I say.

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