My Brother Stole My Life

From the very first day Gideon stepped into Sloane Manor, I should've known that I could never win against him.This wasn't the first time he'd sent me abusive messages. I'd even shown them to my parents before, hoping they'd finally see his true colors and stop being fooled by his meek, obedient act.But they only looked at me with disdain."Ivan," Mom said. "As expected of a child raised in the middle of nowhere. To think you'd resort to such tactics to frame Gideon. It's disgusting."Disgusting. My own birth mother had used such a word to describe me.It wasn't until later that I learned that Gideon had long since prepared countermeasures. He'd told our parents that I'd picked up bad habits from who knew where, and that I loved making things up.The truth was, all my parents had to do was look more closely, and they would've realized that the screenshots hadn't been edited; they were real chat records.But they hadn't. They'd rather believe that I was making things up than ac

That was the kind of life I lived during those years in the village.When Lex and Gina were in a good mood, they'd let me eat real food. When they weren't, I could only eat pig feed in the pigsty alongside the pigs.That was how I ended up with severe gastritis.When Lenora learned about how my gastritis came about, she was heartbroken for me. She even signed up for a nutrition course just for me and came up with new ways every day to make balanced and nutritious meals for me.The thing I ate most was the nutrient-dense oatmeal she'd make for me daily, which was sometimes sweet and sometimes savory.When I worked late, she'd even bring a thermos with that oatmeal to my office building sometimes. My friends all said I was lucky to have found such a caring girlfriend.But if I had known that Lenora had once been in a relationship with Gideon, I would've never gotten together with her. Gideon had already taken my parents and my sister from me. I didn't want anything to do with him a

Truthfully, I knew that whenever Gideon and I got into a conflict, everyone would always side with him. It was as if I were the villain who only ever bullied the unfortunate Gideon.…When I was eight years old, my parents brought Gideon home.Gideon was the son of Dad's fallen comrade. His father had died during a rescue mission, and his mother had later taken her own life out of grief.Dad took pity on him and couldn't bear the thought of sending him to an orphanage, so my parents adopted him.Gideon and I had grown up together. When I learned he was coming to live with us, I was thrilled. I thought I'd gained an older brother and a playmate. I never imagined that it would mark the beginning of my nightmare.Gideon did everything he could to steal my parents' love and affection from me. Whenever we argued, he would take a tumble down the stairs and accuse me of pushing him.My parents, feeling sorry for him because he had lost both his parents at such a young age, would loud

"Gideon," I said, looking at him. "Why are you here all alone?"Gideon smiled at me, his eyes full of mockery. "I said I wanted a sandwich from the east side of the city and a coffee from the west, so they split up and went to get them for me."I see. They sure were thoughtful, running all that way just because of one request from Gideon.But I had long since become immune to things like this. It no longer stirred anything in me, and I didn't even bother responding. I just walked straight past him and headed upstairs to pack my things.Gideon, however, rushed ahead of me and blocked my path on the second floor.His expression suddenly turned vicious. He grabbed my neck with both hands and slammed me against the wall, looking as though he wouldn't stop until he strangled me to death."Ivan Sloane!" he roared. "Why did you have to come back and take what's mine? You should've died in that village! You should've died in that pigsty! I'll do you the favor now! To hell with you!"My

Hearing the commotion, my parents hurried out of the kitchen. When they saw Gideon on the floor, they immediately shoved me aside and went to fuss over him.I stumbled back a step, watching the four of them crowd around him, all their concern focused on him."Gideon, are you feeling unwell?" Mom asked anxiously. "Your immune system has always been weak. You can't get sick again."A cold scoff escaped me.Was Gideon made of glass or something? Was he going to shatter at the slightest touch? Besides, I'd barely even pushed him. He'd fallen on his own.I knew coming back tonight wouldn't end well. I shouldn't have come at all. I could've secured that important project by myself, even without the Sloane family.With that thought, I turned to leave. But they wouldn't let me.Hillary rushed up to me and slapped me across the face. "Ivan, you ungrateful bastard! If Gideon hadn't said he wanted you here, we wouldn't have invited you at all. Yet you dare to push him?"Lenora frowned sli