All Chapters of The Other Son: Chapter 1 - Chapter 8

8 Chapters

Chapter 1

The office was packed with faculty.My advisor stared at the sample clenched in my mother's hand, panic written all over his face."Mrs. Skinner, I understand you love your son, but the submission deadline is this afternoon. This is four years of work from our entire team. You can't just let all these students lose their future."My lab mates crowded the doorway, staring at her, anxious and helpless.A few of the more timid girls had already started crying.We had poured four straight years into this project, day and night without rest.Now, it was in her hands. One mistake, one bit of contamination, and everything would be ruined.No matter how my advisor tried to reason with her, she didn't budge. She held my brother, Dylan Skinner, who leaned weakly against the wall, her eyes red."You've all worked hard, sure, but hasn't Curtis's brother suffered, too? He's only 17! This should be the best time of his life, but because of kidney failure, he's stuck in a hospital bed every d

Chapter 2

The room went quiet for a beat.The second my mother heard me agree, a smug smile spread across her face. She pulled the paperwork out of her bag and shoved it at me, ordering me to sign right away.My advisor, who had always looked out for me, hesitated. He grabbed my arm, clearly wanting to stall for time and try talking her down again.Before he could say anything, the other students cut in, their voices sharp with frustration."Professor, we get that you feel bad for Curtis, but the rest of us matter, too. We can't let one person ruin all of our futures!""This is his family's problem. As Dylan's brother, it's only right that he helps him. As a professor, you should be thinking about the majority."I let out a quiet, bitter laugh.Of course. The moment their own interests were on the line, everyone chose themselves.I shook my head at my advisor and signed the consent form.The second my mother got what she wanted, she tossed the sample back onto the desk, then grabbed my

Chapter 3

My hand, raised to knock, slowly dropped.I turned and walked away.I sat on the hospital bed all night, staring at nothing, until I finally picked up my phone and tapped the button to give up my graduate recommendation.Immediately, Janice Delgado's name popped up as the next candidate.She was in my class. We both worked part-time to get by, and I had always felt for her. We spent long nights studying together, buried in textbooks and research.She once told me that if she didn't get into grad school, her family would make her go back home and get married.Being able to do something that actually mattered for her at the very end made me feel at peace.Right before the surgery, my parents finally stepped out of Dylan's room and came to mine.They glanced at me, and I could see the anger burning in their eyes.Maybe because they were afraid it would affect Dylan's surgery, they held it in.Nurses moved quickly around me, checking equipment, adjusting lines, speaking in low, u

Chapter 4

My mother froze.Her body stiffened, her hand trembling as her voice came out uneven and sharp."You're scammers, right? Curtis just sent his girlfriend to my house to stir things up. How could he suddenly be dead? You're lying! That kid has always loved playing the victim. He tried to stop Dylan from even being born and caused my premature labor. Did he pay you to put on this act? My son just got out of surgery and needs rest. He's pulling something like this just to make Dylan feel guilty. That damn…"She didn't finish.A few neighbors who had just spotted her changed expressions and started whispering."She still dares to come back? Killing her own son wasn't enough, and now she acts as if nothing happened. That's disgusting…"My mother heard them and snapped. She rushed over, grabbed one of the girls by the collar, and demanded, "What did you just say?"The girl looked at her with open contempt, then pulled out her phone and brought up a video. The moment my mother heard her

Chapter 5

Both my father and Dylan were caught off guard.Seeing how weak and pitiful Dylan looked, my father stepped in again, trying to stop her."Honey, Dylan is the one we need to focus on right now. Ever since he was admitted, you've been handling everything. If you leave, I won't even know how to take care of him."This time, my mother answered calmly, "It's not like anything major is going to happen. The doctor already said the most dangerous phase is over. As long as he takes his meds on time, he'll be fine. Curtis hasn't contacted us in so long. If something like a complication really did happen, I should at least go take a look."The shift in her tone made my father realize this might be more serious than he thought. He hesitated, then asked carefully, "What exactly did they say on the phone? Did something actually happen to Curtis?""Don't say something like that!" My mother's voice rose sharply, her emotions snapping all at once. "No matter what happened, I'm going to the hospit

Chapter 6

My mother opened the door and froze when she saw a group of uniformed police officers standing outside.Behind them stood Janice, tense but steady.No one knew what she had gone through over the past two weeks, but she looked like a different person. Her face, once soft and bright, had gone pale as paper, with dark circles heavy under her eyes.I looked at her and felt my hand tighten without thinking.Somewhere along the way, after all those late nights studying side by side, I had fallen for her.I had planned everything. Once I secured my grad placement and took the job my advisor recommended, I would finally have enough stability to support her.Then, I would tell her how I felt.We would build a life together in this city and fill it with memories that belonged to us.But now, I had broken that promise before I ever made it.The night my mother forced me to sign the donation form, Janice had slipped into my hospital room.She asked if I would run away with her. Even if s

Chapter 7

Seeing my parents still hesitating, the police finally laid everything out.Before I was wheeled into surgery, I had already packaged everything that had happened and sent it to Janice via email.My chat logs, call records, and video recordings with Dylan all pointed to the same thing. He had gotten hooked on gambling, racked up massive debt, and had reached a point where crime felt like his only way out.Following that trail, they had also caught the surgeon who worked with him. The two of them had faked Dylan's kidney failure diagnosis and pushed me straight into hell.Hearing that, my parents froze where they stood."Curtis was your brother! How could you do something like this to him?"My mother rushed forward like she had lost her mind and slapped Dylan across the face.It was as if she had forgotten this was the son she had cherished for years, the one who still had a fresh incision on his abdomen.Dylan clutched his stomach in pain as blood seeped through his fingers.M

Chapter 8

With the truth laid bare, the officers took out their handcuffs and said to Dylan, "We're bringing you in for questioning."Desperation flashed across Dylan's face. With nothing left to lose, he turned on my parents, his voice sharp and relentless."I gave you hints! You could've checked the meds Curtis kept on the table anytime and figured it out, but you both chose to ignore him and let him suffer! Can you even imagine how scared he was, lying on that operating table all alone? And all of it happened because of you two, who never deserved to be parents in the first place!"My father grabbed his own hair, his face twisted as he shouted at Dylan, "You're a monster! You manipulated us into killing Curtis. You worthless trash!"Dylan snapped back, his voice rising. "What gives you the right to call me worthless? You're the reason I was born weak in the first place! I've been stuck at home my whole life, and this is the only way I knew how to deal with it."The real killers are you

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