All Chapters of Left Behind so My Brother Could Be Happy: Chapter 1 - Chapter 10

10 Chapters

Chapter 1

Nathan's POV"Nathan, what are you just standing there for?"My sister, Michelle McCreery, called from the doorway, impatience plain in her voice. She leaned against the doorframe with one hand."Ozzy's health isn't great. He can't be exposed to the sea breeze on this trip. I can't find that black windbreaker of yours in your suitcase. I looked for ages. Where did you put it?"I stood there, looking at her matter-of-fact expression. I had saved up my living expenses for a whole month just to buy that windbreaker."It's all the way at the bottom," I answered quietly.Michelle nodded before turning to leave, but stopped halfway out the door."While we're out on our vacation these next few days, do a deep clean of the whole house, especially Oscar's room. He's allergic to dust."She didn't even bother hiding the contempt in her voice. It was as if I wasn't even her brother, but merely the family's unpaid, live-in help.Mom stepped out of the bedroom holding Oscar's sun shirt."Y

Chapter 2

Nathan's POVEarly the next morning, I headed to school.Inside the office, Mr. Keeland pushed a thick stack of documents toward me."Nathan, this is a full scholarship to Vorton University. Only a handful of these are awarded worldwide each year. I'm incredibly proud of you for getting it."I picked up the pen, but my hand froze midair for a brief second."Mr. Keeland, does the confirmation form absolutely need my guardian's signature?"He blinked. "Technically, yes. But…"He pulled up my student records, then chuckled."I almost forgot. You turned 18 last week. You can sign it yourself."18 years old. My grip on the pen tightened. It was my 18th birthday last Wednesday.That day, Oscar had said he wanted a cake from the famous bakery on the south side of town. Mom, Dad, and Michelle drove halfway across the city to get it for him, while Celia stayed home to play video games with him.Not one of them remembered it was my birthday too."Nathan?"Mr. Keeland's voice brought

Chapter 3

Nathan's POVThe house was eerily quiet over the next few days.Every morning, I got up on schedule, finished the chores, and spent the rest of the day studying Ludarian, the language used in Ludario, where Vorton University was located.Now and then, the rest of them would occasionally post a few vacation pictures in the family group chat. But none of them ever asked how I was doing at home.On the fourth night of their trip, my phone suddenly rang. I stared at Celia's name flashing on the screen for a moment before finally answering."Hello?"The sound of crashing waves mixed with the chatter on the other end."Nate, that braided good-luck charm of yours… Did you put it in the inner compartment of the blue suitcase?" she asked with a hint of irritation.I froze.Before Celia left the countryside eight years ago, she had braided that charm for me herself, complete with a tiny silver bead for good luck.I had carried it with me ever since. I'd only taken it off for this trip

Chapter 4

Nathan's POVOn the last day of their vacation, the family group chat suddenly came alive.Michelle sent a long voice message."Nathan, our flight gets in tomorrow night. I need you to head over to Cirsville tomorrow and rent a two-bedroom apartment near Oscar's college. His health isn't great, so he won't be able to handle living in the dorms. Go to the apartment and clean the place up for him."While you're at it, you can move your things in too."When I finished listening to the message, I set my phone down without a trace of emotion on my face.They were so certain I'd go to Cirsville because Celia was attending Tangley University there. Oscar's college entrance exam scores could get him into one of the city's third-tier colleges, albeit barely.As far as they were concerned, a loser like me who could only hope to get into community college was only good for one thing—to go to Cirsville and be Oscar's unpaid caretaker, all the while following Celia around like a lost puppy.

Chapter 5

Third-Person POVAt 8:00 pm that night, the door to the McCreery house opened.Michelle, with two large suitcases in tow, stepped inside the house first."Home at last. Gosh, I'm wiped out."She casually dropped the luggage in the entryway and changed into her house slippers.Their parents, Ian McCreery and Julia Sanders, followed behind, supporting Oscar between them, while Celia brought up the rear with several shopping bags in hand."Nathan!" Michelle called out. "Where are you? Get out here and pour Ozzy a glass of water. He's thirsty."But the house was deathly quiet. No one answered.Julia frowned. "That brat. Where did he run off this time? Didn't we tell him to go to Cirsville and rent an apartment ahead of time? Why didn't he even bother to reply to our messages?"Oscar leaned against the couch, his face slightly pale."Mom, is Nathan mad at me because I lost his good-luck charm? If he's really upset, I'll just buy him a new one tomorrow to make it up to him."Ian p

Chapter 6

Third-Person POV"He didn't go to Cirsville? Then where could he possibly have gone?" Michelle retorted, scoffing dismissively. "He's a loser who barely made it into community school, and he barely has any money on him either. Other than going to Cirsville to mooch off us, what else could he possibly do? Fly to the moon?"Julia nodded in agreement, her voice full of certainty."He's definitely just throwing a tantrum. He changed his number on purpose just to freak us out. Ignore him. Let him go hungry for a few days, and he'll come crawling back to us."Oscar bit his lower lip, his eyes reddening again."This is all my fault. If I hadn't insisted on going to the beach, Nathan wouldn't have gotten so mad. Dad, why don't you give his homeroom teacher a call? What if something really happened to him?"Ian frowned. Though he'd been saying they should just ignore Nathan, he still pulled out his phone and called the homeroom teacher, Paul Keeland.The phone rang for a long time before

Chapter 7

Third-Person POVOver the next few days, the McCreery household sank into an oppressive silence.Julia couldn't sleep at all during the nights, often finding herself wandering to the empty storage room, while Michelle stopped bringing up the idea of getting Nathan to rent a place in Cirsville.Celia used every connection she had to track down his information in Vorton, but she found nothing. Nathan had left too resolutely, cutting off every trail that could have led back to him."This won't do. I'm going back to the countryside to ask the neighbors," Ian huffed, unable to sit still any longer. "Applying to study abroad is a complicated process. Someone must have helped him."That weekend, the entire McCreery family, along with Celia, drove out to the countryside. It was the first time in three years that any of them had set foot in the place where Nathan had spent the first 15 years of his life.The dilapidated mud-brick house had already partially collapsed.The next-door neigh

Chapter 8

Third-Person POVCelia had no idea how she made it back to Cirsville. She locked herself inside her apartment and didn't step outside for three straight days.Susanne's accusations echoed endlessly in her head, along with the note Nathan had left behind."Celia is the best person in the world…"That phrase haunted her like a curse, replaying over and over again in her mind.She had been his light once. But then, with her own two hands, she had shifted that light onto Oscar instead.She thought back to the night before they left for the beach. She had watched as Nathan was robbed of his chance to go on the trip, and she had watched as his suitcase was handed over to Oscar. She had clearly seen the deeply suppressed disappointment in his eyes, yet she had still told him in the most composed, reasonable tone, "You're the older brother. Be more mature about things."She had assumed he was just sulking. She'd figured that when she got back, she could just buy him a video game console

Chapter 9

Nathan's POVThree years passed in the blink of an eye.Winter in Vorton was terribly cold, and the snow fell heavily.I sat by the laboratory window with a mug of hot coffee, watching the vast blanket of white outside.My life had been good these past three years. I had secured a full scholarship and joined my professor's core research project. I had even published two papers in leading academic journals.I was no longer the Nathan who tiptoed through life while living in a cramped storage room and constantly expected to be "mature". To my professor, I was his star student, and to my peers, I was the academic prodigy who could do anything.Suddenly, my phone buzzed. It was a text from an unfamiliar number back home."Nate, it's started snowing here in Cirsville. When are you coming back?"This was the 999th message of its kind I had received this month. I didn't even need to guess to know it was Celia.She'd somehow gotten hold of my new number and, every few days, she'd send

Chapter 10

Nathan's POVAfter the conference ended, my parents, Michelle, and Celia cornered me in the hotel lobby."Nate…" Mom called out in a trembling voice.She reached out to grab my arm, but I took a step back and avoided her."Excuse me, ma'am. Do I know you?" I asked, my gaze devoid of any warmth.Mom's hand froze in midair as tears started streaming down her face."Nate, it's Mom… Where have you been these past three years? I've missed you so much. We know we've made a mistake. Can you forgive us and come home with us, please?"Michelle stepped forward too, her eyes red-rimmed."Nate, I was a jerk back then. I wronged you. We've already sent Oscar abroad. You're the only son in the family now. Please come back. From now on, I'll listen to whatever you say."Dad stood to the side. Though he didn't say anything, his eyes were filled with desperate pleading.As I looked at the three of them sobbing and sniveling, I only found the whole situation absurd."Go home?" I repeated calm

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