روايات وقصص ضمن My Stepbrother, My Ruin

“Yes, Enzo. My boy. Final year law student. | thought it would be nice for you two to get to know each other since we’re all family now.” Family. The word hit like a punch. I coughed again, throat burning, water still dripping from my chin. Last night | had ridden this man while moaning his name as he choked me lightly and called me his pretty boy slut. And now he was my stepbrother? Enzo leaned in slightly, voice low enough that only I could hear. “Looks like trouble found us faster than I expected, pretty boy.” I stared straight ahead, face burning, mind spinning with every filthy detail from the car in the rain.

Sophie added, "acting like you're too good for your own stepbrothers. Like, we get it, you're not actually related, but the way you treat them is just pathetic." "They're hot, rich, and actually nice to you sometimes," Lily continued, stepping closer. "And you act like they're diseased. What's your damage?" I bent down to pick up the photo pieces, my vision going red around the edges. These girls had no idea what they were talking about. No idea about the complicated mess that was my relationship with my stepbrothers. No idea about anything, really. "I said give me the photo." I stood up, clutching the torn pieces.

He was enraged at hearing his step brother's name; the young man was skilled at seizing every opportunity to ruin his enjoyment. After putting his phone into his pocket, someone strode in, “Hey brother, long time no see.”

I was the disappointing son he was stuck with after all. Me dating my stepbrother was just another item on the long list of disappointments and failures. And even though I hated him for it, there was still a small part of me that felt guilty for ruining everything. Like maybe I really had destroyed the family all over again. At least what was left of it.

“I don’t know what to do anymore. I’m... I’m not the person I used to be.” “Exactly,” Maya snapped. “You’re not. And it’s because of him. Because of your damn stepbrother and the way he’s taken over your life. It’s twisted, Ariana. You can’t see it now, but you’re heading into a disaster. This is going to ruin everything. It’s already ruining us.”

He smiled darkly, completely different from the vibrant person he was during the day. "Oh, and by the way, my engagement party is next week. Make sure you dress up. I don’t want people thinking the Xander family mistreats their stepdaughter." I found myself once again watching Zac’s back as he walked away, leaving me behind. The moment I heard the door shut, I rushed to retrieve the photo from the trash. The glass frame, once carefully sealed, shattered and cut my palm, blood flowing freely. But this pain was nothing. It did not compare to even a fraction of what liver cancer felt like.

Like I was swimming in the ocean itself. “Today. Interesting. Tell me little one, what is the story between you and that arrogant man?” “Well, um. He… Is… Kind of my…” I looked down, unable to look him in his eyes, and whispered, “Step-brother.” “Your what?” “Step-brother.” My voice got a little bit more audible. “And he fucking tears you like that? Like fucking trash? How dare you stand for that?”

“Of course! I don’t want anything going wrong. And, let’s be honest… you’ll need my help surviving this.” “Surviving?” I nearly choked on my drink. I didn’t have anything to survive. It was a disaster that I assumed it would be. I hated stuffs like these, things that takes up my mind. ‘Stepbrother’s tattoos?’ My corrupt mind interrupted. I swallowed tight.

Elara followed, standing close, a presence rather than a word. Kaelan stared at the closed door, at the space where his brother had stood, at the wreckage of a relationship that could never be rebuilt. "I've lost him," he whispered. "Forever." Althea squeezed his hand. "Give him time." "Time won't fix this. Nothing will fix this." He turned to look at her, at Elara, at the two women who had become his strange, impossible family. "I've lost my brother. I've lost my name. I've lost everything I spent twenty years building. And for what?"

“To Mama, who fixes floods and makes the best trees!” I laughed until my ribs hurt. Later, when the apartment was quiet, I pulled out my sketchbook. I didn’t draw dresses. I drew the three of us on the balcony. Me, James, Lily in the middle. Stick figures, really. But I labeled it Family. After the flood. James came up behind me and kissed the top of my head. “What’s that?” “Proof,” I said. “That bad things happen. And we fix them. And we’re still here.”