Chp 9: Unexpected Turns of Event

NATHAN

I furrowed my eyebrows and extended my hand to turn off the alarm on the phone. I hide my face under the pillow to block the sunlight coming from the window. Suddenly, mom opened the door to my room and stepped inside. I groaned in frustration knowing what's going to happen next. She came towards our bed and took the duvet from us.

"Mom, 5 more minutes please!!" My brother and I said in unison.

"No 5 minutes. Get up right now. Don't you two have to go to college and work?" she asked us.

"No. I don't want to leave. I'm taking leave today." He replied and tried to retrieve the duvet, but could not do so.

"Yep! I'm also taking time off from work. Now please give back the blanket, mom." I said.

"No. Both of you are not on leave. Archie, you have exams coming up, and Nathan, you are the boss of your company. How can you take a leave?? Get your ass off the bed right now!!" she shouted at us.

We both shouted together, "Mom, you're bad!".

"Did you guys forget that I'm your mother? Like children, like mothers." She replied sarcastically.

She walked away as dad called her. I groaned and slowly opened my eyes. I blinked continuously to adjust the sunlight and sat up on the bed. I yawned, still feeling sleepy. Archie poked a finger at my waist as I was about to get up. I turned to look at him. And he was still lying down.

"What??" I asked while yawning.

"Dude, pass the blanket to me. I want to sleep more." he said, closing his eyes.

"What?? Are you mad?? Do you want me to call mom again??" I asked, thinking how can he sleep when I can't.

"Urgh!! Dude did you forget we have only one washroom in our room?? What should I do while you are using it? Or would you like us to take a bath together? I won't mind though. After all you are my only brother. And we both have the same thing. So, there's no need to be shy." He said the last part with a weird smile. My eyes widened at his statement. I made a poker face and threw the duvet at his face and walked to the washroom.

"What didn't you like about my idea?? We would save time and water this way." He shouted from behind. I knew he was teasing me. That's why I didn't answer him and headed inside.

Once I had finished everything, I walked to wake Archie. Cause if mom saw him sleeping till now, our house would be a war zone. She really hates when her children don't listen to her. I was pulled out of my thoughts when my phone started ringing. I looked at it and it was from the office. After taking that call, I rushed to wake him.

"Arch, get up. I am done with everything. If mom came back, it would be your last day." I said.

"2 more mins. I'll be up." He said while hiding inside the duvet.

"Fine. Afterwards don't tell me I didn't wake you up. Bye." I said and turned to leave for breakfast. Mom, dad and my sister were already present at the table.

"Good morning everyone." I greeted everyone with a smile.

"Morning." My sister replied while stuffing the bread in her mouth.

"Good morning." Mom and dad said in unison.

"Mom, now Nathan also came. Can you please tell me now??" Melanie, my sister , asked mom, who was preparing a plate for me. As I sat down in my chair, I looked at them. Dad folded the newspaper he was reading and set it aside. Then, mom sat down, exhaled deeply, and looked at dad. They both kept staring at each other as if having an eye talk.

"OOOOkkkkkk!! Can you guys include us in your chat as well? But the thing is you have to speak with us. We don't understand stares or eye talk." I said interrupting them.

"Your mom wants to say something to you guys." Dad said. Hearing him, mom narrowed her eyes at him furiously.

"Fine!! But where is Arch??" She asked, trying to avoid the conversation.

"I am here!! Why does everyone want me so early in the morning??" He asked while coming to the dining room and sat between me and Melanie.

"Well, since you're all here. I wanted to talk about something important. The apartment where we were going to move, the owner cancelled the deal." She said while licking her lips constantly.

"WHAT??" "WHY??" "IS HE STUPID??" We all siblings shouted one after another.

Seeing our reaction, dad jumped in, "Calm down and listen to us.".

"He cancelled the deal because his son-in-law lost a lot of money on his overseas business. So, they are coming to India and he wants to give that house to his daughter." Dad explained.

"But, how can he do that?? I mean, what about the money we paid him??" Melanie asked all confused at the sudden information.

"He gave it back. Guys calm down. He helped us find another apartment that was quite similar to that one. It's in a different location though, but not very far. It is crucial that you guys see it first and then we confirm it and proceed with the details." Mom said, keeping one hand on mine.

"But how can he do that? I mean I really liked that apartment. I don't want anything else. You know what, I don't want to talk about it anymore. Just do whatever you guys think??" I said, "I am done with that conversation." and walked back to my room.

"Nathan!! Nathan listened to me once. Nathan!!" Mom shouted at me.

But I am not in the mood to talk about it at all. I really liked that apartment. It felt so lively over there. There were many other flats that we looked at as well. But none of them, met with our requirements. That was the only flat everyone liked. As soon as we were so close to having it, it's no more. Why has it always happened to me? Whenever I like something, it's taken from me when I am so close to getting it. 

***********

I was sitting in my leather office chair, trying to read the report on my computer screen but unable to focus. Memories of the previous week kept playing in my head—Rayan holding my hand as we stepped out of the hospital, his weary explanation to Ammi that filled the hallway with tension, and then waking up alone after he had said goodbye without saying a word. That was unlike him; Weston was open, never shying away from expressing his feelings... until now. Just when I thought about what this could mean, I noticed my secretary at the door.

"Come in," I said.

"Sir, the presentation you told me to prepare for the investors is done!! Shall I show it to you??" He asked.

"Yeah, sure."

"So, this is our design. We have covered all the elements." He explained the entire presentation.

"It's all right, but please make the changes I told you to make."

"And sir, I have talked with the investors. At the start of the project, they wanted you to monitor it yourself. For that, you have to stay in XYZ for maybe 5-6 months. I haven't given them a reply yet. You can talk to them and tell them your decision." He told me about their demand.

I inhaled deeply, feeling a mixture of resignation and determination. The investors were investing a significant amount of money in this venture and I had to make sure everything went according to plan. With one last deep breath, I picked up my phone and dialled Weston's number. 

After the fourth ring, he answered, and in an undertone I explained what I needed him to do.

"Heyy, why are you calling??" He asked. This is not the usual Rayan style. Whenever I used to call him, he would get very excited.

"Why can't I call? What happened? Or should I take permission before calling you??" I tried to cheer him up.

"No, I didn't mean that. I was just asking." He replied.

"Ohh!! I know it's your packing time. I wanted to ask you if we can meet tonight? At our regular spot. What do you say??" I posed the question to him, and was met with a prolonged period of silence. I pondered what could take him so long for an answer.

"Heyy, are you there??" I asked him again, not getting any reply from him.

"Yup!! I am there. Actually, I am quite tired today. So, I don't think I could come." He said, trying to avoid meeting.

"Ohh, really. Do you remember how many times I was tired, and you told me to meet, no matter what??" I said, trying to change my approach.

"So what?? It's my right as your friend. I can call you to meet whenever I want. Understand!!" He replied, being provoked by my accusation.

"Then the same goes for you!!" I smirked when he explained my point.

"FINE!! I am coming." He said, gritting his teeth when he realised I had tricked him.

"Good. Should I come to pick you???" I asked.

"Nope. I got my bike back. I will come on my own. Don't worry." He said and hung up the call.

I rushed to gather my belongings and leave the office. I was always the first one there, but this time he beat me—his vehicle parked a few spaces away. We both walked barefoot like we normally did, but it felt different. He didn't make any attempt at conversation. Feeling worried, I grabbed his wrist to stop him from walking further. We settled down on the sand near the shoreline with him tucked up in a ball, his chin resting on his knees as he gazed out at the sea. The silence between us usually brought us peace, but today its oppressive weight suffocated me and I desperately wanted him to talk, so I spoke first.

"Care to tell me what's happening??" I narrowed my eyes to indicate he had better not hide anything from me.

"Nothing. Nothing is happening. Just old stuff." He replied in a low voice.

"You think I'm a fool. I can't see how you are behaving?? After our last meeting, you didn't call me once. And let me think, when was the last time Weston didn't talk to me for an entire week?" I asked him sarcastically. He was constantly lying to me, and that pissed me off.

"What do you want to talk about??" He asked, exhaling a sharp breath.

"Heyy, I know you are bothered because of your girl. But you should also understand her. Think from her perspective. When you call your sister and some stranger, answer it and say she's in hospital. What would you do?? She just freaked out. And all her worries came out as anger at us. She just lashed out because she was worried." I said, while keeping a hand on his shoulder, trying to make him understand. He was looking at his feet instead of me. This boy!! Why is it so difficult to get his emotions out??

"Ohh!! If that's not the reason. Then maybe you weren't so serious about her." I raised an eyebrow and cocked my head to the side. His eyes widened in shock and he gaped at me. I couldn't resist a tiny smirk - I knew this would get him talking! If you wanted Weston to open up, there was one sure way to do it: accuse him of something outrageous and watch the truth come spilling out.

"I don't think she wouldn't be my girl anymore. I just ruined our first meeting. I didn't want to shout at her. It's just..... I couldn't stop myself. I wanted our very first meeting to be special. And it's not that I didn't know why she lashed out. I am upset about my behaviour. Do you think after this she will ever want to see my face?? I haven't been able to stop thinking about her this week. I want to meet her and apologise. But I don't dare to do that." He said in a low voice and again put his head on his knees.

"Heyy, don't think like that. You can't just give up already. If you feel sorry for your actions, don't sit and feel guilty. Apologise to her. I know she will understand. And since when Weston has got afraid of a girl and waited for the right moment. As far as I remember, you were the one you kept saying 'we should never wait for the right moment, just take the moment and make it right.'" I said, trying to give him some hope. Instead, he just chuckled at my speech.

"Dude!! It's simple to say and very difficult to do. I, too, understand it now." I replied. And again, he continued,

He had regained some of the colour in his cheeks, and he seemed more relieved than before. Though I wanted to share about XYZ, I stayed silent. What else could he handle right now? As we drove home, I kept stealing glances at him and pondering when would be a good time to tell him.