Chapter thirty three

Chapter thirty three
Ethan

“Remind me again why we're here again.” I sighed as we walked into my mother's house. I had lost count of how many times I came here this month. It was getting exhausting.

“You're here because you care about your stepdad and want to check on him,” I glared at Oliver but he simply smirked at me.

He knew how much I hated it when anyone referred to Sam as my stepdad, which was why he made it his life mission to taunt me with it. Asshole.

“Oh! So you're here because you care about your step uncle? How sweet.” I said dryly.

“No, I'm here because my wife threatened to have my balls if I didn't come. I happen to love my genitals, thank you very much.” he replied.

This Saturday had started out like any normal day. I had woken up next to the most important woman in my life, found out my father was an even bigger asshole than I thought, almost got hit by a car, had a mental episode, and now I was at my mother's place because her husband had an ‘accident’.

Scratch that, nothing about this day was normal. It's been hectic and I was fucking exhausted. And Sam just had to have his ‘accident' today.

I knew for sure that Sam’s condition wasn't serious otherwise we won't be visiting their house instead of the hospital. The last time my mother had summoned us like this, Sam had sprained his ankle while mowing the fucking lawn.

Yup, he was that clumsy.

I was tired of my mum trying to force the non-existent family bond between us. I didn't like Sam. Seeing him on a sick bed wasn't going to change that.

Regina had turned down the invitation with a flimsy excuse and asked Oliver to come on her behalf. He'd wanted to back out but his wife wouldn't let him. Dallas insisted someone had to be here for them so Oliver came reluctantly.

I almost didn't come too, but I didn't want to turn down my mother's invitation. It was amazing what you do for your family when you realize you are dying.

But that wasn't the only reason I was here. After Millie witnessed my episode, I was certain she had several questions about it. I knew she didn't buy my excuse of it been a migraine. I didn't think I could lie to her if she started figuring it out. I just had to leave.

Agreeing to come see a ‘dying’ Sam --my mother's words– might not be the best way to do that, but there were some other things I needed to figure out too. Like how Millie had been an anchor today and not a trigger.

I didn't know how exactly my brain was degenerating. The doctors had tied it to the reminder of something or someone from my past. The repressed memories get triggered some times when I see her, or when I remembered something from our past. But during my episode today, it was the memories of her and her presence that had saved me from drowning completely.

A nudge on my side forced me out of my thoughts. I blinked and saw a concerned Oliver staring at me, his brows creased.

“What?” I asked.

“We're here.” He gestured at something. I followed his signal and saw my mum staring at me with a confused expression.

My eyes drag around and I saw we were standing in front of my mother's bedroom. I hadn't even realize when we walked up the stairs. I sucked in a breath and pushed back the slight panic in my chest.

I told myself it was because I was so consumed with my thoughts that I had lost sense of my surrounding. Because the other explanation was unacceptable. There was no way my brain damage had gotten so bad that I was now losing time.

“Are you okay? We've been standing here for a while and you completely zoned out.” Oliver frowned.

I forced myself to chuckle and act casual.
“I got completely consumed with my thoughts about…work.” I shrugged.

I could tell he didn't believe me, but before he could ask anymore questions, I stepped forward and gave my mother a side hug. A big smile broke her concerned look.

“You shouldn't worry about work so much that you don't pay attention to anything around you.” My mother scolded lightly.

I gave her a half smile. I could still feel Oliver's eyes boring into my from behind. He was definitely going to question me after this.

Mum lead us into their bedroom where Sam was laying on the bed, a bandage wrapped around his head and his arm was in a sling.

“Hey, son–” the look I gave him was hard enough that he paused. “--I mean, Ethan. How have you been?” he said instead.

Oliver didn't hide his amusement at Sam's stutter.

“Sammy.” I purred, my tone laced with fake concern.

Forget what I said about wanting to get away so I could figure things out. One glimpse of his face and I was already regretting my decision to come here.

“What was it this time? Did you bang your head while trying to drink water?” I said sarcastically.

Oliver snickered, my mum glared at me, and Sam's face turned red with anger. Too bad he couldn't do anything about it, not when he was laying in bed with a bandaged head and broken arm.

“Ethan!” Mum called.

“It's okay, honey.” Sam smiled at her and I almost gagged.

Seriously, the man just annoys me. I can't get along with him despite been the most social in the family. There's something about him that's just wrong. Something all of us but my mum saw.

His smile grew tight when he turned to me.
“Actually, I slipped in the kitchen while tasting the food the caterers were making and fell.”

Okay, I was not expecting that. Oliver shrugged like he couldn't care less what happened to him. He just wanted to leave. We didn't even sit down.

“I was about to fire them for tardiness but they quit before I could.” Mum scoffed. She strode over to the bed and sat beside her husband. She took his hand in hers and gently grazed it.

“They quit before you could fire them? Why?” Oliver asked, his tone laced with suspicion.

“Something about getting a better offer somewhere and how they didn't have enough ‘manpower’ to handle this project. What offer could be better than catering at the Broadway Charity Gala?” Mum responded with a scoff.

“The caterers were for the gala? Why were they here?”

“Food tasting, Ethan. Keep up.” Oliver nudged me and I glared at him.

“Yes. Now there are only two weeks to the gala and we don't have any caterers.” Mum lamented.

“Then book another catering company. There are plenty we would love the opportunity.” I groaned.

The solution was that simple, I don't know why she has to stress over it.

“Actually, I have a better idea.” Her eyes darted between Oliver and I, a smirk tugging on her lips.

“What if Heather takes the gig instead?”

I blinked in surprise at the suggestion.

“She is a great cook, and the visibility at the gala would help her when she opens her restaurant.”

Oliver nodded in agreement.
“Yeah, the visibility would be good for her new restaurant. She could hire a catering team to assist her so the workload reduces.”

“Hold on!” I said “Why are you making plans when you haven't even asked her yet?”

“Why don't you talk to her when you get home? Make her see why this is a good idea.” Mum said.

My eyes snapped to Oliver and narrowed. Of course, he'd told her Heather was living in the same apartment building as me. He seem to catch my line of thought as his lips hooked up in a smirk.

Asshole.

“I'll see if I can talk to her.” I grumbled.

Another thirty minutes of fussing over Sam passed before Oliver and I decided to take our leave. I didn't miss the way he kept stealing glances of me the entire time but I didn't point oy out either. I wasn't ready for the conversation that would follow.

But luck didn't seem to be on my side today.

“Is everything okay?” Oliver asked.

I forced a smile on my face before responding. “Aside from the exhaustion from watching Sam made a fool out of himself agai, I'm fine.” I shrugged.

“Ethan.” He called, his face serious and pinched with worry. “You're not yourself.”

I almost let it slip from my tongue. I almost told him the secret I've been hiding for almost two years. The shrill sound of a phone ringing pierced the air, breaking the tensed silence.

“You should answer that.” I said, tearing my gaze from him.”

“Not before you tell me what's going on.” He ended the call without checking the caller ID.

His phone began ringing again. Oliver cursed silently before pulling his phone from his pocket. His eyes brightened slightly and I immediately knew who was calling.

He seems conflicted and was about to ignore the call again but I wasn't going to let him do that.

“If you don't answer, she night actually chop your balls off.” I snorted.

He gave me one last look that told me we weren't done with the conversation. I smirked in return.

But deep down, I knew the conversation was over before it could fully begin.