27

Arthur has no idea how on earth did his dad not take any actions against his choice of friends. After his father’s departure from his dorm, things got back to how it was before. And they went out and had fun and then got busy with classes and studies. The boys enjoyed it a lot and also did well in the internals and then the midterm exams. It was more like they studied the night before exams and aced it like pros. When the midterm vacations arrived, it was more of a heart breaking news to Arthur. He did not want to leave his college and friends and go home. It was probably the first time in his life, he did not want to go home. During his boarding school days, he just wanted to run away home and hide in his room. He loathed going to school. But now, it was a whole new experience. Ethan had managed to convince Arthur that he will be in touch with him on the phone throughout the break.

Arthur exited the taxi and sighed, looking at the huge mansion in front of him. It was one of a kind building with exquisite architecture and also, most importantly, it was his father’s possession.

He dragged his luggage and walked inside the home. He was surprised to see that there were people making flower arrangements in the garden. He wondered if there was any party that his father was hosting. He was damn sure that this party was not his homecoming party. It would never be on his father’s agenda to host a party for his son.

“Arthur,” he heard his mother, Rosa's voice. A bright smile made its way on his dull face. He ran to the corridor from where the voice came.

“Mom,” he hugged her, “I missed you.”

“I missed you too, baby,” she said kissing on his cheeks.

“Stop calling him a baby. He is not a baby anymore,” the stern voice of Arthur’s father made them sigh in disappointment.

“He is my only child. And he will be my baby forever,” Rosa said to her husband. He paid no attention to her and turned towards Arthur.

“I am hosting a party for Ashley. She is coming after her post graduation. You better not do anything to embarrass me in front of the people,”

Arthur nodded his head because there was no point in arguing or questioning his father’s words. It would take him nowhere. As he grew up, he gave up talking most of the time.

Rosa pulled Arthur’s hand and led him inside the house. She did not have the mood to listen to her husband’s nonsense. She was super pissed off at him because he was hosting a welcome home party for his niece but not his son.

“How is college? Have you made any friends?” Rosa asked while walking towards the kitchen.

“College is good. And yes, I have made some wonderful friends,” Arthur replied grinning.

“Oh, baby. I am so happy that you have made good friends and also doing well in tests and exams. Your papa was irritated when he came back from your college. I did not even know he was going to visit you. He told me that he visited you only when he came back. I wondered if he was not happy with your choice of friends. But he did not mention much about it later on.”

“Well, it was horrific to see him there, unannounced. And he was not so happy with my friends' selection. But Mr. Garcia tried to talk to him,”

“Oh, that is a new thing. Mr. Garcia helping you,”

“I know right, mom,”

“Go, get fresh, and come down. I’ll prepare something for you to eat,”

Arthur nodded his head and kissed his mom’s cheek before heading to his room.

After getting showered, Arthur ate his mom’s food. It was heavenly food after a long time. He enjoyed eating out with his friends. But mom’s food is mom’s food. There is no comparison to it. The party was in the evening and Arthur spent his day mostly with his mom. He told her about his friends and Ethan. And how much fun they have. He told the most part but not about his and Ethan’s love relationship. He was not sure about telling it right away. He wanted to talk to his mom about it in private. During the day, the house workers would be around all the time. So he did not want to say anything about it yet.

Around 6:30 PM, Rosa informed Arthur that the guests were coming and his cousin Ashley has arrived too. So he quickly got ready and was descending the stairs. He heard a faint voice of moaning and heavy breathing. He carefully walked down and peeped into the corridor. There, was the biggest shock and amusing thing happening. His cousin, his older sister, Ashley was making out with a girl.

He chuckled and clapped his hands, “Bravo.”

The two girls stopped their make out and looked at Arthur. Ashley and he were pretty close, so formalities were totally skipped.

“My girlfriend, Natalia,” Ashley said, rearranging the wrinkles on her girlfriend’s dress. Natalia had a visible blush on her face. Arthur walked to them and hugged Ashley while waving hi at Natalia.

“I almost forgot how much of a rebel you are,” Arthur said to Ashley, who chuckled at his words. They were now walking to the garden where the party was arranged. Natalia too was with them. Arthur jelled well with Natalia in an instant.

“I will probably die if I don’t do something out of the box,” replied Ashley. She is the official black sheep of the family. But regardless of it, she had made her family proud by scoring the highest rank in her studies. And thus, the extravagant homecoming party was held for her.

The people at the party, the elders of the family, Arthur’s parents, and Ashley’s parents thought that Natalia was one of Ashley’s good friends from the college. But little did they know that their daughter, Ashley was about to drop the biggest bomb of her life.

The party began and the usual boring toasts were being made by the family members. They spoke about how proud they are of Ashley and her future plans.

All the while, one thing did not go unnoticed by everyone. It was how close was Ashley to Natalia and how Ashley was taking care of Natalia. Throughout the party, Ashley helped Natalia to serve food and even feeding a bite of sweet and drank her wine.

Ashley’s mother could not control her irritation, she leaned down the table and spoke to Ashley, “What are you doing? Don’t you think that you are being extra good to your friend?”

Ashley rolled her eyes, “Mom, I am not being extra good to her. It’s just how we behave all the time. And she is not just a friend.”

“What do you mean by not just friend?” this time, it was her father who asked. He was not feeling anything different from the others. He too was getting annoyed by his daughter’s behavior.

Ashley stood up from her seat. By now, the topic was for everyone to discuss.

“Natalia is my girlfriend. And I take this opportunity to come out to the world as a bisexual woman. And this is who I am,” declared Ashley.

Everyone and everything fell silent at the party. Arthur was feeling anxious about what’s gonna happen now.

Ashley’s father stood up, “I am disowning you from this moment. You won’t be getting any shares from my company or any inheritance from the family for that matter. You can see yourself out with that girl.”

That was the end of the party. The attendants did not have to be said anything, they, themselves got up and exited the party. It was more than embarrassing to happen to anyone is what the people thought.

Arthur was still seated in his chair. He could not digest what just happened. He had no doubt he would also be thrown out of the family just like this. But he loved his mom too much and he cannot afford to live without her.

“Come and meet me in my study,” Arthur jumped at his father’s words. He simply nodded his head. To say he was anxious would be an understatement. For a moment, he thought his father might have investigated him secretly.