Halo - 10. Chapter Ten

A week passed since the incident at the fundraiser that caused the death Mike’s father, and it was now the afternoon and I was home again after attending the funeral. I was there with Mike who was with his family. Surprisingly, they were the only people there. Apparently, Mike’s mother only wanted the immediate family and some other closer family members and friends to attend, which I understood since it was currently a breaking news story right then and she didn’t want anyone who didn’t truly care about her husband there. It was a time for mourning and nothing else. However, there were still news station vans and other people spectating the funeral like it was a damn show, and security was needed to quell them from trespassing.

I opened the front door of my house after Mike driven me back home. We kissed each other goodbye, and Mike said that we would return to pick him up in three hours, for what I didn’t know. I guessed he needed to spend more time with his family, especially Miranda who had not said a single word since the fundraiser. I felt so sad for her, and I didn’t blame her for her muteness since she witnessed her father’s death personally. And even though my relationship with my own father wasn’t the closest, I didn’t know how I would cope if the same tragedy happened to me.

Entering inside, I heard the living room television was on, and I knew that Dustin was home. I took a deep breath before entering the room and saw my twin brother slouching on the couch while drinking a can of beer. He was wearing a black suit; however, he was not there at the funeral, and he was not there for Miranda, his own girlfriend, which made me question whether he had any empathy for anyone or did he just care about himself.

“Hey… How was the funeral?” Dustin took a drink of his beer without looking at me.

I scoffed. “What do you mean ‘How was the funeral?’ Why weren’t you there?”

Grumbling, Dustin slouched further into the couch and said, “I meant to…but I couldn’t bring myself to do it.”

“I’m sorry you couldn’t miss your games, Dustin. Your girlfriend only needed you to be with her as she mourns the death of her father. No big deal.” I shake my head.

Rubbing his eyes, Dustin sighed. “What do you want me to say, Duncan? I know I’m being shit boyfriend right now for not being with Miranda at the funeral. But I tried talking to her for a whole week, and she hasn’t said a word to me. So, excuse me if I felt that being at the funeral wouldn’t have changed anything. I’ve had a horrible week too, you know.”

Dustin was being completely selfish right now, but I shouldn’t be so surprised. Everyone catering to his every want and need since they were children obviously made him a very selfish asshole. And it was all because he had the looks, the athleticism, while I had neither. However, I came a through as a better person, while Dustin remained where he was. A selfish. Entitled. Asshole.

I narrowed my eyes at the person I didn’t recognize as my twin brother before taking the remote controller and turning off the game. “You’re a piece a work, Dustin.”

“Hey, turn the TV back on!” Dustin demanded, standing up and trying to grab the remote controller from me.

“No! You need to get your head out of your ass and realize that the world doesn’t revolve around you. You’re being completely selfish right now!”

“I’m not being selfish, Duncan! I just lost everything with Dad’s decision to give the company to you instead of me, and I just want to sulk for a while. Can I at least have that?”

“Jesus! You’re still hung-up about that? Do you even want to be the president of Dad’s company, or are you just jealous that I have something that you don’t?” I asked, dropping the remote controller onto the floor.

Dustin waved his hand in dismissal before sitting back down on the couch. “Whatever. Just leave me alone. You have everything now. You’re going to be the next president of Dad’s company along with having Dad’s approval. I hope you’re happy.”

I sighed. “Look, Dustin. I’m sorry that things haven’t turned out the way you expected. But if you think that I going to forget about you when the day comes, and I take Dad’s position in the company, you’re wrong. I’ll make sure that you’re included as well. You’re my twin brother after all.”

Dustin looked me with surprise, but then quickly looked the other way. “I don’t need your pity, Duncan. That’s the last thing that I want from you. Now, if you don’t mind, can you turn the TV back on, so I can see who won?”

I kicked the remote controller to Dustin’s feet, knowing that arguing with him was pointless. I walk up the stairs and into my bedroom where I collapse onto my bed, completely exhausted from just that conversation with my brother. He may not believe or want it, but I was going to be by his side regardless of how much of an ass he was to me. That was what family was for, or at least what I believed family was, which did not include a distant father, a trophy wife and twin brothers who were more different than the poles of the Earth.

I decided to push those thoughts aside and my eyes became heavy, and I soon fell asleep.

***

I opened my eyes and noticing the darkness in my room, causing me to immediately sit up. I turned around and saw that almost three hours have passed since I fell asleep. I quickly got up from my bed and decided to change into more casual clothing before I would meet Mike. I then check my phone and saw a message from Mike that said that he was on his way. It was sent about thirty minutes ago, and I wondered why he hadn’t shown up yet. So, I decided to send him a text and waited for him to reply.

I didn’t get a reply, but instead I heard a banging noise coming from inside the house. Curious, I walked out of my bedroom and started to go downstairs when the banging noise got louder. Then a crashing sound was heard, and I immediately raced down the rest of the stairs. There was no one in the living room, and then I heard a shout that alerted me to whatever was happening was taking place in the kitchen. Dustin came into my mind and I hurried into the kitchen with the hope that he wasn’t be attacked by burglars or the people from the fundraiser.

“Don’t you ever say that about him again!”

I saw Mike, gripping my brother by the throat with one hand and clenching his other hand into a fist. “What’s going on?”

“Get this crazy fucker away from me, Duncan!” Dustin pleaded.

“You’re not going anywhere until you take back what you said about him,” Mike growled, raising his fist into the air that caused Dustin to flinch.

“Mike, stop it! Let go of my brother!” I ordered, stepping closer to them. “This isn’t you.”

Looking from me to Dustin, Mike sighed heavily before releasing his hold on Dustin’s neck and stepping back. Dustin stumbled backwards and struck his back against the rack of plates, causing them to rattle before falling onto his ass. I noticed that he had a cut on his cheekbone and bloody lip, and I wondered the heck happened to get Mike to hurt my own brother.

“Mike…” I stepped closer to him and placed a hand on his shoulder.

“I’m sorry, Duncan. I didn’t mean to. I…I’m sorry,” Mike apologized, looking down at the floor.

“Didn’t mean to? Your boyfriend was attacking me like I was about to set off the Third World War!” Dustin groaned as he felt his jaw with his hand.

“What were you doing, Mike?” I asked, really concerned for why he was attacking Dustin with such rage.

“He was saying things about you, Duncan? Things that couldn’t be true…” Pointing at Dustin, Mike continued by saying, “He was trying to break us apart by telling me that the only reason you were seeing me was because you wanted to take advantage of the fact that I’m going to be the next president of my father’s gold mining company. And since you were going to be taking your father’s place as the president of his oil company, that it only made sense why you would date me. I told your brother that he was full of shit, but he kept insisting upon it until… That’s not true, right?”

I looked at Dustin, not believing what I just heard myself. “No way that’s true. Mike. There’s a lot of things I like about you. Money and power isn’t one of them. And to be honest…I don’t like the idea of you inheriting anything from your father, like the position in his company since I don’t want you getting hurt by making enemies who want the power.” Turning to Dustin, I then said, “And I can’t believe you, Dustin. First, you want Dad to kick me out of the house because you found out that I was the one inheriting Dad’s company. Then you go out of your way to get Mike to break up with me by using Dad’s company as the reason? Are you even my own brother?”

Dustin was looking down with what looked like remorse on his face, but then it quickly disappeared and was replaced with a sneer. “I don’t have a brother. My brother wouldn’t…you know what? Screw it. Go ahead and inherit Dad’s company, marry Mike and have your happily ever after. I’ll just be in my room.”

Dustin began walking, but not before Mike stepped in front of him and said, “Whatever you do, Dustin…don’t you dare try to get between me and Duncan again. And don’t ever get near my sister either. She needed you at the funeral today, and when you didn’t show up at all, she was devastated… She’s better off without you playing with her emotions.”

I look down to see Dustin’s hands clenched in trembling fists, and I was about to step in. But Dustin walked past Mike instead, their shoulders bumping as he walked past. The kitchen was then quiet with the only noise coming from the low hum of the refrigerator. I looked at Mike who had a saddened expression on his face, and I approached him before hugging him. Mike returned the gesture and we just stood there, holding each other, seeking comfort in the embrace. I wanted to ensure him that my reasons for dating him were superficial or malicious, and that I was going to by his side.

The sound of a key opening the front door caused me to release my hold on Mike. And when the door opened, I heard Stephanie talking about how the business trip went, and I knew my father was home. So, hesitantly, I walked out of the kitchen and saw my father carrying a large suitcase while Stephanie was holding a bouquet of flowers. I swallowed as I stood there, waiting for them to acknowledge my presence. And when my father turned from Stephanie to me, he smiled. The man smiled…at me. I could go on about how that was a rarer event than the Second Coming of Jesus, but all I had to say was that my father smiling at ne and then greeting me in a happy tone made feel so weird and…valued. It was just a damn gesture, but I guess a child always sought their parents’ approval regardless of how distant they were.

“Duncan! I’m happy to see you again!” my father said, opening his arms for a hug.

I paused for a moment, surprised that my father wanted a hug as well, before stepping forward and accepting the hug. “Yeah. I’m happy to see you back home, Dad… Are you okay?”

“Of course, I am, son. Seeing you again is all I needed.” My father patted my back as I wondered if this person was my real father.

I look at Stephanie for some type of explanation, but she just smiled at me before walking to the living room with her flowers. “So…how was the business trip?”

Finally releasing his hold on me that gave me an awkward feeling, my father’s face suddenly turned serious and he said, “It was fine. All went according to plan. Now…do you know where your brother is? I need to talk to him about something.”

I was about to lie and say that Dustin was out or something, but I knew my father was a living lie detector and I didn’t want the approval he displayed to me just seconds ago to vanish. “Yeah. He’s upstairs in his bedroom.”

My father and was about to go upstairs when he looked behind me and said. “Oh! Michael. I didn’t expect to see you here.”

I totally forgot that Mike was here, and I turned around to see Mike standing at the entrance of the kitchen. “Yeah, sorry, Dad. I hope it’s okay that had him over to…hang out.”

Mike waved awkwardly at my father. “Hello, Mr. Sawyer.”

“Michael. My sincere condolences for what happened to your father. He was a good man…and I know that you must’ve heard that line too many times since his passing. So, I’ll say this instead…believe me when I say that your father never stopped looking for you, even when everyone else had given up hope on finding you again after your disappearance in the Philippines… I recommend checking his office for a binder that will show everything you need to know about him ever since you were gone.”

“How…?”

“Your father asked for my assistance to find you, and you’ll know the rest when you find that binder,” my father said, patting Mike’s shoulder. “Again. I’m sorry about your father, and that I hope you can move on to take your father’s seat in the company. He’d want that for you.”

“…Thank you, sir.”

“Of course. Now, I need to talk to Dustin. Will you be going somewhere, Duncan?”

“Y-Yeah. I’ll be hanging out with Mike.”

“Good. Just be home by one. Have fun, you two,” my father said before ascending up the stairs.

I didn’t know what I was more frightened of, my father’s sudden elation with seeing me again, his involvement with Mike’s father’s quest to find his missing son or what my father was going to talk to Dustin about. The latter most likely had to do with the fight that I had with Dustin, resulted in punched face that thankfully did not display any bruises. I was confused by the rest and Mike looked just as skeptical about what was happening.

When I heard yelling and banging coming from upstairs, I decided to walk out through the front door, not wanting to know what was happening between my father and brother. Mike followed right behind me and I quickly got inside his car. He then turned the engine on and he drove out of the driveway, leaving skid marks behind.

A few minutes passed, and we both remained silent during the car ride. I watch rain droplets gliding vertically across the passenger’s side window and that reflected the light glow of the street lights that just activated. I couldn’t help but wonder what happened to my father, why he was acting that way to me. I remembered the last thing I told him before he left for almost a month was that I was most likely becoming valedictorian of my class. He then said that “most likely” wasn’t good enough that I need to work harder before he left through the same front door. He was an extremely hard man to impress, and I really wondered what caused the shift in attitude. But I did know what he must’ve thought about Dustin and me fighting, glad that I wasn’t there back home right then.

“I’m sorry that I lost my temper back there,” Mike apologized as he stopped at a red light.

“It’s okay. I’m just worried about what my father’s saying to Dustin right now.”

“Why should you? Dustin tried to break us up and even tried to get you kicked out of your own home. He deserves a lot worse than a grounding if you ask me.”

“Well, he’s brother and…never mind. Where are we going anyways?” I leaned my face against the window and felt the cool sensation on my skin, hoping to numb the stir of emotions inside me.

“Yeah. I need to look through my father’s office first.” Mike sighed and scratched his head. “I’ve been putting it off for a whole week, and after what your father said about a binder, I think now is the best time to through the room.”

I nodded, and I turned my head to look at Mike. I noticed that his hair had a waviness to it, unlike before since he must’ve added hair gel to tame it. Along with the shortened back and sides of his hair, it made Mike look even more handsome than before. And the scruff added more manliness to the person who I just released my essence with only a week ago. I should just step back sometimes and appreciate what I have because damn was I lucky to have Mike.

Turning to face me, Mike said, “Why are you looking at me like that?”

I smile. “It’s nothing. It’s just…despite everything that has happened, I’m happy that you’re by my side.”

Mike smiled back and placed an affectionate hand on my lap. “Me too, Dun.”

The rest of the car ride went by more peacefully, the congestion of regret and concern diminishing from inside the car. Mike soon parked the car on the driveway of his house, and they went inside where everything was dark before Mike turned on the lights for the foyer.

“Is anyone home?” I asked Mike, looking around the emptiness of the house.

“Miranda should be. My mother is away right now, trying to maintain the company as the temporary president. I should probably check on her first. Make sure she’s at least eating.”

“Should I stay here?”

“Well, Miranda might like to see a friendly face, so if you want to come…”

“Of course, I will.”

Mike smiled appreciatively, and we walked up the curved staircase. Walking through the hallway, Mike stopped by the door that had Miranda’s name on it and knocked. After no answer, he knocked again before opening the door slowly.

“Miranda? Are you awake?” Mike asked as he stepped inside.

I entered right after him and saw that the bedroom was completely dark, and Mike searched for a moment before finding the light switch that activated the lamp by the bed…and Miranda. She was sitting up with her back against the bed board, her face somewhat distorted like she was just crying only a few moments ago. There was a box of tissues by her and many used tissues scattered on the bed and floor. I felt so badly for her right then and I wondered what help I could provide for her in terms of emotional support.

“Miranda? Have you left your bedroom since I left?” Mike asked, sitting down on the side of her bed and placing a hand on her knee.

Miranda didn’t anything. She just sat there and stared forward with the only noise that came from her was the slight sobs that escaped her mouth.

“Miry, please. Have you left your bedroom at all?” Mike’s eyebrows were furrowed as he waited for her to responded in some way.

Her eyes squeezing shut and her breath hiking up, Miranda then said in strained voice, “Just to the use the bathroom.”

“Did you eat?” Mike asked next.

Shaking her head, Miranda said, “Only water.”

“Only water. Miranda, you can’t be starving yourself. You need to eat. You need to take of care yourself—”

“How can I when…!” Miranda started crying again, but no tears came out and she started retching instead. “I can’t…I can’t…”

Mike immediately scooted by her side and began rubbing her back to sooth her as she retched, and I decided to crouch down by the bed near Miranda and waited patiently. Eventually, the retching subsided, and Mike told her to take deep, slow breaths as he continued to rub her back. I wanted to do something right then, but it looked Mike had it handled. So, I looked down to give them their space and my eyes stumbled on the trashcan by her bed. I was about to look somewhere else when I saw something weird inside. I then looked closer and saw what looked like different brands of…

I noticed that Miranda was looking at me with wide eyes before she said, “Mike… Can I…Can I be alone with Duncan for a second?”

“Oh, uh…sure. I’ll just be at the office.” Mike stood up from the bed and looked at me with concern in his eyes before walking out of the bedroom.

Alone, I looked Miranda who looking at the trashcan, looking disconnected again from everything that had happened. “Well…are you?”

Miranda nodded with thinned lips. “I used five different brands…and they all came back positive… Duncan…I’m pregnant.”