My Brother Said I Was Family But He Never Gave Me a Home Chapter 11
They saw him too.
Everyone’s smiles froze, and the air grew
awkward.
I had seen him every month for the past year.
At first, he tried to give me things. Money. Favors
with the school.
I said no every time.
The last time, he had the school give me a
merit-based stipend as if it were from the alumni
fund.
I threw everything he had ever given me, including the debit card, into the drainage canal behind the
campus parking lot.
I told him I didn’t need it, and I didn’t want anyone
thinking I was a charity case.
After that, he got more subtle.
He never dared show up in front of me openly
again.
Sometimes he invested in projects related to his company, just so he could watch me from a
distance.
I always pretended not to see.
He stood outside the window for a long time.
So long that eventually I pulled the curtain and
Mom took a nap with me.
When I walked my family out, he was still there,
standing in the same spot.
When he saw me, his dead, puppet-like eyes and
body seemed to come alive.
My parents sighed and pulled Michael away. He
was still clenching his fists, ready to fight.
I glanced back at Christopher.
“Can I help you?”
His lips were chapped, and he opened them with
effort.
“I need to tell you something.”
“I know anything I say or do now is too little too
late. But there are things you should know.”
“I cut all ties with Sophia. I found her biological family. I sent her home.”
“She’s not a Scott anymore. She’s not my sister.
She’ll never bother us again.”
“I packed up Mom and Dad’s house, everything
they owned, and bought back the old farmhouse
in Hudson Valley where we lived when we were
kids. That’s where I live now.”
“You said you don’t remember, that it doesn’t mean
anything to you. That’s fine, I’ll take you back there.
You’ll remember. Some of it will feel familiar.”
“Emily, everything that happened was my fault. I
was blind. I was arrogant. I thought blood was
enough, so I let you get hurt over and over.”
“But now I’m ready. Ready to bring you home. Can
you give me one more chance? One more chance to be your brother? The way it was supposed to
be?”
“I rebuilt the swing you loved. I made a new
rocking horse with my own hands. Exactly like the
old one.”
“Emily, I’m begging you. For Mom and Dad. Give
me a chance to start over.”
His eyes were full of hope and desperation.
He had played every card he had, even his last
resort.
But that might have worked four years ago, when I
still believed in the fantasy of blood, when I still wanted it to mean something.
Now? My life was full, exactly right.
I felt no anger. No resistance. No pity for him
either.
I just looked at him calmly.
“Really. It’s okay. We should both move on.”
