Chapter 53
APOLLO
Si Apollo My mother’s buller greets me as I pull into the driveway thadn’t told anyodat was coming back, I was far ton amalausta get home and address the situation before my sister was impacted by mr mother’s panic attack, it s hem on my mind the antics trip bark
I thought I would have a little more time before I was forced to come back here
‘s a pleasure to see you again,” he says with a warm smile,
Miles has been with our family for years, and Tye practically grown up alongside him:
“‘s good to see you too, Miles, Trespand. “You haven’t aged a day since the last time I saw you
He laughs. Thank you, si
I would’ve liked to linger and chat with him, but I know I had to get inside quickly.
I hand him the keys to my car, which he accepts without a word. Given how much he knows about what goes on around here, in
why my return was so sudden. He was well aware of my mother’s behavior, especially when she didn’t get her way, a tendency that had only worsened after my father left
“Good luck, Sir Apollo,” he tells me as he gets into my car to park it
I take a deep breath. I need more than just luck to face my mother atter ignoring her for so long. She’ll undoubtedly be angry with
lengthy conversation. I know that she would use this opportunity to convince me or rather force me to go on that date with Jada. There was no use trying to ignore it. This was something I had to face whether I liked it or not.
While I have plenty of fond memories in this house, I’m also haunted by many painful ones. My mind drits back to the countless times my mother bro down after my father left her. I was the only one here to pick up the pieces. My younger brother was abroad during all of this, so he was fortunate to
while Toya was too young to comprehend what was happening. I had tried my best to shield her from the chaos, it took a long time to get things under control
Then everything changed when I discovered that Lana was my mate. My focus shifted entirely. Although I wanted to support both Toya and my my feelings for Lana were too intense to ignore. I made the difficult choice to stay with my father, but only after ensuring that my mother was stable. even promised her back then that I would marry the woman of her choosing, I did and said anything I could to convince my mother and to let me live with my father just so that I could be next to Lana on a daily basis./
Fuck.
I was suddenly remembering things I’d long forgotten about. My mate would never know just how much I’ve always desired her. I’d treated her sa poorly that she believed I didn’t care for her,
Tinhale deeply as approach the imposing front door. I know there’s a lot i have to confront on the other side. I’m far from ready, but I don’t have a
cholor
and so does my mother.
I push the door open, and it creaks loudly from the force use. Returning here under these circumstances feels sarreal
You can’t hide from your reality anymore, Apollo This is your life. You can’t run from it.
The moment step inside, I find my twelve–year old sister, tears streaming down her face, looking utterly terrified. I can’t imagine what she’s endured during one of our mother’s epe
This is my fault I knew what I should have done to prevent this situation, and yet I chose the opposite
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Chapter 53
“Brother!” she cries, throwing herself into my arms.
Thold her tightly and whisper, “Where’s Mom?”
She wipes her tears and sniffles, “She’s locked herself in the bathroom. I keep begging her to open the door, but the won’t listen,”
“Okay” I say gently as I guide her to a chair, “You don’t need to worry about anything. I’m here
She nods, gratitude shining in her eyes.
Darn it
I know my mother is panicking because I ignored her wishes and refused to attend dinner with Jada. This breakdown is the wake–up call I needed to start listening to her again. I can’t keep avoiding her calls if this is the outcome of my actions.
Once I’ve made sure Toya is okay, I head toward the guest bathroom. I take a deep breath as I hear glass shattering, it sounds like she’s throwing vases against the floor and possibly hitting the mirrors.
I knock on the door once, but there’s no reply. Instead, the chaos escalates.
“Mother,” I finally call out after finding my voice.
Suddenly, everything goes silent–she must have heard me.
But she doesn’t open the door right away. The silence lingers.
“Mother, can you please open the door?” ask softly.
I know I need to be patient with her during these moments.
“Why are you here?” she shouts
“What do you mean?” Treply “Didn’t you want me to come!”
“I’ve been begging you for months to have that dinner with Jada–your future wife.” She snaps. “I’ve asked you nicely, but you chose to ignore me. This is the first time you’ve completely disregarded me.”
It’s true; I’ve been treating her unfairly lately, but it’s only because I’ve been preoccupied with my feelings for my mate, I’m certain she would never approve of Lana, so I couldn’t explain why I’d been distant or why I was avoiding that dinner with Jada.
I know I’m not ready to marry
by her, and this dinner would only hurry along that process.
“Can you just open the door so we can talk?” I ask her. “It’s really hard to communicate through a closed door.”
4run a hand down my face when I hear her scream and throw something against the door.
“Mother,” I whisper, “You’re scaring Toya. Please, can you stop this now?
те
“Not until you agree to go on that dinner with Jada,” she snaps. “Twon’t come out until you say yes.”
“I never said I wouldn’t go to dinner with her,” I remind her. “I’ve just been a bit overwhelmed, that’s all.”
I didn’t want to frighten my sister any more tharyshe already was. This wasn’t the first time she had seen our mother like this, and I was certain it wouldn’t be the last. However, calming my mother down when she was already in this bystepcal state was not an easy task.
“That’s the woman you need to marry, Apollo,” she shouts, “I won’t be satisfied until you agree to that engagement. Even if you’re not ready to marry her yet, I want you to at least promise to make her your fiancée!”
My heart sank at her words.
Talistas there i m
