Gary’s car rolled into the driveway, its headlights cutting across the dimly lit yard. I had been standing outside for a while, arms crossed, leaning against my own car like I had been waiting for a damn ghost to show up. I wasn’t expecting him to take this long, and the fact that he finally showed up with Raina in the passenger seat made my brows shoot up instantly. Raina? Of all people? She practically bolted out the second the car stopped, her face turned away and her hair messy, like she was hiding something. She didn’t even spare me a glance before disappearing into the house as if she was being chased by demons. My jaw tightened and I frowned as I was confused by what I just saw. Knowing how much she disliked Gary, I frowned even more. My eyes shifted to Gary, who stepped out slowly, his usual calm swagger was nowhere to be seen as he looked extremely stressed. I noticed it right away, the way his shoulders drooped slightly and the way his gaze avoided mine for a split second before settling. He looked extremely tired. I exhaled sharply as I walked towards him. "You want to tell me why the hell Raina just came flying out of your car?" I asked him with a slight smile. Gary dragged a hand down his face while sighing. "Relax, man. I just... found her in the middle of the damn road. She looked like she wanted to get herself killed. I stopped the car and talked her down, and she cried her eyes out and finally calmed down ... That’s all." he gave me a brief summary of what happened and I was stunned asI stared at him, trying to gauge if he was serious. The same arrogant brat who thought she was too good for everyone? Trying to get herself killed?. It sounded so unbelievable. "And you just happened to be the one to find her?" I muttered with my eyes squinted and voice laced with suspicion. Gary’s brow arched as he smiled. He seemed to be amused by my stunned expression. Updates are released by 𝙣𝙤𝙫𝙚𝙡~𝔣𝔦𝔯𝔢~𝙣𝙚𝙩 "Yeah, lucky her, huh? Though she probably didn’t think so at the time." He shrugged, then gestured toward the house. "But I’m not here to talk about Raina, can we go inside? I need a damn drink."he said and I nodded reluctantly, leading him inside and straight to my room. It wasn’t like I could talk about my private matters in front of anyone else lurking in this cursed house. The second the door shut behind us, Gary collapsed onto the chair by my desk, rubbing his temples. I leaned against the dresser with my arms crossed over my chest. "So. Where the hell have you been all this time?" I asked him with a serious tone. He literally just disappeared on me when I needed him the most. He looked up slowly, and the tiredness in his eyes became even more visible. " I went home." He paused to take a deep breath. "My mother is sick, Kendrick. She is very sick, so I was called home. A lot was going on with you at that time, so I didn’t want to disturb you" he said with a tired voice. "How is she now?" I asked in shock, he just shook his head sadly. "The doctors say she doesn’t have much time left." he responded with an extremely sad expression. The room fell into silence, and I felt the weight of his words press against my chest. Gary rarely let out his emotions, but right now I could see the helplessness and the bitterness he was trying to hide behind that calm front. "Shit, I didn’t know."I muttered under my breath. He shrugged stiffly, like if he continues talking about it, he might break down. "She only has one wish before she goes, she wants to see me married." He let out a bitter laugh. "Married, Kendrick, Like I can pull a wife out of thin air just because time is running out." he laughed sadly. I stayed quiet for a moment, then moved closer. "Have you thought of anyone?" I asked him. His expression darkened as he ran his fingers through his hair. "No... Most of the girls around me are strippers or the usual one-night stands. None of them fit and none of them are... her idea of a wife. I can’t bring just anyone home to a dying woman." he replied and sighed in frustration. I nodded slowly, running a hand over my jaw. "Then start showing up to social events, the kind where women with high standing and good backgrounds attend. It’s not impossible, Gary. You just need to look harder." I advised him. "Easy for you to say. At least you don’t have your dying mother breathing down your neck about it." He huffed. His words stung, not because they were unfair, but because I had my own shit dragging me under. I turned away, staring at the closed window, my reflection faint against the glass. "Yeah,I have got my own storms." muttered with a voice low. Gary tilted his head, eyeing me with a frown. "Speaking of which... What is going on with you and Christy? Last I heard, you two were tangled in something messy. Don’t tell me it’s worse now." he asked me. A humorless laugh escaped my lips "It is worse,"I said. "How bad are we talking?" he said with his brows lifted. I turned back to him as my jaw tightened. "She is pregnant."I revealed and the room fell into silence. His mouth opened, then shut, then opened again. "Wait... you are serious?" he asked in shock and I nodded. "Fuck.. You really don’t do things halfway, do you?" He said as he leaned back, staring at the ceiling. "I wish I was joking," I muttered bitterly, pacing across the room. "But it is real and I can’t... I can’t even figure out what the hell I am supposed to do." I said with a frustrated sigh. Gary leaned forward, resting his elbows on his knees. "Well, the obvious answer is you step up and be a man about it. She is carrying your child for crying out loud." he said with a serious expression. "You think I don’t know that? You think I haven’t thought about it every damn second since I found out ? But it’s not that simple, Gary. Nothing ever is in this house." I snapped, my voice harsher than intended. He frowned. "Meaning?" "My mother... She hates Christy’s family because of some grudges from the past that she won’t let go of and now? Now she hates me for being in love with Christy and for daring to choose her over the family name." I said, the words came out sharply. Gary stayed quiet, watching me carefully. "You don’t understand," I continued, my voice rising as the anger I had been burying deep, finally spilled out. "I have lived my whole life under my grandfather’s shadow and rules. Everything I do has been dictated by this family’s damn legacy. And now, when I finally find someone who makes me want to break free, it is like the universe is punishing me for it. Christy doesn’t deserve to be dragged into this mess. She doesn’t deserve my mother’s hatred and my child doesn’t deserve to be born into this house full of so much hate and scheming." I said angrily. I stopped pacing, breathing hard with my fists tightly clenched at my sides. Gary let out a long sigh. "So what are you going to do?" I met his eyes, my voice steady for the first time tonight. "I bought a house." "You what?" he asked with a surprised expression. "I’m moving out tomorrow," I said firmly. "If Christy and I are going to have any chance, if I’m going to give her peace of mind, it has to start with leaving this place behind. I won’t let my mother’s hatred come between us and I won’t raise my child in this toxic house." I said with a determined tone. Gary studied me for a long moment, then nodded slowly. "Damn...You’re really serious." he said with a sigh. "I have to be," I muttered, sinking onto the edge of the bed. "I don’t care what my grandfather thinks,I certainly don’t care about the Black family legacy anymore. I only care about her and my child. And if that means walking away from everything else, so be it." I said with a serious tone. For the first time all night, Gary smirked faintly, though his eyes were still heavy with his own burdens. "Guess we are both carrying more than we can handle." he said with his signature smirk. I let out a bitter laugh. "Yeah, looks like it." The silence that followed wasn’t awkward. It was heavy with the kind of understanding that didn’t need words. But deep down, even with my decision made, I knew tomorrow wouldn’t be the end. Walking away from the Black family was never going to be that easy. And as I stared at the shadows dancing across the room, one thought refused to leave my mind. What I was about to do would change everything forever.