Chapter 751
Chapter 751:
“We were quite comfortable financially once,” he continued. “But then, gradually, our fortunes took a nosedive. We downsized from larger to smaller, increasingly run-down homes. By middle school, we were renters. The arguments between my parents picked up pace; their once harmonious relationship frayed at the edges. My dad pushed my mom to work just to fund his addictions. And my mom… she grew more and more short-tempered. My father vented his rage on her, and she, in turn, took it out on me. Not a single day passed without turmoil.” Neal’s voice dripped with bitterness as he reflected on his past. “High school offered a brief escape since I lived in the dorms. Yet, I worried endlessly about them; they were still my parents, after all. Each weekend, I’d return home to witness their endless bickering and their continual downward spiral. To distract myself, I plunged into video games. Turns out, I had a knack for it. I quickly gained recognition, and soon,
Offers from companies and streaming platforms poured in. I signed with the highest bidder and started streaming while juggling schoolwork. That period was grueling. I burned the candle at both ends to keep up with school, but thankfully, the money I earned alleviated our financial strain. Things began to look up; my mom no longer had to toil as much.
Pausing for a moment, Neal sighed. “I believed we were on the brink of normalcy, but then my mother passed away. It happened right after my college entrance exams, right after I received my acceptance to Esaham University—the jewel of our little county. She seemed overjoyed, proud that her son had made it. But then, clad in new clothes, she committed suicide.”
Fernanda, taken aback, hadn’t expected Neal’s familial backdrop to be so stark.
“I think my mom reached her breaking point,” Neal said, wiping away tears with his sleeve. “After enduring years of my father’s tyranny, she was simply exhausted. Knowing I had a bright future probably gave her the peace to let go.”
Fernanda’s lips quivered slightly. “Why didn’t she leave him?” From her perspective, fleeing from such a man should have been instinctual.
Neal shook his head. “I asked her the same thing. But she always believed he could change—imagine that! Clinging to hope for a man like him. Relatives told me they were once deeply in love; my mother adored my father, devoted everything to him, and tolerated too much. Perhaps it was her leniency that emboldened him. Yet, she couldn’t bear to abandon him, and it ended tragically.”
He chuckled bitterly, his laugh muffled. “She still couldn’t bear to hurt him, opting instead to wound herself. And I, too, find it hard to sever ties with him; he’s all the family I have left. Perhaps I inherited my mother’s indecision, her timidity.”
𝗦𝘁𝗮𝗿𝘁𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝗽𝗼𝗶𝗻𝘁: ⲅⲁⳑ𝗇𝗈ν𝖊𝗅𝘀⫺𝖼𝗈𝗆
Having unburdened himself, Neal’s turmoil began to ebb. His breathing eased, and his tone softened.
“I never wanted anyone to know about my father, about my family,” Neal said softly again. “So I’ve always hidden it, trying to keep it from coming up. But… now it has been revealed.”
Neal dropped his arm and gazed vacantly at the ceiling. There was no false ceiling, just the stark gray of bare cement, illuminated by a solitary bulb.
“Why did he have to show up now? Just when I was basking in my greatest moment, he showed up and made me feel completely humiliated in front of everyone. He obliterated all my pride, ruined my careful concealment, and branded me with a mark of shame!” After pausing, Neal turned, his red eyes locking on Fernanda, and asked, “Fernanda, tell me, is this the end for me?”
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