At that moment, the brothers sat on the couch while they waited for news from within the room.
George seldom smoked. The only time he had the urge to smoke was when Raina wanted to break up with him. After that, he did not touch cigarettes anymore.
Yet, at that very moment, a lit cigarette hung between his long fingers. It lit up, then was extinguished, but was lit up again, before it was extinguished again. The process repeated itself, casting him in a red glow.
He sucked in a breath and exhaled smoke before he looked at Harold.
Harold looked as if he had suffered a huge shock at that moment and was dejected. He was no longer as wild and lively as before.
Georgeâs heart clenched in pain.
He was the one who hoped that his siblings could be free and live as they wanted. He wanted them to not be shackled down by the responsibilities of the family.
But he seemed to have driven his brother into this state of depression.
If he had not acted as a parent and treated them so harshly, would they not have done their best to hide the truth from him because they were worried about him blaming them?
George rubbed his fingers together and started doubting himself for the first time in his life.
He could not help but think. âIf Raina isnât out on a business trip right now but is standing here and keeping me company, that would be great.â
When most of the cigarette was reduced to ash, he finally said something, âHow did Grapie end up with Everett?â
His voice dragged Haroldâs thoughts back to the present. He looked up, and he seemed lost for a moment. He also appeared incredibly weak, making him look absolutely nothing like the noble young master he usually was.
âT-Theyâ¦â Harold finally snapped out of his daze and said slowly, âIâm not entirely sure. In the beginning, Grapie wanted to join the entertainment industry to be an actress, so I helped herâ¦â
âWhen she went to join Melâs concert in Ufyra, we thought something was a little off. In fact, both you and Al told me to protect her and take care of both her and Mel âBut I didnât do it⦠We reached a huge breakthrough for our project in the lab, so I went back to the lab.
âLater on, Everett manipulated my AI simulation. android. I went back to Mel and took part in the lie to trick you.
âItâs also at that point that I learned that Grapie got together with Everett. Thatâs why I snuck back into the country in hopes to challenge Everett and see what sort of person he was that made my sister love him so deeply.
âI wasnât expecting internal strife to break out so suddenly within the Craig family, much less Grapie being dragged into it.
âItâs my fault, George. Youâre right to punish me. I was remiss in my duties, and thatâs why this happened.â
This was the first time Harold apologized so seriously.
In the past, he always ran away from apologizing whenever possible. If he could not, he would obediently accept his punishment. After all, he would carry on his merry way.
This time, he seemed to have suddenly grown up and was finally taking up the responsibility of becoming a man and an older brother.
George remained silent for a long time. When the cigarette between his fingers was about to burn him, he finally returned to reality. He snuffed out the cigarette in the ashtray.
Then, he whispered, âWhy didnât you tell me about. these?â
Harold ducked his head down and did not dare say anything.
Then, he said, âHave I been a failure of a brother over these years?â
He had been a genius among geniuses since young, was mature earlier than other children, and practically did not have a normal personâs childhood.
While other children were still babbling and learning how to speak, he was already reading through poems and other forms of literature. While other children leaned in their parentsâ arms and asked for warmth, he was already managing parts of the company and was doing his best to help his siblings grow up.
He had never made any mistakes and had never stepped out of line. He was reserved and never did anything that crossed any boundaries that he should not cross.
He also never once regretted his actions or reflected on what he did.
Until this moment.
Harold looked up and stared at his brother in disbelief. In fact, he was wondering whether he was hearing things.