(Stephanie's POV)
The soft click of Ernesto's bedroom door closing echoed like a gunshot in the silence of the foyer.We were finally alone. My husband, David, sank heavily into an armchair, burying his face in his hands. Diana and Leslie stood frozen, like statues of ice and rage, their elegant party dresses now seeming like grotesque costumes after the spectacle in the garden.
The party was over,and everyone had left. Even my father-in-law said goodbye cordially, though he had clearly noticed something was wrong, judging us with his gaze before he left.
"What… what was all that just now?"
My husband's voice was a hoarse murmur as he cradled his head in his hands.
"What happened, Dad? Your son is an ungrateful monster! He hit Ernesto!"
Leslie exploded,her fury finally finding a target other than William.
"Stop shouting, Leslie."
As I silenced Leslie,I noticed Diana looked pale, so I placed a hand on her shoulder.
"Is something wrong,dear?"
"None of you… none of you… remember?"
"Remember what,darling?"
"William's question!The last birthday of his we celebrated? For God's sake, I don't even remember the last cake we bought him!"
Her words fell like a bucket of ice water over us. The silence that followed was even heavier than before. Leslie opened her mouth to protest, but no sound came out. Her furrowed brow softened for a fraction of a second, replaced by a flash of… uncertainty?
"It doesn't matter! That doesn't justify him hitting Ernesto! Or speaking to us like that! He even threatened to hit us back; it was so humiliating!"
"And what about us?Haven't we humiliated him, night after night, year after year, by always putting Ernesto first? By forgetting his day, over and over again?" I looked at my trembling hands.
"I even hit him."
Leslie stood up and glared at me. "Mom,no! He was violent first! Ernesto was just trying to apologize, and William hit him!"
But didn't Ernesto provoke him?I know I shouldn't think it, but he was obviously tired. He didn't even show hatred; in fact, he seemed satisfied.
"Maybe he has a point. When he comes home, we'll talk to him calmly. We'll tell him we won't forget his birthday now, and we'll even give him all the gifts he wants for his forgotten birthdays. That should satisfy him, right?"
Leslie,though reluctant, sat back down in her chair.
"What time do you think he'll be back?That idiot is probably staying out with those bad friends of his, playing around, no doubt."
I stood up.
"I'll go wait in his room.He must come back tonight; this is his home, and all his things are here."
As I was about to leave,I noticed someone approaching and saw Diana near me.
"I'll go with you.If you go alone, after you hit him, I'm not sure you'll be able to talk so calmly."
Although I want to refuse, I know she's right. I don't think I'd know what to say if William showed up and asked me what I want.
"Of course,let's go."
Leslie and my husband went to their rooms. They both seemed to have something to say, their faces a mix of annoyance and exhaustion, so I continued on my way to William's room. Upon entering,we see a completely dark room. It wasn't exactly small, but it didn't seem to have its own bathroom like the other rooms.
When we turned on the lights, we saw that, despite everything, the room looked tidy, and the bed showed no signs of being slept in, indicating no one had slept there in a while. Diana, noticing the state of William's room, looked directly at me.
"Mom,why has William been living in this tiny room?"
I start to remember things and realize something.
"When Ernesto arrived,William gave him his room, saying there were many rooms in this house. But that day, some renovations were being done, so we gave him the largest servant's room we had here. It seems we never gave him another room."
"So all this started because William wanted to be a good host? What happened after that?"
"Ernesto was always fragile,so we gave him more attention. Besides, he was the son of your father's friend, so we took extra care of him. I didn't realize we were neglecting our own son to this extent."
Diana looked around the room and quickly walked over to what appeared to be the closet. As she opened it, a smile that didn't reach her ears formed on her face.
"Just as I suspected."
As I approached the closet, I noticed how few clothes were inside. Even I paled at what that could mean.
"William hasn't been home these past few days,probably since the day we threw that party for Ernesto."
No, it can't be. Where could he have gone?
"Where could he have gone?"
"I don't know where he went,but I have a good idea of who he might be with. And if he's not, I'm sure this
person would know."
I look at my daughter.
"We'll go look for him tomorrow.Since you seem to know what we have to do, I'll just follow you."
"Yes,but it's best if it's just the two of us. Leslie and Dad might do something to upset him further. We two are more patient than they are."
I bring my hand to my head. Although we two can be impulsive, knowing how my husband and Leslie have acted, we will be less harsh with him.
"You're right.Let's rest, and tomorrow we'll go talk to him directly." "Hey,Mom."
As I was about to head to my room,I turned around upon hearing my daughter's call.
"What do you think William gave Grandfather?He seemed pleased to receive it from William."
"Honestly,I don't know. But it seemed like something he liked, and they didn't talk for long, so it might have been William's birthday gift to his grandfather. Why do you ask?"
"It's nothing,just curiosity."
Diana went to her room, and so did I. Tomorrow, I will offer William my sincere apologies so we can be a united family again.
(William's POV)
I arrived at my apartment;the door closed with a familiar creak. The silence here was welcome. It was mine, not just a dependency of parents who ignore me. I took off my jacket and hung it up carefully.I want to keep these things close, to look at them knowing I achieved a victory without needing applause.
As I lay down, I saw the phone—that phone I never use except as an alarm clock and occasionally to text with Chloe. So if it's ringing, there's only one person it could be.
[Chloe: Helloooooo my little sunbeam pugilist, tell me how the party went today?]
That comment made me smile sincerely.
[William: Well, everything was pretty normal, honestly. I managed to get some satisfaction from getting revenge on that idiot.]
[Chloe: Really? HAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA, you're finally growing some big wings!] [William: Yeah, it was about time he got his comeuppance, even if it's late.]
[Chloe: Don't worry about that. You're living a life free from people who weren't even seeing you anymore.]
[Chloe: I'll leave you now, little sunbeam. We have to work tomorrow, and we can't be talking this late at night, especially you, who've seemed tired lately.]
[William: Okay.]
I was going to continue training my aura, but I realized I'm truly very tired, so it's best to go to sleep.
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(By this point the author was also very sleepy and wanted to go to sleep. If there are any spelling errors, I'm sincerely sorry. I just had a few days. Difficult )