There was no formal or official statement that brought Louis as a new member of the Fitzgerald family. His father and mother were very much alive and he didn't know why he was ushered into the huge Georgian mansion and was made to seat at the right wing of a long table embellished with different patterns, diverse delicacies filled the base till the end that Louis wondered if a family of three, four perhaps could finish the whole meal. It was when Sheldon and Drey sat down at the table, saying the grace and digging silently into their meals that Louis realized that there was no mother. Why the seat beside him and Mr. Fitzgerald was left empty and to be occupied by no one. Why the dinning room was so quiet that all what could be heard was the munching and clinking of cutlery. Once in a while, Mr. Fitzgerald would tell Drey to not slouch, comparing him to Louis whom he believed didn't. Louis could tell that didn't stand right with Drey. How a stranger whom they had ordained as his brother was now doing better than him even in dining etiquettes. His eyes were dark, tentative and calm. They watched Louis as he nibbled away bits of food into his mouth. Someone would think that he was an unperturbed nipper who whisked through the exigencies of time. It was only a matter of time when his familiarities began to manifest through his constant bullying to which Louis endured with commendable resilience. He was the big brother after all, at least that's what his father and Drey's father told him, he had to act like it. And so it was not a surprise when Louis lifted Drey up and threw him to the floor like he was weightlifting a sack. He had had enough and was ready to put Drey in his place. Drey had stared at him in shock realizing now that Louis wasn't ready for any of his pranks. And for the first time since Louis met Drey, he began to shed silent tears that trickled down his cheeks, not one sound escaping his lips. Thinking it was one of his old pranks, Louis watched him lay on the floor shedding fresh tears.
"I'm sorry" he said finally "I've been an only child for a while that I don't know how to get to know you"
"You can simply talk to me. Didn't your mum teach you how to talk to people" Louis said not budging
Drey sniffed, dabbing his eyes with the back of his hand "She's dead"
The last statement poked Louis like a needle. Utterances like these were supposed to be held sacred, tied to the tongue and held firmly to the memory until it no longer stung. But here was Drey uttering it like it was some to do list he remembered.
"I'm so sorry" Louis said sitting down on the floor beside him "She's in a better place now. If she isn't here to protect you, I'm here cos I'm your big brother".
For the first time, Louis stared with a familiarity that dawned on Drey like warm shawl wrapped around him. It was that familiarity that he still made him look at him today even as he turned out to be a care free hooligan with wings as long as a dastardly eagle. He flew free and made lots of messes which Louis was sure to clean up. And now that Drey was owing a lot of thugs money he had used for his numerous friends' campaign for the upcoming school elections, he was not ready to clean up any mess.
Although Louis had come from abroad to explore as he often said, Frazier and Sheldon expected more from him. They felt as an already made man, he should have a short list of ladies he wanted to introduce to them. Louis felt teased when his father tried to ask him but felt like he was interviewed when Sheldon had asked him on the day he came to visit him. Sheldon had made him take a walk with him along the garden beside the glass Georgian mansion.
"So, what exactly did you come back to do? And don't tell me you only came to explore." Sheldon said disrupting Louis before he could order anything "You're certainly not Finn and Jake, are you?"
"No sir" Louis said
Louis remembered how he and Drey used to fancy the cartoon when they were both little. They would talk about sailing the seven seas, climbing mountains with glaciers and finding their princess charming. Now they were men thriving through the realities of life.
"But you still exude childish tendencies." Sheldon continued tightening his hand on his staff. "A child explores because he or she has no vision. His or her ventures are only done for fancy but you are a man, a well made man with a clear vision in sight. You do not explore, you already know what you're finding."
"What if? What if I haven't found it yet?" Louis asked
"What do you mean you haven't found a woman yet? What about all the women you met abroad during your masters, your PhD program, your years of being a Judge?"
"I…I couldn't sync with anyone of them" Louis said as Sheldon shook his head in chagrin "They were either materialistic, shallow and static. A lot of them wanted to date me so that they could build up their social status in the society. None of them wanted to know me for who I am, they never cared about love"
"Nobody cares about love, everyone's out for themselves"
"Sir, I can't just marry anyone who's just out for themselves. A matrimony on that kind of foundation would be shaky. I'm sure Mrs. Fitzgerald would agree more even though I never got to know her"
"You talk about her as if she's here" Sheldon said turning to face the mansion. Louis followed his gaze and sighted the portrait of Mrs. Fitzgerald which was visible due to the glass. She had Drey's dark eyes but this time more homely and appealing. She had a charming smile that betrayed the solemnity the world believed the Fitzgeralds upholded. Her hair, an ebony perm cascaded down her shoulders in curly tresses.
"Apologies sir. I didn't mean it that way" Louis said sincerely
"It doesn't matter. What matters now is you getting a lady and marrying her. And not just any lady, a lady with class, intellect, initiative. Someone who can run things what you're not there. And I don't see how you want to find such a lady in your alma mater. They are mostly students here who would do anything at the slightest opportunity to have you "
By the last statement, Louis remembered Amopha. She was nothing like the materialistic and shallow women he met abroad. She was somewhat striking in her stillness. She bore a silence too.