Teachable Moments

Kingsley POV Prologue ••• "So that's everything," I question my lawyer. The forty-something year old salt and pepper haired man nods, collecting all the papers I've just signed and filing them in unlabeled folders. "Yes, Mr. Etton. Grant is officially under your guardianship effective in forty-eight hours. Congratulations." Mr. Welche shakes my hand before closing his scratched brown leather briefcase and I walk him to the elevator with a final thank you. As the steel doors close behind him, I rest my head on the dark wall above the stainless-steel elevator controls and sigh. My warm breath fogs up black laminate and I watch how the greyish color fades and grows with each of my stressed breaths. I may have come to the office early today to deal with this one problem, but there are a million more ahead for the rest of the day. Grant is legally under my care now. Even after today, I'll have my whole life to try and be his father figure. I have always done that anyways, ever since our father died when we were Young. I was nine and my mother was too full of grief to do so much as hold a funeral. She turned to drugs instead. Cocaine specifically. That's what she's recently been put in jail for anyways. Fifteen years for buying and selling. I had always hoped that she could turn herself around for Grant. He's only seventeen for god sakes. Being twenty-five myself, I'm lucky enough to have the means to provide for him. That doesn't mean I want him around my business, though. He's not even old enough to get into a bar let alone my gentleman's club. He shouldn't have to deal with this, but he does. I do too. "Mr. Etton?" I lift my head away from the wall and turn my gaze serious as I meet eyes with the hostess from downstairs. "Your brother is here to see you," she says batting her eyelashes. I nod and tell her to let him up before sitting back down at the desk in my office and starting up on some overviews. "Hey bro," Grant says walking in with his book bag and plopping into the crimson cushioned chair across from my desk. "Grant," I reply blandly. "Shouldn't you be in school? It doesn't end for another half hour." My dark haired little brother shrugs. It's always a strange sight. When his shoulders lift, his eyebrows do too. He dyes his naturally brown hair black though in an effort to match mine. His eyebrows remain the same caramel which makes the whole effect quite funky. "Yeah. Uh... About that. Apparently, I'm out of strikes and I got expelled. So... I figured I'd just forget the school thing and get a job." I shake my head in disappointment and bite the Inside of my cheek. "What did you do this time?" Grant shifts in his seat and picks at his nails uncomfortably under my stare. "Set the bathroom trashcan on fire," he mumbles under his breath. I fight the urge to roll my eyes. "What the f**k is wrong with you? You can't behave properly so you're willing to put the entire school at risk? Tell me, who do you think is going to hire a high school dropout who started a fire?" Grant smiles and points at me. "That's where you come in," he says as if he has it all figured out. I shake my head and snap my laptop closed. "You aren't old enough to work here and even if you were, I wouldn't hire you," I practically growl. My brother looks offended as he scoffs and whines childishly. "Why not?!" "We have a good system going here. You think I need a fire setting time bomb near my workers? Eighty percent of my staff are women and I wouldn't trust you around them." Grant licks his lips and grinds his teeth before leaning forward on his elbows. "Listen, just hear me out." "No. You hear ME out," I demand standing from my seat. My 6'3 height allows me to tower over him whether he stands or sits so he doesn't bother to move. "This is your LAST chance. I'm putting you in Buckner Academia Private School. It's the best one in the state. You will do well there. You will graduate and if I hear that you so much as fail one class, I'm sending you to military school." Grants eyes nearly pop out of his head as he bolts up from his seat. "What the hell man! You can't do that! You're not my dad!" I squeeze the pressure point on his shoulder, causing him to fall back in his chair with a whine. "The adoption papers just went through. So technically, yeah. I may as well be your dad. I'm trying to do what's best for you here and five schools is enough. LAST chance Grant. You hear me?" He glares at me with mild hatred and nods begrudgingly. "Good," I say calmly sitting back in my seat. "The rest of your stuff has been moved to my penthouse. Arthur will give you your key card at the front desk. Go home and start studying. I'll make the call and you can start school Monday." Grant makes a point of slamming the door on his way out. I sigh and pinch the bridge of my nose in pure and utter frustration. Seventeen, I remind myself. He's only seventeen.