Bully Stepbrother

4. Kind person

Breathlessly, I unlocked the door to my apartment. I scampered through, seething with anger and ready to explode. It had taken me quite some time to ride back to Oxford Avenue, and by now, I was sweating as if I had climbed a mountain.

"Caden?" I called out.

"Caden, I swear to God I will kill you if you..." I pushed open my bedroom door, only to find the room empty.

What? I began checking every door in our apartment. From Caden's room, which was still jammed, to the laundry room, which was empty and in disarray. Actually, the whole house was disorganized, including my bedroom. I had to push my frustration aside since Caden knew how bothered I got in messy places, yet he seemed to have purposefully scattered things everywhere to annoy me. I mean, why would someone keep an extra car tire, a collection of compact discs, and a mop on a coffee table? And a punching bag on our island? It was clearly meant to disgust me.

As everything started to click, I comprehended what had happened in the last hour. Caden had succeeded in getting me kicked out of my class on my first day of college, then made sure I came home so I wouldn't make it to the next class on time. Wow! He's really good at manipulating me.

Frustrated and with a sore head from hitting it multiple times, I left the apartment with the intention of riding back to campus. But then an idea struck me. Of course, I needed to unlock that asshole's door, or I would be stuck in hell for another night.

Sighing at my failed attempt, I turned back into the apartment and made my way to my bedroom window, where I began wall-crawling toward Caden's window.

I should consider myself lucky that the street was quiet, given it was Monday and most people were either at school or work.

The last thing I needed was to get caught and reported to the police. I could already imagine Caden's face when he comes to bail me out of jail, realizing my reputation would be ruined. That is, if he even cared enough and didn't decide to tell the police he had no idea who I was.

Suddenly, I heard a cough from below, which startled me and almost caused me to lose my balance.

"What the f**k?" I hissed, hitting my forehead on the wall as I regained my composure.

"You do realize this is illegal, right? Should I be concerned about you sneaking into my apartment?" And there he was, the underground asshole.

"You do know that peeping and not minding your own business is illegal, right?" I fired back.

"Okay, let's see what the police will say about both of us. Molly, get me my phone," he said a little louder to someone inside his apartment.

Swallowing my annoyance, I gave up. He had no idea what getting reported would mean for me. I couldn't bear the thought of having a police record. It was one of my biggest fears when it came to public matters.

Why did my day have to turn out this way? I hate you, Caden.

"Look, this is my brother's bedroom, and his door is jammed. I'm trying to help, like the kind person that I am," I said, straining to hold my position.

"So you came back from school to undo what you had done?" Accusation was evident in his tone.

God, give me the strength to deal with this guy.

"Let me guess. Do you stay by your window, supervising every move in the neighborhood?" He's such a creep.

"You think the worst of people that easily?" he retorted.

"Whatever, I have things to do. If you let me be, I'd appreciate it." I looked down and forced a tight smile at him. He was shirtless, and his red hair was disheveled. If I'm being completely honest, he wasn't that bad-looking. It was just his attitude that was a shame for someone with such a perfect appearance. But then again, I live with an even worse nightmare.

"Okay," he simply answered.

Feeling relieved, I proceeded through the window and completed my mission.

***

My first day in college wasn't the proudest I had envisioned for over a year. I got kicked out of the first class. I arrived late to the second class, which pleased my stepbrother, since we had an agreement to clean up the apartment together. My anxiety wouldn't let me rest until everything was clean. The third class was a curse because Caden was sitting next to me, and I was the one taking notes for both of us, as we had agreed to share textbooks and notes, following the "sibling sharing stuff" law.

On my way back home, I stopped at a grocery store to get some things, as instructed by mom. Unlike Caden, I actually cared about my health. I sincerely cared about filling my stomach.

As I reached the apartment, I unlocked the door with my key and entered, carrying the grocery bag and Jake's bike. I kicked the door open with my leg to make room for us.

The house looked the same and tidy as when I left it, so I was sure Caden hadn't come home. I used the time to organize the items I had bought and put them in their proper places. I even made myself some chicken pasta after taking a shower, knowing better than to wait for Caden to be home.

I comfortably lounged on the couch, watching a reality show on Netflix when my phone buzzed.

It was Jake, and he was downstairs.

I slipped my feet into my slippers and headed toward him, along with his Kona bicycle.

"Hey!" he greeted me with a smile.

"Hey," I smiled back, looking at my bike, which looked great once again.

"It's all set. I think it could be better than a brand new one," he joked.

"Clearly. I can't wait to ride it," I joked along. "Can I have the check or your Venmo, please?" I asked him.

"It's on the house, so I did it for free," he informed me.

My eyebrows raised. "But you purchased some parts." I felt uneasy when people refused to take credit for the work they had done.

"Honestly, I didn't have to purchase much. Most of the parts were in my garage, so I used some spare parts for the rest," he said, offering a warm and assuring smile.

Letting go, I replied, "Alright, thank you so much," as we exchanged our bikes.

"Make sure you keep it safe. She's a survivor," Jake told me, and I laughed. Of course, she is.

"I will, I promise." From this day on, my baby would share a room with me. That way, Caden couldn't do anything to her.

I was flipping through channels around eight when the door violently swung open. I had to move to the other end of the couch, only for a girl to enter backwards, followed by Caden's mouth and head. Oh, and then Caden's full body before the door was slammed shut.

The two hungry animals were shoving their tongues down each other's throats, while their greedy hands struggled to find a steady position.

I would have watched irresponsibly, but I got involved, knowing I didn't want any nastiness in my vicinity, especially after I had just cleaned my bedroom.

"Your door is open. Please help yourselves there," I informed them, as they threw their clothes everywhere in the once-neat environment.

I'm not sure if they heard me, but luckily, they made their way to Caden's room, and I let out a relieved sigh, only for a scream to follow, causing me to jump.

Alright! That got me plugging in my earbuds and cranking up the volume of the television to the highest level.

I wasn't interested in listening to how great Caden was or hearing girls call him a king in the bedroom.

It was almost thirty minutes later when I stood up to get some water, but I ended up jumping in fear, not from a scream this time.

"What the f**k?" I yelled through the noise, although the high volume of the television managed to drown out my loud exclamation.

"Do you always cuss when you're startled?" he asked.

"What are you doing here? How did you get in here?" I asked the redhead guy, switching glances between him and the entranceway. I should have definitely noticed if he had come in the usual way.

He grabbed the remote and began lowering the volume, allowing the moaning and groaning sounds from the wall behind us to become excruciatingly audible.

His eyes narrowed, and his brows knitted as he heard it too.

"f**k!" Caden's voice exclaimed along with a cry.

"He must be good. You shouldn't have jammed his door!" the redhead chuckled.

Ignoring him, I asked the same thing he had asked me earlier, "How did you get in here? Should I be worried?"

"Well, your apartment is noisy, and it keeps waking Molly. She needs a peaceful sleep. As the kind person that I am, you're lucky I didn't file a report," he quoted some of my lines.

"I should thank you so much for sneaking into my apartment and not reporting me," I sarcastically remarked.

"Ha-Ha, yeah," he crookedly smirked.

Rolling my eyes, I marched to the door and opened it for him. "Thank you for your kindness," I practically kicked him out mentally.

"Keep it down," he said as he stepped out of the door.

When I was alone again, I let out a relieved sigh, hoping I could sink into the ground until the cries and moaning from Caden's bedroom subsided.