Chapter16
1386 Words
At this time of day, the teachers were all in the classrooms, and the office was empty.
Mr. Tommy escorted Archer to the door: "Your dad doesn't look too good. I'll be outside; just call me if you need help."
Archer nodded: "Okay, thank you, Mr. Tommy."
He took a deep breath and pushed open the door.
Leonard was sitting in Mr. Tommy's chair, his face somber.
Tina stood to the side, hands clasped.
"Dad, what are you doing here?" Archer asked expressionlessly.
"Archer, don't act like a child. I've come to take you home," Leonard said, his face also stern.
He had already spoken with his ex-wife. Archer was currently burdened with heavy academic workload, and living alone without anyone to care for him wasn't a sustainable solution.
"Dad, I'm fine. I don't want to go home," Archer said calmly.
"I ran away from home, giving you all a happy family of three. Isn't that a win-win situation?
Why do I have to go back and make everyone uncomfortable?"
Tina interjected, "Archer, I asked Werner, and he admitted to saying some things he shouldn't have to you. As the older brother, be more magnanimous and don't hold it against a child." It sounded like an apology, but it was clearly biased.
She easily glossed over her own son's mistakes, while always demanding that Archer be more forgiving.
Archer had heard similar words countless times since childhood.
But what could he ask for?
She wasn't his mother; she was only forcibly placed in the family because of Leonard.
Maintaining a semblance of harmony for over a decade was already a feat in itself.
"Aunt Qin, if you have time, please discipline Werner more. I heard his grades are terrible at school, and he's quite unruly." Archer had been holding these words in for a long time, and finally, he could speak them without restraint.
Werner had been a pampered child since birth, showered with endless love from his parents.
Spoiled, he inevitably became willful.
Whenever he saw his younger brother's carefree childhood, Archer felt aggrieved and wanted to cry.
"I know that," Tina said curtly, a hint of displeasure flashing in her eyes.
How could anyone speak ill of someone's precious son to their face?
Leonard sensed his wife's emotions and became even more stern.
"Mind your own business first. You don't need to worry about the space program."
"You shouldn't talk to Aunt Qin like that. Apologize to her immediately."
"You don't even know how to respect your elders? What did you learn in school?"
...This barrage of reprimands immediately escalated the conflict.
The air between the three of them gradually thickened.
Archer's heart grew colder and colder.
Why should I call a woman "Auntie" just because you brought her back?
In fact, she has absolutely no relation to me.
I was the one who came to this family first, yet I've been ostracized and become an outsider.
For over a decade, Archer has been suppressing and enduring.
With only three months left, can't he finally let loose?
"Dad, if you're here to argue with me today, you can go home now. This is a school, not a place for you to put on airs." Archer's gaze was icy.
"You have to come home with me today. Your grandfather heard you weren't planning to come back for three months, and he's gotten so angry that his old ailment has flared up. Look at all the trouble you've caused the family!" Leonard scolded.
Archer was even more disappointed: "I knew it! It seems Grandpa forced you to take me back, otherwise you'd almost forgotten where my school is."
"One word: are you going back or not?" Leonard shouted.
"No," Archer said resolutely.
Having finally escaped that suffocating home, how could he be foolish enough to go back?
He also knew perfectly well that deep down, Tina and Werner would never welcome him.
They'd rather he lived outside forever, never wanting him to be a nuisance.
Archer's defiance left Leonard somewhat embarrassed.
He glanced around, seemingly looking for something to grab, muttering curses, "You're lawless! You think I can't do anything to you?" Archer remained fearless: "Dad, let's go. You're behaving in an unseemly manner." When he was five, Leonard had recently divorced Winnie and was in a terrible mood, often drinking heavily outside.
He would come home drunk, grab the sleeping Archer, and, using any excuse, beat and verbally a***e him.
He'd scold him for looking like his mother, saying it made him angry just looking at her.
He'd scold him for having a mouth, saying he had to pay for food.
Later, Leonard started dating Tina, concealing the fact that he had a son.
He sent Archer to the countryside to be cared for by his grandparents, where he attended kindergarten for six months.
Later, his grandfather, Zhuang Jianguo, insisted on sending Archer back to the city for a better education, and Leonard reluctantly agreed.
Tina, his stepmother, didn't say anything on the surface, but the occasional look of disdain in her eyes betrayed her true feelings.
Similarly, in her view, she had no blood relation to Archer, so why should she play the role of a loving mother?
After Werner was born, Archer's position in the family became even more awkward.
Fortunately, with a happy family, Leonard's temper mellowed considerably, and he no longer resorted to violence.
However, the bond between father and son grew increasingly distant.
Nominally, Leonard was Archer's guardian, but he was truly raised by his grandparents in the countryside.
They would regularly deposit living expenses into Leonard's account, which he would then pass on to Archer.
As a middleman, Leonard would often pocket the difference, buying snacks or toys for his younger son, Werner.
Archer had always been submissive since childhood, but today he was behaving unusually rebelliously.
Leonard felt his authority had been challenged, and he was furious.
Even at school, he wanted to roll up his sleeves and fight.
"Stop!" Mr. Tommy rushed in just in time.
Leonard glared angrily at Mr. Tommy: "How does your school educate its students? You've raised him to be like this; I think he's developed a rebellious streak."
“You’ve never even attended a parent-teacher conference. Of course you have no idea what kind of child the school has raised,” Mr. Tommy retorted angrily.
He had been standing outside the door the whole time. While eavesdropping was impolite, the father and son’s argument was simply too loud.
He was utterly astonished that Archer hadn’t told his own father about his terminal illness.
How desperate must he have been?
“I think you’ve ruined him!” Leonard shouted.
"Fine, I'll show you today what kind of mess we've made of your child!" Mr. Tommy snapped, his temper flaring.
He opened a drawer and pulled out a thick stack of documents.
They were report cards from various exams over the past two years.
"Look for yourself!" Mr. Tommy slammed the report cards down in front of Leonard, kicking up a cloud of dust.
Leonard waved his hand, then picked up the first report card—the one from the entrance exam two years ago.
On the first line, Archer's name stood out prominently.
Total score: 689.
Class ranking: 1.
Grade ranking: 1.
Then, he picked up the second report card, the first monthly exam, where Archer was also at the top.
The third was the mid-term exam, the fourth the monthly exam, the fifth the final exam… After looking at all the report cards, Leonard's eyes were filled with doubt and uncertainty.
Without exception, Archer's name was like a nail driven into the first line, unwavering.
He only knew Archer had excellent grades and didn't need his parents to worry about him, but he never expected him to be this exceptional.
Tina, standing to the side, had also finished looking at all the report cards.
She murmured, "Is it really that hard to get first place in the grade at your school?" Mr. Tommy looked at her like she was an i***t: "There are 22 classes in the whole grade, over a thousand students. What do you think?"
Archer, you are truly amazing.
To grow up in such a repressive environment and still be so outstanding.
God has been so unfair to you.
- Writer
