THE DIFFERENT KIND OF LOVE

CHAPTER3.3FAMILY LOVE

When the sun went down, he felt all hope was lost, and when shadows crept in, replacing the light with darkness. He went home with a heavy heart. He cried, his eyes red and puffy. The next day, the soldiers laughed at his appearance, but they didn't know he had gone through a life-changing ordeal. He didn’t share the ordeal with anyone. At most, they would just have laughed at him. He only shared with his brother as he wanted his help in finding George. But not everything, just part of the story. Sam felt abandoned, and the memory of that night haunted his dreams and pained him every day and night, overwhelming him each time.

Gazing at the ceiling, Sam closes his eyes and clears his mind of all thoughts. If he keeps at it, his eyes will turn red, and then he will have to come up with a lie to explain why, which is not easy. His family always seemed to know everything. Which is very true, as they all have a private team of investigators working for them.

Sam becomes conscious and irritated by the loud, cranky sounds from the kitchen, which he identifies in his mind. A skill he couldn't stop after George taught him. Their mansion was old, inherited for over five generations, and even though it was redesigned in a modern style, they still couldn't get rid of the echoes. Tang! Tang! Tang! "Goodbye to that pan," he thought. His mother, Belle, was destroying and making a mess in the kitchen in the name of preparing breakfast. She knows she can't cook, and her food is terrible, but if she cooked, then they were all expected to enjoy it with bright smiles and shower her with compliments. "It is the thought that counts," she insisted, which she felt was very precious.

Belle making breakfast is a sign that it is about to go down, a ‘family meeting’. And judging from his recent record, he has to be the target. It had been six months now, and Sam had completely recovered from the accident. And before he got into another one, his family decided it was time to solve his problems. They had hoped he would come to his senses, but he kept messing up.

Sam lazily stands up from his king-sized bed and walks into the bathroom. He applies mint toothpaste to his electric toothbrush and starts brushing his teeth. He stares back at his reflection in the mirror, ‘He hasn’t changed much,’ he thinks to himself.

He was already twenty but kept his appearance of a sixteen-year-old. He had inherited his mother’s beauty, which left many in awe.

Being the second-born and the youngest son of the most influential and powerful Kian family in the States. He grew up overly protected by his elder brother and parents. The family business, which was not all black and white, and all kinds of ghosts, were kept out of his sight and out of his reach. Growing up, he was pampered and overly loved, hence his pure and kind personality, which he discovered too late. It's not so welcoming in a world of dog-eat-dog reality.

He looks perfect; tall enough to highlight his curvy, delicate figure, white skin, trimmed golden hair, and starlit blue eyes, which highlight his cheerful smile. He takes a moment to admire his delicate features. He scowls and smiles gently. "I am indeed quite pretty". He was famous and very popular among the elite in the city, not just for his beauty but also for his scandals. Which were mostly staged to find his mysterious lover. But that didn't change anything; he was still smug about himself. He had tried everything to get his face on the papers, but nothing worked. And as their faces were confidential, and were only known to a few people, his brother had a team of ITs clearing anything negative related to their family in seconds.

He had never been in a relationship since he encountered George. Exactly five years ago, when he met and fell for him at first sight, a young man at his father’s military base.

"I wonder what he looks like right now?" He thought out loud, brushing his teeth. His mind wandered back to the past, five years ago. The memory of George was still stuck in his mind vividly, yet it happened a long time ago. His deep-consuming gaze, filled with an overwhelming sense of love, had left a deep mark on his heart. "He must be really good-looking," he said out loud.

''What was he thinking? He shouldn’t have left like that. Does he also think of me?". The thoughts kept crossing his mind. Making Sam regret that moment over and over. He should have stayed. He murmurs to himself, then feels annoyed and angry. Is it so hard for him to track me down? He spits out the paste. What if he wasn't looking? What if he has already moved on? What will I do? The negative thoughts kept adding up, and the doubts brought more pain.

He had blamed himself for how things were left between them. He had tried to locate George all through the years, but a secret organization protected his information. There was so much he wanted to tell him. Most importantly, he regretted running off like that, and that he liked him too. But it wasn’t easy to get George’s information as it was all classified, just like his. Anything related to him shut down all the computers. Even his father, the head of the military, could not access his information. And to make it worse, Sam's picture not being anywhere on the internet made it even harder for them to find each other, if at all. He was also looking.

Pat! Pat! Pat! A light knock on the door disrupted his thoughts.

''Master Sam, you are expected downstairs.'' Jack, their butler, announced. Dragging and taking his time is no longer an option; it is very clear they are waiting for him.

Jack was their family butler. He has been in their family since his father’s teenage days. He was a wise old man, which had enabled him to stay in the Kian mansion for so long. Most powerful families have deep secrets and ghosts hidden in their walls, and their family was no exception. They had plenty, and Jack's intelligence made him special. He knew when to speak and when to keep quiet. He was now considered a respected member of the Kian family.

''I am coming,'' Sam answered sweetly. He respected the man. He had practically raised them and his brother, as their parents weren't always present. He dismissed the thoughts and proceeded to get himself ready. He took a warm bath, then prettily dressed himself in purple, his favorite color, and then went down the spiral stairs for breakfast.

Edward, Sam’s brother, and their father refused to eat. They used Sam as an excuse, but it is obvious that the food is not palatable. The house is filled with the burning smell of bacon and eggs. Sam walks into the dining room, and his eyes catch sight of burnt bacon, eggs, and bread. He looks at his brother and father, putting up serious faces, their eyes meet, and he suppresses his urge to laugh. He silently moves to his seat and sits down next to his father. He felt the tension in the room rise as all of them stared at him.

''Good morning, Dad?'' His father nods, forcing himself to look serious.

''Mum, morning?'' She answered blandly, looking aggrieved. ''Morning.''

She has that fake innocent look, which means the play has already started. If she lets Sam cry first, then they wouldn't be able to talk about his issues, but if she cried first, then there could be a chance.

''Mum, you should start now.'' Edward signs to Belle, their mother. He thinks he had tricked her into starting the conversation first, as she was good at taking the fall when things went wrong. And it was also a way to distract her from paying attention to the breakfast she had served. But he was wrong. Edward thought he was doing the manipulations, but the real master was his mother.

The more Sam tried to hide his feelings, the more unpredictable his actions became. Most crazy were the scandals he staged. His brother knew Sam was trying to let that person find him, so he didn’t stop him or get involved. He had also tried to find the man his brother mentioned, but there was no information about him. It's like he appeared, then vanished, never existed.

They waited for Sam to figure out everything by himself and solve his problems, but the issues were just getting bigger, and they had to get involved.

''Son, you have to stop?'' Belle pleaded. ''You are hurting yourself.'' She stated in a dramatic tone. Sir William could not master up the courage to scold Sam or even ask, so he just sat there staring into space. He loved and understood Sam the most. He was an exact image of his mother when she was young. He knew how good Sam was at keeping secrets and playing dumb. If he decided not to speak of it, then that is it. His father always saw through him.