Love me like you loathe me

Chapter8

"Steph!" I looked up, more scared of being pushed away again, of all the people on the planet. I didn't want Mike to be angry at me; he was all I had left! Our parents were retired and lived in Spain, and we only saw them if we flew out there, or they came back for Christmas every fifth year.

"He was nice enough to offer you a job, since you don't have one, and you have no life experience, and you dropped you degree for some guy who never cared about you!" He accused me of being a dropout when he was one too, since he and Alicia were screwing long before they came clean to our parents that she was pregnant.

"He said I looked weird…" I said it back, petty to Mike's eyes, rolling over how stupid I was. He probably agreed that my dress was silly and too hot to wear outside, but he wasn't the one who had to leave his life behind; I did!

"You did look weird, but that doesn't mean you snap at people trying to make it right! "You've been hating him for something that happened years ago; he was upset about that!" I scoffed hearing the engine turning on, thanking God he finally was rolling out, not believing him for a second that the man that was mocking me back, with a stupid grin over his face seeing me about to cry was upset over anything more than me hurting his ego and not forgiving him on the spot for what he did to me!

"Yeah, I'm still upset that he treated me like dirt!" I snapped back, regretting it since Mike didn't want to hear it. He didn't see it like I did; he thought Lewis was just teasing me, same as him, and that sister of his locked her claws inside my brother just as much as Lewis did, and I was left outside in the cold!

Mike was killing the engine outside the department store he had taken me to, looking at me and saying that I had better start acting better around him and his friends and family, or I would get shut out again, the same way I had when we were kids.

"He was trying to apologize, and you are blowing this up way more because of…" my eyes glazed over him about to say the name of my ex-boyfriend, the one that made me drop out so I could spend more time with him, before he decided to hurt me, and I was too scared to ever go back again!

I got out of the car, found the child lock, and stepped out, not listening anymore. Mike didn't know everything, and I wasn't planning on sharing. He followed me, angry that I had left the car without saying I wasn't one of his kids!

"I need to tell him, even Allie hasn't said anything! Steph! If you are going to work for Lewis, he needs to know that I have come to get you and not even call the cops on a guy who almost killed you!" Mike was frantic from just thinking about the night I called him and begged him to come and save me, crying from how scared I had been, still was.

"I'm not working for him!" I said back loudly, making people stare at me, but who cared? I was already at the point of having another meltdown with Mike pushing me too fast against the only person I didn't want to spend time with! Let alone being employed by him, Mike made me feel horrible!

"...and I won't pay the bills next month, Steph! I'm having another baby in four months, and you are telling me you can't work underneath the same guy who has been my bro my whole life?" Mike wasn't hiding that he was desperate, trying to get me to understand that he couldn't support me anymore, and there wasn't a chance mom and dad would either!

"That was the deal we all agreed on. You pay the bills. Mom and Dad are letting you stay, and you have one month to get a job and settle in. "I'm sorry, but that's all I can do now!" Mike was sorry, and I felt worse about using him since I knew he wasn't lying; he needed his money for his family. Still, I just couldn't go back to that jerk and tell him I was sorry for telling him I hated him. I did!

"Oh god…" I sat down helpless on the pavement in the same dress I had yesterday. It was making me feel worse, reminding me how screwed I was. Just my luck…

"Steph, you got to stop acting so damn immature…" Mike's serious voice made me sniffle, and I wanted to hide away, knowing he was right…. I wasn't a kid, but working under Lewis would be hell. I just told him to his face that I hated him!

"Fine… I will work for Lewis…" My head was buried deeper inside my hands, sniffling, wanting to end this nightmare of a life. This wouldn't be anywhere near the new start of my life I wanted, no. I was going back to my personal hell with the same guy bullying me, and Mike didn't even get that, but I was done trying to tell him.

"Good. "We can get you some stuff and call him later…" I nodded, feeling myself being pulled up from the ground, my eyes red from crying, and meeting my brother's determined eyes. He wanted me to play nice from now on.