Give it a try?

Those two again...

In the darkness, the sound of the door slamming echoed. Mary opened her eyes and listened. Voices were coming from the hallway. She glanced at the clock—12:30 a.m. At first, she thought it was burglars, but then she remembered that her sons had gone to a club, and everything became clear. She closed her eyes, let out a deep sigh, and turned toward her peacefully sleeping husband.

“James, get up.”

The man slowly opened his eyes and asked in a groggy voice, “Again?”

“Yes.”

They got up quietly, put on their robes, and went downstairs. James silently turned on the hallway light. The two boys standing in the hallway squinted at the sudden brightness. One of them, sitting on the floor, was trying to convince his shoes to come off his feet, while the other was leaning against the wall, hiccupping and singing. The smell of alcohol filled the air around both of them.

When the light came on, the older one, who was leaning against the wall, looked at his parents and spoke:

“Mom, Dad, hello.”

He smiled and hiccupped loudly.

“Just so you know, it’s not my fault. This i***t made me drink,” he said, pointing to his younger brother.

“Hey!” The younger one frowned and yanked his shoe so hard that the sole came off in his hand. The older one burst out laughing, and the younger one threw the shoe’s remains at his brother’s head.

“He’s stuuu-pid… I’m—”

“Enough, both of you!” Mary said sternly. “You promise every time not to drink, but then you crawl home like this.”

The boys stood there silently, looking at their parents.

“Lucas, get up off the floor.”

Lucas tried to stand but couldn’t. The older one laughed, earning a middle finger from his brother.

“Noah, stop laughing, and take off your shoes already! James, do something, please,” Mary said, on the verge of hysteria.

“Calm down, sweetheart,” James said in a calm tone. “Have you noticed that the only thing that brings these two together is alcohol?”

James chuckled (and who wouldn’t, seeing their 21- and 23-year-old sons singing Baby Shark together?), but when he met his wife’s stern gaze, he got serious.

“Alright, here’s the plan: you take Lucas to his room, and I’ll deal with Noah.”

Without a word, Mary walked over to her younger son and helped him stand. Lucas leaned heavily on her.

“Phew, Lucas, tomorrow I swear I’ll kill you both,” Mary muttered as she led him to his room.

James approached Noah, put an arm around his shoulders, and guided his singing son to his room. Once inside, after helping Noah lie down, James sat beside him.

“Daaad, thank you,” Noah whispered, grabbing his father’s hand.

“For what, son?”

“For taking me out of the orphanage."