DUSTED MELODY [BL]

chapter 5 : forced

Enzo slammed the back door shut, the silence of the house wrapping around him like a bad dream. He flicked on the light – nothing. Dust motes danced in the weak beam, revealing furniture frozen in time beneath plastic sheets, floors carpeted in thick layers of neglect. It felt like a forgotten world, a stark contrast to the storm brewing inside him.

Unease gnawed at him as he climbed the creaking stairs to his room. Reaching his window, the familiar view of the street offered no comfort. The kid, the one from the porch, was gone. His heart thumped a frantic rhythm against his ribs. What had happened? Where had he vanished to?

Later that evening, dressed in a suit that felt more like a costume, Enzo descended the stairs for a dreaded dinner. This wasn't a meal; it was a business deal. His father, impeccably dressed, sat at the head of the polished table, a woman with a perfectly painted smile beside him.

Within minutes, the conversation shifted, predictably, to marriage. Not Enzo's, of course, but the kind that would solidify his father's business empire. Enzo felt a familiar surge of resentment. He didn't care about mergers and acquisitions, about power plays and climbing the social ladder. He just wanted his life back, his music, his dreams.

The frustration boiled over, spilling out in a torrent of angry words. "I don't care about this! None of this matters! This isn't my life!"

His father's face turned the color of a ripe tomato. A muscle in his jaw clenched and unclenched, a storm brewing behind his steely gaze.

"Ungrateful! Do you have any idea what I've sacrificed for you? This life, these opportunities... they're all for you!" His father's voice boomed, echoing off the empty walls.

Enzo felt his world tilt on its axis. The rage receded, replaced by a wave of crushing despair. "You never cared about me," he whispered, his voice cracking. "You just cared about what I could become for you."

The words hung heavy in the air, a chasm suddenly opened between them. His father's face contorted in a mix of anger and hurt, but before he could respond, Enzo spun on his heel and stormed out, the weight of his outburst crashing down on him like the dust motes in the abandoned house.