She's The CEO

2. Damon

Fall, 2009

"So you are dating someone and you didn't tell mom. Hell, you didn't even tell me.", I say as I look at him. He's taller, way taller than me and I have to raise up my chin to maintain an eye contact. It becomes difficult to maintain a fierce demeanor this way. But by the look on his face he knows I'm too feisty right now.

He looks away out of the French windows of our huge living room. We are sitting on the couch our shoes taken off as our mother doesn't want us to ruin the new ram wool carpets. The carpets had to look perfect.

"We're not dating. We just like each other.", he says looking in my eyes deeply. I decipher a feeling of regret in them. But at the same time I couldn't help, but see he's in love. I can see it. I can feel it. It's the same tenderness in his eyes which he shows to me.

But what's the problem?

"Caleb, don't worry, mom will like whoever you like. It's your love interest not mine that she's gonna pin point hundreds of flaws in a person", I say to him and sigh recalling the number of boys I wanted to date but couldn't because of my mom.

"It's not really about mom. It's dad.", he says.

This has always been the issue. Where I was the daddy's girl, Caleb was a mommy's boy. But it was so intense in our family that it didn't come any close to normal. My mother always finds flaws in me. Whereas my father has nothing to do with my brother.

Weird filthy rich families

Sure they do take care of us. Both of them. But when it comes to emotional attachment, they lack. All these years, facing the same things, I and Caleb have formed an understanding, an attachment with each other which is too strong. We feel each others pain in a way no other person can.

"I see. Don't worry, Caleb. You just turned eighteen now. You're officially an adult. You can love whoever you want to. And I bet the girl's not that bad.", I give him a brotherly nudge on his shoulder.

But he flinched. Like he literally flinched at my words.

He sighs deeply and his shoulders sag a bit. The grey sweatshirt he's wearing becomes loose around his shoulders. I also notice that he's wearing a lot of grey lately.

He then jumps off the couch. And Gus eyes gleam.

"Just...you know what? Let's go. Come on you have to meet this...this person.", he gets up and starts wearing his shoes. I'm a little baffled with the sudden change in plans but I happily accompany him out. He makes a phone call and asks the other person to meet us at a nearby cafe.

We go to the basement garage and towards Caleb's new car which he got for his eighteenth birthday. Mom's present to him, obviously

"Listen Bianca, sometimes, life turns out to be pretty unexpected. You think it's gonna be that same shitty thing but it's not. Everyone is unique.", he says as he drives us out of our house.

"Yeah dad. Okay seriously, you're completely like him. You say the same words, you look same. I just don't know why you and dad don't get along. Why HE doesn't get along.", I say.

"I've got used to it now. Just like you're used to mom telling you how imperfect you are."

I look out of the window. We're a mess.

Caleb stops the car. We are in front of a retro styled cafe with pink exterior and sea green tapestry. We go into the place. The cafe is beautiful inside as well. The leather couches were placed within the booths and the atmosphere felt quite gullible. Caleb wasn't though.