Excelsior

Chapter 9: Family issues

That afternoon was lit by the surprising arrival of Victor, the Bainbridge's oldest son. The butler took the suitcases while his mother embraced him as if she hadn't seen him for almost a decade. His presence was well received by almost all members of the household and the family's inner circle, which esteemed the young man for his elegance and loose attitude.

Mrs. Bainbridge took Good care that her firstborn didn't have any discomfort, and spoiled him as she flooded him with questions about his well-being.

While most of people around Victor enjoyed his company, little did they know about his younger brother's case. Alan admired him unlike Garrett, who decided to distance himself from his mother and brothers to dive into his thoughts. This took a more insulting turn when Mr. Bainbridge got home with his strong presence. Garret's eyes hardened after seeing the way his dad treated Victor, and things got worse when his place at the table had been moved:

"So where am I sitting?" he said with a dry voice.

"You'll sit next to me." His mom replied. He stared at Vic, who was sitting next to Mr. Bainbridge.

With no other choices, he reluctantly accepted the seat.

"Welcome to the club of those who never get to sit in honorable places." Alan whispered. He did not seem to mind the table issue; and his face looked calm with relaxed cheeks.

Gary didn't think twice before stepping on his foot, to which Alan reacted silently and gave his brother an offensive look.

The dinner continued with the Bainbridges praising their son for his accomplishment at Brown. Victor seemed to be an accomplished gentleman: his grades were remarkable; his posture was correct and his future was as bright as his smile. For Gary, Victor was always a standard he had to compete with.

The weekend before his return to Providence, Mrs. Bainbridge invited her friends to the Lexington Club, which enjoyed a nice view of the downtown. They enjoyed the company of their husbands and any friend his son wanted to invite.

While the ladies drank tea at the terrace, the gentlemen had been playing a friendly golf tournament, yet, it seemed that the friendly part had been forgotten by Gary, who could not stand his brother's score.

"Nice try." He told him.

His brother rejoiced and was congratulated by his father's friends, so he decided to go to a lonely place, and, in a fit of fury and with tense muscles, the young man hit the ground repeatedly with the golf stick until it broke down. His forehead was sweating, and he was sighing quickly.

After such an attack of anger, she decided to go to the terrace and sit at a secluded table near his mother, who was entertaining herself with laughter and waving to other acquaintances. She got to such a point of questioning her skills, because, when his older brother was present, it seemed that he failed at everything he did.

"Everything goes wrong for me!" he said to himself. "They are all impressive in something, and the truth is that I am not as skilled as I appear..."

"Are you okay?" he hard a soft voice saying. When he looked up, he saw Sabrina taking seat.

Garrett, who had his hands together, blinked repeatedly.

"It's alright. You should go with Angelica."

"I noticed your absence in the game." She commented while her blue eyes seemed to become bigger.

To change the topic, he asked what was the score and Sabrina gave him a summary before insisting again:

"Are you really okay?" she wept.

"Yes. You should go."

"Gary."

He looked at her eyes and frowned.

"I told you go!"

Mis Russell's eyes opened wide, refusing to believe the way he yelled at her. Even Anna could hear her son and, still listening to her friend, she turned at her son. She wanted to intervene, yet she thought it would be inappropriate, and didn't stop smiling.

Sabrina tensed her face and silently got up. Still not being able to believe that her beloved Gary had told her, she walked away looking at the ground.

The incident was not overlooked by Mrs. Bainbridge, who privately apologized to Miss Russell and, during the evening, she chose to confront her, going into his bedroom without knocking the door.

"What you did was wrong!" she said sternly. "Thanks God no one saw you."

"What?" Gary asked, jumping off his bed.

"I would have had a heart attack of shame!" This is not how I have educated you. Have you no consideration for me?" She she held her hands together and looked at the floor. "I had to apologize to Sabrina for your attitude."

"But mom..."

"This is offensive as a woman, and a mother. Miss Russell is a wonderful young woman, very polite and empathetic."

"Thank you." He asnwered with a cold voice.

"You're old enough to clean up your mistakes, and the fact that you haven't apologized terrifies me, Garrett. You're going to apologize to her tomorrow, I'll invite her over for coffee."

"You won't!" He gripped her hands.

His mother assured him her decision.

"I am not asking you." She yelled and moved her index finger firmly "You Will apologize tomorrow, and you will never raise you voice, ever!"

Her mother's angry face was fading in her fearful eyes. He decided not to answer her.

"Good evening." She said before leaving the room.

For much of the night, Mrs. Bainbridge was unable to fall asleep. Over and over again, she recalled the attitude of her son sitting on the couch in her room, in silence, with the lights off. She shook her head as she questioned what had gone wrong with his upbringing.

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Thanks for reading! I hope you enjoyed. English is not my native language, so any feedback, suggestion or advice to change the grammar would be really appreciated.