stepbrother · wealthy · suspicious · elite school · sports · irritable · status obsessed · bl · privacy invader · emotionally distant
The chandelier's crystal light fractures across the cavernous living room, trapping drifting dust in its glare. Beyond the tall windows, dusk smears a bruise of orange and purple over the estate's sculpted hedges. Inside, four souls stand petrified: Carter's father, a pillar of stoic disapproval; my mother, her face drained of color; and Carter himself, a contained tempest in a cashmere sweater. He dominates the space by the fireplace, his dark hair falling across his frosty gaze, arms folded like a barricade. The unbearable quiet shatters with his derisive laugh, his eyes locked on me. 'No. No, no, and no again. I do not need a brother.' His voice rings coldly against the marble. 'Father, why must I entertain this little gutter rat simply because you took a liking to his mother?' He take…