Leave Me Alone, Big Brothers! [BL]-Chapter 84: The Confrontation

Meanwhile, the tension between Nathan and Nael that had been simmering for many days finally boiled over in the morning.

Nathan had just reached the top of the stairs after preparing his lunch, as was now normal. Then Nael appeared from the opposite direction. The moment their eyes met, Nael’s expression went from blank to sharp, visible disgust.

He veered toward the wall, pressing his shoulder against it as if Nathan carried a plague he didn’t want to catch.

Nathan stopped dead. He’d had enough of the nonsense.

"I’m not a germ, Nael. You don’t have to bleach the walls every time I walk past," Nathan said, his voice flat but clearly annoyed.

Nael didn’t stop. He kept walking, his gaze fixed on the floor. "I don’t have a problem with you."

"Stop it," Nathan said, stepping into Nael’s path and blocking his way. "You’ve been acting like a brat for days. If you have something to say, say it to my face instead of acting like a coward."

Nael stopped. He looked at his twin, his eyes red-rimmed and burning with a frantic, exhausted heat. "Do you even care? Does it even register to you how annoying it is to watch you?"

"No, I don’t care! But it’s irritating," Nathan shot back. "I’m trying to live my life, and you treat me like I’m your worst enemy. What did I do to you?"

Nael took a sharp, jagged breath. The "polite" Salazar mask he usually wore finally cracked, falling away to reveal a teenager who was drowning in his own resentment.

"You exist! That’s what you did," Nael snapped, his voice cracking. "You can act like a total asshole, you can be rude to our brothers, you can break all the rules, and everyone just... accepts it. They just accept it because, ’oh, poor Nathan was in an orphanage for seventeen years.’ I’m sick of it! I’m absolutely fed up!"

"What?" Nathan asked, genuinely stunned.

"You think the orphanage makes you the victim? Look at you!" Nael stepped closer, his hands trembling at his sides. "Despite being in that place, you have everything I don’t. You’re surrounded by people who love you sincerely. You have brothers who love you, you have best friends who truly care about you. They would actually sacrifice themselves for you."

Nathan gaped in disbelief. "What? You’re jealous of me? While you’ve had seventeen years of your perfect life? And what? Your brothers love me? Don’t you have eyes?"

Nael clenched his fists. His voice dropped to a whisper, thick with bitterness. "They love you more than me! Every year, all they talk about is you! What you were doing in your miserable life! While I’m here just listening like I’m not exist. My ’best friends’ are Nick and Jonas, who only talk to me so they can use the Salazar name. My... my love life..." He choked on the words, the memory of Zimmer’s betrayal flashing in his eyes like a fresh wound.

"What?" Nathan challenged, his emotions also provoked.

But Nael couldn’t continue. He just cried. "You’re just an asshole! You shouldn’t exist! Or I shouldn’t have been born!"

Nathan clenched his fists. He was angry, but also confused by Nael’s unusual emotions. Usually, the boy was calm and cheerful, so this change was very sudden. He felt like he hadn’t done anything to provoke Nael’s anger.

"You’re blaming me because your friends suck?" Nathan asked, his voice low with disbelief. "You’re really jealous of me?"

"Yes!" Nael screamed, tears flowing freely and racing down his cheeks. "You have everything I don’t have. And still you can be an asshole whenever you like. I’m trying my best all my life, but I still didn’t get the love I deserve."

Nathan stared at Nael. He saw the pain in his twin’s eyes. He still didn’t understand the reason. To him, Nael had everything. The boy was just being spoiled right now because Nathan was there and getting what he deserved.

But Nathan didn’t want to argue. He was tired of even thinking about it. He looked at Nael, who was still sobbing.

"Don’t act like a baby, damn it! You want everything back? You will get it."

Nael looked at Nathan, confused.

"I will only be here for six months. Now there are four months left. You don’t need to feel jealous of me, because I’m just a guest here. After I leave, you can get everything back."

Nael was silent. For a few seconds, he was confused by his own emotions. He was just very angry and frustrated. But when Nathan reminded him of their agreement, he couldn’t say anything.

Nathan stepped closer, his shadow falling over Nael. "So quit making me out to be the villain. I don’t give a damn about you, and I don’t give a damn about your brothers or your money. I’m a guest who’s overstaying his welcome, and trust me, I’m counting the days until I don’t have to see your miserable face anymore."

Nael went silent. The anger seemed to drain out of him, replaced by a confused, hollow shock. He had spent days building Nathan up as this grand usurper who was stealing his life, but hearing Nathan dismiss the entire Salazar empire so easily made his chest ache in a new way.

He didn’t want Nathan to leave.

Nael was still trying to understand his feelings when Nathan walked away from him.

Nathan shoved past him, his shoulder clipping Nael’s. "Keep Isabel. Keep Louis. Keep the whole damn house!"

Nael stood in the hallway alone, the silence of the mansion pressing in on him.

*Zane’s bedroom*

The atmosphere was anything but calm.

Zane sat on the edge of his bed, his silk sheets crumpled beneath his grip. In his right hand, his phone felt like a live wire. The screen was pulled up to a new contact, the cursor blinking mockingly next to the name Nathan S.

His face was a deep, burning crimson, the heat radiating all the way to the tips of his ears. He stared at the device, his thumb hovering millimeters above the green "Call" icon.

Call?

Not call?

Maybe just a text?

No, a text is too casual.

He let out a shaky breath and leaned forward, his elbows resting on his knees. He had spent the entire night staring at his phone. It was a graveyard of unsent messages: "The teacher said yes," "Are you coming today?", "Hey."

Every time he had reached for the "Send" button, his heart had hammered against his ribs so hard he felt nauseous.

He took a sharp, audible gulp.

The official reason, the "approved" reason, was the tutor. He needed to tell Nathan that the teacher had agreed to the extra student. It was a logical, professional update. But Zane knew he was lying to himself. He could have sent a two-second chat for that.

He didn’t want to update Nathan. He just wanted to hear his voice.

"It’s just a phone call," Zane whispered to the empty, opulent room. "It’s just... Nathan."

But it wasn’t just Nathan. It was the boy who had made him confused about himself and his own behavior in recent days.

Zane closed his eyes, his grip tightening on the phone until his knuckles turned white. His reflection in the darkened screen showed a boy he barely recognized, flustered, red-faced, and completely undone by a single contact number.

"Damn it!" he hissed, throwing the phone onto the mattress beside him. He stood up abruptly and paced the length of the room, running his fingers through his ’ready-for-school’ styled hair until it was a mess.

"Damn! What happened to you, Zane!"

He stopped in front of the full-length mirror, staring at his own reflection. His chest was heaving. He looked like he had just run a marathon instead of sitting in his room at 6:30 a.m.

He looked back at the phone. It sat there silently. If he didn’t call the boy now, who knew when he’d have another reason to contact him. Nathan didn’t have his phone number yet.

In the end, he didn’t dare call Nathan.

"Fuck off."