Betrayed by Family and Fiancée

Professor Adler, I am heading back stateside soon. Could you please talk some sense into Phillip? Convince him to take the teaching position and stay at the university?

Professor Adler let out a heavy sigh over the phone.

Freya, what you and his family did back then truly broke that boy.

Whether he stays or leaves is entirely out of my hands. It is his life.

Freyas voice trembled, bleeding with desperation.

"Professor, I know I messed up. I just want to come back and make things right with Phillip. Please, you have to help me!"

Professor Adler looked through the glass window of her office, watching me meticulously prepare test tubes in the lab. She took a moment to steady her breathing.

"Freya, a mistake is a mistake. You and Simon intentionally tampered with his food. You poisoned him so Simon could steal his fellowship spot. You nearly killed him."

"Expecting his forgiveness now? You are asking for a miracle."

I was right in the middle of organizing my research data when Professor Adler called me into her office.

"Phillip, Freya is flying back from Europe."

I froze for a split second before a bitter smile tugged at the corner of my mouth.

"She chose Simon. Her coming back has absolutely nothing to do with me."

"I am hardly going to waste my time chasing a ghost."

Professor Adler slid two application folders across her desk.

"Freya and your parents have been calling me non-stop. They want me to convince you to accept the faculty position here."

"The choice is yours. Whatever you decide, I will back you."

I looked down at the two folders. Two entirely different futures laid out right in front of me.

Without a word, I reached out and pulled the bottom folder toward me.

Professor Adler let out a long, quiet breath.

"I knew it. I knew you could never just sweep it under the rug."

I grabbed a tissue from her desk, handed it to her, and crouched down beside her chair.

"It is not about holding onto grudges, Professor. I just do not want my life entangled with theirs anymore."

"The Defense Institute is secluded. It will be quiet. That is all I want."

Her eyes softened, swimming with a quiet heartbreak. She had watched her favorite student endure an unimaginable betrayal, and she had been powerless to stop it.

"Do what your heart tells you, Phillip. I will handle your parents. I will get them off your back."

I took her wrinkled hand in mine, my chest tight with gratitude.

"Thank you, Professor. For everything you have done these past few years."

I was just reaching for the doorknob to leave when her voice stopped me.

"Phillip. I know there is a lot of anger in you. But your mother is unwell. She has been in and out of the hospital. She really wants you to visit."

I clenched my jaw, my knuckles turning white around the brass handle.

"She gave you life, Phillip. Just go see her once before you leave."

I gave a stiff nod.

My throat felt like sandpaper when I finally spoke. "Okay."

Standing on the porch of the house I had not visited in years, a storm of messy emotions brewed in my chest.

I raised my hand to knock. Before my knuckles even grazed the wood, the door swung open.

"Phillip. You actually came. Come in, get out of the cold!"

My father ushered me inside. I swapped my boots for slippers and immediately noticed the dining table. It was piled high with fresh fruit, all my favorites.

"Your mom has been having dizzy spells. I asked Professor Adler to see if you would come by."

"I bought fresh fruit every single morning. I figured whenever you decided to show up, you would have something good to eat."

My dad stood there, awkwardly rubbing the back of his neck.

I reached out to grab an orange, but the second my fingers touched the rind, a screeching voice echoed in my head.

Put that down! We did not raise you to eat our food and talk back to us!

I violently jerked my hand back and stood up straight, staring blankly at the walls. Everything was so familiar, yet utterly suffocating.

My dad took a step forward, his eyes full of concern. "Phillip? What is wrong?"

I swatted his hand away, my voice dropping to an icy chill.

"Where is she? I have places to be. Let us get this over with."

His face fell. The forced cheerfulness cracked, replaced by a pathetic begging look.

"Could you stay for just a couple of days?"

"No."

I spun on my heel, ready to walk right back out.

"Phillip!"

Two stray tears rolled down my dads cheeks.

"Your mom is at the hospital. She wants to see you."

"We know we messed up. She wants to apologize to your face. She is your mother, Phillip. Please just go look at her."

My hands balled into tight fists. A blazing, uncontrollable fire shot straight to my brain.

"You know you messed up?" I barked.

"The only thing you know is that Simon is never coming back from Europe!"

"You finally realized he is not going to stick around to spoon-feed you in your old age. So suddenly, you remember you have an actual biological son!"

"Where was this energy when you let Simon and Freya poison my food? When I was hooked up to a ventilator, did it cross your minds that I was your real son?"

My dad stumbled back as if I had shoved him. His usually rigid posture crumbled, his shoulders sagging in defeat.

"It has been years, Phillip. Can you not just give us a chance to make it right?"

"Freya is coming back. She promised us that the moment she lands, she will marry you."

I let out a harsh, mocking laugh. "Dr. Brooks, do you honestly believe I would take back someone else's sloppy seconds?"

He choked on his words.

The silence stretched out, thick and heavy.

"You two still have a history," he finally mumbled.

"She is coming back specifically for you. We all know how much you loved her. Growing up, whatever she wanted, you gave it to her. Whatever she broke, you fixed."

I stared at him with absolute disgust.

"So that was your logic? You banked on my love for her to get away with ruining my life?"

"No!" He shook his head frantically.

"Simon is your cousin. His parents died. We just wanted to help him get a leg up."

A cold smirk played on my lips.

"Help him? You wanted me to drop out of the fellowship competition and hand him my spot on a silver platter."

"But why did you let them spike my food? I almost died in that ER!"

My dad looked away. He could not meet my eyes.

"Simon told us it would just give you a bad stomach bug. We never thought..."

I did not let him finish. I walked right out the front door, leaving him with one final thought.

"I will go to the hospital. But whatever little family reunion you are plotting, drop it."

Sitting on the subway heading back to campus, I zoned out, staring at the young couple sitting across from me. They were giggling, admiring the matching rings on their fingers.

Phillip, you have to wear this all the time. If I ever catch you taking it off, you are dead meat!

Freshman year. Freya had bought us matching promise rings. She claimed it made our childhood pact official.

After shoving the ring onto my finger, she had held out her right hand, her cheeks flushed pink.

Well, dummy? Put it on your fiance!

My hands had been shaking when I slid that silver band onto her ring finger. When I pulled her into my arms that night, I genuinely believed I held the entire universe.

The automated voice announcing my stop dragged me back to reality.

The moment I unlocked my dorm room, my phone buzzed. Unknown number.

I hit decline. Two seconds later, it buzzed again.

"Who is this?"

Total silence on the other end. Then, a soft intake of breath.

"Phillip. My flight lands the day after tomorrow. Will you pick me up at the airport?"

My chest seized. Hot anger flared in my throat.

"Freya. Are you really this delusional?"

"Can you just talk to me like a normal person?" she snapped back, her voice tinged with annoyance. "This is the first time you have answered my call in years, and you immediately start insulting me."

I scoffed. "Is there a problem with that? You ran off with another guy!"

"Did you really expect me to roll out the red carpet?"

I could hear her taking a deep, exaggerated breath.

"I am moving back for good. Professor Adler already told you about the faculty position, right? We can..."

I hung up. I blocked the number immediately.

I opened my desk drawer and pulled out the folder Professor Adler had given me.

It looked like a standard university faculty application, but underneath was a heavily redacted contract. A Level-1 DOD clearance agreement for a ten-year classified communications project.

I was on the shortlist.

I grabbed a black pen, signed my name on the dotted line, and walked straight to Professor Adlers office.

"You are sure about this?" she asked, looking at the signed pages. "Once I send this up the chain, there is no backing out."

I smiled, feeling lighter than I had in years.

"I stopped looking backward a long time ago, Professor."

"Your father called me about your visit," she mentioned quietly. "He said your temper is worse than ever. He begged me to talk some sense into you."

I rolled my eyes. "The absolute nerve of that man."

She opened her mouth to say something, then closed it. I knew what she was thinking.

"I will visit the hospital, Professor. I promised you I would. But please, do not ask me to forgive them."

She waved her hand dismissively. "Just go."

First thing the next morning, I bought a fruit basket and a bouquet of cheap flowers and took an Uber to the hospital.

I found the room number. The moment I pushed the heavy door open, the bathroom door clicked, and Freya stepped out.

"Oh! Phillip, you ruined the surprise!"

My mother scrambled to sit up in her hospital bed, her face lighting up.

"Phillip! You are here, come sit down!"

I completely ignored Freya.

I set the flowers and fruit on the bedside table and looked at my mother.

"What did the doctor say?"

Her eyes instantly glossed over with tears.

"Nothing serious. Just high blood pressure. They are giving me fluids, and I should be fine."

I nodded.

"Good. Then I am leaving."

I turned around, but Freya grabbed my forearm, her grip tight.

"Phillip, your mother is sick in a hospital bed. Would it kill you to stay and keep her company for an hour?"

"Let go of me," I said, my voice dead flat.

Freya stared at me, looking genuinely shocked.

"I cannot believe you are speaking to me like this!"

"How else am I supposed to speak to you?"

She took a shaky breath, trying to play the bigger person.

"Fine. I know you are still mad at me. But I am back now. I will marry you."

"This is what you always wanted, right? I am giving it to you. Just drop this ridiculous attitude like the whole world owes you something."

I stood there, perfectly still, letting her finish her little speech.

"Freya," I said softly, making sure she heard every single syllable. "You are absolute trash."

She froze. The color drained from her face, and her eyes welled up with angry tears.

I did not stick around to watch the meltdown. I walked right out of the ward.

Freshman year. Simons parents my aunt and uncle had been killed in a massive highway pileup.

My parents took him in without a second thought.

They ordered Freya and me to tutor him, begging us to help him pull his grades up so he could transfer to our university. He was not exactly sharp, but my parents pulled strings behind the scenes. Somehow, the admissions office lowered the threshold just for him.

You guys are the best. I will take care of you when you are old, I swear.

My parents ate it up. They bought him a brand-new car on the spot as a college acceptance gift.

I had been standing in the living room, ready to ask why I had never gotten a car. Freya had grabbed my sleeve, pulling me back.

Do not be jealous, Phillip. If they are giving things to Simon, obviously they will give things to you too.

I figured she was right. I was the biological son, after all.

Soon, Simon was texting Freya constantly, asking her for private tutoring sessions.

My time with her vanished.

Whenever I brought it up, she would just laugh and poke my forehead.

He is your cousin, idiot. Are you seriously jealous of family?

I felt a gnawing in my gut, but I pushed it down. Simon had a tragic backstory. He struggled in class. My parents told me to step up. So, I started tutoring him too.

Then came the night we stayed up late going over his finals.

Freya went to the kitchen to cut some fruit. Simon watched her walk away, his eyes glued to the curve of her waist.

Man, I am so jealous you have a girl like her. I want one exactly like that.

Every alarm bell in my head went off.

I glared at him, my voice dangerously low. "Obviously. She is the girl I have been claiming since day one."

I got up to help Freya in the kitchen. I did not see the toxic, venomous glare Simon shot at the back of my head.

A few months later, the excuses started. Whenever I had a robotics competition or a lab deadline, they would suddenly have "study breaks" out of town.

They started finding weird reasons to get me out of the apartment. I knew something was wrong.

So, I lied. I told them I had an overnight seminar out of state.

I waited behind the apartment complex. I watched them walk out with overnight bags, laughing, Freyas arm looped tight through his. They were heading straight for his car.

I stepped out from the shadows and stood directly in their path.

Freya ripped her hand away from Simons arm like she had been burned.

"Phillip! I thought you were at the seminar?"

I let out a dark chuckle. "Care to explain where you two are going?"

Simon opened his mouth, but Freya stepped in front of him.

"Phillip, please do not overthink this. I treat Simon like a little brother. That is all it is."

Under her terrified gaze, I grabbed a baseball bat from the garage and smashed the windshield of Simon's car to pieces.

My parents rushed over after getting the panicked phone call.

When they heard what happened, my dad got right in my face, veins popping in his neck.

"What is wrong with your head? Why are you always making up these psychotic conspiracy theories?"

I picked up an orange from the kitchen counter, peeling it slowly.

"I trust my own eyes. I trust what I see."

"They are sleeping together. I caught them sneaking off. There is no conspiracy here, just facts."

My dad slapped the orange right out of my hand.

"Put that down! We did not raise you to eat our food and talk back to us!"

I bent down, picked up a slice of the orange, popped it in my mouth, and chewed slowly. I looked at my parents, then at Simon and Freya.

"So you would rather believe their pathetic lies than your own son's eyes?"

My mom stepped forward and smacked my shoulder hard.

"What facts? They are just a brother and sister going on a road trip. So what if they linked arms?"

"You spend too much time in that lab. It has rotted your brain!"

Looking at the four of them, glaring at me like I was the villain, I realized something broke inside me. Words were useless here.

"Freya. We are done."

"Excuse me?" she gasped.

My dad lunged forward and backhanded me across the face.

I rolled my jaw, feeling the sting.

"I said, we are over. The engagement is off."

Freya collapsed onto the floor, sobbing while my mother rubbed her back.

I walked out of the house with my dads screaming echoing down the street.

Simon ran out after me, shouting for the neighborhood to hear.

"Phillip, wait! It is my fault! I should not have dragged her on a trip with me!"

He jogged up beside me. Once he knew the others could not hear him, his face twisted into a nasty grin.

"She thinks you are boring, Phillip. She told me I am way more fun."

"She was screaming my name, telling me I was better than you ever were."

"If you are not going to play with a toy this good, I will gladly take your turn."

I swung hard. My fist connected squarely with his jaw, sending him crashing into the pavement.

My dad sprinted out of the house and kicked me in the ribs.

All three of them surrounded Simon, checking his bloody lip, completely ignoring me.

My mother crouched in the dirt, screaming every curse word in the book at me.

Freya just looked at me, her makeup smeared. "Why are you doing this, Phillip?"

I lay on the pavement, clutching my ribs, looking at her with pure nausea.

"Ask him."

My dad practically threw Simon into the car and sped off to the ER.

I watched the taillights fade.

I slowly pushed myself up off the concrete and limped the three miles back to campus.

The next day, my phone rang. Freya.

"Phillip. Simon said he was just trying to explain that we were going as friends, and you just lost your mind and assaulted him."

I laughed, a dry, hollow sound.

"If that is the story you want to run with, go ahead. You do not need my approval."

Twenty minutes after I hung up, she was banging on my dorm door.

"Your parents want you to apologize to him, Phillip."

I leaned against the doorframe, looking down at her. "And do you agree with them?"

She bit her lip and nodded.

I actually burst out laughing.

"You know exactly what you and Simon did behind my back."

"You know exactly why I hit him. And you have the audacity to stand in my hallway and demand I apologize?"

"Do you have no shame left at all?"

Tears pooled in her eyes.

"Stop talking to me like that."

"I only view him as a brother. That one time... you were ignoring me, and I got drunk, and it just happened."

"It was only one time! I am not the trash you think I am!"

I took a deep breath, trying to stop my hands from shaking.

She kept going. "I promise you, I already told him we can never cross that line again. It is over."

"Get out!" I roared, my voice shaking the walls.

Freya flinched, all the blood draining from her face.

She backed away, shaking her head in disbelief.

"You are telling me to get out?"

She nodded rapidly, her face twisting with rage. "Fine. I am leaving. But do not come crawling back when you regret this!"

I slid down the doorframe, pulled my knees to my chest, and bit down on my lip until I tasted copper.

I never went back to that house again.

By my senior year, a rumor started circulating. Simon, a junior who could barely pass standard chemistry, had miraculously finished all his credits early.

He was graduating a year ahead of schedule.

Just as the campus gossip hit its peak, Professor Adler called me in.

"Your parents called in every favor they had to fast-track his graduation. They want him to qualify for the full-ride doctoral fellowship at Oxford."

She handed me an application form.

"The committee wanted to hand you the fellowship without an exam based on your lab work."

"But your father lobbied the board. He demanded a fair, competitive exam for all candidates."

I took the form and aggressively signed my name.

"It does not matter, Professor. Simon is not a threat to me academically."