“Paul, what are you asking?” Susan nudged him. “You’re embarrassing him.”
“It’s okay, Aunt Sue!” Alex laughed. “Uncle Paul, reporting for duty: no girlfriend, just a friend. Made a lot of new friends, though. And I swam and got enough sun to last a lifetime, I think.”
“That’s wonderful!” Susan hugged the boy. “You’re so big now!”
Happy and cheerful, they walked down the platform. Alex didn’t notice Nick standing in the crowd of arriving passengers with the other kids from the group home, watching them with a thoughtful expression.
That evening, Alex decided to tell them who he had met at camp.
“Maybe it’s a mistake?” Paul doubted. “They had millions, traveled the world, and now the mother’s an alcoholic and the boy’s in a regular group home?”
“No, Uncle Paul, it’s not a mistake,” Alex shook his head. “I found a picture on my phone from the beginning of the session. Some kids from other cabins got in the shot with our group, and Nick is there. Here, look, can you find him?”
He showed the adults the photo on his phone. Susan and Paul immediately saw the boy who looked like Alex and exchanged a glance.
“Alex, you two look so much alike,” Susan whispered.
“That’s what I thought,” Alex replied.
“You said he’s in a group home, his mother’s an alcoholic…” Susan sighed. “It’s their punishment for all the evil they caused.”
“Sue, what does the kid have to do with it?” Paul said with a slight reproach.
Susan shrugged. “Well, we have nothing to do with it either.”
And they didn’t bring up the topic again. But Alex constantly thought about Nick. How was he doing? He was probably still mad at him. Of course, he was. He would have called by now if he wasn’t.
Meanwhile, Nick was tormented by the question of whether the boy from camp had lied to him. Maybe it was just a cruel, stupid joke? But Nick had also noticed how much he and Alex looked alike. Only his mother could give him the answers. One day, the boy ran away from the group home to talk to Julia. She was still living in the small one-bedroom apartment. It was a mess, garbage everywhere. Some shady-looking friends were sitting in the kitchen. Nick timidly entered the room and saw his mother sleeping.
“Mom!” the boy called out, his voice trembling. “Mom, wake up!”
Julia opened her eyes.
“Oh, it’s you,” she said indifferently upon seeing her son. “What do you want?”
“Mom, I want to know the truth. Why do you blame me for what happened to Dad?”
“Your dad was a fool!” Julia sneered. “It was so simple—just get the kid out of the country, that’s it. But he dragged his feet, collecting papers, and waited until the kid figured everything out himself. And that idiot Emma ratted him out! And you’re no better! We spent so much money on you, and for what? In the end, you got your surgery practically for free. And Mike went to jail, and I… I was ruined!”
She burst into tears. Nick stared at her, stunned. From his mother’s confession, it seemed Alex hadn’t been lying.
“Mom!” Nick said quietly. “I’m sorry!”
“Sorry?!” Julia shrieked, dissolving into hysterical laughter.
Nick couldn’t watch anymore and left. A lump formed in his throat; he wanted to cry. So, he was guilty without being guilty. His father had committed a crime for his sake. The man he had loved so much turned out to be a monster? Nick couldn’t understand or accept it. But he would have to learn to live with it now.
Unexpectedly, he found the crumpled piece of paper in his jacket pocket. It was Alex’s phone number.
“Yes, he’s my brother, and he’s not to blame for anything. And what about him, Nick?”
“He’s not to blame for anything either. It’s just that his parents once decided they could buy the world, and they were terribly mistaken.”
Nick took out his phone and dialed Alex’s number.
“Hey,” he said. “It’s Nick. Alex, let’s meet up. I just ran away from the group home. I’ve got a couple of hours to walk around the city before they notice I’m gone during the shift change.”
“Where are you?” he heard Alex’s worried voice.
“I’m in the central park, on a bench near the entrance.”
“I’ll be right there.”
And the brothers met. They sat and talked for a long time. They didn’t argue about who was right or wrong. The boys just chatted about life, their favorite celebrities, their hobbies. It turned out they both loved fishing.
“Uncle Paul got me into it,” Alex said. “We go to the lake in the winter and summer.”
“My grandpa used to take me when I was a kid,” Nick said enthusiastically. “Once, we went fishing, you know where? On the Amazon River. When I was little, we traveled to South America. Then my grandpa passed away. Then I got really sick.”
Nick frowned and fell silent. Alex fell silent too. Then they both started talking at once, anxiously.
“Nick, let’s forget about the past.”
“Yeah, we’re brothers.”
And the boys hugged.
Just then, a police patrol approached them. It turned out the group home had already discovered Nick was missing. He had completely lost track of time talking to his brother.
“Alright, Alex, see ya!” he waved from the back of the police car. “We’ll meet again!”
“Of course, we will.”
“Just clear your meetings with the group home director next time, kid,” one of the officers said grumpily. “We’ve been looking for you all over the city for an hour.”
Nick just gave a mischievous glint in his eyes.
The boys started calling each other. Sometimes they would hang out after school. For his birthday, Alex decided to invite Nick. He asked Susan and Paul. They were hesitant at first, but then agreed. What could they do? They were brothers. And it was good that the boys hadn’t become bitter after everything, but had instead understood each other and found common ground. After all, you don’t choose your parents.
The birthday party was a lot of fun. A few of Alex’s classmates were there. Nick came. He was welcomed into the group, and the boy was genuinely happy to be there. As he was leaving, he told Susan:
“Aunt Sue, thank you for letting Alex invite me. It’s so nice here.”
“Come over anytime,” Susan smiled….
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