The Other Brother [Fiction]

Chandler's Thanksgiving dinner would stay with Kelly for a long time.

She arrived at their mansion with high hopes and a bundle of nerves. That was her first time meeting Tim's family—the wealthy and well-known Chandlers.

The mansion was enormous, pristine white and nothing was out of place. The flowers lining the building were neatly trimmed and colourful. A fountain stood at the centre of the driveway: a boy statue glancing up at the sky as he peed water into a surrounding stone basin.

Tim smirked at her stunned expression. “My father did that. It's a joke.”

“Oh.” She nodded with a small smile, wringing her fingers. He led her inside the house and straight to the kitchen where his mother stood, instructing their cook on last minute things.

Mrs Lauren Chandler looked like a queen. Dressed in a Tory Burch silk shirt dress cinched at the waist and paired with a gold bracelet, she held her head high. That flustered Kelly some more that she almost curtsied had Tim not squeezed her hand gently.

Mrs Chandler was unimpressed.

“Father,” Tim called and Kelly turned to see an older version of her boyfriend in white polo and shorts approaching them. He was a good-looking silver fox and she could feel her neck getting warm from a blush.

The men embraced and patted each other on the back. “And who is this young lady?” Mr Joe Chandler asked.

Tim cleared his throat, suddenly nervous. “Uh, this is my girlfriend, Kelly George.”

“Oh, Kelly. Welcome to our home. I see Tim's been keeping you a secret.” His gaze lingered for a moment on her before they shook hands. Lauren watched from beside her husband, her expression stoic.

“It's lovely to meet you…Mr and Mrs Chandler.”

“Please call us Joe and Lauren,” Mr Chandler said just as footsteps sounded from behind them.

Kelly gasped, her eyes wide in shock. The Chandlers turned at the same time. A tall, striking man in his mid twenties strode towards them. His icy eyes glared at Kelly, staring her down.

“Daryl! You are here.” Tim went to hug his brother but paused when Daryl raised his hand to stop him from coming closer.

“What is it?” Tim growled.

Kelly fidgeted, her hands gripping the sides of her skirt and squeezing.

“What's going on here?” Tim asked again, glancing between his adopted brother and his girlfriend. Lauren and Joe exchanged glances and gazed at their sons in confusion.

Daryl shook his head and sighed, pushing his eyeglasses higher onto his nose. “That's her…Simone Kelly George, my ex-fiancee.”

“What?” Lauren, Joe and Tim exclaimed in unison. All eyes were on Kelly who was crying softly into her handkerchief.

She'd broken up with Daryl because she didn't love him. The universe had dealt her a blow by making her fall in love with the other brother.

I hope you enjoyed reading this short piece. It's inspired by the Freewrite #dailyprompt phrase "the other brother".

Thank you for visiting my blog.

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