Rich Boys Academy

Chapter 1

CHAPTER ONE

(Two years ago)

I was walking home after a tiring day at school.

Home, I thought. Should I even call it a home?

A place where you can see your parents quarrel and fight every day; a place where you see your siblings ruin themselves by taking vices and do whatnots; a place where no one wants to live in because all you see is pure mess; and a place where you're not even sure if love truly exists anymore. Is that what you call home?

I stopped walking as I arrived at our front yard. Staring at this miserable aura of what I call 'my house' makes me fraught in silence.

No, this isn't home, I told myself and sighed.

Then everything that happened from the past flashed before my mind.

Yes, there was a time when we were all a happy family. When everything was so clear and bright and all you could see was their big smiles plastered on their faces. Everyone felt loved. Everyone felt cared for. Everyone felt joy. Everyone felt home. But that love and happiness in our family lasted only for thirteen years of my existence.

When I turned fourteen, everything went downhill. It all started when my mom suddenly changed. She got easily irritated and annoyed. She used to be the sweetest mom on earth but suddenly became the bitterest. She didn't take her responsibilities as a mother anymore. She always stayed out late and partied all night. When she came back at dawn, she was already drunk. She slept the whole day and went out at night again. She just stopped being the person she truly was. She even stopped caring about our family diner.

Later did I know that the diner was already gone. The diner, the one that my parents strove to build, was now gone. It was set on fire by God-knows-who. Even the police and investigators didn't find any suspects. No one was accused. Everyone was innocent. The one who burned the place never left any evidence that would lead to accusing him. Of course, he wouldn't or else he'd be in jail by now. Pfft.

Literally, no signs of hand prints or any device that would cause the fire. Not even a single clue.

The police concluded that maybe the diner burned itself. Yes, I know what you're thinking. I mean, what the heck right? How could a thing burn itself? That's crap. This is why you don't want to live in a small town with lazy officers.

And so, the case was closed.

Then, I got it. I realized why my mom changed.

The diner was our only glint of hope to pay all the bills and debts that our family has. It was our only saving grace. But then, it was gone. It burned itself (note sarcasm).

Three months after the tragic incident, my mom didn't go home for a week. My dad heard the rumors that my mom had a third party. At first, my dad didn't believe it even though it was obvious. He didn't want to believe. He loved my mom so much despite of everything she had done. And it hurts him to think that she had another man, a man he couldn't even compete with.

Let's just say the man was hella rich and, well, we were poor. But the man only used my mom for pleasure for a couple of weeks. He was a divorced douche from New York and he went to town for a holiday and met my mom at the town's only club.

After a month, my mom got pregnant and the father was that douche bag from New York. My dad was devastated. He almost thought of committing suicide!

Long story short, my mom later repented.

My dad, being the humble and kindhearted man that he was, and still is, forgave my mom and accepted her baby. My dad named him "Calum". Since then, he has treated him like his own.