Inheritance

Chapter 14

"Look, Raya. There's something I need to tell you." I stopped walking once she spoke again, wishing to know what she had to say sooner rather than later.

"What's going on, Sarah?" My attention shifted between her small frame and the place we'd been standing only moments ago. Kendall continued to stare daggers into my eyes, until his expression settled into a glare.

"That man back there. He-He's Austin." 

Surely, she couldn't have meant my Austin. 

The sound of that name being associated with Kendall's was enough to set my mind ablaze. The Austin I knew had been kind, gentle, and caring. In other words, nothing like the brute that was Kendall Fine. So, there was no way she could possibly be referring to my first love. 

I refused to come to terms with the conception that the man of my dreams had been right in front of me this entire time and in the form of an arrogant narcissist. That would mean that Austin was no longer a figment of my imagination, but present right now in the flesh and blood.

"Wait, Austin as in the Austin that lived here?" I cut her off before she could continue speaking. She nodded her head, destroying any doubts that I had conjured up in my mind.

"But how?! That can't be true. Kendall doesn't even have a stutter. He's rude and obnoxious, nothing like the Austin I remember." 

"Who's Kendall?" She asked, but I ignored her comment while my head became consumed with confusion.

I released a visible heave, as subtle hints of the connection between the two men began to emerge from my memory. For one, Kendall did tell me I reminded him of someone he knew. Also, didn't the bracelet he wore have the letters A & R encrusted on them?

Had A stood for Austin and R for Raya?

"When you left him without so much as a goodbye, Aust-Kendall was just so distraught. We thought he might end up doing something drastic to himself. So, Mrs. Franks contacted his late mom's parents. They agreed to take him in and raise him in New Jersey. Apparently, they'd wanted to formally adopt him since the first day he arrived at this house, but he refused to go. For you." She continued, her face holding a placid look of concern.

For me?

"I-I need to speak to him. Where is he?" I began to distance myself from Sarah, my mind overflowing with anguish from what I had just heard. But, Sarah pulled me back in quite adamantly.

"Wait—there's more. Kendall became severely depressed after you left. He kept asking why you never called or came back to visit. And, with time, his self-destructive thoughts only worsened. He thought you hated him and that he was the reason you chose to leave. I suppose this came from him never dealing with the loss of his mother. It was scary, seeing him get that way. Mrs. Franks knew the only way he'd truly move on from you was if he believed y-you died. I'm so sorry, Sasha." 

I shoved her away from me with more force than I meant to apply. I knew it was wrong for me to displace my anger onto her, when I was truly upset with myself. But, in the moment, what I needed more than anything was to find Kendall. 

Scanning the backyard for his familiar frame, my eyes failed to locate him anywhere outside. Walking away from Sarah, I headed back inside the house. She didn't follow me, which I was thankful for. 

Quietly padding up the stairs, I made it to the bedroom across from mine. My instincts led me to the one place I suspected Kendall might be. The door was slightly ajar, confirming that someone was inside the room. 

I nudged the door open, closing it after I entered to guarantee privacy on a conversation I knew needed to happen tonight. Kendall sat on the edge of the boyish bed, evidently too big for it now. His elbows rested on his thighs, as he cradled his head in between his hands.