Hiraeth

11

"Hey, mom... You've been well?" He mentally begged for time to go faster so he could just return to the comforts of his simple house. But his prayers were cut off when his mother dragged him and his sister to the dining room because dinner was ready.

Dinner, just like he remembered as a child, was filled with the chatters of his mother and his sister. Now, he never hated Riley, in fact, he greatly treasured her. She had practically raised the male, and never uttered a word in complaint.

But he hated how she never realised that their mother was just a leech.

A leech who was never present during their childhood, when they needed her to raise them and love them. She only began to acknowledge Riley when she helped their mother in her business and when Stanley quickly climbed the ranks in the army.

"Stanley! Why aren't you eating anything else? You need to eat more if you want to be a good soldier!"

God, just hearing her voice makes his fucking skin crawl! She's treating him like a goddamn toddler. Well, guess what, you hag?! You're a few years too late!

"Mom, Stan doesn't really have dinner at this hour, so I'm sure he's just not that hungry..." Riley came to his aid before he could snap back at their mother.

Yeah, forget being hungry. He really is feeling sick just breathing the same air as her.

"You were pretty excited to call me over this time round. Wanna tell me why you kept callin' me even during training?" The male tried so hard to soften his tone. He didn't want to use his professional tone in front of his older sister.

"Hahaha! You really do take after me in terms of intelligence!" Another annoying remark was all that he got in answer, making him grit his teeth.

'Yeah, right... If I did take after your thinking, I would have been a selfish little motherfucker who neglects his children after the death of their father and only acknowledges them when they start making money, so I can leech off of them.'

Riley could only look over at him in worry when he didn't reply. Looking back at their mother, she saw her grin growing.

"Stan, don't you think you're getting a bit older? I mean, your sister is already engaged! You should start looking for someone you like-" she stopped for a moment to giggle to herself.

"Wait... Don't tell me you're one of the shy ones? Haha, just like your father! Don't worry, I know a number of beauties! I'm sure you'll-"

"Mom... Stanley is a high-ranking soldier. If you choose someone for him, they'll just have unnecessary expectations that'll get trampled on when Stan won't be home that often. Don't you think you should let him have his way with this?" Riley was always defending him, even now. While she wasn't able to say no to her own fiance, she still jumped in to say no for Stan's sake.

"I appreciate the offer but I stand with Riley. In fact, I'd rather stick with focusin' on my job. I don't got time for this stuff." He tried to nip the evil at its bud, but his mother was more than just a bud.

"You know, Stan. You've been evading this topic for a while now. Don't tell me you're seeing someone behind my back!"

I'd rather see someone in front of you. You really think you can control me? Wow, you sure are in for a ride then...

"I'm not." His thoughts differed greatly from what he actually said.

"You sure? Cause you seemed awfully close with that clingy girl. You know, your childhood friend? If you're seeing her, I'll have to ask you to break it off, I don't approve of her. She's not the one for you-"