Chapter 71: Background!
Lawrence.
Actually, I still did not understand why she was still angry.
The thought lingered stubbornly in my mind as I stood there outside her door, staring at the silence that greeted me instead of her voice.
Some habits truly never changed.
Even after six years.
Whenever Theresa got angry with us, she always did this—completely shutting herself away from everyone for an entire day as though the rest of the world no longer existed.
Back then, we used to ignore her too.
At least for a while.
And eventually, she would come back on her own, looking for our attention again, pretending like nothing had happened.
But now...things were different, somehow, it felt like we were the ones seeking her attention instead.
And strangely enough, I didn’t mind, not even a little.
I had stood there longer than necessary, waiting patiently for her to give me permission to come inside, hoping she would eventually respond.
But it seemed she truly did not want to see any of us, not today and maybe not anytime soon.
I let out a deep breath slowly, trying not to dwell too much on the uncomfortable feeling settling in my chest before finally turning away and walking down the stairs.
I had barely made it halfway down when I saw them.
My brothers.
Standing there almost like soldiers waiting for a mission or a command. The moment they noticed me approaching, their expressions shifted instantly.
"Did she eat?" Lurgard asked immediately, concern flickering clearly across his face despite how calm he tried to appear.
I shook my head slowly.
"She did not answer me," I admitted quietly. "But I left the food there." I paused briefly before continuing. "She would definitely take it eventually."
At least...I hoped so.
"She is pregnant now," I added, exhaling quietly. "She definitely wouldn’t want to harm the child she is hell bent on keeping."
The moment those words left my mouth, my brothers’ expressions darkened instantly.
The atmosphere shifted immediately. It became heavy and uncomfortable, because all of us still remembered the condition we had agreed on.
Every single one of us.
And honestly...
As time continued to pass, I was beginning to wonder if it would truly be right to go through with it when the moment finally came.
The thought alone unsettled me more than I wanted to admit.
I did not want Theresa getting hurt in any way–not physically, not emotionally, and not at all.
I shook my head lightly, almost as if I could physically push the thoughts away before they settled any deeper inside my mind.
Because the more I allowed myself to think about it, the heavier everything began to feel.
There was truly no point thinking too far ahead right now.
Not when nothing was even certain yet.
When the time eventually comes...we will see how it goes.
At least, that was what I kept telling myself silently, trying to hold onto that small sense of control even as uncertainty lingered at the edges of my thoughts.
A brief silence followed, and then, Leonard’s vice broke it.
"That Micheal of a guy...he is responsible for what’s going on right now," He said coldly, his voice cutting through the moment.
His fists clenched tightly at his sides as he spoke, the tension in his posture clearly visible.
The irritation in his voice was obvious at first.
But the more I listened...
No.
It was more than irritation, as it carried something heavier underneath it— Frustration mixed with something darker that he was not bothering to hide anymore.
And honestly, the moment Micheal’s name came up again, it was as if something inside my mind immediately shifted.
An idea formed almost instantly.
"Exactly," I said quickly, straightening slightly as I spoke. "If Theresa wants to be his friend, why don’t we run a background check instead?"
The suggestion felt reasonable enough.
At least if we knew more about him and confirmed he was not some kind of threat, then maybe we could tolerate his presence around Theresa.
As long as he understood his boundaries.
And as long as he did not try to covet her.
"I have done that already," Leonard replied immediately. "I am still waiting for his file."
My brows furrowed slightly at that.
So Leonard had already thought about it too.
"I do not care if he has a clean background or not," Lurgard suddenly said, his voice low and possessive. "I just do not want him near Theresa."
I glanced at him briefly.
Honestly, I hated how possessive he sounded sometimes.
But annoyingly enough—I could not help agreeing with him this time, because that bastard had actually stood there confidently claiming to be Theresa’s boyfriend.
The thought alone immediately irritated me again.
What if he started going around repeating such nonsense publicly?
What if Theresa allowed it?
No.
Absolutely not.
He has to stay away.
The thought settled heavily in my mind as my irritation deepened further.
"Let’s fire him then," I said suddenly, my resolve strengthening the more I thought about it.
It was simple. We just need to remove him completely.
Problem solved.
"No." Leonard’s refusal came instantly, firm and cold. "It would only make Theresa hate us more," he continued calmly. "And she would feel she is the cause of him losing his job." He paused briefly before adding, "Micheal isn’t worth her guilt."
Silence followed after that---a heavy one.
I took in a deep breath slowly, trying to calm the irritation steadily building inside me.
Micheal was truly becoming a pest.
An unnecessary one.
And somehow, despite barely knowing him, he had already managed to disrupt everything around us.
It irritated me even more knowing Theresa actually seemed comfortable around him.
Comfortable enough to defend him.
To choose going home with him instead of us.
My jaw tightened slightly at the memory.
No matter how I looked at it, none of this felt right.
One way or another....I had to get rid of Micheal.
