Two

Justin

Two years, five months, one week, six days, fourteen hours, and twenty-two point five minutes. That was the time that was left before he turned eighteen. That was also the time that was left before he was no longer considered a child. He could then leave. No longer a minor.

It was also the time that was left before he could be given the rest of his inheritance from his grandfather. Or so do the lawyers say. He had already inherited a wooden cabin right on the outskirts of Lake Bridgeport Texas from his grandfather. The house was written in his name. He knew that because he signed it when he was fourteen. The memory brought him the saddest part of his life.

Sadder than the fact that his twin brother had been allowed to go and celebrate at the town square with his friends at the beginning of the new year while he was stuck in the house training.

Sadder than having no liberty of his own time. Wherever he went his father kept tabs on him. He couldn't go anywhere without his father had given him a go-ahead.

Sadder than the fact that he sometimes felt like he wasn't home. But rather, he felt like he was in a military school. His father is the director and everything.

Sadder than the fact that the only time he could relax was when playing basketball at school. Though he was Caucasian and better than anyone in the school team he couldn't join the team because... Well, an army general had sworn by the heavens that if he found anything about him in any paper he was never going to sun again. He didn't know the guy but from what he learned from his usually absent mother, he worked at the pentagon.

That prompted him to rethink the reason why he didn't have any memory of his former life before he woke up in a coma two and a half years ago. The comma he was told he had been in for two months. Even with the countless scars on his body, he couldn't tell where or when he got them.

He stared out of the balcony of his room and watched with a broken heart, anticipating the fireworks, hoping they would light up before his break was over.

His watch rang for a few seconds signaling the start of the ten-second to midnight. Then with a bang, the town came alive with thousands of fireworks. Just like a child, he marveled at them, constantly smiling and wowing as they formed different patterns in the sky.

They were better than guns even his favorite toys, swords. They were better than any game he had.

He silently wished he could be there with the people celebrating the new year rather than training for whatever he was training for.

The display ended and he walked back into his room. He knew from movies that what he called a room wasn't really a room. It was way too big to be called a room. Even his twin had a smaller room. The rooms at the cabin were the size of his bathroom. The room was filled with different things like his own home theatre and a television bigger than his windows.

He had every toy kids his age could ask for. But in his heart, he knew money couldn't replace the feeling of being accepted. Being around people. Laughing, dancing even playing.

He took a bottle of sparkling water from his smaller refrigerator in the living room and opened it before he headed out.

"Give me ten. Diamond." His father the captain said as he walked into the backyard.

He didn't complain or say anything but he just did it. He knew that things could turn bad if he didn't do what his father said. He did twenty diamond push-ups. But his father counted ten. Still, he didn't complain. He just flexed his enormous muscles and pretended it didn't hurt. like always.

"Twenty-one baskets," his father said throwing him the basketball. He caught it. "Then we're done for good. No more training." Derrick said casually.

Justin froze. Frowned. "Meaning?" He asked.

"Literal meaning, no more training. At least physically. If you lose, you do yoga."

He felt like he could dance. Even though he tried his best not to get his hopes up."If I win, what will happen?"

"No yoga and I will buy you a car for your sixteenth birthday, you earned it."

Before he could react, he got the look from his father that reminded him that he was wasting time.

"Oo-kay, check." He passed the ball to his father who passed it back. No way was he going to lose to his father.

He dribbled and dribbled his father. Basket after basket, he scored. However, just after the twelfth basket, he missed and he had to chase after his father. Tripping, being dribbled like nobody's business. His father scored basket after basket after basket. He also made fun of him.

Despite the seriousness that he knew Derrick to have, he couldn't help but admire the light that he saw now on his face. His father most times didn't score after Justin tripped. But rather he would make fun of him, stand still, and laugh at him. Justin would once again try, but a trip or get dribbled once again. When his father scores the fifteenth basket, the game became superheated.

No three-point shots were taken because they were always intercepted. Once Derrick lost his ball, Justin could barely score, same as Derrick. Then it turned from score-based games to dribbling and making fun of one another. Surprisingly, the game ended with a twenty draw as Anne, Justin's mother caught the ball and ended the game.

Turned out she and Zac had long returned from the celebration and she had watched them play for two long hours. She told them it was three a.m and time for sleep.

Derrick looked at Justin with this face that he usually had when Justin beat him at something.

"I take it as your win then." He said.

"Okay," Justin answered as he headed into the house. His breathing was still hard to catch but he tried as best as he could. He didn't feel at all tired. Mainly because playing for three hours straight was not really a challenge to him.  all because, for the past two years, he had been running non-stop all around Bridgeport at full sprint. He had even gone a year ago to a military camp and had to run with soldiers in their marathons. He had made it third after running twelfth hours straight.

As his parents walked into the kitchen, he excused himself and went to his bedroom through his mother called after him. He took a bath and changed clothes before he tried to sleep. But the happiness of no longer having to train made his day. He couldn't sleep.

He stared at the white ceiling lost in thought trying to think of how he was going to spend his morning.

His mother knocked on the door and poked his head into the bedroom.

"Justin." She said letting herself in. Justin pretended to be asleep as his mother walked to his bed.

"Justin," she sat right next to him and continued. " I know I've been a horrible mother to both you and Zac. I'm sorry for everything. Look, I... I wanted you to know that everything has its own way of working out. We've been harder on you. I know. But, we just wanted you to be strong enough to take care of your brother. I..." She took a deep breath that sounded like she was trying not to cry before saying, "after what happened to your Aunt and Uncle, we didn't want..."  She patted him on the shoulder and kissed him on the forehead. "Sleep, we'll talk tomorrow." She left and Justin opened his eyes. Wondering what happened to his aunt and uncle. All that he knew was, it landed him in a comma. His brother in a wheelchair that lasted for two full years after he woke. His aunt and uncle were said to have died that day.

He woke up with a jump hours later as sunlight from the two large French windows hit his face. He had never slept until the sun rose and he panicked. He couldn't sleep until after dawn. That was the first rule of the house. He was dead. He rushed to the bathroom and took a quick shower. Knowing fully well that he was in hot soup.

He went ten minutes later downstairs and found his family laughing in the kitchen. His father greeted him with a smile.

Things turned even more puzzling.

"Twelve hours straight," Zac said looking at his watch. "Told you you had overworked him."

He stared at Zac. Like... He was lost. "What's going on?" He asked.

"Hello, honey," Anne said a passing a plate of cookies in his direction.

"Maybe you can sit down Justin," Derrick added pushing his chair back with his foot.

Derrick never did that.

"Waiting for you actually," Zac said with a smile. On his birthday, none of this happened.

He looked at Zac. Zac suppressed a smile.

Anne. She looked down with an amused smile. Derrick. The actor. He looked at him casually. But he couldn't mistake the amused look in his eyes. Justin felt very uncomfortable. His family was never like this. What was going on?

Then out of a sudden everybody burst into laughs. He stood still in one place like a lost fool.

He sat down and ate two chocolate chip cookies with milk that was offered by his mother.

The day process oddly from then on, but Justin couldn't have enjoyed it better. Although he felt a bit out of place. Zac turned out to be more of a clown. He seemed to never be serious and he kept everyone laughing. Justin was surprised that he hadn't realized this about his own twin brother in the past two years. Maybe it was because he was always tired and occupied to even have Zac by his side for a talk.

They have had early tea in the backyard right on top of the swimming pool. Then after that, it was few games. Games Justin always played alone at night because in the day he never had time for anything. Early in the morning, it was usually training each day before school. Lunch was usually spent catching up on sleep. In the afternoon he came straight home, and he was given an hour to do anything then it was more kungfu, karate, and learning about outdoor survival theories. On weekends it was always outdoor survival practicalities. He sometimes woke up in the middle of nowhere with nothing but a watch with a tracker on it and had to survive from Saturday morning to Sunday evening. then it was routine all over. The only thing that changed was the test for the whole term. Sometimes he was taught in reservations or army camps. Anywhere were money could fit him to learn he was tucked in. He barely saw Zac. or anyone else. maybe except a few of his friends, but that's it.

At sundown, they were taken to a house across the street which turned out was part of their property and they had to make a list of what needed to be maintained before Derrick gave it to someone who needed it. He didn't know who but he was told it was for a family friend who needed help.

He was given free rein of the room which as he was told was for a young girl. Maybe because he was soft or because Derrick and Anne were jealous of his garden. Or because Derrick knew he didn't have a girlfriend so he wasn't going to leave his number like Zac once did, he didn't know. But he put his heart into decorating the room. He even went as far as placing flowers on a bedside table. Even a few paintings he loved on the walls of the room. The paintings he could share.

By the end of the second day of cleaning and preparing the house, Justin closed the door of his masterpiece and walked out. He felt beyond good about himself that whoever was going to occupy the room would love it.