10

Victor frowned, not liking where this conversation was heading. He had hoped Chris wouldn't mention what happened, even though he knew that Chris was aware of everything Victor had gone through. Nevertheless, it still felt uncomfortable to have Chris speak about it. Noticing Victor's reaction, Chris quickly added, "Look, I'm not gonna ask about what happened tonight. I know it isn't good to have a fight between brothers, especially with your father, especially because your dad's always trying to get back with your mother, and you both want what's best for her."

"Yeah, but...", Victor started, but was interrupted when his phone suddenly rang. He pulled it out of his pocket and looked at his name displayed on the screen. It was his father. Taking a deep breath, he picked up.

"Hello? Dad?"

"Hi Victor, how have you been?", came his father's deep voice, "You sound a bit tired."

"I am. Sorry for disturbing you, but I wanted to call and tell you that I'll be staying at home for Christmas."

There was a short pause, then a chuckle.

"Is that so? Why?", came the confused reply.

Victor hesitated, glancing at Chris before replying.

"Well, actually, I was wondering if you want to spend it together?"

Another pause followed by an audible 'oh'. This time, Victor could easily tell that his father was shocked, although Victor couldn't exactly describe it in any more than three simple words.

"With who?", asked his father.

Victor opened his mouth to reply but closed it again immediately afterwards. He didn't know if it would be better or worse to just outright say'my ex', and decided against it. He knew that his father's opinion on that subject were rather different from his mother's. In Victor's opinion, if anyone deserved respect and respect alone, it was his father.

Instead of answering the question immediately, he asked, "What makes you think I'm inviting anybody else?"

Victor knew it was useless. There was no way for his father to react positively to it. He should have known better. He sighed and rubbed his temples, annoyed with himself for acting this way. He wanted a reason to invite people into their family, he wanted to be open and honest about himself to others; to share his emotions with others without fear or anxiety; to be a better person. He wanted to love freely without worrying what would happen if people found out that he loved. He had learned his lesson the last time, but he was still hoping to fix his mistakes. However, it was clear that no matter how much Victor tried to change, his life still continued on as it was. Even with the help of friends like Chris and Victor's mother, they didn't really change anything. It was just like with his father. Everything would remain the same, whether they liked it or not.

"Mom's making dinner. You want some?", Victor asked.

His father hesitated again before sighing, probably not expecting Victor to respond in the same manner as his mother did when she asked if he wanted to go home with them for Christmas.

"Sure, I guess", he agreed reluctantly, "... But, you're gonna be responsible for him while I'm out, alright? You can barely handle cooking. I'll be fine by myself."

"But I-"

"Promise me you'll be responsible, Victor. No arguments. Just promise me."

Victor nodded. He knew that he had promised his father that he would take care of Makkachin whenever their parents went out for business, but he never really expected that his father would accept this offer. Still, he wasn't willing to disobey his father. The last thing he wanted was for their relationship to turn into what his parents used to have before his mother met his father, which sadly led to a huge rift in their relationship. So