Darn Stupid Brother You Are by Mairee

Chapter 22

(Cylan's POV)

I sighed in relief, feeling a weight lift off my shoulders. "Thanks, Ellen. I just feel like I need help in the dating game, especially... in here."

Ellen chuckled. "You don't need it, Cylan. You're rich, after all. You're Cylan Cooper."

I rolled my eyes, laughing. "That's not going to help me with dating, Ellen."

Damn right I was Cylan Cooper, and that came with its own set of privileges. But when it came to love, I was just as clueless as the next person.

I sighed.

"Besides, I'm not even sure I still have claim to the Cooper name," I said, a hint of bitterness creeping into my voice.

Ellen's eyes brow shot up as she looked at me. "What do you mean?" she asked, her voice soft but probing.

"My parents," I said finally, "are threatening to disown me if I don't denounce being gay. I'm not sure I even have an inheritance anymore."

Ellen's face darkened, her eyes flashing with anger. "What? That's ridiculous," she exclaimed. "They can't do that to you, Cylan. You're their daughter, no matter what."

I shrugged, resigned. "They can, and they will. They're stubborn, Ellen. And they're willing to do whatever it takes to get me to conform to their expectations."

Ellen's face was red with anger. "That's not right, Cylan. You deserve so much better than that."

I smiled wryly. "Thanks, Ellen. But I'll be fine. I've been dealing with this for a while now."

Ellen sighed. "You'll be fine, really. You're their only daughter, after all," she said. "They'll come around eventually."

I smiled, even though I didn't believe a word of that. My father had let me know that I was indispensable right from when I was young. I wouldn't be surprised if he actually did disown me. She had always been there for me, no matter what. "They want me to marry some guy," I said, my voice laced with disgust. "The first son of the Lloyd family. An arranged marriage, Ellen. Can you believe it?"

"What? That's... that's

interests, I guess. The Lloyd family has a lot of influence and power, and my parents think that marrying me off to their son will help

scrunched up in distaste. "That's so archaic. And what

a pawn in their game of power

Lloyd family... aren't they into construction or

something like that. They're a big deal in the industry, and my parents think that marrying

so sorry you have to go through this Cylan. I really hope things go

"Thank you."

stood up. "I have to be somewhere, Cylan. But I'll talk

up to hug her goodbye.

for who I was. I sat back down, my mind racing with thoughts of Emily and my parents and everything in between. But for now,

....

(Unknown POV)

She got into her car and sat there for a moment, trying to process her emotions. She had always been protective of Cylan, and the thought of her being with someone else

wheel. She thought about all the times she and Cylan had spent together, all the laughter and tears they had shared. She realized that she had been holding onto their past relationship for too long, and

typing out a message to Cylan. She wanted to be honest with her, to let her know how she was feeling. "Hey, I've been thinking... the fact that you felt like you needed to ask me before seeing someone else shows that I'm still really involved in your life. Alex had

mixed signals, that I was still interested in you. I mean, I will always love you but not like that. I know I've been around a lot lately, and I don't

if she

a rolling eyes emoji, followed by a message. "Are you texting

smiled and typed out

friends, aren't we? That's why I told you about Emily. I want to be able to tell you stuff without feeling like I'm burdening you. I value our friendship above everything, Ellen. I told you because I wanted to share my happiness

suffocated by her presence in her life. She typed out a response, "I know, I know. I just

responded with a laughing emoji. "You're not that friend,

the screen as she responded to Cylan's message. "Okay, if you say so," she typed, adding a smiling emoji at the

message, this one a picture of a screenshot with Cylan's

"Would you like to hang out later tonight or pass..." Ellen's

barely above a whisper,