The Otherworlders Academy - An Original Teen Fantasy

Ep. 3.2 (R) - Cain and Abel

A/N - Whew! I ended up rewriting about three quarters of this scene and gave it more heft this time around. I decided to dig in deeper with the brothers, Sebastian and Farid, and it was fascinating to see what bubbled up to the surface!

*****

With his arm resting behind his head, Sebastian lies propped up on a bunch of throw pillows scattered on Farid's bed. He's fiddling with his phone and "sort of, but not really" watching Farid pack for his mission.

"So, what did you and Father talk about?" Sebastian asks glibly, pretending as if he's so engrossed in his Insta feed, he can't be bothered to look up at his brother.

Farid doesn't respond immediately. Instead, he keeps moving around the room, gathering up clothes and toiletries and stuffing them into his duffel bag.

Sebastian's been in a crappy mood all day, and he's been taking it out on Farid. Usually, it doesn't bother him. As a Second Son, it's an unwritten rule that you're not only expected to be a consiglieri to the First Son, you're also his shrink.

So by now, Farid has learned that all he has to do is: say as little as possible, nod his head a few times for effect, and then inject his real thoughts or counter-arguments into the conversation somewhere, but in the end tell Sebastian he's right. And then later, Sebastian will circle back to him and start complaining again. But by that point, he will have arrived at whatever conclusion Farid had planted earlier, but think it was his idea all along.

However, today, it's just too much and his brother's antics are starting to wear thin.

Farid finally responds. "When?" he asks cooly, as if he doesn't know exactly what Sebastian's asking. "You mean on Friday?" He makes his voice as flat and icy as Sebastian's is, just so he can annoy him. Yeah, that's right! He can play the 'I'm too chill to care' game too.

"Of course, Friday," Sebastian snaps, his voice taking on an irritated tone. "You know, when you and Father basically abandoned me!"

"Oh, c'mon, Bash!" Farid shoots him a dubious look. "We didn't abandon you."

"That's precisely what you did!" Sebastian argues, propping himself up into a sitting position. "You two were gone for, like, half an hour!"

Farid's head rolls back and he looks up at the ceiling as if he were praying to the gods for a moment's peace. After a beat, he says, "He asked about you, you know."

Sebastian straightens. "Father? He did?" He's so eager to get even a scrap of validation from that man, he practically holds his breath.

Farid sees the look on Sebastian's face, and his heart breaks a little. He hates how their father plays favorites with his children, especially his sons. And the mere fact that Sir Geoffrey does it largely to get underneath Lady Brigette's skin is so fricking twisted. It's like a game those two play. But the sad part is, no matter who wins, Sebastian pays the price in the end.

Farid blows out a slow breath.

"Uh, yeah..." he says, tentatively. "I think Father's a bit concerned."

"Concerned? Concerned about what?" Sebastian's brows dip.

"Well, about you," Farid says as he re-folds the shirt he's been folding for the past five minutes.

"Oh, yeah... right!" Sebastian scoffs. "Father? Concerned about me? Ha! That's a good one!" He slumps back against the wall and resumes pretending like his phone is so fascinating.

"That man wouldn't care if I lived or died," Sebastian mutters bitterly. Then, he holds up a finger and adds, "Oh, wait! Scratch that! If I died, Father would be annoyed since our school fees aren't refundable."