TYMIMA Chapter 126

Just then, the announcement came on—

【Flight TCA6741 from Phobos Bay to the Polar Region is now boarding. All passengers, please prepare for departure.】

Lance and the others stopped chatting, handed over their tickets, and boarded the plane.

The plane taxied for about fifteen minutes, then left the runway and disappeared into the clouds.

The second group to depart was Dream Witch, Abaddon, Fata, Mudeli, and Popov, their flight leaving ten minutes after Lance’s.

The last group was Adrian, Fulunla, Wu Peng, Ling Qi, and Kuhn. After they passed security, it started to rain.

The rain grew heavier and heavier, and for safety, the airport delayed their flight.

The plane waited on the runway, passengers anxiously waiting in their seats.

Fulunla sighed in frustration. “Ugh, so unlucky.”

Ling Qi leaned against the window, watching the raindrops hit the glass. “Hope we’re not delayed too long. If we get separated, that’s not good, right, Chief?”

He didn’t hear an answer. Turning, he saw Adrian lost in thought.

From the moment they got the news until now, they’d been rushing nonstop. This was the first chance to slow down and think.

Ling Qi considerately didn’t disturb Adrian. He knew it was Adrian’s brother who’d been taken to AGW Special Dangerous Death Row Prison—no one was more anxious than Adrian.

Adrian really was thinking about Lucas, but it was Lucas from a long time ago.

From the moment Lucas was born, Adrian had always had complicated feelings toward his little brother.

He knew Lucas would inevitably take away some of their parents’ love and attention. No matter how well he did, he’d never be as good as his mother’s own son.

But he’d never been jealous of Lucas, because Lucas deserved it. If anything, he felt like a cuckoo in the nest, taking what should have been Lucas’s.

So he’d told himself from the start to be a dutiful big brother.

But Lucas was clearly not a “good little brother” in the usual sense.

Lucas was always noisy, rebellious, extreme, and a headache.

Under Howard’s twisted parenting, Lucas started rebelling at just over five years old. His way of rebelling was to defy Howard and provoke Adrian.

Adrian was eight years older than Lucas. Every day, besides completing the educational tasks assigned by their father, he also had to follow his mother’s wishes and help Lucas succeed.

He tried to fix Lucas’s homework until it was almost unrecognizable and wrote out all the steps neatly, hoping Lucas would get a good grade and earn their father’s praise.

But Lucas didn’t appreciate it. The next day, Adrian found that homework in the trash, with turtles and little pigs doodled all over it.

He also taught Lucas to play the piano. He poured all his learning experience into Lucas, playing pieces over and over, teaching him what proper fingering looked like.

But Lucas only ever made trouble, banging randomly on the keys from time to time, deliberately messing up his rhythm.

Whenever Adrian couldn’t finish playing or hit a wrong note, Lucas would flash a sly, triumphant grin—the kind of smile that said his whole goal from the start was to mess with Adrian.

Lucas did have his well-behaved moments.

Every time he got into trouble and Howard whipped him, even though he was terrified, he’d stubbornly shout that it didn’t hurt, only to get beaten even harder.

At night, when Howard went out for business and their mother attended parties, Adrian would carry Lucas to his own bed, wrap him up in blankets, and gently rub his back so he could sleep more soundly.

Lucas would never admit the sense of safety he got from Adrian, but he’d pretend to shift around, inching closer to Adrian, curling up under the shelter of his brother’s warmth.

He also loved playing go-karts with Adrian. He always insisted on sitting in front, with Adrian holding him from behind, as they raced around the track, the speed whipping their clothes. Even if they accidentally scraped the tires on the edge of the track, Lucas wouldn’t get mad—instead, he’d crash into Adrian’s arms and burst out laughing.

But go-karts weren’t a “refined” sport in Howard’s eyes. Every time Adrian took Lucas out, Howard would beat Lucas afterward, and their mother would blame Adrian for being a bad influence.

Adrian barely had time to process his own feelings before he had to comfort Lucas and help him apply ointment.

Lucas never seemed to learn his lesson, but after that, Adrian rarely took him out anymore.

According to Howard, Lucas was born bad, incorrigible, but Adrian always felt Lucas was rebelling against something.

But what?

He never really understood what Lucas was thinking.

In the blink of an eye, Lucas grew older. He had beautiful deep blue eyes and a head of thick, light-colored hair—not much like their mother, probably more like the man who’d provided the sperm. Their mother was a bit disappointed, because Lucas hadn’t contributed to the family’s harmony.

But Lucas was already starting to attract attention from his peers. Some Alphas would eagerly circle around him.

Lucas, however, didn’t care about their love letters or gifts. Adrian saw with his own eyes how Lucas would toss the presents into the basement without even bothering to open them.

But he did like to show off to Adrian, waving flashy love letters in front of him: “Three Alphas gave me love letters today. Maybe I’ll just date all three.”

Adrian would have to look up from his heavy schoolwork to remind him, “Father will arrange marriage matches for us when the time is right.”

It would save time and please their parents, so there was no need to date early.

But Lucas would suddenly explode, throwing away all the etiquette he’d learned and cursing, “Bullshit! I’m not letting him arrange anything for me. If you want to be a puppet, go ahead!”

Adrian frowned, noticing the bruises still fading from Lucas’s collarbone.

Swearing—if Howard found out, it would be another disaster.

At the noble school, Lucas was a problem child, the opposite of Adrian, who always topped the podium. Lucas was always getting demerits.

The homeroom teacher demanded a parent’s signature and strict discipline.

Lucas knew getting beaten was no fun, so he brought the notebook to Adrian and asked him to forge Howard’s handwriting.

Adrian carefully reviewed Lucas’s behavior and said bluntly, “I can’t lie to the teacher or help you avoid responsibility, but I can sign my own name if you’re willing to listen to me.”

Lucas was fourteen then, as explosive as a spring, bouncing back from any wall he hit: “Ha, I knew you wouldn’t help me. And you want me to listen to you? Honestly, you’re the most infuriating, hateful person I’ve ever met. Just you wait!”

Adrian watched him storm out, not understanding where all that anger came from.

That day, Lucas was clearly beaten by Howard again.

He hated Howard, but he also started to take it out on Adrian.

He stuffed dead mice in Adrian’s bed, so Adrian had to change all his bedding in the middle of the night and scrub himself clean.

He deleted Adrian’s painstakingly written essays, tampered with his homework, and made Adrian get his first-ever C.

That was the first time Howard ever verbally abused Adrian, but Adrian just endured it in silence, never telling on Lucas. And for the next class assignment, he got first place again.

Adrian still felt he was the outsider, the adopted one, taking away the family’s resources and his father’s attention, so he should make it up to Lucas.

But then Lucas escalated even more. He found out an Omega had a crush on Adrian, so he confessed to that Omega in Adrian’s name.

When Adrian received cookies from a blushing classmate, his patience finally snapped.

He sincerely apologized to the classmate and gently turned down their feelings. After finally seeing them off, he turned around to find Lucas sitting on the sofa, grinning smugly.

“See? Arranged matches are so boring.”

This time, Adrian didn’t tolerate it. Furious, he marched over, grabbed Lucas off the sofa, pinned him across his lap, and smacked him in the safest spot.

The sound of slaps echoed in the living room. Lucas’s face and neck turned bright red. He struggled in disbelief, but Adrian easily pinned his flailing legs with his knees and held down his back.

Adrian said sternly, “Say you did something wrong.”

Of course, Lucas refused to admit it. He cursed and demanded Adrian let him go, but lying across his brother’s lap in such a humiliating position, his voice lost all its bite.

So Adrian had no choice but to spank him a few more times, his palm landing—through Lucas’s pants—on the spot forced high in the air.

Adrian was always calm, but only Lucas could push him to the edge. He was helpless against him.

Lucas’s neck turned even redder, his ears nearly steaming, but he just clung to the sofa, biting his lip until it turned white, hiding his face.

When Adrian finally turned his face around, he saw silent tears streaming down—stubborn and aggrieved.

Adrian had to give up his principles, let go, and help Lucas up, wiping away his tears. “Did it hurt? I didn’t use much force.”

He always controlled himself, never letting discipline turn into the kind of venting Howard did.

Lucas, however, face burning, shoved him away and jumped up, shouting, “I hate you!”

After that, Lucas didn’t speak to Adrian for a whole month, even going out of his way to avoid him.

Even though Lucas was the one in the wrong, it felt like Adrian was the one who’d wronged him.

Adrian knew Lucas didn’t like him, so he tried to avoid Lucas’s usual haunts.

But for some reason, Lucas noticed the avoidance and only got angrier.

He smashed things in front of Adrian, blasted heavy metal music while Adrian worked, even ate the breakfast the housekeeper had made for Adrian.

Adrian was baffled by his provocations.

But before he could figure it out, that incident happened.

It all happened so suddenly—he lost his chance to become a Federation council member, Howard withdrew all expectations and affection, and their mother just watched coldly, saying it was unavoidable.

Adrian, disheartened, decided to leave.

Lucas didn’t know anything about it, and in the end, Adrian didn’t destroy Lucas’s image of their mother.

That day, Lucas stood at the door, watching through the curtain of rain, his deep blue eyes as clear as if they’d been washed.

Lucas didn’t ignore him anymore; he just watched as Adrian waved goodbye, got in the car, and disappeared down the road.

His bond with Lucas as brothers actually only lasted fourteen years.

Lucas hated him, resented him, even wanted to kill him, but when Adrian heard Lucas had been taken by the Federation, his first reaction was still worry and heartache.

Lucas wasn’t a good kid in anyone’s eyes—he had plenty of bad behavior, the darkest temperament, was vengeful, manic, and paranoid, and never thought he was wrong.

But so what? He was his little brother, and Adrian would always forgive him.

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