"What on earth are you talking about," Neale asked, surprise evident on his face.
Lucas Blake ran a hand through his fabulous hair before he walked over to the window overlooking the large and beautiful city. He let out a heavy sigh before speaking again.
"It was about 19 years ago when your mother and I were still married. I was young and impulsive and I decided I wanted more than just the simple life we had at that time. Your mother, however, was not a big fan of the idea. after that, we fought and separated. I don't think either of us knew at the time but your mother was pregnant with you. I had forgotten about your mother and I built the empire that I have today. But it had only been recently that I had learned of your existence."
Neale was stunned, and he could only mutter the words "You're joking, right?"
Lucas Blake simply shook his head.
"This must be a lot for you to take in. You can take a while to wrap your head around everything."
Neale took a good look at Lucas who had turned around to face him. Neale observed him, studying his facial features as he searched for some sort of similarity, some sort of similarity that was proof of Lucas's shocking words. Neale realized that the longer he looked at Lucas Blake's perfect face, the more it seemed like he was staring right at his reflection. Although he lacked the elegance, class, and charisma that made Lucas Blake the personality he was there was no doubt that Neale was like an identical copy of Lucas Blake.
Despite seeing the proof with his very own eyes, Neale felt hesitant to accept the truth before him. It couldn't be. Neale felt his eyes were deceiving him, he felt Lucas Blake was deceiving him. Because that's all his life had been, lies and deceit. Every time he felt his life had been going well, something terrible would happen. Neale had learned not to trust the light because where there was light, shadows were always present.
Neale lowered his head and gritted his teeth. He clenched his fists and then raised his head to look Lucas Blake in the eyes.
"How do I know you aren't lying?"
"She loved daisies. She loved reading, in fact, we first met in a library. She was a very simple woman, with simple interests. She valued those around her and didn't hesitate to do everything she could to assist those people. If she were a part of your life, She was most likely the most important aspect of your life but you most likely only realized this after you lost her." Lucas simply replied. As Neale watched him, Neale realized that the words that left Lucas Blakes's lips were not just generated by his tongue and his brain, No, It was also manifested from his heart. The facial expressions that would be displayed on his face were a testament to that.
Neale didn't try to question Lucas' words. He didn't need to. He knew that the multi-billionaire standing before him was truly his father. All Neale could do was lower his head as he tried to fight the tears that threatened to fall down his cheeks.
~ ~ ~ ~
Neale sat opposite his Lucas Blake inside a black vehicle. They were currently on their way to the home of Lucas Blake where Neale was going to be introduced to his half-family. Lucas had informed Neale that about a year after he left his mother, he had gotten remarried and that marriage had given him a single daughter.
"So they know I'm on my way to the house?" Neale asked for the umpteenth time in that car drive.
"Sooo, this bunch of nerves over here is your son?" A guard sitting on the seat next to Lucas Blake joked.
"Hahaha, of course, he'd be nervous meeting his new family for the first time. I was as nervous meeting him for the first time," Lucas Blake said with a booming laugh.
"This man was nervous?" Neale thought with disbelief. When he saw Lucas Blake, The tycoon had seemed quite calm, relaxed even.
"We're almost there," Lucas Blake informed Neale with a reassuring smile.
Neale nodded in reply. He decided to rather focus on observing his surroundings. The vehicle they were currently seated in was a Customized Benz Sprinter VIP van. Mercedes sprinters were a very popular vehicle and versatility was the main reason for its popularity. Smaller than an RV, but with massive advantages over car camping or smaller vans, Sprinter campers were a perfect balance between luxury and convenience.
The vehicle that Neale was currently seated in, however, seemed to cost an arm and a leg. Neale estimated it probably cost nothing less than a couple hundred thousand Royales.
"How much is this vehicle?" Neale asked as he admired the beautiful interior.
"Honestly," Lucas Blake said as he sipped some coffee. He was currently scrolling through his phone, occupied with something." I've no idea."
"What?" Neale raised his eyebrow in question.
Lucas Blake scratched the side of his head. "Rachel is in charge of buying the vehicles that I need. She's responsible for sorting out a lot of issues I have."
"It must be nice to have a personal assistant," Neale grumbled.
"I can hire a personal assistant for you too." Lucas Blake said looking up from his tablet.
"Nah, I'm good," Neale said in reply with a nervous laugh. Neale knew his life would be changing, Although he was unsure if he was ready for the drastic changes he'd be undergoing. After all, he'd just discovered that his father was Lucas Blake. He could only imagine the sort of luxurious and extravagant life Lucas Blake lived. After all, Being the man that owned Crystal CV, there was no doubt that Lucas Blake had billions in the bank. If Neale was not mistaken, Lucas Blake was one of, if not the wealthiest individuals in the country.
"We've arrived, sir." The guard sitting next to Lucas Blake informed him. As soon as the vehicle came to a stop, The sliding doors of the cars were opened and several guards were already nearby, ready to escort them into the house. Rachel, The personal assistant, and guard of Lucas Blake came up to him and began exchanging a few words with him. Lucas Blake was already getting off the car and Neale could just get off his seat to follow him. As soon as Lucas Blake set foot outside the car, the guards who stood outside the vehicle greeted him respectfully. Neale awkwardly got off the car and followed Lucas Blake since there was nothing else he could do. To his surprise, The guards also greeted him.
Noticing his surprise, Lucas Blake spoke to him, explaining the guard's actions." Rachel probably made sure to inform them in advance."
" I might not mind getting myself a personal assistant after all." Neale thought to himself.
"Come on, Let's head in. Everyone is waiting." Lucas Blake said to Neale.
Neale nodded his head. Just as he was about to start following Lucas toward the entrance of the house, His eyes widened as he saw the mansion that Lucas Blake lived in. The modern estate had a marble facade which would stun many. The walkway which led to the entrance also had marble on it. There were water features to the sides of the walkway which led up to glass doors. Neale's mouth widened with shock as he observed the amazing building before him. The building had a modern architectural design and from what Neale saw it was 2 stories long.
"I was waiting for you to notice," Lucas Blake said with a smile on his face. Although that particular building was not one of his best buildings, It was still an amazing place. Lucas knew that because it was the first expensive mansion he had bought. At the time he was stunned when he first saw the building. The feeling was electrifying and to that day Lucas Blake had not forgotten the feeling. This particular building, situated in a very affluent suburb on the outskirts of the great town of Eagles Bay was an extremely beautiful complex. So it was no wonder Neale was surprised when seeing the building.
"It's a very nice building," Neale simply exclaimed as he looked at and admired every inch of the building.
"Yeah, I know. I have got better buildings though. I've got plenty situated both overseas and within the country of Arkanis." Lucas Blake said, watching Neale with amusement.
"Better buildings?!" Neale said, the surprise evident in his expression. It died down a second later when he realized who he was speaking to. Neale just sighed to himself. "Let's just enter the building."
Lucas Blake chuckled to himself. Soon they reached the entrance of the home and Lucas Blake pressed his finger unto a fingerprint scanner next to the massive glass door. The door unlocked with a beep and Lucas Blake opened the door of the house. He entered the building and waited for Neale to follow him inside.
As Neale entered the home, he entered just in time to see the beautiful interior of the building. Walking on the walkway leading to the spacious foyer, Neale realized that if he looked over the glass railings to either side of him he could see the lowest floor of the building. Walking further into the buildings he realized that there were hallways on either side that led deeper into the home. Shifting his attention to the massive foyer ahead of him, he found that there was an art installation right in the center of the room. Beautiful chandeliers were hanging from the ceiling and right ahead of him there were massive sliding doors that led to what Neale assumed was the backyard. There was seating on either side of the room and every aspect of the building seemed to be oversized.
"Sofia! I'm home!" Lucas announced, breaking Neale out of his train of thought.
"Lucas! You're home! Where is the boy!?" A lady's voice sounded from the house. Then from the left hallway, Neale saw a woman with black hair pulled into a ponytail and large green eyes appear. Neale realized that the woman was his half-mother.
"Here he is," Lucas Blake said, stepping aside to reveal the uncomfortable Neale.
"My oh my! He looks just like you! Lucas, where on earth did you find this boy?" Sofia said; as Lucas addressed her.
"Does he?" Lucas Blake asked running a hand through his hair.
"Yes!" Sofia said rolling her eyes. She then came up to Neale. "Hello dear. How are you?"
Neale awkwardly replied to the greeting. Sofia began to ask him plenty of questions and just when Neale began to feel like the interrogation wouldn't end, Sofia then stopped questioning him and told him how they were family and he was welcome into her home at any time.
"Where is Alina?" Lucas Blake asked, looking around.
"Oh, that child! She insists on staying in the home theater watching those shows of hers!" Sofia exclaimed.
Lucas Blake sighed before turning to Neale. "Sorry, I'm going to have to ask you to go meet Alina. She has been a bit moody these days so it's difficult to get to her."
"Great, another spoiled brat that I have to deal with!" Neale thought to himself. But on the outside, Neale just nodded in reply.
"Great, Rachelle, please escort him to the theatre room." Lucas Blake said to Rachelle who had been silently standing to the side. Rachelle nodded in reply before instructing Neale to follow her.
"Hey," Rachelle said to Neale as they walked through the hallway.
"yeah?" Neale asked, raising his brow in question.
"You're probably thinking that Alina is some sort of spoiled brat, right?" Rachelle asked.
"Wha- No! Of course not!" Neale stuttered in reply.
"Calm down. You don't need to hide it. I just wanted to tell you that Alina is generally a polite, respectful, and happy child but ever since she's been out in the public space, she's been struggling mentally. I hope you understand." Rachelle said to Neale.
"I understand," Neale replied placing his hands behind his head. "So that's what being popular does to people, huh?"
"Yeah, and at some point in the future, you'll go through it too. So be careful and remember that I'm always ready to help," Rachelle said to Neale, flashing him a reassuring smile. It was then that she stopped at the end of a corridor. "We're here."
Neale thanked Rachelle before entering the room which led into two separate corridors with black walls. The corridors seemed to both lead to the same room and Neale chose to take the right corridor. Soon he entered the movie theater.
"Hello?" He called out as he entered the room which was the home's Movie Theater. Neale felt himself step on the thick, soft surface of the carpeted floor. As Neale's gaze landed on the amazing space, He was convinced that simply calling that place a movie theater would do it little justice as what he saw before him was not just a movie theater; It was a commercial movie theater. There was a Dolby Atmos surround sound system, and There was a large number of recliner chairs which appeared to be comfortable sofas. On the colossal screen before him, a movie played. It seemed to be the latter scenes of Marvel's successful movie; Avengers Endgame
"Hello!" Neale called out again, a little louder this time.
"Shhh!" Neale heard someone shush him from one of the two-seater chairs in the theater.
Neale's eyes drifted to the origin of the sound and his eyes landed on a seat on the corner, where a girl with green eyes and loose black hair sat. She was at that moment in time shooting a glare of annoyance straight into Neale's soul. Ignoring her piercing gaze, Neale instead examined the person before him. A small detail that Neale picked was that while the girl inherited her mother's green eyes, She had also gotten the enchanting looks of her father. There was no doubt about the fact that the combination of the two characteristics produced a stunning outcome. The person before him had unparalleled looks. Neale was sure of it as he hadn't yet come across a person that matched her indomitable looks.
Realizing that he'd been staring for a bit too long, Neale decided to sit in a seat on the opposite corner of the girl.
Very soon the movie drew to a close. After watching the movie to the very last second, what followed was a period of awkward silence. Neale decided to break the tense atmosphere by speaking.
"Hey, Alina right?" Neale asked as he shot a gaze at the girl who was supposed to be his half-sister.
The girl; Alina, Shot a suspicious look at him before nodding her head.
"I have to admit, It is going to be pretty weird from this point onwards. Honestly, nothing is making sense to me right now and it's going to take a while for me to get used to living in this reality. I'm pretty sure it is the same for you. But one thing is certain, whether any of us like this change or not, this is our reality now, we're siblings so we should try not to piss each other off." Neale said to Alina, as he gazed at her at the other end of the room.
Alina scoffed and turned to face the front before speaking, "Don't act like you hate what's happening. This situation is everything but disadvantageous for you. You lose nothing by the change that is happening.
"It's pretty true that I'm going to gain a lot from what happened to me. Hell, I am going to gain plenty. My mother died, and I had no family. I was getting kicked out of school which was my only hope for a successful future and I was alone. All that will change, But..." Neale paused for a second before casting a gaze at the screen before him. "But now all that can change, I CAN CHANGE. But...I can't say that there will be no disadvantages for me. I will lose something valuable, It's valuable but you don't understand its value because of the life you've been living up until this point."
Alina's gaze was transfixed on Neale, within her eyes was an unbeknownst emotion. Was it wonder? Amazement? Curiosity? Neale had no idea.
"What is it? What will you lose, that I never had?" Alina asked, her eyes not leaving Neale.
"It is freedom. I will lose the freedom to live my life, but that is a price I'm willing to pay as the life that I am currently living, is not a life that is worth living." Neale said, his eyes growing dreamy as his thoughts wandered off to some distant place, far away.
What followed was silence but both of the individuals were thinking the same thing and even though no words were communicated, each knew exactly what was on the other's mind. That was what followed for the rest of their time in the movie theater until both of them were called to the massive dining room at dinner time.