"Childhood times. So sweet,so pleasant"
"They love them but not as much as their eldest"
"Robert was living life all good"
"While struggling with business and respect for the bond of brotherhood."
A little boy leaned against the gray stone statue in his gigantic garden filled of greenery. The garden had flowers at its border and bushes at one of its corner. His sister who was younger than him was playing with the water in the white fountain. Their parents were gone to attend their elder son's function at school. He had won many trophies and medals. The teachers would call him the brightest and smartest student. He was good in all subjects and was also a part of all the sports team in his school.He was a fast runner and would be fast as a cheetah in the races,with and without hurdles. The parents were proud of Nicholas for being the perfect son.
"Brother let's play hide and seek" six year old Reane came running up to eight year old Louis to tell him what she wanted to do which was to have fun.
"I will count to ten. Go hide"Louis turned behind and heard the sound of Renae's fast footsteps stepping on the grass. He started to count and his sister began to look for a good place to hide.
"One,Two,Three"
"Four ,Five,Six"
While Renae was thinking about hiding behind a tree,a common spot someone picked her up and helped her to climb the tall tree. She sat on one of the tree's strong branches and smiled to the man down below.
"Seven,Eight,Nine"The girl sat on the tree swinging her legs happily. It was difficult for the boy to find her because of how short he was in comparison with the large tree. The sheet of leaves which hung with the tree hid her behind them.
"Ten. Ready or not here i come"Louis opened his eyes and started to look for her. He was left puzzled when he didn't find her in the bushes or behind the fountain. The kid was running here and there in search of his little sister who was smiling as she watched him from above. She hugged the body of the tree to mentain her balance because it would be painful to fall from such a height.
"Renae!. Renae come out"Her brother gave up and accepted his defeat when he saw a man sitting in the garden on a chair smoking his cigarette. He was wearing his younger brother's shirt which fitted him perfectly. He wasn't obese and had a perfect figure due to his exercise routine. But he was addicted to smoking and leaving this slow killing poison was a difficulty for him which he had not overcame.
"Oh hello Louis"his father's older brother greeted him who was his nephew.
"Hello Uncle Micheal. When did you come here?" Louis's uncle Micheal was as busy as a bee. He and his brother barely had any free time because both of the brothers were immersed in their business and sometimes also involved in each other's work. One knew the skill of busines while the other had the experience to get rid of the hardest of problems in their way.
"I came to meet your father but he isn't home"
"Yes,Dad and mom went to Nicholas's prize distribution at school" Louis told him. On the other hand Renae was not enjoying being stuck on a tree while her brother was talking to their uncle.
"Did Uncle and Brother forget about me?"she pouted and waited for them to come back to their senses and realize that she was also present there.
"Didn't you also get first prize in the art competition. You were going crazy with happiness when you learned about it" Uncle Micheal said and finished smoking the cigarette. He was always over absorbed in work but still remembered the smallest of things.
"Yes,but the prize distribution was only for the senior classes"
"Uncle Michael get me down from here!" Renae shouted and Louis looked up to find her at the tree. She had her arms wrapped around the body of the tree as if she was koala.
"What are you doing up there?"Louis shouted using his hands as a microphone. Before the girl could reply her uncle came close to the tree and spreaded his arms. She jumped down bravely because she trusted him and knew that he wouldn't let a scratch come on her body.
"Was that fun?"Micheal asked his neice who nodded her head. She was like a doll,a Barbie doll. She mostly had her mother's genes which was the reason for her clear skin and sparkling doe eyes. Her hair was similar to the colour of vanilla cake.
"Cheater"Louis muttered when they heard the creaking noise of the metal gate.
"Your Mom and Dad must be here" Renae hopped away from there to see her parents who had came back from the school.
The master and mistress of the house came out from the car. Behind them was their dear son who was nothing less then perfection. For them perfection meant being the best out of everyone. The ten year old boy was having a hard time carrying all his trophies and certificates. The guards helped him with that and the three members of the familywent inside. Their cook had already made the lunch for them but what they were unaware of was that Mr Robert's brother was also there. They had just sat down to munch on the food when Micheal made his entrance.
"Micheal?. When did you come?"Mr Robert questioned his older brother surprised.
"Just a while ago. I thought you must have thought for hours before making the policies in the files. But when I read it I found many errors so we shall talk about that after lunch"Micheal told to which Mrs Robert noticed him wearing her husband's shirt which made her displeased. They were blood related and it was ordinary for one of them to take the stuff for the other but Felicia was against this.
"Mannerless man"she said in a low tone which her husband heard and he placed his hand on top of hers in an attempt to calm her down. He knew that his wife hated his brother's presence but what she hated more than that was when he would question everything Mr Robert would bring into business.
"Is that Robert's shirt?"She asked Micheal despite the obvious signs from her partner.
"Oh yeah. Came here and needed to change so took this one. Strangely this fitted me perfectly"
"In that case you should keep this. Also I will ask Miss Lina to wash your clothes before you leave from here"Mrs Robert forced a smile on her face and spoke. Micheal came and sat on the chair when he saw several trophies standing at Nicholas's part of the table. All of them were gold except for one of precious peices which was silver.
"Wow Nick you really stole every award from there"He was complimenting the success of his nephew but his mother on the other hand wasn't fully happy with the result of his son's hardwork.
"Yes he did but he always hated science. No shock that he lost one mark in that" Mr Robert 's wife picked up a piece of fruit with a fork and chomped it down in her mouth.
"That's okay he did get first position in every thing else right?"Michel being the best uncle said. Felicia didn't like him anyway and she didn't want him to interfere in her parenting.
"Nicholas if your done with your lunch then go play with your siblings" Nicholas left the dining room and went in the garden where his little brother and sister were.
"Also Felicia i brought present for the kids. They are in my car." Micheal told Mrs Robert who in response thanked him.
"Speaking about kids when are you going to get married brother?"Mr Robert asked him. The brotherly relation between the two wasn't as strong as Micheal considered it to be. His brother Robert had his eyes on his wealth which he could get if he died. All the properties,cash,highly costing vehciles and all his mansions would be in Robert's hands if he lost his life.
"I don't plan on getting married any sooner"Micheal replied making his brother frown and left him disappointed.
"But brother you are thirty eight now. If not now then when? and also if you will be alone for the rest of your life then who will be your heir?. By not getting married right now you are risking your future" Mr Robert tried to make his brother agree to him but Micheal didn't want to develop a relation with anyone. Many females were interested in him but there wasn't any princess or queen who caught his attention.
"Robert i have already told you that i will get married when i want to but right now i just want to focus on my work. Also join me in the living room to discuss the change in the policies" Saying these words he stood up and went to the living room.
"Robert tell me will anyone marry a seventy year old guy?"Felicia asked him
"I mean we have your aunt as a choice too if brother actually does plan to get married at seventy" Robert said laughing and Felicia wasn't impressed by the joke.
"Not funny. Your brother is such a trouble to us"
"Hey its okay. No need to be grumpy about it" Her husband told her. He liked to see his wife happy and in a good mood becuase an angry Felicia would be nothing less than a nightmare. In anger she wouldn't talk to anyone and her silence had the servants scared because nobody knew when,where and who would become the target of her shouts.
"Also i want to host a party tommorow" She told her husband. It had been a long time since she had met her friends Elina and Gabriella. Those two ladies were also the wives of two attractive and rich men. One was a businessman while the other was involved in the busines of the mafias. Elina had two sons named Henry and Fredrick. Gabriella only had one son whose name was William. Henry was the age of Nicholas while Fred and William were Louis's freinds. Among the friend circle she was the only one blessed with a daughter.
"A party what for?" Mr Robert didn't have any problem with the party but he was curious to know what celebration was her wife holding the grand party for.
"Tommorow isn't her birthday and our anniversary doesn't take place tommorow. Tommorow isn't any of our children's birthday"Mr Robert thought. He never remembered his own birthday and neither did he care for it because most of his previous birthdays went by in work. And upon coming back home he would find cards from his kids and gifts from his wife at a table while his entire family rested in their rooms.
"Oh Its just going to be a small party to celebrate my dear son's success. I will only invite my friends and their family. Its been so long since i met them" Felicia told him who smiled at her. His smile was a symbol that he was ready to spend money on the decorations and food in the party. Robert loved to spoil his wife.
"You can tell me about the theme of the party later because i have to go to talk with brother" Robert got up and entered the living room to have a detailed conversation with the mafiaking who was usually blissful but his other side hadn't been seen by the family.
The kids played. The guards did their work.The maids were cleaning the mansion taking care of the cleanliness of the place. The two brothers talked in the living room while Mrs Robert was in her room trying to pick what she was going to wear tommorow. The party was for her son but it was mainly for the three freinds to meet and gossip with each other.