1- Responsibilities

Ezra and Storm Gomez were born as twins, and being the second born, Storm is happy because the responsibilities assigned to the heir of their family depends on his twin brother Ezra as the firstborn. As the second born Storm is safe from the orders and he is happy to live his life in his way and being free is what he really wants. That's what he thought, not until his twin brother's death!

As the first son, his twin brother will succeed his father in their family business. Azrel Gomez wants one of his twins ready to take over the reins if needed. Ezra is ready for the role. He was born for it, and Storm is the opposite.

Ezra had the charisma, intelligence, and unwavering business sense to have taken their company to new heights. Storm is the spare son and he was very happy with it. He never wanted this company. He never aspired to be in the spotlight or crave what the CEO position brings.

Now, he will never escape it. He knows it's coming after his twin's death. Before the ink dries on his twin's death certificate, his father had a plan.

While Ezra had the drive to succeed in his father's career, Storm just wanted to live a quiet life away from the responsibilities that their father gave them. It was almost within his grasp until his twin's death!

***

"Storm," his father growled, making him grit his teeth. He never knew he would speak to him in a kind voice. Everything about him is abrasive and makes him nervous.

Knowing that he had to admit to him at some point, he turned and took off his coat and handed it to Lorelei, his father's assistant who was suspected by everyone as his father's mistress. Maybe they are hiding a child which he doubts is unlikely to happen. He calmed down and followed his voice to his study, where he had already lit a cigar and flipped through some papers.

"What is it?" 

"Gael Mendez will be here soon or in the next day. I need you to take care of him for me." 

He grits his teeth, knowing what to expect. "Certainly."

The hostile look in his father's eyes would startle any board member, but Storm is used to it. "Not sure. Gael and I were on the verge of merging companies before your twin passed away. We will be the largest company in the country if that happened!" his father said, slapping his hands on the table.

"You can still have it without Ezra." 

"You know the rules of our corporate merger."

He did, and his twin brother readily agreed. It's a gentleman's game in which the merger of companies is marked by marriage. It doesn't make sense. Gone are the days when those old-fashioned values, when a handshake was as good as your words were. Any deal can now be made under the right conditions without sacrificing your happiness.

"I'm not marrying someone I didn't know."

"She's from a nice family, she's indeed a nice woman."

"No matter how nice she was, I'm still not sure if she'll fit my taste, especially in her appearance."

He is not the type of guy who judges women by their looks, but he does think she has to be attractive. But most of all, he wants to enjoy being with his beloved wife-to-be. Arranged marriages are not a guarantee of his happiness at all.

"She may be fine, but I'm not going to be forced to marry. I'm not Ezra." He scoffed at it.

His father's disappointment with him is obvious. "I know very well that you are not your twin brother. You prove it to me every day, and you despise me."

"Do you think the day of his funeral is the perfect time to ask this question? You can't even let me mourn for him before you push me to his fiancé?"

"Business never sleeps. If we don't keep doing it now, Gael Mendez will make a deal with the Colton Group. That family is ruthless. If he makes a deal with them, we will never expand the way we need to. Is that what you want, let's limp our company down?"

He finds it funny that when he planned his marriage on the day of his twin brother's funeral, he thought Coltons was ruthless huh? What does his father think of him? His father was one of the most hated businessmen in town. People despised working with him because of his ruthlessness in business dealings. For this reason alone, he doesn't want to have anything to do with his company.

"I'm not going to marry a stranger," he said forcefully, his fists clenched and staring at him.

He got up from his desk, buttoned his suit jacket, and came to face him. "You have to be the CEO."

He couldn't help but laugh. "We all know I'm not going to be CEO. You're going to run the company until you die." 

"But the board needs a fresh face, which is why I was chosen to replace your brother so I choose you. But make no mistake, the company is run by me."

***

(At His Twin Brother's Ezra Gomez Funeral)

Water dripped from his face, and he bowed his head in silence. The cold air combined with the rain only made the day more painful. He stared at the coffin in front of him, wishing his twin was standing beside him instead of lying in a wooden box.

This is not right for several reasons. Not only because his life was cut short, he is too young with many dreams, but because it put him in his shoes - taking over the family business.

Even standing in his expensive suit and stiff wool coat,

he felt trapped in a cage. He never likes to dress up. Tried on by a tailor with a bold smile for the public to see, that is his twin brother. He prefers a quiet life, working with his hands and getting sweaty and dirty.

And now, the stifling stench of wealth seeps into his pores, making him want to escape what he was about to face. However, there is no way to escape it. Only in death, as his twin proved.