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44. The Unsung Hero
Last Updated:
2024-10-29 19:42:56
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Dear Stepbrother 45. The Fallen Angel
* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *NEW YORK CITY* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *[ K A R A ]You would not remember much from school. I certainly didn't.I had been in school for as long as I could remember. And finally, after 4 years of higher education, I was officially a permanent resident of what they called, the real world.What had I learned from all these years of studying? I had no idea.Today was my graduation day. Lacey and Peter actually flew out from Hawaii for the ceremony. Just the two of them though, no Ryder, just in case you were wondering.After he left New York last year, I heard from my mom that he went back to Hawaii for a bit, before leaving again to God knows where. Ryder hadn't been home since and he never told anyone where he was going. Sometimes he'd sent postcards to Peter, but that was about it. Lacey said the last postcard from Ryder was about a month ago, and he was somewhere in Mexico.So as Ryder had decided to become a wandering nomad, I h
Dear Stepbrother 46. The Ornate Cage
[ K A R A ]"Shit!" I heard that voice again.Then I felt two strong arms grabbed my body and I was quickly being pulled up into the cold, dry air. I jerked my eyes open and I saw… Cole, holding onto me. He looked so distraught."Cole..." I murmured."Shit!" he cursed again as he frantically reached for a towel and wrapped my body with it. I looked down at the water below and it was dark red. I just realized what I had done.In a matter of seconds, Cole swiftly carried me out of the bathroom. He laid me down on the bed, grabbing whatever cloth he saw on the floor and tying them unto my wrist for added pressure. When he was done, he lifted my hand up above my heart and quickly ran off to the living room to get the first aid kit. He was scrambling like crazy. Then he came back almost instantly and sat right next to me on the bed.
Dear Stepbrother 47. The Infinite Distance
[ K A R A ]My mind was lost as soon as I read those words, and suddenly I felt so lightheaded. Did something happen to Ryder? My stomach twisted at the thought and I was having trouble breathing. With trembling hands, I dialed my mom's number, and she picked up after the first ring."Mom?" I said quickly."Honey, I've been trying to reach you—" I could sense the distress in her voice, that riled me up even more."Mom, where are you? What's going on?""I'm taking Peter to the airport. Honey, Ryder's been in an accident,""What?""He's been reported missing off the coast of Mexico, they said it was a surfing accident. They've been searching for him for hours now. Peter's gonna fly out there tonight—""I'm coming!" I didn't even know how my brain had processed all that.
Dear Stepbrother 48. The Wronged Rights
* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *OAXACA, MEXICO* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *[ R Y D E R ]I never thought that fish tacos would save my life.It was quite the story. It went something like this, once upon a time, there was a man named Pedro Gonzalez who owned a small taco shack by the beach. He made the meanest fish tacos, the best I ever had in my life. Every morning I went out to surf, at around 6 or 7 AM, and I usually came back to the shore at around 12 PM. I would make my way to Pedro's shack and order two plates of fish tacos for lunch. And I did the same thing every day for a month now.Pedro wasn't a man of many words. He didn't speak English well, and my Spanish was... well, I knew ‘hola’ and 'gracias', but that was about it.But Pedro knew me, or at l
Dear Stepbrother 49. The Righted Wrongs
* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *NEW YORK CITY* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *[ R Y D E R ]As soon as we arrived at the hospital, we went straight to find Kara's room. My heart was about to burst right out of my chest. And as we were walking down the halls, I saw Cole and this red-haired girl talking to the nurse."I'm sorry, Ms. Livingston is still in the ICU, only family members are allowed for visitations at the moment," the nurse said to them."We're her family," I interjected, motioning between my dad and me.Cole’s eyes shot open as soon as he saw me. He was glaring at me, clearly, he wasn't too happy to see me."Alright, you two may follow me," said the nurse, nodding her head to dad and me.We followed her to the ICU ro
Dear Stepbrother 50. The Narrow Path
[ R Y D E R ]A couple of days had passed by, and Kara was still not waking up. They had moved her from the ICU to the general ward, which meant she could have visitors now.Cole came by every day and I wouldn't leave the room whenever he was around. It was getting real pathetic. He stroked her hair and kissed her head in front of me, trying to make me jealous. Well, guess what, it fucking worked.Meanwhile, Lacey and dad were always around as well. I barely got any alone time with Kara. So between 7 to 8 PM was always my favorite time of the day. That was when Lacey and dad would go out to get some food, and I could be alone with Kara.I wasn't doing anything bad, I promise.It wasn't like I could talk to her or anything, she was just asleep. Not trying to be a creep or whatever, but I liked watching her sleep. I liked speaking to her, even though
Dear Stepbrother 51. The Home Coming
[ R Y D E R ]She said she didn't want to see me.Well, not those words exactly. The nurse said that she was too tired and that she didn't want any visitors for now. She only wanted to see her mom. So both Cole and I had to retreat back to the waiting room.Seriously though, I was literally dying to see her, and now she was awake, but she won't even see me. That sucked, but I had to respect her wishes. She probably needed some time to re-adjust.Still, I couldn't wait for her to hear the news... How would she react?* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *Now I didn't feel like sitting around, sharing a waiting room with fucking Cole. But I didn't want to leave the hospital either, so I decided to go wait by the rooftop instead.It
Dear Stepbrother 52. The Heart Attack
[ K A R A ]"Hey," Cole said as soon as he entered the room.He looked disheveled, with bags hanging under his eyes. Slowly, he walked over to the bed and sat down next to me. Smiling a small smile, he leaned in and planted a short kiss on my cheek."Hey," I whispered back."I missed you," he said, leaning his head against mine. "How are you feeling?""Like I had been through a life-altering experience," I shrugged."I should have never let you go. I'm so sorry,""Why are you apologizing to me? It wasn't your fault, Cole,""I'm your boyfriend. I should have taken better care of you," he breathed, pausing for a beat before saying, "I should've noticed the cuts sooner. I should've never left that night. And I shouldn't have let you go,""Cole, it's not your fault. Honestly, it was a
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Dear Stepbrother Epilogue
* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * TWO YEARS LATER GOLD COAST, AUSTRALIA * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * [ R Y D E R ] The dawn was breaking outside the window. This bluish and orange light was creeping up the night sky, signaling the beginning of yet another day. 6:30 AM, the clock read. Kara was still sound asleep, maybe last night took a toll on her? Last night was... a lot of fun. I was getting hard all over again just thinking about it. Slowly I rolled over to my side, carefully wrapping her tiny body in my arms. My fingers ran to caress her soft cheeks. "Hey..." I murmured to her ears as she shuffled a little. "Mmhmm," she mumbled, still closing her eyes. "Merry Christmas, baby," It was Christmas day in Australia, you would not have guessed it from the weather outside. It was 85 degrees and nothing but sunshine on the horizon. Apparently, that was how Christmas was done over here in the land down under. Kara wasn’t saying anything. She refused to wake up
Dear Stepbrother 66. Letters To K
* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *ONE YEAR LATERTAHITI, FRENCH POLYNESIA* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *[ K A R A ]“Ry…?”I woke up this morning shivering and cold. This usually wouldn’t happen. Especially that we were living in Tahiti now, it was 80 degrees outside. And normally, I would wake up with Ryder’s body wrapping around mine like a blanket. He always made me feel warm, so I didn’t even need a duvet. But today, I woke up with the bed empty and it felt cold.“Ry?” I said again, but I heard no answer.I stirred in bed and slowly propped myself up. Ryder wasn’t anywhere in the room. I glanced at the clock and it was still 5 o’clock in the
Dear Stepbrother 65. The Honey Moon
* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *ONE MONTH LATERHUNTINGTON BEACH, CA* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *[ K A R A ]The first thing I noticed about California was the air. The air was salty, but breezy and cool. Ryder and I arrived in the golden state a few days ago. We were living in a cute little Airbnb right by the beach. It was the coolest thing ever.Every morning, Ryder would go out to train by the beach. The first contest on his world tour would be held here next week. Every morning, I would wake up with him, make coffee, and I’d do a little writing as I
Dear Stepbrother 64. Peter and Lacey
* This is a bonus chapter with Peter and Lacey's POV. Enjoy! *[ P E T E R ]“It’s a great wedding, huh?”My eyes were glancing around the room and I locked eyes with my ex-wife. We exchanged a smile and I thought it was polite to make small talk. What I didn't realize was how awkward it was, talking to my ex-wife at our children’s wedding.“Yeah, it is,” she replied.I was holding a glass of scotch and she was holding a glass of champagne. We were both standing by the sidelines, watching our two kids share the dance floor as bride and groom. It was quite an ironic sight. Life had a pretty crazy sense of humor. I remembered a few years ago when it was Lacey and me out on this dance floor, dancing as the bride and groom. We were so happy back then. We thought we were in it for the long haul. And yet here we were, only a
Dear Stepbrother 63. Colle and Elle
* This is a bonus chapter from Elle and Cole's POV. Enjoy! *[ E L L E ]It was a beautiful night in Hawaii and a wonderful wedding. My best friend, Kara, just got married to the love of her life and I couldn’t be more proud. Today was supposed to be one of the happiest days of our lives, but it felt rather bittersweet.One person’s happiness is another person’s tragedy.I saw Cole standing silently by the sidelines and my heart sunk to my feet. Cole had been in love with Kara for years. That was actually how we met and became friends. He was introduced to me by a friend and he was telling me how he was in love with his best friend. I thought guys like him were so adorable. They were a rare breed. He was so thoughtful and kind. They don’t make guys like this anymore.I decided to help him win the heart of his best friend,
Dear Stepbrother 62. The Blue Moon
[ R Y D E R ]Kara was probably thinking that I was taking her up to our room, but no. I liked to keep things interesting.So instead, we got some milkshake from my favorite diner and made our way to our Secret Beach. The night was young and full of possibilities. We were giddy and excited, laughing at each other as walked down the beach, barefoot with our hands clasped together. I was reduced to a grinning and smirking mess. Thankfully, she was too."Kara, you're smiling like crazy," I commented."It's because I'm crazy about you, Ryder Jake Williams,""You're so perfect in every way. I'm the luckiest man alive," I stopped our tracks and stood right in front of her.I reached out to hold her hand, and I caught her by her wrist. She flinched when I touched the scar over her tattoo. It had healed, but the mark was still there.
Dear Stepbrother 61. The Pura Vida
* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *ONE WEEK LATERKAUAI, HAWAII* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *[ K A R A ]"Oh my God!” mom gasped as soon as I walked into the room. “Ryder's gonna go crazy when he sees you,""Mom!" I hissed and looked away, totally embarrassed."Seriously though, if I swing that way, I would've married you right now," Elle added.It was our wedding day today and I was all dressed up in the bride’s attire. I had curled my hair and let them down, and I was wearing this lovely white lace gown that cascaded down my body so heavenly. When I looked into the mirror, I was in awe too, I couldn't believe myself when I saw my reflection.Ryder going crazy... a girl can only hope.
Dear Stepbrother 60. The Promised Land
[ K A R A ]The next thing I know, Ryder and I were driving down the highway in this convertible car. The summer wind was blowing through our hair and Ryder was holding my hand in his throughout the entire ride."We just passed the city limits,” I noted the sign. “Seriously, you're not gonna tell me where we're going?""And ruin the surprise? I think not,""Okay... just answer this then, is it somewhere where we could get a milkshake?" I said it naughtily."Damn, look at you go," he stifled a laugh."Six months of being away from you would do this to a girl,""Baby, I wish I could. But, actually, I want to wait," he said suddenly. "I wanna be that whatever unicorn-guy you've been dreaming of. I'll be that guy that waits for you and loves you no matter what,""What?"
Dear Stepbrother 59. The Magic Carpet
* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *SIX MONTHS LATERNEW YORK CITY* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *[ K A R A ]"I still can't believe you're getting married to Ryder next week," mom said as she stomped to the kitchen with our dirty plates."You've known him how long exactly? Three months?" she teased, referring to the time when I argued with her over her choices on marrying Peter."Ha-ha, very funny," I laughed sarcastically as I stalked to the living room to continue packing my things.There was so much stuff that I had to sort through, my room was a mess. I even had to use the living room because there wasn't enough space. And now the living room looked like the ballroom in Titanic as they were sinking.If you were
