Life's Curveballs Ch. 03

Life is full of changes.

A fact that people tend to forget for change can happen right in front of them and they wouldn't even know it. It can be little changes, barely perceived in real-time, unknown and unquantifiable. Until suddenly, one realizes in a moment of great clarity that everything they had ever known wasn't as it was before.

Or, as most people fear, it can be quick and sudden like a lightning strike.

Leaving one shocked and dumbfounded of this sudden new reality. But humans are creatures that are adaptable to change. To hunker down and weather through the storm until finally, they could fully adapt to the situation, little by little, pushing forward.

Discard a bit of pride, shed some tears and maybe even pour copious amounts of sweat, blood and effort. Humans have always adapted to change in their environment.

And so as it was with Elliot.

Elliot was quite happy for his father and Katherine but not quite so much at the prospect of his new step-siblings. His mind still coming to terms with this change from being an only child for all thirteen years of his life. What was worse was he could taste the animosity the Morgan sisters had for him. The adults were oblivious to the hard glares Kassidy and Kinley gave Elliot, being enamored in one another's company.

And what might have Elliot done, one might ask, to garner such loathing from the sisters in their brief time in acquainting one another?

Nothing.

Absolutely nothing of noteworthy.

And that was exactly it.

As Katherine was prone to ramble from time to time whenever she visited Elliot's father, one particular topic was her pride and joy she found in her two daughters.

Kinley Morgan was the more outgoing of the two blondes, prone to energetic bursts of energy. Her mother's open-natured positivity rubbed off on her and people tend to be drawn at her bright personality. Her classmates tend to invite her to their cliques or cling close by at how her cheerful disposition made her an engaging company. She was the athletic of the two siblings and was a natural athlete by whatever sports activity it was she participated in. Be they volleyball, basketball, soccer or track and field, the list goes on.

The girl liked to compete and win.

Her older sister, Kassidy, was on the other end of the spectrum however. Senior by a year, she was the brains of the operations so to speak. She was the cold ice to Kinley's bright fire, reserved and calculating. Fitting that she had a bit of a reputation for being an ice queen at their school. A brilliant student that garnered academic awards that rivaled Kinley's sports trophies. She stands as a solitary figure above from the rest peers in her accomplishments and ambitions. People were instinctively intimidated to some degree whenever face-to-face with Kassidy. Her ice-blue eyes and an air of regality at the most minute of her actions.

The Morgan sisters were deemed unmistakably bright by their peers and family.

But, as Elliot would soon come to know, every light has its darkness, a shadow casted that was overlooked by most, enamored by their brilliance. And the sisters were no exception.

A lifetime of watching other people, Elliot was by no means a master of human socializing but he picked up a useful trait or two in that period. The sisters were used to being elevated by their peers, and thus, their egos were fed to such an extraordinary size. He could almost hear the thoughts coming out of the top of their heads as they barely gave him another glance but he knew damn well that they were conscious of his presence. They did not like him. Not one bit. From the sudden twitch of Kassidy's lips when Katherine first introduced him to the wrinkling motion of Kinley's nostrils as Elliot sat opposite her. They barely gave him any more time than what was needed aside from their initial introduction by their mother.

And why should they? They were the Morgan sisters, the top of the school food chain. One of the school's brightest and gifted students. The cool kids.

And the reclusive, lanky teen that was Elliot, he was found wanting by his soon-to-be stepsisters. A quiet sheep who was more boring than a rock. A loser to be short. And they were going to be stepsiblings.

The sisters need not say what their opinion of him was for Elliot to get the message: Yuck.

Time blurred for Elliot. He relished the last days of being an only child, feeling the days slip through his fingers like sand before the fated day arrived.

The ceremony was small.

People flocked to the bright-blonde flower girls while Elliot settled on eating a cake in a quiet corner, finding the rush of moving bodies and flurry of questions to be too tiresome that he hid in plain sight, occasionally slicing off a portion of the delectable pastry into his mouth.

And just like that, the last official day of him being the only child was greeted with thunderous jubilation.

What Elliot dreaded most was the move.

The Morgan's home was an old gargantuan house that was past a hundred years old. Katherine said she loved the old grandeur vibe the place gave off and that it looked like a castle. Elliot would later come to know of it as a Queen Anne-style of architecture. What gave it a castle-feel was the round front corner tower with a conical roof that pierced towards the sky much like a European castle would. Renovating the entire property costed a fortune and she had only focused for the time being on the bare necessities. It was indeed an antique but inside it was apparent what was changed to fit modern times and conveniences.

The Morgans' lived two towns away from Strathurst, an hour and a half drive away. The marriage between Katherine and Byron was not only one of affection but also of convenience. Byron was in the motions of putting his plans of opening another store, backed by Katherine's farm and connections, offering the inhabitants of the county at a wallet-friendly alternative as opposed to the chemical-infused overpriced goods from corporate shills that were slowly working their way around the area, popping up like daisies as the years go by.

Elliot was made to move in with her new stepmother as Byron had felt that the boy had grown more detached with people ever since his mother's death and hoped that Katherine's good-naturedness would bring some life back into his son's eyes. And being around kids his age, Byron hoped that Elliot would finally connect with people. Even Eliza herself had worried Elliot would grow up to be too much of a recluse.

As Byron busied himself with work once more, Elliot observed to adapt in this new environment he found himself.

Katherine liked to spoil her daughters, not that she ever notices or sees a problem of it. She was. in Elliot's estimation, a genuinely good person. But too much of a good thing can be bad and that includes love itself. She rarely chastises her children's misdemeanors, always overshadowed by their brilliant accomplishments, that she fails to see their flaws and foibles.

The Morgan Sisters found Elliot to be painstakingly boring, one might have thought that Elliot had more in common with Kassidy, on account of their reserved personality. But whereas Elliot actions have no ulterior reason aside that he was just continent on being with himself, Kassidy refuses to talk to those who she deemed below her or not worth her time.

Although by right, Kassidy was the eldest among the three, Elliot had taken it up to himself to take up the chores around the house. In the Sutton household, Elliot grew up without a housekeeper and with things still tough financially speaking, Byron convinced Katherine to not pay extra for the housekeeper and that Elliott would take up the slack.

Elliot did not grumble as it was something he had been used to, although it was something of a change than what he was accustomed to, being in a new place aside from his old home. Elliot let himself lose on the rote his body had gotten used to, simple tasks as his mind drifted and his body was on automated mode as he wiped the furniture, mopped the floor and cleaned the glass paneling of the windows. He vacuumed thoroughly throughout the house with Katherine's quiet oversight (at Elliot's insistence to see what it was he shouldn't touch. Afterall, he was still a newcomer to the place and Elliot observed people are touchy, especially towards strangers in other places aside than their own house.)

But to Elliot's innocent ignorance, he had inadvertently set himself low on the pecking order of the house.

The first few days, Elliot and the girls didn't really interact much. They would settle on their own routine and Elliot on his, which was usually doing housework in the morning and his free time in the afternoon and nights.

The only instance where their circle of habits meet was when Elliot cleaned up after them. A stray dish here, a discarded laundry there. But as the days passed by, little by little, the amount of what he had to clean up rose. Kinley was by far the worst offender, leaving a trail of dishes and food wrappings like Hansel and Gretel each time after school practice. Kassidy was no help either, refusing to chastise her younger sister and even on occasion had to boss Elliot around by making him clean her own room and take out the trash (Elliot later found out that Katherine had assigned the task to Kassidy to not overwork Elliot but considered the task far beneath her and utterly disgusting.)

Tasks that had taken only time in the morning now ate into the afternoon for Elliot as he had more and more things to do. At times, he had just finished cleaning a section of the house only to find it dirtied once more with muddy footprints and open bags of chips courtesy of a calorie-deprived Kinley after a bout at soccer practice. Or see a trail of paint when Kassidy decided to pursue an interest in painting and be ordered by the older Morgan sister to clean up after her.

Even a quiet and meek soul such as Elliot has his limit. With each passing day, his frustrations piled on and one until, finally, he reached breaking point.

"Can you not?" he began one Saturday afternoon, the first words he ever said to them. He wouldn't have thought of such a thing as objecting to them days before but he had enough. He had to put his foot down or else they'd boss him around till graduation.

Kassidy didn't bother with so much as wasting breath on him and simply ignored him. Elliot swore she raised her chin higher as she walked away. Kinley on the other hand was more vocal.

"Listen twerp, you're in our house now. And it's your job to keep the place spick and span. So don't be a slacker and just do your job," she said not getting up from the sofa, discarded cups of empty yoghurts lying around and pieces of potato chips scattered on the collar of her shirt.

'You're making my job harder. Can't you just pick up after yourself?" he replied, feeling the blood on his veins coming to a boil.

"Why? Juanita never complained once," Kinley said with a noncommittal shrug, referring to the old housekeeper.

Elliot struggled; he knew he had a retort somewhere in the back of his mind. But for the life of him, it was an unintelligible garbled mess. Elliot felt the blood rushing to head, clouding his thoughts. He never felt such annoyance at anyone before. He clenched his fists and couldn't; take it anymore and left the room entirely.

Only when it was few hours later did he manage to make sense of the words, to retort back to Kassidy and Kinley: Juanita was a paid professional with a patience of a tree. I'm your step brother, not your servant. I have my limits.

Elliot stood once more to confront and settle the matter entirely with Kinley and Kassidy. He had an entire argument lined up in his mind on his way to them. He practiced muttering under his breath like a crazy person, just to get the words out without stuttering. And here he was, standing in front of them. And every argument he ever thought off just wouldn't come out of his mouth as he saw the look in their eyes.

Never before in Elliot's life he felt such a thing. The argument was over before it could even started, it was the look that snobbish-nerve-grating look that whatever words that came out of Elliot, they would never take it seriously. It was a mocking look that made their lips curl up cruelly.

Elliot was no stranger to getting picked on. Come on, a loner kid who's lanky as a tree branch was prime prey for any petty bully with low emotional IQ. But at the end of each school day, when Elliot gets home, the meter would reset and he'd feel refreshed with a not a care of what they truly thought. He would lose himself on the movies and game consoles as the day's woes washed away from him. He'd be a new person once more by tomorrow morning, refreshed and well at ease to tackle the day that awaited him.

That was when he had been an only child.

Now with the constant twenty-four hours of being around the bossy Morgan sisters, the store of stress inside of him was reaching a breaking point. Home was no longer a refuge, a safe haven from the annoyances of schoollife. Elliot's frustration was more present, almost constant instead of naturally dispersing with his usual relaxing habits. Where home had been a refuge and place of peace, now it was near-constant work and bickering with his stepsisters that brought out the bitterness out of Elliot from the deepest part of his heart. Leftovers from the dark days when he had to deal with his mother's death. The negativity resurfaced once more. Not as strong as they had been but just enough to cloud his vision and thinking.

"Pick up after yourselves. What's next? You gonna make me wipe your own assess after you take a shit?"

Surprise was etched on both sisters faces. Not used to being talk back to. Elliot had to admit that it was quite satisfying to see for the first three seconds before Kinley tackled him to the floor with force surprising for a girl her build.

And then the fight began.

When the adults finally arrived home, they were greeted by a sight of a scratched-up Elliot warding off a smirking Kinley with nothing but a throw pillow with the dining table between them. Kassidy just watched TV whiled the two battled it out in the around the dining room.

"ENOUGH! WHAT HAPPENED HERE?!" Byron's voice boomed, shaking the very foundations of the house and quaking right into the bones of everyone present. Elliot stood on attention and Kinley had to stop her attack.

Finally, Elliot thought.

Kinley had him in a hold for five minutes and almost felt like she might've broken something if it went on if he hadn't gotten lucky and escaped, putting the dining table between them and playing cat and mouse with her. Elliot wasn't sure if she dabbled on Mixed Martial Arts and he wouldn't put it past her if she did.

He didn't know much long he could've lasted if their parents hadn't arrived.

Elliot finally breathed easy as the looming figures of their parents strode in and demanded an explanation. But before Elliot could begin with his story, Kassidy sprung from her seat and stepped in between the squabbling children and the adults. "Wait," she said.

A switch was flicked. There was change in Kassidy's mannerisms. 'Kinley was just having some fun with sweet, quiet Elliot. It's nothing serious. They were just goofing off otherwise I'd have stopped them if they were getting too rough."

She acted much more innocent, the edges to her personality softened and she seemed, if possible, vulnerable. His step mother was instantly swayed. His father was adamant at first but eventually the toughness in his eyes melted to that of endearment to his new daughters.

"Elliot," Byron's eyes settled on his son, "these are your sisters now," Byron's large frame overshadowed Elliot even as he knelt down to meet the boy eye to eye, "I know you have been an only child all your life up to this point but I will not repeat this young man. Do not lay your hands on a lady, especially your sisters. You are supposed to protect them, that is the duty of the son, their brother.'

"She started it!" Elliot blurted, instantly regretting it as soon as it came out. It made him sound childish. He composed himself immediately, not giving up just yet, "I have been cleaning up after them and when I told them to clean up their own messes, Kinley tackled me!"

"Don't be such a baby! I was just joking around," Kinley said with a shrug.

"Oh, it's nothing that serious Byron," Katherine eased in, acting as reconciler, "Every sibling quarrel with one another, especially when their young. Kinley and Kassidy used to fight back when they were much younger. What's important is they learn. Right Kinley?" Katherine turned to her daughter.

"Fine, fine. Alright?" Kinley said, putting up her hands in the air.

"Elliot dear?"

Elliot sighed, "Yes ma'am."

"Good, now clean up this mess. We've had a long day, your father and I. we could certainly use some shut eye."

As soon as the adults were out of sight, Kinley and Kassidy squared off with Elliot, hard gazes making sparks fly in the air between. Elliot stood his ground, having resolved himself that if he so much as relent further, he would be their personal bitch-boy.

No more.

Elliot lost some of his innocence that day. Hardened his will and stood his ground. And so it was that Elliot adapted.

But this fight was far from over, oh no.

This was but the first of many fights for the years to come.