Decision

At some point, Alex looked at the clock

'Oh my god, it's already 11:30 AM and I still didn't make any progress ...'

His thoughts just kept drifting and he couldn't focus.

He looked at the letter again, and he felt his eyes burn

'I cried a lot, and it seems that I forgot to blink for a really long time as well ...'

He took a deep breath

'I have no time for this'

He quickly got up and opened the door, went to the bathroom, and looked in the mirror.

His eyes were bloodshot and his face was a mess ...

He opened the water and washed his face ...

'Mom ...'

His mother's beautiful face flashed in front of his eyes

'Dad ...'

Then his father's ...

Then Oliver's ...

'What I decide now will be a turning point in my family's life'

'Is someone like me really worthy of taking such a decision?'

'Am I ready to shoulder such a burden?'

He clenched his fist

'But if I don't ... then who will?'

'No one will come and decide for me ...'

Alex strengthened his resolve and began to remember what his father taught him.

"Put family first"

"Don't let people harass you and get away with it"

"Never forgive someone who's done something irrecoverable"

After Alex said these things loudly, he cried again ...

But this time, he didn't cry because his situation was hard or because he didn't know what to decide ...

Instead, he wept because the family's fate was sealed ...

'I know Dad, if he thinks that what he wants to do is right then he wouldn't be able to live without doing it'

'He has already sacrificed so much for us ... I can't put my needs above his again'

'I'm sorry Oliver ... but I'll make up for it'

Alex finally made his decision ...

He went to the kitchen and on the stove because he didn't have a lighter.

He took the letter in his hand ...

The faces of his family flashed in front of his eyes again ...

When Oliver's face flashed in front of him, more tears rolled down his cheeks

'I'm sorry for taking away your father, Oliver ...'

'How will I manage this important phase of your life?'

'I need to be stronger'

A scary idea suddenly came to Alex's mind

'I will basically indirectly murder a man ...'

'It's okay, I'll handle it, I have to'

'Dad always said that no one will land from the sky to shoulder my burdens'

'Like always, he's right'

'I just have to strengthen my resolve more'

'I'll handle it'

'I'll do it'

While repeating these words in his head, Alex burnt the letter ...

'My chest feels hollow ... as if there's a gaping hole in it instead of a heart ...'

Alex cried until he was no longer able to shed tears ...

He cried until he felt numb ...

He cried until he could no longer cry ...

Then he simply went to his bed and laid down.

'I just have to wait and go with the flow ...'

And like that, hours passed.

By the end of the day, officers came knocking on the door.

Alex acted surprised and denied that he or his brother knew anything about the "incident", and after searching the house, the cops took both of them to the station to ask some questions.

Eventually, the two were let go.

At first, Oliver didn't believe that his father did that, it was all like a bad dream to him, but Alex was beside him to calm him down and help him get through it.

The first few weeks were difficult, the house felt pretty much dead and spiritless, but regardless, Alex did his best to cheer up his brother.

After a couple of months, Blake's verdict was out, he got a life sentence.

Nothing was surprising about it; it was a murder in broad daylight.

He had nothing to back his claims so he didn't bother to say them, and even if he did, it wouldn't make much of a difference.

Regardless of all that, Alex was ready to take responsibility.

'These are the consequences'

'And if I wasn't ready for it I wouldn't have made that decision, but I did, therefore, I'm more than ready'

'I will take care of the family'

He looked at Oliver with a wry smile

'What's left of it at least ...'

And so, time passed ...

It took around 2 years for Oliver to recover from his shock.

Eventually, with Alex's constant help and support, his mental health returned to normal, and he was able to continue his studies in a normal way.

To Alex, the situation was stable, so things were good

'Oliver is 17 now, and we visit Dad at least once a month'

'His health is okay for now and I think he got used to prison life'

'Our constant visits help him get through'

'As long as he's happy he lived by his rules, and as long as Oliver is okay, everything should be fine'

A bit before Oliver's 18th birthday, Alex visited Blake alone to ask him about what they should tell Oliver ...

They both agreed to hide the fact that Alex participated, and decided to just tell him that Blake told Alex privately after he went to prison, not before that.

There was no specific reason from Alex's side, Blake just thought it'd be better if Oliver didn't feel like they both took a decision that heavily impacted his life without his consent ...

He was afraid that Oliver might resent Alex, and Alex reluctantly agreed after Blake insisted on it ...

'Dad doesn't like to lie, but he wants to take this responsibility alone, so I'll let him have it'

Life continued as normal, and a few weeks later Oliver had the conversation with Blake.

After Oliver knew the truth, his mental health drastically improved ...

He told Alex that when his father committed that crime his entire world shattered ...

"The man I thought was the perfect idol had murdered a respected doctor for no reason!"

It was devastating, his world crashed and he decided to never trust anyone ever again

"If even my father is a liar, what will I expect from others?"

He never showed it to Alex on the outside because he could see how much effort Alex was making for the two of them to live a normal life, so he didn't want to disappoint him ...

But on the inside, he believed that everyone is a hypocrite ...

That was until he knew the truth.

Oliver told Alex that now he understood everything and that he was sure that his father had made the correct decision.

When Alex heard that he felt extremely happy

'I didn't make the wrong decision!'

He felt as if a huge weight was lifted from his heart

'Finally, I can stop feeling guilty about deciding for Oliver'