"Yeah. To say the least. Meanwhile, my dad grew closer and closer to that neighbor, Lloyd. It took a long time before anything really happened between them. My dad was never truly attracted to him. Lloyd couldn’t have children after an accident, so he kinda latched onto my dad because he wanted some kind of substitute family. He was obsessed with my dad, his ethereal beauty, and they eventually got married. My dad agreed only because Lloyd was well-off, an engineer with solid money."
I can feel the tension building in Salt’s body, and I know his story is nearing its tipping point.
"Sounds like he used him in a way."
"Oh, for sure. Over the years, Lloyd’s relationship with my dad kept getting worse. My dad was to blame for it. Being faithful was a foreign concept for him, he couldn’t keep his legs together. He had multiple hookups, affairs and was rarely home, fucking around with guys. He worked as a home-care nurse and often took advantage of… opportunities. My stepfather tolerated it for a long time, surprisingly patiently, but something ugly began to grow inside him. A fury, rage… He loved my dad desperately and could not let him go, despite the fact that my dad had made him a cuckold many times over. That darkness grew, full of suppressed aggression, anger, and resentment toward all of us. I guess he felt used, receiving nothing in return. My dad did not love him or respect him, but gladly took his money. And we did not treat him like a father. I think theconstant lack of respect we saw every day from our dad toward our stepfather affected us too. We were mean to him. But what happened next can never be justified."
I get the sense this part of the story is the hardest for Salt to tell. He lets out a long breath.
"My stepfather started drinking more and more. I also think he had developing mental health problems. The more affairs my dad had, the worse it all got. When he was angry, he took it out on us, so we were beaten regularly. It kept escalating. His violence was directly tied to how rarely my dad came home. Around that time, my dad got deeply involved with another man. He even started hinting at divorce. And that was what killed him. The man turned out to have a husband. The husband found out what was going on and one day caught them in the act and shot them both."
"Holy shit," I mutter. "I’m sorry, Salt…"
Salt snorts. "Yeah. If my dad had reined in his love for alpha dicks, a lot of terrible things wouldn’t have happened. Like, a looooot. He was selfish and vain and didn’t care about seeing our bruises or when Lloyd smacked us in front of him. We were a burden to him. He was pretty and looked way younger than his age. Alphas were turning to look at him on the street, and it really went to his head."
Salt slaps the surface of the water in a frustrated gesture, sending foam splashing.
"My stepfather was furious and humiliated by the press; there were articles about a crime of passion, and his real surname had been leaked, becoming basically synonymous with the word ‘cuckold’. He wanted revenge on my dad, but he was no longer there. Suddenly, it was just the two of us left under his roof. Senu was seventeen at the time and had already matured as an omega, a striking copy of our dad looks-wise, but blond. I wasbarely sixteen. Then the worst happened right after our dad’s funeral."
Salt clenches his fists.
"He got completely drunk, sat us down, and told us things were going to change. He said he was done being a fool and a cuck. He said that from now on, Senu would be his new spouse."
"What the hell?" I blurt out. "A spouse?"
"Of course, we both protested, violently. He ignored us. He was out of control, at his breaking point, and heavily drunk. He said he had had enough, that he had been a loser for years, that our dad had cruelly broken his heart, and that he was done with it. He grabbed Senu and started dragging him toward his bedroom."
"Oh fuck," I whisper.
"I could not let that happen. I jumped him, but I was a beta, sixteen years old, and he was an alpha well into his fifties. I do not remember much. He beat me, hit my head, and I lost consciousness. When I started coming to, Senu was holding me in his arms. He was shaking, and blood was running down his thighs."
"Damn, I’m sorry… What an animal!"
"My stepfather was gone from the house. We thought he’d gone out to buy more alcohol. Senu called an ambulance because he could see I was in bad shape. They came and took us to the hospital. I begged Senu to tell them what had happened, and he did. The hospital notified the police. Senu was examined and gave statements to make sure our stepfather would be punished."
"Did the police find him?"
"They did. We were told he jumped off a bridge and killed himself."
"Damn. That’s completely fucked up…"
"Yeah. But what we later found out was that he’d actually tricked our dad into selling him half of the duplex just before they got married. Dad was in financial trouble back then. He said, ‘Don’t worry, you’ll get it back. Once we’re married, it’ll stay in the family, and you’ll have the cash you need.’ But that’s not what happened. We found out he not only never adopted us, but also excluded us from his will. And Lloyd’s brother ended up taking everything. We were left with nothing, and we didn’t want to end up in foster care, so we… ran and ended up on the street."
"Dear Fate, I am so sorry you went through that, Salt. And I’m sorry about your brother. Yeah, the guy was treated badly by your dad, but that does not excuse what he did, ever."
"Yeah, and I think he knew it too. Senu told me that he cried while he was pushing into him. When Lloyd saw the blood, he stopped and ran away. He killed himself half an hour later."
"That’s just… sick."
"After we ran from the hospital, Senu suggested we go to his real father, the professor. When we drove up to that man’s house, we saw he had a whole new family. Through the fence, we watched him playing in the garden with four small kids, holding a newborn in his arms. We decided we would not bother him."
"That’s bad. He could have been your best chance for help."
"I know that now. But back then, we were just drifting, not sure what to do. We took small jobs, washing cars and stuff like that. Senu pushed me to stay in school. He’d finished high school with top grades just two weeks earlier and was supposed to start college. We were raised to believe education mattered. Lloyd was an engineer and used to beat us for bad grades. But my brain was damaged, and I knew I couldn’t focus in class. So I didn’t go back."
"What about Senu’s college?"
"His college was prepaid by his father, through a fund he’d set up years before. So Senu started classes, but we still had tosurvive somehow. Money sucked. We found an abandoned place to squat in, total shitshow. We washed up at gas stations. Other students mocked Senu, called him dirty and stinky. After a few months of that messy life, we landed a beach cleaning job. While setting up loungers at a hotel, one of the guests hit up Senu. He told him he was beautiful and asked if he wanted to make some extra cash."
