Chapter 16

I was packing. It was a decision I had finally come to, and I hated to say it, but it was Harry's brother that made me realize why I had to leave.

Because I was that desperate.

Wiping an annoying, frustrated tear from my eye, I angrily stuffed my clothes into my bag that I had placed on my bed. A turbulent mess of clothes, toiletries, shoes and books laid all around it, covering most of my sheets. I couldn't even remember packing this much, but I guess I had really come here to get what I desperately wanted.

Laughing at my pathetic self, I almost didn't hear the knock on my door as I was throwing my blow dryer into my luggage.

It wasn't until the door went that I turned around to see who was entering. I was half expecting it to be one of the maids telling me that dinner was served, but instead I was met by Harry eyeing out my furious packing.

He didn't look surprised at all.

"Do you have a moment to talk?" He asked, watching me continue my packing by stuffing my papers and books into every crook I could find in my bag.

"No. I'm done talking," I said, hoping my voice sounded more angry than hurt.

His brother really was a piece of work, but he made it all so clear. Especially after my talk with Harry earlier..

Richard's words were the red cherry on top of it all.

I was done being desperate.

"I'm calling a cab the second I'm done here. I'll be out of your hair in a few more hours. You won't have to stick your neck out for me, after all."

"Cassandra, take a seat and let me talk to you for a moment, please. I understand why you want to leave."

"Really?" I snorted. Of course he understood.

He always understood.

"No fucking surprise. Fucking arrogant, know-it-all genius assho-“

"It's because my brother wanted you to leave."

I froze up shortly, but then turned around and shot him a glare. I was too damn tired for all of his games.

"What the hell do you mean?"

"You're leaving because of what he said," He said, eyeing me with a stern look.

I crossed my arms and let out a breath.

"So what if I am? He made a good point. I'm still here, aren't I?"

"But not because you're desperate," Harry replied, crossing his arms as well.

"Because you're driven and you know what's best for you. My brother said what he needed to get you to leave my home. Do you get it, Cassandra?"

"I... What?" I wasn't sure I could handle more of this.

These brothers……. this whole summer had been one whole fucking mess. It started out so crazy and somehow had gotten even crazier. I guess that's what you got for being a cruel bitch trying to fool an innocent man.

All of this was really just karma, wasn't it?

Harry sighed, but then gestured towards my bed for me to please have a seat. I hesitated, but then after a moment gave in.

Only because I was so tired I felt like I could collapse on the spot.

"My brother... is an excellent talker," Harry then reminded me with a grit in his voice. .

He sure fucking was.

"He has an uncanny ability to manipulate people, and he's manipulated you to make this decision, Cassandra. It was his way of taking back control over the situation I had turned on him. He hired you to come, hired you to stay, so now he's fooling you to go."

"And now you're gonna double cross him again by persuading me to stay?" I humorlessly stated.

These boys did nothing but fucking play tricks and I was done being their pawn.

"I'm not doing this game any longer, Harry. I'm out, I'm sorry. It's not working between us anyway. Your teaching method doesn't work, and I just can't-"

"There's no double crossing," He interrupted.

"I won't hold you back from leaving if you want to leave, I just want you to have all of the facts before you make a decision. If you leave, you do exactly as he wanted you to."

"And that would mean he won over you, right?" I replied, sighing.

Despite his words, I couldn't see how me staying benefitted him anymore. Or me, for that matter.

"No. You would lose." Harry answered.

He glared down at me with a serious look when I blinked, confused.

"If you choose to stay, you should stay for yourself, not for me. That would be stupid." Oh, gee, thanks.

"If you stay, you stay because you know you have more opportunities here than back home."

"But that's the thing," I said and stood up.

I frustratedly threw my hands up.

"There might be more opportunities here, but I'm also this close to fucking strangling you all the time! God, I know you're trying to help me in your own twisted way, but you fucking infuriate me! I can't even have an argument with you without you having to one-up me somehow! Do you know how frustrating it is? I know I'm not as smart as you, but can't you just give in once in a while? Do you and your fucking ego always have to be right?!"

Maybe I was being ridiculous here, but this was how I felt. I might not have been his level of smart, but that didn't make me stupid.

Except he constantly made me feel that way. His words held more power than mine did, and as absurd as it sounded, I hated that. Because it meant I could never, ever show what I was made of, when it wasn't even half of what he was made of.

Harry was silent for a moment, but looked at me. Then, sighing, he hiked up in his pants and took a seat in the chair at my vanity table. He leaned over on his elbows and looked down at the floor.

"I don't blame you," He then silently said.

His voice had completely changed, shifted to something softer and much more... gravelly?

"I know what I am and what it... does to people. The reason you want to leave is the same reason my brother's resented me my whole life."

My mouth briefly fell open.

A sort of light came on inside my head, and I realized what the whole jealousy argument had been about earlier between them.

Harry had been right: Richard envied his intellect, but as I saw it, Harry also sometimes envied his brother's ability to talk to people.

"Intellect alienates you," He silently continued.

"I made my peace with it at an early age when my own family couldn't accept me for how I was. I didn't want to do things their way because I didn't see any logical outcome of it. Just as I push you with your assignments, you push back when you don't see my point of view. I realize, respectfully, I'm always ahead of people, but more specifically, I was always ahead of my brother. He couldn't stand not being able to calculate my motives. It's what made him unable to manipulate me, even in reverse psychology. I was always smarter of him, but it's alienated me from the rest of the world as well."

I watched him for a moment.

Then, walking up to him I stopped in front of him and saw him lift his head to look at me. His eyes were tired, but deep.

"You don't always have to be ahead of people, you know," I said, running a hand over his hair when he sighed and closed his eyes.

"You also don't have to be right all the time. Maybe you and your ridiculous arrogance can't help but be it most of the time, but you don't have to rub it in people's faces. You could just... ignore it."

"I won't dumb myself down for other people," He declared, releasing a heavy exhale when I ran my fingers through the bottom wisps of his hair along his neck.

"That's why I stay at home."

I rolled my eyes, but then grabbed his neck hairs and yanked his head back. He gave a low grunt, but nonetheless looked up at me as I leaned down and looked firmly into his eyes.

"You're gonna have to resist being a better-knowing jackass if you want me to stay here and do what's best for me," I stated pursing my lips when his twitched.

"Otherwise you might just find that the best for me is going to be the worst for you. I swear I've resisted slapping you on at least three or four occasions."

"Why resist?"

"Because," I snapped, but then let go of his hair to grip his chin instead when that mouth was too damn sassy.

"As satisfying as it would feel, it won't fix my problem. The same applies for you," I mimicked him from earlier.

Maybe I needed to control my temperament, but he needed to control his arrogance. There was a difference between being smart and being superior, just as there was a difference between being angry and being passionate. It seemed we both had a lesson to learn. Watching Harry, I let go of his chin and looked as he straightened out.

He gazed across the room for a moment, a thoughtful look in his eyes, before looking back up at me again.

"Less of an asshole, you say?"

I stepped between his legs and crossed my arms.

"Much less of an asshole. Starting with real lessons with actual mathematical benefits, and not life lessons in persistence or some other shit. I'm going to try my very best to learn from you if you promise to try and not be a better-knowing jackass who can't accept less than perfection from the human mind."