Mateo's Pov

"Dude leave me the fuck alone," I snap towards my stepbrother who's been pestering me for the past 20 minutes

"C'mon man you gotta go to the first party with me," He bargains making my fists tighten in annoyance

"I don't have to do a damn thing, I can stay home and do whatever the hell I want," I scowl and he quirks an eyebrow at my choice of words

"Pfft, you need to get out more. Besides, dad will be mad," He states simply with a smirk and in an instant I see red

By the time I blink, I have him by the collar pinned against one of the cream colored walls. The same walls that have been my prison ever since I was a child.

"Do not speak of my father," I grit dangerously low making him smirk mockingly

"Our father," He corrects snarkily his eyes growing colder, creating a tenser atmosphere around us

"You got one more fucking time you filthy son of a-" I begin only to get cut off by a screech

"Mateo put my boy down!" Melanie yells as she opens the door taking in the scene

Relunctantly I let him go shooting daggers through his skull as he runs up to his mother hugging her. Shaking my head and walking to my room, I go to my dresser and out a grey pair of sweatpants, suddenly yearning to have a shower.

Before I can though, I hear the door open again, and I grit my teeth knowing he's here. My father.

Soon I hear cheering and I know they're talking about my stepbrother's acceptance to one of the most prestigious colleges out there.

Harvard.

My parents have been trying to get him recommended ever since he started high school, and now that he has, I know their expectations for me has skyrocketed. But I could care less.

I step out of my clothes and turn the shower on, and try to focus on the sprinkling water instead of my life. As crazy as it sounds, running from reality has been the one thing that keeps me sane.

Back then, I had no one to talk to about my emotions, which overall resulted in them disappearing. But it doesn't mean anything, since no one listened to me as a child, I'm convinced no one ever will.

They, my parents only dedicated to him and his needs. Whatever the case was, they supported him through thick and thin and because of it, he gained the best grades, more academic achievements and awards, and college invitations. Giving him the perfect record.

But he didn't deserve any of it.

He did all his shit right to move to the next level and rub his praises in my face, but I tried my damn hardest to see my mother again.

Shocker huh?

At the age of 6, she left my dad and I, and I didn't understand what that meant but as I got older I never saw her and when I asked, he told me she wasn't coming back.

So being the foolish child I was, I thought exceeding in life would make her change her mind. I tried doing everything I could that would put me in a positive spotlight, but she never knocked on our door again.

And as time went by, so did my faith of her returning.

But seven years later, around my 13th birthday, my father told me I was going to finally have a family. At the time, I thought he was mentioning her. I thought she was coming back for us. I thought my life was finally going to be complete.

But the morning of, he told me I was going to have a new mother and brother, and that was our first ever argument.

He had driven it into my mind that she wasn't coming back and that I needed to face the fact, but I didn't want to. So I started going out at night, trying to find her on my own, and I guess that's where me running from reality came into existence. And when I'd come back in the middle of the night, he'd start more arguments with me, and after a while we drifted apart.

It was a hard struggle for me. Not having a mother and being emotionally detached from my father.

But he didn't care. He still mentioned me being apart of a new family, and a month later they moved in with us. Four months after, they got married and were pronounced my official stepbrother and mother. And when a week had past, they both started to break the small ounce of peace that surrounded my home.

And so easily, turned it into a shit show.

As the days came and went, so did our arguments. But they amplified, quickly including my stepbrother since my stepmother, Melanie, compared us constantly. It was petty of her, but I always believed it was to show my father how useless I was.

My stepbrother had the perfect reputation by 15, my stepmother had a wealthy and successful company that was the talk of the town, and my father was starting a business of his own.

Everyone had their life going how they wanted, while I watched on the sidelines, hoping for a miracle.

So one day, I tried to be like him.

I tried to make good grades. I started doing my homework more and applied for more programs, hoping it would gain me more attention. I was tired of being lonely at school and at home, and it fueled me to prove everyone wrong.

But my stepbrother was already years ahead of me, so it felt pointless after some time. Teachers even began to doubt me and suggest I go back to being the "problem child". The new nickname began to spread around the school, and my stepmother and brother even tagged along. Knowingly, my father followed suit weeks after, and it gave me enough reasons to quit.

So I did.

I wanted to run away, but I didn't, because I felt like I deserved it at times. If I hadn't went against my father, none of this wouldn't have happened. And when I realized that, I allowed my grades to plummet and eventually I stopped going to my classes in general, and all of the attention I had, left.

Then she walked into the picture.

I met her in 7th grade as she was a new student coming in, and being happy was an understatement. I believed that luck was finally coming to me since she didn't know my past and I didn't have to pretend around her. Eventually she tagged along with my friend Julius and I, and we did everything together.

Over the course of our 8th grade year, the closer her and I got, the closer her and he got, and soon, they acted like they were the only two on Earth.

Casting me away.

I should've seen it coming, but with her reassuring me that he was just a friend, I believed her. I also believed her because I wanted her to stay. The feelings I developed for her grew everytime I saw her, but when she betrayed me, it was a matter of time before I forced myself to believe she was only a figment of my imagination.

Because she betrayed me with him.

As time passed, I started to feel numb, and by 9th grade, every single fucking day, I felt cold and angry, and it led me to act out in highly dangerous and toxic ways. Never committing to school, getting into fights to take out pent up emotions and always messing with shit, just to reciprocate the pain on other people.

That wasn't all though. By 11th grade, I was known everywhere and I started sleeping with other girls to get my mind off of her. Girls were begging to get into a relationship with me, but I rejected them, hoping she would try to come back.

Just to tell her no.

It led to people calling me a heartbreaker, jackass, and even egotistical, but no one knew my reasons. No one knew the truth.

No one knew my truth.

So I asked to be transferred my senior year to a school across the city. I sort of regretted the name I gave myself, but it also gave me the attention I thought I needed. Hell, I got sex and friends out of it, so I didn't think I was doing anything wrong.

But now, I'm addicted to the rush.

Because sleeping around gives me temporary fulfilment, stealing is like a part time job and fucking with other people's emotions, gives me unexplainable pleasure.

But since I'm going to his school, I'm going to force myself to stay low, because I might run into her too.

And I know damn well I am not prepared for that.