POV Jon Arrison
It had been an eternity since I last spoke to Alex.
Far too long.
His absence weighed on me like a hollow ache in my chest. So I wrote to him… an invitation.
Him, his wife, his children. To come to Palestine.
To start again.
To make up for all the lost time.
And also… to keep the promise we made: to unite our companies, our strength… our lives as friends.
I have a family—a beautiful family that God gave me.
And yet… sometimes I feel like I'm losing them a little more every day.
My wife, Elisabeth Arrison, a French woman with a tender heart and a fiery temper.
I met her shortly after arriving in France. My father adored her immediately.
My mother? It took her time. She kept saying I could find someone "much better than a French woman."
I didn't listen. I married Elisabeth anyway.
It took a long time… but eventually, my mother accepted her too.
Then came Samira, our princess.
Almost my perfect copy.
She was my first happiness—the one who taught me what it truly means to be a father.
After her, there was Tony. My son. My almost-twin.
We looked so much alike. We loved each other, understood each other.
We were close, inseparable…
Until that dark period when everything collapsed.
And finally Laurène, the youngest.
She's her mother in miniature: sweet, beautiful, capricious…
And Elisabeth spoils her so much that sometimes I wonder if I'm living in a castle ruled by two queens.
Everything was fine.
Truly fine.
Our family was happy and fulfilled.
Until the day my father collapsed—his heart stopped…
And with him, a part of our family died too.
---
FLASHBACK
It had been over three months since my father passed away, leaving behind a crushing emptiness.
After the funeral, everything became strange.
As if the air itself had grown too heavy to breathe.
We stayed two more months in the family home at my mother's request.
Outside, everything seemed normal…
But inside, it was a storm.
My mother and Elisabeth clashed almost every day—they could barely stand each other.
Samira and Laurène fought over nothing, saying cruel things like caged lions.
And Tony…
Tony was no longer Tony.
The smiling, intelligent, calm boy who smiled at everyone
had turned into a volcano.
Mistake after mistake.
Anger after anger.
I wanted to understand, but I was broken too.
He went out constantly, stayed away from home, slept outside without warning.
I thought it was his way of grieving.
I was wrong.
Then came the big mistake.
The one that could have sent him to prison.
I couldn't let my son go to prison. His future would be destroyed.
I had to make a decision—fast.
That morning, I made a decision that would shatter something inside us.
I called everyone into the living room.
Me:
"I've called you all here to inform you of my decision."
They all looked at me, confused.
"I know this decision will affect us all… but it's for our own good."
I paused, then sighed deeply.
"Tony will go to a rehabilitation boarding school."
They were all stunned. Elisabeth spoke first.
Elisabeth:
"What?! No! Absolutely not!
My son will never go there!"
Me (cold, exhausted):
"I've made my decision. It's either that or prison.
And no one in my family will ever go to prison."
My mother cried.
Mother:
"Jon, please… not my grandson… please…"
I said nothing. I lowered my eyes so I wouldn't give in.
Tony stood still.
Slumped shoulders. Empty eyes.
As if something inside him had just died.
Samira began to cry.
Samira:
"Dad, please… Tony didn't do anything. He told the truth!"
Tony finally looked up.
Tony:
"Let it go, Sam.
If my own father doesn't believe me… what can I do?
If he wants me gone… then I'll go."
I said nothing. My throat was tight.
I didn't want him to leave—but it was "for his own good."
He went upstairs.
Twenty minutes later, he came back down with a small suitcase.
He hugged Elisabeth.
Tony:
"Don't cry, Mom. I'll come back. I promise."
Then my mother.
Tony:
"Grandma, stop crying. I don't want you to get sick."
Then Samira.
Tony:
"Be strong. You have responsibilities now."
Laurène entered the room.
Laurène:
"Big brother, where are you going?"
Tony (softly):
"I'm going on a trip for a few days."
She hugged him tightly.
Laurène:
"When you come back, bring me my favorite candy."
He only nodded.
The driver announced the car was ready.
Tony left the house…
without even looking at me.
That day, I didn't yet know I had broken something that might take years to repair.
---
A month later, I discovered the truth.
Tony was innocent. Completely.
I rushed to get him back.
At the boarding school, he didn't even want to see me.
When I finally reached him:
...
POV Tony Arrison
My name is Tony Arrison.
And for a long time, I believed that silence was the best way to survive.
People often say I look like my father. Physically, probably.
Same dark gaze. Same build. Same name that opens every door.
But inside… I am nothing like him. Not at all.
Before, I was different.
I laughed. I was calm. I liked being surrounded by people.
I loved my family.
Then my grandfather died.
And with him, something broke inside all of us.
The house became too big. Too loud. Too heavy.
Arguments replaced laughter.
Looks hardened.
And me… I exploded.
I didn't know how to cry, so I got angry.
I went out. I came home late. I ran away.
Not because I didn't care…
but because staying hurt too much.
And one day, everything collapsed.
That mistake.
That accusation.
That moment when I understood my own father didn't believe me.
> "Tony will go to a rehabilitation boarding school."
Those words still echo in my head.
Like a sentence.
I didn't scream.
I didn't beg.
I just… stopped hoping.
When no one believes you anymore, even when you tell the truth,
you understand that speaking is useless.
I left without looking at him.
Because if I had, I would have broken down.
And I refused to give him that power.
The boarding school didn't destroy me.
It changed me.
There, I learned to stay quiet.
To endure.
To rely only on myself.
When he came to get me, too late,
I felt nothing.
No joy.
No relief.
Just emptiness.
He wanted to take me back home.
But home, for me, no longer existed.
Today, I work with him.
I talk to him out of obligation.
I respect him… because he is my father.
But I no longer give him my heart.
Because one day, he broke it.
And yet…
When he told me about this trip to Palestine,
something shifted inside me.
Not excitement.
Not hope.
But a different kind of exhaustion.
The desire to breathe somewhere else.
The desire for a change of air.
He said it was for work.
I know that's not the whole truth.
He was never really good at lying.
And above all…
there's something he's not telling me.
I don't know what this trip will change.
I don't know if what's broken can still be fixed.
But maybe, far from here,
I'll find a part of myself I left behind.
Or maybe not.
One thing is certain:
I am no longer the boy I used to be.
And if destiny thinks it can play with me…
it's wrong.
Because this time,
I'm ready.
---
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