Chapter 48: You Cannot Escape Now
Back to reality. Caleb asked, “Why didn’t you just tell me if you wanted a sports car?”
Given how close they were back then, if Joseph had mentioned it, Caleb would have handed it over without hesitation. But Joseph acted like he was under some spell, always hinting at what he wanted but never saying it outright. Would it have killed him to just say his card got frozen? Would he have been struck by lightning if he admitted he was broke? He kept his mouth shut and then blamed everyone else for not helping. It was ridiculous.
Joseph gave a cold laugh. “You’ve always done whatever my dad says. Tell me honestly, Caleb. If my dad told you not to spend money on me, would you really have gone behind his back to buy me anything?”
Caleb opened his mouth but couldn’t get a word out. He had a point. Caleb did have a better relationship with Terry. And if Terry had said no, Caleb might not have helped Joseph at all. He knew Terry had a tendency to toughen Joseph up—to teach him how to be independent and earn his own money instead of living off the family. Joseph always complained about it, venting to Caleb. And every time, Caleb would be endlessly patient, telling him to hang in there, that one day he’d make it and be able to spend as much as he wanted. He thought he was acting in his friend’s best interest, but little did he know, his friend had been harboring resentment toward him, which only surfaced later on.
After a few seconds of silence, Caleb spoke in a hoarse voice. “If you’d just explained your situation more clearly, I wouldn’t have turned you down.”
Joseph’s voice was shaky. “More clearly? How? We’re the same age and come from the upper-class circle. I’m not that much worse off than you. How was I supposed to say something like that?”
Caleb chuckled softly. “Just because of this pitiful pride, you gave up our twenty-year friendship?”
“Me? You’ve always been better than me at everything. My dad constantly compared me to you. Caleb, we stopped being friends a long time ago!”
And just like that, everything clicked for Caleb. The cracks had been there for a long time—he just never noticed. In other words, the good friend he believed in never really existed.
“Okay. Now I see you for who you really are, and you see me too. From here on out, we go our separate ways. Let’s just pretend we don’t know each other.”
Caleb shoved his hands into his pockets and turned to leave the kids’ clothing section. But Joseph blocked his way. “Don’t even think about running. I called Mr. and Mrs. Quixall. You’re not going anywhere.”
Caleb wasn’t surprised. Family, friendship, and love all seemed to go against him. Not a single one ever stood by his side. Fine. If it’s meant to be, it’ll happen. If not, don’t force it. He rolled his wrists and cracked his neck. It was his usual warm-up before a fight. Joseph knew that move all too well.
Realizing he was no match for Caleb, Joseph suddenly started yelling, “Somebody come help! My friend here stole his grandmother’s life-saving money and ran away from home! His grandmother is depending on the tens of thousands to save her life. Without it, she won’t make it!”
People love drama. The moment they caught wind of something going down, they swarmed over. “This young man is truly despicable!” “Give the money back to that poor old lady! She’s on her deathbed and you’re stealing from her?” “Look at him, dressed all fancy, but he’s got a heart of stone. Disgusting!”
Suddenly, a barrage of camera flashes and harsh words descended upon Caleb, enveloping him completely. Joseph smirked, triumphant. “You’re not getting away now, Caleb Quixall. Oh, I mean Caleb Jenkins.”