One Wild Night

The moment Harry and Candace got into the car, Candace burst into a fit of laughter and Harry turned to look at her, knowing why she was laughing.

He wasn't exactly surprised; he had known she would find the humor in it, even in a situation like this.

"I didn't expect you to be in such a good mood after seeing her," he said, his voice laced with a hint of concern despite his annoyance.

Candace, still struggling to catch her breath, wiped a tear from her eye.

"I didn't expect to be in a good mood either, but thanks to you I'm fine, kid bro," Candace said with a mischievous grin. Harry wrinkled his nose in mock disgust.

He cleared his throat, "I think we should keep that to ourselves," he mumbled, already knowing it was a lost cause.

"Never. I'm not keeping it to myself," Candace retorted, her smile widening.

Harry scowled. "In case you forgot, we had an agreement," Harry said and Candace's brow arched.

"We did? About what? When?" Candace asked, as her brow furrowed in mock confusion.

Harry gave her a pointed look. "At the hospital where dad was admitted when you first came. We agreed that I was the older twin (chapter 478)," Harry said, trying to jog her memory.

"Oh, that? Please, Harry," she scoffed. "I remember very well that you made the agreement, not me. I never agreed to be the younger one," Candace said and Harry narrowed his eyes.

"Are you trying to go back on your word right now because of some nonsense that the witch spouted? Do we even believe her? She could be lying to us about it just to cause some misunderstanding between us," Harry said and Candace's laughter bubbled up again.

"First of all, I'm not going back on any word cause I didn't give it in the first place. Not in the verbal or written form. Secondly, there is no misunderstanding here, Harry. I'm pretty sure you wouldn't have a problem believing her had she said you were older than me. Suck it up, Harry. You're the youngest in the family. The last born of the house…."

"Don't say that!" Harry interrupted, his cheeks flushing slightly. "Besides, you are older than Andy, right?"

"Nope," Candace said, popping the 'p'. "I'm not. Andy is actually a couple of months older than me," Candace said with a grin and Harry shook his head.

"I don't care about any of that. I'm older than the both of you," Harry said stubbornly and Candace giggled.

"Aww. How cute. Now you're actually acting like the baby of the house. Want to throw a tantrum? Need a bottle and a rattle?"

Harry glared at her, but it lacked conviction. Candace's laughter filled the car, a sound that Harry was fast becoming to find familiar and comforting.

"It's obvious you are enjoying yourself," Harry said and Candace shrugged.

"It not every day I get to see you worked up this way over nothing," she said with a grin.

"You know what's cute? The baby of the house is going to get married to the baby of the Hank family. You are both a match made in Heaven," Candace said and Harry glared at her.

"Are you really going to be like this?" Harry asked and she grinned.

"Why is it so important to you that you be older than I am?" Candace asked and Harry shrugged.

"I just want to be your big brother," he said and Candace giggled, wondering what it was with guys and not wanting to admit they were younger.

She remembered how Lucas had reacted when Lucy introduced him to them as her kid brother.

"Let's do it this way. I'm still not going to call you my big brother. You can keep acting like it if you want. Even if it's just pretend. I won't tell anyone about it," Candace said and Harry narrowed his eyes.

"For real? Can I trust you?" He asked, and she shrugged.

"Why did you ask her that in front of me, anyway? Were you really thinking you'd be older than me? She gave me a way first. That should be because I came out first," Candace said and Harry sighed.

"Seeing you seemed to break her a bit," Harry said and Candace snorted.

"Don't tell me you fell for those tears? I'm sure she shed those tears only because she was in pain that she didn't get to me before you," Candace said and Harry chuckled.

"Nah. I don't think so," Harry said and Candace rolled her eyes.

"What now? Feeling sorry for your mommy?" Candace asked in a taunting tone and Harry chuckled as he started the car and drove off.

A comfortable silence settled between them for a moment, broken only by the rhythmic hum of the engine. Harry stole a glance at Candace, her profile softened by the sunlight filtering through the window. Despite the revelation about their birth order and the painful visit with their mother, there was a lightness in her eyes that hadn't been there before.

"Are you really okay, though?" Harry asked, genuine concern tinging his voice.

Candace turned to him, her expression turning serious. "Yeah, I am. I meant every word I said to her. I'm not going to waste any more energy being mad at her or hating her. All I wanted was for her to see me, and she saw me. I also wanted to see what she looked like and I've done that. That's closure for me. I have no more business with her. Now, as far as I'm concerned, my mother died when I was born."

Harry nodded, absorbing her words. He understood her perspective but he only wished he felt the same, "Where are you headed now? Home to Andy? Or to see your sugar boy?" Harry asked, changing the subject.

"You can't call him sugar boy anymore, kid brother," Candace said as she glanced at her wrist watch, "And yes, I'm going to see Matt."

After dropping her off at a place where she could get a cab to Matt's place, Harry decided to go to the company since Jade wouldn't be at his place and he didn't want to stay at home alone doing nothing.

The moment Harry arrived at the company he headed directly for Tom's office, and although he knew that Tom was in the middle of a meeting with some executives, he walked into the office.

The door creaked open, momentarily distracting Tom from the mind-numbing presentation on projected quarterly sales figures.

Tom raised a brow as his eyes met Harry's, wondering why Harry had bothered to stop by the office. Sensing that Harry wanted to talk, and he needed a break, Tom sighed, dismissing the executives with a practiced smile.

"Gentlemen," he said, his voice laced with a hint of forced cheer, "let's pick this up later, shall we? Some urgent matters require my immediate attention," Tom said and immediately everyone rose to excuse them.

As the door clicked shut behind the last departing executive, Tom leaned back in his chair, a furrow appearing between his brows. "Alright, Harry, spill it. What's going on? How was the visit to the prison?" Tom asked and Harry scowled.

"Can you believe that Candace came out first?" Harry asked, and Tom looked at him, completely lost for a moment before he burst into a peal of laughter when he got what Harry had just said.

"Really?" Tom asked in amusement.

"I just can't believe that she is older than me," Harry said and Tom grinned.

"Why not?" Tom asked, amused by Harry's displeasure.

"No specific reason. I should prefer to be older," Harry said and Tom chuckled.

"Well, if it makes you feel better you can look at it from this perspective; she might have come out first, but you are older in the family. She might be Sara's first born, but she is your dad's last born," Tom said and Harry grinned, liking the analogy.

"That's right! You are correct," Harry said and Tom laughed.

"I can't believe something as minor as that actually got you upset. What is wrong with you, Harry?" Tom asked and Harry sighed but said nothing.

Tom looked at Harry closely and then narrowed his eyes, "Were you that affected by the visit? Do you feel sorry for Sara?" He asked suspiciously.

"No, I don't," Harry said and Tom shook his head.

"You do. That's the reason you are upset. You wouldn't come to the office just to tell me that Candace is older than you. You came because you're upset," Tom said and Harry scowled.

"I'm not," Harry denied.

"It's okay to admit it, Harry. You know very well that I'm not going to judge you for it. She might have not been the best of mothers, but she was still your mother, so it's only normal that you will feel a little upset over seeing her locked up there and knowing you put her there yourself," Tom said knowingly since he had known from the onset that all of this would be tough on Harry.

Tears gathered in Harry's eyes, but he said nothing as he walked over to the window and stood there with his back to Tom.

"I don't regret putting her there," Harry said after some minutes of silence.

"I know you don't," Tom said and Harry turned to look at him.

"I know it's useless but I feel sad and I'm mad at myself for feeling that way," Harry confessed.

Tom rose from his seat and walked into his office bedroom to pour Harry some whisky. He returned to Harry's side and handed it to him.

"I would have drank with you, but I still have a couple of meetings," he said as he placed a hand on Harry's shoulder.

"All these years I had her picture by my bedside. I talked to her nearly every night. I would dream of her. I would imagine what sort of mother she was. I loved her. I didn't know her but I loved her. I understand that my dad did it with the best of intentions, but I blame him for making me love someone that doesn't exist. I hate her for being this kind of person and not meeting my expectations. Had she abandoned us and lived a good life it wouldn't have been so disappointing. Had she remained where she was and not shown up. Or maybe shown up just to check on us and say hello, it would have better than coming here with ulterior motives and wanting to get rid of Candace. I hate that she gave me so many things to use against her. I hate that she looked so pitiful today when it has become too late. I thought I would get some satisfaction from seeing her there, but I didn't. Candace said she got closure, but I didn't," Harry said and clenched his jaw when tears gathered in his eyes again.

Tom watched Harry, a well of emotions swirling within his friend. He understood the turmoil – the years spent building a fantasy of a mother shattered by harsh reality.

"It's okay to grieve the mother you never had, Harry," Tom said gently.

"Your feelings are valid. But remember, you don't owe her your forgiveness. She made her choices, and now she has to face the consequences."

Harry took a long sip of the whiskey, the amber liquid burning a comforting path down his throat. He looked at Tom, a flicker of gratitude in his eyes.

"You're right," Harry admitted, his voice raspy as he wiped a stray tear from his cheek. "I don't have to forgive her. But this whole thing just… messes with you, you know?"

Tom nodded. "It does. But you're not alone, Harry. You have Jade and me and your two sisters and your dad and Jamal. Maybe you need Jamal to hold your hand so he can heal your heart," Tom said and a ghost of a smile touched Harry's lips.

"Do you think that maybe Candace is sad too but doesn't want to tell me about it? She went to see Matt," Harry said and Tom raised an eye brow.

"Matt, huh? Well, at least she has him for support if she is sad. He's a good guy, Harry. You should be glad she has him."

Harry nodded, a touch of relief washing over him. "Yeah, you're right. Matt's great. He's been a rock for her long before we came into the picture," Harry said in agreement.

"Then maybe that's all she needs right now. Someone to be there for her, to listen and support her." Tom said, a hint of a smile playing on his lips.

"And you need Jade too. Seeing Sara might not be the closure you needed, but maybe seeing Jade will be the comfort you crave," Tom said and Harry raised a brow.

"Is this your polite way of sending me out of your office?" He asked and Tom chuckled.

"Yes. I need to get back to work. Some of us are busy. Unless of course you need me to give you a hug and a comforting kiss," Tom said with a pucker of his lips and Harry chuckled.

"Thanks. I will pass. Thank you for listening…"

"Get lost," Tom said and Harry grinned as he dropped the empty glass on the table before taking the private elevator.

Alone in his office, Tom picked up his phone and called Jade, "Go to Harry," he said the moment she received the call and hung up.

As he gazed out the window at the bustling city below, he couldn't help being worried for Harry. He prayed and hoped that Harry would feel better.