The Jock, The Nerd and The Geek

6

It was common for the Holmes to have dinner together. Not that Paris had a problem with it since the table was about ten metres long and he was far away from his Father and Mother, was still locked in her room.

The only problem he had, was when Sebastian felt it was alright to actually talk to him during dinner because he had really hoped they had both entered a vow of silence by now.

But it was Sebastian Holmes. He never kept to anything.

"I called your school today."

He paused. That was new. His Father never cared to check on his school activities, unless the school called him themselves.

Which also meant, what ever he was about say would not be pleasant to Paris' ears. "And your grades are... Still quite remarkable."

But, Paris mentally added.

"But this girl, this— ." Sebastian wiped his mouth with a napkin and put back his cutlery in place. "This Parker girl. She is still the best student, and you're number two."

Paris felt the veins on his forehead began to appear, but he said nothing.

"Asides from the fact that she's... Well, you know —."

He decided to help him. "Black?"

"That's not the word I was looking for but she's that. She's also a girl." Sebastian replied, as if saying that particular word offended him. "It makes no sense for you to be beneath her."

Paris tried to keep his voice even as he said, "I am not beneath her."

"Your school grading ranks beg to differ." Sebastian said. For a man who claimed to be too busy for his family, he was following up on his son too much. "Or perhaps, the reason why you're still behind is because of this sport you play. What is it? Football?"

There was no way anyone in the world could make that mistake. The old bastard was just trying to piss him off. "Basketball."

"A dying sport, but yes. You spend so much time practicing it, instead of actually focusing your grades."

"I should spend most of my time, trying to..." He looked at him, so the man could see the smug look on his face. "Beat a girl?"

Sebastian, of course, had zero shame. "Now, you make it sound like a horrible thing. Besides, high school is coming to an end, Paris. Your test would soon begin. The best thing you can do for yourself is making sure your grades are so good, you could possibly get a scholarship."

Scholarship?

That was utterly ridiculous. His Father could afford to pay for his college fees and ten other people, but no, he had to do the Holmes Family Test.

The Holmes Test was something that had been done in the past though when it was his turn, his Father felt it was necessary to restart the tradition.

When a boy reached adulthood, he was sent out of the house and to the world, so he could learn how to survive on his own.

Paris couldn't exactly see what the point for that was. His Family had managed to stay rich enough to last ten more generations but Sebastian liked pushing him to the edge.

Perhaps, he'd liked to see the boy jump off a cliff one day.

"Besides," The man continued. "Law school isn't that cheap to survive all on your own—."

And perhaps, Paris would like to see the old man have a heart attack. "Have you ever considered that maybe, I do not want to be a lawyer?"

"Have you ever considered that you being disowned wouldn't cause the world to end?" His Father snapped, then when he realized for a second that this same boy was the only surviving heir of his family name, he added in a more understanding tone. (Though it killed him to do this). "Alright. If you don't want to be a lawyer, what else do you want?"