Painshare.INC

"Welcome to Miflin Co HQ, how may I-" I walked past the receptionist and into the elevator before she could lift a finger, I went up to the top floor where I saw him. 

"I, CoOpsys, vow to destroy you." Todd burst into laughter at my words. 

"What are you even talking about man? So damn weird." Today had been the worst day of my life, I was I woke to a fire an "accidental fire", my mother already too far gone, but my sister was only a little worse for wear. When to school on my way to the hospital after she had been taken away. She did not make it, but my sister had. He couldn’t know why, but it was because of him, after his words, his curses, his evil, I promised to ruin his life. One year later I gave up on my scholarship to Harvard, I gave up on my dreams of becoming the world's best lawyer... to follow him to the University of Columbia. My sister pleaded with me but being younger and having to share mom she could not understand my pain, she didn't love her like I did, she did not get tormented by her killer like I had been. My friends did too so I had to push them away. I spent my time giving him answers, getting closer to him but he still treated me like trash, but it was only a matter of time. That is when I struck, Todd came with me to a party and left a drug addict. Todd began to struggle and fail out his second year when a rumor was spread about him, I also seemed to have vanished at the same time, transferring to Duke my second year, cutting off everyone I knew for this. I did not spread the rumor and the fact people would treat him so differently if he maybe liked men more than girls sometimes... I could not allow myself to care about such things; he deserved to get bullied for all the times he bullied me and... others? It was no matter of mine, but he had bullied others in the past, I was not the only one. With no one to do all the work for him he had no choice in the matter like I did not in my mother's death. I on the other hand became swamped with loans but it was no matter. I waited until he took over a franchise from his father's many, his father after all did run a corporation. Unbeknownst to him I started a part time job at the very same establishment, I had dropped a few classes and went completely online due to the expensive nature of switching schools without proper set up. I spent the next three years of college working up the chain and using our connection to go all the way to the top... then suddenly he was removed from his position by his father, I definitely did not have anything to do with it, if I did... which I didn't, I might have accidentally put him in situations that he couldn't possibly get through without messing up on purpose, he was already a mess before but now it would have priceless, he'd make so many mistakes that the store couldn't turn a profit... that's only if I did it... which I didn't. After the unfortunate situation, I rightfully took his place. I definitely was not feeling guilty over this okay, just a little underwhelmed was all... okay I was a little guilty but that was only because being fired from your dad, with no diploma or money, it was going to be rough for him, but it was always rough for us. We started to see each other less and less over the years as he grew apart from his father and I grew closer. He was like the father I never had... if I actually cared for him, which I definitely did not. When his father died, he left me more shares in his cooperation giving his son his money and properties. The man must have figured out that he was an idiot and left the shares to the smarter son. It had been a few more years, I was 28 now. I was the powerful CEO of a company that should have been his, like my girlfriend should have been mine that day, but I did have a lovely and happy fiancé by this point. That is when I got a call from my sister. "Coop!"  

I rolled my eyes at the nickname, "CoOpsys is fine sister. Now what's up?"  

"You do know the 10-year anniversary is almost upon us? they want you guys to come back and say hi to everyone, inspire the kids. Everyone else said they were going to make the effort-" 

I cut her off, I only cared about one person, "is he going to be there?" 

She sighed, "If I didn't know any better, I'd say you were obsessed with him." 

"He got her killed." I hissed with venom as I let my anger show. 

"You're only exacerbating the issue. Look I miss her too, but she wouldn't want this... you gave up on your dreams to get a job where you don't help people, you take their money and fight against the people you wanted to be. You may be a multi hundred millionaire but are you happy?" I was stunned... was I happy? I missed my mom, but I had a nice paying job, I had a great penthouse, an amazing fiancé, but oddly enough I did not feel happy, I was thirsty, but for what? Revenge? I suppose we will see. A few days later I was there, back in high school, my now 26-year-old sister showed me around, after college she came back to work as a freelance writer. I supported her and she was successful now, but she was not why I was here. We all met up and well I made sure to rub salt into all the 999 wounds I opened in Todd. I got the girl, I got father's approval, I got the job, I got the house, I got the car, and I would beat him just once for all the times he bullied me. We all went to a bar afterwards and I was paying. I made sure to toast to him, made sure to get him drink more than anyone else, they say that people will aggravate you until you snap then play the victim when you stoop to their level, well that was the plan. I pushed his buttons all night. "How's the girl Todd?", "How's the money Todd?", "How's the house Todd?", all rhetorical, he had lost them all due to drugs that someone may have helped get him addicted to.  

He lied but it was fine, "I'm doing well...I broke up with her it was complicated... the money is okay man don't worry about it... the house is fine, I needed a fresh start, so I sold it." 

"Oh no, you sold the house?" 

He nodded and took another swig. I began seeing messages from my fiancé, she was telling me to come back, asking why I left so fast and didn't say anything till I touched down. I ignored her messages as I started the real party... drinking games. I took everyone back to the rebuilt house, too small for everyone but it was no problem, the street worked fine when we were the last house on the block. we bounce balls into cups, and I made sure to play against him and destroy him in every game. He was not having it, "That's it CoOpsys! you've somehow made my life worse without being responsible, at every low point in my life... you are there." 

"I'm sorry don't blame your misfortunes on me man." 

"Don't man me, we're not friends." 

"Calm down." I said, an unsure half smirk smeared across my face as I opened my arms to show no hostility. 'Calm down' never works, typically having the opposite effect... which was the idea.  

"Don't tell me to calm down!" He snarled as he shouted in rage.

He was there, it was time to finish this and go for the full 1000, "Look man can you just relax?" I said as my hand fell on his shoulder.  

It was like alarm bells, my danger sense going off as he began to swing, "Don't touch me!"  

It was done. I let him hit me, if I was going to beat him to a pulp, I needed everyone on my side, so I needed to struggle. I threw him back into a wall, but he recovered much more quickly than I had expected the drunken man to be capable of. He straddled himself atop me and began hammering away at my face, I blocked blow after blow, but my arms were longer, after he threw another punch, I punched upward, his nose letting out a sickening wet, crunch. He fell off me and we both got back to our feet. I pushed him, and he pushed back, cocking back a fist for another telegraphed blow. I blocked it barely and shoulder checked him sending him back, not giving him a moment to breathe I punched him back causing him to turn around, in the same motion I went on to kick the back of his legs causing him to fall to his knees, then with a swift and forceful kick to the back I sent him careening into the floor. He was bleeding from his face, and I looked down at the clearly unconscious man and... I felt good for a moment, the moment stretched towards infinity as the satisfaction took hold, but in the moments after there was only pain and guilt... but if what I did was justified why do I feel bad, it was not the only time either... I felt like this every time I had wronged him, but I expected to, I was not at the end then, but I was now. I glowered at the unconscious man, "God Dammit Todd." I picked him up and dragged him over to my car. "I'll take him to the hospital." I got in my car and definingly did not begin crying began uncontrollably crying... luckily Todd was out cold so if I had, which I didn’t, I would have turned on the radio and let the music drown me out as I cried. 40 hours (about 1 and a half days) later he woke, I filled his room with flowers, presents, and more even flew my fiancé out here for the weekend. "Sorry." I said before he even got the chance to survey the room.  

He sat up, "You did this?" 

I nodded, "I spent my whole life hating you, hoping it would bring me some peace of mind when it was all over, but it didn’t, just an outrageous hospital bill.” He opened his mouth to speak but I held up a hand, motioning for him to wait, “let me say this first... I'm messed up and I get that, I'm horrendous, I could have been a pretty good lawyer, but I was distracted by my hate for you, I was obsessed, I blamed you for everything wrong, but you did wrong me, I never got an apology." 

Todd nodded, "I... I'm sorry too? Look man I know you think I was targeting you because I didn't like you, but I wanted to be you, you were so eccentric and open about your beliefs. I was in love with you but... my father wasn't a fan of my kind of people... I hated being what I was, I hated, that you could be who you were and not be punished like me. I was trying to do a prank and I messed up man, I was sixteen and I did not think the fire would spread like that. I didn't think you were home so I figured dad would buy you everything back 10-fold and I’d apologize and help you guys out; it could be an opportunity to get closer to you and change my narrative but then your mom died... my dad saved my ass and I figured one day you'd become some top of the line lawyer and track me down to redo the case, but instead you stood by me. Then things started going downhill."  

I nodded, it seems that I was not the only one in pain and his was different, some of what he said brought me peace and understanding of the moments leading to her death, "I'm sorry for what I did with your dad... You rarely got to be with him." 

He shrugged, "I'm not." He chuckled, "look, if I wasn't going to keep hiding my secret from him and he wasn't going to accept me he was going to need someone. You were the one with him in his last moments?" 

I nodded, "He loved you, even if it wasn't all of you." He smiled, "Come back to the company, run it with me, like a partnership style corporation." 

"I'm a washed-up druggie?" he rubbed the back of his head as he glowered at the floor in a preconceived defeat.

I smirked, "Not if I have anything to say about it. you won't start as a Co-CEO or anything until you can prove to the board that you aren't a danger, but I was starting a firm... I think you'd like to join." 

A few weeks later Todd walked into the firm, the monitor in the massive lobby playing their commercial, "if you've been wronged, lied to, hurt, or betrayed, come to us and we'll take your case, even if you don't win, we now offer counseling and alternatives to help you fix your life. Share your pain with us Here and Painshare."

He made his way towards the front desk where he was greeted by the receptionist, "Hi, Welcome to Painshare Inc HQ, how can I help you?"