SSS Awakening: Rebirth of the Strongest Vampire God
Chapter 163: Are you two fighting or being friends?

Chapter 163: Are you two fighting or being friends?

John stopped a few steps away, expression calm and completely unfazed. He glanced down at the simple-looking fishing pole in his hand, then back up at Damon, who was now wheezing with laughter and wiping a tear from the corner of his eye.

"I’m serious!" Damon gasped between chuckles. "She walked into the witch hall like a damn archvillain and you... you... walked out with a fishing rod?"

Lola was giggling too, though she clearly didn’t know why. "Are we going fishing now? Are we going to catch some special fishies?" she asked eagerly, eyeing the pole with interest.

John only gave a small smile to the two of them. Damon did not know why, but suddenly his brother looked very tired and sad.

It was a shock because all his life, he had only seen a different side of his brother, the perfect son, the top student, the ambitious young man, the best husband, the definition of success. However, now, he looked like a shell of his old self. Barely saying anything, barely smiling.

His eyes weren’t sharp and focused like they used to be. They looked distant, shadowed, like someone who had walked a long road and forgotten what the destination even was.

"...Hey," Damon said softly, voice dropping. "You okay?"

John didn’t answer right away. He just looked up at the twilight sky, then down at Lola, who was still bouncing around. "I wanted something quiet," he said finally. "Something that didn’t require me to lead... or win... or prove anything."

Damon nodded slowly. He got it now. All those years of expectations, of always being the one who had to have it together, they’d chipped away at John in ways no one had noticed.

And Earth Online, this brutal, brilliant second world, had just handed him something he hadn’t had in years. The permission to just be.

"You picked the right class, then," Damon said, more gently now. "There’s peace in the water. Stillness. You don’t have to rush anything."

John finally gave him a faint smile. Not a flashy one. Not the charming, picture-perfect kind their parents used to praise or Georgina used to boast about. Just a real one. "Thanks," he said.

Damon let out a sigh and gently patted his brother. He knew this was a serious moment, and his brother was openly sharing with him some deep moments in his life, but he still couldn’t help it.

"Dude, you got burnt out and now want out of the rat race, huh? Could you be more cliche?" He chuckled and clapped his brother’s back. "Ba ha ha ha! I just hope this is not some early-onset mid-life crisis. Your wife will have your skin."

John shook his head, but there was a breath of laughter behind the sigh he let out. "Probably," he admitted. "But if this is a mid-life crisis, I picked the best version of it. No overpriced motorcycles. No weird haircut. Just a fishing pole and a quiet lake."

Damon laughed harder. "You say that now. Just wait until you’re standing knee-deep in a swamp trying to catch a ’Voidscale Salmon’ while your wife is after your ass for more gold coins."

John smirked at that. "You always think the worst of her, Damon. She is not that bad. She is only rude to you because you are rude to her every chance you get."

"Ya right. And the sun rises in the west, and the moon is actually a gorgeous goddess. You better hope she doesn’t find out you’re planning to build a hut next to a lake and live out your retirement fantasy three decades early."

"She already thinks I’m losing it," John said dryly.

"Good," Damon said with a grin. "Means at least she still cares."

Lola, now chewing on a piece of glowing candy, looked between them with wide eyes. "Are you two fighting or being friends?"

"We’re being both," Damon said. "That’s how brothers work."

John nodded. "I insult him less when I like him."

Lola blinked. "Oh."

Then Damon gave his brother one last nudge. "Don’t look so glum. Go try out fishing for a while. Do whatever you want. Relax and let loose. I can even suggest some special places for you to visit and have fun. Cough. Cough. You know, just like strip clubs. Cough. Cough. Completely legal ones."

John gave him a long, deadpan stare. "You’re an idiot."

Damon threw his hands up in mock innocence. "I’m just saying! What’s the point of a second life if you don’t let your repressed side stretch its legs a little?"

"My wife is enough for me. No, thank you." John muttered, but the slight twitch of a smile on his lips gave him away.

"Sure," Damon replied with a wink. "Anyways, there are all sorts of places here and all sorts of ways to relax. Just have fun for some time. Ya? And keep an eye on Dad and Mom for me. I am going to be busy for a while, so it would be nice if you could look out for them."

John nodded. "Yeah. I can do that."

"Good," Damon said, clapping his shoulder one last time. "Alright, let’s go. I think I see Mom there." Damon started walking when his brother placed his hand on his shoulder. "Damon, wait. I just wanted to say thank you."

"Thank you for what?"

"For everything." John sighed. "For bringing us to a safe place. For caring about us. For getting all of us this. For helping us do the awakening thing. I don’t know what our future is going to look like, and I am too tired to even think about it, but I know that you are carrying all our burdens on your shoulders. Just... I just need a couple of days. I promise you. I won’t become a dead weight on your shoulder. Just give me a couple of days, and I will once again change my class and start fresh and become someone stronger and someone whom you can trust and count on."