My Bestie Chose My Toxic Brother

My boyfriend-obsessed best friend turned into a "stay-at-home girlfriend" the second she started dating my half-brother, Austin. When I invited her out for cupcakes, she pushed the plate away with a frown. "Too much artificial sugar. It’s not healthy, and Austin doesn't let me eat stuff like this." When I asked her to go to a bar with me, she wrinkled her nose. "Only sketchy people go to places like that. Austin would be furious." I figured, whatever. As long as she was happy. Until the day I saw Austin with his arm wrapped around another girl, walking into a hotel. I hesitated for a long time before finally sending the pictures to Hailey. That night, Austin kicked my door open in a blind rage. Hailey was crying, shrinking into his chest. "That girl is literally his cousin! Why would you lie to me? Are you just trying to ruin us?" she sobbed. Austin pointed a finger right in my face and spat, "You ungrateful bitch! As of today, you are dead to me!" "Sounds good to me." I looked at my kicked-in door lock and called building security immediately. "Someone just broke into my apartment. I need you up here right now." The moment I hung up, I saw the rage on Austin's face turn into pure shock. He let go of Hailey, looking like he couldn’t believe his ears. "Chloe, are you insane? I'm your brother!" "The guy who just broke into my place is named Austin. What does he have to do with my brother?" I leaned against the hallway wall, looking at the shattered lock of my door, and sneered, "Didn't you just say I was dead to you?" Hailey poked her head out from his chest, tears streaming down her face, her voice trembling. "Chloe, how could you call security? He’s your own brother! You’re family. Can’t you guys just talk this out?" Family. She wasn't singing that tune when Austin was kicking my door down two hours ago. Two hours ago, I was still staring at my phone, debating whether to send her those photos. In the pictures, Austin had his arm wrapped tightly around a girl in a tight slip dress. She was practically hanging off him as they walked into the lobby of a boutique hotel. Their body language made it blindingly obvious what kind of relationship they had. Hailey and I had been best friends for four years. We were college roommates, pulled all-nighters together for finals, and got caught sneaking back into the dorms past curfew. When I had a high fever, she carried me to the campus clinic. When she got her heart broken, I sat on the rooftop with her all night, sharing a pack of seltzers. But Austin was my half-brother. My dad had him with another woman before marrying my mom. Austin was already three when they tied the knot. My mom didn't find out until two years into the marriage, and by then, she was already pregnant with me. She didn't make a scene. She didn't fight. She just silently gave birth to me. When I was ten, she passed away from cancer. On her deathbed, she held my hand, her voice barely a whisper: "Chloe, I’ve left this condo to you. It's fully paid off. No matter what happens in the future, you will always have a place of your own." She knew the Miller family was a toxic mess. She couldn't protect me forever, so she did everything she could to leave me a safe haven. I moved into this condo right after graduation. I have a stable job and an independent life. My relationship with the rest of the Miller family is as cold as leftover tea. Austin and I were never close. We only saw each other during the holidays, and our conversations rarely went beyond one-word texts. Until Hailey started dating him. Last month, Hailey called me, practically screaming with excitement. "Chloe! Guess who I'm dating!" Hearing her ecstatic voice, I had a terrible gut feeling. "Please don't tell me it's someone I know." "Austin! Your brother! We met at a party. He is so sweet, so attentive. And he told me he’s never met anyone as special as me!" My brain went completely numb. Austin? Sweet and attentive? The guy went through girlfriends faster than I changed my phone wallpaper. Every single one was "the love of his life," and none of them lasted more than three months. His definition of "special" was basically like collecting stamps—he just needed one of every type. "Hailey, listen to me," I tried to warn her gently. "Austin is not a good guy. He has a massive track record, and he’s never been loyal." Hailey just laughed on the other end of the line. "Chloe, are you sure you don't just have some sibling issues? I think he’s amazing. Plus, that was the past. People change." "Besides, he told me I’m the first girl he’s ever wanted to be serious with." The first girl he wanted to be serious with. Austin had used that exact line on at least a dozen girls. He didn't even bother to change the wording. But Hailey was already head over heels. No matter what I said, she had a hundred excuses ready. In the end, I could only sigh. "If you're happy, that's all that matters." "Chloe, we're going to be family now! This is so crazy!" Her voice was as bubbly as champagne. I just tightened my lips and didn't reply. Family? Austin and I were never family. Over the next few weeks, Hailey became a completely different person.We used to grab dinner at least once a week. But after they started dating, when I took her out for dessert, she pushed the plate back with a grimace. "It’s full of artificial sugar. It’s not healthy. Austin told me I shouldn’t eat this garbage anymore." I thought she was just joking at first. After all, we used to sit in our dorm room and mock girls who let their boyfriends control their lives, calling it late-stage Stockholm syndrome. But Hailey was dead serious. She stopped eating desserts, stopped eating street food, and her Instagram feed went from fun selfies and life rants to nothing but couples' aesthetic posts. When I tried to invite her to a new lounge downtown, she looked disgusted. "Only sketchy people go to places like that. Austin would be furious if I went." Sketchy people. We used to go to bars every single weekend in college. Back then, she called it her happy place. Looking at her, I felt a wave of unfamiliarity, and a deep sense of pity. We always thought "love-brain" was something that only happened to other people. I guess when it hits you, there's no escaping it. Whatever. As long as she was happy. If Austin actually settled down for once, I would have swallowed my pride and congratulated them. Until I caught him red-handed. I hesitated for a long time, but in the end, I sent her those pictures. There was no reply. I thought she just needed time to process it, time to face the brutal reality. I even planned to take a personal day off work the next day to keep her company, thinking about how I would comfort her and help her get through the breakup. I never expected that two hours later, my front door would be violently kicked open. "Chloe, what the hell is your problem?" Austin roared the second he stepped inside, pointing a finger at my face. "We were doing perfectly fine! What kind of sick game are you playing, sending those photos?" "Photos?" I stared at him, making sure I wasn't hallucinating. "Are you saying the photos are fake? You weren't wrapping your arms around that girl at the hotel?" "That was his cousin!" Hailey cut in before I could even finish. Her voice was trembling. "Austin already explained it to me. “ “That’s his cousin. Her family is going through some drama, and he was just helping her book a room. Chloe, the angle you took those photos at was just bad. It made it look like they were hugging, but they weren't even touching!" I almost burst out laughing. Even if she were his cousin, what kind of cousin clings to a guy like plastic wrap and whispers directly into his ear? But Hailey bought it. Lock, stock, and barrel. Before I could recover from the sheer absurdity of it, Austin's screaming started up again. "You just wait, Chloe. You’re going to regret this!" Seeing me stay silent, Hailey got anxious. She grabbed Austin’s sleeve, then turned to me. "Chloe, please don't be like this. Let's just talk. You really didn't need to call security." "If you're angry, I can apologize for Austin, okay? He just has a short temper. He didn't mean to do this." My electronic door lock was completely shattered, pieces of metal littered all over the hardwood floor. And she called this "a short temper"? She called this "not meaning to"? Soon, heavy footsteps echoed down the hallway. "Did someone call security?" I hadn't actually called the police; I had called the building's front desk. I knew the police would just treat this as a minor domestic dispute and try to mediate. But building security was different—they worked for the residents. Two middle-aged men in dark security uniforms walked in. The leader was Mr. Davis, who had helped me move some furniture before. He looked at the destroyed lock and frowned. "Miss Miller, what happened here?" Seeing that it wasn't the police, Austin's face flashed with relief, but he quickly put on his usual arrogant attitude. "It's nothing, guys. Just a little sibling argument. You don't need to worry about it." Mr. Davis glanced at him, then looked at me. I leaned back against the wall, my voice entirely flat. "This man kicked my door open without my permission and destroyed my lock. I need you to document this." "Chloe, that is enough!"Austin hissed under his breath, then forced a fake smile at Mr. Davis. "She’s my sister. We just had a little misunderstanding. I have a bit of a temper, but this is a family matter. We don’t need to trouble you." Hailey quickly jumped in to back him up. "Yes, exactly! They’re just siblings having a fight. It's totally fine. We're so sorry to make you walk all the way up here." I stared at Hailey. For a moment, she felt like a complete stranger. "Whether it's a sibling fight or not, the door doesn't lie." I pointed at the shattered lock. "Broken is broken. It has nothing to do with who we are. Mr. Davis, I need an official incident report. I'll need it for the property insurance tomorrow." Mr. Davis inspected the door, then looked up. "Mr. Miller, you'll need to pay for the damages." Austin’s face turned incredibly ugly. He clearly hadn't expected me to embarrass him like this. He pulled his wallet out of his pocket, snatched a few hundred-dollar bills, and slammed them onto the console table by the entryway. "Is a thousand bucks enough? Take it and fix the damn door. Stop making a scene." Hailey let out a sigh of relief. She quickly grabbed the cash and tried to shove it into my hand. "Chloe, here’s the money. Let’s just drop it, okay? You guys are brother and sister. Don't let a stupid door ruin your relationship." I looked at the bills but didn't reach out. Hailey’s hand froze in mid-air, her expression turning incredibly awkward. "Chloe, what the hell do you actually want?" Austin snapped, completely out of patience. Only then did I slowly take the money. It was about two hundred dollars more than the actual repair cost. "This is enough," I said, pocketing the cash. "But let me warn you, Austin. I'm taking your thousand dollars this time. If you ever kick my door again, it won't be this cheap." Austin’s face twitched. "You..." "Austin, I’m going to say this one last time." I stood up straight, staring directly into his eyes. "My mother left me this condo. My name is the only one on the deed.” “You and I might share a last name, but we are not family. The next time you touch my property, I won't be calling security. I will call the police and file charges." Austin’s fists clenched and unclenched. His lips parted, but in the end, he could only squeeze out, "Fine, Chloe. You think you're so tough." He spun on his heel and stormed out. Hailey scrambled to follow him. Mr. Davis watched them leave, then looked back at me, hesitant. "Thanks for your help tonight, Mr. Davis. I'll stop by the leasing office tomorrow to file the paperwork," I said. "No trouble at all, Miss Miller," Mr. Davis waved his hand. "We'll head down now. Get some rest. Your door won't lock tonight, so please stay safe." After they left, I dragged a heavy armchair to block the door before going back to my bedroom. After that night, life went back to normal. I got a brand-new smart lock installed. The leasing office gave me the incident report, and I took it to the local police precinct to file a report. When the officer heard it was my half-brother who did it, he tried to play the "family mediator" card. But before I could even reject the mediation, the officer noted, "Well, since you have an eyewitness and a formal report from building security, if he does this again, it’ll be a repeat offense. You can press charges directly." I nodded, keeping that piece of information locked in my mind. As for Hailey, she stopped texting me entirely. Her Instagram, however, was updated constantly. More flowers from Austin, fancy dinners at high-end restaurants, always captioned with "Spoiled by my favorite person." I muted her account. Not because I was mad, but because it made me sick. A week later, just as I stepped out of my office building after work, I saw Hailey standing by the curb. She was dressed in a thin white button-down, her hair messy and whipping around in the wind. Her eyes were red and swollen, and her makeup was completely ruined from crying. "Chloe," she called out, her voice raspy. I didn't walk over. I just stood there, waiting for her to come to me. She stumbled over to me, tears instantly spilling over again. "What do I do, Chloe? Austin really is cheating on me."