MassaHJ

Chapter 70 Superbowl

Terrance came up to me. "Thanks, bro. I can’t believe I’m actually going to watch the Super Bowl at the stadium!"

Terrance was 1.80 meters tall and weighed 130 kilos. A giant—even among the 12th graders. And yet, he was in our grade, 9th. (Though not in our class.)

He’s not exactly the brightest mind, to say the least. But he’s someone I can actually talk to about football—American football, to be clear—and he really knows his stuff.

"How’s it been, being the...

Chapter 69: the Movie

We began filming that same weekend. Freddie showed up early, hauling a couple of cameras, tripods, and lights like it was Christmas morning (and that was two days ago). He was practically bouncing with excitement.

"Okay, I’ve mapped out the best lighting spots," he said, unrolling a sketch of my mom’s house. "We’ll start with the bedroom scenes—light’s best there in the afternoon. Then we can do the hallway takes when it gets darker."

Carly and Sam arrived not long after...

Chapter 68: Deal Signed

The following week, Pepper arrived at the Harper residence with a sleek black folder in hand. She wore a navy blazer over a crisp blouse and looked every bit the executive she was about to become.

We gathered in the living room. Grandma had a proud glint in her eyes, while Dad and Uncle Charlie tried to look like they understood what was happening.

Pepper placed the folder on the table. "Here’s the draft contract. I’ve already added some clauses for accountability, and one abo...

Chapter 67: Looking for a CEO

Grandma was again in Uncle Charlie's house.

She was looking at the money in the fund at the end of 2000—her $11.5 million—with a very large grin.

"You really are the best thing that ever happened in my life, sweetheart," she said to me.

"Wow, high praise," I thought. I had never seen Grandma praise anyone like that. But then again, no one had ever given her $11.5 million in a year—without her needing to do any work.

Charlie and Dad said in unison, "Thanks, Mom."<...

Chapter 66: The Call II

I called Missy. She was way too young, but somehow she really knew how to gossip.

"So, you're saying Sheldon became popular because he lends his room to other students?" I asked, laughing.

"And he’s totally clueless about what they do in there," Missy replied, laughing with me.

"I’m more concerned that you know what they’re doing," I said, raising an eyebrow.

"Hey, we’re the same age," she snapped defensively.

"You know if Sheldon ever finds out, he’s g...

Chapter 65: Sunset Notes

Regina, Carly, and Sam each took a regular beach chair, lined up loosely in a row. Freddie was already standing, holding his handheld camcorder, carefully adjusting his position to capture everything.

I grabbed my guitar and sat on the edge of the deck bench, facing them, my back to the ocean.

I gave the strings a light strum, just to feel the tone, then looked at them with a half-smile. “What kind of music do you want me to sing?”

“A romantic one,” said Regina, with...

Chapter 64: Party Reveal

The bell rang, ending the first class of the day. Students started filing out, chattering about assignments and weekend plans. I turned in my seat, catching Carly, Sam, and Freddie’s attention.

"Hey," I said, slinging my backpack over one shoulder. "I’ve got something to tell you."

Carly just looked at me curiously, tilting her head slightly, waiting.

"Way better than anything from this morning," I continued with a grin.

Sam raised an eyebrow. "Does it involve food...

Chapter 63: Investiments

Charlie had sulked for a few days after what happened with Lisa. It was the kind of quiet, moody withdrawal that didn’t need to be explained. He didn’t talk much at lunch, didn’t make his usual dumb jokes, and avoided eye contact more than usual.

But after a few nights of drinking and a rotating cast of women coming and going, Charlie was back to normal.

—

Now, with only one week left until Christmas, I found myself buried in spreadsheets and reports. I was wrapping ...

Chapter 62: Thanksgiving III

And then, the thankfulness took a turn.

Jake groaned and whispered, "Here we go again..." while watching his Gramma seated next to him.

"I'm thankful I'll be dead someday, and you'll all feel horrible you weren't nicer to me," Evelyn declared dramatically.

"And I'm thankful that our daughter gave us at least one grandchild before she..." Lenore said, looking at me, before bursting into tears. Grandpa Sheldon consoled her.

Judith, not missing a beat, chimed in, "I'm tha...

Chapter 61: Thanksgiving II

"Wait," Monica said on the phone, and I could hear her calling out in the background.

"We're in position," Chandler's voice chimed in.

"Hi Jake," added Rachel warmly.

I stepped into the hallway to avoid being overheard.

"Here’s the thing," I said. "Uncle Charlie’s ex-lover is here. She’s engaged. And he wants to prove he’s better. That he’s a family man."

"But he’s not," Rachel replied with the same level of confidence my dad did.

"Wait a minute...

Chapter 60: Thanksgiving

"Hey, what are you doing?" Dad asked as we stepped into Charlie's room.

"Picking out a shirt," Charlie replied, looking up in front of the mirror.

"That one looks nice," Dad offered, nodding toward a white button-down.

Uncle Charlie glanced at him. "You like it?"

"Yeah."

"Then, no."

I flopped onto Charlie's bed, arms behind my head, listening to them go back and forth.

"Okay... listen," Dad continued, "I was wondering... do you have any plans for Than...

Chapter 59: Talent Show

Amy and I stepped into the school's theater room, the doors creaking slightly as we pushed them open. The space was dimly lit.

They were about to head toward the front row when they noticed Carly pacing off to the side, holding her phone to her ear.

"I told you the front door would be locked! You gotta go round to the blue door at the back of the—OH MY GOD!" Carly suddenly shouted, eyes wide in surprise.

"What do you think of my equipment?" Freddie said proudly, standing n...

Chapter 58: Grades

As Carly and I turned the corner in the hallway, we spotted a thin, blonde girl pushing around a smaller boy near the lockers.

Carly rolled her eyes, marched straight up to the girl, and yanked her by the hair.

"Hi!" Carly greeted with a sharp smile.

The girl turned around—of course it was Sam.

"Did you get in trouble?" Sam asked, casually chewing gum like nothing had happened.

"Of course I got in trouble! Teachers tend to get upset when you put their heads on ...

Chapter 57: High School

It's been a month since I started high school, and so far, it's been smooth.

Now, Dad and I were walking toward the principal's office because of some of my "mischievings."

As we walked down the hallway—

"Hey, Jake!" Parker greeted, nodding with a grin, surrounded by his football teammates.

A few steps later—

"Hello, Jake."

"Hi Emily," I replied, flashing her a charming smile.

A few more steps—two pretty girls were giggling near the lockers. As ...

Chapter 56: Lawyer Visit

"Yes Jake, you need to go. She wants to meet you."

"Okay..." I replied, then raised an eyebrow. "Do you think it's smart to bring Uncle Charlie there?"

Charlie looked at me, slightly offended. "Hey, I thought you trusted me."

"I trust you most of the time. But not with a Beverly Hills chick," I said, narrowing my eyes.

Charlie smirked, but before he could say anything, Dad cut in, "She is a professional lawyer, Jake."

"If you say so," I said with a shrug.

�...

Chapter 55: Jake's Investment Report

It was early in the morning, and the house was still quiet. I sat at the kitchen table with a cup of tea, the sunlight spilling across the polished wood. In front of me was the latest report from the Harper Management Fund.

It was the end of August. Summer was winding down, and the start of school was just around the corner. And, after months of back-and-forth, my parents were finally finalizing their divorce. Legally separating. Officially done.

Uncle Charlie wandered into the ki...

Chapter 54: Beyond the Matrix

“Holy... this really is Jill?” he said, nearly dropping the photo.

Alan kept staring. “So Jill is…”

“Yep,” Charlie confirmed again.

“And you and Jill used to…” Alan began.

“Every chance we got,” Charlie said with a smirk.

“And Mom is…” Alan trailed off.

“At this very moment,” Charlie finished, taking another sip of his drink

“HOLY MOTHER OF GOD!” Alan screamed again.

Charlie leaned back and looked at him. �...

Chapter 53: An Old Flame with a new wick

Dad and I were still finishing our breakfast, when Charlie went to meet Jill, twirling his car keys.

Before he could step out the door, Berta yelled from the kitchen, “You bring her home, you clean up after.”

Then she glanced at Dad and added, “Thank God you never get any.”

And turning her gaze to me, she finished, “And thank God you’re too young.”

“Berta!” Dad said, clearly offended.

“What?” Berta shot back. “About you, it’s true. And h...

Chapter 52: The Day After

Charlie, Alan, and I were sitting around the dining table, each of us poking at small, elegant boxes of fancy food from a new restaurant we had decided to try

“This is really good!” Charlie said, his voice slightly more alive than earlier. “Check this out.”

He used a pair of wooden chopsticks to lift a bite-sized piece of what looked like seared tuna drizzled in some fancy glaze.

I leaned over and took it off the chopsticks.

“Wow, that’s good,” I said, su...

Patreon Notice

Hey guys! I’m making a few changes to the Patreon tiers:

• Alan Harper: from 1 → 3 chapters

• Charlie Harper: from 5 → 8 chapters

• Jake Harper: from 10 → 15 chapters

No changes in price or anything else.

New Tier:

Two and a Half Men – 35+ Chapters

Important:
As I mentioned in the first notice, I 2025-04-21 18:32:04 +0000 UTC View Post

Chapter 51: The call

A few days had passed since that messy birthday party. One of my eyes was slightly red—probably some kind of irritation—so I decided it was time to get it checked.

Earlier today, I had a visit to the ophthalmologist. The clinic was bright, overly air-conditioned, and smelled faintly of disinfectant. I sat in the waiting room flipping through outdated magazines until a nurse called my name.

Inside the exam room, the doctor asked me to sit in the big chair and rest my chin on th...

Chapter 50: Birthday Chaos

Soon enough, I found myself squished on the couch—Tori on one side, Missy on the other. Trina hovered near the snack table like she was auditioning for a reality show.

My aunt leaned toward my mom with a smirk. “Jake’s already popular. That’s impressive.”

The doorbell rang—again. I stood up. “What now?” I muttered.

I opened the door—

“Jake!” Joanie launched herself at me like a missile, arms wrapping tightly around my waist. “I missed you!” 2025-04-20 15:54:36 +0000 UTC View Post

Chapter 49: Birthday

Tomorrow is my birthday. August 5th.

I got out of bed and headed to the kitchen, rubbing the sleep from my eyes. The smell of coffee and toast led the way.

Charlie and Alan were already there—Charlie nursing a mug of coffee like it was the only thing keeping him alive, and Alan flipping through the newspaper like it was still 1995.

“Morning, almost-birthday boy,” Charlie said with a smirk. “The studio’s ready for you. All set to record?”

I nodded, grabbing ...

Chapter 48: Therapy, Part II

I was back in Dr. Linda’s office. Same neutral-colored walls, same subtle jazz music playing in the background, and the same comfortable chair I always sank into like it was trying to swallow my stress whole.

Dr. Linda glanced up from her notepad with her usual warm-but-professional smile. “Welcome back, Jake. How was your trip?”

"Amazing," I replied.

Dr. Linda nodded thoughtfully. "In our sessions, we’ve talked about a lot of things, Jake. But today, I’d like to f...

Chapter 47: Unwanted Houseguest

“Now, if you will both please leave, I’d like to be alone,” Evelyn said, with the same flair as someone announcing the end of a Broadway performance.

“We understand,” Charlie replied, already halfway out the door.

“Charlie, wait! We can’t just leave her here,” Alan protested.

Charlie stopped, turned around slowly, and said flatly, “Fine. Where do you want to leave her?”

———

Cut to all four of us crammed into the car, heading to Charlie�...

Chapter 46: The Lesson Ride

Alan was driving, Charlie sitting in the front passenger seat, and I was in the middle of the back seat, watching the road roll by.

“So, what did we learn today?” Alan asked, using his best professor voice while keeping his eyes on the road.

“That we need to bring wine,” I offered.

“No.”

“That Gramma trusts me more than Dad. Even if the woman was, like, 30.”

“No,” Alan repeated, now sounding personally offended.

“I would too,” Charli...

Chapter 45: Dinner With Evelyn

Alan muttered under his breath as we walked up to Gramma Evelyn’s front steps, “We’ll eat, we’ll go.”

“No coffee, no dessert,” Charlie added quickly.

“We can’t be rude,” Alan snapped, just as I reached out and pressed the doorbell.

The faint sound of jazz trickled through the door.

We exchanged glances.

A moment later, Evelyn opened the door, perfectly composed as always.

"Hi, Mom," Charlie said, giving her his best innocent smile.

Chapter 44: Return to Malibu

The familiar scent of salt and sun hit me the second we stepped off the plane and into the Malibu air. It wasn’t just the location—it was the feeling. That mix of ease and indulgence that only this place seemed to offer.

Charlie slid his sunglasses on and stretched like he had just returned from a spa, not a chaotic vacation filled with beach drama and unexpected hookups.

Instead of his usual convertible, a black SUV was parked by the curb. Alan stood next to it, arms crossed,...

Chapter 43: Ice Cream Aftermath

A few hours had passed since my little ice cream adventure. The sun had started to dip lower in the sky, casting a warm golden hue across the beach. I made my way back toward the group, still smiling to myself.

As I approached, I saw Uncle Charlie leaning casually on a beach chair, sunglasses on, drink in hand.

“Hey buddy,” he called out with a smirk, “you’ve got lipstick all over your face.”

I shook my head and said, "That doesn’t work on me."

Then I smirk...

Chapter 42: Finally Beach Day

He is 12 years old (will change in Webnovel and here) - that gave me more ideas

The morning light streamed through the windows, and the buzz of plates clinking and laughter filled the beachside hotel’s dining room. I walked in to see everyone already gathered around the long breakfast table.

Chandler leaned back in his chair with a huge smile on his face. “You guys! The sun is out. I finally get one day of actual beach weather.”

Monica, halfway throug...