"Hello... Zeus? What is it so early?"
It was barely 7:00 a.m. Clive had just wrapped up a steamy session and hadn't been asleep for long before his brother's call jolted him awake. Naturally, he was annoyed.
Then, a young woman's lazy mumble drifted from the other end of the line. "Who is it... this early..."
Her voice was groggy, laced with the displeasure of being woken up. Clive instinctively muttered a few words in a low voice, and the woman's complaints ceased.
Zeus's grip on his phone tightened imperceptibly for a second. It was obvious that Clive hadn't been following medical advice at all. Judging by the sound of things, he had probably just rolled out of the woman's bed.
Truly unrepentant, even at death's door.
The last shred of patience Zeus had for his brother—born solely out of blood ties—vanished instantly. His tone turned even colder and flatter, tinged with barely detectable sarcasm.
"Your follow-up HIV test results are out."
Perhaps because his patience had maxed out, Zeus didn't even pause. He delivered the news bluntly, not giving the other man a second to brace himself.
"I regret to inform you, your result is positive."
Dead silence fell over the line. A few seconds later, Clive's panicked, almost pitch-shifted voice came through, all sleepiness gone.
"Pos... positive? How is that possible?"
"No way! Did you read it wrong? I've always been so careful with protection!"

VERIFYCAPTCHA_LABEL
Comments
The readers' comments on the novel: The Prison-Made Queen