One Man Band System

Eric brought the vehicle to a halt and stepped out. He walked over to meet the four women approaching his RV and unlocked the door so they could head inside. But just as Miranda was about to step up into the trailer after the others, Eric stopped her.

"Aunt Miranda, can we talk for a second?" Eric asked, his tone dead serious.

Seeing the grave look on Eric’s face, Miranda studied him closely for a moment before letting out a sigh and turning back to face him.

"Hmm... alright... let’s step over here for a bit," Miranda replied.

They moved off to the side of the driveway and stood facing the RV. From where they stood, they could see Layla, Anna, and Vicky absolutely tearing into the girls inside, with Laura and Chloe getting caught in the crossfire and receiving a lecture of their own. Meanwhile, Joe had gotten out of his car and was leaning against the door with his arms crossed over his chest, keeping his eyes locked onto the RV without looking away once.

"What is it? What did you want to talk to me about?" Miranda asked, cutting straight to the chase and snapping Eric out of looking around at his surroundings.

"Before we get into it, I want to tell you what happened today, Aunt Miranda," Eric countered.

Eric went on to recount the entire day—starting from their arrival, crossing paths with the Trinity Pictures film crew, and getting introduced to Wesley, Morgan, and the rest of the team on set. Miranda’s expression didn’t change at all; she listened intently to Eric’s story with a serious look on her face. Finally, once Eric finished laying it all out,

"So... sorry if I’m stepping over the line by asking this, but do you have some kind of connection to that actor, Wesley?" Eric asked, even though he already had a pretty good idea of what the answer would be.

Miranda went quiet for a moment. She turned her head back to look at Emma, who was currently getting chewed out inside the RV. Then, she let out a heavy sigh and turned to Eric with a solemn expression.

"Alright, since you’re going to have to find out sooner or later anyway, I’ll tell you... Wesley... is my son... he’s Kevin’s twin brother," Miranda said gravely.

Eric was utterly dumbfounded. He had already suspected that Wesley was related to Kevin and Emma, perhaps Kevin’s younger brother and Emma’s older brother, or the oldest sibling of the two, but he had never imagined that Wesley and Kevin were actual twins. Instantly, everything clicked.

"So you knew we went camping because Wesley called and tipped you off?" Eric asked, firing the question straight at the heart of the matter.

Miranda stared at Eric sharply. She didn’t say a single word, but from the look on her face, Eric could tell his guess was dead on. Realizing Eric had already read her silence as confirmation, Miranda sighed once more and turned her gaze back toward the RV.

"Wesley knows Emma is his little sister... he also knows Kevin is his twin brother... just like Kevin knows Wesley is his twin... but... Emma has absolutely no clue about any of this, and I intend to keep it that way. You understand what I’m saying, right?" Miranda asked, staring straight ahead.

"I understand, Aunt Miranda. I won’t say a word to Emma," Eric promised, and without even realizing it, a massive wave of relief washed over his heart.

"And next time, if you really want to take them out of town, please let us know. We were positive they wouldn’t report that they were leaving city limits. Those kids really have no common sense. Don’t they get that we worry?" Miranda asked, giving Eric a firm scolding.

"Oh... yeah, Aunt Miranda, I’m really sorry. Before we left, I did ask them to call their parents... but I guess they conveniently left that part out," Eric replied, feeling totally awkward and offering his apologies.

"If you just tell them to say something, they’ll never actually do it. So please, next time, you be the one to give us a heads-up. Like I said, the others and I trust you with them because they’re a handful to manage," Miranda said.

"Yeah, Aunt Miranda, I get it now... again, I’m really sorry for dropping the ball," Eric said, feeling genuinely bad.

Miranda looked at Eric, seeing that he was truly remorseful. Then, a smile crept onto her face as she put her hands on her hips.

"So... can you tell me what it was like meeting Morgan?" Miranda asked.

Hearing Miranda shift the subject, Eric looked at the middle-aged woman in front of him. He immediately laid everything out, from spotting Morgan on set and Morgan overhearing his track to hammering out the contract details inside the crew’s RV.

"Oh... wow... your song is going to be used for the soundtrack, and you composed it because you were jealous of Wesley?" Miranda asked, highly amused.

"Something like that, Aunt Miranda... well, not exactly jealous... I was just annoyed that they were getting so cozy with Wesley back there. Please don’t laugh," Eric replied, rubbing the back of his neck, suddenly turning bashful.

"There’s nothing wrong with that, it’s completely natural. But you really are something else, channeling your feelings into music and turning it into an absolute blessing. So, when are you signing the paperwork? When does the movie come out?" Miranda asked.

"Oh... the release is still a long way off, probably early in two years... the plan is for tomorrow, while they’re at school, I intend to head over to Trinity Pictures to meet up with management and Alan," Eric said.

"Alright... good luck with that. I’m incredibly happy to see you hitting milestones like this. Your dad would definitely be proud of you," Miranda said, tapping Eric’s arm.

"Yeah... thanks, Aunt Miranda," Eric said shyly.

Suddenly, Miranda looked past Eric’s shoulder and nodded. Before a startled Eric could even turn around, a massive, muscular arm aggressively locked around his shoulders, yanking him backward. He glanced up to see Joe wrapping him in a tight headlock from behind, a massive grin plastered across his face.

"Next time that brat refuses to check in with me, just let me know. I’ll handle her," Joe said firmly with a smile, even though his eyes were stone cold.

"Yeah... for sure, Uncle Joe," Eric said, feeling a bit nervous and forcing a smile.

"And one more thing... look at this."

Joe held up his smartphone. Eric looked at the screen and his eyes widened. He was looking at a video showing a scene in a hospital room. He could see Vanessa hugging a bruised and battered Jason, who looked like he was crying, while Martin appeared to be talking to the camera. Someone was threatening them, warning them not to investigate Eric’s whereabouts or make any contact with him. Vanessa seemed to be protesting, Jason stayed quiet, and Martin looked significantly older than before, his head hanging low.

Then, a man in a black suit pulled a folder from inside his jacket and placed it on the bed right in front of Martin. He instructed Martin to take it and sign it. As Martin read the contents of the folder, his face suddenly warped in shock, and he stared at the man in the suit in utter confusion. But after a brief conversation and some explanation, Martin finally signed it. Watching this, Eric turned to Joe, who was still holding the smartphone.

"What did they make him sign, Uncle Joe?" Eric asked curiously.

"A partnership agreement. I agreed to clear his debts and inject some capital, but in exchange, I demanded a 60% share of the company, while still letting your ex-dad stay on as CEO and report directly to me," Joe answered casually.

"Oh... so he works for you now... I probably shouldn’t be saying this... but thank you, Uncle Joe," Eric said.

"Haha... no need to thank me. In that contract, he is required to keep your older brother on a tight leash, and if he fails to do so, I have the right to seize the entire entity and kick them all out to the curb," Joe said nonchalantly.

"Perfect... that’s exactly how it should be. That’s why I’m thanking you, because you didn’t completely destroy them," Eric said casually.

"Oh... well, in that case... you’re very welcome," Joe said cheerfully, tightening his grip on Eric.

Eric smiled and let out a genuine laugh, but he stole a glance at the cheerful Joe beside him and thought to himself, "Note to self: I absolutely cannot mess with this man."

Right after that, Emma, Priya, Monica, and Heidi were marched out of the RV by Miranda, Layla, Anna, and Vicky like a bunch of prisoners, and were promptly taken home by their mothers.

Next, Laura was pulled out of the trailer by Joe and given a quick scolding. Once he was done, Joe took off, leaving Eric behind with Laura and Chloe as they watched Joe’s car drive out through the apartment complex gates. Eric then turned to look at Chloe and Laura, who were standing frozen on either side of him, holding his hands.

"Alright... let’s go park the RV and head upstairs," Eric suggested casually.

"Yeah... let’s go," Laura and Chloe replied, still looking like they were processing everything that had just played out.