I Raised My Brother From Childhood, but He Looked Down on Me for Being a Janitor Until the Truth Came Out

The first conversation we had when my brother introduced me to her was:

“So you really are a janitor?”

“Yes, I find it a fulfilling and enjoyable job.”

“Really? Isn’t it dirty? I couldn’t stand it. It must smell bad.”

My brother, who was listening, chimed in:

“Right? It’s unimaginable, isn’t it? It’s unsanitary and she’s not attractive. She doesn’t have any money either, but what can I do? I’m related to her. Sorry about that.”

I was taken aback to hear this and don’t remember much of what happened afterwards. After she left that day, I yelled at my brother.

“You were out of line! What do you mean, ‘I am related to her so it can’t be helped’? And what’s up with her, too? Don’t you dare judge people by their jobs or income!”

My brother, surprised by my sudden outburst, stammered but managed to retort:

“Shut up! You’re a vocational school dropout and I’m a college graduate. So is she. We can’t help but look down on you. You earn less and have a bottom-tier job, so you’re the one leading a loser life!”

With that, he stormed out of the house. I cried out of sadness and frustration.

The reason I dropped out of vocational school was because of our mother’s illness. My brother knew that, yet his remark was so hurtful.

Yes, my income is modest, but I still managed to scrape together the tuition fee for my brother’s education. I did my best to take up on our late mother’s role.

I must have made a mistake in how I dealt with him. I looked at myself in the mirror while crying.

I was bothered by the fact that he called me ugly. I have a face similar to my brother’s. I’m neither beautiful nor cute, but I don’t think I’m that ugly.

But admittedly, I could do more in terms of self-care. If I paid a bit more attention to my looks and changed myself, would he see me different?

Well, even if I dog myself up, it’s unlikely my brother’s personality would change. Rather, marrying a woman with similar morals probably only amplified his narcissism.

While talking to my co-workers about this, I started to think that my relationship with my brother might be beyond repair. One day, I received a postcard from my brother and his wife.

We’ve moved. I had no idea.

Judging from the address, it seemed like a standalone house. What’s this all about?

They’re so reserved, and they told me I would have thrown a celebration and even helped them move. I had something I wanted to discuss with them too, so I decided to call him after a long time.

“Hello, I got your postcard.”

I can hear my brother’s cheerful voice on the phone.

“It’s amazing, right? A single-family house at this young age. Because I’m a fast-tracker, it would be impossible if it weren’t me, right?”

“Yeah, amazing indeed.”

It was the usual bragging, but somehow I found it nostalgic and let my brother talk as much as he wanted. I brought up my matter after that.

“So I have something to talk to you about too. Just the other day, my company got contracted to clean your office building. We might bump into each other occasionally.”

“Good for you! Wouldn’t get to step foot in such a big building otherwise, right?”

He could have just ended there.

“There’s one more thing. I got a boyfriend.”

“What? Seriously?”

My brother raised his voice, sounding genuinely surprised.

“Yes, he’s older and a wonderful man. After what you said, I started taking better care of my skin and such. He fell for me at first sight,”

I said jokingly.

“Well, then that’s thanks to me, huh?”

Somehow he managed to take credit for this as well.

“Well, I wouldn’t say you haven’t played a part in it. I wanted to introduce my boyfriend to you. He’s been eager to meet you, too. So would it be okay if we visited your place soon? We could also bring a housewarming gift.”

Casually mentioning this, he retorted:

“Eh? You’re coming over?”

His previously cheerful tone suddenly darkened. I wondered what was going on.

“You do understand what your job is, don’t you?”

“Huh? Job? You mean my cleaning job?”

“Listen, I’ve got a new house, which means it’s clean, right? I don’t want a filthy person like a janitor coming in my house.”

Excuse me? Is he saying that because janitors are filthy, he doesn’t want one in his brand new house?

I was confused. My mind went blank.

“Considering the dirty work you do, shouldn’t you know how to refrain from visiting people’s places? I’m sure your co-workers feel the same.”

“You’re out of line! That’s rude! Apologize!”

With a blank mind, my blood started boiling in anger. I could feel my fury ready to explode.

Was it a common courtesy to stay away because my job is dirty?