That night, I heard Brielle sobbing in my parents’ room. “Clearly, I’m the kid who grew up with Mom and Dad. Why should they follow her?”
I paused.
Then I heard my parents breathe out. “Hattie really is too careless; Brielle said before the test that she wanted to visit Austin, yet she insists on Portland.”
“We’ve already shown her so much kindness, yet she still wants to push back and compare. Sigh.”
That night, I pushed open their door.
“Austin works. As long as I’m with family, I can go anywhere.”
Mom hurried to take my hand. “You’re so thoughtful. Mom and Dad are truly glad.”
“We will visit Portland, but Brielle has been hoping for Austin for a long while. Let’s go there first, alright?”
I nodded firmly.
But when I finished packing, I found the house already silent.
The butler told me they had left before sunrise. The flight was in the afternoon.
Yet they were so rushed, they departed in the middle of the night.
For the first time, I understood my family was avoiding me.
On Brielle’s social page, she wore traditional folk outfits, smiling brightly while standing beside Mom and Dad.
Many users had tapped like on the post. At the top of the list were my parents.