"No, Dad. This phone probably cost you two months' salary. You haven’t even paid back the money you borrowed for my tuition. You should return it," I said calmly.
They spent ages trying to convince me, but I didn’t budge. Eventually, Dad gave in, probably worried he would expose himself if he pushed too hard and returned it.
Mom looked pale, but she still forced a smile and called me "sensible." Watching them try so hard to keep up their act almost made me laugh.
For years, they had been pretending to be loving parents just to set Scott up for success. It was pathetic. All I ever wanted was my own shot at success, but they would do anything to make sure that wasn’t possible.
I thought I was prepared for the worst, but I wasn’t ready for what happened on the day of my graduation defense.
Scott went up third. The moment his PPT came up on the screen, my stomach dropped.
It was my work. Word for word, slide for slide—he had stolen everything.
I stood up, my anger bubbling over. Pointing at Scott’s paper, I snapped, "Scott plagiarized my thesis! I’m reporting this!"
Everyone in the room who had already gotten expensive gifts from him exchanged looks and the whispers started.