But after hearing their conversation that day, I didn't go home. Instead, I registered for college from an internet café near the factory and spent the rest of the summer working double shifts.
Sure, it was normal for kids to want to give their parents a better life as they grew older. But what I didn't know at the time was that while I was breaking my back working, Dakota was spending our parents' money on vacations and parties, all under the guise of "finding a wealthy husband."
Because of her history of manipulating people into giving her whatever she wanted, my parents believed every word she said. They indulged her more and more, showering her with the money I was supposedly earning to support them.
It didn't matter how much I sacrificed or how much I cared about the family—it could never compete with the fantasies Dakota spun for them.
This time, I wasn't going back home to take care of my mom. And I wasn't going to miss those six hundred dollars a month either.