Chapter 5

Jimmy pushed his way through the crowd and put his arm around Alvin before putting on a tearful performance as he listed out my "awful deeds".

"Just look at yourself! You've been living such a comfortable life that your skin is practically glowing! Meanwhile, Alvin looks so frail.

"Why do I get the feeling you've been abusing him all along, huh? And now you're hoarding the life insurance payout and trying to use emotional blackmail on him! How dare you talk about family, huh?"

I scoffed in anger.

At home, I had always given Alvin the best of everything. If he looked frail, it was because of his health condition. But that was somehow my fault?

However, thanks to Jimmy's claims, the crowd that had briefly settled down after my counterattack seemed to snap back to life. Holding their banners, they began to condemn my "heartless" behavior.

"I have to admit she's pretty tough. Look at how she took down that burly guy with one move."

"Yeah, she looked pretty cool just now, but that doesn't change the fact that she's a heartless monster—using her mom's life insurance payout to buy herself a house. She's not even fit to be called a human."

As they spoke, they edged closer, slowly surrounding me. The suffocating pressure closed in from all sides.

"Sandy, I know you've had it hard all these years. Money is important. I get that. But it shouldn't come between us like this," Alvin said in a choked voice, his eyes misty.

"I didn't want things to turn out like this. I would never have asked you for the money if I didn't need it to study abroad. I wouldn't even mind giving it all to you.

"But right now, I have no other choice. Just give me the money, Sandy. When I come back after studying abroad, I'll give you all my salary. Please, Sandy? Sandy…"

He called out to me again and again, sounding sincere enough to move the surrounding crowd to sigh in sympathy. But I could see right through him. I caught the scheming look in his eyes—and the smug satisfaction in Jimmy's.

At last, I was completely disillusioned.

My own brother—the one I had raised with my own hands—had turned into a monstrous leech. He'd spent a decade draining me dry, and now, he wanted to make my life a living hell, too.

"You came here just for money, didn't you?" Looking at the crowd that was scowling angrily at me, I smirked. "You even resorted to a trick like this just to force me into giving you money."

"I'm not trying to force you," Alvin declared, his gaze scheming. "It's just that your attitude worries me. Once you give me the money, nothing else will happen. I'm not trying to harm you."

"Cut the bullshit! If you still think of Alvin as your brother, you'd hand over the money now!" Jimmy demanded before pretending to wipe his tears again. "Alvin is such a kind young man. Despite everything you've done to him, he's still worried about you.

"What's wrong with him wanting to get back the money that's rightfully his?"

Voices of agreement rose through the crowd again, while I stayed silent.

Kind, huh?

Was that the word used to describe a brother who used lies to manipulate the public, relying on public opinion to back his sister into a corner?

"Sandy, even though we're siblings, when it comes to money, we should keep the accounts clear. Family is one thing, but this money really matters a lot to me."

My lack of response made Alvin impatient, and his tone started taking on a resentful tinge.

"Haven't I endured enough all these years, with the way you kept forcing me to focus on my studies? I'd been on the verge of breaking down countless times now. What's wrong with me wanting to study abroad?

"Do you even know what it's like to stay up past midnight just to study? Have you ever had to get up at 6:30 am just to review your lessons? Do you have any idea how it feels to be so caught up in trying to solve a math problem that you're too stressed to even eat dinner?"

Alvin's voice kept getting louder. "You know nothing! You dropped out of high school, yet you kept forcing me to study. Now that I can finally choose an easier path for myself by studying abroad, you hang onto all the money and refuse to give me my share!"

Once again, I could only laugh in anger.

It was true that I never had to study past midnight or wake up early to review my lessons. But no one knew the hours I worked each day. Even getting to sleep at 1:00 am was a luxury for me. I also had to wake up at 5:00 am to prepare his breakfast.

In fact, I'd been hospitalized multiple times as a result of my sleep deprivation and overexhaustion.

How was any of that less tiring than studying?

To make matters worse, he was the reason I had to drop out of school!