Chapter 4

I froze at once. My first thought was that the vendor was trying to scam me.

But he slapped the bills onto the table, quickly drawing a crowd. Some held them up to the light, and some felt the paper.

In the end, they all shook their heads and said, "They're fake."

That night, I squatted outside the mall entrance until dawn, clutching a stack of fake cash.

The next morning, the moment the bubble tea shop opened, I rushed inside and slammed the fake bills onto the counter. "Why did you trick me? This is fraud! I'm calling the police!"

The shop owner didn't even bat an eye. "I didn't prepare this money. Your mom came by yesterday and picked up your wages ahead of time. She left those fake bills with me and said that it was to build your character, so you'd realize that making money isn't that easy."

My brain went completely numb. My hands and feet felt frozen as I rode the bus home.

The second I burst through the door, my eyes burned with tears. "Did you take my wages?"

Instead of looking guilty, Mom looked rather pleased with herself. "Now you know how hard it is to make a living, right? Just remember that we're the ones who care about you the most. When you run into trouble, your first instinct should be to come home to your family. Or you can go to Julia."

I shook so hard from rage that the tears wouldn't stop spilling over.

Had I not tried looking for them? Had I really not tried?

When a group of punks had cornered me in an alley and demanded "protection money", I had hidden inside a convenience store and called them with trembling hands.

But Dad only asked, "Why did they target you instead of someone else?"

When the apartment ceiling had leaked in the middle of the night, soaking the wallpaper until it fell off in chunks and ruining my desk and practice papers, I had called Mom, begging her to help me find another place.

Mom only remarked, "Why must you live in luxury? If you can't handle hardship, how will you ever amount to anything?"

When I was running a 102-degree fever right before the SAT, I had called Paige in a daze.

She replied, "Reynold is in a bad mood today. It's just a fever. Take some meds and get over it. Stop being so dramatic."

And then there was the time I sprained my ankle walking home from a part-time shift.

My ankle swelled up so badly that I couldn't even put on my shoe. I had sent Julia dozens of messages.

She didn't reply until much later. "Go to a pharmacy and buy some medicine yourself. I'm tutoring Reynold tonight. Stop texting and interrupting us."

Where were any of them when I actually needed help?

I couldn't hold it in anymore and shouted, "Give me back my money! That's my paycheck! I earned it myself!"

Dad's expression turned violently dark. He marched over, grabbed my arm, and began shoving me toward the front door. "Money, money, money! All you do is demand money the second you walk in!

"Do you have any idea how much money we spent trying to find you? It's way more than 30 thousand dollars! 3,000 dollars is nothing! I don't think you're smart. You're just calculating! You're completely obsessed with money!"

With a loud slam, the door shut right in my face.

I turned around, my face drenched in tears.

The elevator doors opened right then, and Paige, Julia, and Reynold walked out together.

Reynold was holding up a small brooch, wrinkling his nose in complaint. "This tiny thing actually cost 3,000 dollars?"

Paige laughed. "As long as you like it, it's worth 30 thousand dollars, let alone 3,000."

Julia softly added, "Didn't your mom just give you a 50-thousand-dollar allowance as a reward? It's meant for you to spend. Don't be so reluctant to use it."

As I stood in the shadows, my tears flowed even faster.

I had worked from dawn till dusk, standing under the scorching sun for eight hours a day in a suffocating mascot suit. But the 3,000 dollars I spent a whole month earning was nothing more than a brooch Reynold bought on a whim.

Not wanting them to see me at my absolute lowest, I bolted down the fire stairs.

By the time I reached the first floor, my tears had finally run dry.

Fortunately, after the SAT score was released, a few parents tracked me down to tutor their kids.

I accepted and made one specific request. "Can you wire the pay directly to my account?"

Although they were confused, they agreed.

After that massive blowout, Mom, Dad, Paige, and Julia all mutually stopped reaching out.

And I stopped feeling sad. I just went through the motions, preparing lessons, tutoring, and saving money.

The day my acceptance letter arrived, I cooked two dishes for myself.

For the first time in a long while, I pulled out the four rag dolls and set them across from me at the table, just like I used to. "Let's consider this my celebration dinner and our last meal together."

I looked at their round eyes and smiled softly. "You don't have to keep me company anymore. From now on, I'll walk this path alone."

After eating, I cleaned the apartment from top to bottom.

Wheeling my suitcase behind me, I left the rented apartment where I had lived alone for a year.

I didn't go to Brookmere, but I didn't attend Selvarin as they'd planned, either. Instead, I chose a university much further south, in Glenridge.

Right before the train pulled out of the station, the family group chat, which had been silent for weeks, suddenly pinged.

Mom posted a photo of Reynold's acceptance letter. "Reynold is going to Brookmere! Ollie, you must have received your acceptance letter to a university in Selvarin by now, right? Let's pick a date for your celebration dinner."

Paige immediately followed up. "Stop throwing a tantrum. The whole family needs to be there for the celebration dinner."

Julia sent a message. "I'll come pick you up for dinner."

I stared at the screen for a long moment, typing nothing.

I simply tapped the group settings and left the group chat.

Outside the window, the platform began to glide backward slowly. I powered off my phone and leaned back against the seat.

From here on out, the world was wide open, and I was never coming back.