Chapter 5

At some point, Noah emerged behind me without me noticing.

She patted my shoulder and said, “Fin, I get it now. I see why you didn’t want your family to know your scores.”

She paused for a moment, then added, “Going to National Service Academy isn’t such a bad thing. Room and board are free, and there’s a scholarship too.

“You’ll be able to manage just fine on your own.”

I nodded, tucked the soiled folder into my jacket, and muttered a quiet “thank you” to her before turning around and heading home.

When I arrived home, the living room was buzzing with more noise than I could stand.

Michael was brimming as he sat in the very center of the couch, completely surrounded by our parents and Brielle.

Brielle said loudly, “Then, it’s settled! We’re leaving for the road trip today!”

Michael spotted me first. He immediately stood up and came over and greeted me warmly.

“Hey, you’re back! I heard from Ms. Carter that you found your folder. You’re not mad anymore, are you?”

He frowned and put on a pitiful look before he continued.

“I’m sorry. We really should’ve stayed and helped you look for the folder. We shouldn’t have just left you like that.”

So, they knew all along. They knew they should not have abandoned me when I was at my lowest.

But it had always been like that.

Whenever I got emotional about something, Michael would throw a little fit, and suddenly everyone’s attention was on him.

Big issues got brushed aside. Small ones vanished completely.

It was as if my emotions did not matter. It was as if ignoring them would magically fix everything.

Skipping over my feelings would make all the problems magically solve themselves.

They assumed I would never walk away. They assumed I would always be right there, living in their shadow.

If I pressed any further, I would be the unreasonable one, the one who would not let things go.

Fortunately, I just had to get through this stretch.

When I remained silent, Brielle reached out to take my hand.

“Alright, alright. You found it, didn’t you? Let’s just let bygones be bygones.”

I murmured a quick hum in affirmation, sidestepped, and pulled my hand back.

She froze for a moment, then closed her fingers around empty air.

“Really? That’s awesome!” Michael gave me a playful punch in the chest.

“You’re the best, Fin!”

He pulled his hand back and said, “Oh, by the way, Bree was trying to cheer me up, so she said she’d take us on a road trip to Southwick.

“She says it’s right by the ocean, with coconut trees everywhere along the roads. You’re coming too, right?!”

Southwick.

Hearing that word made my heart ache.

I turned to Brielle.

Our gazes met.

The warm lamplight illuminated her profile in a soft golden outline.

She had once said she would go to National Service Academy with me, and we would watch the sea together.

Soon, she would head to Preston, and I to Southwick.

After that, we would probably never see each other again.

This trip might be our final goodbye.

“Sure,” I said. “I’ll go pack.”

Rain started pelting the window. It gradually got heavier.

When I came downstairs with my bag, Brielle was already cramming Michael’s suitcase into the last open spot in the back seat.

It wedged in perfectly, square and snug, taking up every last inch of space.

When she was done, her eyes darted between my suitcase and me standing in the rain. She had a troubled expression.

“Fin, there’s way too much luggage. I don’t think we can fit you in.”

The rain was pouring hard, and the wind was howling loudly. I could barely hear what she said.

“Maybe... you could just come next time? It’s not like this is our only opportunity.”

The rear window cracked open just enough for me to see Michael glued to his phone with a smile.

Mom came up from behind me and pulled open the passenger door.

“Seriously? You made your brother cry, and you’re just going to tag along like nothing happened?”

Rainwater trickled down my forehead and into my eyes, stinging with a dull, bitter ache.

So, this was my punishment, then?

First, hand me a little hope, then crush it right in front of my face.

Was it all because I made Michael look bad in front of everyone?

“It’s fine,” I said. My tone was calmer than expected.

“You guys go ahead.”

Before I could say anything more, the car had already pulled away.

The taillights faded into a blur through the rain.

I stood there watching until they disappeared, then turned and headed back.

Rain splashed against my face, but I hardly noticed.

After so many times, my heart had grown number than the cold.

I reached the front door and pulled the handle. It would not budge.

They had locked the door without giving me a key. Or rather, they had simply forgotten I existed.