I Was Never Their Choice

I went straight home after leaving the teacher's office.

The moment I opened the door, I knew something was wrong.

A lot of things were missing. The walk-in closet in my bedroom had been emptied, the toiletries in the bathroom were gone, and even the plants from Cecilia's room had disappeared.

However, I could tell this wasn't a burglary.

What burglar would carefully pack up every single one of Cecilia's things while leaving mine completely untouched?

I stood in the empty living room and pulled out my phone. Then, I called the number that had left me a missed call.

The recipient picked up after three rings. I could hear traffic in the background, along with Cecilia's carefree laughter.

My mother's voice came through, edged with impatience. "Hello?"

"Why is the house empty?"

"Oh. This city isn't very safe, so we talked it over and decided to move somewhere else. You didn't answer when we called earlier, so we left without you."

My heart still gave a traitorous ache despite what I'd suffered.

I said slowly, "So, you left me behind?"

My mother's voice immediately hardened.

"What do you mean, left you behind? Can you stop turning everything into such a big deal? You were the one who didn't answer your phone. Were we supposed to make the whole family wait around for you?"

She said it so matter-of-factly, as if this were nothing worth mentioning.

I said nothing.

She must have realized she was in the wrong because her tone softened.

"Forget it. I'll send you the new address later. Just buy yourself a ticket and come over. It's not a big deal. Don't act like we did something terrible to you."

I let out a cold laugh. "Don't bother. You three enjoy being together. I won't get in the way."

I hung up right after that.

The living room was as quiet as a cemetery. I stood there with my face pale, like a ghost that had somehow come back from the dead.

My mother's words made one thing clear. They had been reborn as well, and the first thing they did after returning was move.

They took Cecilia with them, leaving the city and every place where danger might find her.

They would do whatever it took to protect the girl who had died in a warehouse in our previous life.

As for me, I wasn't even worth waiting another 30 minutes for.

My phone buzzed. It was a text from my mother.

I looked down at the screen, my eyes stinging.

"It looks like you were reborn, too. Since you remember what happened in our previous life, you should know what will happen to your sister. Be sensible and stop making a fuss. This time, your father and I don't want to lose anyone."

All of us were well aware whether "anyone" included me or meant Cecilia alone. In any case, I definitely understood what was written in the sand.

I didn't reply.

If there was no room for me in that family, then… I wasn't going to force my way in.