Chapter 2

I spent the three days at Dad's funeral crying until I had no more tears left to shed.

Everyone we knew came to say goodbye one last time—everyone but Shannon.

She spent those same three days taking Sean and James to get full medical checkups. It was the same checkup that I had her take Dad to.

When the bill came to 3,000 dollars, she printed the receipt right in front of Dad and told me to reimburse the household account.

That night, Dad quietly left in the rain on his own. By the time he made it back to his hometown, he had come down with a high fever.

Now, none of it mattered anymore.

When I arrived home, I found Dad's clothes and bedding strewn across the floor. Sean stood in the middle of the room, directing the movers as they stripped the photos from the walls.

"What are you doing?" I asked, stunned.

He folded his arms across his chest and looked down at me. "My dad's heart hasn't been doing too well these past couple of days. Shannon said he could move in here, so naturally we had to clear out all this junk."

When Shannon and I agreed that we would each be responsible for our own parents, we had set aside the two guest rooms for her mom and my dad.

Later on, her mom decided to retire overseas, so Shannon gave that room to Sean.

I hadn't said a word. But now, she was giving Dad's room to James.

I felt my anger boil over as I watched the movers trample over Dad's belongings.

"Those things belong to my dad. Who gave you the right to treat them like that?"

"I did."

The bedroom door behind me swung open. Shannon walked in carrying a bottle of disinfectant. She sprayed the walls liberally as she spoke in an offhand tone.

"Your dad hasn't been back these past three days. I figured he'd gone back to his hometown. I told you he wasn't suited to living in the city, but you insisted on bringing him here."

Then, she muttered, "It's filthy."

I clenched my fists so hard that my knuckles turned white. It felt as though my heart had been crushed by a truck.

The next second, the only photograph Dad had ever taken crashed to the floor. The glass frame shattered, just like the heartbroken look on his face before he died.

In its place was a photo of Shannon with Sean and James.

A bitter laugh escaped me. "I thought you hated having your picture taken. We never even had a wedding photo."

Shannon froze with the disinfectant still in her hand. Then, she looked away.

"Mr. Gardner Senior wasn't feeling well yesterday. He said that having his picture taken would cheer him up. It's just a photo. Do you really have to make such a fuss over it?"

I had just seen him doing dance cardio downstairs ten minutes ago. He hadn't looked sick at all.

A glass jar filled with loose change rolled to my feet and shattered. My legs gave out, and I dropped to the floor as tears streamed down my face.

The coins still carried Dad's scent. I gathered them into my arms and got to my feet.

Shannon tried to smooth things over in her usual gentle voice. "Come on. Once Mr. Gardner Senior is feeling better, I'll take you and your dad on a trip overseas. Isn't that enough?"

The old me would've waited for her to keep that promise. I would've clung to the hope of winning Dad even the slightest bit of her affection.

But now Dad was gone, and I was tired.

I brushed past Shannon without slowing down and walked straight into my room. Her hand hung frozen in the air as she stared after me in confusion.

What she didn't know was that I'd just received another offer for a long-term assignment overseas. I had turned it down every time because I couldn't bear to leave her behind.

But now, I could finally choose myself.