Chapter 4 The Night They Branded Me a Disgrace

"Enough!" Mom interrupted me, her eyes filled with a depth of disappointment and anguish I'd never seen before. "Cece has already told us everything! She said you've been in contact with Silas lately, and that she's even tried to talk you out of it! How could you have so little self-respect? The SATs are just around the corner!"

I stared at Cecilia in disbelief.

She was hiding behind Mom, tears streaming down her face, looking as though my self-destruction had left her heartbroken and terrified. "Ellie… I know you're under a lot of pressure, but you can't do this to yourself…"

As I looked at the undisguised disgust in my parents' eyes and Cecilia's tear-streaked face, I felt as though I'd fallen into an icy abyss. No matter what I said, I couldn't defend myself.

For the first time, I understood with absolute clarity that I'd long since become an unwanted outsider in this family. My dreams, my innocence, my entire life—Cecilia could take them all away with a few casual words, then trample them underfoot.

I returned to my room in a daze.

Cecilia's hypocritical expression and my parents' distrustful gazes kept intertwining in my mind, replaying over and over.

…

On the final day of the SATs, the moment I entered the examination hall, I noticed several classmates looking at me strangely. Some even deliberately lowered their voices to whisper as I passed.

"That's her? She looks so innocent. Who would've thought…"

"I heard she was out with some street thug last night, and her family caught her red-handed."

"Seriously? She couldn't even behave herself the night before the SATs?"

"Her adopted sister, Cecilia, said it herself. Why would she make something like that up?"

"Unbelievable. She always acted so prim and proper, but turns out she's rotten behind closed doors…"

Their filthy remarks made me tremble with rage. I wanted nothing more than to rush home and tear Cecilia's lying mouth apart. Yet, the warning bell rang, and I had no choice but to force myself to focus on the exam first.

…

The moment the final exam ended, I rushed straight home.

My parents and Cecilia were sitting together on the sofa, chatting and laughing as though nothing had happened.

The anger I'd been bottling up for two days finally shattered the last of my restraint. "Cecilia! Did you spread those lies about me? Were you in cahoots with Silas from the beginning?"

Cecilia looked as though I'd terrified her.

Tears instantly spilled down her cheeks as she shrank behind Mom. "Ellie, what are you talking about? There's no such thing! Silas was the one who kept harassing you. I even tried to talk you out of it…"

I was shaking with fury. "It was you! You told him I was going to my teacher's house! You twisted everything around when you talked to Mom and Dad!"

Dad slammed his hand against the table, his face livid as he glared at me. "Are you ever going to stop this? Your own disgraceful behavior has become public knowledge, and now you want to drag Cece into your mess?"

Mom's voice was filled with disappointment and exhaustion. "Ellie, where there's smoke, there's fire! Cece has always been such a sensible girl. Why would she ever hurt you?"

The suspicion in Mom's eyes extinguished the last flicker of hope I had left. I stopped arguing, silently turned around, and returned to my room.

…

When the SAT results were finally released, I wasn't surprised to discover that I'd done terribly. Cecilia, meanwhile, received an acceptance letter from a respectable music conservatory.

Faced with my results, my parents couldn't even be bothered to scold me. All that remained was their utter disappointment and cold indifference. Every bit of their attention and happiness was devoted to Cecilia, as though I were nothing more than a stranger who happened to live under their roof.

One morning, I packed a few belongings and took my old guitar before leaving the place that could no longer be called home. I walked away without a backward glance and without a trace of regret.

After leaving home, I'd lived in damp, moldy basements and worked late-night shifts at convenience stores. Eventually, I managed to scrape together enough to maintain a basic semblance of dignity by singing at bars.

And just like that, seven years had passed.

I put the past aside and continued searching for the next bar where I could find work as a singer.

…

That evening, I'd just finished a song at a new bar when the manager escorted two people backstage. He explained that an important investor wanted to meet the singer.

Under the dim lights, the three of us stared at one another, and time seemingly froze.