Swapped at the SATs

I died on Christmas Eve, in the middle of a packed street.

Snow kept falling, slow and steady, until it buried me.

Just minutes before, I was outside in rags, watching my "family" laugh through their holiday dinner.

That's when I heard it—the truth.

I wasn't their daughter.

I never looked like Amelia, but Mom always said we were fraternal twins. I believed her.

Turns out, they pulled me from an orphanage because the System told them to—just so they could steal my future when the SATs hit.

I was always top of my class. But thanks to them, I tanked. Amelia came out shining, ranked first in the city.

Ivy League scouts and local reporters wouldn't stop calling.

I was supposed to be the school's Ivy League pick. But the second my score tanked, it blew up online.

Every feed was flooded with people calling me a fraud.

My parents doubled down, told reporters I'd been cheating for years. Said I got caught senior year.

Colleges dropped me instantly.

Then they said I'd shamed the family and threw me out.

All that... over the SATs.

My whole life had been a setup—just to boost someone else.

And I wasn't ready to let that be the end.

***

When I opened my eyes, I was back—senior year. The same year they made me help Amelia cheat.

Across the table, they smiled, sliding over a rare cut of meat like it was some big reward.

"Evelyn, now that you're in senior year, just help your sister during exams, okay?" Mom beamed. "You know her grades aren't great. Just feed her a few answers—help her save face."

Last time, I was so thrown by their sudden "kindness" that I agreed on the spot.

I actually thought if I helped, maybe they'd love me back.

Every time Amelia's scores came in glowing and they tossed me a fake compliment, I clung to it for days—like it meant something.

Meanwhile, Amelia got showered in praise just for breathing.

It never occurred to me that helping her cheat would be the start of my downfall.

I was clueless then, walking straight into the trap.

Now, I looked down at the fat meat in my plate—stuff I'd never even liked—and caught the edge in their eyes.

I dropped to my knees. "Mom, it's not that I don't want to help Amelia. I just... I really can't."

Silence.

Amelia didn't even look up. "Dad, Mom, she just doesn't want to help me."

Their heads snapped to me, eyes full of suspicion. That's how it always went. If Amelia said it, it had to be true.

"Evelyn Everton! Can't you be a little more considerate? You won't even do us this small favor? We raised you for nothing. You've really let us down."