Chapter 4

The next morning, I was jolted awake by the commotion in the living room.

Several large suitcases had been laid out across the floor. My parents were busy packing things into them.

“Lydia, it gets hot overseas. Make sure you protect yourself from the sun while you’re out.”

“All right, Mrs. Kensington.”

With an ice cream in hand, Lydia stood to the side, smiling from ear to ear.

I was just about to return to my room when a basketful of clothes was shoved into my hands.

“Stop standing around daydreaming. Help pack these for Lydia.”

I set the basket down on the floor. Jerome frowned and asked, “I only asked you to help pack her clothes. What’s with that attitude?”

I met his gaze coldly and gave him a faint smile.

“Aren’t you worried something might happen to the things I pack?”

Jerome’s eyes narrowed at that. “What kind of trick are you trying to pull now?”

I shook my head with a bitter smile.

What trick?

It was just that, once upon a time, I had given Lydia a hair tie as a gift. She later accused me of coating it with flower nectar, claiming it had triggered her allergies.

Ever since then, Jerome had refused to let me touch any of Lydia’s belongings.

Mom picked up the basket I had set on the floor. “Enough. Stop crowding around here. You’re no help at all. All you do is make trouble.”

The truth was, I had once wanted to help. Whether it was fetching documents or cleaning the house, I had always been the most eager to lend a hand.

Back then, I was still young. I thought that if I did enough, Mom would eventually notice me.

If she noticed me, she would still love me. At first, it actually worked. However, after a few times, her gaze stopped falling on me altogether.

Eventually, something resembling disgust even began to creep into her eyes. Despite that, I continued throwing myself into every household chore with the same enthusiasm.

Then one day, Mom stood in the spotless living room I had just cleaned with a gloomy expression.

“You’re doing all this over such trivial things just to show off and make Lydia look bad. Diana, you’re so manipulative.”

After that day, I never volunteered to do another chore.

No matter what I did, it would always be twisted into evidence that I was fishing for praise.

I let out a quiet sigh as I watched my parents bustle about.

I was turning to return to my room when Lydia caught me by the arm. She looked at me, her eyes glistening with unshed tears.

“Diana, are you still upset about the trip? I’ll talk to your mom and dad. I’m sure they’ll agree to take you with us.”

I took a deep breath, forcing down the discomfort rising inside me.

They were my parents, yet I needed an outsider to plead on my behalf just to be included in a family vacation.

After hearing Lydia’s words, Mom affectionately stroked her head. “You really are the kindest girl. Someone like her doesn’t deserve to travel with you.”

When she looked up at me, her gaze turned cold again.

“We’ll take you somewhere after we get back. There’s no need to rush. Will you not be satisfied until you’ve made everyone miserable?”

I looked at Mom as a wave of bitterness rose in my chest.

My fingers dug into the flesh at the base of my thumb, the pain helping to conceal the sorrow in my eyes.

“Mrs. Kensington, please don’t say that about Diana.” Lydia’s tearful voice rose at just the right moment from the comfort of Mom’s embrace.

Mom heaved a sigh. “You’re going to stay home and reflect on your behavior for the next few days. We’ll talk about everything else when we get back.”

My clenched fist slowly loosened.

There was no point defending myself anymore. I nodded and returned to my room.

Looking at the plane ticket on my phone, I released a long, weary breath. Just a little longer. Soon, I would finally escape this cage.

I got up and rummaged through a corner of my room until I found a gift box.

Inside, I placed a copy of my admission letter for Summit Lake University’s summer camp, along with the report from the hospital. I also slipped in the bank transfer records.

By the time I had finished preparing everything, the living room had already fallen quiet.

I left no note and no explanation.

After placing the gift box in the most conspicuous spot in the living room, I pulled my suitcase behind me and took one last look at the room I had lived in for eleven years.

It was shabby, cramped and insignificant, just like I had been in this family.

I smiled faintly and climbed into the cab bound for the airport, not looking back even once.

By the time I arrived, messages were still flooding the group chat.

Lydia was excitedly recording videos. In one of them, Mom smiled tenderly as she fed Lydia the sushi she made. Beside her, Jerome gently wiped a smear of sauce from the corner of Lydia’s mouth.

The four of them looked like one big, happy family. I was nowhere to be seen.

Beneath the video, Jerome tagged me in a message.

“Mr. and Mrs. Kensington said that if you’re willing to apologize, we’ll reluctantly agree to let you come with us.”

They might consider it. What a laughable choice of words.

I smiled and muted the group chat. Then I turned around and boarded my flight to Lake Haven.