Chapter 3

She hurried over and snatched the bandage out of my hand.

Her fingers scraped against my face, reopening the wound that had already begun to scab over. Blood started flowing again.

I covered my face and looked at her. "Mom, I wasn't fighting him for the bandage. I'm bleeding too."

"Serves you right!" She didn't even spare me a glance as she stuck the last bandage onto Mikael's hand. "Oh, and go buy some more. Mikael will need to change his bandage."

After she said that, I stood there without moving. "Why aren't you going?"

"I don't have any money."

"You little leech." She tossed me one dollar. Then she glanced at the bandages on my arms and legs and muttered, "What a waste. Why do you need so many?"

"Mom, maybe Quinton just wants to get your attention."

The moment I closed the door, I heard Mom let out a derisive snort.

I went to buy more bandages. By then, the blood on my face had already dried.

When the pharmacist handed me the bandages, she looked at me with concern. "Have you disinfected this wound?"

"No."

She reached for some cotton swabs and antiseptic.

I instinctively stepped back. "I don't have any money."

"It's just a little cleaning. I won't charge you." She gently dabbed the antiseptic onto my face.

For some reason, I suddenly pictured Mom applying medicine to Mikael's injuries. I fought back my tears and stared hard at the ceiling.

I waited while the pharmacist placed a bandage over my cheek.

"There. All done. You need to be especially careful with a wound on your face. You don't want it to leave a scar."

I nodded and hurried out.

When I handed Mom the bandages, she glanced at the treated wound on my face and sneered. "I thought you said you didn't have any money."

I opened my mouth, wanting to explain that the pharmacist had treated my wound for free, but when I saw the utter distrust in Mom's eyes, I suddenly didn't feel like saying anything. I turned around and walked away in silence.

Mom complained to Dad, "Look at him. He walks around with that sour expression every day, as if we owe him a fortune."

Mikael glanced at me, hesitated, then said, "Mom, why don't I return my MacBook and get a cheaper one? We could use the difference to buy Quinton a phone. After all, we did use his scholarship money."

My steps came to a halt.

I knew perfectly well Mom wouldn't agree to Mikael's suggestion, but a tiny spark of hope still flared inside me.

"See? Your little brother is so considerate." Mom looked at Mikael with approval. When she turned to me, her eyes were filled with undisguised disgust. "You should learn from Mikael. Look how sweet and thoughtful he is. Then look at you, always wearing that miserable expression."

I spun around and looked at Mikael's new phone. With a bitter smile, I said, "Mom, if you'd used Mikael's $10,000 scholarship to buy me the whole Apple lineup, I'd be happy too. I'd smile at you every single day."

Mom seemed to miss the point entirely. She pointed at me and said, "So all you care about is spending Mikael's money? Don't you have any sense of responsibility as an older brother? Mikael even offered to buy you a new phone, and now I don't think you deserve one."

Mikael frowned at me. "Quinton, don't hold this against me. I offered to buy you a phone. You're the one who made Mom angry again.

"I didn't make her angry. She's angry just looking at me. But don't worry. From now on, I'll make sure she never has to see me again."

I shut my door and moved the desk behind it to block the entrance.

Then I took out my phone, plugged it in, and started looking for tutoring jobs. With a score of 1580, I received plenty of offers as soon as I posted my results.

I did the math. If I worked for a full month, I'd earn enough to cover my tuition and transportation costs, and still have money left over for a new phone.

The more I calculated, the more hopeful I felt.

When I opened my door again, Mom, Dad, and Mikael were already eating, but the chair that was supposed to be mine was missing from the dining table.