Chapter 3

Liam's POV

Grandma called that night.

"Liam, why did you run off to the city?" There was a note of reproach in her voice. "Do you have any idea how busy your parents are? Now that you're there, they have to worry about you and your brother at the same time. You're only making things harder for them."

I rubbed at my nose, trying to ignore the sting behind it. "Grandma, do you think I'm ruining their happy family too? Did Mom and Dad adopt me or something?"

"What? Of course not!" Grandma answered immediately. "Don't be ridiculous. Where would you even get an idea like that?"

"Then, why do I have a brother I didn't even know existed?"

Grandma fell silent. A long time passed before she finally sighed. "Your brother was sick a lot when he was a baby, so your parents kept him with them in the city. After a few years, they got used to having him there.

"They'd originally planned to send him here to live with me too, but when the time came, they couldn't bear to part with him. So, they hired someone to help look after him instead."

She paused.

"Your parents were afraid that if you found out, you'd start asking to move to the city too. They couldn't manage two children at once, so... they decided not to tell you.

"But once your brother's a little older and doesn't need so much looking after, they'll bring you to the city to live with them."

That was what they'd decided. Lucas needed them, so he got to stay. Meanwhile, I was expected to wait until he didn't need them anymore.

Why had they been so sure I'd make a fuss about moving to the city?

I'd always done what I was told. I'd always tried to be good.

Was that really enough to justify treating us so differently?

It didn't make sense.

And somehow, that only made it hurt more.

"I heard your brother cried all night because of the trouble you caused," Grandma continued. "Be good tomorrow, alright? Don't make everyone miserable."

"Okay."

But the next morning, Mom was surprisingly nice to me. She made breakfast herself and even asked if I'd slept well.

"For lunch, I'll take you to that fast-food place you like. You can get a kids' meal," she said.

Then, she added, almost as if she needed to explain herself, "We never took you before because we were worried you'd like it too much. There aren't places like that near Grandma's, and we didn't want you constantly thinking about it instead of focusing on school."

Lucas overheard and immediately protested, "But Mom, you promised we would get steak today. We just had fast food yesterday. I don't want it again."

I lowered my eyes and waited for Mom to change her mind. I was already used to being the one who gave way.

But this time, she didn't.

Instead, she gave Lucas a stern look. "Your brother hardly ever gets to come to the city. Today, we're having what Liam wants."

And so, that afternoon, I finally got the kids' meal I'd dreamed about for so long. It tasted just as good as it had yesterday. Only this time, there was a little toy beside my food.

I picked it up and held it carefully in my hands. It wasn't one of Lucas' castoffs. It wasn't something he'd gotten tired of or something he already had.

For once, it hadn't belonged to anyone before me. This toy was mine.

The third day, Mom took me back to the mall. She bought me a whole new outfit and a toy car.

When Lucas saw everything she'd bought, he threw a fit. "Why does he get stuff and I don't? You didn't even take me with you!"

Then, he spotted the jacket. "I want that!"

Mom's expression hardened. "That's Liam's. Enough, Lucas. Keep this up, and I'm going to get angry."

Lucas burst into tears, and Dad eventually had to take him into the bedroom to calm him down.

I stood there awkwardly before apologizing to Mom, "I'm sorry. I made things difficult for you."

Mom's face softened. She gently ruffled my hair. "It's not your fault."

That tiny gesture stayed with me. I lay in bed for more than an hour afterward, too overwhelmed and strangely happy to fall asleep.

Eventually, I got up to use the bathroom.

As I passed my parents' bedroom, I heard Mom speaking quietly inside. "You'll always be my one and only baby. Come on, don't cry.

"And that jacket? I picked it out for you in the first place. It doesn't even fit him properly, so I'm sure he won't want to take it home."

My whole body went rigid.

"We're just being extra nice to him for a few days so he stays happy and doesn't make a fuss. Then, he'll go back to Grandma's without causing any trouble, okay?"

"If we treated you the way we normally do while he's here, he'll get upset. What if he decided he didn't want to leave?" Dad murmured his agreement.

Then, the two of them kept talking, quietly discussing how to keep me happy, to make sure I didn't cause trouble, and to get me to go back to Grandma's without a fight.

So, that was all it had been.

None of those things meant they finally wanted me. They were just making sure I would leave.

I didn't even notice when one of my slippers slipped off. The floor was cold beneath my feet.

I pressed a hand to my chest, and that felt cold too.

I'd never refused to leave—not once.

I didn't sleep at all that night.

Just before dawn, I quietly packed my backpack. I placed the toy car Mom had bought me on the coffee table, along with the new clothes, folding everything as neatly as I could.

I was already 12 years old. I didn't even like jackets covered in little cartoon cars anymore.

There had been another one at the store that I'd really liked, a simple gray jacket with no pictures on it. But Mom had insisted on buying this one. So, I'd accepted it.

And now, I knew why. It had never really been for me.

Somehow, in their version of the story, I was still the difficult one. I was the kid who couldn't take a hint and the one who might cling to them and refuse to leave.

I put on my backpack and quietly walked out.

By the time Mom called, I was already sitting on the old bus back to Grandma's, bouncing slightly every time it hit another rough patch in the road.

"Liam, where are you?"

I looked out the window. "I'm going where you wanted me to go."

Mom sounded confused. "What does that mean?"

Then, her tone sharpened. "And why would you just disappear like this? Do you have any idea how worried you're making everyone? You can't just…"

For the first time in my life, I hung up on my mother.