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بيت / They Never Voted Yes for Me / Chapter 4

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Chapter 4

مؤلف: Pink Candy
There were five hours before my scheduled departure for the Northern Division.

A black car waited outside the dorms.

The driver saw me come out and stepped forward right away.

"Good afternoon, ma'am. I'm the driver sent by the Northern Division to pick you up."

He glanced at my luggage, then added gently, "No rush. Take care of whatever you need to first. We'll leave at the scheduled time."

I nodded and was about to thank him when he suddenly asked, "By the way, this training runs for five years. Do you want to go say a proper goodbye to your family? It's a long time. You might not see them again for a while."

Five years.

I looked down at my suitcase, hesitating for a moment.

In the end, I decided to go home one more time.

Maybe before I left, I owed myself one last reason to really let go.

I used the last of my spending money to catch a cab home. When I walked in, the living room was packed with suitcases.

Mom was directing the staff to pack sunscreen. Vivian was trying on a new beach dress. Xavier was excitedly scrolling through photos of resort hotels.

Dad stood off to the side, confirming flight and hotel bookings.

The whole family was buzzing with activity.

They all froze the second they saw me walk through the door.

The room went quiet.

"Lily? What are you doing back?"

Mom nearly dropped the bottle of sunscreen in her hand.

I looked at the suitcases scattered everywhere. "Are you all going somewhere?"

"We're heading to the beach for vacation." Vivian recovered quickly, giving her dress a little swish. "Mom and Dad said everyone's been working hard lately, so we're taking a break."

She shot me a pointed look as she said it.

"You've got bad timing. We're about to head out."

Mom glared at her, then forced a smile my way.

"Lily, if you want to come too, we could talk about it."

She said it hesitantly, her eyes drifting to the already packed luggage.

Before I could respond, Xavier frowned.

"Wouldn't that mean extra costs? Hotel, flights, meals... we'd have to redo the whole budget."

He looked to our father like it was obvious.

"Since every expense in this house goes to a vote, let's vote on it."

No one stopped him.

Vivian raised her hand first.

"I'm against it. The whole trip's already planned. No need to add expenses last minute."

Xavier followed right after.

"I'm against it too."

Mom hesitated, then lowered her hand.

"I don't think it's really convenient either."

Dad glanced at me and made the call.

"Three against. Settled. She's not going."

Same as it had been for the past ten years.

Whether I stayed or went, what I needed, even whether I got to go on vacation with my own family, all of it could be voted away in seconds.

I stood there and suddenly felt exhausted. I was so done trying.

Dad finally noticed I hadn't said anything. Maybe feeling a flicker of guilt, he asked, almost gentle for once. "Lily, why did you come back all of a sudden?"

I looked at him and shook my head, not wanting to say anything.

"No reason."

I turned and left.

The laughter picked back up behind me almost instantly, as if my showing up had just been a minor, forgettable interruption.

I later learned that my parents had left with Vivian and Xavier an hour later, after finishing their packing, chattering happily about beachfront restaurants and sunsets.

My chest settled into something calm. Whatever lingering attachment I'd had left finally let go.

Back at the dorms, the Northern Division's car was still waiting.

The driver saw me and immediately got out to open the door.

I set my bag inside and climbed into the back seat.

"Are we leaving now?"

I looked out the window and finally let myself smile.

"We can leave now."

The car pulled away from the academy.

Dad was waiting at the airport. At almost that exact moment, he suddenly clutched his chest, his face draining of color.

Mom doubled over too, a sharp pain stabbing through her heart.

She frantically tried to reach through the bond to sense me.

No matter how hard she tried, that familiar connection was gone.

Mom looked up, panicked.

"Lily... where's my daughter?"

Dad stood frozen as two messages came in from a former member of the household staff.

[I'm sorry, Alpha. I was the one who stole those ten gold coins ten years ago.]

[I've been too afraid to tell the truth all these years. I'm sorry. It's my fault she was blamed for something she never did.]

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  • They Never Voted Yes for Me   Chapter 9

    Before I reached the car, they asked if I could stay for a few days. I agreed to three days, making it clear that I would return to the Northern Division afterward.For those three days, Mom cooked dinner herself every night, the table piled with all the food I'd loved as a kid.She even had the chef prepare a dozen different meats and fruits, terrified I wouldn't get enough to eat."Lily, eat more."She kept piling food onto my plate, her eyes rimmed red."It was my fault before. From now on, I'll make whatever you want for you."I looked at the food piled high on my plate and quietly said thank you.Then I kept eating.I didn't tell her that I honestly couldn't remember anymore what I used to like as a kid.Five years ago, I'd survived on a dollar's worth of rye bread and a bowl of cheap broth a day.Back then, what I wanted most wasn't a lavish dinner. It was simply being able to eat a full meal without asking permission or putting it to a vote.Now, I was used to buying

  • They Never Voted Yes for Me   Chapter 8

    During my first month at the Northern Division, I lost three pounds because I still wasn't used to the new life.Leona looked over my checkup results and frowned, then told me to start eating two extra servings of meat at every meal.I did.No one here asked me why I was eating so much. No one made me put a slice of meat up for a family vote.Three months later, my weight was back to normal, and color had returned to my face.Six months in, I earned an excellent rating in combat evaluation for the first time.A year in, I climbed from dead last in physical conditioning to the top ten.Leona once asked me why I pushed myself so hard.I thought about it and said, "Because I don't want to go back to the life I used to have."She didn't ask anything further. She just patted my shoulder.Those five years at the Northern Division were brutal.Up at five every morning, weighted runs, hand-to-hand combat, tactical drills. Getting hurt was routine. Failing was routine.But I never o

  • They Never Voted Yes for Me   Chapter 7

    When Dad looked into the Northern Division's stipend rate, he froze.Three hundred dollars a month.He remembered perfectly well that Vivian had bought a $4,999 dress just days earlier, and that Xavier had complained the training meals didn't suit him, so the family chef started preparing meat and fruit just for him separately.And I had gotten sixty dollars a month.I'd asked for two dollars to buy glucose tablets, and they'd refused even that.Yet the moment I'd learned the Northern Division only paid three hundred dollars a month, I hadn't hesitated for a second before signing up for five years of isolated training.Mom sat in the car, tears falling one after another."Do you think she'd rather suffer out there alone than stay here with us?"No one answered, because the answer was obvious.After speaking to the dorm supervisor, Dad immediately contacted my homeroom advisor.The advisor listened to his request and answered flatly. "Lily's already completed her withdrawal pa

  • They Never Voted Yes for Me   Chapter 6

    After almost a full day of travel, I finally arrived at the Northern Division.This place saw snow year-round, the cold biting and relentless. Thick walls separated the training base from the outside world, with two rows of fully armed wolf warriors standing guard at the entrance.Leon had already submitted my paperwork ahead of time.Leona Reed, the officer in charge of intake, flipped through my file, then looked up at me."Lily. Nineteen years old. Ranked third in combat evaluation?"I nodded.She closed the file, her tone brisk."Not bad. Let's see if you can hold that ranking five years from now."Then she handed me an ID card."As of today, you're an official recruit of the Northern Division. The base provides housing, three meals a day, training gear, and a three hundred dollar monthly stipend. Outside of special circumstances, you're not permitted to leave the base during training."I took the card, my fingers tightening slightly around it.Housing. Meals. Three hund

  • They Never Voted Yes for Me   Chapter 5

    Dad clutched his chest, his face growing worse by the second.He reached for my familiar scent through the bond and found that the connection, once so clear, had vanished completely.Mom was just as panicked."How is this possible? I could still feel Lily just a second ago..."Her voice shook, her eyes rapidly turning red-rimmed.They hurried out of the airport and back into the car. Dad barked at the driver, “Get us home, now!”The driver didn't dare hesitate and spun the car around immediately.The air in the car froze.Vivian sat in the back, her perfect makeup looking strangely brittle with worry.She suddenly remembered the scene before they'd left.I stood in the living room doorway, watching them scramble to pack. There was no crying or questions, not even my usual quiet request to come along.I just stood there watching, then turned and walked away.At the time, Vivian had assumed I was just sulking.After all, it didn't matter how many times they'd turned me dow

  • They Never Voted Yes for Me   Chapter 4

    There were five hours before my scheduled departure for the Northern Division.A black car waited outside the dorms.The driver saw me come out and stepped forward right away."Good afternoon, ma'am. I'm the driver sent by the Northern Division to pick you up."He glanced at my luggage, then added gently, "No rush. Take care of whatever you need to first. We'll leave at the scheduled time."I nodded and was about to thank him when he suddenly asked, "By the way, this training runs for five years. Do you want to go say a proper goodbye to your family? It's a long time. You might not see them again for a while."Five years.I looked down at my suitcase, hesitating for a moment.In the end, I decided to go home one more time.Maybe before I left, I owed myself one last reason to really let go.I used the last of my spending money to catch a cab home. When I walked in, the living room was packed with suitcases.Mom was directing the staff to pack sunscreen. Vivian was trying on

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