Chapter 3

Christopher sheepishly lowered his head as he closed the box, but he grumbled under his breath. "It's probably something a guest left behind by accident… The boxes looked too similar, I must've mixed them up."

Then, Anthony, who once swore he'd never hide anything from me, stepped in to back him up. "Yeah, you know how some guests like to feel... at home."

"At home"? Since when did guests get to ride around in their private car?

Ever since Erica showed up, the passenger seat had practically become her throne. She'd sprawl out like a queen with her bare feet resting on the cushion that I carefully selected.

And yet—I didn't care anymore.

However, my compliance made them uneasy.

"You seem off, Scarlett. You're really not mad?" Then came the warning. "If you've got something to say, say it to us. Don't take it out on Erica."

I shook my head. "No… I just don't think I should be making a scene anymore."

They exchanged glances, thrown off by my calmness. To them, it had been a while since I'd acted this obedient.

Suddenly, both of their phones chimed with that special ringtone. They instantly lit up and glanced at each other in excitement. They were ready to leave immediately.

I lowered my eyes. "Aren't you going to give me the gift?"

They froze. The excitement drained from their faces and was replaced by disgust. Without a word, they flung the box in my face.

"Do you even care about what's important? God, how did we not realize sooner how shallow you are?"

I felt blood trickle down my cheek.

They paused, unsettled for a second, but they didn't stop.

"Open it yourself. There's bandages in the first-aid kit."

With that, the front door slammed shut behind them.

The clock ticked past midnight, and there were only three days left.

I whispered into the stillness, "You know… today's actually my birthday." It had finally reached the extent that they'd forgotten about my birthday. But maybe that was better. At least now, there was no one left to mock me for hoping.

…

I booked a flight for Sunday. It was raining that morning as I made my way to the cemetery.

When I was young, I begged to go hiking for my birthday. That same day, a mudslide buried my parents alive.

For years, I couldn't forgive myself. I believed I'd killed the only people who ever loved me.

I carried that guilt into adulthood, and Levi was the only one who stayed by my side to provide me words of comfort.

"They love you. That's why, even as the mudslide came, they held you above their heads. They wanted you to be happy."

I cried like I hadn't cried in years. No one had ever said that to me before. All anyone ever told me was that it was my fault. Even Anthony and Christopher never dared speak of it.

I asked Levi to wait at the gate as I needed a moment alone with Mom and Dad.

But when I reached the grave, I froze—Anthony and Christopher were already there.

I hadn't seen them visit in three years—not since Erica arrived. For a moment, I thought maybe they'd finally remembered.

But then... I found that they had dug out my parents' urn.

I rushed forward to stop them. "What the hell are you guys doing? That's my parents' grave!"

They hesitated when they saw me. Guilt flashed across their faces, but it vanished as quickly as it came.

"Erica's pet spider died. This is the best grave in the cemetery. We found your parents another place."

"But they're my parents!" Tears spilled down my cheeks as I screamed, my voice raw with heartbreak.

Then, Erica appeared from nowhere, shoving me aside to shield Christopher. "You psycho! Don't you dare touch Christopher!"

In the chaos, the urn tipped over. However, Anthony and Christopher rushed to hold Erica instead of the urn, and they knelt to inspect her foot.

I lunged forward and held the urn tightly while tears streamed down my face.

Anthony and Christopher used to be loved by my parents just as much as I was, and now, they were tearing up their graves… over a pet spider.

Erica let out a theatrical cry, but for the first time, they didn't rush to her.

Christopher seemed shaken when he saw me in tears.

Anthony knelt beside me and pulled me into his arms. "Scarlett… the dead are gone. You need to let them go."

I raised my hand to slap him, but Erica let out a scream and dramatically threw herself in front of him before collapsing to the ground.

"It's okay, Anthony, it's fine even if I'm scarred—as long as Scarlett forgives me..." She dropped to her knees and sobbed like she was in a movie.

But I had barely touched her—it was nothing more than a pat. And just like that, their pity for me turned into hatred.

Christopher shoved my head into the mud while Anthony forced my legs down, pinning me in front of the urn.

"You killed your parents, and now you want to hurt Erica too? How could someone like you ever deserve their love?" Every word stabbed like a blade.

Behind them, Erica smiled sweetly. Then, she grabbed the urn and smashed it to the ground.

Anthony clenched his jaw. "I'll have someone clean up your parents' ashes. But first, we're going to fix that attitude of yours."

I screamed and crawled toward the fragments, but I was only to be dragged away again.

Just as everything was crumbling around me, I saw Levi standing at the far end of the cemetery.

My heart leapt, and my voice cracked with desperation as I cried out for help.