Rising Ink
On the day of the college entrance exam, just as I was writing my name on the answer sheet, my progressive amnesia struck again.
When the scores came out, my younger sister had earned 680 points. I had earned eight.
Mom was so furious she slapped me hard across the face.
"Even if you'd guessed with your eyes closed, you would've scored higher than eight!
"I think you did this on purpose!"
I covered my swollen cheek and hid in my room.
The moment I shut the door, the eraser inside my head moved.
A second later, I turned around and walked back out.
Mom was sitting on the couch, trembling with anger. I asked softly, "Mom, why are you so upset? Did someone make you mad?"
I reached out to wipe away her tears, but she flinched away like I was some kind of monster.
That night, my older brother came home with a dark look on his face.
He stood outside my door and shouted, "You score an eight and still have the nerve to talk back to Mom and play dumb? Get out!"
He shoved my clothes into a suitcase and pushed me out the door along with it.
The moment I was pushed out, the eraser in my head moved again.
A second later, I looked up at my brother and gave him a sweet smile.
"Caleb, why did you pack so much stuff? Are we all going on a family trip?"
But he didn't say a word. He just slammed the door shut.
That night, the whole family took my sister out for a fancy dinner. Everyone except me.
I went back to my room and cried all night.
But when I woke up the next morning, I couldn't remember why my pillow was wet.
Then, on the day my sister left for college, Mom said I was an embarrassment and dumped me beside a highway interchange.
I stood on the side of the road as traffic rushed past, and my mind went completely blank.
I wanted to go home, but I couldn't remember my address.
I couldn't even remember who I was.
By the time my family came home, happy after seeing my sister off, they finally noticed.
I was gone.