Chapter 1

The day I went on stage to perform, not a single person I cared about showed up.

My dad, mom, brother, and even my boyfriend spent the whole day out with my sister, Gloria Blanchard.

The front-row seats I'd saved just for them stayed empty from start to finish. Seeing those seats empty the whole time just made me feel so pathetic.

After I got off stage, my hands were trembling as I tried calling each of them, but no one picked up. The calls just rang out until they disconnected.

Meanwhile, Gloria posted a group photo on Instagram with the caption: [The happiest thing in my life is having everyone I love right by my side.]

Backstage, people kept coming and going. Most just gave me looks full of pity, while others didn't bother to hide their scorn or even laughed at me.

I was nothing but a total clown.

But this time, I didn't make a scene. I just calmly finished the last stroke of my twentieth tally.

They'd gone through every single one of the hundred chances I gave them, and now there wasn't a shred of hesitation or attachment left in me.

It wasn't until I disappeared overseas without a word that they finally freaked out, blowing up my phone one after another, begging me to come back.

But it was way too late. I didn't have a single hope left for any of them.

Just as I finished the last stroke of my hundredth tally mark, the door was shoved open, and in walked my brother, Houston Blanchard.

He caught sight of the notebook in my hand and gave a mocking laugh. "What, throwing a tantrum and keeping score like a kid?"

If this had been before, I would've called them out for their favoritism, tears and all.

But now, I just closed the notebook with a blank face, not even bothering to look up at him or say a word.

Houston looked a bit surprised that I wasn't freaking out like I usually did.

After a moment of silence, he frowned and said, "Alright, stop giving us the cold shoulder. Gloria brought back some snacks. Go downstairs and have some, and don't give us attitude."

"Okay," I replied coolly.

I put the notebook away and headed for the door.

Just as I reached the door, Houston called out, "Daisy."

I turned to look at him. He hesitated, looking unsure what to say.

Houston raised an eyebrow. "Why so quiet this time? You're not up to something, are you?"

I replied coolly, "If that's what you think, then I might as well just stay up here."

It was not like I wanted to go down and watch them play happy family anyway.

He frowned and said, "Do you have to be so sharp with your words? Sure, we missed your performance this time, but there'll be other chances, right? It's just a school concert. Why act like it's some huge event? If you ever get famous, we'll show up then, no rush.

"Besides, Gloria hardly ever asks us to go out with her. Of course we'd want to make her happy."

Yeah, Gloria was always their number one. That was just how it was.

Even if it was just a concert in the school auditorium, with everyone at school watching, it was still my debut performance.

I'd been practicing for weeks on end, losing sleep over it, scared I'd slip up even once.

My grandma left me a violin, and I treated it like treasure, not just because it was all I had from her, but also because I knew my folks wouldn't shell out for anything music-related.

They saw how much this performance meant to me, but they just didn't care.

That day, I was the joke of the whole school. My classmates and teachers tried to comfort me, saying maybe something urgent came up for my family, that WAs why they couldn't be here.

But not one of them even bothered to send a text or call to say sorry.

And my so-called brother Houston just acted like nothing was wrong, even telling me not to give them attitude.

Looking back at all their so-called "kindness" over the years, I felt so numb I could actually smile about it.

The only thing that gave me a bit of comfort was that, before heading out today, my teacher tried once more to convince me to seize the chance and accept the offer to study abroad.

I'd already turned it down a few times because I couldn't bear to leave my family and boyfriend behind.

But thankfully, the opportunity was still there. And the people I cared about most? They ended up giving me the final push I needed to make up my mind.

I agreed right away, and my teacher looked really pleased. She told me to get ready. I'd be leaving for the other side of the world in just ten days.

Just ten more days. If I could get through these ten days, I would finally be free.

I brushed past Houston. "If that's all, I'm going to the living room."

Out of the corner of my eye, I saw Houston's face freeze in surprise.

When I walked into the living room, Gloria flashed me her sweetest smile. "Daisy, I bought that famous cake from the mall. Would you mind taking it to the kitchen and slicing it up for everyone?"

"See?" Gloria stuck out her tongue. "I'm kinda tied up right now."

Mom and Dad were sitting on either side of her, chatting nonstop about all the fun they had during their day out.

When Mom saw me standing there, her face darkened. "Can't you see Gloria's busy? Go slice the cake, will you?"

I didn't bother arguing. I just nodded, grabbed the bag from the table, and headed to the kitchen.