Her Birthday, My Funeral

Synopsis

"Please, Hazel, just come down! It's all my fault..." Claire sobbed, tears spilling down her beautiful face. My so-called brother, Jason, immediately pulled her into a protective embrace. "Hazel Livingston!" he yelled up at me. "Are you done making a scene? It's Claire's birthday!" My mother, Scarlett Brooks, pointed a trembling finger at me. "The Brooks family does not have such a vicious daughter! You won't be satisfied until you completely ruin us!" My father, Gabriel Brooks, the ever-imposing patriarch, stared at me coldly. He looked at me like a piece of trash that had just ruined his biggest business deal. "Go ahead and jump. I will just pretend you were never born." I smiled. So to them, I was worse than an enemy. A cold, mechanical voice echoed in my mind once more. [Life countdown complete. Host Hazel, do you confirm your departure from the current world and the severing of all blood ties?] Letting the freezing rooftop wind wash over me, I looked down at the strangers I once called family and spoke softly. "I confirm."