Chapter 3

A girl in a white puffer jacket, her hair in a ponytail, showed up at the door.

She looked about fifteen or sixteen, with porcelain skin, big eyes, and delicate features. Actually, she was pretty pretty.

She paused for a second when she saw how many people were inside.

When she caught the awkward, guilty, and flustered look on my parents' faces, a flicker of wariness crossed her eyes.

Then her gaze landed on me.

She sized me up, and her eyes were tinged with a faint hostility.

"Dad, Mom, I'm back," she said, her voice sickly sweet.

She changed her shoes and, as if it was the most natural thing ever, handed her backpack straight to my mom as she said, "Ms. Smith praised me today. She said I made a huge improvement on the mock exam."

"Really? Cam, you're amazing." Mom beamed with pride, as if all the gloom from one minute ago had never happened.

Dad's face lit up, too. "I always knew Cam was the brightest."

The three of them looked so happy together, like a warm family snapshot.

And me? I was the awkward blot that didn't belong, messing up their perfect picture.

"And who is this?" Camille asked, glancing at me as if she didn't already know.

"This is... This is your sister, Jessica," Mom stammered. "She... She's back for the Christmas holidays."

"Oh, nice to meet you, Jessica." Camille gave me a smile that seemed friendly and innocent enough, but to me, it felt painfully glaring.

Then she headed straight for my room.

Well, it was hers now.

"Jessica, why are you standing here? I need to get changed," Camille asked, tilting her head at me, sounding like I was some clueless guest.

I blocked the doorway, refusing to budge.

But my body moved before my mind caught up.

Why?

Why did she get to take everything from me, as if she owned it?

It was my room, my parents, my home.

And now she was acting like she was the queen of the house, ordering me out.

"This is my room," I said, looking straight at her, each word deliberate.

Camille's smile stiffened for a second.

She looked to my parents for help.

Mom rushed over and grabbed my arm. "Jess, what are you doing? Cam's been living here for a year now. She's already settled in. You're the big sister. Let her have it, okay?"

There it was again. I was the big one.

I'd heard that line a million times growing up.

When I was a kid, whenever the neighbor's kid grabbed my toys, Mom would always say, "You're the big one. Let him have it."

When my cousin ruined my books, Mom would say, "You're the big one. Don't get mad at him."

I had figured, since I was my parents' only child, I'd have never heard that line.

But nope. At twenty-eight, they went and gave me a "little sister," so I could keep on being the big one.

That was the last straw.

"I'll say it again." My voice was ice-cold. "This is my room. Make her move out."

"Jessica!" Dad's face darkened. "Are you enough? It's Christmas Eve. Why do you have to ruin it for everyone? It's just a room. Why the big fuss? You can sleep in the guest room."

I let out a bitter laugh.

Tears threatened to spill, but I laughed anyway.

So, to them, I was making a big fuss.

Everything I'd built up over twenty-something years, all my sense of belonging, was shattered by them giving my room to someone else.

"Great. That's great." I nodded.

Then I turned and walked into the bedroom, with their shocked faces watching me.

I didn't bother looking at Camille, whose face went pale in an instant.

I walked straight to the closet and yanked the door open.

One by one, I pulled out all those bright, colorful dresses and tossed them onto the floor.

After that, I yanked open the desk drawer and swept out all the textbooks, stationery, and her diary, dumping them on the floor.

Finally, I strode over to the bed, yanked up the blanket, sheets, and pillow, bundled them together in my arms, and carried them straight to the door.

"What are you doing?" Mom screamed, her voice shaking with disbelief.

Camille's tears streamed down her face as she looked at Dad. "Dad... my stuff..."

Dad was shaking with rage, pointing at me. "You... You are so unbelievable."

I ignored them.

With all of Camille's stuff in my arms, I headed to the living room and swung open the front door.

Then I tossed everything out into the hallway.

After that, I turned around and saw the three of them standing there, jaws practically hitting the floor.

I grabbed my pajamas from my suitcase.

Then I marched back into "my" bedroom, slammed the door shut in their faces, and locked it for good measure.

Finally, the world was quiet.