Chapter 4
"Ashley, why did you push me?" Jocelyn cried.
"Why did you trip me?" she added.
"Oh no, my dress... And it hurts so much," she sobbed.
The music downstairs came to an abrupt halt.
A stampede of footsteps thundered up the stairs.
Mom, Dad, and James burst into the room.
They saw Jocelyn collapse on the floor, her face a mess of tears and smudged makeup.
Their faces were a mix of shock and anger.
Dad rushed over and scooped her up in his arms.
"Jocelyn, what happened?" he asked.
She pointed at me, her finger trembling.
She was sobbing so hard that she could barely get the words out.
"Ashley... she pushed me." She choked out.
"And she tripped me with something," she sobbed, her voice trembling with accusation.
"It hurts so much," she whimpered, clutching her dress in pain.
James shot me a furious glare, his face twisted with anger.
"Ashley, do you have a death wish?" he yelled.
He charged at me, reaching out to grab me.
I raised the ashtray in my hand.
"Take a good look," I said, staring them down.
I said, "This ashtray, I've been holding it the whole time.
"There's nothing on the floor to trip over.
"She fell all by herself."
"She's just trying to frame me," I added, rolling my eyes. "But she's a terrible actress."
James froze, his hand hovering in the air.
Dad's face turned stormy, his expression dark and furious.
Mom looked at the sticky cream smeared across Jocelyn's dress.
Then she glanced at my perfectly clean clothes.
For the first time, a hint of doubt flickered in her eyes.
Jocelyn's crying grew louder, more desperate.
"Dad, it really was Ashley," she wailed, her voice trembling as she tried to sound innocent.
"She says I'm stealing you all from her," she sobbed, her voice trembling with accusation.
"She hates me," she whimpered, her words dripping with self-pity.
I let out a bored yawn.
"Okay, that's enough," I said, rolling my eyes. "Drop the act already.
"You brought the cake yourself.
"You walked over here.
"You fell on your own."
"None of that's my problem," I snapped, not even bothering to hide my annoyance.
I added, "Go cry somewhere else.
"I'm going to sleep."
Dad stared at me, his gaze locked and unblinking, as if seeing me for the first time.
In the end, he scooped up the sobbing Jocelyn and carried her downstairs.
"Everyone, back to the party," he called out.
"The guests are waiting," he added, his voice firm.
"Patricia, help Jocelyn change," he ordered.
James shot me a vicious glare before following them out.
Mom lingered for a moment, her eyes avoiding mine.
She just murmured softly, "Ashley, you've changed."
I closed the door behind me.
"People change," I replied flatly. "For better, or for worse."
"I've gotten lazy," I said, not bothering to hide my indifference.
"So, which one do you think I am?" I added, with a hint of sarcasm in my voice.
Mom didn't answer.
She closed the door softly, and the lock turned.
I flopped back onto my narrow bed.
Downstairs, the music started up again.
I set the ashtray down next to my pillow.
Hmm.
Not bad.
*****
After that night, something shifted in the house.
Jocelyn stopped "accidentally' passing by the attic.
Mom and Dad began watching me with strange, unreadable looks, as if I were a stranger, or a puzzle they couldn't solve.
Only James stayed the same.
He still shot me those icy, hostile looks.
"Don't think your little tricks will get you back in their good books," he snapped.
"Jocelyn's their only real daughter in this family," he shouted, his voice dripping with contempt.
"You're nothing," he spat.
I was just then boiling the frozen pierogies Patricia had slipped me, steam rising steadily from the small pot.
I said, "Oh.
"They smell pretty good, don't they?"
"You want some?" I asked, barely glancing his way, the steam rising between us.
James nearly choked, caught completely off guard.
His face flushed so red that it looked like he might explode.
"As if!" he spat, voice full of contempt.
He spun around and stormed out.
I fished a pierogi from the pot, blew on it gently, and took a bite.
Cheese and potato filling spread warm across my tongue.
Damn, that was good.