Chapter 4

I straightened up, feeling lost, and blurted out, "I'm sorry. I'll change it right away."

But Larissa reached out and stopped me.

She gazed at me with warmth and affection, gently stroking my hair. "Sweetheart, you didn't do anything wrong. There's no need to apologize."

Then Larissa turned to Gwen and gave her a firm smack on the back. "Don't talk nonsense. Go apologize to her."

Gwen stumbled a little from the smack, but she just pouted and didn't cry.

She shuffled over to me, looking awkward.

"Sorry. I shouldn't have talked to you like that," she said.

I looked up in surprise, catching the apologetic gazes of Larissa and Gwen.

My eyes grew hot, and I couldn't stop the tears from welling up.

See, Mom. I didn't do anything wrong. I didn't need to apologize.

*****

After that day, Gwen and I became best friends.

Every day after school, we'd hang out in her secret base and talk about everything that happened to us.

At first, I was still shy around her.

But after a while, we became fast friends.

Gwen asked, "What if your sister gets jealous seeing how close we are?"

I furrowed my brows. "I don't care," I said stubbornly.

To me, Gwen felt more like a sister than Sandra ever did.

Gwen would share her dolls with me, help me brush my hair, and put fuzzy hair clips in it.

Whenever Sandra made me sad, Gwen would gently wipe away my tears, hold my hand, and tell me I was the best kid ever.

Sandra? She only smiled at me when Mom and Dad were around. Sharing was out of the question. I was lucky if she didn't snatch my stuff.

Gwen finally relented and made a deal with me. "Alright, but you cannot tell anyone about it, okay?"

I pressed a finger to my lips and gave her a huge, cheeky grin.

Our friendship was our special secret.

However, happy times never last long.

One day, Gwen and I were playing in the garden in our complex when Sandra showed up.

Sandra walked right up to me, staring at the hair clip on my head. "Where'd you get the new hair clip? Why don't I have one?"

Ever since I was born, Mom had this rule: whenever anyone in the family bought something, they had to get two, and Sandra's always had to be fancier and more expensive.

If I ever got something new, Sandra would always end up with one that was even prettier.

But now, I had a new hair clip, and Sandra didn't.

I reached up, trying to hide the hair clip on my head.

But I was still too slow.

Sandra grabbed a fistful of my hair, trying to yank the clip right off.

I twisted around in terror, pleading with her to stop.

The hair clip was a gift from Gwen and I couldn't bear to lose it.

But Sandra ignored my pleas. She leaned in close, her voice low and chilling right in my ear.

"Did you forget what Mom said?" she hissed.

Mom's voice sounded in my head. "Sandra is the princess of the family. You have to give in to her and pamper her.

"Why are you so selfish? Why are you so petty?"

Every word from Mom felt like a punch to the gut, leaving me numb. I stood there, frozen, while Sandra yanked at my hair.

Gwen froze for a second, stunned. She then hurried over, trying to pry Sandra away from me.

But Sandra was bigger and way stronger. No matter how hard Gwen shoved, she stood her ground like a rock.

Soon, Larissa hurried over and saw us.

"What's going on here?" Larissa asked.

Gwen, teary-eyed, turned to her mom for help. "Sandra's pulling Tammy's hair and trying to take her hair clip!"

Larissa glanced at me. My hair was a mess, and I looked like I'd just been through hell. Then she glanced at Sandra who was all smug with the hair clip.

Larissa didn't even have to think twice whose side she was on.

She blocked Sandra's way and grabbed the hair clip from her.

Sandra wasn't about to back down. She grabbed Larissa's arm and tried to sink her teeth in.

But Larissa was an adult. She twisted her arm and shook Sandra off without breaking a sweat.

Sandra lost her balance and landed hard on her butt, then started wailing at the top of her lungs.

Larissa was momentarily stunned by Sandra's ear-splitting wail.

If anyone saw this scene, they'd definitely think she was bullying a kid, so she hurried to help Sandra to her feet.

Just as she turned around, a figure lunged at her out of nowhere, slamming her hard to the ground.

A hoarse voice, blazing with fury, shouted, "You bitch! What did you do to my daughter?"