Chapter 3
Just as work was about to end, Charlotte showed up again.
She was holding two cups of hot coffee, wearing a phony smile.
"Evelyn, you must be exhausted after working all afternoon. Here, have some coffee to refresh yourself," Charlotte said as she walked over and handed me one of the cups.
Just as I reached out to take it, she suddenly jerked her wrist, and the scalding coffee splashed right onto my chest.
"Oh no. I'm so sorry, Evelyn. I didn't mean to. Did it burn you?" Charlotte exclaimed.
She fumbled around, pretending to help me clean up, but took the opportunity to pinch my arm hard.
The coffee seeped down my collar, burning a large patch of my skin bright red.
My coworkers gathered around again.
"Yikes, that's so careless."
"Charlotte was just being thoughtful. Evelyn should've been more careful when taking it."
Enduring the pain, I stared at Charlotte, her face practically glowing with smug satisfaction.
She did it on purpose. She was pushing my buttons, trying to humiliate me.
In my previous life, I would've swallowed my anger and even gone out of my way to reassure her.
But this time, things were different. I snatched Charlotte's hand as she tried to reach for me.
"Charlotte, what's with your shaky hands? Are you coming down with Parkinson's or something?" My voice was cold as ice, and my stare could cut glass.
Charlotte recoiled from my glare, instinctively trying to yank her hand back. "What nonsense are you spouting? I was just being nice, bringing you coffee. It's okay if you don't appreciate it, but do you have to say such hurtful things?"
"Being nice?" I sneered, grabbed the untouched glass of cold water from my desk, and splashed it right across Charlotte's perfect face.
Charlotte shrieked, totally shell-shocked. Her flawless makeup was ruined, her hair stuck to her face, and she looked absolutely wrecked.
The silence was deafening.
Everyone stared, eyes wide, unable to believe what they'd witnessed.
They couldn't believe that I, the usually timid intern, had actually dared to splash water on Charlotte.
"Evelyn, are you out of your mind?" Charlotte snapped back to reality, screaming as she came at me, ready to hit.
I sidestepped and casually tripped her up with my foot.
With a loud thud, Charlotte, teetering in her high heels, lost her balance and face-planted right onto the floor.
"My nose!" she wailed, clutching her nose as blood seeped through her fingers.
"Evelyn, I'm going to kill you!" Charlotte shrieked, going absolutely nuts like a madwoman.
I looked down at her from above, my expression cold and detached.
"Charlotte, looks like I had a little slip of the hand myself. Guess that family disorder of yours really is contagious," I said.
*****
The whole mess finally wrapped up when Richard and Helen walked in.
In the office, Charlotte was bawling her eyes out, pointing at me and accusing me of all sorts of outrageous things.
"Dad, Mom, you have to stand up for me. Evelyn's gone completely crazy. She didn't just throw water at me. She pushed me too. My nose is almost broken," Charlotte wailed.
Helen pulled Charlotte into her arms, fussing over her and wiping away her tears, all the while glaring daggers at me.
"Evelyn, you ungrateful brat. We took you in out of the goodness of our hearts, fed you, clothed you, and this is how you pay us back? If we'd known you were this vicious, we never would've let you through our doors," Helen snapped.
Richard sat in his swivel chair, his face so dark it looked like thunderclouds were about to burst.
"Evelyn, apologize to Charlotte," he barked, not caring who was right or wrong.
I stood in the middle of the office, still wearing the coffee-stained shirt, my skin still stinging from the burn.
But I stood tall, not backing down an inch. "I did nothing wrong. Why should I apologize?"
Richard slammed his hand on the desk, roaring. "You dare talk back to me?
"Charlotte is your sister. She was being nice, bringing you coffee, and not only do you not appreciate it, but you actually went and hit her? Where are your manners?"
Manners? I stared at my father, feeling nothing but irony.
"I was told not to start trouble, but not to take it either," I said. "Charlotte threw coffee at me first. I was just defending myself."
"You're making things up. It was an accident," Charlotte shrieked.
"Oh? What I did was also an accident," I shot back, my tone icy.
"You..." Charlotte was so furious she could barely speak. She turned and threw herself into Helen's arms. "Mom, look at her. She doesn't listen to you and Dad at all."