Chapter 4

Emily finally showed up. It was a weekend afternoon, and she came under the pretext of checking in on an old friend.

She arrived with an expensive fruit basket, dressed in a classy Chanel outfit, her makeup on point.

She looked every bit like the lady of the house.

Meanwhile, my mom was just in her home clothes, looking like a nervous housekeeper.

"Lydia, it's been so long. You're still such a wonderful homemaker," Emily said with a smile.

Emily gave my mom a warm, familiar hug, as if they'd known each other forever.

My mom stiffened up.

Zack stepped out of his study and caught sight of Emily. His brow twitched almost imperceptibly, but he quickly smoothed his expression.

"What brings you here? You didn't give me a heads-up," Zack asked.

"I missed you, so I thought I'd stop by since I was in the neighborhood," Emily replied with a playful tone.

Then she fixed her eyes right on me.

She said, "Oh, this must be Sunny. You've really grown up. You are so pretty."

She came over and reached out, trying to touch my cheek.

I instinctively took a step back.

The atmosphere got awkward in a heartbeat.

My mom quickly jumped in to smooth things over. She said, "Sunny is just shy around new people."

I lowered my head and mumbled, "Hi, Ms. Jennings."

"Such a good girl," Emily said.

Emily pulled her hand back and gave a smile, but it didn't reach her eyes.

She sat down on the couch and started chatting with my parents, making small talk.

It was all old stories, funny memories from their school days.

The three of them acted like old friends who'd known each other forever, the mood warm and easy.

My mom forced a smile, trying to join in, but the sadness in her eyes was impossible to hide.

I sat quietly off to the side, peeling an apple, feeling like I didn't even exist.

Suddenly, Emily turned the conversation toward me.

She said, "I heard Sunny went to some kind of special school a few years back, right?"

She looked at my mom, pretending to care, and asked, "It must've been hard for her, being out there all alone, huh?"

My mom's face went ghostly pale in an instant.

That was something we never talked about in our family.

Zack's expression darkened, too.

He snapped, "Emily!"

"Oh, silly me, I shouldn't have said that," Emily said, quickly covering her mouth, her face full of apology.

"I just worry about Sunny. Schools like that are pretty strict, aren't they? She must've had it rough," she added, her tone dripping with concern.

She looked at me, her eyes searching mine: a mix of curiosity and pity.

I froze mid-peel and glanced up.

But instead of looking at Emily, I focused on Zack.

I said, "It was no big deal.

I flashed a flawless smile and added, "Mom and Dad sent me there because they wanted the best for me.

"I'm truly grateful for that."

Zack's expression instantly softened.

My mom let out a sigh of relief.

Emily's smile froze on her face.

She clearly hadn't seen that coming from me.

Emily looked like she was about to say something else, but I stood up before she could get a word out.

"I'll go make you some coffee, Ms. Jennings," I said, keeping my voice steady.

Then I turned and walked into the kitchen.

In the living room, Zack lowered his voice and demanded, "What do you really want today?"

"I came to see your daughter, to see what kind of person she's become because of you two," Emily replied, her voice cold.

She said, "Honestly, she makes me a bit uneasy."

"Afraid of her? She's just a kid who doesn't know anything. What's there to be scared of?" Zack said with a dismissive snort.

"She's so calm that it's almost creepy," Emily said, her voice uneasy.

"That's just her being mature," Zack retorted, not leaving any room for argument.

He added, "Enough. Stop overthinking it. Just watch what you say."

I walked out of the kitchen with the coffee, and the conversation in the living room came to an abrupt halt.

I set the coffee down in front of Emily.

I said, "Please have some coffee, Ms. Jennings."

Emily looked at me, her gaze hard to read.

As she was about to leave, Emily came close, speaking just for my ears.

She murmured, "You hate them, don't you?"

I didn't answer.

She went on, not really expecting an answer, "Honestly, after being stuck in a place like that for three years, anyone would hate them.

"Take it from me, kid. You can't win against them. Don't do anything reckless."

With that, she patted my shoulder and glided away, every step oozing elegance and poise.

I watched her retreating figure, a cold smirk tugging at my lips.

Yeah.

Of course, I hated my parents.

But they were not the only ones.

I hated Emily, too.

None of them could run from me.