Chapter 1
My sister and I were twins, but we were nothing alike.
She was the golden child, smart, sweet, and destined for greatness. She'd just landed a spot at one of the top universities, a dream come true for anyone.
Me? I was the notorious troublemaker, the one everyone whispered about.
My parents ended up sending me off to a reform school, hoping it would fix me.
After that, my sister, Shannon Carter, ended up in the hospital, all because of what her college classmates did to her.
However, those classmates just joked around, saying that if each of them skipped a meal, they'd have enough to pay Shannon's compensation.
I put on Shannon's clothes, slung her backpack over my shoulder, and put on her innocent face, ready to confront those jerks.
For once, my parents didn't try to hold me back.
*****
We were only allowed one visit home per month. I'd been waiting for this day for what felt like forever.
When I pushed open the room door of my sister, Shannon Carter, I was carefully holding the gift I'd made for her in my palm.
It was a butterfly specimen I'd put together in crafts class.
I could already picture her cute little face lighting up, diving straight into my arms the moment she saw it.
But before I even had the chance to take out the gift, I saw her passing out cold on the bed.
She was rushed to the hospital.
The doctor's face turned grim as soon as he saw her injuries. "Hurry. Get her to the emergency, now."
The iron door to the ER slammed shut, and hours dragged by.
Every time it opened, it was nothing but bad news.
Mom was slumped in a chair, sobbing uncontrollably, while Dad tried to hold it together, signing who knew how many papers.
"Why is this happening? My poor girl," Mom cried out.
When the doctors finally came out of the ER, they all looked defeated, heads hanging low.
"We did everything we could, but she might never be able to have kids," one of them said.
The next second, he comforted us, "If her recovery goes well, she'll have to live with a colostomy bag for the rest of her life. If not—"
Mom fainted right there, her eyes rolling back.
Dad was sobbing uncontrollably, gripping the doctor's arm.
"Please, doctor, you have to save her. She's so young. She has her whole life ahead of her. She can't end up like this," he pleaded.
The doctor just closed his eyes and shook his head, looking completely helpless.
My pocket buzzed. It was the phone I'd picked up from Shannon's bed.
Messages kept popping up, like grim little reminders of doom.
I punched in her birthday, unlocking the phone.
It was an 18-person group chat, and Shannon was in it.
In the chat, a clique led by Lucia Green kept tagging Shannon, all talking at once.
Lucia: [Don't forget to finish our lab assignment and bring it before class the day after tomorrow.]
Lucia: [Same breakfast as always. I want pies, and make sure to add sausage, cheeses, and chips.]
I always thought I was the one stuck in the darkness, while my sunny, cheerful sister lived a life full of light.
Unlike my sweet and sensible sister, I never played by the rules, not even as a kid.
When I was eight, my parents dragged me back to our hometown.
They said life back home would set me straight.
Every time I made a mistake, Mom would take a rattan cane and lash my hand hard.
"Why are you so disappointing? Listen. No matter how angry you get, you have to control yourself. Otherwise, you will be thrown out of this house," she'd yell.
Shannon would always step in to shield me, and in the end, Mom would just break down, hugging us both and crying her eyes out.
After that, I kept my head down and became the most well-behaved kid in the reform school.
But now, my mind was buzzing with countless voices, all chattering away at once.
In the end, the deepest voice in my head made the final call.
"Shut up. None of you is getting out," that voice snapped.
Finally, Shannon was wheeled out of the emergency room alive and transferred to a regular hospital room.
Dad had to make several calls before he finally got through to the principal, Wade Harcourt.
On the phone, Wade started with a half-hearted apology, then went right into his classic routine of passing the buck.
He explained, "The school's security cameras are down. I checked with everyone, and nothing unusual happened. You really don't need to worry.
"It's probably just some harmless roughhousing between students, nothing as serious as you're making it out to be. Just apologize and move on."
Dad just exploded at Wade over the phone. "The cameras just happen to break at the most crucial moment? Are the cameras busted, or is it you people in charge who are rotten inside?
"None of you even bothered to come see my daughter, and now you say it's just some kids messing around? Is this how you people do things?"
But to our surprise, Wade sounded even more offended than Dad.
He sighed, "Sir, our students are all model kids, both in grades and behavior. There's no way something like this could happen here. Maybe you should check if your girl's the problem.
"I'm trying to help you here, and you still yell at me? Whatever, I'm done talking. Don't bother calling again."
And with that, he hung up. When Dad tried calling back, he was blocked.
I opened my browser, looked up Wade's photo, and burned his face into my memory.
If he ever ended up with a colostomy bag, maybe then I'd just apologize and move on.
Through the clear glass, Shannon, who always had a smile that could light up a room, now lay there so still.
She looked just like a flower about to wilt.
Meanwhile, the group chat was blowing up with messages, all because she hadn't replied.
[How dare you ignore us?] someone in the group griped.
[You really need to be put in your place,] another chimed in.
Then they started spamming the group chat with videos of Shannon being bullied, piling on the mockery and taunts nonstop.
I clicked on the video.
In the corner of the playground, more than a dozen girls had Shannon completely surrounded.
They roared with laughter, clearly relishing every bit of her pain.
Lucia's tone was cold and vicious. "They say all the boys in our class like you. Why don't you tell us just how pretty you think you are?"
Shannon was trembling all over, scared out of her mind.
"I'm not pretty. Nobody likes me," she choked out.
In all the chaos, I spotted the security camera overhead, tracking their every move.
It turned out that it wasn't the surveillance that was broken. What they wanted to protect was the perpetrators.
But the bullying wasn't even close to over.
Lucia's eyes lit up with a wicked gleam.
"Hey, girls, I've got an idea," she said, her voice dripping with malice.
The other girls snickered at each other, their grins twisted and cruel.
After a heart-wrenching scream, the commotion finally drew Wade over.
Shannon thought her savior had arrived.
But Wade just glanced over and waved his hand dismissively.
"Class is about to end. Get back to your classrooms," he barked.
Shannon was left lying there all alone on the playground. I honestly had no idea how she even managed to drag herself home.
Even my parents saw the video.
I'd never seen them fall apart like that, crying so hard, completely losing it.