3
Tiffany jumped out of her chair, “Excuse me?
Who the hell is this?!”
The other woman barked back, “I’m his
girlfriend! Who are you?!”
Tiffany’s face went crimson. She clutched the
phone. “Jake, you better explain this mess right
now!”
The other woman was yelling through the
phone, “You skank! You’re trying to steal my
man! I’m gonna come over there and scratch
your eyes out!”
Jake had no idea what was going on. He
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8:52
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snatched the phone. “Who the hell is this?
You’ve got the wrong number, I’ve never even
met you!”
He hung up, looking like a deer caught in
headlights. He pulled Tiffany into a hug. “Baby,
trust me, I have no idea who that was. She has
to have the wrong guy.”
I just chuckled, “Bro, I heard her call you ‘Jake‘.
That’s not a mistake.”
Tiffany was already in tears.
Jake’s eyes narrowed, “Did you do this? You’re
just jealous because we have something special, and you’re all alone. You found some random girl to stir up drama?”
I put on my most innocent face. “I swear I
didn’t do a thing.”
He shot back, “Well, who else would it be?”
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8:52
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Tiffany glared at me. “Riley, you are so evil. You
know he’s your brother, why do you always do
these things?”
Evil? They were the ones trying to steal my
career, trying to bury me in the woods!
Dinner turned into a massive disaster. We went
home, and before Jake could even whine to
Mom and Dad, they dropped a bomb on me.
“Riley, honey, we think you should move out,”
my mom said with a cold tone.
I was stunned. “Tiffany’s parents called us, said
their daughter’s about to start a six–figure
salary job, and they’re worried she’ll be
supporting you when she marries your brother,”
mom continued, looking at me like I was some
parasite.
“As your parents, we get their side of it. For
Jake’s sake, and for our own future happiness,
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we need you to leave.”
I looked at Dad, my last hope. “Dad, you feel
this way too?”
He just nodded. “Don’t blame us, you have no
one to blame but yourself. You should have
your own six–figure job, not be a freeloader.”
I stared at them in shock. How could they even
say something like that? Ever since college, I’d
been paying my own way. I covered all my living
expenses, and I gave them money every month
for rent, for utilities, for food. I even paid for
Jake’s spending cash.
I’d always given them presents, nice gifts on
birthdays. I thought we were a family. They
were treating me like some random person.
“Fine,” I said, my voice rough. “Since you value
your future million–dollar daughter–in–law more
than your own flesh and blood, I guess there’s
8:52
no point in staying. Let’s just get a legal
document that we will no longer be related.”
My brother wrote the document. My parents
signed without a second thought. Then, he
grabbed my hand, and forced me to write out
my name, crooked and shaky.
I was dragging my suitcase out the door. No.
one said a word. No one tried to stop me.
672
I turned back for one last look and saw them.
already talking excitedly about their bright
future, basking in the joy of having their future.
bread–winner in the family.
4
