- 4.
The next morning, Chrissy came back, all
smiles.
I’d just washed a small bowl of strawberries
to snack on while I studied.
I saw her and tried to ignore her and head
upstairs, but she blocked my way.
“I just told Mom on the phone that I wanted
strawberries, and here you are, bringing them
to me.”
<
She gave me a nasty look, reaching out to
take the bowl like it was hers by right.
“Thanks, Ashley.”
She made sure to emphasize my first name.
Even though I was home and back to being
the real daughter, she always called me
Ashley.
Being cornered by her like that made me feel
suffocated.
“I’m not giving them to you. Wash your own if
you want some.”
I tried to get past her, but she grabbed the
bowl from my hands.
“You think you’re all that because Mom stood
L
“You think you’re all that because Mom stood
up for you yesterday? Guess what? She even
agreed to let me date Arnie if I stayed in this
family. Can’t you tell she likes me better?”
“I’m telling you, everything in this house
belongs to me. Try to take it, and you’ll see
what you’re up against.”
She loosened her grip, and the bowl crashed
to the floor, shattering.
Just then, Jake walked in, startled.
“What’s going on? What happened?”
“Jake,” Chrissy said, her eyes welling up. “I
don’t know what got into Ashley, but she just
threw a bowl in front of me on purpose. It
scared me half to death.”
I’d heard Jake used to spoil Chrissy rotten.
L
One time, she mentioned that “a boy in class
wouldn’t stop touching me,” and Jake went
ballistic.
He spent the whole night on the phone after
finding out who it was.
The next day, someone ambushed the kid on
his way to school, and he couldn’t get out of
bed for two weeks.
If Chrissy wanted a doll, all she had to do was
glance at the window of a toy store.
Before nightfall, every doll in the window
would be in her room.
Not only I could tell, but Chrissy knew that
<
Jake had feelings for her, something more
than brotherly love.
For Jake, she was a trophy, something he
owned, that made him feel good.
He couldn’t let that trophy go.
Before, he would have sided with Chrissy
without question, scolding me and telling me
to apologize.
But this time, he pulled his arm away from
Chrissy, looking confused.
“I had this weird dream last night,” he said,
shaking his head. “Or maybe it wasn’t a
dream…I don’t know. I need to calm down. I’m
going upstairs to rest.”
く
Chrissy’s hand was still hanging in the air,
and her eyes narrowed.
“What’s going on?”
She stared at Jake’s back, looking frustrated.
Yeah, she used to have Jake wrapped around
her finger.
Even though Chrissy didn’t like Jake, she
loved the way he doted on her.
He was like a handsome possession that
made her feel safe, and she wouldn’t let him
- go.
“Ashley, you witch. What are you looking at?”
She shoved me hard and stomped upstairs.
