"Fine. I can accept that. Grandpa and Grandma treated me well."
I leaned forward, bracing my hands on the table. "When I was ten, do you remember what I wanted for my birthday?"
Silence.
A harsh laugh tore from my throat. "I just wanted you to take one day off to go to the amusement park with me. That wish has never been fulfilled. What's truly ridiculous is that I heard you took those two sponsored students there the very next week."
"At fifteen, you finally took me back in. But you criticized everything I did. Too loud. Too quiet. Too messy. Too *distinct*. You tried to mold me into someone else." I pinned them both with my stare. "Tell me—on what grounds? You were absent for my entire childhood. What gives you the right to judge how I turned out?"
The blood drained from Mom's face. Her mouth opened. No words came.
Under the table, Aria tugged at my sleeve. Signaling me to apologize.
I shook my head.
"This card has two hundred thousand," Mom stammered, pulling a bank card from her purse. "Your dad and I borrowed it over the last two days. Take it. We'll pay you back the rest later."
She tried to shove the card into my hand.
I stepped back.
"I don't want the money anymore." My voice was formal. Final. "From today on, my life has nothing to do with you."
