“But I
didn’t do anything wrong,” I said. “Of course
you didn’t do anything wrong! Your sister was
く
wrong, but she’s upset about her scores. Try
to be understanding. You did so well, be the
bigger person.” “Why should I forgive her?” I
raised my voice. “We’re family,” Mom said.
“You can’t just stop talking to her.” I didn’t
reply. Mom, thinking I’d agreed, said a few
more things, then left.
The next morning, I washed the skirt and
hung it to dry on the balcony. The weather
forecast predicted a sunny day. I went back
to my room and started organizing my notes.
Top students‘ notes could be sold for a good
price. I was insecure, and money made me
feel safe. Halfway through, I heard a scream. I
rushed out to find Lily, in her pajamas,
holding my dripping wet skirt, her eyes
blazing. “Ashley, you’re pathetic! Copying my
く
skirt? Do you have a crush on Ethan? I’m
warning you, he’s mine!” “Put it back,” I
snapped, my voice sharp. I knew I must have
looked awful. “No way! Mom and Dad were
fooled by you yesterday, but I’m going to set
them straight today!” She ran to the
bathroom. I knew what she was going to do
and followed her. But it was too late. Lily
threw my newly washed skirt into the toilet
and poured a bottle of toilet bowl cleaner
over it. “You’re so pathetic, Ashley,” she sneered. I didn’t say anything. I grabbed the toilet bowl cleaner from her hand and poured it over her head. “Ahhh!” she shrieked, her
smug expression replaced with shock. I grabbed her throat, my face expressionless. “Who’s pathetic now, Lily?” Lily gasped. “You
く
hit me! I’m telling Mom and Dad! They’ll
punish you!” I was so sick of her voice.
Seeing my ruined skirt in the toilet, I snapped.
I slapped her across the face. Lily was
stunned. She stared at me in disbelief, as if
she couldn’t comprehend how the quiet,
obedient Ashley could do such a thing.
When Mom and Dad got home, Lily’s voice
was hoarse from crying. Her cheek was
swollen, her hair a mess, and her pajamas
stained blue from the toilet bowl cleaner.
Mom rushed to her side. “Honey, what
happened?!” Dad turned to me. “Did you do
this?” “Yes,” I said. Before the word was even
out of my mouth, Dad slapped me hard
across the face. The force of it sent my head
snapping to the side, my ear ringing. “Just
く
because you’re the state topper doesn’t mean
you can do whatever you want! How could
you do this?!” I straightened up, pretending to
be calm, unfazed. But inside, my heart was
breaking. They hadn’t even asked what
happened, just jumped to conclusions. I was
the state topper, therefore I must have gotten
arrogant and attacked my sister. Mom looked
at me disapprovingly. “You could have talked
to your sister. Why did you resort to
violence?” I didn’t answer. They told me to
apologize to Lily, but I stayed silent. Lily
smirked. “It’s okay, I don’t think Ashley meant
- it. Let’s just forget about it.” She was
flaunting their favoritism. I walked back to my
room, my face expressionless.
Lily decided to retake the SATS. She left for
L
く
cram school in early August. I spent the rest
of the summer working, saving up $20,000,
$18,000 of which was prize money from the
school. When it was time to leave for State
University, I refused to let my parents take
- me. Mom was bewildered. “Ashley, why won’t
you let us take you?” “No need,” I said. Those
two simple words shut her up. “Ashley, why
are you being so cold?” she asked finally. I
didn’t answer. Her opinion didn’t matter to
me anymore.
My dorm room at State was a quad. After a
month of orientation and welcome week, we
were all pretty comfortable with each other.
The night before classes started, there was a
get–together for students from our state. It
was at a restaurant downtown. Getting a cab
L
at 8 pm was a nightmare, the buses were
packed, and I arrived late. The party was
already in full swing. Sarah, a senior from my
high school, had been put in touch with me by
my teacher as soon as I got my acceptance
letter. We’d been texting for a month and
finally met in person on move–in day. “Ashley,
over here!” Sarah called out, waving me over.
The private room was huge, with six tables
set up. I sat next to Sarah. A guy across from
us suddenly grinned. “Is this our little
freshman? I didn’t know we had such a cute
freshman in our midst.” Sarah laughed. “Well,
Ashley is pretty low–key.” I listened to their
chatter absently, my eyes scanning the room. I didn’t see Ethan. I relaxed against my chair. “Hey, I’m Zach. What’s your name?” “Ashley.
く
Like the tree,” I replied. “Nice name,” he said.
I just smiled. “So, when is Ethan getting
here?” a girl at the next table asked. I held my
breath, waiting for the answer. “He should be
here soon,” another guy said. “Just called
him, he’s on his way.” “Good,” the girl replied.
