hapter 7
Everyone was still whispering about Piper. Such
a lucky girl! Not even her parents‘ real child but
she still got so much love. And they were
wondering what I did that made my parents
hate me so much.
I picked up the three hundred IOUS. “Your
money, I don’t want it.” I said, showing them all
the papers. “You wanted me to pay you back
this week or else you’d send me to jail right?
So, let’s do it now.”
My parents got even madder. “We just want
you to be responsible. Why can’t you just
apologize to your sister?” My mom said, “Let’s
see how much money you have.”
Piper’s eyes looked nervous “Mom, Dad, Riley
is a college student, where will she find all that
moment, “Maybe she got into something
illegal?”
My parents looked at me as if I was a criminal.
“How could you be such a horrible daughter?”
They never had trusted me.
I took a deep breath. “I got the money by
drinking liquor at a bar.”
Piper interrupted me immediately “Riley, you’re
a Sullivan! Why would you do something as
degrading as that?” “I wonder what old man
was thirsty for you?”
“Enough!” Liam yelled. He looked at Piper with
doubt. She was trying to step all over me. And
this was the first time that Liam was starting to
suspect her.
“It was me! I was the one that was harassing
her. I told her to drink ten bottles and I would
give her a hundred grand!”
A hundred grand? Everyone was shocked. It
was probably not even enough to buy the
champagne tower. My parents were bewildered
that I would let someone bully me for so little
money.
I laughed. I took out the ten thousand dollars
and put it on the table. “I’ve counted the IOUS.
It’s 48,726 dollars. This is everything I owe you.
From when I was ten to eighteen. I’ll round it to
50 grand.”
“I spent enough of your money when I was
younger. The last 50, that’s for you.”
“Here’s the money. Let’s say goodbye now.”
My coldness made my parents freeze.
“You can’t! Riley, you are our daughter.” My
mom said. Yeah, I was. But in the last eight
years, they spent more money on Piper’s
clothes than on me.
“Riley, we messed up! Let us make it up to you.
What day is your birthday? We will throw a
party for you!”
They were desperate and it showed. Piper’s
face turned white.
But no one jumped to comfort her. Even Liam
didn’t say anything. “Riley’s birthday is on the
same day as Piper’s…”
“”
They forgot about it. On my birthday, they gave
the other one a trip on a cruise ship with all the
bells and whistles. And I was alone in the ER
and they made me sign an IOU for the medical
bills.
My parents suddenly looked like they just woke
up from a nightmare. My dad took the IOUS,
reading every single one. Some for school
supplies, for medicine, clothes. The biggest IOU
was the three grand for my surgery.
They looked at me, for the first time in eight
years they really looked at me. They saw how
thin I was, my pale face, and how I had a limp
from my accident. My mom’s hands trembled
when she tried to touch my face.
