Chapter 3
Around sunset, the front door clicked open.
Mom, Dad, Graham, and Poppy walked in, arms loaded with shopping bags.
Poppy was spinning around in a brand-new white silk slip dress, holding Silas's hand.
"How do I look, Silas? Dad just bought this for my graduation party," she beamed.
Silas smiled, his eyes full of awe. "You look amazing. It totally suits you."
Mom walked over to me.
She dug to the bottom of a heavy shopping bag and pulled out a plain pink canvas tote, handing it to me.
"Flora, I figured this would be perfect for carrying your school books. I brought it back just for you," she said.
I took the bag.
It was clearly a free promo tote from a designer purchase.
"Thanks, Mom," I said calmly.
"Flora is always so easygoing," Dad said.
He slipped off his shoes and patted my shoulder proudly.
"Not like Poppy. She spends way too much on clothes and bags. You never care about that stuff. You save us money and never cause trouble. Such a good girl."
I stood there in silence.
They never once asked, "Flora, do you want this?"
They just assumed Poppy deserved the absolute best, while I was only meant to catch the leftover freebies.
And on top of that, they slapped the "good girl" label on me.
Seeing my silence, Poppy suddenly tugged at Mom's sleeve.
"Mom, did I spend too much today? Flora looks upset."
She turned to me, looking entirely guilty, and aggressively shoved a shopping bag into my hands.
"Flora, how about you take all these new clothes and bags?"
"Anyway, Mom and Dad already wrote me an $80,000 check in private as a graduation gift, and Graham transferred me another $20,000... I have way more than enough! I don't want these gifts anymore. You can have them all!"
Dead silence fell over the living room.
Dad’s hand froze mid-air while pouring himself a glass of water.
Graham’s face visibly tightened.
That $100,000. No one had ever breathed a word of it to me.
"Don't read too much into it, Flora," Graham was the first to break the silence.
"I just started my internship, so money is a bit tight right now. When I get paid next month, I'll definitely write you a big check too."
"Exactly," Mom quickly chimed in.
"Our certificate of deposit doesn't mature until next month. We'll make it up to you then. We would never play favorites."
They explained with eager, panicked voices, as if scrambling to cover up some dirty little secret.
Looking at their flushed faces, I only found it ridiculous.
"No need," I said.
"Flora, please don't be mad at Mom and Dad." Poppy bit her lower lip.
Her eyes suddenly landed on my desk, fixing on that slightly chipped vintage wooden music box.
"Flora, if you're really mad... how about I trade all these new designer clothes for that little wooden music box on your desk? I really, really love it."
It was the only thing Grandma left for me before she passed away.
When I was ten, my parents took Poppy to Orlando Disney World, dumping me alone at Grandma Iris's farm out in the country.
On a rainy afternoon, Grandma held my tiny hand at the town market.
She used her egg money, scraping together enough spare change, to buy me this exact music box.
She had stroked my hair and softly said, "Whatever Poppy has, our Flora should have too."
Whenever I felt like I couldn't hold on anymore, I would open that box.
It made me feel like Grandma was still right beside me.
Mom rushed to persuade me.
"Flora, since Poppy likes it so much, just give it to her. Once you head up to your college, I'll buy you a brand new music box. Maybe one with a little gold lock."
Silas quickly backed her up.
"Yeah, come on, it's rare for her to ask for something small like this. Flora, since you like listening to music so much, I'll get you a name-brand wireless speaker when you leave for college."
One by one, they effortlessly made the decision for me.
They were offering an empty promise and a free promo tote in exchange for the most precious thing I owned.
"Okay." I looked right at them and nodded.
I walked over, picked up the music box, and handed it to Poppy.
She smiled sweetly. "Thank you, Flora!"
But the second it was in her hands, the so-called "treasure" was instantly forgotten.
She carelessly tossed the wooden box onto the nearby console table, leaving it half-hanging off the edge.
She didn't actually care about the music box.
She just loved the thrill of taking what was mine.
And, just like every single time before, she succeeded.
"Alright, let's go have some cake." Silas playfully nudged Poppy toward the dining room.
The rest of the family followed, laughing and chatting.
I turned around and locked my bedroom door.
I opened Poshmark on my phone.
One by one, I listed every single thing that tied me to this family, erasing my traces from this house forever.
