They Cheered While I Froze

I was born to be the villain in my twin sister's fairy tale.

Thanks to a fake psychic's prophecy, my parents believed I was a parasite—a cursed child draining Amy's life with every success I had. To ensure she survived her national ballet finals, my father bolted me inside an abandoned meat freezer. Even the boy who once promised to protect me thought I was just throwing a selfish tantrum.

They toasted to Amy's victory in the warm living room. I froze to death in the pitch-black dark below.

When they finally open that iron door to punish me, the cruel joke will be on them. They won't find a daughter to scream at anymore. They will only find a frozen body.

I used to beg for their love, but watching them shatter over my corpse?

I feel absolutely nothing.

Jessica's POV

The heavy metal door slammed shut.

"Deadbolt it, David. Make sure it's locked." Sarah's muffled voice bled through the steel.

I threw myself at the freezing metal, pounding with both fists. "Mom, let me out! Come on! The National Youth Ballet finals are tomorrow. I got a Juilliard audition! I have to go!"

"Not a chance in hell!" David roared. "Jesus, Jessica, you are so unbelievably selfish! That psychic warned us years ago—you're sucking the life right out of Amy! Are you just gonna keep pushing until your sister is dead?"

"Not a chance in hell!" David roared. "God, Jessica, you are so incredibly selfish! That psychic warned us—every time you shine, you're literally sucking Amy dry. If you set foot on that stage, she's going to collapse. Are you not gonna stop until she's dead?"

"She was a fraud! Dad, it was bullshit!" I screamed, my nails screeching against the iron. "I've trained for ten years for this! It's my only shot at a full ride. Please, just open the damn door!"

"Shut up and stay put!"

"No! Please! God, it's pitch black in here... I'm scared!"

Silence.

Then, Sarah groaned, clearly annoyed. "Oh, cut the drama. It's an abandoned walk-in freezer. The power's been cut for years, so you're not gonna freeze to death."

She paused. "Look, we'll let you out tomorrow after Amy dances. But if you keep screaming your head off in there, I swear to God I will break your legs and make sure you never dance again."

Their footsteps faded, disappearing up the stairs toward the family restaurant.

I slumped to the floor, swallowed by the dark. It was just the basement freezer. They only used it for junk now. I hugged my knees, figuring it was just another timeout.

Until ten minutes later, when a heavy mechanical rumble shook the floorboards.

A blast of freezing air hit me.

I shivered. Even in the pitch black, I felt the temperature plummeting. By some sick twist of fate, the dead compressor had kicked back on.

"Dad! Mom!" I scrambled up, hurling myself at the door again. "The machine! It turned on! Let me out! HELP!"

Nothing. The basement was soundproof, and the dinner rush upstairs completely drowned me out.

The temperature plummeted. Below freezing. Twenty degrees. Ten.

I only had a thin cotton leotard on. The cold felt like literal ice picks, stabbing mercilessly into my bones. Violent shivers wracked my body, my teeth chattering so hard it hurt.

God, it's freezing... what do I do?!

I groped blindly in the dark for a breaker switch, or even just a piece of cardboard. I found nothing but rusty shelves that sliced my fingers open.

"So cold... really cold..." I whimpered, curling into a tight ball in the corner.

My brain was icing over, but my memories started flashing anyway, completely out of my control.

It all went back to when we were five.

That damn psychic pointed right at me and spouted that ridiculous bullshit: "This girl's spirit is too strong. The brighter she shines, the more she drains her twin."

Just like that, Amy became the fragile china doll nobody could touch, and I became the family curse.

When I got straight A's, Sarah slapped me across the face because Amy happened to catch a cold that day; when I showed real talent in ballet, David furiously chucked my pointe shoes into the fireplace because Amy passed out in gym class.

I used to cry. I used to scream. I used to bust my ass trying to prove myself to them.

I actually thought that if I was just perfect enough—if I stood on that national podium—they might finally toss me a scrap of the love they gave Amy.

But I was wrong. I was so dead wrong.

Alive, dead, it made zero difference to them. Nobody gave a shit.

Below zero.

My breath crystallized, freezing my eyelashes shut. My torn fingernails were completely numb, coated in frozen beads of blood.

Everything started fading. After the agonizing cold, a bizarre, twisted warmth washed over me.

In the endless void, I finally made it to the stage. The spotlight on my white tutu felt so warm. I spun effortlessly. Down in the front row, Mom and Dad actually stood up, smiling, cheering my name.

"Dad... Mom..." I whispered through blue lips.

Then, my heart stopped beating altogether.

When I opened my eyes again, I was floating weightlessly near the ceiling.

I looked down and saw my own body curled into a pathetic ball. Sickly purple skin, frost clinging to my hair like a cheap ice sculpture.

Oh. I'm dead.

An overwhelming wave of relief washed over me.

I drifted right through the heavy iron door, gliding up through the floorboards and straight into the cozy living room.

The fireplace was roaring.

Sarah blew gently on a steaming bowl of tomato soup, feeding it to Amy with a soft smile. "Eat up, sweetie. You're gonna be the star tomorrow."

David sat in his recliner, wiping down Amy's backup pointe shoes. He paused, scoffing at the floor.

"Brat finally shut up," he sneered. "Probably faking it, thinking we'll cave. Keep dreaming."

I hovered in the air, quietly watching this perfect family.

Dad, Mom, I'm not faking it.

I'm really gone.