Chapter 4

The SAT scores arrived. 1550 for me. 950 for Emily.

The numbers were stark. Undeniable.

Karen looked at the scores. Her face tightened.

"You need to hide your depression more, Sarah. Especially now."

Her image was always first.

Then came the decree.

"You will attend Northwood Community College with Emily," she announced. "Or, you both take a gap year. Retake the SATs. Together."

"Mom, that's not fair to me," I protested, my voice shaking. "My mental health... a gap year might destroy me."

Emily smirked from the couch, scrolling on her phone.

"What about Emily?" I pushed, desperation rising. "If I don't survive a gap year, will Emily have to die too, for fairness?"

Karen' s eyes blazed. Rage.

"How dare you!"

She grabbed the coffee pot from the kitchen counter. It was still hot.

She threw it.

Scalding coffee hit my arm. Pain seared through me. I screamed.

Karen' s face changed. The rage vanished. A flicker of something else.

Then, calm. Too calm.

"Oh, Sarah. I'm sorry for the... violence." She sounded almost sincere.

"But you understand. I have good intentions. I just want what's fair. We'll find a good community college for both of you."

Emily finally looked up. A small, knowing smile.

"She'll always make it equal, Sarah," Emily taunted softly. "You should know that by now."

The burn throbbed. My heart felt like it was shattering.

I looked at my mother, then at my sister.

They were a unit. A twisted, sick unit.

I couldn't breathe. I turned and ran out of the house.

Back to the rooftop. It was the only place I could think of.