Chapter 3

They both stared at me, shocked into silence. Ethan' s jaw was tight, his eyes narrowed in suspicion. Liam looked utterly bewildered.

"What did you say?" Ethan asked, as if he hadn't heard me correctly.

"She's just trying to guilt-trip us," Liam muttered, shaking his head. "She'll agree now and then make a huge scene about it later. That's what she does."

I looked at them, at the two people who were supposed to know me better than anyone in the world, and felt a profound sense of detachment.

"I'm not," I said calmly. "It's just a room. Lily needs it more. I'll move my things out."

Ethan' s anger, which had been simmering just below the surface, boiled over. He slammed his hand down on the coffee table, making the puzzle pieces jump.

"Stop it, Anna! Stop playing the victim! We know you're not happy about this!"

He thought I was putting on an act, a selfless martyr performance designed to make them feel guilty. He couldn't conceive that I was simply... done.

"Ethan, you're scaring me," Lily whimpered, pulling on his sleeve.

Instantly, his anger melted away. He scooped her into his arms, his voice dropping to a gentle coo. "It's okay, sweetie. I'm not mad at you. Your big brother is here."

He held her close, stroking her hair, and the two of them looked like a perfect, self-contained family unit. I was on the outside, a ghost in the house I grew up in.

The feeling was so strong, so absolute, that it solidified my decision. There was no place for me here anymore.

"I'm going to head back to the dorm," I said, turning to leave.

"Fine," Ethan said without looking at me, his attention completely on Lily.

I walked past them, my feet silent on the carpet. As I reached the door, I heard Liam' s soft voice begin a story for Lily, the same story he used to tell me when I was scared of the dark. It was about a brave knight who protected a little princess from all the monsters in the world.

When our parents died, they had held my small hands in theirs and promised they would always be my knights, that they would always protect me.

They had lied. The monsters weren't outside; they were the very people who had promised to keep them away. A bitter, cold anger surged through me, so intense it felt like a physical pain in my chest.

I didn't go back to the dorm. I went straight to the university administration office and signed the final papers for the research program. Then I went back to my room and started to methodically pack away my life.

My roommate, Sarah, watched me with concern.

"Are you sure about this, Anna? They can't just kick you out."

"They're not kicking me out," I said, my voice flat as I folded a sweater. "I'm leaving."

"It's because of that little girl, isn't it?" she said, her voice laced with indignation. "I can't believe your brothers. They're being so unfair."

I just shook my head, a small, tired smile on my lips. "It doesn't matter anymore."