- 8.
Weekends found me alone on the deserted.
Weekends found me alone on the deserted
campus. I planned to study in the library, but
Ryan knocked on my door. He and his mother
knew I didn’t go home on weekends and,
worried I’d be lonely, invited me to lunch.
Having lived with the Evans family’s neglect
and favoritism for so long, I cherished their
kindness.
The principal, warm and motherly, and Ryan,
witty and easygoing, gave me a sense of
family I had long craved. Every weekend since
I started school, I spent it with them. The
principal said that while dedication to
studying was admirable, constant pressure
hindered learning. As for the Evans family,
they seemed to be enjoying their Lily–centric
life, not even bothering to call me home.
Spending time with the Hugheses, I gradually
く
opened up, regaining some of the innocence
and vibrancy of my age. One day, the
principal looked at me fondly and said, “I’ve
always wanted a daughter. I wish you were
mine.”
Her words touched me deeply. In my past life,
I had overheard my father saying something
similar to Lily: “You’re so talented, Lily. I wish
you were my real daughter.”
The memory stung, and tears welled up again.
Ryan, flustered, dabbed at my eyes with his
sleeve. “Just kidding! I’m not going to kidnap
you. Don’t cry.”
The principal, however, sensed my true
emotions and gently asked about my family.
After hearing about Lily, Ryan was shocked.
<
“Your parents are choosing that drama queen
over you, their amazing daughter? Are they
brainwashed?”
“She has an eye condition, not a terminal
illness! Why does everyone have to cater to
her?”
The principal lightly scolded Ryan for his
bluntness, then pulled me into a hug, stroking my hair like a mother. “Then you’ll be my
goddaughter,” she said. “Such a wonderful
girl. They don’t want you? I do.”
I sobbed in her arms, while Ryan muttered, “If
she’s your daughter, doesn’t that make us
siblings?”
