Departure in Despair

In the final seven days after I decided to depart for good, I transformed into the daughter my family had always dreamed of.

I conceded to Remy's every whim, never to fight or deny her. When she wanted to use my work for a contest, I deferred. When she wanted me out in the frost and howling wind, I did just that.

My quiet compliance led my family to think that I had learned the error of my ways.

"You've finally accepted that you owe Remy so much, and that you have to compensate her!"

Even until the end, they never understood why I couldn't care less.

"Fiona, why aren't you saying anything?"

To that, I could only smile. "Isn't this what you've always wanted?"

When the System found me once again, I was celebrating my birthday alone.

"Confirming egress from this world. Seven days until the portal opens."

I nodded quietly, then grabbed a piece of cake and stuffed it into my mouth. The poor-quality cream tasted awful, but when I remembered that this was my last birthday cake in this world, I swallowed it without complaint.

Before I could even put my hand down, the door to my room was violently kicked open.

My older brother, Blake Rivers, saw me crouching on the floor. Disdain filled his eyes.

"So this is the reason you refused to come out to celebrate Remy's birthday even after we called you so many times! You're already celebrating your birthday on your own here!"

Upon hearing that, my dad stepped out from behind Blake. Immediately, he grabbed the cake in my hand and threw it into my face without hesitation. The sticky cream smeared my face and my hair, and the sliminess was quite upsetting.

I looked at my dad, stunned, but all I got was a furious reprimand.

"Do you really not want to celebrate your birthday with Remy that badly? We've finally found her after so long! Do you really dislike her that much? Have we treated you badly all these years? Do you lack love so much, you don't want her to get even a little bit of attention from you?" he roared.

Out in the corridor, my mom was holding Remy in her arms. There was only impatience in her eyes. While she had said nothing, her silence had already proven her stand on this.

I looked at the disdain on their faces and subconsciously extended my hand out, wanting to defend myself. However, Blake brutally swiped my hand while it was in mid-air. A stinging red bruise quickly appeared on my fair skin.

"Fiona, you just want to upset Remy during her birthday, don't you? Have you forgotten how much she suffered because of you? Are you still trying to bully her?" he snarled.

I simply looked at him silently and stopped defending myself.

So many times, I've cried and begged to defend myself when things like this happened. Even when my throat became dry and I had run out of tears, they still refused to believe me. Instead, they consoled Remy whose eyes had become only a little red.

In the past, I wanted to question them countless times. I was the one they had spent so many years with, but why wouldn't they believe me?

But now? I was going to leave soon. The answers to those questions were no longer important.

I chuckled and looked into Blake's eyes. Once, his gaze upon me was filled with love. Now, however, only contempt remained.

Blake took my gesture as a provocation. His chest heaving, he struck my face hard. "You still refuse to admit it? What more do you want?"

The impact swung my head all the way to the side. I could feel the numbing pain on the left side of my face.

Remy, who was hiding behind everyone, suddenly cried, "Blake!"

It wasn't because she was worried about me. She was simply startled by what he had done.

My mom patted Remy's back before casting a disdainful gaze at me. "Alright, Blake. Today is Remy's birthday, so don't upset her. Leave Fiona here to think about what she has done."

Blake snorted and kicked the cake right in front of me. The smiling face on the cake turned over, instantly becoming a crying face.

The door in front of me shut with a deafening bang.

The sounds of laughter and blessing were separated by this door, but they still entered my ears without pause.

I pushed myself and crawled up, heading toward the washroom. My red, swollen, cream-smeared face was evidence of what had just happened.

I cleaned myself up slowly with a towel.

It was fine. Seven more days.

I consoled myself that I could leave in seven days.