When I came to, the sky above me was pale and bruised with dawn. I was lying on the pool’s edge, clothes clinging wet and heavy against my bones. The faint taste of chlorine burned my throat.
For a second, I just lay there—staring at the water that had almost swallowed me whole. The silence of the backyard was deafening. The party was over. The fairy lights still flickered, swinging from the trees like mocking ghosts.
I pushed myself up, my arms trembling from exhaustion. The ground was littered with broken plastic cups, confetti soggy with dew, and half-eaten food rotting on paper plates. All the evidence of a celebration I was never truly part of.
I managed to stand. My body ached with every step. I was almost to the sliding glass doors when I heard his voice.
“Well, look who finally crawled out.”
Troy’s silhouette stood in the hallway, hands shoved in his pockets like he was the king of this mess. His eyes flicked over me, wet hair plastered to my cheeks, skin pruned from hours in the water.
“Clean this up,” he said flatly.
I blinked. “Troy… I—I’m tired. I almost—”
“So what?” His eyes hardened. “You embarrassed us last night. You always do. You want to be useful for once? Start with this. Maybe then you’ll be worth something.”
A gentle hand brushed Troy’s arm. Jasmine, still in her slinky birthday dress, hair perfect, face fresh. She looked at me with a pitying smile that didn’t reach her eyes.
“It’s okay, Troy,” she cooed sweetly. “Let’s just ask the cleaner to do it. Camille should rest. She must be so… fragile.”
Trevor’s laugh cracked through the air behind them. “A waste of money when the trash can take itself out. She made the mess—she cleans it.”
They left me there, standing on wobbly feet, the door clicking shut behind them. I stared at the piles of garbage, the filthy pool water rippling behind me. A good dog would obey, right? That’s what I’d always been for them—loyal. Silent. Replaceable.
One more week, I reminded myself. Just one more week.
So I cleaned. I scrubbed sticky soda from the tiles until my fingers cramped. Hauled out trash bags that reeked of cheap vodka and lies. I gagged when I found lipstick-stained glasses tossed by the pool—my cousin’s shade of red.
By morning, my head was pounding and my stomach screamed. I dragged myself to the kitchen, hoping for something—anything.
They were all there. Jasmine perched on the counter, Troy and Trevor at the table, laughing like they hadn’t almost watched me drown hours ago. The smell of bacon and fresh bread made my chest tighten.
I reached for a plate. Jasmine’s eyes snapped to my hand.
“Oh,” she said, her voice bright and cruel. “That’s not for you.”
I froze. “What?”
She giggled. “I said, it’s not for you. Don’t eat it. This is for the dog.”
I watched her slide off the counter and kneel dramatically, setting the plate on the floor for Trevor’s yapping terrier. The dog sniffed it eagerly.
Troy didn’t even look up. “Just cook something for yourself, Camille. Don’t make a scene.”
My hands shook. The smell made my stomach twist painfully. But I didn’t argue. I turned away. In the hallway, I pressed my back against the wall and let the emptiness settle in my chest like a stone.
No tears. Not anymore.
Instead, memories came flooding back, uninvited. Me, Troy, and Trevor in the old treehouse behind my parents’ house—back when I still had parents. I was ten when the car crash took them both. Troy and Trevor’s families took me in, promising to protect me, keep me safe. You’ll never be alone, Camille. We’re family.
Troy had slipped a cheap promise ring on my finger when I was eighteen, swearing he’d marry me, take care of me forever. But Jasmine showed up, and forever slipped away like water through my fingers. I’d been so stupid—I’d invited her in, let her sleep in my room, let her share my food, my secrets, my heart.
I’d watched her carve out my place like it belonged to her.
A buzz from my phone made my chest seize. I fumbled to unlock it. Martin.
Everything’s ready. One more week, sweetheart. No turning back. You’ll be mine.
Okay, I typed back. I’m ready.
When the house went quiet, I dragged out every box I had hidden in my closet. Old photographs, dried flowers, the promise ring Troy had given me, letters Trevor had written me when we were kids, scribbled in messy crayon. I carried it all out into the backyard.
The flame caught with a greedy hiss, and I watched our childhood burn—embers of broken promises dancing into the dawn sky.
I didn’t hear Troy’s footsteps until he was beside me. His face twisted in disbelief. “What the hell are you doing? Did you just burn our things?”
I didn’t flinch. I met his eyes, the way I hadn’t in months. “Those weren’t your things. Those were our memories. Old ghosts. I want to forget them.”
