After cleaning myself up, I headed to my other home—my sanctuary whenever I felt low. It was the home of Paige Sutton. I'd sponsored her out of the foster care system, taking her in as my own sister because, in her story of being abandoned, I saw a reflection of my own.
"Georgia, you're here! I got first place in my school's programming competition!" She threw herself into my arms the moment I opened the door.
I ruffled her hair.
"You're so smart. How about I treat you to a nice meal?"
She didn't know I had "accelerated familial cardiomyopathy." I didn't want her to know. Telling anyone would only cause them pain.
"Yay! Let's go get ice cream!"
"Okay."
We always went to that ice cream shop whenever I was treating her. But I would never take her to Dick's Drive-In. I wouldn't eat there. I would never eat a burger again in my life.
After we arrived, I ordered. Not long after, Alec and Crystal suddenly walked in. Crystal covered her mouth theatrically when she saw me.
"Oh my God! Georgia, is that your child?"
I wanted to sew her mouth shut. The venom in her was bottomless.
Alec walked over, his voice sharp. "Whose child is this?"
"Hello, I'm Paige Sutton, Georgia's sister," Paige replied politely.
They fell silent. But Alec quickly found another way to mock me. "Sick enough for a stream, but well enough for ice cream?"
"Georgia, you don't even blink when you lie anymore."
With that, he and Crystal left.
Halfway through my ice cream, a sharp pain shot through my chest, and I coughed up another mouthful of blood.
"Georgia! What's wrong?" Paige cried out, grabbing me.
The pain made my head spin.
"I... I'm fine," I managed to choke out.
Just then, through my blurry vision, I saw Alec rushing toward me.
How ridiculous. Didn't he think I was faking it? Why the sudden concern?
When I woke up again, I was in the hospital. The first thing I felt upon waking was another sharp slap across my face.
I opened my eyes to find Alec glaring at me.
"Done with your act yet? You knew Crystal and I would be at that ice cream shop. You planned this whole scene, didn't you?"
"Don't hit my sister!" Paige rushed over and pushed him away.
"Paige, come here," I called out softly.
Paige obediently took my hand. Then, I looked up at this brother to whom I had no blood relation. My cheek stung where he'd hit me, but my heart ached far worse.
I'm in a hospital bed, and they still haven't told him? He's a smart man. All he'd have to do is ask a nurse, or just glance at my chart... He'd know. But he wouldn't even do that.
"Get out," I said softly.
He gritted his teeth in anger. "Georgia, you've really gone too far this time!"
He raised his hand to hit me again.
"Griff," I called out his nickname.
He froze. It was the first time I had called him by his nickname in years. It would also be the last.
"Let's cut ties. In your eyes, I'm a criminal and a liar. This way, I won't have to upset you anymore."