He Put Me On Do Not Disturb For Three Years, But Prioritized His Stepsister Chapter 01

He Put Me On Do Not Disturb For Three Years, But Prioritized His Stepsister Chapter 01

Five years into our relationship, I discovered my messages had been muted for years.

His reason was that my updates were too trivial and the constant buzzing made it impossible for him to work.

So I learned to swallow it all on my own and hide my feelings in Notes.

Then, today, Sean said the smart speaker was going to waste and asked me to set it up again.

The moment I connected the app, the speaker automatically played the messages from last Friday.

Incoming: “Sis” shared a location and requested a voice call.

Incoming: “Sis” marked a message as a to-do.

His stepsister’s messages were set to priority alerts. Even when the speaker was playing music, they forced their way in.

That same Friday, I got into a minor car accident on the highway.

I called Sean several times and sent him my location, but he never answered.

When Sean saw how shaken I was, he brushed it off.

“She’s still young. I can’t help worrying about her.”

So he did know how to worry. He just thought someone else deserved to have him on call more than I did.

I looked at him, and the doubts I’d been carrying finally disappeared.

*****

“It’s okay,” I said quietly. “I won’t bother you again.”

Sean swiped a finger across his phone screen.

He looked up at me and smiled.

“Good. I knew you’d understand.”

He reached over and patted my head; his palm was warm and dry.

“Each of your messages could have been split into ten. They really did make a lot of noise.”

He said it lightly, as if it were nothing.

His phone buzzed. He glanced at the screen, then stood and headed for the study.

“Aria’s on the phone. I’ll take it in there.”

The study door closed behind him.

I stayed on the sofa and looked at his tablet on the coffee table.

The screen was still on, unlocked.

I reached over to close it, and my eyes swept across the screen.

A long string of bubble tea delivery orders, all in Aria’s name.

The note on one read, “Half sugar, no ice, add boba. I remember you love this.”

I stared at the line and my fingers went stiff.

Two winters ago, I’d mentioned in passing that I wanted bubble tea.

From the very next day, he ordered it every day for an entire month.

The note said, “Warm, full sugar, add coconut jelly. Her stomach is delicate, so no cold drinks.”

For that month, I got a warm cup of bubble tea every single night.

Later we fought, broke up, and got back together, and he never ordered it again.

So he hadn’t forgotten.

He had simply taken that care and given it to someone else.

I closed the tablet and put it back on the coffee table.

The study door opened and Sean came out to get his tablet.

He saw me on the sofa and glanced at the tablet on the coffee table.

“Ordered it for her on a whim. That girl lives on bubble tea.”

He said it casually, then took out his phone and transferred me some money.

“Your car repairs after the accident last week cost a lot. Here, take this.”

I opened the transfer.

The amount was far less than what he spent on her.

The bubble tea orders alone had cost more than that.

“Thank you,” I said.

He nodded and took the tablet back into the study.

I got up and walked to the entryway, wanting to step outside for air.

My fingers had just brushed the handle when the smart lock chimed.

“Fingerprint deleted.”

I froze.

Sean poked his head out of the study.

“Oh, Aria came by a few days ago to feed the cat and accidentally reset it while adding her fingerprint.”

“Go ahead and set up your right thumb again.”

I stared at the lock’s screen.

Three years ago, when he installed the lock, he’d taken my hand and pressed it in, smiling as he said,

“Your fingerprint is the highest clearance in this house.”

I had just moved in then; my boxes were still stacked by the door, unopened.

He pulled me to the lock and pressed my fingers against it one by one.

“This way, the door will always know you when you come home.”

I pressed my right thumb to the sensor.

The lock announced, “All fingerprint slots are full.Registered users : Ari.”

I went still.

All ten fingerprint slots. Every single one.

All of them Aria’s.

The living room went silent for two seconds.

Sean’s face stiffened, then he sighed.

“She’s just playing around. She registered all ten fingers. Don’t read too much into it.”

I didn’t say anything. I followed the prompts, overwrote one fingerprint, and set up my right thumb.

The door shut behind me, and from inside the apartment came Sean’s muffled voice.

“Aria, what’s wrong? Don’t cry…”

“Yeah, I know you’ve had it hard.”

I took out my phone and opened Notes.

I had been using this Notes app for three years. It held every message I’d never sent.

The most recent entry was from last Friday, the day of the crash.

“Rear-ended on the highway. My car was damaged, and I was shaken. He still didn’t answer.”

Farther up, the dates went on and on.

Every line was something I’d swallowed.

On the last line, I typed out the message ending the lease.

Then I opened the rental app, filled in the address and the lease period, and hit “Post Listing.”

The screen dimmed. I stood in the hallway and heard him laugh again from the study.

“Okay, I’ll take you to that place next time and see what you think.”

The hallway light went out. I didn’t move.

I stood in the dark for a long time.