Mom’s Fake Fairness: The Fixed Family Draw Chapter 09

Mom’s Fake Fairness: The Fixed Family Draw Chapter 09 Moving On

Mom stared at the eup like it might bite her, and she was shaking.

I wanted her to feel it. That specific kind of fear that comes from having no control over your own life. The same way I felt growing up, never knowing whether there’d be enough for a decent dinner, never knowing if I’d get new clothes for the school year or have to take do with whatever was left over after James and Lily got theirs.

Then one day, I came in and watched her reach out with trembling hands and pull a slip. Her whole body sagged with relief when she unfolded it and saw the good one.

And just like that, I felt nothing. No satisfaction, no victory. Just tired.

I sat down next to her bed.

‘Mom.” I reached over and picked up the cup. “Every single slip in here says good.”

My mom stared at me, her eyes wide.

‘See, I’m more generous than you,” I said. “I at least gave you a real choice. But your little lottery? Every single slip said pay. There wasn’t one that said pass. Not one.”

That broke her. She collapsed into sobs, finally understanding just how far she’d gone.

But it was too late for any of that.

ames had been gambling and racked up serious debt/ When he ran out of options, he came home and started pressuring Mom for money.

When she told him she didn’t have any, he snapped. I watched it happen on my security camera feed- nim screaming in her face, then hitting her.

‘Where’s the money, you old hag? Hand it over or I swear to God-”

I called the police.

They kicked in the door and took him down on the spot. He was arrested for domestic violence and disorderly conduct, and this time, nobody was in a position to bail him out,

With James locked up and the mortgage unpaid, the bank moved fast and took the house.

Just like that, they had nothing.

My phone started ringing. Mom’s voice was on the other end, crying.

“Riley, we have nowhere to go. Please, just a few days. We’ll sleep on the floor, we don’t care.”

“My home isn’t a place for people like you,” I said, and hung up.

I found them a subsidized apartment on the outskirts of the city and paid six months of rent upfront. Then I drove over, tossed the keys at them, and said, “Figure the rest out yourselves. Don’t call me again.” I

got back in my car and didn’t look back.

Things unraveled fast after that. Lily got mixed up with the wrong guy, ended up pregnant, got dumped, and showed up at my door in tears asking me to pay for the abortion.

I gave her five hundred dollars. “That’s all you’re getting. You made your choices.”

She took it and walked away crying.

ames got out of jail with a record and couldn’t find real work. He ended up delivering food, bitter and oud about it, blaming everyone but himself.

Mom and Dad were crammed into that little apartment, staring at water–stained walls and listening to the neighbors fight through the ceiling.

Meanwhile, my life kept getting better. I got promoted, made partner, bought a bigger place. I met someone who actually loved me.

was walking out of a jewelry store at the mall one afternoon when someone bumped into me.

Sorry, sorry!”

The voice was familiar. I looked up.

t was James.

He was in a food delivery uniform, his hair going gray, his face worn in a way that made him look a decade older than he was.

le recognized me at the same moment, and his eyes moved from my face down to my clothes and back gain. He opened his mouth, then closed it.

Riley…”

looked at him and realized the anger was just gone. There was nothing left where it used to be.

Hey, James. It’s been a while.”

reached into my bag and pulled out a hundred–dollar bill and a single. I crumpled them both into balls and held out my closed fist.

One last lottery. Pick the red one, you get the hundred as a tip. Pick the green one, you take the dollar and we go our separate ways.”

ames stared at my hand. His fingers were trembling.

‘I’ll draw,” he said quietly.

He reached out slowly, his hand shaking, and moved toward the red one.

I smiled and let go.

The hundred–dollar bill drifted down and landed right in the donation box sitting beside him.

‘Funny how that works,” I said. “Some luck you just can’t catch.”

I took my husband’s arm and walked away without looking back, leaving James hunched over a donation box while everyone around him stared and whispered.

Outside, the sun hit my face and I just stood there for a second, soaking it in.

Then my kid tugged my sleeve and pointed at a toy in the store window.

‘Mommy, I want that one.”

Out of habit, my hand went to my pocket. I was actually about to pull out a coin. “How about we flip for it, baby-”

I stopped mid–sentence.

I pulled my hand back, crouched down, and hugged him. Then I kissed him on the forehead.

‘You know what? We don’t need a coin flip. Mommy loves you. You don’t need luck for that.” I smiled at him. “If it’s something you really want, I’ll get it for you.”

He grinned, and so did I.

And just like that, I was free. No more cookie tin. No more slips of paper. No more pretending that love was something you left up to chance.