17 Years of Empty Draws: The Neglected Triplet Never Forgives Chapter 04

17 Years of Empty Draws: The Neglected Triplet Never Forgives Chapter 04

Even at this moment, the first person on my mind was still Soren.

I opened his chat window.

Celestine: [Soren, I’m having an allergic reaction. Can you take me to the hospital?]

Send.

Failed.

He’d blocked me.

At that instant, the last flicker of hope inside me died.

My vision blurred. I pulled up my phone and made one final call to Mrs. Bellamy.

Then I slipped into unconsciousness.

…

When I woke again, I lay in a bed at the Pack hospital, Mrs. Bellamy sitting beside me and holding my hand.

She didn’t ask a single question, just handed me a newly issued flight ticket.

“Don’t think about anything. I’ll wait for you at noon.”

She stroked my head gently.

I dragged myself home to get my luggage.

The house was empty. A note sat on the table.

[We took Maren and Aurelia on vacation to Aspen.]

[Stay home and reflect on what you’ve done these past few days.]

I walked into the storage room and pulled my old suitcase out from under the bed, tossing in a few worn clothes.

Along with my acceptance letter, ID documents and bank card, that was everything I owned after 18 years of life.

All the “birthday gifts” my parents had given me over the years, together with the star charm Soren had given me, went straight into the garbage bin beside the table.

I grabbed my suitcase and left the house without looking back.

The July sun in Denver blazed so bright it stung my eyes.

I dragged the suitcase down the empty street. One of its wheels caught and jammed with every rotation.

Behind me, the familiar scent of that household faded little by little.

At noon, I arrived at the airport. Mrs. Bellamy was already waiting for me by the entrance.

I pulled out my SIM card.

I snapped it in half and tossed the pieces away.

I tapped on Soren’s profile, opened his contact info, and hit block.

After that, I blocked every member of the Veyne family in my contacts list one by one.

I walked over to Mrs. Bellamy, and we headed toward the boarding gate together.

Outside the terminal windows, a plane lifted off the runway and soared toward the vast sky.

…

The family got back to Northvale Pack from their Aspen trip the next evening.

They unlocked the door, and the house was completely dark.

Mother called for me out of habit: “Celestine, what are you doing hiding in the dark? Why haven’t you turned on the lights?”

There was no reply, and Mother called my name several more times.

She thought I was just sulking, so she stopped calling.

No one called me for dinner the next day.

The same thing happened on day three, four and five.

At the dinner table on the sixth day, Maren spoke up: “Maybe we should check on Celestine. She can’t keep skipping meals like this.”

Mother was about to nod in agreement when Aurelia burst out laughing.

“Maren, what are you worried about? I see Celestine sneaking food every night when I get up to use the bathroom. She’s just trying to annoy our parents.”

Mother, who had looked ready to agree a moment before, changed her expression.

“No one goes to get her. I’m going to teach her a lesson.”

Another week passed just like that.

That day, the whole family hurried off to a concert, leaving piles of leftover food on the table.

Mother finally walked over to my room door and knocked.

“Celestine, come out and eat. Clean up the kitchen after you finish.”

Nobody answered.

One knock, two knocks, three knocks.

She shoved the door open in anger.