I Drew the Blank Straw for Eighteen Years Chapter 04

I Drew the Blank Straw for Eighteen Years Chapter 04

By the middle of the night, it hadn’t gotten any better. I could barely catch my breath.

I picked up my phone and texted Julian, hoping he’d take me to the hospital.

The message had barely sent before a red exclamation mark popped up.

He’d blocked me.

I forced myself through the itching, changed clothes, and went to the hospital alone for an IV.

By the time I got home, it was already morning.

The house was empty and silent.

A note sat on the table, weighted down.

Mom and Dad had taken Vivienne and Marielle to Aspen for a trip, and left me to “think about what I’d done.”

I went into the storage room, pulled the old suitcase out from under the bed, packed a few changes of clothes.

Acceptance letter, ID, bank card—all went into the lining of my backpack.

Every “birthday present” they’d ever given me, along with the star pendant from Julian, went straight into the trash can by the table.

The next morning, I picked up my suitcase and walked out without looking back.

In the cab, I snapped my old SIM card in half and tossed it out the window.

I opened the group chat and blocked Mom, Dad, Vivienne, Marielle, and Julian, one by one.

By the time I got to the airport, the sun was just starting to rise.

The plane taxied, then lifted off.

I’m out of this house for good!

The family of four got back from Aspen that evening.

Mom opened the door. And the house was pitch dark.

Out of habit, she called out, “Wren, what are you doing hiding in there? Turn a light on.”

No answer. She called again a few times.

She figured I was sulking, and let it go.

The next day, no one called me for dinner either.

Same the day after. And the day after that.

On the sixth day, at dinner, Vivienne finally said, “Maybe we should go get her. She can’t just keep starving herself like this.”

Mom was about to nod when Marielle cut in.

“Vivienne, don’t worry about it. Every night when I go to the bathroom I see her sneaking food. She’s just doing this to guilt-trip Mom and Dad.”

Mom’s face, which had just softened, hardened again instantly.

“Nobody’s calling her! I’m going to teach that girl a lesson about her attitude!”

Another week went by like that.

That day, the whole family rushed off to a concert, leaving a mess of leftovers on the table.

Mom knocked on the storage room door on her way out.

“Wren, come eat. And wash the dishes after.”

No answer.

Once. Twice. Three times.

She shoved the door open, annoyed.

The room was empty. The clothes on the rack and the old suitcase were gone.

The trash can by the table held all those “birthday gifts” they’d bought me over the years.

Mom glanced at it, turned to Dad.

“That girl’s actually run off? Playing runaway now?”

“Her attitude keeps getting worse and worse. Leave her be. Let her suffer out there a while, she’ll come crawling back.”

Dad’s tone was entirely unbothered.

A week passed. They still weren’t worried.

Mom and Dad took Vivienne and Marielle out to buy everything for the new semester.

Two weeks passed before they finally noticed something was off, and thought to call me.

Mom’s call went straight to a dead number.

So did Dad’s, Vivienne’s, Marielle’s, and Julian’s.

Mom opened the group chat and scrolled all the way down to find me.

The message sent—and a red exclamation mark appeared.

Dad’s, Vivienne’s, and Marielle’s screens all showed the same red mark.

Mom turned to look at Julian.

He used to be the one I’d text back within seconds.

He opened the chat to message me, but his hand stopped.

He suddenly remembered—he was the one who’d blocked me ages ago.

Julian rushed to the storage room.

In the trash can, he found the paperwork from my emergency room IV, and the star pendant he’d given me.

I’d treasured that pendant for years, never let it so much as get scratched.

He gripped both items tightly, his chest tightening.

“What is she trying to pull? Not answering calls, blocking everyone on chat?”

Mom’s voice was starting to crack with panic.