I Was The Ugly Twin Who Outshone The Swan Sister Chapter 04

I Was The Ugly Twin Who Outshone The Swan Sister Chapter 04

By the time the police finished taking our statements, it was fully dark outside.

Aunt Laurel had kept me behind her the whole time, and she signed the last form on my behalf.

When we walked out of the station, I was still shaking.

She patted my shoulder. “Hey. Relax.”

“If anyone’s going down, it’s me first.”

My throat tightened so fast I almost cried again.

Back at her place, she poured me a cup of water and set it in my hands.

“Take a shower, get some sleep. Tomorrow I’ll go with you to get your documents sorted.”

But when she turned toward the kitchen, I caught it—the way her hand wouldn’t stop trembling around her own cup.

I sat on the couch wrapped in her jacket and watched my phone light up all night.

The first thing that showed up was a local gossip account.

[BREAKING: Westbridge Conservatory’s top-ranked student suspected of plastic surgery—used her looks to steal her own sister’s future.]

They’d put my audition photo side by side with an old ID picture—bangs, black frames, the whole thing.

The comments were brutal.

[That’s not a haircut, that’s a whole new face. She definitely went under the knife.]

[Westbridge is seriously accepting people like this?]

My fingers were shaking as I kept scrolling anyway.

Then I found a screenshot of Mom’s social media post.

[When a child loses their way, it breaks a parent’s heart. We only hope the school will act with integrity and not let vanity and dishonesty overshadow the students who truly worked for it.]

Dad had commented underneath: [We’ve also noticed some money and jewelry missing from home. Currently taking inventory.]

The class group chat exploded minutes later.

Someone tagged everyone: [Check if anything’s gone missing. With how much Brenna apparently “changed,” you have to wonder where she got the money.]

Classmates started chiming in.

[She really didn’t look like that before. Something’s off.]

[She was always so quiet. Who knows what she was actually doing.]

Mallory posted too: [I’ve known her for years. She has never looked like this.]

Every single word cut into me like I was being taken apart piece by piece.

I called Mom. It rang for a long time before she picked up.

“Mom.” The tears came before I could stop them. “Are you really trying to destroy me?”

A beat of silence.

Then her voice went cold. “You destroyed your sister first.”

I gripped the phone so hard my knuckles ached, tears falling onto my knees.

“I didn’t steal anything. I didn’t get surgery. I cut my bangs and took off my glasses. That’s it.”

She made a short, dismissive sound. “And who’s going to believe that?”

“Brenna, think about it. Right now, outside of this family—who wants you?”

“Come home. Take a gap year, support Sienna through her next audition, apply to an education program like we said. We’ll call it a moment of weakness and move on.”

“Listen to us, and you’re still our daughter.”

Something metallic and bitter rose in the back of my throat.

So even being accepted back came with conditions.

I hung up and curled into the corner of the couch, shaking from cold that had nothing to do with the temperature.

Then Aunt Laurel’s voice came from outside the room.

“Shoes on.”

She pushed a copy of my ID, a stack of cash, and her jacket into my arms.

“Crying won’t fix it, Brenna. We’re going to the school.”

It was barely dawn when we got to Westbridge. The sky was pale gray and the campus was almost quiet.

I stopped outside the entrance and couldn’t make myself go in.

“What if they don’t want me either?”

Aunt Laurel took my hand. “Then we go door to door until someone does.”

When we pulled up to the gate, my phone buzzed with a new notification.

Mom had already sent a formal complaint to the admissions office.

My legs nearly gave out.

Aunt Laurel held me steady and walked me through the doors.

Morgan Hayes, the admissions officer, met us inside and pressed a key card directly into my hand.

“Brenna. The school has reviewed your statement and the original unedited footage from the audition.”

Then Westbridge Conservatory of Dance posted an official statement: [A response to false claims regarding Brenna Rowan, ranked first in her program.]

The statement confirmed my results were valid and legitimate. It also stated that the school reserved the right to pursue legal action against anyone responsible for spreading defamatory content.

The moment it went live, the family group chat erupted.

Dad sent a string of voice messages. Mom called back to back.

I watched the notifications stack up on my screen. I didn’t answer any of them.

Aunt Laurel stood beside me and gently took my hand.

I opened my contacts.

Blocked Dad. Blocked Mom. Blocked Sienna.

The morning light hit the sign above the entrance so bright it made my eyes sting.

I didn’t look away.

“Let’s go,” Aunt Laurel said softly.

I tightened my grip on the key card and walked through without looking back.