The Girl My Family Ignored Became the Warrior They Could Never Reach Chapter 04

The Girl My Family Ignored Became the Warrior They Could Never Reach Chapter 04

When I was very young, there was a period when both my parents were away on business, so Liam and I stayed with Grandma.

Grandma fed me shrimp, and my throat closed up before I passed out. When I woke up, I was surprised to find Mom keeping watch beside my bed.

Outside the room, I heard Dad arguing with Grandma.

“You say you forgot Rhea can’t eat shrimp. Fine. Then I’ll take care of the children myself, because that’s the only way I’ll know they’re safe.”

“So what if this is a critical stage in the pack’s expansion? Those two children are everything to me. I can’t bear to imagine something happening to either of them!”

When I did not move, Dad urged me again.

“Come on, try it. It’s one of the restaurant’s specialties.”

A violent coughing fit suddenly erupted from the other side of the table. Dad immediately forgot about me and hurried over to Celine.

“What happened? Are you okay?”

Celine pressed a hand to her chest and waved him off.

“I’m fine. I just got some water down the wrong pipe.”

Everyone relaxed. Dad teased her in the same soothing tone someone would use with a little child.

“Bad water. How dare it make our girl choke? Let’s dump it.”

Mom gently patted her back.

“Feeling better?”

Liam slid a plate of grilled fish in front of her.

“Have some fish. That won’t make you choke.”

Evan immediately moved it away, frowning in disapproval.

“She could choke on a fish bone. She should eat something else.”

Celine pouted and complained that they were all treating her like a child.

I lowered my head, picked up one of the shrimp, and put it in my mouth.

It tasted a little bitter.

Just as I had intended, the shrimp triggered an allergic reaction, giving me an excuse to skip the next few days of the trip.

Liam brought me medication. He stared at me and spoke coldly.

“If you were trying to get attention, why didn’t you eat more? You should’ve eaten enough to kill yourself.”

I took the medication and closed the door. Not a single feeling stirred inside me.

He did not understand that I had never been trying to attract anyone’s attention. I had simply accepted reality.

Celine was the moon everyone orbited. I was not even one of the stars—just a speck of forgotten dust.

I could not fit in, and I no longer wanted to. All I wanted was to get away.

Over the next few days, I stayed alone in the hotel to recover.

The family group chat kept lighting up with messages and photos from Celine.

There were pictures of her and Mom wearing matching mother-daughter outfits, pictures of her fooling around with Liam, and pictures she had taken of Evan.

Evan sent me a private message.

Evan: [I’ll bring you a gift when I get back.]

I did not know how to respond. I opened TikTok, and a street interview appeared on my feed.

The interviewer complimented Mom on her resort dress and said she and Celine looked like sisters. Mom could not stop smiling.

“Oh, I’m not that young. My daughter is only eighteen.”

The interviewer then gestured toward Liam and Evan and asked whether the five of them were one family.

Dad pointed at Liam and sighed.

“No, this one is my only son. We’re a family of four.”

“But the handsome one may have to call me Dad someday.”

At that, the interviewer turned the camera toward Celine and Evan and drew out the words teasingly.

“Ohhh—so they’re fated mates.”

Celine blushed and waved the comment off, but Evan simply reached out and wrapped an arm around her shoulders.

I closed the video.

Then I opened the family group chat and left it.

After that, I opened my conversation with Evan, blocked him, and deleted the thread.

On the day we returned, a courier called to say our admissions packets had arrived.

The three of them opened theirs first. Sure enough, all three letters were identical.

Celine let out an excited cheer and threw herself into Evan’s arms.

“This is amazing, Evan! The four of us get to go to school together again!”

As soon as she finished, she seemed to remember that I was there and hurriedly pulled away.

“I’m sorry, Rhea. I was just so excited.”

Her voice was as innocent as ever, but there was a trace of triumph in her eyes that she could no longer hide.

“Open yours. All four of us got the same letter. Don’t blame Evan. I begged him to do it.”

Liam watched in silence without saying a word.

Evan pressed his lips together, looking uneasy.

“Don’t be mad. If all four of us stay together, we can look out for one another.”

I had been so calm these past few days that it was beginning to unsettle him.

Flustered, he pulled a bookmark from his bag and pushed it into my hand.

“Here. I told you I’d bring you something.”

I looked at the bookmark in my hand and smiled.

Good thing I had never expected anything from him.

Right in front of them, I tore open my admissions packet and tossed both the envelope and the bookmark into the trash can at my feet.

Then I held up my acceptance letter from Silvermoon Academy and gave it a small wave.

“Sorry, but I won’t be joining you.”