The Twin Face That Haunts Me Chapter 16

The Twin Face That Haunts Me Chapter 16

Richard drove me home that night.

We stepped out of the venue together and ran straight into Thomas. The second he laid eyes on me walking beside Richard, all color drained from his face, whatever thoughts swirling through his head rendering him ghostly pale.

I paid him no mind, climbing straight into Richard’s car.

When we pulled up at the Carter front gate, I reached for my seatbelt to unbuckle it. Richard turned to glance at me, then lifted a hand to tap the top of my head gently.

“Go inside and get a solid night’s sleep.”

I didn’t look back, pushing the car door open and walking into the house.

The atmosphere in the living room was far heavier than I’d anticipated. Selena sat on the sofa, her

eyes red and puffy from crying, fresh tear tracks streaked across her cheeks. Mom sat beside her, her face tight with rage.

Selena spotted me, her lips trembling, voice raw and hoarse from hours of crying. “Florence, are you happy now?”

Ifroze mid-step, utterly confused. “What are you talking about?”

“Thomas wants to call off our engagement. Are you satisfied?”

She stood abruptly, fresh tears flooding down her face, her pitch rising shrill.”Staff saw you talking

to him in the restroom tonight, and he walked straight out and told me he wanted to break everything off.”

“Florence, I’ve never once wronged you in my life-why would you do this to me?”

Mom marched over and shoved my shoulder hard, her tone venomous. “What’s gotten into you? Did your grandpa raise you to seduce your own sister’s fiancé? Have you no shame at all? You’ve dragged the entire Carter family’s reputation through the mud!”

“I don’t care what poison you whispered to Thomas-you will march over there and explain

yourself right this instant, or I’ll pretend I never gave birth to you!”

Her words hung thick in the air, and I stared at her parted lips, utterly stunned.

I remembered elementary school, learning a new idiom: a preference for sons. Our teacher had

written it across the chalkboard, explaining it meant families valuing boys over girls, calling the

mindset cruel and unfair.

It was supposed to be a negative term, yet I’d clung to it secretly, hopeful. Maybe Mom and Dad didn’t love me only because they favored sons. I wasn’t a boy, so their coldness wasn’t my fault.

I’d sprinted home faster than ever that day, buzzing with the thrill of solving a puzzle.

When I pushed open the front door, I saw Mom holding a brand-new dress for Selena-a fluffy pink tulle gown that swirled around her as she spun like a princess. Dad clapped and laughed from the sofa, then pulled a jeweled tiara out like a magic trick and set it on Selena’s head.

I stood rooted to the floor, the fragile excuse I’d clung to shattering instantly. Selena was a girl too,

just like me.

I’d hated that idiom ever since. It stripped away the last weak justification I had for my parents’ lack

of love.

Years of repressed hurt, resentment, and self-doubt welled up inside me like a bottomless dry well I’d thought time had filled in. I’d only buried it deep, never daring to look down into the darkness.

I squeezed my eyes shut, then locked my gaze directly on Selena. “You claim you’ve never wronged me-are you truly certain of that?”

“Then tell me this: why did Thomas agree to the arranged marriage the second he laid eyes on you? Every time you visited me out in the countryside, were you genuinely checking in on me, or did you already know the truth all along, coming with hidden motives?”

“Selena, can you look me straight in the eyes and swear you’ve never once hurt me?”

Selena’s expression twisted with unease, her tears drying up mid-weep as she sat frozen,

speechless.

I let out a cold laugh. “I’ll tell you exactly why Thomas is ending your engagement, listen closely.”

“He knows every single thing now. He’s aware you’ve been pretending to be me this whole time, building a relationship with him under my identity. He’s learned everything. Wait for him to come

find you to settle this score.”

Selena couldn’t muster a single retort, panic finally breaking through her usual poised, beautiful

facade.

Yet I felt no sense of victory, not even a flicker. My legs turned weak beneath me, all strength draining from my body as I stood there.

“Selena, if you’d fallen for Thomas, you could’ve just told me. You never said a word, though-why couldn’t you be honest? I would’ve stepped back without a fight. Why resort to lying and deception? Why make me realize even the small kindness you showed me was nothing but a fake?”

I stared at her, and tears finally spilled freely. “Selena, I truly meant to wish you happiness. I was genuinely glad you’d found someone you loved.”

I turned to Mom next, my voice flat and hollow. “And Mom-are you only disowning me today? It feels like you’ve acted as if I never existed from the very day I was born.”

A suffocating silence blanketed the living room. I ignored both of them entirely.

“I’m exhausted. I don’t want to face this fake, unfeeling family any longer. I’ll pack my things and head back to Grandpa’s house first thing tomorrow. I’m never coming back to this place again.”