They Left Me Twice, I Stopped Following Chapter 05

They Left Me Twice, I Stopped Following Chapter 05

By the time we arrived at the prep boarding campus, night had fallen completely.

The supervisor led us into the dormitories.

Four-person suites, fully heated, equipped with individual desks and private storage closets.

The dorm director handed me a key.

“Sheets and duvet covers are inside the closet. Call me if you need help setting them up.”

I clutched the small key and whispered my thanks.

Dinner consisted of two hot entrees and a side.

I sat down with my tray, staring at the glazed pork rib for a few long seconds.

A student nearby asked, “You don’t like it?”

I shook my head.

I picked it up with my fork and took a bite.

The meat was tender.

I didn’t have to wait for others to finish, nor did I have to sift through a bowl of fish bones looking for scraps to see if any meat remained.

Halfway through the meal, my phone began vibrating continuously.

Over a dozen missed calls.

All from Grandma.

The moment I picked up, her voice sounded frantic.

“Sienna, where are you?”

“I came home and the house is completely empty!”

“You’re not back at this hour, are you trying to scare Grandma to death?”

My hand holding the fork paused.

The cafeteria was noisy.

I pressed the phone closer to my ear.

“I went to the prep campus.”

Silence fell on the other end.

“What?”

“This afternoon.”

“The school shuttle brought us all here.”

Grandma’s breathing grew heavy and fast.

“Why didn’t you tell me?”

I looked down at the food in my bowl.

After a few seconds, I spoke softly.

“I told you yesterday.”

I said they were giving out the admission letters today, and the bus left this afternoon.”

“You told me to wait for you.”

Nothing but static came through the line.

It took a long time before she finally spoke.

“Grandma had an emergency.”

“It was Chloe’s first day at her new school’s event, and she was crying so hard, saying every other kid had their family there…”

“It’s fine.”

I cut her off.

My voice was surprisingly calm.

“I’ve already arrived.”

Mom grabbed the phone almost immediately.

“Sienna Chen, how old do you think you are?”

“Going so far away, who gave you permission to make that decision yourself?”

“What if something happens to you?”

I suddenly recalled my past life.

When I was fourteen, the year they moved away.

I sat alone on a six-hour train ride to track them down.

I slept on cold station benches and got chased off by strangers in unfamiliar towns.

Back then, nobody asked me what would happen if something went wrong.

I swallowed my last bite of food.

“There are teachers around.”

“Nothing will happen.”

Mom was about to say more.

The dorm director happened to call out from the hallway, “Everyone back in your rooms before nine!”

I said softly:

“I need to make my bed now.”

Then I hung up.

My roommate across the room was still on the phone with her mother.

“Mom, I know how to make the bed, don’t worry.”

A moment later, she turned to ask me, “Did your family call too?”

I nodded. “Yeah.”

“Are they missing you already?”

My fingers paused for a moment as I hung the last school uniform in the closet.

“Yeah.”

She didn’t ask further.

When I got back to the room, the teacher was registering emergency contacts.

When it was my turn, she asked, “Should I list your dad or your mom?”

I held the pen, thinking for a moment.

I pressed the pen tip onto the paper, holding it there for a long time without changing anything.

In the end, I wrote down my homeroom teacher’s number.

That night, I smoothed my blanket perfectly flat.

The closet held only two school uniforms, a few books, and that admission letter.

It felt incredibly empty.

I woke up once in the middle of the night.

The streetlights shone outside the window.

The heating radiator emitted a soft, quiet hum.

Instinctively, I reached out to touch the dorm key by my pillow.

It was still there.

I closed my eyes again.