They Took Everything by Vote, So I Disappeared Chapter 10

They Took Everything by Vote, So I Disappeared Chapter 10

By the time I walked back into the cafeteria, the meat had already gone cold.

Professor Warren was still sitting where I’d left him, watching me.

“All taken care of?”

“Yeah.”

I sat down and picked up my fork again.

“They won’t be coming back.”

Professor Warren got me some hot food.

“Eat this while it’s hot.”

“Research is a long road.”

“A lonely one.”

“But as long as you carry a light inside you, you won’t lose your way.

I looked at the steaming meat and food in front of me.

I couldn’t help feeling like I was about to cry.

In eighteen years, this was the first time a plate of food had ever made me want to cry.

Not because I felt wronged.

But because I’d finally found where I belonged.

The scene outside the main gate didn’t last long.

After the security officer fired a warning shot, Dad, Mom, and Bryce finally left in humiliation.

I later heard that after they went home, Bryce couldn’t repay his debts.

One of his creditors broke his leg.

Dad’s health completely collapsed.

He became bedridden and needed someone to care for him.

Kelsey couldn’t stand the unbearable atmosphere at home.

She quickly found a boyfriend from out of town and moved away with him.

She never came back.

The family that had once maintained its illusion of harmony through “fair voting” finally fell apart.

As they shifted the blame and resented one another, they finally learned what it felt like to be

deprived of something.

To be abandoned.

As for me, I never paid attention to their lives again.

Five years later.

At the launch complex in the Red Mesa High Desert, a silver-white rocket pointed toward the sky.

“Ignition!”

At the command from mission control, the rocket erupted in a massive burst of orange-red flame.

It carried the satellite our team had developed straight into the sky.

“Trajectory nominal!”

“Telemetry nominal!”

“Satellite separation confirmed!”

Thunderous applause and cheers filled the control room.

Professor Warren hugged me, overcome with emotion.

“Erin, we did it!”

I stared at the glowing point on the giant screen, our satellite now running steadily in orbit.

Tears spilled from my eyes.

For five years, I hadn’t gone home once.

I hadn’t bought a single new piece of clothing.

I’d poured all my youth and sweat into this barren stretch of desert.

But I’d gotten everything I wanted.

Respect.

A sense of worth.

And real freedom.

At the project celebration, Dr. Harper walked toward me carrying a cake with candles on it.

“Erin, today isn’t just the day our project succeeded.”

“It’s your twenty-third birthday too.”

“Everyone, let’s wish Erin a happy birthday!”

The entire team gathered around and began singing “Happy Birthday.”

Candlelight flickered across every sincere, smiling face.

I closed my eyes and clasped my hands together.

But I didn’t make a wish.

Because the one thing I’d wanted most had already come true.

Just as I blew out the candles, I received a letter forwarded by the security desk.

The envelope had “For Erin” written across the front in crooked handwriting.

It was Mom’s handwriting.

I took the letter into the hallway outside the lab.

When I opened the envelope, there was only a single thin sheet of paper inside.

“Erin, I know I was wrong.”

“Your dad is paralyzed now.”

“Your brother is disabled.”

“Your sister abandoned us.”

“I’m the only one left at home.”

“Can you come back and see me?”

“I’ve kept that room for you.”

“From now on, whatever happens in this family, you can make the final decision.”

I stared at the apology that had come five years too late.

Inside, I felt perfectly calm.

No rush of vindication.

No pang of sympathy either.

I walked to the shredder at the end of the hall.

Then I fed the letter and the envelope into it together.

The machine hummed.

The page covered in regret and pleading was instantly sliced into countless scraps and dropped into

the waste bin.

I turned around and headed back toward the brightly lit project celebration.

As I opened the door, Dr. Harper called out from inside.

“Erin, come cut the cake!”

“We took a vote.’

“The first slice has to go to you!”

I laughed and strode inside.

“Okay, coming!”

The wind still blew hard across the Red Mesa High Desert.

But for the first time, everything inside me felt warm and alive.