Two Homes, No Place for Me Chapter 03

Two Homes, No Place for Me Chapter 03

The day before I leave for college is also the first weekend Juliet is supposed to move from Dad’s

house to Mom’s.

She says the things in the two rooms are different, and sleeping somewhere else makes her feel

insecure.

So Dad, Mom, Derek, and Holden all pitch in to move her belongings.

My parents go over the checklist again and again, terrified they’ll forget even one thing.

Derek even takes down the decorations from the starry lights in Dad’s house, carefully packs them into a box, and gets ready to reinstall them exactly the same way at Mom’s.

Holden handles the driving, shuttling everything back and forth between the new homes in the two packs.

Juliet, meanwhile, complains that her suitcase is too small.

Then she spots the twenty-eight-inch suitcase I just bought.

It takes me two months of working part-time to save up for it.

It is also the only thing in the storage room big enough to hold everything I own.

My ID, admission letter, enrollment papers, clothes, and toiletries are already packed inside.

For the first time, I say no.

“I can’t lend it to her. My ID, admission letter, and enrollment papers are all inside. I leave at 8:20 tomorrow morning. I need that suitcase.”

Everyone hears me loud and clear.

Mom only frowns.

“You’re moving into a dorm. If you need anything later, you can buy another suitcase. Juliet’s moving today. We can’t put everything on hold over one suitcase.”

Dad clearly doesn’t think it’s a big deal either.

“It’s just for the weekend, Anne. She’ll give it back.”

Derek walks straight over and unzips my suitcase.

“Come on. We’re not going to fight over a suitcase.”

The next second, he dumps all my clothes, documents, and admission papers onto the floor.

I immediately drop to my knees to stop him.

“Derek, stop. Those are the documents I need tomorrow.”

But he has already grabbed several black trash bags and starts stuffing everything inside.

“Relax. Nothing’s going to happen to them.”

He carries the bags outside and leaves them by the door.

“They’ll be fine out here. Nobody’s going to take them.”

Then he pushes the empty suitcase toward Juliet.

Holden stands nearby and watches the entire thing.

One of my enrollment papers slips out of the trash bag and lands right by his feet.

He bends down, picks it up, and casually shoves it back inside.

Then he checks the suitcase handle and wheels once.

“Looks good.”

He lifts the suitcase and puts it in the trunk.

Dad then tells me to go to the car and get the storage bag Juliet forgot.

By the time I come back, the black trash bags are gone.

Derek has moved them into the common area to clear the walkway.

The maid assumes they’re trash left over from the move and takes them to the central garbage collection point.

My face goes pale.

“Stop everything. We need to find those bags.”

Dad glances at the time, “I have to get Juliet to Mom’s.”

Derek adds, “And I still need to install the starry lights.”

Holden is already in the driver’s seat, waving Juliet over.

“Come on. We need to go.”

I finally grab Mom’s hand.

“Mom, please. My ID and admission letter are in there. I have to check in tomorrow. Please come

with me.”

She pulls her hand away.

“They’re just documents, Anne. You can get replacements.”

“Some of them need to be verified by the school. I won’t have time to replace everything.”

My voice trembles with panic, “Please. Just come with me.”

Mom shakes her head.

“It’s Juliet’s first time moving into her new room. Everyone’s waiting for her. We’re not changing

the schedule because of this.”

She gets into the passenger seat.

“Go look for them. I’ll get Juliet settled and come back.”

The car door closes in front of me.

They drive away with the suitcase filled with Juliet’s things.

No one stays behind.

I have no choice but to go to the garbage collection point alone.

Several black trash bags are already torn open, their contents mixed with dirty water.

I crouch down and search through them with my bare hands, one thing at a time.

It takes me a long time to find my ID and admission letter, both of them soaked and wrinkled.

Some of my enrollment papers are completely smeared and unreadable.

Several pieces of clothing are covered in grime.

Two photo albums, several certificates, and some of the old things I’ve kept since childhood are gone for good.

Meanwhile, the two family group chats are still busy checking off Juliet’s belongings one by one.

Dad: “Juliet’s pillow is packed.”

Mom: “The bedside lamp made it over safely.”

Derek: “Starry-light decorations are all accounted for. Nothing’s missing.”

Juliet is only moving from one bedroom to another.

Yet they can’t even afford to lose one of her pillows.

I’m about to leave two thousand kilometers away and start a completely new life.

And they treat the past eighteen years of my life like garbage they can throw away without a second

thought.

Mom still hasn’t come back by late that night.

She only sends me one message.

Mom: “I’ll pick you up at seven tomorrow and drive you to the station.”

She has always assumed I’m attending a local community college.

She has never even asked what school I’m going to.

What she doesn’t know is that I changed my application months ago.

I’m going to a university out of state.

I reply: “My train leaves at 8:20. I need to leave by seven.”

A moment later, I send another message.

“The school requires in-person check-in by 5 p.m. tomorrow. If I miss the deadline, I lose my

spot.”

A few minutes pass before Mom finally replies.

Mom: “Got it.”

I stare at those two words for a long time.

In the end, I place my recovered ID and admission letter on the nightstand.

And I decide to trust her one more time.