When the Forgotten Daughter Rises Chapter 01

When the Forgotten Daughter Rises Chapter 01

My younger sister Lily’s graduation party is held on July 8, just a few days after my SAT scores are released.

Pack Hall is filled with balloons and flowers, and a huge banner hangs across the wall:

[Congratulations, Lily, on ranking 7th in the Pack Area and earning a B-Rank! Here’s to your admission to one of the top high schools!]

Dad even has a cake specially made in advance, with “Congratulations, Lily!” written in frosting across the top.

Holding a glass of champagne, he looks around proudly, showing off to everyone.

“Lily has always been such an easy kid to raise. She’s been a genius since she was little. She won first place in the district math competition, and she absolutely crushed her exams this time. Her mom and I have spent the past three years making sure she had everything she needed.”

Everyone’s attention is focused on Lily.

I sit alone in a chair in the corner when my phone suddenly lights up.

A notification from College Board appears on the screen:

SAT: 1520

Wolf Rating: SSS-Rank

I stare at the two numbers for a few seconds, then quietly turn my phone face down on the table.

The uncle sitting beside me, Uncle Mark, suddenly pats his forehead.

“Ellie, you took the SAT this year too, didn’t you? How’d you do?”

The noisy Pack Hall suddenly falls into an awkward silence.

For three full seconds, no one says a word.

The smile on Dad’s face stiffens for a moment. A trace of confusion flashes through his eyes, as if he’s desperately trying to remember what grade I’m even in.

Lily blinks and looks at Mom.

Mom walks over with her champagne and smoothly picks up the conversation.

“She’s got plenty of time. She’s taking the SAT next year.”

My fingers pause slightly.

I don’t correct her.

This spring, I register for the SAT early. I look up the test dates myself and prepare all the materials on my own.

On the day of the exam, I drive to the testing center alone.

After more than two hours of digital testing, I drive back to the Pack by myself.

That day, Mom doesn’t even ask how I did.

She simply sends me an iMessage:

[Get up early tomorrow. You’re coming with me to book Lily’s graduation dinner venue. Don’t sleep in.]

That’s it.

In this family, being overlooked has long since become the norm.

And now, Lily stands in the middle of Pack Hall, surrounded by people celebrating her, while my 1520 sits quietly on the other side of the table.

By the time the graduation party ends, it’s already ten at night.

Mom settles the bill at the front desk, then casually hands me an envelope stuffed with cash gifts.

“Go through these and keep track of everything people gave Lily.”

I sit on the lobby sofa, opening each envelope one by one and recording the amounts in the ledger Mom gives me.

Uncle David gives Lily sixteen hundred dollars.

Aunt Linda gives eight hundred.

Aunt Rachel gives a thousand.

When I reach the last page, Mom adds casually, “Whatever you received from the family counts as part of Lily’s graduation gifts too.”

I freeze for a moment.

When Uncle Mark leaves, he clearly slips a thick envelope into my hand himself and pats me on the shoulder.

“Ellie, get yourself something good. Senior year’s tough. You need to keep your brain fed.”

There are two thousand dollars inside the envelope.

Now, that money becomes part of my sister’s college fund.

I quietly close the ledger, organize all the cash, and put it into Mom’s purse.

When I get back to the Gamma House, my parents are still in the living room, excitedly counting how much they received in graduation gifts tonight.

Lily sits beside them, pestering them for the latest tablet.

I ignore them and go straight to my room, locking the door behind me.

I turn on my old computer, the one that makes a deafening rattling noise every time the fan spins, and log into the college application portal.

Under my first-choice school, I don’t enter any prestigious university in the state.

With my scores, I can choose from almost any college in the country.

In the end, I enter one of the most prestigious universities on the East Coast.

Yale University.

About eight hundred miles from home.

A flight requires a connection and takes around six hours in total.

A long-distance overnight bus takes nearly eighteen.

My cursor hovers over “Submit.”

I click.

Then I confirm.

A moment later, the screen displays: [Application submitted successfully.]

I stare at those words and slowly let out a breath.

For the first time in a long while, I feel completely, unbelievably free.