I always carried this pain inside me, a feeling that never left. People—including my own family—saw me as nothing more than trash.
But none of that compared to the way heartbreak shattered me into pieces.
Now, I live in misery—just a lonely soul in the mountains.
People often wondered where my family was. The truth? They abandoned me long ago.
They said I had no respect. Maybe they were right. Maybe they just needed an excuse.
I had three brothers. As the only girl, outsiders thought I was the luckiest. If only they knew.
There was one brother—Toby Jinx. He was the most annoying person I had ever known, yet, in my parents' eyes, he was the best. The golden child. The favorite.
I never showed my dislike for people, not on my face, not in my words. I kept it buried deep inside.
Toby was different from my other brothers. He once told me I was no longer his sister. That he wouldn't take care of me when our parents were gone.
And yet, sometimes, in rare moments, he would turn around and say, "I'm going to make you happy.
~FLASHBACK ~
"You're no longer my sister."
Those words hit me like a slap. No, worse—like a knife slicing through my heart, deeper than any wound I had ever felt before.
I stared at Toby Jinx, my so-called brother, as his cold gaze bore into mine. For years, I had known he was annoying. I had known he was our parents' favorite. But never—never—did I think he would look at me with such disgust, as if I were nothing.
"What did you just say?" My voice trembled, but I refused to let my face show it.
"You heard me," he said, crossing his arms. "I don't have a sister anymore. You're on your own."
I scoffed, but it came out shaky. "So what? You were never there for me anyway."
He chuckled, but it wasn't a happy sound. It was bitter, mocking. "You think everyone is against you, don't you? Maybe if you weren't so—so difficult, they wouldn't have left you."
"Left me?" My voice rose. "You talk like you know how it feels to be abandoned!"
He stepped closer, his face unreadable. "No, I don't. Because I'm not the one who pushes everyone away."
That was it. That was when something inside me snapped.
I lunged at him, shoving him backward with all the strength I had. He barely stumbled, but I didn't care. I wanted him to feel even an ounce of the pain I was carrying.
"You're just like them!" I screamed. "Go ahead! Leave! You think I care?!"
For a moment, he just stood there. Then he shook his head and turned around.
He walked away.
I didn't call him back. I didn't stop him.
But as soon as the door slammed shut behind him, something in my chest shattered.
Because for all my anger, for all my pride—I had never wanted him to actually go.
And now, just like everyone else, he was gone.
~PRESENT~
I gasped as the memory faded, my body trembling. Tears streamed down my face, and no matter how much I tried to wipe them away, they kept falling.
The weight of everything—the heartbreak, the abandonment, the loneliness—pressed down on me like a mountain. I couldn't breathe.
"You're not alone."
I froze.
The voice was soft, yet it echoed through the silence. It felt… familiar. But not like Twinnie. Not like my family.
No—this voice belonged to someone I hadn't heard in years.
I swallowed hard, my pulse racing. My fingers dug into the fabric of my shirt as I forced myself to whisper, "Who... who's there?"
No answer. Just silence.
But deep inside, I already knew.
It was me.
The part of me that I had locked away. My conscience—the voice that once guided me, the voice that once told me when I was wrong, when I needed to hold on, when I needed to let go.
It had been silent for so long. I thought it had left me forever. But now, it was back.
"You're not alone." It repeated, softer this time.
I squeezed my eyes shut. Was this real? Or was I just breaking apart completely?
I didn't know. I didn't care.
For the first time in years, something inside me stirred.
A small, fragile piece of myself that I thought had died long ago