My Smudged Birthday Cake

For eighteen years, Emily has been told she is the older sister, the one who must yield. On her eighteenth birthday, her handpicked strawberry and white chocolate cake—her name written on the plaque—is delivered, signed for, and devoured by her family instead. Her mother Sarah throws her card aside; her father Richard pokes eighteen candles into the cake for Hailey and Ben's reunion; her boyfriend Ben cuts straight through her name and hands her a leftover corner. When Emily objects, she is called selfish. She walks out into the night with a flight to the UK booked in seven days.

The next morning, her mother wants her to sort Hailey's college files; Hailey wants a farewell photo; her brother Tyler calls her petty. Emily refuses to be the family's stepping stone any longer, and when she asks Hailey whether she saw the name on the cake, Hailey looks away. Then the doorbell rings: her best friend Nora is outside with the checklist for her student visa.

Seven days remain before Emily can finally claim a life of her own.