Chapter 4I’m Inferior to My Sister-in-Law in Every Way

My actions stunned them into silence. I had made scenes before, but they always ended with me trying to win back their approval.

My mother-in-law's chest heaved with rage. My father-in-law's face was a thundercloud.

Seeing her chance, Claire nudged her son, Leo, who immediately ran to his grandparents and hugged their legs, babbling sweetly.

My daughter, Lia, started to step forward too, but they deliberately ignored her.

As Leo charmed them with his antics, the tension in the air magically dissipated, replaced by warmth and laughter.

And Lia just stood there, lost and alone.

Just like me. An outsider.

I had always known they were biased, but seeing it so plainly still felt like a knife twisting in my gut.

How ridiculous.

They could be so prejudiced against their own flesh and blood, all because I had given birth to a girl.

I had tried to gently bring it up with Mark once.

I stated it as a simple fact, but he met me with icy indifference.

He asked me, his voice calm, if it wasn't the truth. If I had given him a son, he said, his family would have treated me just as well.

They drove me to the brink of madness, then calmly painted themselves as the victims of my insanity.

I never brought it up again.

Mark's eyes were soft as he ruffled his nephew's hair, but his face darkened the moment he looked at me. If anyone else had been there, he would have pointed at me with that weary, long-suffering sigh.

"See? She's at it again."

But this time, I didn't scream. I calmly took my daughter's hand.

The sight of me preparing to leave with Lia seemed to finally rattle him.

"Alright, alright! I shouldn't have said those things, okay?"

"I'm sorry."

"Now, shouldn't you be the one to apologize to everyone?"

He sounded like he was patiently mediating, but he was just trying to provoke me further.

This time, he was destined for disappointment.

"Lydia! Don't push your luck!"

He clearly thought his "apology" was a grand gesture, and he was furious that I wasn't gratefully accepting it.

"Move."

The single, cold word slipped from my lips.

His anger finally boiled over.

"What the hell do you want?! Do you expect the entire family to get on their knees and beg for your forgiveness?!"

I looked at him, my face a placid mask.

"Could you please get out of my way?"

He stared at me, uncomprehending for a second.

Then, his rage exploded. Without another word, he slapped me again.

"Lydia! If you walk out that door today, don't even think about coming back!"

My cheek burned, but the pain was nothing compared to the ache in my heart.

He knew. He knew my parents were gone, that this family was all I had left.

And he was using it to force me to submit.

But I was done submitting.