Chapter 4This Time, I'll Just Watch

Hearing my explanation, Joy skeptically fished around in the pot with a ladle. She pulled up a string of bright red peppercorns.

I forced a placating smile. “I know you love spicy food, Joy. Mom and Dad don’t usually let you have it, but since it’s your birthday, I thought I’d add a little something special for you.”

Joy’s tastes were the opposite of our family’s bland diet. She craved the fire and numbness of spicy food, but my parents restricted it, along with any greasy, fried snacks.

My father shot me a disapproving look.

But my mother, seeing Joy’s happy expression, let it slide. “Just this once. Look how happy she is. And you know what they say, a happy heart is a healthy heart.”

My father’s expression softened. He began serving Joy, feeding her morsels of food as if she were a toddler. My mother, not to be outdone, produced a brightly wrapped gift.

“Happy eighteenth birthday, my sweet baby girl! You’re an adult now!”

It was the same performance every year. A cozy, intimate scene of a perfect family of three, celebrating their beloved daughter.

Joy sat at the head of the table, the center of their universe. My own birthday had been the day before, a fact everyone seemed to have collectively forgotten.

It had gotten worse over the years. Their obsession with her was absolute. Even when money was tight, her room overflowed with dolls and her closet with expensive clothes. The only air conditioner in our cramped house was installed in her bedroom.

I slept in the storage room next door, a wall away, fighting off cockroaches and centipedes in my sleep.

“Wow, a cute teddy bear! Thank you, Mommy!”

Joy kissed my mother’s cheek and twirled around, hugging the bear. Then her eyes landed on me, quietly eating at the corner of the table.

“April didn’t get a present yesterday,” she said suddenly. “Will she be angry when she sees my bear?”