2: 2

I froze. Over the past few days, Julie Donaldson really had been posting a lot of gloomy things on social media.

Then deleting them a little while later.

Thinking about it now, she must have had a falling-out with her husband.

"Mom, this apartment has three bedrooms. You and Dad take one, Julie takes one, I take one. It's exactly enough for everyone."

I kept my patience and counted it out for her.

"Besides, if she's coming home to clear her head, this way I can keep her company."

But my mother just twisted her lips. "Then where does Duke sleep?"

Duke was Julie's golden retriever, spoiled by her like a flesh-and-blood son.

I thought she was joking, so I set down my bag and headed for the bedrooms.

"Mom, stop it. A dog gets a whole room now?"

But after I pushed open each bedroom door one by one, the smile froze on my face.

The master bedroom was for our parents.

The other bedroom, the sunny one, was done in the pink princess style Julie loved.

The smallest room, facing north, had anti-slip mats on the floor, with dog toys, a dog toilet, and a dog bed beside them.

All of it built in and fixed in place, impossible to move.

My mother came over with a sheepish smile. "If Julie comes home without Duke, she'll definitely worry too much to sleep. His things would be a mess in the living room, so a room of his own is just right."

"Then where do I sleep?"

Her eyes flickered, and she jerked her chin toward the balcony.

"If you really insist on moving back in, then all we can do is set up a cot on the balcony."

The balcony had no window screens, and at night it was full of mosquitoes.

"Mom, it's July. It's over ninety degrees at night. You want me to sleep on the balcony?"

"Didn't you always sleep on the balcony back home? What's wrong with making do?" my mother shot back, righteous as anything. "Duke can't take the heat. If he got heatstroke, Julie would be heartbroken."

Seeing me say nothing, she added, a little guiltily, "Besides, aren't you allergic to dog hair? Giving Duke his own room is for your own good too…"

I clenched my fists. "So the apartment I paid for—Julie and her dog each get a room, and I get to sleep on the balcony?"

My mother's face darkened. "Did you swallow a bomb today or what?"

"You were so sensible as a kid. How did you grow up to be pettier and pettier? Fighting your sister for everything."

"Look at Julie. In all these years, has she ever fought you for anything?"

But I was only a year older than Julie.

I couldn't hold it in. I gritted my teeth and said, "She already has everything. Of course she doesn't need to fight."

My mother choked on that, and her face turned ugly.

She slammed the table. "If you want to blame someone, blame yourself for buying an apartment that's too small. If you'd bought a four-bedroom, would there be nowhere for you to stay?"

I felt wronged and furious at once.

"Even with one more bedroom, it would just become Julie's walk-in closet. I still wouldn't have anywhere to stay."

That pushed my mother over the edge. She jabbed her finger at my nose. "Daisy Donaldson, what's that supposed to mean? You just have to argue with me today, don't you?"

"Your sister's going through a hard time right now! You're the older one, would it kill you to give a little?"

Right as we were locked in the standoff, my phone buzzed.

In the family group chat, Julie had posted a cutesy selfie with her arms around the golden retriever.

"Half an hour and I'm home! Mom, did you make the dishes I love?"

My mother replied in a heartbeat. "Made them, made them, all your favorites! Spicy fried chicken, spicy poached fish, spicy stew!"

I stared at the screen, my fingers going cold.

Only then did I notice—a whole table of dishes, every one of them blazing spicy.

But I'd never eaten spicy food my whole life. One bite and my stomach would hurt.

3: 3

My sister dropped a kissing emoji in the family group chat. "Love you so much! Oh, and Mom, I brought you a present!"

Then came a photo of a pair of pink rubber gloves, priced at ten dollars.

"Julie's so thoughtful, she knows washing dishes ruins my hands." My mother fired off three thumbs-up in a row, then started in with her needling.

"Way better than your sister. All she does is upset me, always so busy, busy, busy, can't even be bothered to help with the new place. Must be nice, leaving it all to everyone else."

My mother is allergic to dish soap, so I'm the one who washes every dish at home.

Later, once I was working, I spent my first month's paycheck on a dishwasher.

She used it once, complained it wasted water and electricity, and turned around and sold it for five hundred.

It broke my heart, and she went and told the whole family chat that the rubber gloves her younger daughter bought were far more thoughtful.

Last fall, my mother called to say her back hurt.

I drove back overnight from out of town and took her to the hospital.

The doctor said it was a bone spur. She needed rest, no strain.

I took a week off to look after her, cooking meals and simmering soup and carrying it to her bedside every day.

And all she did was sigh at me. "If only Julie were home. That girl has such a sweet mouth, she really knows how to cheer a person up..."

In that moment, it hit me.

My money, my effort, my time, none of it added up to one sweet word from my sister in my mother's eyes.

All those years of giving suddenly felt like a joke.

"Mom, for over twenty years, I gave Julie everything. New backpacks, the good room. Even when I got into college, you said the family couldn't afford to send two kids, so I dropped out and went to work, so I wouldn't put you in a bind."

"Do you have any idea? All these years I slept on a cot back home, until my spine curved. The doctor said if I kept sleeping like that I'd be paralyzed when I got old. I never told you, because I didn't want you to worry. I always thought, once I grew up and bought my own place, everything would be fine."

I pointed at the dog room, my voice trembling, thick with a sob I couldn't hold back.

"But now I've bought a three-bedroom apartment, and I still have to fight my sister's dog for a room. Mom, I just want one bed of my own, in a place I paid for. Is that really too much to ask?"

My mother went quiet for a few seconds, then stiffened her neck again. "So what about your sister? She's going through a divorce right now! You really have to pick a fight with her over this?"

"But I'm the one who bought this apartment." I looked at her, holding on to one last shred of hope.

"I'm putting it out there right now. Either the dog room goes and I take the smallest bedroom, or the apartment gets sold and you all move back home."

"You wouldn't dare!" My mother's face went white. "I put all that work into the renovation, how could you sell it? If the relatives and neighbors heard, where would I put my face!"

"Then tear out the dog room! Put the dog on the balcony!"

"No. Duke can't stand the heat!"

I gave a cold laugh. "So wall in the balcony and put in an air conditioner. Problem solved."

"Why are you such a stubborn child?" My mother stamped her foot, frantic.

"Your sister's about to be home. If she finds out you banished Duke to the balcony, imagine how hurt she'll be. She's already in a bad place..."

Before she could finish, the elevator dinged out in the hallway, and then came my sister Julie's bright, ringing laugh.

"Mom! I'm home! Duke, say hi to Grandma~"

4: 4

The door opened, and my sister rushed in leading a big golden retriever.

She saw the full table of food and shrieked with delight, throwing herself at it. "It's all my favorites! Mom, you're the best!"

My mother instantly put on a smile and hurried over. "Sit down, rest. You must be worn out from the trip. Duke must be hungry too."

"Grandma got the dog food ready, imported, bought it specially, three hundred a pound."

She turned toward the kitchen, and as she passed me she shot me a vicious glare.

I looked down at my slippers. The price tag was still on. Nine ninety-nine.

Only then did my sister notice me. She tilted her head and smiled. "Oh, Daisy, you're here too?"

"This is the apartment I bought. Where else would I be?" I said.

Her face stiffened, then she leaned in and hooked her arm through mine.

"Daisy, did you and Mom get into it again? Come on, don't be mad. I brought you a present."

She dug a pack of spicy snack strips out of her bag and pressed it into my hand. "Try them, they're so good!"

I looked at her, and my stomach twisted with a sudden cramp.

"Sorry, I don't eat spicy food." I shook off her hand and tossed the snack strips on the table. "You'd better keep them for yourself!"

My sister froze, and her eyes went red on the spot.

Duke charged over at once and barked at me twice.

My mother heard the commotion and came flying out of the kitchen, throwing her arms around Julie. "Julie, ignore her. Your sister's out of her mind today, snapping at everyone she sees!"

My sister sniffled, tears dripping down her face. "Daisy, don't you want me home? If I'm in your way, I'll just go..."

"Go where! This is your home!" My mother glared at me with pure venom. "If anyone's leaving, it's her! Daisy Donaldson, do you know how hard it is for your sister to even come home once? You won't be satisfied until you drive her out onto the street? So you've got a little money, big deal!"

My sister quickly tugged at my mother's sleeve. "Mom, don't talk to Daisy like that... It's my fault, I shouldn't have come back..."

And with that she squeezed out two more pitiful tears.

My mother was beside herself with sympathy.

Watching the two of them clinging together, I suddenly laughed.

"Fine." I picked up the mattress I'd just bought. "You all live here. I'll go."

As I pulled the door open, my mother shouted after me. "Leave and don't come back! Ungrateful girl, all you know how to do is make me angry!"

Then came my sister's soft comforting voice. "Mom, don't be upset, I'll go talk to Daisy tomorrow. She's probably just having a bad moment..."

"Talk to her for what! You're spoiling her rotten!"

Out the door, I pressed the elevator button, like a stray dog that had been chased out of its home.

Down on the ground floor, I ran right into a few neighbors chatting.

"Hey, did you hear? That apartment, 1202, the younger daughter bought it outright for her parents. So devoted!"

"Yes, yes, I heard that too. The old lady's so proud of it, says her younger daughter's making big money out there. Tsk, tsk, what a lucky woman!"

"Shame the older daughter's such a dud. Twenty-nine and still not married, sponging off her parents every day at home. Same mother, and look at the gap between them."

"..."

I clenched my fist and didn't explain.

Instead I pulled out my phone and called the real estate agent.

"Francis Lambert, that apartment I bought outright last time, list it for me. As fast as you can!"

The next day the agent messaged that someone had taken to the place from the photos alone and could sign the contract right away.

I hesitated.

"The apartment's mine, but my parents and my sister are still living in it right now, so the handover might be a little troublesome."

A voice message came back, but not from the agent. It was the buyer.

"Little lady, I'm Claude Lawrence, and I ran a loan-shark operation for twenty years. You think there's any thug or lowlife I haven't seen?"

"I'm happy with the place. Go ahead and sign the contract. Leave the rest to me."

The contract was signed that same day, and once the money hit my account,

I booked myself a luxury tour package on the spot.

All these years working, I'd been pouring everything into propping up that family, and I'd almost forgotten what it felt like to enjoy anything.

My phone buzzed. A message from my mother. "Come home for dinner tonight, apologize to Julie, and we'll put this whole thing behind us. I've set your bed out on the balcony for you."

Right after came a photo of a cot, a bottle of bug spray sitting beside it.

I didn't reply.

At seven that evening I was in the airport VIP lounge, resting with my eyes closed.

Then came a hysterical call from my mother.

"Daisy Donaldson, you heartless piece of trash! You actually sold the apartment! Where are your father and I supposed to live?"

"Get back here right now! Or I'll cut ties with you as mother and daughter!"

I gave a cold laugh. "Go ahead. Nothing would make me happier."