“No,” he said. “You did a good job. Don’t let her tell you different.”
I turned away so he wouldn’t see my eyes fill.
“Grab your backpack,” I said. “You’ll be late too.”
He disappeared down the hall, and I stood there in the quiet kitchen, breathing in the strange peace of a life I had somehow managed to build.
I didn’t know then that he’d been keeping something from me for months.
“You did a good job.”
I thought we had finally found stability.
But our aunt arrived for his birthday dinner with a completely different plan for our future.
The doorbell rang just as I finished lighting the candles on the cake.
Lucas glanced at me from across the room, his jaw tightening in a way I had learned to recognize over the years.
We both knew who it was before I even opened the door.
I thought we had finally found stability.
Our aunt breezed in wearing too much perfume and a smile that never reached her eyes.
She handed Lucas a small envelope and kissed the air near his cheek.
“Eighteen years old,” she cooed. “A real man now.”
Lucas mumbled a thank you and took her coat.
I forced a polite smile and led her to the dining table where our more distant relatives and friends were already seated.
None of us knew that simple birthday dinner would turn explosive.
Our aunt breezed in
Dinner started pleasantly enough.
Then, halfway through dessert, our aunt tapped her wine glass with a fork.
“I think this is the perfect moment to discuss something important,” she announced. “Something practical. Something the adults in this family should have addressed a long time ago.”
I felt my shoulders stiffen.
“Auntie, please, not tonight,” I said quietly.
“This is the perfect moment to discuss something important,”
“Oh, don’t be dramatic,” she replied. “Lucas is a legal adult now. He deserves to hear this.”
She turned her full attention to my brother.
“Sweetheart, the house you two live in belonged to your parents. Now that you’re of age, it needs to be sold. Split fairly. And as your mother’s only sister, I’m legally entitled to a portion of the estate.”
The room went painfully silent.
“It needs to be sold.”
One of our second cousins pretended to inspect her napkin.
“That house was left to us,” I said, keeping my voice level. “You know that.”
“I know what I know,” she snapped. “And I know that for eight years I’ve watched you struggle to raise this boy on scraps. Selling the house would give him a real future. College. A car. Something you clearly can’t provide on your salary.”
The words hit exactly where she meant them to.
Lucas set his fork down slowly.
I expected Lucas to stay quiet like he always had.
Instead, he said something none of us saw coming.
“I know what I know,”
“Auntie,” he said, “I think you should go.”
She blinked, genuinely startled.
“Excuse me?”
NEXT PAGE
