Chapter 6
Erik took Margo on a trip.
She posted photos on her Instagram. On the beach, she was wearing a straw hat and a white dress, smiling like she was in a movie.
The caption said, “He said he wanted to raise me all over again.”
“He wants to throw a banquet for the child version of me.”
I gave it a like. Then, Margo sent me a private photo. It was a photo of Erik asleep, lying on a picnic table.
“Hallie, it’s a good thing you didn’t come.”
“Traveling is exhausting–staying home is way better.”
I stared at it for a while.
Why is he sleeping outside? Did they run out of money? Is he gonna try and get his money back?
Feeling a little uneasy, I finally replied, carefully, “Then let him rest properly–don’t let him wear himself out.”
She typed for a long time.
“Hallie, I think we should talk.”
“You and Erik are both adults. You’re not related by blood; there should
be boundaries between siblings like that…”
I stared at her long message, not saying anything.
Chapter 6
After a pause, I just replied, “OK.”
That summer, I passed the Goethe exam, got all my documents in order, and started sending out my applications. Some schools were already accepting students with SAT scores or AST results, and I was aiming to get in this year.
By mid–August, Erik had already gone off to university while I was still at
home.
Our house was not far from his school, so after his Freshers‘ Week, he came home most weekends. We did not talk much, but we would run into each other. Sometimes, Margo came back with him.
The first time she followed him in, she saw me sitting on the couch reading and looked genuinely surprised, but still tried to act like we were
close.
“So Hallie hasn’t gotten her offer yet? Guess that means she’ll have to enroll next year?”
Erik pressed his lips together. “Maybe.”
Then she gasped like she realized something big. “So you’ll graduate a whole year after us?”
I replied calmly, “The program I applied to only lasts three years.”
She suddenly looked awkward, biting her lip as if unsure what to say. Then, she turned to Erik. “I didn’t know that…”
Erik said flatly, “It’s normal not to know..
“We started from different places. Knowing stuff doesn’t make you better than anyone.”
It felt like I was being shaded. I had no idea what I had done to annoy them, but I was not in the mood to argue. So, I closed my book and
06 401
Chapter &
headed upstairs.
Erik called after me. “Which school?”
I looked back. Sunlight streamed through the windows and lit up the
stairs.
I smiled at him and said, “Better not say. Don’t want to come off too superior.”
