Chapter 8 - The Ghost of Drama Past
Paige hadn't changed,
not really.
She was wearing a dress that was too tight and too young for her,
her face heavily made up to hide the lines of a bitter decade.
She had clearly heard I was there,
likely tipped off by a friend who saw the guest list.
She marched toward us,
ignoring the dignitaries and the security guards.
“Claire!”
she screamed,
her voice shrill and demanding.
“You bitch!”
The room went silent again,
the high-society guests turning to watch the spectacle.
I stopped and turned,
waiting for her.
“Hello,
Paige,”
I said calmly.
“Nice to see some things never change.”
“You disappeared!”
she yelled,
pointing a manicured finger at me.
“You left me when I needed you most!”
“Mom and Dad were so stressed,
I had a nervous breakdown because of you!”
I looked at the crowd,
then back at her.
“You had a nervous breakdown because I wasn't there to pay your rent,”
I said,
my voice carrying through the quiet room.
“You’re pathetic,”
she spat,
tears welling in her eyes—the same theatrical tears I had seen a thousand times.
“You think you’re so great because you have money and a suit?”
“You’re still just the boring,
unwanted sister.”
I stepped closer to her,
until I could see the desperation in her eyes.
“I may be unwanted by you,”
I said softly,
so only she could hear.
“But I am the one with the life you always wanted.”
“I am the one with the respect,
the love,
and the freedom.”
“And you?”
“You’re still thirty days away from another crisis,
still living in a house of cards.”
She tried to slap me,
but I caught her wrist in mid-air.
I didn't squeeze,
I just held it firmly,
showing her the strength she always told me I had to have.
“Don't,”
I warned.
“I’m not the strong one anymore,
Paige.”
“I’m the one who fights back.”
I let go of her arm,
and she stumbled back into our parents.
They gathered around her,
trying to shush her,
trying to hide the embarrassment.
But the damage was done.
May you like
The elite of the city had seen the "family" of the guest of honor,
and the contrast was devastating.
