Chapter 6 - My Sister Made One Last Mistake
Two weeks later, Amanda showed up at my house.
She didn't call.
She simply appeared.
I opened the door and found her standing there with her arms crossed.
“Can we talk?”
I stepped outside and closed the door behind me.
“What do you want?”
“I think we need to clear the air.”
“Okay.”
She looked irritated by my calmness.
“You embarrassed me.”
I almost laughed.
“I embarrassed you?”
“You canceled everything.”
“I canceled what I paid for.”
“You knew everyone would blame me.”
“I didn't tell anyone why I canceled.”
“Exactly!”
She pointed at me.
“You let me look guilty.”
I stared at her.
“You laughed when Mom gave my children sleeping bags.”
She rolled her eyes.
“Oh my God, Claire. It was a joke.”
“It wasn't funny.”
“They're kids.”
“They're my kids.”
She went silent.
Then she said something that changed everything.
“You've always acted like you're better than me because you have your life together.”
I shook my head.
“No, Amanda.”
“Then what?”
“I've always acted like I'm responsible for my own life.”
She stared at me.
“You think you're so independent.”
“I am.”
“Because Dad left you money?”
I froze.
“How did you know?”
Her expression changed.
She knew she had crossed a line.
“Mom told me.”
“Why?”
“Because she was angry.”
I nodded slowly.
“So that's what this is about.”
Amanda looked away.
“You got the trust.”
“I didn't ask for it.”
“You got the house.”
“I didn't ask for that either.”
“You always get everything.”
I laughed softly.
“You had Mom.”
She looked back at me.
“What?”
“You had her attention. Her protection. Her excuses. Her sympathy.”
I pointed toward the house.
“I had responsibility.”
Amanda's eyes filled with tears.
For a second, she looked like my little sister again.
The girl who used to crawl into my bed during thunderstorms.
The girl I had protected.
The girl I had spent years trying to help.
“I was jealous,” she whispered.
“I know.”
“I didn't know how much I depended on you.”
“I know.”
“And when Mom chose me over you…”
She stopped.
“I liked it.”
I closed my eyes.
That honesty hurt more than any insult.
“But I shouldn't have laughed,” she whispered.
“No.”
“I shouldn't have told you to book a hotel.”
“No.”
She wiped her eyes.
“I’m sorry.”
I believed her.
Not because the apology erased anything.
It didn't.
But because sometimes people finally tell the truth when they're tired of lying to themselves.
I opened the door.
“Come inside.”
She looked surprised.
“Really?”
“Yeah.”
She stepped inside.
Lily ran into the room.
“Aunt Amanda!”
Amanda burst into tears.
She knelt and hugged her niece.
“I’m sorry, sweetheart.”
Lily looked confused.
“For what?”
Amanda laughed through her tears.
“For being mean.”
Lily thought about it.
Then she hugged her tighter.
“It's okay.”
I watched them.
May you like
Maybe forgiveness didn't mean forgetting.
Maybe it meant refusing to carry the anger anymore.
