Chapter 7 - The Anniversary Nobody Would ForgetOne year later, my parents held another family gathering.
It wasn't glamorous.
No champagne wall.
No high-society guests.
Just family.
My father had stepped down from Reed Capital.
The company survived under new management.
My mother kept their home.
Olivia had started working at a nonprofit.
And I had never been closer to my sister.
At dinner, my father stood.
“I owe everyone an apology.”
Nobody spoke.
He looked at me.
“Especially Hannah.”
I held his gaze.
“I spent years believing your success belonged to me because I was your father.”
He swallowed.
“I was wrong.”
He looked around the table.
“I confused family with entitlement.”
My mother reached for his hand.
He took it.
Then he looked at Olivia.
“And I used you.”
Olivia nodded through tears.
“I know.”
My father sat down.
It wasn't forgiveness.
Not yet.
But it was the first honest dinner our family had ever had.
Later that night, Olivia and I stood outside.
“You know what I realized?” she asked.
“What?”
“I spent my entire life thinking you were the difficult daughter.”
I laughed.
“You were wrong.”
“I know.”
She smiled.
“You were just the daughter who wouldn't lie.”
I looked at her.
“And you?”
“I was the daughter who didn't know she was being lied to.”
We hugged.
For the first time, there was no competition.
May you like
No comparison.
Just two sisters.
