Chapter 3

Chapter 3

"Didn't you score over 600 in both your mock exams? How did you end up with just 364 on the SAT?"

After checking the results, Dad stormed into Lilah's room, furious at her score, which wasn't even good enough for a decent college.

Lilah glanced at our faces, sensing the tension in the air, and immediately started playing the victim.

"I didn't perform well on the SAT. Shouldn't you be comforting me first? Is this how family should treat each other?"

She burst into tears, covering her face.

"Nonsense! You expect me to believe you underperformed by over 300 points? Aren't you feeling guilty?"

Dad had always been the one to coddle Lilah. He would immediately back down and apologize whenever he saw her cry. But this time, it seemed she had really crossed a line. He wasn't giving in at all.

Lilah was momentarily speechless. She looked over at me, who was silently watching, as if she suddenly thought of something.

"It was Davina! Before the SAT, she gave me a pair of knock-off shoes. I said I didn't want them, and we had a big fight. I was so upset that it affected my performance."

"That happened a week before the exam! With your carefree personality, could you really be affected by something for that long?"

Seeing her trying to pin the blame on me, I quickly defended myself.

Lilah was shocked to see me, who usually took the blame for her, standing up for myself.

Hearing my defense, Dad became even angrier.

"How dare you blame your sister? Even if you were in a bad mood, could it really cause such a huge drop in your score?"

"I bragged to everyone about you every day, telling them my daughter was going to an Ivy League school. And this is what you give me?"

Dad looked like he was about to faint from anger, his whole demeanor radiating fury.

"Dad, I really didn't perform well..."

Lilah cried even harder, as if she was truly being wronged.

"Stop acting!"

"Are you going to tell the truth or not?"

Dad picked up a rod nearby, ready to hit her. Mom, looking heartbroken, rushed to protect Lilah.

"I bought the answers for the mock exams. Is this what you wanted?"

No wonder she was always asking for money. I thought our family was well-off enough to provide for her. It turned out she was using the money to buy answers.

Although we all had our suspicions, hearing her admit it out loud made Mom and Dad's faces darken even more.

"It's because you kept praising my good grades and pressuring me to get into an Ivy League school. I was so stressed and afraid of letting you down that I had no other choice..."

"Slap!"

Mom, who had just been protecting her, suddenly slapped her.

"Lilah, you've gone too far! Think about it, who in this family has treated you badly? You didn't work hard and indulged in pleasures, and now you dare blame your family?"

"During those months you were preparing for the SAT, the three of us walked on eggshells, afraid of disturbing your studies. We couldn't afford to send Davina to college, so we pinned all our hopes on you. And this is how you repay us?"

"Forget about ten thousand dollars. We won't give you a single cent now. Think carefully and prepare to repeat a year!"

With that, they slammed the door and left. I followed them out, feeling a sense of schadenfreude.

Late at night, as I was feeling satisfied with the day's events, I passed by Lilah's room and overheard a shocking conversation.