Chapter 2

A wave of disbelief, then loud derision, swept through the guests. Richard’s face turned red. “Don’t be ridiculous, Amelia!” My mother, Carol, shook her head, her expression pained. “Amy, darling, you’re being delusional.” “If she gets any acceptance, it’s because Eleanor pulled strings,” Richard scoffed, referring to my paternal grandmother, Eleanor Miller. Brittany clapped her hands, a malicious glint in her eyes. “I have an idea! Let’s do an SAT score estimation game!” She produced some practice score sheets. “We can all write down what we 'think' we’ll get. It’ll be fun!” Her eyes dared me. The guests loved the idea, eager for more drama. I took a sheet. Quietly, I filled in “0” for my estimated score in each section. Brittany, with a flourish, wrote down numbers that were near perfect. She held it up for everyone to see. “See? Confidence!” she announced. The betting got louder, more frenzied. Richard threw his car keys onto a growing pile on the garden table. “Our vacation condo in Aspen! Amy won’t get a single acceptance!” Carol added a thick diamond bracelet. “All in on Brittany!” Jason, egged on by Brittany, pulled out a share certificate. “Shares from my trust fund! Brittany will sweep the board.” My heart felt like a cold stone, but my face remained calm. I watched them, watched their greed and their disdain. This was who they were. I picked up a pen and a party napkin. “Since there are so many bets,” I said, my voice carrying surprisingly well, “perhaps we should write them down.” I began to list each bet, each item, each name. A partygoer, some friend of Kyle’s, started a livestream on his phone. “This is epic! The Hayes family smackdown!” he yelled. Online comments started popping up on a nearby tablet, visible to everyone. They were brutal. *“That scarred girl is crazy.”* *“Zero? Is she for real?”* *“Go Brittany! Put her in her place!”* I felt a final, thin thread connecting me to this family snap. It was freeing.