Seven Floors Down, Seven Years Back

"You ungrateful brat! Why are you still hanging around? Get lost! There's only space for Rosa in this house!" Magnus' voice thundered, snapping me from my daze.

It was then that I finally understood what Mom's and Dad's uneasy glances meant. They'd been silently pushing me to leave. It all made sense now.

I packed up my belongings and left without a word. After that, a small studio on the west side of town became my refuge.

My thoughts returned to the present. I quietly made my way upstairs to pack my things. If the Jaggers were desperate to get rid of me, I'd make it easy for them.

Instead of living at the school, I rented a small apartment nearby. A cleaning lady came once a week to keep things in order.

One day, she gave me a curious look and asked, "Miss, do your parents know you're living here alone? They never seem to come around."

How could they possibly come around? Rosa had been throwing tantrums, and they were too busy tending to her to worry about me.

My silence seemed to make the cleaning lady uncomfortable. She fumbled for something to say, "They must be swamped with work. I'm sure they'll come by soon enough."

But sadly, she was wrong. Mom, Dad, and Magnus never paid me a visit. All I got was a cursory phone call from Mom.

"How's everything, Cora? I'm really worried about you being on your own," she said.

I told her I was fine.

She sighed several times, then bit back whatever else she had to say. So this was what they meant by familial love. Mom couldn't even pretend to care.

I looked around at my cozy little space and smiled. Finally, I was no longer the odd one out. My days became pretty predictable—reading, doing homework, and attending tutoring.

I stopped worrying about my family's opinions. I spent months living alone, with no word from them, as if I had never existed.

One day, I ran into Rosa after school. I saw her cruising down the street in a limited-edition sports car on my way home with a bunch of trust-fund kids. They were all loud and obnoxious.

The sight left me momentarily stunned. She was meant to take over the Jaggers business, so Mom and Dad would flip if they knew she was being so ostentatious in public.

Rosa spotted me and pulled to a stop right before me.

Before I could get a word in, she removed her sunglasses, gave me a condescending look, and said, "It's been a while, Cora."

I simply hummed in reply.

She flipped her curly hair over her shoulder and leaned casually against the car door. "I guess Mom and Dad haven't even called you once, huh?"

I nodded.

She asked if I was interested in knowing why, but I shook my head.

"They want to get in touch with you, but I break down every time they mention your name," she said, her tone dripping with satisfaction. "They don't want to make things worse for me, so they give up. But the real issue is, they're extremely disappointed in you!"

I listened quietly.

Rosa scoffed. "You've been home for a while now, but you've hardly bothered with Mom, Dad, or Magnus. I bet they're pretty frustrated with you by now. Honestly, I thought you'd come back and take over my place, but it looks like you're just handing everything to me. Maybe I should be thanking you."

She studied my reaction as she spoke, trying to gauge whether I was truly that foolish or if I had intentionally stepped back.

Inside, I couldn't help but sneer.