Chapter 222
across from my desk, arms crossed while his posture was stiff with confusion or concern–I couldn’t tell which, and I didn’t care enough to ask
My phone buzzed on the table,
I didn’t look at it immediately. The vibration skittered across the surface like an insect, and it irritated me to my core.
I already knew who it was. This was the sixth time this morning I was getting a text.
I finally dragged my gaze to the screen to see what she had said this time around.
June: What should I wear for dinner tonight? I’m thinking that blue dress your mother said made me look ‘respectable…
My jaw ticked. I didn’t answer.
She was talking about the dinner my parents had planned–one of those performative family gatherings to make June feel like she was already part of the family legacy. A pre–engagement, pre–dowry, pre–prison celebration. It felt more like a funeral with wine and fake laughter because that’s all it would be for mě.
The phone buzzed again.
This time, she was calling.
I ignored the call with a hiss.
It rang again immediately like she had been poised with her thumb above the call button, ready for my rejection.
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