Having my worst fears confirmed was like a knife to my gut. Clutching my stomach, I stared into space, his words pulsating through me, their meaning refusing to penetrate. They don’t want me. My whole life, all I ever wanted was to be theirs, but of course I wasn’t, not really. I tried so hard to be perfect. And I was. Until now.

Hot tears trickling down my cheeks, I closed my eyes. Nobody wants me. First Adam, now them… My breath ragged, I sank to the floor. Hugging my knees to my chest, I let the tears flow. I’m so stupid—I don’t belong here. Maybe I’m better off dead. Whatever shreds of my heart were left disintegrated, melting away in waves of sickness and choked-back sobs until I was empty, lying in a broken ball.

My mother’s voice drifted up, and my blood turned to ice.

“She’s sixteen—going on seventeen—we’ve been parenting her for a long time. We’ve done our job, and I know I’ve had enough. I think it’s officially time to let her go. It will be a good lesson for her to have to make it on her own, to see what it’s like in the real world. She could stand to appreciate how hard we work for everything we have. And, you know, I think there are a lot of parents out there who will relate to having an ungrateful kid.”

“You’re right,” Dad said. “This could be great for us if we spin it correctly. Now all we have to do is figure out how to get rid of her.”

Sitting up, I buried the hurt and replaced it with anger. I wrapped my heart in armor so thick not even a bullet could penetrate it.

That can be arranged.

Up until that moment, I wasn’t sure what I was going to do. Disconnecting seemed like an exciting fantasy—a way to stick it to my parents—but deep down I didn’t think I’d go through with it. There was no way I was brave enough to give up everything I knew and start over in a strange place. I thought my screwup was a blip, something that would be forgiven, but I now realized I was holding on to an impossible hope that things could go back to how they were––that I could still be their dream daughter.

Maybe I was brave. And even if I wasn’t, I had to do something.

Standing, I pointed my chin to the sky and marched downstairs.

“Hi, honey,” Mom said, jumping up to hug me. “Welcome home. We missed you!”