Chapter 5
Moving day was hard work, but it felt like a fresh start.
Our new place was small, but it had big windows and a balcony that caught the morning sun.
No extra rooms. No space for anyone else. Just ours.
We painted the second bedroom soft yellow. We put up little stickers of stars and animals.
Then the first visit came.
My aunt Sarah—Mom’s older sister—showed up at the door. She looked stern, but her eyes were sad.
“I’m not here to fight,” she said. “I just want to hear your side.”
I let her in. I made tea. And I told her everything.
The lies. The bruises. The way Mom had isolated Lila.
Aunt Sarah sat quiet for a long time. Then she sighed.
“Your mother… she’s always been afraid of being left behind. But that doesn’t make this right. Not at all.”
She reached over and squeezed Lila’s hand. “I’m so sorry. None of this is your fault.”
That was the first time anyone from my side of the family had stood with us.
“I’ll talk to her,” Aunt Sarah said before she left. “I’ll make sure she gets help. But you two stay here. Stay safe.”
After she left, Lila looked at me. “Maybe not everyone is like her.”
May you like
“Maybe not,” I said. “But we go at our own pace. No pressure.”
That night, we slept better than we had in a year.
