Chapter 1

I was on my way out of the estate when Mrs. Sinclair came in the door with Clarisse. They were followed by maids that helped them carry their bags, and their arms were linked, as if they were the closest mother and daughter in the world.

When she saw the luggage I was holding, Clarisse acted shocked, and asked, "Aria, are you running away just because Mom forgot to bring you a gift?"

I put down my luggage and looked at the two of them nonchalantly. "What? No! I've already gotten a birthday gift from you lot, remember? On the day of my eighteenth birthday, you chose for me to be pushed from an eighteenth-floor balcony. Honestly, what else could I ask for other than that?"

Hearing my sarcastic tone, Mrs. Sinclair's expression morphed to the annoyed look I was familiar with, and she tried to brush me off. "That was just an accident, Aria. The kidnapper wanted us to pick between you two, so how could you expect us to just watch Clarisse die? Besides, you didn't die, anyway."

Even though I landed on a mattress that day, I still ended up being hospitalized for three months before I could even walk. In all that time, none of them even bothered to pay me a visit.

That was how my family was.

I was their flesh and blood, yet I was swapped out for Clarisse by her birth parents. For fifteen years, I endured beatings and hunger, not having a single moment of warmth and respite.

Even then, the Sinclair Family was still entirely biased towards Clarisse, the girl who had taken my place for all those years. They'd blame me for the most trivial of things, and even accused me of having ulterior motives.

I was saddened by this at first, but now I've become completely unfazed by the way they treated me.

I'd already found a good place to rent, and I had enough money for me to leave this place the very moment I could.

I was determined to live on my own terms and have a good life in the future.

Adjusting the strap of my bag, I reached for my luggage and looked at the two of them. "Clarisse couldn't die, but I wanted to live, too. Since you chose her back then, just treat me as if I were dead from now on. I won't cause you any more trouble."

Glee flashed across Clarisse's face as she heard what I said, and she wanted to put on a show right there, but she was cut off by Mrs. Sinclair, who scoffed. "Fine, be that way. You'll never be able to step in this house again, even if you kneel and beg us to let you in!"

I nodded, unshaken by what she said. "Don't worry, I won't ever come back here, even if I die!"

"How could you say that Aria? Have you thought about how sad Dad and Kevin would be?" Clarisse stood close to Mrs. Sinclair, the very picture of a good daughter. "Everyone was taken off guard by what happened back then, that's all. Besides, hasn't the Sinclair Family raised you all these years?"

She acted like she was trying to console me, yet she was reminding me that I was an outsider with every word. Of course, this was hardly new coming from her.

In the past, I'd have an outburst, questioning them why I didn't get the slightest bit of love and care when I was their birth daughter in the first place.

Clarisse got to live in luxury, with her own big room and people tending to her every need.

Meanwhile, I could only live in the narrow storeroom under the stairs, in a space that wasn't enough to accommodate a single table or a wardrobe. I'd only get the slightest rays of sun on my bed when the sun was at its brightest.

I was their birth daughter, yet I had to struggle to survive like a rat in the sewers.

This time, however, I didn't have anymore expectations toward them.

"You call that raising me?" I asked, staring straight at Mrs. Sinclair and Clarisse. "I lived in the dark and narrow storeroom, eating only leftovers you were going to throw away. You've never even bought a single piece of clothing for me…

"I paid my own school tuition and living expenses, and you haven't spent a single cent of money on me all three years, and asked me to do quite a lot of chores… Gosh, now that I think of it, shouldn't you pay me a salary?"

"That's enough!" A stern voice sounded from outside.