All Chapters of The Annoying Stepmom: Chapter 11 - Chapter 20

The bright red leather suitcase was old-fashioned and flashy, just like her.She spent five thousand bucks to buy my dad an old, third-hand van. While my dad went downstairs to move the car, she stayed in the room to watch me pack.She patted my bed, sat down, and crossed her legs.She said, “I didn’t think you’d actually do well in the exam. I thought you were just a useless troublemaker.”I fired back, “You’re just a middle school graduate. How many words can you even read, idiot?”Hearing my words, she just laughed. Her laugh was cocky and smug. Her eyes crinkled.She said, “Alright, smartass, when you go to college, make sure you go far, far away, okay?”I slammed my suitcase shut, stomped on it to force the zipper closed, dragged it out, and then slammed the door.Back then, she was the one who left. This time, it was me.The difference was that my dad brought her back home, but I would not get the same chance.I was not as good an actor as she was. She was the real Osca

A lot of the time, I hated my parents and looked down on how they acted.I always thought I was different and better than them.But the truth was, I grew up in the same dirty, dark place. I was not any better or stronger than them. Nothing good would come from the pain I carried.But then Scarlett surprised me. She rushed to the front of the class, smacked the chalk box off the desk, pointed at the physics teacher, and yelled, “Who do you think you’re talking about?!“I send my kid to school and pay all the tuition and textbook fees! How does that make us a junk-collecting family?!”The chalk box hit the floor and broke, with pieces of chalk scattering everywhere.“You can’t even teach properly, and I haven’t called you out for it! Have you no shame?! You don’t deserve to be called a teacher! You’re just a piece of trash!”Scarlett’s face turned bright red. She was angry; her neck was tense, and her veins were sticking out.She did not care about her image at all. She slammed h

Even though my physics grades improved a lot, it did not help with my biology and chemistry.Based on the year’s ranking for arts classes, I barely made it to the advanced class.Scarlett was even happier than my dad. She insisted on treating me to a nice dinner as a reward.She remembered all my favorites: mashed potatoes, steak, grilled vegetables, and a Caesar salad.While my dad went to the restroom, she tried to hide her excitement and teased me, “You did so well and got into the advanced class. You just want me to spend money, huh? So, what do you want as a gift?”I wanted a phone, a tablet, some nice clothes, or maybe just cash to spend on whatever I wanted.But looking at the spark in her eyes, my mouth ran ahead of my thoughts, and I said, “Cheapskate, you could sign me up for more tutoring classes.”She smiled even brighter but pretended to act casual. “Oh, so you want to study more. Let’s see what you can actually do.”I did not end up achieving much.For the whole

She had a blank look on her face. On the New Year's Day, she gave me 500 dollars as usual and proudly asked me to say something nice to make her happy.I did not know when it happened, but my dad’s debts kept getting bigger.They got so big that he did not even spare the 50 dollars my grandma needed to buy meat. He shamelessly took the money from her.The bank kept calling me and asking if I knew someone named Warren Zimmerman.Scarlett had already paid off over 300,000 dollars of his debts. She even thought about selling the old house she bought when she got married back then.But my dad was beyond help. He kept gambling, and sometimes, he even had people come over to gamble at home.The house was a mess with empty bottles everywhere. In the thick smoke, my dad would not stop gambling.Scarlett could not stop him anymore. Before, when she was around, he would drink less, but she could no longer control him.I tried a few times to tell her to leave my dad, but I was afraid she

Scarlett tried to explain to him, but he still would not listen.I could faintly hear Scarlett crying and saying, “Stop, Warren. Please stop. I beg you. Even if you kill me later, it doesn’t matter. This is Pearl’s future. You can’t ruin it…”I walked the supervisors out, and they did not look happy.I watched them leave without saying anything to explain myself. Scarlett’s last words kept playing in my head.After so many years, I realized I should hate my dad.But how could I hate him?I could barely remember my mom’s face anymore, no matter how hard I tried.She had already given up on me. The only person in the world who was still close to me by blood was my dad.I walked upstairs and passed by my dad’s friends as they hurriedly left.Seeing their panicked faces, I suddenly had a bad feeling. My heart started beating faster, like it knew something was coming.I quickly took the stairs and grabbed the railing as I rushed up.The door was slightly open. I pushed it, and it