I Canceled The Banquet And Let Their Plan Burn Chapter 01
I scored a 1580 on my SATs. I was using my brother’s laptop to look up rental options for my graduation party dress when a notification suddenly popped up from his auto-logged-in group chat.
[Lyra’s been in such a terrible mood lately,” my mom’s message read. “Let’s take her road-tripping for a few days. We’ll make sure to be back just before Nadia’s send-off bash.]
I froze, my mouse hovering over the screen before I instinctively clicked into the chat.
There were only four people in the group: my dad, my mom, my brother, and my adopted sister, Lyra.
My brother’s reply flashed on the screen, blindingly furious: [Fine by me, but leave Nadia behind. Just looking at her makes me sick!]
[If she hadn’t hidden Lyra’s SAT admission ticket on the final morning of the exams, Lyra wouldn’t have ended up with a miserable 820.]
Then my mom’s avatar popped up: [I never expected Nadia to go to such lengths just to compete for our attention.]
[At least her own scores came out well. I heard the local newspaper wants a front-page feature on her during the graduation party. All our relatives are practically begging to come.]
My dad sent a sent a quick text next: [By the way, doesn’t Lyra want to make it big on TikTok? Make sure she gets dolled up nicely for the party. This is her chance.]
I stared at the glowing laptop screen, my fingernails digging fiercely into my palms.
Suddenly, I laughed.
I picked up my phone and dialed my high school guidance counselor.
“Mr. Vance, I’m canceling my graduation party,” I said smoothly. “Please tell the reporter from The Daily Chronicle that the interview is off.”
***
“What do you mean it’s off? Nadia, this is a front-page feature in the county’s biggest paper. Other kids would kill for an opportunity like this,” Mr. Vance’s voice was thick with regret.
I tapped my fingers against the cold desk. “I appreciate everything, Mr. Vance, but it’s just not a good time for me right now.”
The moment I hung up, a new message from my mom lit up the laptop screen: [Lyra says she’s craving that authentic New York-style cheesecake. Let’s head out early tomorrow morning.]
I shut down the laptop, stood up, and went to my bedroom.
The moment I pushed the door open, a cloying, sugary scent hit me in the face.
My old princess bed had been replaced by a cheap bunk bed. My study desk, which used to be lined with my academic decathlon trophies, was now buried under Lyra’s lipsticks, foundation bottles, and a half-eaten box of dripping, bruised blueberries.
This room hadn’t truly belonged to me for a long time.
I climbed up to the top bunk. The sight of my pillow brought that nightmare of a morning rushing back into my mind—
My brother had ripped Lyra’s SAT admission ticket out from inside my pillowcase and slammed it right into my face.
“Nadia! How can you be so vicious?!”
My mom had stepped forward and slapped me across the face. Her eyes were rimmed with red, her voice shaking violently: “Lyra lost her biological parents. What’s wrong with us giving her a little extra love? How can you be this resentful of her?!”
My dad had stood by, his brow furrowed tightly, looking at me as if I were a complete stranger. “Get on your knees and apologize to your sister.”
And so, I had knelt.
I did it because they were the parents I had loved for eighteen years, and he was the brother who used to carry me on his shoulders to watch the fireworks at the State Fair. I didn’t want my family to break apart.
But now I finally understood. The family hadn’t broken apart; it was just their love for me that had vanished.
That evening, they drifted back into the house one by one. Halfway through dinner, my brother spoke up without looking at me.
“By the way, while we’re away on the road trip, drop the links to your party dresses in the group chat. We’ll vote on one online.”
My dad chimed in immediately: “What time is the journalist arriving on the day of the party?”
My grip on my fork tightened.
Beside me, Lyra suddenly lowered her head, her eyes welling with tears.
My brother glared at me. “If you hadn’t hidden her admission ticket, Lyra would be heading to an elite university too.”
“She wants to build her brand on social media now. The press coverage at this party is crucial for her TikTok growth. When the day comes, don’t you dare try to steal her spotlight.”
My mom nodded in agreement. “Just look at it as making things right with Lyra.”
Watching the three of them cater to Lyra’s every whim, a sudden wave of exhaustion washed over me. I didn’t want to say a single word. It wasn’t out of fear; it just wasn’t worth it anymore.
Nobody would care anyway.
After dinner, I pulled out my phone and texted my best friend, Ruby: “Hey, can I crash at your place tonight?”
Ruby replied within seconds: “Let me guess, is that toxic brat Lyra pulling her crap again? Come on over, my parents were just talking about you.”
On the Uber ride to Ruby’s house, I opened Instagram and clicked onto Lyra’s burner account.
Her latest post was a photo of a plane ticket to New Liberty alongside neatly packed luggage.
The caption read: [I might have lost the SAT battle, but I won the war of family love~ ]
The comment section was filled with envy: [Such an amazing family!]
I stared at that post for a long time. Then, I gave it a double-tap to leave a like and commented: [Wishing you guys an eternal happily ever after.]
Then I selected ‘Not Interested’ and swiped away.
Less than two minutes later, an iMessage flashed on my screen from Lyra: [Hey, Nadia, did you see my post? Mom and Dad were so worried about my mental health that they insisted on taking me out to clear my head… please don’t take it the wrong way!]
