His Punishment Broke Me, I Died

Chapter 3

I headed home.

This villa was supposed to be sealed off, but right now, every window is blazed with bright light.

Today was Zendaya's birthday, and they were throwing a party inside.

Fairy lights strung all across the yard, and a movie projected onto the spray of the dancing music fountain.

A handful of girls lounged along the edge, they must have been Zendaya's friends.

When they spotted me standing in the doorway, their faces twisted into instant disgust.

"Where did this beggar even come from? Get lost, scram right now! We don't have spare change for you!"

I ignored them completely, punched the gate code in without breaking stride, and walked straight in.

They stared, stunned that I actually knew the password, and didn't dare try to stop me after that.

I shoved the front door open, and my gaze locked straight with my brother's the second I stepped in. He was mid-motion, just about to settle a birthday hat on Zendaya's head.

The second he saw me, his face drained of all colors. The birthday hat in his hand crumpled and warped under his white-knuckled grip.

Zendaya froze too, her fingers tightening so hard around her knife and fork her knuckles went pale.

An awkward hush fell over the whole room. The two of them swapped a quick glance, but neither uttered a word.

I strode right past them and sat down bold as you please, then dragged the four-tiered birthday cake from the center of the table straight toward me. I dug in with my bare hands, shoveling big chunks into my mouth.

I couldn't even remember how long it had been since I'd tasted anything this good, something I could have had anytime I wanted back in the day. For five years, I had only ever caught the scent when I walked past a bakery window.

When the craving got so bad I couldn't stand it, I'd scavenge half-eaten scraps other people threw away. I never cared if it was dirty.

"Sara..." When Henry saw what I was doing, his brow furrowed hard.

He stepped forward to stop me. "Go wash your hands before you eat. It's dirty."

Dirty?

I lifted my eyes and stared him straight in the face. Then, slow and deliberate, just to provoke him, I sucked each frosting-coated finger into my mouth one by one, slurping every last bit of sweet cream clean.

His face twisted into a harsh, uncomfortable grimace, his thin lips pressed tight into a hard line.

Zendaya ground her teeth and snapped, "Sara, what the hell do you think you're doing? Henry didn't trick you on purpose! He just saved your life, for God's sake!"

My stomach had grown used to nothing but plain, meager meals over the years. This thick, sugary richness churned unpleasantly, making my belly ache.

I shoved the cake aside without a second thought.

Then, my face completely went blank, I snatched up a baseball bat from beside me and swung it straight at the dining table with all my might!

"A birthday party? I'm f*****g dying out there, and you're in here throwing a goddamned birthday party? You punished me for five years over one stupid slap? Fine! No one gets to walk away happy!" I screamed like a woman possessed, bringing the bat down again and again, crash after crash.

My brother stood frozen off to the side, his face turned iron-gray with rage as he stared at me. Zendaya cowered behind him, too scared to even make a peep.

It didn't take long for the dining table to be reduced to splinters and twisted wreckage.

But was that enough? Hell no, it wasn't.

I stormed straight into the living room next. The sofa, the TV, the coffee table, all of them quickly turned into a mess of shattered wreckage.

Each deafening crash was sharper and more jarring than the last.

And my brother didn't try to stop me. Not once.

It was only when I lunged straight at Zendaya that he clamped down hard on my wrist, stopping me dead.

"Aren't you done making a scene?"

My chest heaved up and down so hard I couldn't get a single word out.

He locked eyes with me, and his grip on my wrist tightened, bit by bit. He didn't loosen it until tears pooled and brimmed in my eyes.

Only then did his long lashes give a faint tremble, and he let me go.

But the second his hand fell away, I snapped my arm forward and slapped Zendaya right across the face.

A sharp c***k rang out alongside Zendaya's shrill shriek. That single slap snapped the last frayed thread of Henry's self-control.

Without a single thought, he slapped me right back to defend her. I crumpled to the ground, a loud buzzing roaring in my ears.

He snapped at me, his voice thick with disappointment, "Sara, I never thought you'd still refuse to admit your wrong even after all this! Yeah, I punished you, but it wasn't even real! Is this all really worth it?"

I couldn't believe what I was hearing.

It took me forever to force a few broken words out of my throat, "I swallowed a whole bottle of sleeping pills."

"So what? I still saved your life." His voice held a tinge of frustration, like he half-regretted his original decision. "Now that you know the truth, just come back home. I won't let you suffer anymore, okay? Isn't that enough?"

I tried to laugh, but tears spilled down my cheeks before I could make a sound.

"Henry, where were you for the past five years?"

He darted his gaze away, refusing to meet mine.

"I was worried you'd find out, so I went on a trip abroad with Zendaya."

Every last bit of my heart plummeted straight to hell the second those words left his mouth.

So while I'd scrambled just to get by, he'd been traveling the whole world with Zendaya.

It hit me suddenly. Showing up here had been a complete waste of time.

I nodded numbly and pushed myself to my feet, ready to leave.

Right as I reached the door, Zendaya suddenly shouted, "Sara, Stop being so bitter! You owe me this!"

I turned back, letting my gaze slide past her to lock onto my brother's eyes. He didn't contradict her. His gaze stayed cold, distant, and empty.

I pressed my hand towards the doorknob, just barely stopping myself from collapsing to the floor.

"Okay. I owe every damn one of you."