The Vicious Relatives Reap What They Sow When the Typhoon Hits

The day before the typhoon hit, my parents and my brother’s family came to see my new home.

That day, my dad insisted that the master bedroom should be occupied by a man to stabilize the household, forcing me to move out and let my brother and his wife move in.

I was relegated to the second bedroom, and my mom argued that my nephew was the only grandson of the Barton family, so I had to make way for him.

There were only two sofas in the living room, one for my father and one for my mom, leaving me to make do with a makeshift bed on the balcony.

When the typhoon made landfall, the rain was so heavy that the roads were invisible.

Yet, my nephew craved fried chicken and insisted I go out to fetch it.

The strong winds swept me away, and I was struck by a falling air conditioning unit, killing me instantly.

When I opened my eyes again, I was back to the day before the typhoon.

This time, I was determined to let them reap the consequences of their actions.

——

“In the coming days, central and western regions of Washington are expected to experience heavy rainfall with local thunderstorms and strong convective weather. Citizens are advised to be cautious about their safety while traveling.”

The news only predicted heavy rain and failed to anticipate the sudden typhoon.

I sat quietly watching the news, trembling as I touched my body – I was still intact, but the fear and pain of dying lingered.

Outside, the sun was blazing; yet I felt an icy chill all over, trembling uncontrollably as I stumbled back to my bedroom to dig out a winter down jacket. It took a long time for the cold to subside.

My phone rang over and over again.

It was my mom.

She was calling again.

In my past life, she called to say they would visit my new home, which I refused.

To my surprise, they still came over with my brother and his family in tow.

So no matter whether I accepted or not, they would always show up.

I delayed picking up until her third call.

As soon as I answered, I was greeted by my mom’s furious voice.

“Sadie, what are you doing? I’ve called you so many times. I thought you were dead!”

I had died, Mom, killed by your own hands.

I took a deep breath before responding coldly, “What do you want?”

“What kind of attitude is that? What do you mean ‘what do I want’? Can’t I call you if there’s nothing urgent?”

“If it’s nothing urgent, I’m hanging up. I’m busy with work.”

“Think you’re all grown up now? I gave birth to you and raised you, and now you’re telling me I need a reason to call?”

I fell silent for a moment. “If I remember correctly, we’ve cut ties.”

All I heard was her scoff.

“The blood of mine runs through your veins. If it were so easy to sever ties, there’d be ungrateful wretches everywhere.”

“And am I really the ungrateful one? You’ve nearly sucked me dry; yet I’m the bad guy? You had me – it’s your lucky break.”

My mom was about to say something else, but my dad grabbed the phone. “Sadie, you little wretch, how dare you speak like that?”

I didn’t want to say anything to my dad; I was afraid of sullying my mouth.

In silence, he just asked, “Heard you bought a house and moved in?

“Oh, really spreading your wings, aren’t you? Buying a house and moving without a word to us?

“Send me the address. We’ll come check it out.”

“No need for you to visit.” I hung up and turned off my phone.

Before this, I hadn’t been in contact with them for years, so I didn’t tell them anything about buying the house, moving, or decorating.

It was not that I was heartless or ungrateful; it was just that they never treated me like a daughter.

My mom once said that having a daughter like me was why she missed out on nourishing foods during her confinement after my birth, leading to her health issues. She miscarried two girls before finally having my brother.

Growing up, household chores were my responsibility, as was looking after my brother. Anytime he got hurt, it was always my fault, and I couldn’t avoid being beaten.

Charlie was their pride and joy, while I was nothing but an afterthought.

After graduating, I had the opportunity to work in a big company in a major city, but my brother, along with my parents, went to the company to warn them off hiring me, threatening to stay at the company premises if they did.

The company, fearing trouble, politely explained the situation to me.

Under the guise of looking out for me, they got me a job as a waitress in a relative’s diner, room and board included, with a salary of $3200 a month. Before I even received my first paycheck, they took it.

For years, I didn’t have a penny to my name.

I developed a cyst that required early surgery, but I couldn’t afford it.

When I called my mom, she claimed it was a hospital scam and that drinking more water would fix it.

She also said that as long as I stayed chaste, there wouldn’t be any problems.

Charlie even yelled at me over the phone, “Sadie, you’ve really got some nerve asking our parents for money behind my back. Don’t forget, everything in this house is mine!”

Everything was his, including me.

I was his servant as a child and his slave as an adult; every penny I earned was his.

I never managed to get the surgery. The cyst grew larger, eventually bursting, which led to an emergency operation. During the procedure, I lost my fallopian tubes, effectively ending any chance I had of becoming a mother.

The surgery was funded by relatives, perhaps because they finally felt sorry for me. They told me to go work in another city, and they would tell my parents I had run away.

After that, I never contacted them again, but one time, by chance, someone from my hometown saw me and informed them of my whereabouts.

They found my workplace.

Charlie was getting married and needed help with the wedding expenses and the down payment for a house. He demanded that I chip in, threatening to disrupt my job if I refused.

I knew giving them money would only lead to endless demands, so I let them make a scene.

In the end, my dad intervened, declaring that if I just gave them the money this time, they would never bother me again, and we signed a contract to sever our parent-child relationship.

After signing the contract, I quit my job, found new employment, and moved to a coastal city.

Things were peaceful for a few years.

Then they found me again.

Just this once, I lost my life.

Whether I refused or not, they would come.

Calling in advance was just for show.

After hanging up, I packed all the valuable things in my home into a suitcase.

I called my best friend and told her I was taking a few days off for a vacation to stay with her.

She laughed. “Finally, the workaholic takes a break. Come over. Should I book your flight?”

“How can I let you pay for the ticket? I’ve already bought one; I’ll be there tonight after 11.”

“Alright, I’ll pick you up at the airport.”

I quickly purchased a train ticket to the neighboring city; from there, I would take a flight to another city. I was worried that late-night flights here might get delayed, which would mess up my plans.

After securing my ticket and booking the car, they arrived by evening.

Just like in my previous life, not just my parents, but also Charlie, his wife, and kid, all carrying loads of luggage, stood at my doorstep.

Last time, they barged in, took over everything, and then shoved me out to buy fried chicken for my nephew.

I clung to the doorknob, refusing to leave; they forcibly pried my fingers off the doorknob.

In desperation, I shouted, “You can’t do this; this is my house, I bought it, all by myself.”

Charlie kicked me and scoffed, “Sadie, so what if you bought it? Haven’t I told you before that everything in this house is mine? What does it matter if you bought it?”

He looked like he wanted to kick me again, but my mom pulled him inside. “Charlie, come inside, or you’ll catch a cold from the rain.”

My mom knows that getting wet can cause a cold, but since it was me, it didn’t matter to her.

Her precious son getting a little wet was more concerning to her.

I knew then if I didn’t go to buy it, I’d never be allowed back inside. I braced myself and went, but once I left, I never returned.

Thinking about this, I felt utterly cold inside.

“What are you standing there for? Can’t let your own father in?” My dad glared at me.

I didn’t respond, but my little nephew burst through, pushing past me.

My sister-in-law didn’t discipline him; instead, she praised him, “My little boy is so strong! Let’s reward him with lobster tonight.”

He bumped into me, and I was supposed to reward him with lobster? How ridiculous.

Pushed aside by my chubby nephew, I stood to one side as they completely ignored me and moved in with their luggage.

As soon as they entered, my sister-in-law complained, “Why did you decorate it like this? It looks just like the wooden houses back home. So tacky, I don’t like it.”

My brother hugged her and took charge, “If you don’t like it, we’ll change it. Change it to however you like. What style do you like? Send it to Sadie later.”

He then turned to me, “Sadie, did you hear that?”

I didn’t respond, only to hear my mom chime in, “Look around, see what else you don’t like, and tell Sadie to fix it.”

My dad, smoking a cigarette, flicked his ashes on my carpet and then spat a thick wad of phlegm, smearing it with his foot as he walked past, making me feel nauseous.

“This place is too small. How could you buy just a two-bedroom? How are we all supposed to fit here?

“And do you really think, now that you’ve made something of yourself, you can just cut us off?

“I think you’re nothing but an ungrateful wretch. We would have been better off raising a pet than you.”

I looked at him and scoffed. He was taken aback, glaring at me with a grim face.

I glared back.

Not as good as a pet?

They spent so little on raising me; yet they’ve sucked so much out of me over the years. It was clear who was the ungrateful one here.

My mom slapped me lightly and pulled my dad away. “Come on, let’s go see the master bedroom.”

She led him towards the master bedroom with his hands behind his back.

“What are these curtains? It looks like you’re hanging plain white sheets – completely inappropriate. Take them down!

“Also, clear out your stuff. We’re assigning the master bedroom to the head of the household – it’s more appropriate for him. You shouldn’t be in there; it doesn’t suit the household dynamics.”

Listening to my dad’s commands, my brother and sister-in-law had already barged into the room, my brother tearing down my curtains, and my sister-in-law rummaging through my vanity.

I had packed all my cosmetics, skincare, and jewelry into my suitcase; they wouldn’t get their hands on any of my belongings again.

Now, the drawers only had a few boxes of expired face masks.

“Sadie, why don’t you have any skincare products? Just give me these few boxes of masks.”

“I couldn’t afford them after buying the house. Take them if you want, I don’t have time for face masks anyway.”

Last time she came in, she took all my skincare products and my necklaces and bracelets. I tried to take them back, but my mom stopped me.

If she wanted all my stuff, she could have it.

Charlie tore down the curtains, stomped on them, and then threw them out, then began tossing my clothes out of the closet.

“Sadie, clean up this mess. You’re not allowed in this room without our permission from ow on!”