He hasn’t left.
He leaned against the counter, swirling the ice cream, looking at me like a museum piece.
“You know, Tiana,” he said condescendingly, the same tone he used whenever money was involved, “I sincerely pity you. It must be hard to see Jasmine shine like this, to see her succeed at everything you failed to do. Career, marriage, respect. It must be bitter.”
I finally watched it.
“I’m happy for my sister, Chad,” I said evenly. “Her success has nothing to do with me.”
Chad laughed, a short, barking laugh.
“Keep telling yourself that, darling. But we both know the truth. You’re jealous. You’re bitter. And frankly, it’s pathetic.”
He reached into his pocket, pulled out a crisp new twenty-dollar bill, and tossed it onto the wobbly table. It landed next to my paper plate.
“Here,” he said. “Take this. Buy yourself a lottery ticket. Who knows? You might get lucky and finally be able to afford a personality, or at least a decent haircut.”
I fixed the bill for the gaze.
An insult written on green paper. A symbol of arrogance. Proof that he considered me insignificant.
I picked it up and rolled it between my fingers.
Chad was watching me, waiting for me to reject him or start crying. He wanted a reaction. He wanted the broken and envious sister-in-law he had imagined me playing.
Instead, I smiled – a slow, cold smile devoid of any warmth.
I put the twenty-dollar note down and flattened it with deliberate care.
“You should keep that, Chad,” I said softly.
He sneered. “Why would I need twenty dollars from some broke freelancer?”
“Because, according to the audit reports I’ve seen concerning your consulting firm,” I said, “you’re going to need every penny you can very soon.”
I stood up and leaned forward, lowering my voice.
“You’d be better off starting to save up for a good lawyer than buying fake handbags. You’ll need those twenty dollars much more than I will.”
Chad’s smirk faded briefly — a twinge of confusion flashing through him for half a second — then he brushed it aside with a nod.
