My parents forbade me from celebrating my 18th birthday because my sister didn’t feel special enough. So I moved out that night. A year later, their golden girl saw how successful I’d become, and her jealous meltdown shattered the family.

collective friends, watching fireworks from a rooftop, and feeling like I’d finally figured out who I was supposed to be.

My 19th birthday came and went. Marcus took me to dinner. My friends threw me a surprise party.

Grace gave me a bonus and told me I was on track to be senior designer by the time I graduated.

Everything was good. Better than good.

And continue reading …