“I didn’t expect you to care,” I replied, meeting his gaze steadily. “I’m not here to fight. I just wanted you to know that I’m done being the one who bends.”

There was silence, a thick, heavy pause. Then, unexpectedly, Dad nodded. “Alright,” he said, and though it wasn’t an apology, it was something.

Chloe glanced up from her phone, her expression unreadable, and Mom, from the kitchen, paused in her pretend task to listen.

I knew things wouldn’t change overnight. But I’d made a choice, and I’d chosen myself. My future. And in doing so, I’d taken the first step out of the shadows they’d cast over me for so long. The rest of my life was waiting, and this time, I was ready for it.