My name is Natalie Pierce, and in my family, affection always came with fine print.

I grew up in Fort Worth, Texas, in a house where my older sister Brooke was the sun and the rest of us orbited accordingly. When she misplaced her keys, it was my fault for not reminding her. When she failed a test, I had “distracted” her. When she forgot to pay a bill, I was “irresponsible for not checking.”

Inside those walls, logic didn’t matter—hierarchy did.

By the time I turned twenty, I had saved $30,000. Not from gifts. Not from luck. From night shifts at a grocery store, tutoring on weekends, and saying no to everything that didn’t serve one goal: finishing my computer science degree without drowning in loans.

When my parents found out about the money, they didn’t congratulate me.

They calculated.

My father, Rick, leaned against the kitchen counter like a man negotiating a business deal. “Brooke’s rent is ridiculous. She needs something closer to downtown. You’re sitting on cash.”

“It’s for tuition,” I replied carefully.

My mother, Donna, gave me that tight smile she wore when she was about to call something selfish. “Sweetheart, Brooke needs stability. You can always go back to school later.”

Brooke didn’t even lift her eyes from her phone. “It’s not like you go out much anyway.”

“That’s not the point,” I said.

Donna’s voice sharpened. “Give it to her. She’s older. She deserves a head start.”“No.”

The word felt dangerous in my mouth. But it stayed there.

The air in the room turned electric.

Donna’s face flushed. “Drop out, hand over the money, and keep this house spotless if you’re going to live under my roof.”