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“I sacrificed years of my life for you!” Amber screamed.
“Sacrifice was what Barbara made when she sold her personal jewelry just to buy our first trees,” Calvin corrected her firmly. “You asked about your inheritance before you ever bothered to ask if I was in physical pain.”
Ruby began to cry loudly.
“You cannot just leave us out on the street because of a overheard conversation!” Ruby sobbed.
“I am not leaving you destitute,” Calvin replied calmly. “Your mother already owns private real estate properties, and you are twenty-nine years old, holding a college degree that I fully funded, three past business attempts that I personally financed, and debts that I completely paid off. What ends today is not your basic safety, but your long habit of living off my hard work.”
Amber grabbed her leather handbag tightly.
“Ruby, we are leaving right now,” she commanded bitterly.
Before exiting through the front doorway, she turned back one last time toward Calvin.
“You will deeply regret this,” she sneered venomously. “When you are sick and entirely alone, no one will come to take care of you.”
Calvin looked at her with a profound sense of peace that he had not felt in years.
“I was completely alone long before you ever walked out that door,” Calvin replied softly. “The only difference now is that I am no longer afraid to admit it to myself.”
The front door slammed shut so violently that a framed wedding photo fell straight off the side cabinet, snapping the wooden frame clean in two. Elias looked closely at the metal door hinge and offered a quiet observation.
“I told them that specific piece was not working right,” Elias remarked lightheartedly. “It lasted for thirty long years and chose today to finally give up.”
A sudden wave of quiet laughter started up among the guests, effectively breaking the intense tension in the room. Calvin laughed along with his friends, though he soon had to sit down to rest his legs.
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