“Stay Home — It’ll Be Easier.” My Parents Celebrated My Twin’s 25th Birthday And Left Me Out

a day from me, I typed. I need space. Don’t contact me again until I’m ready.

I pressed send. I set the phone down and did not pick it up again.

I unwrapped the candle. I found a match. I set the candle in the center of the kitchen table—where it could be seen, where it occupied real space, where it wasn’t tucked in a corner being modest about itself—and continue reading …