For My Birthday, My Sister Said, “Our Family Is Ashamed That You Use Our Last Name.”

The Shadows of the Golden Child

The story will be told from the perspective of the main female character.

My name is Chloe, and I learned very young how to deal with being let down without showing it.

In most homes, the oldest kid is the one everyone counts on. In my family, it just meant I had to stand behind my younger sister Mia so she could get all the attention.

Mia is 2 years younger than me, 29 years old, and we are nothing alike. While I was quiet and focused, she was always looking for a crowd.

She had a way of making the adults laugh and brag about her. Sarah and Robert treated her like she was special.

They would say she was the one who would take the family business to the next level. They never said anything like that about me.

At first I didn’t even mind; I just disappeared into the background. I still remember when I was 12 and won a big math contest.

Dad looked at my results for a second and then turned to Mia. She was showing him how she had glued glitter to her sneakers.

He told her she was very creative. But he told me not to brag about my grades.

That was how our house worked. She was the star and I was the one who just got things done.

The only person who didn’t act like that was Martha. To everyone else, she was the person who started the company and had her name on all the office signs.

To me, she was the one who would sit on the porch steps and ask me real questions. She wanted to know what I was thinking and what I wanted to do with my life.

She gave Mia and me the same things, but she could see through Mia’s act. She knew who really had substance.

Then there was my cousin Taylor, who is 2 years younger than Mia. She didn’t live in our house, but she saw what was happening.

From the time we were in middle school, whenever a family party went badly she would come find me. She would whisper, “You noticed that too right?”

Taylor was my witness. She saw the favoritism and the way Mia always talked over me.

By the time I finished college, I was used to being the person in the background. I got scholarships, worked at night, and paid for everything myself.

I started a career in finance because numbers don’t lie or interrupt you. I built a life for myself in Atlanta, far away from what my parents expected of me.

But being far away didn’t change the way they acted. Every holiday or phone call was just another stage for Mia.

She would say things like, “When I’m running the company one day,” like it was already decided. Sarah encouraged it and Robert agreed.

I just let them talk without saying a word. Five weeks before Martha’s birthday, the invitations were sent out.

I got a plain cream card. Mia got a whole announcement with a professional photo of herself.

Her caption said, “Managing director era.” All our relatives filled her comments with praise.

Mine were empty, just like always. Then Sarah sent me a text that really bothered me.

It said, “Please behave at the party.” It was like she thought I was the one who usually caused problems, even though I was always the quiet one.