Family's Dark Secret

“I just received my SAT scores. Top percentile. A golden ticket to an Ivy League and a desperate escape from my perpetually unsettling family life. But at dinner, even a hint of my triumph was met with a cold, disgusted stare from my father. He snarled, accusing me of insensitivity towards my "struggling" cousin, Jessica-his latest obsession-then banished me to our stifling, dusty basement "to reflect." A severe asthmatic, I quickly realized Jessica had deliberately sealed the tiny window, knowing the heat and dust would trigger an attack. My frantic pleas for help and my life-saving inhaler were met with mocking laughter from upstairs as my parents drove away, leaving me to suffocate. Every desperate attempt to call 911 or my grandma was mysteriously disconnected or sent back as a fake "pocket dial"-Jessica had intercepted and sabotaged my only lifelines, even bribing our housekeeper to ensure I wouldn't be helped. How could my own parents so readily believe her lies and abandon me to such a cruel fate? The chilling realization that a deliberate murder attempt was unfolding, orchestrated by my cousin and enabled by my family, was a betrayal deeper than the suffocating darkness around me. Yet, through sheer defiance, I clawed my way back from the brink of death, miraculously receiving new lungs. And when I finally walked out of the hospital, I knew my true fight had just begun. Jessica's reign of terror was over. The truth would come out, and I would finally reclaim my life.”