Chapter 37 The Funniest Thing I’ve Heard All Year
The last person Tilda wanted to see was anyone from the Jensons! Her whole good mood for the day was shattered instantly. Just the thought of breathing the same air as them made her stomach twist and roll. She jumped up, grabbed her blanket, folded it neatly, and stuffed it into her backpack. She wasn’t going to lie in the sun anymore. Wade’s showing up had ruined it. She decided to wait for Una’s class to finish and go eat together.
“Wait!”
The second Wade saw Tilda trying to leave, the word slipped out before he could stop it. His feet moved on their own as he chased after her. But Tilda acted like she didn’t hear him, walking straight ahead. He had to shout louder. “Tilda, wait!”
“What do you want?”
Her whole face screamed impatience. Just hearing her name come out of a Jenson’s mouth made her want to throw up. She wished he would just disappear and leave her alone.
Wade stared at her, at the clear disgust and coldness written on her face. And for a second, a memory flashed in his mind—her old self, begging, humiliating herself, desperate for family warmth. He had looked at her with the same disgust she was showing him now. Wade tried to shake the thought away. Damn it, what the hell is wrong with me, thinking about that now?
“Tilda, about Professor Manning’s program thing…”
“Oh, of course. I already figured that’s why you came. What’s wrong? Can’t handle the fact that I broke your record, crushed it, and left you choking on the dust? You’re one of the heirs of the Jensons, and you’re so petty that you can’t stand someone being better than you? You came here just to act cheap, like some nobody?” Her voice dripped with sarcasm as her eyes locked on his.
Wade’s fists clenched hard at his sides. “Tilda. I’m not here to fight. I’m surprised you broke my record. I just want to know why didn’t you show your talent earlier?”
Her gaze froze instantly. Even the warm golden sunlight couldn’t reach her anymore—she was all ice, all sharp edges.
Why? Yeah, why indeed… The answer was so stupid and pathetic that she would never forget it. She had hidden her talent because she hadn’t wanted Wade to get hurt. This was Wade’s dream, his absolute obsession, and something he had worked his whole life for. If she could surpass a standard he could never get to so easily, just because of her “gift,” then Wade would only hate her more. He would never come near her again. So little foolish Tilda had locked her own light away with her own hands.
She had kept her grades low, just enough to pass, never high enough to show a trace of what she could really do—all just to avoid overshadowing Wade. She did all that because that fragile thread of “family” meant everything to her. She had craved it and searched for 19 years for it before she finally found it and touched its warmth. She had been so scared of losing it and being alone again. She was afraid of standing there, watching other people wrapped in family love—parents, brothers, sisters, holding each other close—while she had nobody.
She was so scared of being hated again, of being thrown out of the Jensons’ house and dumped back into loneliness, of becoming a stray girl with no one in the world. The Jensons already despised her enough. And with Kyla shining in the center, not a single drop of love had ever landed on her anyway. So Tilda had told herself that she couldn’t do anything to make them hate her more. And with her own hands, she locked away her gift. She cut her own wings and crushed her own instincts. She turned herself into nothing but a pitiful thing, bowing, scraping, living only to please while measuring every glance, every word.
“What I do has nothing to do with you. Wade, don’t forget—we’ve already cut ties. There’s nothing between us anymore. I’m not a Jenson. I have nothing to do with you or your family!” She spun around, ready to leave.
“Tilda. I’m not done!” Wade’s jaw clenched tight, teeth grinding. “You want to cut ties with the Jensons, fine. Do what you want. But if you had shown that talent earlier…”
Wade liked strength. He respected strength. Especially when it touched the dream he’d been chasing his whole life. If he had known Tilda had that kind of brilliance, maybe they could’ve had something common to talk about. Maybe he wouldn’t have hated her so much, wouldn’t have spat out so much venom. Maybe their brother-sister bond could’ve had a second chance.
Tilda couldn’t stop herself. She laughed, harder and harder. She dropped her backpack to the ground and bent over, clutching her stomach, as she laughed until tears rolled down her face.
Hearing that laugh, Wade suddenly felt panic rise inside his chest.
“Wh–what are you laughing at?!”
“Sorry, but what you just said is the funniest thing I’ve heard all year. I couldn’t hold it in.” Still wiping tears and smiling through her laughter, she gave him a look full of pure contempt.
“Let me guess what you really meant… You’re saying if I had shown this gift earlier, maybe you would’ve finally been interested in me as your sister, that you wouldn’t have treated me like trash, that I wouldn’t have been hated to the point of cutting ties with the Jensons.”