The Locked Door: A Ghost's Final Goodbye

I was the middle child in my family.

Forever invisible.

I wasn't the firstborn daughter, so I never had my dad’s adoration.

I wasn't the baby boy, so I never had my mom’s affection.

So when my little brother was diagnosed with leukemia and needed a bone marrow transplant, I became the default choice.

After the surgery succeeded, my parents held my brother and wept tears of joy.

Mom even bought me a tiny cupcake—a first in my entire life.

I thought that maybe, just maybe, they had finally started to love me.

Then came the earthquake.