My little sister was bullied until she slit her wrists. My parents aged ten years overnight. The three little monsters smirked and said: "We're minors. The law can't touch us. What can you do?" I smiled back. "I can make you wish you were never born." 01 I was in class when my mom called. She didn't speak for a long time, just choked sobs coming through the line. My heart started pounding for no reason. Finally, she gathered enough strength to cry out: "Jake, something happened to Lily!" I left immediately. Didn't even pack. Just called an Uber straight to the station. "Mom, I'm coming home right now. Don't panic. Tell me what happened." My mom was hyperventilating, repeating the same phrase over and over: "Your sister was beaten..." I called Lily. No answer. Called Dad. No answer. My hands were shaking so bad I could barely hold my phone. I searched her school and her name on Twitter. A video with tens of thousands of views popped up. I clicked it. A thin girl was curled up on the ground, protecting her head. Three girls surrounded her, taking turns stomping on her face. After thirty seconds, one girl said, "Let's cut this bitch's hair off. See if she still acts cute then." She squatted down, grinning, grabbed a handful of the girl's hair, and snip, snip. The girl on the ground curled tighter, trying to hide her face in her stomach. The three attackers got more excited. "Still fucking hiding?!" They worked like a team. One sat on the girl, pinning her arms with her knees, prying her hands away from her face. One took photos. One slapped her. Smack! Smack! Smack! That's when I finally saw the face of the girl with the messy, chopped hair. It was my sister. The slapper got tired and signaled the photographer. I heard an excited voice from behind the camera: "My turn! My turn!" She pulled out a marker and drew a turtle on my sister's swollen, red face. My sister couldn't break free. She let out a scream of pure despair. "Why are you like this?" one of the monsters said. "You ruined her pretty face. How's she gonna go be a slut now?" She pulled Lily up, dusting off her clothes. Like she was actually going to let her go. Lily clutched the hem of her shirt, standing there, frozen and confused. The next second, the girl kicked her hard in the back. Lily slammed face-first into the ground. Blood pooled instantly. Then, they rushed her, grabbing her school uniform and ripping it hard. Riiip— The comments section exploded. But soon, the video disappeared. "This video has been removed." The tweet vanished too. "You okay, man?" the driver asked, looking in the rearview mirror. "You look sick." The taxi entered a tunnel. The window reflected my bloodshot eyes and the veins popping on my forehead. 02 Neighbors were crowded around our front door. I squeezed through. Mom and Dad were on one side of the sofa. A cop sat in the middle. On the other side sat a guy in a suit and three middle-aged men. Probably the principal and their parents. The three little monsters were in the corner. Two had their heads down. The one in the middle sat on a fruit crate, playing with her nails, looking bored. When she saw me, she nudged her friends, pointed at me, whispered something, and they all giggled. "I'm gonna fucking kill you!" I grabbed a kettle and charged. But I was tackled immediately. One of the parents even snatched the kettle from me. "Let go! Or I'll kill you too!!" The monster in the middle hid behind her dad, grinning at me. The cop patted my back. "Son, calm down. We're discussing a solution here. Don't make things worse." I shook off the parent's hand. "Okay. What's the solution?" The air got heavy. They looked at each other, exchanging glances. Clearly, they were plotting some bullshit. The principal pulled me aside, arm around my shoulder. "You're Lily's...?" "Brother." "Right. Look, the school takes this very seriously. We've severely criticized Brittany and the others. They promised not to do it again. Since it's their first offense, we hope you..." "What do you mean?" I shook him off. "You want us to just let it go?" His mask slipped a little. "Listen, young man. We suppressed the news. You know, if that video gets out, it's bad for Lily. She's a girl, after all..." "So what?" I laughed, furious. "Should we kneel and thank you? Did you suppress it for Lily, or for these little shits?" "You need to look at the big picture." "I can't! I only see my sister getting bullied!" One of the parents scoffed. "Didn't you think about why, out of the whole school, your sister got beat up? Maybe she did something shameful. It takes two to tango, you know?" I punched him in the face. Blood bloomed instantly. "Fuck! You dare hit me?!" "I'll fucking kill you!" I was seeing red, ready to beat him to a pulp, when the cop bear-hugged me. "Calm down! If you hurt him, you'll have to pay medical bills." Mom pulled me back too. Seeing her tear-streaked face, I softened. "Officer, if we press charges, how many years will they get?" The cop sighed. "I understand your anger. But strictly speaking, they'd get a few days in juvie max, maybe a fine. They're minors." A few days? A fine? My brain buzzed. I turned and saw the monsters smirking. Hearing about juvie and criminal records, the parents signaled their kids. The three girls ran over and bowed. Brittany grabbed my hand. "Sorry! We know we were wrong. We won't do it again!" I felt something hard in my palm. I looked down. She'd slipped me a bloody hair clip. The one I gave Lily. It had clumps of hair stuck to it. Ripped from Lily's scalp. "Fuck!" I raised my hand to slap her, but her dad shielded her instantly. "I'm sorry, big brother!" She cried, tears streaming down her face. "Hit me! If it makes you feel better, hit me!" She was crying, but her hand was hidden, flipping me off. "I'm gonna kill you!" "Calm down!" The cop stepped in again. He turned to them. "The family is too emotional. We'll talk later. You leave first!" 03 The house was quiet. It was past 10 PM, and Lily still wouldn't come out. We stood guard outside her door. "Mom, Dad, go to sleep. I'll watch her," I said. "How can I sleep when she's like this?" Dad said. Mom rubbed his back, leaning on his shoulder. Her tears had dried up, leaving her eyes red and swollen. "Those people might come back tomorrow. You need rest to deal with them." "Yeah," Mom said. "Listen to Jake. Lily will be fine with him." Dad sighed heavily and shuffled away. He hurt his back years ago working construction. Rainy days were hell for him. Now he was old, relying on pain patches. Watching his hunched back, my nose stung. Once the lights were out, I knocked on Lily's door. Two long, two short. Our secret code. I used to sneak her out for late-night snacks like this. But this time, no happy response. "Lily," I whispered. "I'm coming in, okay?" I had a key. Silence. I felt a pit in my stomach. I unlocked the door. The smell of blood hit me like a wall. Red soaked the sheets. Lily lay there, half her body in a pool of blood. Her wrists were slashed open. "Lily!" I scooped her up and ran. "Mom! Dad! Lily slit her wrists!" 04 Hospital. 1 AM. I sat on the cold bench, staring at the ER doors. Every time a nurse came out, my heart stopped. I'm twelve years older than Lily. Mom had her when I was in sixth grade. My uncle joked that once she was born, my parents wouldn't want me anymore. So I hated her at first. Until one day after school, I saw Mom holding a pink, tiny thing. She was sucking her thumb, smelling like milk. Mom looked at her with pure love. I felt jealous. Then, Lily woke up. Her big eyes stared at me, and she giggled. Mom was surprised. "She was crying all day, but she smiled at you. She loves her big brother." I decided she wasn't so bad. By the time she was three or four, she was my shadow. When I did homework, she'd stand by the desk, chin resting on the wood. Mom would ask, "Jake, want fruit?" I'd shake my head. Lily would echo, "Brother says no." "Want milk?" I'd nod. Lily would run over, "Brother says yes!" Mom laughed. "She's your little shadow." She'd carefully place the milk on my desk and ask, "Brother, what's a shadow?" "Someone who follows someone else." She beamed. "Then I'm brother's shadow!" When I got older, I wanted to drop out and work to pay her tuition. Dad caught me skipping school and beat me. Lily blocked the belt. "Don't hit brother!" Dad threw the belt and cried. That was the first time I saw him cry. He said he was useless for not giving us a better life. Later, Lily told me, "Brother, study hard so you can get a good job and marry a good wife..." She forgot the rest and asked Mom, "What comes next?" So I promised her I'd never skip class again. I'd study hard and get into a good college. Lily held out her pinky. "Pinky promise. A hundred years, no changing." That was our contract. Since we were kids, a pinky promise was sacred. Even if the sky fell. Then I went to college. Lily went to middle school. She talked less the last few times I visited. I thought it was just puberty. I should have known. Why didn't I know?
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