I hadn't done a single chore in days. I'd been sleeping until ten every morning. You have no idea how refreshing that was.
I didn't just resent my mother. I resented my grandparents too.
"Let's talk about you two for a second," I said, turning to face them. "You're this old, and you're still going on about carrying on the Sawyer name. 'Let her take our surname, we'll raise her.' Really? Grandpa Abbott gets five hundred dollars a month from his pension. What exactly were you going to raise me with? Big talk?"
Because in all these years, I hadn't seen a single cent from either of them.
I let out a cold laugh. Grandma clutched at her chest, her face turning scarlet.
"Enough!" Zachery suddenly erupted. "You think you're the only one who's been wronged? All these years, Grandpa and Grandma called to check on you every holiday. Mom always cared more about you. They're my family too, you know!"
My mother looked at him with warm, grateful eyes.
"See, Zachery always—"
My eyes lit up. I cut her off before she could finish.
"So you want these relatives, Zachery? Great. Perfect. Starting today, you take the Sawyer name, and I'll take Gilbert. We'll both have bright futures!"