The departures hall at Charles de Gaulle smelled like espresso and jet fuel, the kind of mix that sticks to your clothes. I stood near a glass wall where winter light turned the polished floor into a sheet of dull silver, my carry-on planted beside my shin like an anchor. A tiny U.S. flag magnet was stuck to the luggage tag—something I’d bought at a corner shop in Queens the week I finally signed my divorce papers, a small ridiculous promise to myself that I was still standing.
I should’ve seen it coming. The way my mother kept my passport “so we don’t lose anything.” The way my sister, Angela, had slipped my phone and charger into her tote earlier “for group pictures.” The way my father’s hand never left the handle of the cart, like he was steering the whole trip—steering me.
My name is Joyce Romero. I’m thirty-eight, and I’d flown to Paris with my parents and my sister because I wanted to believe the cracks in us could be patched with museums and croissants and a few long dinners where we pretended to be tender. I’d helped fund the trip—too much of it—because after my divorce I was tired of being alone with the sound of my own thoughts.
At the check-in counter, the argument lit up fast, like a match struck too close to paper.
They wanted more money sent back home immediately. Not later. Not after I got back. Now, while I stood in line with my coat still half-open and my eyes still gritty from too little sleep.
I said no.
Not a dramatic no. Not a cruel one. Just the first no I’d said in a long time without apologizing for it.
My father’s face changed. My mother’s mouth went tight. Angela did that thing where she didn’t look at me, like if she didn’t meet my eyes she could pretend she wasn’t part of whatever was about to happen.
“Selfish,” my father said, soft enough that the people behind us couldn’t hear. “Unstable. You’re always a source of worry.”
My mother nodded along, as if worry was a badge she’d earned raising me, as if I owed her interest on every sacrifice.
I tried to keep my voice even. I tried to keep my hands still.
“I’m prioritizing my savings,” I said. “I’m rebuilding. I can’t keep doing this.”
That was the hinge, the moment the whole day swung on.
My sister’s fingernails clicked against her tote as she adjusted the strap. My mother had the folder with all the documents tucked under her arm like a shield. My father leaned close, not shouting, not making a scene.
The story doesn’t end here –
it continues on the next page.
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