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I just stared at the phone in my mom’s hand, memorized the sound of their laughter over the crackling wood, then turned around, ordered a rideshare, and left them standing there with their content. One year later, I came back into their lives without flames, without gasoline, without touching a single match, and still managed to watch their carefully curated world burn without me. If you want to know how the Cursed One became the only person who could have saved them, and why I chose not to, stay with me until the end.
I grew up in the Carter family where everything was a scoreboard and someone was always performing for an audience even when no one was watching. My mom, Diana, built an entire online brand around being a relatable, perfect mom, posting polished kitchen shots and Sunday family dinners like we were a sitcom that never got messy. My dad, Patrick, ran a small home renovation business and liked to talk about hustle and personal responsibility.
Flipping used electronics. Trading crypto. Always one big move away from making it.
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