Everyone was over the moon excited—for you and for me.

The living room buzzed with joy. Your mom was already talking about baby names, your dad was awkwardly pacing but grinning like a man who’d just won the lottery, and your friends hovered around you like fireflies, glowing with congratulations.

You had just announced that you were pregnant—with our first child.

The first grandchild in your family.

I stood near the doorway, watching you laugh, your hand instinctively resting on your stomach like you were already protecting something sacred. The way your eyes sparkled when someone mentioned “baby” made my heart squeeze. I had never seen you so full of light. I’d never loved you more than in that moment.

“I’m gonna grab you something to drink,” I said softly, brushing a kiss across your cheek. You nodded, your smile wide and warm.

I ducked into the kitchen, already grabbing your favorite lemon sparkling water from the fridge. I turned to head back—

—and stopped short.

Sammie.

Your younger sister stood in the doorway, arms crossed, expression unreadable but tense. My stomach dipped.

“Sammie,” I said cautiously.

She didn’t move. “Congrats, I guess,” she muttered, eyes narrowing. “Hope your creepy little fetus makes you real happy.”

I froze. “What did you just say?”

Her voice was cold and sharp. “I said congrats. But also… thanks for shattering my entire reality.”

I closed the fridge slowly and straightened up. “Sammie, come on. You’re fifteen. I’m twenty. I’m dating your sister. The woman in the next room who is pregnant with my child. What are you even talking about?”

She stepped closer. Her face wasn’t angry anymore—just wounded. “I know all that. I know how it looks. I know how it sounds. But none of it changes how I feel.”

I shook my head, trying to piece this together.

“I’m in love with you,” she said. The words hit the air like a punch. “I’ve been in love with you since I was thirteen. I thought maybe someday…”

“Nope,” I said, backing away a step. “Absolutely not. This conversation ends now.”

She looked like she might cry, but I didn’t soften. I couldn’t.

“You don’t get to say that to me—not now, not ever. You’re a kid, Sammie. You’re confused. And this… this is not okay.”

She looked down, fists clenched at her sides. “You didn’t even notice,” she whispered. “You didn’t notice how I looked at you. How I always tried to be around you. You never saw me.”