Chapter 1

That autumn when I was eight, Dad brought me to live with him in the city for school.

If I didn't finish my homework, no dinner.

If I scored below 95 on a test, I was made to stand until midnight.

Ten minutes of extra sleep on a weekend? There went my entire allowance.

"I'm breaking my back on construction sites to pay for your education. You have to be number one!"

Dad's coworkers all praised his strict parenting.

Even though I often felt dizzy and lightheaded from hunger.

Then came the parent-teacher conference. Other kids' parents wore smart clothes.

I hid in the bathroom stall, listening to the clomp of Dad's worn-out work boots in the hallway.

"Teacher, she only got second place this time. I haven't let her eat lunch for three days!"

A few soft chuckles drifted in from outside the window, from other parents.

"Pushing a kid that hard? No wonder his wife left him for someone else."

I bit my lip until it was white, wondering numbly.

If Mom had taken me with her back then, would my life have been easier?