Youre the perfect one in this family.
Want to know why? Because Im fed up with always being the runnerup! Emily shouts. Everywhere, all the time! At school you were the top pupil, every teacher adored you. At university you graduated with firstclass honours, while I barely scraped through resits. At work you keep getting promotions and bonuses, and Im stuck in the same role! I want a high salary and respect from the boss too! Understand? I want to be first as well!
***
Great, the boss just gave me another scolding, Emily mutters, slamming her laptop shut and flinging herself back into the swivel chair.
Sarah pulls her eyes away from the screen and looks at her sister with a smirk.
So you messed up the report, didnt you? Did anyone give you a pat on the head for that?
Emily puffs her cheeks and turns toward the window, her face flushing with hurt. Sarah ignores the younger sisters sour expression and starts packing her things. The workday finally ends. The file folder lands neatly on the desk, the mug rolls into the sink.
Emily remains deliberately silent as they walk down the corridor toward the exit. Only when the office doors close behind them does the younger sister speak again.
Thats easy for you to laugh about. Youre perfect, arent you?
Sarah sighs. These arguments have been happening far too often lately. Emily used to brush off the bosss criticisms with a joke and move on. Now every word is tinged with bitterness.
I just do my job well, Emily. You can too.
Of course, youre right.
They have been working in a large retailgoods firms procurement department for three years. Sarah got the job first; six months later she helped Emily land a place there. The sisters have always been close, supporting each other in everything, but their approaches to work are poles apart.
Sarah stays late, researching suppliers, comparing terms from dozens of firms before making a decision. Emily prefers a relaxed pace she does the minimum before the deadline, then spends the rest of the day on her phone or chatting in the staff kitchen. Sarah never judges Emily for seeing life differently; each to their own.
A month ago the company called Sarah into the directors office and offered her a promotion senior procurement manager, with a £7,000 raise in annual salary. Sarah is taken aback by the sudden offer but accepts immediately. Years of painstaking work finally pay off.
Emily embraces her and congratulates her, but Sarah notices how quickly Emilys smile fades and how strained her words sound. That evening they go out to celebrate at a café, yet the atmosphere feels odd. Emily keeps steering the conversation toward salaries, asking how much more Sarah will now earn and how many extra hours shell have to put in.
Youre just lucky the boss noticed, otherwise youd still be stuck in the same spot, Emily says offhand.
Lucky? Sarah repeats. I spent two months on that project without a single day off.
Yeah, right.
Six months later Sarah is appointed head of the whole department. The news spreads through the office like wildfire. Colleagues shake her hand, wish her luck. Emily is the last to arrive, hugs Sarah and whispers in her ear:
Congratulations. Youre a real star now.
Theres no warmth in those words. Sarah steps back, looks Emily straight in the eye and sees something cold and alien frozen there, as if a snake were coiled.
In the weeks that follow, Sarahs office life shifts subtly but steadily. At first she brushes off the little things. Tanya stops inviting her to group lunches. Mark from the neighbouring department no longer pops by with a morning coffee. Colleagues exchange dry greetings, smileless, and turn away as soon as they can. Whispered jokes and muffled laughter echo behind Sarahs back. When she turns, everyone pretends to be busy.
Sarah wonders whats happened. She has always been open, helpful, eager to share her expertise. Could a promotion really warp her colleagues attitudes so much? She hasnt changed she never shouts at subordinates, never makes impossible demands, never puts a foot in the door.
One evening, as Sarah is about to leave, her office door opens and Marina steps in, fidgeting nervously.
Come in, Sarah says. Whats wrong?
Marina closes the door and sits opposite her, looking embarrassed.
I have to tell you something. Im mortified, but you deserve to know the truth.
Sarah sets her pen down and looks at Marina. Marina swallows and begins:
Emily has been spreading rumours about you for months. She tells anyone who will listen that the ideas in your projects are actually hers, that youre stealing her work, that you only got the promotion because youre a brownnoser. She says you look down on the staff and think were all fools.
Emily? Her younger sister, the one she brought into the firm, the one shes always tried to protect? Emily is turning the whole office against her?
Are you sure? Youre not mixing things up? Sarah asks, her voice tight.
Absolutely. At first I didnt want to believe it. I thought maybe it was a misunderstanding. But she repeats it constantly, to everyone. People are starting to believe her. You know how fast gossip spreads, and the more unbelievable it sounds, the more it sticks
Sarah cant recall how she said goodbye to Marina and walked to her car. All the way home, Emilys accusations whirl through her mind like a chaotic swarm. Why? How? Theyve always been together. Sarah has supported, protected, and helped her sister. And now this socalled gratitude.
Emily opens the flat door, surprise flashing across her face.
Sarah? Whats wrong? Something happened?
Sarah walks in without waiting for an invitation, turns to face Emily and looks straight into her eyes.
Why?
What are you talking about?
Why are you turning the whole office against me? Why lie that Im stealing your ideas? Why spread those rumours? Sarah says, cold and detached.
Emily flinches and crosses her arms over her chest. Her face reddens with a sudden flush.
What, did Marry tell you?
It doesnt matter who said it! Answer the question!
Dont shout at me in my own home! This is nonsense!
Im not shouting, Emily. Im demanding an explanation. How could you do this? Were sisters!
Emily steps forward abruptly. In her eyes a fire Sarah has never seen before flickersanger? Hurt? Something altogether different.
You want to know why? Because Im sick of always being second! Emily yells. Everywhere! At school you were the star, teachers adored you. At university you graduated with firstclass honours, and I barely survived resits. At work you get promotions and bonuses, and Im stuck here! I want a high salary and the bosss respect too! Got it? I want to be first!
Sarah stays silent. Emily continues, unabated:
You were always ahead. Always perfect. Sarah brilliant, Sarah beautiful, Sarah hardworking. And what am I? A shadow. A useless little sister who always messes things up!
Then you should have worked harder, Sarah replies. Put in the effort, not watch videos at your desk and gossip in the kitchen. You wanted respect? Earn it. But dont drag me through the mud for it.
Emily opens her mouth, but Sarah cuts her off, turns and walks out of the flat. The door clicks shut behind her. Tears stream down Sarahs cheeks, which she wipes away fiercely. She has to hold on.
The next morning Sarah submits a transfer request to the firms branch in Manchester. HR is surprised but signs the paperwork without fuss. Sarah is a valuable employee; the company doesnt want to lose her. The transfer is approved within two days.
Emily hears about it from coworkers and calls in the evening. Sarah stares at the name flashing on her screen before answering.
Youre moving? Emily says, barely greeting.
Yes.
So youre running away.
No. Im just going to a place where you wont plot against me behind my back.
Youre betraying me! Traitor! Youre called a sister!
Sarah says nothing, hangs up. Theres nothing left to say.
Three months in the Manchester office fly by. The team welcomes her warmly, projects run smoothly. Sarah begins to forget the nightmare she lived through. Then, one evening, Marina calls.
Sarah, have you heard? Emilys been sacked.
Sarah freezes, phone pressed to her ear.
What?
Last week. She missed deadlines on three contracts in a row, made errors in reports. Management gave her plenty of chances, but finally decided to let her go. Without you, everything fell apart. Thats how it went
But I didnt
Sarah, you covered her mistakes for years. It was invisible to everyone. When you left, the cracks showed. Emily couldnt cope without your safety net.
Sarah puts the phone down and sits in silence.
The following day Emily shows up at Sarahs flats front door, hair a mess, eyes red, clothes rumpled. She bursts into the hallway and shouts:
Are you happy?! Theyve fired me! You moved just to sabotage me! Did you do this on purpose?
Sarah watches her calmly.
What am I to blame, Emily? You had the chance to prove yourself. I didnt stop you. What did you do? Ruined everything.
Its your fault! You!
No. Youre the one responsible for what happened. And now forget the way back to my house.
Sarah walks to the door and flings it wide open. Emily freezes, unable to believe her sister is actually throwing her out. Sarahs stare is cold and resolute. Emily turns and darts down the stairwell. The door slams shut with a deafening bang.
An hour later, mother calls, yelling:
What are you doing?! Youre to blame for Emilys dismissal! You abandoned her! Selfish! You should have helped, not run off to another office! Youve ruined your own sisters life! Its all your fault!
Sarah tries to explain, recounts the rumours, the betrayal, how Emily herself caused the termination. Mother doesnt listen. She screams, blames, demands an immediate fix.
Youve betrayed the family, Sarah. Remember that. Its a sin.
The line clicks out.
Sarah is left alone. The family turns its back the moment she defended herself, stopped sacrificing herself for her sister.
She will be fine. Sarah has always been strong, and now that strength is needed more than ever.
She opens an email from senior management: a relocation to London, a new senior role, a fresh start. If she once hesitated about the offer, now she replies confidently.
When everyone has turned away, theres nothing anchoring her here. Its time to think only of herself.
Weeks of moving chaos pass. In the new city Sarah settles quickly. She doesnt look back, doesnt adapt to old expectations. Family ties remain thin, reduced to formal holiday greetings. But Sarah no longer worries. They never truly loved her, so they could let go easily.
