Dancing for Tuition, Humiliated by a Fake Heiress

My estranged billionaire parents finally came to pick me up.

I was on a live stream, dancing, my hair a riot of colors, clad in micro-shorts and fishnets.

Just as a viewer was about to send a donation, Tiffany yanked the internet cable.

“Have you been whoring yourself out for cash all these years?” she sneered.

My parents, hearing this, looked at me with open disdain.

My idiot brother, Chad, then lunged, grabbing at my fishnets.

“You’re absolutely sickening! How could I possibly have a sister like you? You’re a disgrace!”

Not a single cent earned, I was seething. My hand flew up, delivering a stinging slap to each of their faces.

“Seriously?! How else do you expect me to pay for Ivy League tuition? Do you have any idea how hard I fought to get into that school?!”

A beat of stunned silence hung in the air before Tiffany and Chad burst into sharp, mocking laughter.

“You? Ivy League?”

“Hahahahahahahahahahaha!”

Tiffany’s face was practically splitting from laughter. She clung to Eleanor, my mother, her nose in the air.

“Do you actually think Ivy League is like a convenience store, you can just waltz in whenever you feel like it? Chad even had to donate a million dollars to the school just to get in.”

“And you?”

Tiffany scrutinized me from head to toe, her eyebrows scrunching in contempt.

“Someone like you… you’d probably struggle just to get into a community college.”

I’m naturally hot-headed; I can’t stand being insulted. I started to roll up my sleeves, ready to slap her again.

But a strong hand from behind me yanked me back.

“Enough!”

A deep, commanding voice boomed, silencing everyone present.

It was Mr. Sterling, the renowned billionaire. I’d only ever seen him on the news, never imagining he could be my biological father.

His face was grim, his icy gaze fixed on me.

His tone was thick with undeniable distaste and aversion.

“Delusions need to have their limits. What Ivy League student looks like you?”

Just two sentences extinguished the spark of familial warmth that had just begun to flicker within me.

A gentle voice spoke next, my mother, Eleanor.

“We know you’ve suffered, but one must not lie.”

She gave me a quick once-over, then gingerly handed me a credit card.

“Use this money to buy yourself some presentable clothes first.”

She paused, then added,

“Nothing too revealing, you need to be modest. And dye your hair back to its original color, then find a place to shower. After that… after that, you can call me. We’ll leave it at that for today, we’re heading back now.”

With that, she handed me a business card and, without a backward glance, looped her arm through Tiffany’s and walked away.

The early autumn wind was sharp, cutting across my face like a slap.

I’d fantasized countless times about reuniting with my family.

But I never imagined that I, a self-reliant, academically excellent, well-rounded student, would be met with such contempt from my own parents.

They didn’t even believe I’d gotten into an Ivy League university.

Not a single word of welcome, no desire to let me into their home.

Tears traced paths down my cheeks. I quickly wiped them away, taking a deep breath.

It’s fine. Recognize me or not, I’ve raised myself well enough.

I can walk my own path from now on.

I crumpled the card she’d given me into a ball and tossed it aside.

Then, I found an ATM and drained the entire hundred thousand dollars from the card.

I found a place to settle down and immediately started looking for a proper part-time job.

A hundred thousand dollars wasn’t a huge sum, nor was it negligible, but I still needed to save more.

I hustled through the streets, but by evening, I hadn’t found a suitable job.

As I sat on the curb, feeling defeated, that extended limousine silently glided up beside me again.

My idiot brother, Chad, poked his head out.

“Picking up clients on the street, are we? Be careful, the cops might catch you. If they do, the Sterlings won’t be bailing you out.”

I instantly exploded. I grabbed a water bottle from the roadside and hurled it at his face.

“What about you?! Are you out looking for prostitutes? You sound so familiar with it, you must do this a lot!”

Before I could finish, two burly men suddenly appeared behind me, lifted me, and shoved me into the car.

Inside, my father, Mr. Sterling, looked at me with a cold face.

“I never imagined you’d stoop to such depravity. Now, I’m taking you to a hospital to see if you’re still a decent girl!”