A Song for the Stolen

On Christmas Eve, Ava is delivering food through a blizzard when her sister Chloe calls from a stretch Lincoln at the gate, saying their parents are dying and want to see her. Ava rides past without a glance. Ten years ago she sold her college admission to Chloe and signed a non-disclosure agreement; now Chloe's messages demand a kidney for their father, who has end-stage uremia.

Chloe arrives at Ava's moldy rental with bodyguards, offering fifty thousand dollars for the organ. Ava tears up the check, splashes tea on her, and threatens to expose the stolen admission unless Chloe leaves. Chloe flees, vowing Ava will regret it. That night, Mark's boss calls: someone accused him of swapping parts on a luxury car, and he must pay compensation.

At dawn, Mark leaves to beg for work, and Ava rides toward the city center, determined to end it. Passing the music conservatory, she remembers the gold-stamped admission letter and the night her parents knelt, asking her to give up her name and future to Chloe.