As I stared at the bank alert on my phone, a sinking feeling settled in my stomach. $18,462 charged by Ocean-Glide Cruises. My heart pounded in my chest, and my mind raced. This was my credit card—the one I used for essentials like rent and groceries. How could this happen?
My first instinct was to call the bank, but then something clicked. A vague memory floated up, from a conversation with my sister a few weeks ago. I remembered her mentioning the family was planning a cruise. “It’ll be great,” she’d said, her voice bright with excitement. “Everyone’s coming.” Everyone, it seemed, except me.
My family and I have always had a complex relationship. I’m the youngest of three siblings, and somehow, I’ve always been the odd one out. Whether it was family dinners, holiday plans, or now, a cruise, they always seemed to forget to include me. But this was a new low. Not only did they plan a vacation without me, but they also had the audacity to use my card to pay for it.
I fumed as I pieced it together. My card was on file for emergencies, and it seemed they considered this cruise an “emergency.” I could almost hear my mother’s voice, soothing and dismissive, as if this were a trivial matter. But this wasn’t trivial. This was a violation.