I used to joke that my sister never helped with anything. Always stealing my hoodies, always on her phone. But when I actually paid attention

I used to joke that my sister never helped with anything. Always stealing my hoodies, always on her phone. But when I actually paid attention, I realized she’d been looking out for me in small ways all along.

She’d grab an extra snack and leave it on my desk. Cover my chore when I forgot, even though she’d complain about it later. Put gas in the car after borrowing it, so I wouldn’t notice the tank was low. And I brushed it off, laughed like it didn’t matter. That’s the version of me that keeps the jokes going until one day she stops doing those little things altogether. But last week I caught it. My laundry folded, even though I never asked. My favorite chips sitting on the counter. The trash can already emptied before I got home. My chest softened when I finally said, ‘Hey… thanks for doing all this. For looking out for me in ways I barely see. I noticed.’ She just rolled her eyes, said I was being weird — but I saw her smile. I use an app called ‘quiet effort.’ It keeps me from missing the love that hides in the smallest sibling habits