Christmas had just ended when I got into a car accident trying to save my three brothers. Yet they cried, claiming they couldn’t afford my medical bills, and insisted the doctors amputate both my legs. “Kayla, we’re sorry. Don’t worry, we’ll take care of you even if we have to sell our blood or organs!” They dumped me in a rundown apartment right after my surgery, watched as my blood soaked through the sheets, then hurriedly left, claiming they needed to raise money for my medical expenses. Not wanting to burden them anymore, I endured excruciating pain trying to climb to the rooftop to end my life, only to stumble upon a luxurious hotel banquet where my brothers were surrounding another girl. She was eating a magnificent cake I’d never seen before, wearing a dress worth millions of dollars, adorned with a sparkling diamond necklace, and was addressed as the young lady of the Thompson family. A symphony orchestra, commanding over a hundred million dollars per performance, had been specially invited just to play the birthday song for her. While I was lying in agony in that apartment, they wouldn’t even spend a few dozen dollars on bandages for me. My oldest brother, Noah Thompson, personally fed cake to the girl, Chloe Thompson, saying, “Chloe, only you are our true sister.” My second brother, Walter Thompson, placed a diamond-studded tiara on her head. “Even for an ordinary birthday, we’d never let you suffer the slightest discomfort.” My third brother, Felix Thompson, gently helped her put on high heels, saying, “Chloe, you’re our treasure.” She swayed her black card on stage, smiling as she said, “Brothers, Kayla did lose her legs for you. You should go be with her…” Noah sneered, “She doesn’t deserve it. Now that she’s crippled, she’s even less comparable to you. She deserves what she got…” ***** I limped back to the apartment, collapsing onto the trash-filled floor. My leg wound burst open, blood flowing freely. I tore away the pants stuck to my wound. These cheap pants were my first new clothes in twenty Christmases. Despite the doctor’s warning that a secondary infection could be fatal, I stubbornly wore them anyway. Because my brothers had stayed up all night modifying them for me. After my parents died in a car accident, they left only massive debt. We couldn’t even afford down jackets. My brothers sold their blood multiple times just to buy this piece of insulating fabric. I stopped asking for gifts, spending every Christmas and birthday night wrapped in a blanket, singing happy birthday to myself. Since childhood, I’d rummage through garbage bins collecting cans for money, occasionally finding discarded restaurant leftovers to stave off hunger. When injured, I’d use spaghetti powder to stop the bleeding, never daring to call an ambulance for fear of troubling my brothers. My only winter coat was made from an old blanket I found at the dump. It kept me warm through twenty winters. Classmates mocked my old clothes, but I never felt ashamed. Because my brothers said, “We earn money with our own hands; even in poverty, we maintain our dignity.” Only now did I understand that everything they said was a lie. My brothers had money—they just gave everything to Chloe. My rags couldn’t compare to even the lace trim on her dress. My blood spread across the floor. I couldn’t understand why, no matter how hard I tried, I could never earn their love. “Kayla, we’re back, and we brought you cake.” Noah’s gentle voice sounded outside the door, completely different from how he’d spoken at the banquet, as if he were two different people. I hurriedly covered the bloodstains with waste paper. Seeing their deliberately worn designer shirts, I almost thought what I’d witnessed earlier was just a hallucination. “Kayla, these are cake scraps we got from the hotel. Try some.” Noah pushed a box of cake crumbs toward me. Before, I would have happily hugged them, crying with gratitude. But this time, I only felt exhausted. They had just hired a symphony orchestra worth over a hundred million dollars for Chloe. While I lay awake at night trying to save money, Chloe was probably sleeping soundly on her king-sized mattress. “This handwritten card is only for our most beloved sister. Look at it whenever you miss us.” Walter suddenly pulled out a dirty card. They gave her a black card, yet gave me waste paper. This greeting card was probably made from packaging paper Chloe didn’t want. I was like a joke, moved by their charity, not realizing I’d been the clown all along.
Seeing that I wasn’t responding, Felix anxiously pulled me into his arms while Walter came forward to feel my forehead, saying, “Kayla, do you have a fever? Why aren’t you speaking?” “Why are you so pale? Is your leg hurting?” So they knew about my pain. “Kayla, I’m sorry. It should have been us who got injured instead.” “I’m sorry, if only I could suffer in your place…” “Kayla, we’re so sorry!” They sobbed with their heads bowed, even slapping themselves several times until their faces were covered in bloody marks. I couldn’t understand why they claimed to care about me, yet became completely different people when they turned away. Once, I was beaten for stealing a hamburger because I was too hungry, and they threw themselves over me, begging to protect me. They were beaten until they coughed blood rather than abandon me, and never spoke a harsh word to me after we got home. But these same brothers who supposedly loved me had lied to me for half my life, watching me struggle with every step. Meanwhile, they kept Chloe safe in their arms, living happily as a little princess. My leg was hurting more and more. My brothers anxiously asked what was wrong. I forced a smile and said, “It’s nothing. I just had a dream. In my dream, there was a girl celebrating her birthday, and her brothers invited many musicians to play for her. She had such a huge cake and wore a dress I’ve never seen before. Her brothers casually gave her three black cards. “But no one stayed with me for Christmas. I could only lie alone among the pile of junk in the apartment.” They exchanged nervous glances, looking guilty. Then they started acting. Noah said tearfully, “Kayla, we’re sorry. We had to work overtime during the holidays to earn extra money for your leg treatment, so we had to leave you alone in the apartment after your surgery on Christmas.” Walter stroked my head and said helplessly, “Kayla, though we’re poor, we’ve tried our best to give you everything. This was just a dream.” “The cream on the cake is melting, hurry and eat it.” Felix held the cake to my mouth. The cream was too sweet; I only took one bite before putting it down. “Kayla, why did you stop eating? You just had surgery and lost a lot of blood. You need to replenish your sugar.” I found their words ridiculous. Chloe had an entire symphony orchestra, while I didn’t even have a medical team. Clenching my fists, I took a deep breath and said, “Noah, Walter, Felix, I want to go to the hospital for treatment.” This was my second request after buying bandages. Since my amputation surgery, my leg had been bleeding and even oozing pus, but I endured the pain without saying anything, afraid of worrying them. Not only that, I had collected many recyclables just to earn enough money for one hospital visit. “Kayla, why are you suddenly thinking about going to the hospital? We haven’t even raised enough money for your previous amputation surgery.” My brothers stared at me with difficulty, their eyes filled with hidden blame. My whole body trembled. Chloe’s hair crown alone was worth tens of thousands of dollars, while I was just trying to get a thousand-dollar wound dressing treatment, fighting with all my might to save myself. Noah exchanged glances with the other two and coaxed me, “Kayla, we’ll take you to buy bandages tonight, okay?” “Yeah, bandages are safer for stopping blood than painful hospital treatments. We’ll carry you there and buy you a box of painkillers too. Then it won’t hurt anymore.” Felix patted my back to comfort me. I clenched my fists and nodded. After all, I didn’t want to be in pain. Even if I died, the medicine could ease my suffering. Just as my brothers relaxed, their phones rang simultaneously with the same ringtone: “Chloe’s brother, darling Chloe’s brother.” They frantically pulled out their phones, hung up at the same time, and then looked at each other. “Kayla, the construction site suddenly called us to work overtime to move the cement.” “Yeah, we all got the call, so it must be urgent.” “Kayla, just hang in there tonight. Don’t go out alone, it’s dangerous.” They left without even waiting for my response. Looking at my incomplete legs, I murmured, “Really? Brothers…” With hope in my heart, I painfully dragged myself forward using just my hands.
The familiar evening gown flashed through the crack of the dilapidated apartment door. Chloe rushed into my brothers’ arms. Noah skillfully lifted her up and spun her around, while Walter and Felix smiled happily at the sound of her laughter. Noah carefully set her down and pretended to be serious: “What are you doing here? This is the slums. What if you catch something? Didn’t we tell you to stay at the Four Seasons? What if Kayla finds out…” Unfortunately, I had witnessed this scene firsthand, and I’d been living in what he called “the slums” for twenty Christmases. “But I missed you all. I want to spend Christmas with you,” Chloe said sweetly. “Brothers, will you take me to see a movie tonight? The last time you took me was three whole days ago.” My brothers looked uncomfortable, frowning as they glanced back at the apartment. Tears welling in her eyes, Chloe said, “Noah, am I not your only sister anymore?” She turned to Walter with a pitiful look. “Walter, didn’t you promise you’d never let me suffer?” As Felix stood there helplessly, she said dejectedly, “Felix, am I not your precious baby anymore?” “Chloe, you’re our only sister. No matter what happens, you’ll always be our treasure!” Walter quickly interrupted her. “Is Kayla making you stay with her? She sacrificed so much to save you all, so you should probably go be with her instead,” Chloe said tearfully. “No! It’s not what you think. If you want to watch a movie, we’ll definitely set up a home theater for you. Go back to the hotel and rest. We’ll come get you once everything’s ready.” Chloe smiled. “I knew it. You only love me.” Their happy figures grew more distant. My heart ached. “Why are you still here, cripple? You haven’t paid this month’s rent yet. Get out!” The door was kicked open. I looked up in terror as several hands with skull tattoos grabbed me and started dragging me out. “No, please! Just wait a little longer. I’ll have the money soon!” I struggled to crawl to the landlord’s feet, clutching at her pant leg, begging. She held the men back for a moment and scolded, “Are you stalling for time? Pay half the rent now, or get out of here!” I frantically pulled out my phone to call my brothers, my voice trembling: “I’m not lying. I have three brothers. They must have forgotten. Just wait…” “I’ll believe you one last time!” But Noah wouldn’t answer my call. The voicemail message cruelly announced my fate. I froze for a moment, then called Walter. When even my final call to Felix was rejected, my phone was stomped on the ground. The landlord said, “I knew you were faking! If you really had three brothers, they wouldn’t leave a cripple like you all alone. I felt sorry for you and let you delay the rent month after month, but you haven’t paid a penny since you were sent back here. I’ve been more than kind to you!” I crawled over and clutched the shattered phone to my chest. I don’t know when I was dumped on the street, or why no one answered my calls. With trembling hands, I managed to find the photo in my cracked phone. “Kayla is amazing, already earning money to buy her own phone. You’re truly our strongest sister!” This was the only group photo I had with my brothers. That’s why I treasured this phone so much, never replacing it even in this era of smartphones. But they had countless photos with Chloe… They were all liars! The already cracked screen shattered completely as I swung my hand, just like the broken bond between my brothers and me. I cared deeply for them, giving up Ivy League schools to reduce the family’s burden, working three jobs a day to earn money, even sacrificing my opportunity to develop in New York, and losing both my legs to save them. Yet my love for them was worthless. They felt no guilt raising another girl behind my back. I crawled to an empty alley, where the cold wind numbed even the pain in my legs. In that moment before passing out, I suddenly became clear-headed, with a powerful will to survive bursting forth. I knew that staying alive was the best revenge against them. I returned to collecting recyclables, eating just one burger a day, dragging myself through every corner of the city day and night. My wounds oozed blood and pus, which I could only wrap with rags. Watching the coins in my hand grow closer to the amount needed for treatment, I finally smiled again after so long. That day, my fellow trash collector friend invited me to a job, saying a new AMC theater was opening and hiring people to clean. We could also collect empty bottles after the movies ended. I agreed without hesitation. Because the journey was so far, I began crawling toward my destination before dawn. Upon reaching the theater, just as I was about to go in and ask, I saw those four familiar figures standing close together. Chloe said, “Why don’t we bring Kayla too? She’s probably never seen an IMAX movie before.” “She didn’t even go to college, don’t waste a movie ticket on her!” “Chloe, a cripple doesn’t deserve to be in front of your spaghetti.” “Janitor, hurry up and clean the floor!” Before the exciting movie began, I tied the cloth around my legs tighter and slowly crawled over, saying, “Excuse me, I’m the janitor here to clean.”
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