Category: English

1 Seven years after I left Nathan Vale, I became the most authoritative hypnosis specialist in the country. Today, I received a confidential consultation request from another province. When I pushed open the door to the consultation room, a storm had just begun outside. In the dim therapy chair sat a man tormented by insomnia. It was Nathan. He slowly opened his eyes and broke the awkward silence with a dry voice. “Summer… have you been well all these years?” Holding his medical file, I smiled with polite distance. “Fortunately, yes. Everything has been fine.” He watched me calmly close the file, pain flashing through his eyes. “You’re different now. Before, whenever it thundered or rained, you never dared to be alone.” I smiled and didn’t answer. Actually, nothing had changed. I had only stopped leaving any part of my emotions for him. Putting away my pocket watch, I slowly pushed the medical file back in front of him. “Mr. Vale, I can’t perform hypnosis on you.” His fingers, resting on the armrest, trembled violently. It wasn’t emotional shaking. It was involuntary tremor caused by long-term neurasthenia. His hand knocked over the glass on the table. The glass shattered against the tile, the sound swallowed by a clap of thunder. Nathan stumbled up from the therapy chair. His hand reached across my desk, fingers spread, trying to cover my ears. Muscle memory from seven years ago. I didn’t even lift my eyelids. I pressed the intercom. “Jade, come clean this up.” His hand froze in midair. Thunder rumbled outside. I continued flipping through the next client’s file. He stared at my calm profile as I turned the pages. Slowly, the hand hovering in the air withdrew and clenched into a fist, his knuckles taut. My assistant pushed the door open and bent to pick up the broken glass. Nathan still stood there. “Summer, I can pay double.” “It isn’t about money.” “Triple.” His voice was dry and hoarse, soaked in exhaustion. “I really haven’t slept through a full night in almost three months.” I didn’t respond. I opened the drawer. My fingertips touched a metal casing. I took it out and placed it on the desk. An old pocket watch. The moment Nathan’s gaze landed on it, his breathing stopped. His throat moved, but he said nothing. I saw an unreal flicker of light ignite in his eyes. He thought I kept the watch because I was sentimental. I picked it up, turned it half a circle in my palm, and snapped it down on the desk. “If Mr. Vale really wants sleep, the psychiatric department is down the hall to the left. Ask for heavy sedatives.” I tore off a sticky note, wrote down a few numbers, and pushed it toward him. “Refusal consultation fee. Finance will send you the invoice later.” He didn’t look at the note. He stared at my fingers, at the pocket watch I had slapped casually onto the desk. His mouth twisted into an expression uglier than crying. “That watch is broken.” His voice trembled hoarsely. “I’ll buy you a new one.” I didn’t answer. I simply turned the watch over and opened the back cover with my thumb. Inside the cover was a place where words had once been engraved. Three words. Nathan loves Summer. Now those words were unrecognizable. The metal had been scraped again and again by something sharp, leaving grooves of different depths, like wounds that had failed to heal. All color drained from Nathan’s face. I knew what he had remembered. I stared into his bloodshot eyes. “It wasn’t just the watch that shattered.” My voice was very soft. “It was someone’s nerves too. You haven’t forgotten that, have you, Nathan?” It was as if someone had shoved him hard from behind. He staggered backward and hit the therapy chair. He didn’t even take an umbrella. He yanked open the door and stumbled into the rain at the end of the corridor. I picked up the pocket watch again and pressed my thumb against the scratches. Seven years. Memory was like a rusted floodgate. In that moment, it loosened with a crash. I heard Nathan’s voice again. Not the hollow, nearly begging voice from moments ago. The voice from seven years earlier. Warm, carrying the scent of mint, pressed against the top of my head. “Summer, don’t be afraid.” “I will always be your safest fortress.” Seven years ago, I was twenty-two. It was the third year Nathan had kept me by his side. Thunderstorms triggered my illness. It wasn’t ordinary fear of thunder. It was true post-traumatic stress. When I was little, my stepfather had locked me in a leaking basement for three days. Ever since, whenever lightning flashed, my limbs would spasm uncontrollably. That day, thunder struck from four in the afternoon until dawn. I curled inside the master bedroom closet, wrapped in his coat. The sound of the door lock turning came at 11:03 p.m. Nathan rushed into the bedroom, soaked from head to toe, ink stains still on the cuff of his suit. He opened the closet door and saw me shaking in the corner. Without a word, he bent and scooped me up, holding me in his arms. His chest trembled. His body heat came through his drenched shirt. “Summer.” “Look at this.” He took out a custom pocket watch from his pocket, opened the back, and held it by my ear. The second hand ticked softly and steadily, one beat after another, like another calm heart. “Listen to this. Not the storm outside.” His chin rested against the top of my head, his voice lowered. I clutched his shirt and refused to let go, nails digging into the fabric. “Never leave me.” He placed the watch into my palm and wrapped his hand around mine. “Even if I’m crushed to dust.” Only those words. I believed him. I used those words as a foundation and built every definition of safety upon them. But another thunderstorm came three months later. I held that pocket watch and sat on the living room sofa all night. The second hand ticked thirty-two thousand times. His phone had been turned off since eight in the evening. At 5:40 a.m., the door lock finally turned. He pushed the door open, collar loose, carrying a strong sandalwood scent that did not belong to him. It was the perfume used by Bianca Vale, his boss’s daughter. I had smelled it at the company banquet. I could identify it from three tables away. He saw me sitting on the sofa and paused. “Why aren’t you asleep?” His eyes swept over the watch in my hand, then quickly moved away. “The company system had issues. I spent the whole night in the server room.” He tugged at his tie and walked toward the bathroom. “The perfume rubbed off by accident. There were lots of people around.” I didn’t move. I placed the watch on my knees and pointed at the storm still churning beyond the floor-to-ceiling windows. “Do you know how I got through last night?” He stopped, but he didn’t turn around. In the past, at moments like this, he would turn back, pick me up, and cover all my panic with his warmth. This time, he stood where he was and tugged at his tie. His voice carried something it never had before. “Summer, you’re not a child anymore. You need to learn to handle these things yourself. Stop being so immature.” His phone screen lit up on the entryway cabinet. I saw the message preview. The sender was saved as a white gardenia emoji. “Thank you for staying with me last night. I felt so safe.” It was as if an invisible hand had seized my heart. “You lied to me.” I heard my own voice shaking. “Bianca, right? Are you going to abandon me and marry her?” Nathan’s expression changed. Not guilt. Not panic. It was a kind of irritated impatience I had never seen on his face before. He came back, pressed one hand onto my shoulder, and pushed me against the sofa back. His strength wasn’t great. But the gesture itself chilled my spine. “You’ve been too tense lately.” He leaned down, his gaze like he was examining a malfunctioning machine. “I think you’re hallucinating.” He went to the kitchen and poured a glass of water. When he returned, white powder was still visible at the bottom of the glass, swirling in tiny currents. He held the water to my lips. “Drink it. Sleep.” His thumb brushed the corner of my mouth. The touch was light. So was his voice. “When you wake up, we’ll get married.” I didn’t drink it. I knocked the glass away with the back of my hand. Water spilled across the carpet. The white powder dissolved into a cloudy stain. Nathan straightened and stared at the wet patch for five seconds. Then he took out his phone and dialed a number. “Seal all exits.” Within ten minutes, the villa’s security system switched modes. Door locks, window locks, garage gates, every path leading outside locked at once. He took away my phone. The reason was that I needed rest. For half a month, I did not see complete daylight once. The bedroom curtains were nailed shut. The remote was removed. But early autumn thunderstorms came like clockwork, every other day. Every time lightning pierced through the gap in the curtains, I shook uncontrollably. My nails nearly dug through my palms. During the day, Nathan was gone. When he came home at night, he sometimes brought me a slice of my favorite cheesecake. He sat by the bed, fed me with a fork, and wiped cream from the corner of my mouth with his thumb. His movements were exactly the same as before. As if nothing had happened. As if I could leave at any time. On the eleventh day, the housekeeper forgot to lock the kitchen door after bringing dinner. The living room TV was on. I saw the screen. A press conference. Nathan stood onstage. Bianca held his arm, wearing a crisply tailored white suit. Reporters shoved microphones almost into his face. Nathan turned slightly, looked at the woman beside him, then faced the camera. “In this life, I will only marry the woman standing beside me.” Flashbulbs exploded across the screen. I crouched in front of the TV cabinet. My knees hit the tile, but I felt no pain. That night, when he opened the bedroom door, I held kitchen scissors in my hand. The tip pressed against my carotid artery. “Let me go.” He stood at the door, eyes falling on the scissors. There was no fear. He approached with slow steps, bit by bit. “Let you go?” He stopped in front of the bed and tilted his head. “So you can go tell everyone?” He reached out and grasped the blade with his bare hand. Metal sank into flesh. Blood slid down the blade and fell onto the sheets. His expression did not change. “Summer, alive, you are mine.” He pulled the scissors from my hand inch by inch. “Dead, you can only die in this house.” He threw the scissors into the hallway. The sound of metal striking the floor echoed through the empty villa for a long time. Three days later, Nathan brought someone back. The man carried a black briefcase. Beneath his white coat, he wore an ordinary gray sweater. Nathan had the housekeeper help me sit up. Soft restraints were already tied around my wrists. He stood at the foot of the bed and looked down at me. “Summer, you’re in too much pain now.” He reached out and brushed aside the hair on my forehead. “I found the best doctor for you.” I shook my head desperately. Tears slid from the corners of my eyes into my ears. “I won’t fight anymore. I’ll listen to whatever you say. Please don’t do this.” Nathan’s hand stopped on my forehead. He closed his eyes. For that one second, I thought he would stop. I thought he was still the man who once canceled million-dollar negotiations for me. Then he opened his eyes, turned around, and said something to the man in English. “Erase the memories that hurt her. Rewrite love into obedience.” The man opened his briefcase and took out a syringe and a palm-sized machine. Nathan walked toward the door. I could no longer scream complete words. Only broken sounds left my throat. The door closed. As the last strip of light was cut off, the needle pierced the vein on the back of my hand. After the drug took effect, my consciousness sank like drowning. My body stopped struggling. But I was still awake. The man thought the sedative had pushed me into deep hypnosis. He began guiding me with a pendulum and words, invading my subconscious sentence by sentence. “Forget betrayal.” “Forget waiting through that thunderstorm.” “He is safe. Obey him, and you won’t hurt anymore.” Every instruction reached my mind like ten thousand needles piercing my skull. The brainwave interference device was attached to both sides of my temples. Whenever my subconscious tried to seize a memory, electric current poured in from behind my ears and burned along my nerves. I tried to hold on to the sound of the pocket watch’s second hand. To the image of Nathan crouching in front of the closet and catching me. To the words “crushed to dust.” Every time I tried, the electric shock came. It was as if someone were using a branding iron to burn away the words inside my brain, one stroke at a time. I felt my fingers move. Under the restraint, my right middle finger kept curling inward. Hidden beneath my nail was a thin piece of metal. Before I was tied to the bed, I had bitten off a clasp from the pocket watch chain, held it between my gum and cheek, and moved it into my hand. I began to scrape. While the doctor adjusted the instrument settings, I used that metal piece to scratch the back cover of the pocket watch again and again. Nathan loves Summer. I cut over those three words repeatedly. My finger tore open. Blood mixed with metal dust. My fingertip lost all feeling. But physical pain became an anchor. It pinned me to the edge of clarity and kept that machine from pushing me all the way down. The procedure lasted four hours. When it ended, I could see nothing clearly. All I heard was the hum of the machine shutting off. The door opened. Nathan walked to the bed and bent over to look at me. I knew I had to act. I emptied my gaze, stopped my eyes from focusing, and relaxed every facial muscle. His hand covered the top of my head. “Summer, you’re so good now.” There was satisfaction in his voice. His fingertips brushed over my cheekbone, as if admiring a newly acquired collectible. A deep chill crawled up my spine. But I endured it. The brainwave intervention severed part of my short-term memory. For nearly half a year, my recollections were fractured and displaced. But the core remained. My nerves had been burned raw. Pain itself became the container of memory. With my damaged consciousness, I escaped that villa through the kitchen exhaust duct at dawn on the twenty-first day while the night housekeeper dozed off. That was seven years ago. I closed the back cover of the pocket watch. The metal clasp gave a soft click. The door to the consultation room was suddenly shoved open. Nathan had come back. He was soaked through, hair plastered to his forehead. He knelt in front of my desk, knees hitting the tiles with a dull thud. “I was a bastard back then.” He held his head, his vocal cords shaking badly. “I thought if your memories were erased, you wouldn’t suffer anymore. I thought it was for your own good.” I looked at him. This man who had once said at a press conference that he would marry only one woman now looked like a rotten, rain-soaked rag. I smiled. Very lightly. Without sound. He froze and lifted his face. I leaned down, meeting his gaze at eye level. “Mr. Vale, actually, that doctor of yours wasn’t very skilled.” His lips moved. “Try imagining what it felt like to feel your brain nerves being burned one by one by electric current, while having to pretend to stare blankly as you touched my head and said I was good.” I paused, my voice steady. “In business terms, I believe you’d call that worse than death.” Nathan’s pupils expanded to the limit in an instant. He opened his mouth but made no sound. Only broken gasps squeezed from his chest. His nails dug into the seams between the floor tiles, shaking terribly. I straightened, picked up the pocket watch from the desk, and gently swung it in midair. The second hand no longer moved. “Since you like hypnosis so much.” I released my fingers and let the watch hang. “Then I’ll let you taste what it means to never wake up.”

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My brother was in a brutal crash and rushed to the ICU. Desperate to save my bonus for his surgery, I sprinted to Director Carter’s office to approve my emergency leave. She deliberately stalled. “No ER certificate attached. Denied.” I texted Dad. He sent a photo of the admission slip, but she sneered. “Video call me. I want to see him holding the family registry and certificate.” Dad stood trembling outside the ICU, awkwardly holding the papers to the lens while I begged her to look. She glanced for two seconds and rejected it. “Policy deducts three months’ bonus. The ER isn’t a crematorium. Finish your reports.” Staring at the rejection, I laughed dryly. Without screaming, I pressed voice memo and spoke clearly: “Dad, stop waiting. Police confirmed Carter’s son stole the car for a joyride and totaled it. He had no ID, his face was shredded, so they misidentified him as my brother. Tell Director Carter to sign the critical condition waiver herself.” 1 The second I sent the voice message, Director Carter let out a sharp, mocking laugh. She picked up the ceramic coffee mug on her desk and hurled it directly at my head. “Chloe, have you completely lost your mind?!” “You’re using cheap, disgusting curses against my son just to fake a day off?!” I dodged the flying mug. It shattered against the wall, hot coffee splattering everywhere. “Director Carter, I am not lying to you.” “The traffic police already confirmed the identity. The driver in the crash is your son, Jackson.” “Call them and verify it yourself.” Director Carter slammed both hands onto her desk and shot up from her leather chair. “Shut your mouth!” “My son drove his brand new Porsche to a resort resort this morning!” “Why the hell would he ever touch your pathetic, cheap sedan?” “Do you honestly think someone as poor and miserable as you is worthy of having her car stolen by my son?” I pulled up the text message from the police dispatcher, intending to show her the official notice. She lunged forward, violently snatching the phone out of my hand. She threw it onto the marble floor with everything she had. The screen instantly shattered into a spiderweb of glass. “Chloe, you are a pathological liar, and you viciously curse the families of your superiors.” “I am officially notifying you. You are fired.” “Your salary for this month, along with your entire performance bonus, is being withheld to compensate for the company’s reputational damage.” “Pack your trash and get out of my building. Now!” I slowly crouched down and picked up my ruined phone. “You don’t have the legal authority to fire me without cause.” “Withholding my earned wages is a federal crime.” Director Carter stepped around her desk and viciously kicked my hand with the pointed toe of her designer heel. “In this department, my word is the law!” “Your brother is dying in the ICU, isn’t he?” “I am going to make sure you don’t get a single dime.” “I want you to watch him take his last breath!” The coworkers gathered outside the glass walls didn’t dare make a sound. Director Carter picked up her desk phone and dialed Human Resources. “Chloe has severely violated company conduct. Draft her termination papers immediately.” “Notify Payroll. Freeze all of her reimbursements and direct deposits.” She slammed the phone down and pointed a perfectly manicured finger at the door. “Security!” Two heavy set security guards rushed into the office. “Throw this garbage out.” “She is not allowed to take a single piece of company property with her.” The guards stepped forward, grabbing me roughly by both arms. I struggled against their grip, shouting as loud as I could. “Director Carter, the boy lying in the ICU is Jackson!” “He didn’t have his wallet, and his face was completely ripped apart by the windshield!” “If you don’t go down there and pay the deposit for his surgery, he is going to die!” She marched right up to me and raised her hand high. Smack. She slapped me directly across the face. “Still running your mouth!” “Throw her out!” The guards dragged me out of the executive suite. They hauled me through the lobby and out the front doors of the corporate tower. They shoved me hard, sending me tumbling down the concrete steps. My shattered phone screen suddenly lit up. It was my dad calling. “Chloe, the doctors said his pupils are dilating!” “They need a family member to sign the consent form for the experimental drugs immediately!” “The deposit is ten thousand dollars!” I gritted my teeth and pulled myself up from the concrete. “Dad, the patient is not my brother!” “Leave him alone. Let his own family deal with the consequences!” My dad’s voice was panicked. “But the hospital registered him under your brother’s name!” “If we don’t pay, they are legally required to stop treatment.” “And the police said you are the registered owner of the vehicle. Procedure requires the family to be present.” I let out a cold, hollow laugh. “Then let them stop treatment.” “The person dying on that table is Director Carter’s son.” “I’ll catch a cab to the hospital right now.” I flagged down a yellow taxi. From the top of the stairs, Director Carter’s shrill voice rang out. “Chloe, you think running to the hospital is going to save you?” She clicked down the steps in her stilettos, looking at me like I was an insect. “Let me make this perfectly clear. You crossed me. I will have you blacklisted across this entire industry.” “Not only am I freezing your paychecks, I am going to make sure your brother rots in that hospital bed, and you won’t even have the cash to cremate him!” I rolled down the taxi window. “Director Carter, you should really call the resort and see what car your son is actually driving today.” 2 The taxi pulled away from the curb. I glanced back and saw Director Carter turning around, her face twisted in absolute disgust as she walked back into the corporate tower. When I rushed into the hospital’s emergency lobby, my dad was pacing frantically, clutching a stack of urgent medical bills. “Chloe, the administration says if we don’t pay the deposit right now, they have to pull the plug.” I snatched the bills out of his trembling hands and ripped them in half. I tossed the pieces into the nearest trash can. “Pull it.” “Tell them to pull it right now.” My dad completely froze. “Chloe… that’s a human life!” “I know it’s not our boy, but…” I cut him off immediately. “Dad. The person bleeding out in that room is my boss’s son. Director Carter.” “He stole my brother’s car, took it joyriding, and completely totaled it.” “His mother just froze my paychecks, fired me illegally, and promised to blacklist me so I can never work again.” “She literally told me she wanted to watch my brother die.” “Why in God’s name would I save her son?” The ER attending physician hurried out of the double doors, holding a critical condition waiver on a clipboard. “Family of the patient? Are you here?” I stepped forward. “Doctor, the patient in that room is not my brother.” “His name is Jackson.” The doctor’s eyebrows slammed together in frustration. “We verified the vehicle registration found inside the wreckage. The vehicle belongs to your family.” “The patient is suffering from a massive intracranial hemorrhage.” “He needs an emergency craniotomy immediately. If we delay by another ten minutes, he is dead.” “Who is signing the consent? Who is paying the deposit?” I pulled my driver’s license out of my wallet and held it up. “My name is Chloe. I am the registered owner of the car.” “But the person inside that room is not related to me. I absolutely refuse to sign any medical waivers.” “And I am not paying a single cent.” The doctor’s face darkened. “If you refuse to sign, we cannot legally perform the brain surgery.” “The patient will reach brain death very quickly.” “How can your family be this cold-blooded?” I stared at the doctor with a completely deadpan expression. “It’s not cold-blooded. You simply have the wrong family.” “I called his biological mother. She explicitly refused to come to the hospital.” “She believes we are running a scam on her.” Suddenly, a loud commotion erupted at the far end of the hallway. Several men in sharp black suits violently shoved through the crowd of patients. Director Carter’s husband, Richard, a wealthy local executive, marched straight up to me. Behind him was the head corporate lawyer from my company. Richard pointed a thick, heavy finger directly at my face. “Are you Chloe?” I met his furious glare without blinking. “Yes.” Richard didn’t hesitate. He swung his hand, aiming a brutal slap right at my head. I ducked to the side, and his hand hit nothing but air. He let out a furious roar. “Your worthless, trash brother!” “He drove his pathetic junk car and hit my son, didn’t he?!” I looked at him with absolute ice in my veins. “Richard, you have your facts entirely backwards.” “Your son, Jackson, broke into my brother’s car and stole it.” Richard let out a booming, arrogant laugh. “Bullshit!” “My son drives a Porsche! Why would he ever stoop so low as to steal a garbage used car?” The corporate lawyer stepped forward, adjusting his tie. “Chloe, Director Carter has authorized me to handle this matter entirely.” “We pulled the security footage from the club district. Your brother parked his car outside a nightclub.” “Later, the vehicle was found crashed into a highway barrier.” “Jackson was drinking at that exact nightclub tonight, and now his phone is completely unreachable!” “It is obvious your brother hit my client’s son and hid the body to cover up the crime!” I pulled out my phone and started dialing 911. “Since you claim you have footage, let’s have the traffic detectives settle this.” Richard lunged forward and violently snatched the phone out of my hand. He hurled it against the hospital wall. The device shattered into a dozen pieces. “Call the cops? You think the police are going to protect a nobody like you?” “Let me make this clear. My family has enough power in this city to crush you like a cockroach.” “If you don’t tell me where you hid my son right now, I will bury your entire family!” My dad stepped in front of me, throwing his arms out to shield me. “You people are completely insane!” “The police clearly stated there was only one injured driver pulled from the wreckage!” Richard raised his heavy leather shoe and viciously kicked my dad directly in the stomach. My dad let out a sharp gasp of pain and collapsed onto the linoleum floor. “Dad!” I instantly dropped to my knees, holding him tight. Richard pointed a menacing finger at the heavy doors of the ICU. “The kid lying in there is your brother, right?” “He hits my son, and now he thinks he can hide in the hospital and play the victim?” 3 Richard violently whipped his head toward the attending physician. “Doctor, my name is Richard Carter. CEO of Carter Enterprises.” “That kid inside, the one who caused the crash? Cease all medical intervention immediately.” The doctor froze, utterly bewildered. “Mr. Carter, this is a hospital, you can’t just…” Richard cut him off with a chilling sneer. “I don’t care what this is. Your Chief of Medicine is my weekly golf partner.” “That kid committed a hit and run. He is suspected of the attempted murder of my son.” “Anyone who tries to save his miserable life is making a direct enemy of the Carter family!” The doctor looked incredibly conflicted. “But sir, the patient requires emergency brain surgery to survive.” Richard waved his hand dismissively. “I don’t give a damn!” “Stop his medication and pull the ventilator right now!” “Let him die in there and pay for what he did to my boy!” I helped my dad up from the floor, easing him into a waiting room chair. I just watched Richard scream his psychotic demands. “Richard, are you absolutely certain you want the life support pulled?” Richard took a threatening step toward me. “What’s the matter? Starting to feel sorry for your trash brother?” “My son is missing and could be dead for all I know. Why should your brother get top tier medical care?” “I’m not just pulling the plug. I’m making sure your whole family rots in a federal prison!” The corporate lawyer chimed in, adjusting his glasses. “Chloe, Mr. Carter has already applied immense pressure on the police department.” “Your brother is facing charges for felony vehicular manslaughter.” “Your only way out of this is to sign a ‘Do Not Resuscitate’ order on his behalf right now.” I smiled. I actually started laughing out loud. “You want me to sign a DNR for the patient in that room?” Richard snarled, “Exactly!” “If you don’t sign it, I’ll put your old man in the ICU right next to him.” “And that’s just the start. You will never find employment in this state ever again.” “The bank will foreclose on your family home before the week is out.” I stood up straight, brushing the dust off my knees. I looked Richard dead in the eyes. “Fine.” “I’ll sign it.” The corporate lawyer immediately unzipped his leather briefcase and pulled out a standard medical waiver to cease treatment. Richard snatched it from his hands and slammed it onto the reception desk in front of me. “Smart girl.” “Sign your name, and get the hell out of my city.” I didn’t reach for the pen. “I can’t sign this document.” Richard’s face contorted in absolute rage. “Are you playing games with me?” “Do you want me to walk in there and rip his oxygen tube out with my own bare hands?!” I kept my voice perfectly, terrifyingly calm. “Because I am not his legal guardian or family member.” “The doctor just told you, only direct family can authorize a DNR.” “If you really want the patient dead, why don’t you sign the waiver yourself, Richard?” Richard was momentarily caught off guard, but then he let out a dark, arrogant laugh. “You think I won’t?” “I am the family of the victim! I am formally demanding the cessation of medical care for a violent criminal. It is entirely within my legal rights!” He turned and glared at the doctor. “Give me your hospital’s official DNR form!” “I will sign it right now!” The doctor was sweating profusely. “Mr. Carter, this completely violates medical protocol…” “The paperwork must be signed by the patient’s parents or legal spouse.” Richard shoved his finger inches from the doctor’s face. “Cut the bureaucratic garbage!” “I said I’m signing it, so I’m signing it!” “If anyone comes asking questions, I take full legal and financial responsibility!” Right as the words left his mouth, the sharp, rhythmic clicking of high heels echoed down the sterile hallway. Director Carter strode toward us, flanked by two more security guards. “Honey, why are you wasting your breath arguing with these peasants?” “I just got off the phone with the Chief of Medicine.” “All medical funds for that criminal have been completely frozen.” She stopped directly in front of me, her eyes dripping with malice. “Chloe, earlier today in my office, you fabricated a disgusting lie about my son dying.” “Now your own brother is bleeding out behind those doors. Karma is a beautiful thing, isn’t it?” I looked at her, completely unfazed. “Director Carter, have you actually managed to contact your son yet?” Her face twitched violently, but she quickly raised her voice to cover her panic. “That is none of your damn business!” “Jackson is at a luxury resort. He just forgot to charge his phone.” “Bottom feeders like you belong rotting in the gutter where you started.” Suddenly, the heavy doors of the ICU burst open. An emergency room nurse sprinted out, her face pale with terror. “The patient’s blood pressure just crashed to critical levels!” “If we don’t begin a massive blood transfusion and initiate the surgery right this second, his heart will stop in less than five minutes!” The nurse looked frantically at our group. “Who is the family?!” “Sign the consent form and pay the deposit right now!” 4 Director Carter let out a sharp, mocking laugh. “There is no family here!” The nurse was practically hyperventilating. “What do you mean there’s no family?” Director Carter pointed a manicured finger right at my chest. “She refuses to sign it. And even if she wanted to, she doesn’t have a dime to her name.” “Her brother is a rapist and a murderer.” “Why the hell is your hospital wasting resources trying to save a piece of human garbage?” The nurse stared at her in utter disbelief. “But ma’am…” Director Carter took a step forward, aggressively snatching the patient’s medical chart right out of the nurse’s hands. She slammed it forcefully onto the linoleum floor. “There are no ‘buts’!” “I am an executive board member of Carter Enterprises.” “I am ordering you to cease all resuscitation efforts immediately.” “Let him die!” I crossed my arms over my chest and tilted my head. “Director Carter, if the patient in that room dies, aren’t you worried about the legal repercussions of your actions?” Director Carter threw her head back and laughed. “The law?” “I am the law!” She pointed her finger directly at my nose, her voice dripping with venom. “Chloe, do you think you can play mind games with me?” “You think a cheap reverse psychology trick is going to work?” “I don’t care if God himself comes down from the heavens. The worthless bastard in that room dies today!” Richard grabbed a pen off the nurse’s station counter. He flipped the critical condition waiver over and scribbled violently on the back of the page. “I, Richard Carter, formally demand that this hospital immediately cease all medical intervention for the perpetrator, John Doe.” “I assume all legal and financial consequences for this action!” He violently slashed his signature across the bottom of the page. He even pressed his thumb onto an ink pad on the desk and stamped his fingerprint next to his name. Director Carter glanced at the paper and snatched the pen from his hand. “Honey, let me add my name.” “I want this little bitch to fully comprehend what happens when she crosses us.” She signed her name in bold, looping letters right below his. The two of them shoved the paper aggressively against the terrified nurse’s chest. “Read it carefully!” “Those are our signatures.” “Turn off the ventilator right now!” “Stop the blood transfusions!” The nurse was physically trembling. She looked desperately at the attending physician for help. The doctor took the paper, his face grim. “Mr. and Mrs. Carter.” “Since you are making an explicit, documented demand, and you have pressured the hospital administration to back you…” “We have no choice but to halt the surgery and withdraw the experimental medications.” Director Carter shot me a look of pure, triumphant malice. “Do you see this, Chloe?” “This is what real power looks like.” “Your brother is about to become a corpse.” “You better go buy a cheap tarp to wrap him in. It’s all you’ll be able to afford.” I stared back at her without a trace of emotion. “Director Carter. Richard.” “Are you absolutely certain you don’t want to step inside and look at the patient?” “Even just one quick glance?” Director Carter’s face twisted in pure revulsion. “Look at a dead body? I’d rather not infect my eyes with such filth.” “Do you really think I want to see you crying over a corpse?” Richard scoffed loudly. “Stop wasting your breath on her.” “Put two guards on the door. Make sure the medical staff actually pulls the plug.” With a flick of his wrist, two massive bodyguards stepped in front of the ICU doors, crossing their arms. “Nobody goes in!” The doctor and the nurse exchanged a helpless look before pushing through the doors into the emergency suite. The heavy doors clicked shut. The hallway fell into a dead, suffocating silence. My dad tightly gripped my sleeve, his knuckles white. “Chloe… someone is really going to die in there…” I gently patted his hand. “It’s okay, Dad.” “The person dying is someone who spent his whole life hurting others.” “Karma finally caught up with him.” Ten excruciating minutes passed. The ICU doors slowly pushed open. The doctor walked out. He slowly shook his head. “Because we withdrew the experimental medications and disconnected the ventilator…” “The patient slipped into a deep coma.” “Brain stem reflexes have entirely vanished. Spontaneous respiration has ceased.” “Clinically speaking, the patient is brain dead.” Director Carter clapped her hands together in sheer delight. “Fantastic!” “Good riddance!” Richard let out a booming, victorious laugh. “This is exactly what happens when you mess with the Carter family!” The corporate lawyer stepped forward, pulling a document from his briefcase. “Now that the perpetrator is officially deceased…” “We will immediately file a civil lawsuit against Chloe, demanding massive financial compensation for the emotional distress caused to my clients.” Director Carter strutted right up into my personal space. “Chloe, your brother is dead.” “Are you satisfied now?” “Tomorrow morning, your industry-wide blacklist goes into effect.” “You better prepare to spend the rest of your life begging for scraps on the street.” I quietly watched the absolute ecstasy radiating from her face. Then, I turned my head to look at the doctor. “Doctor, since the patient has officially been declared brain dead…” “Have you cleaned him up so the family can identify the body?”

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When my family forced me into an arranged marriage, I bypassed all the arrogant billionaire heirs and chose the only doctor in the bunch. Only after we got married did the truth slowly dawn on me. He was exactly like that tragic doctor friend from those cheesy romance novels, the one who constantly gets dragged out of bed in the middle of the night to treat the main character’s runaway lover. After witnessing this ridiculous scenario play out a few times in real life, I completely abandoned any romantic notions of building a real relationship with him. Seriously, who wants to spend their marriage competing with a bunch of dramatic, codependent billionaire man-children for their own husband’s attention? But what I never, in my wildest dreams, expected, was that he could suddenly read my mind. … 1 For people born into our circle, an arranged marriage is a card we always knew we would have to play. It was a fair trade. We enjoyed a life of obscene luxury, so it was only natural we had to pay the toll when the time came. In that regard, I considered myself incredibly lucky. I actually got to choose my own groom, provided he came from the designated pool of trust-fund heirs. Truthfully, I didn’t care all that much who it was. Everyone in our world understood that a dynastic marriage was nothing more than a polished performance, a gilded handshake to seal a merger between two corporate empires. But since the choice was mine, I wanted someone normal. I did my research. One candidate was hopelessly entangled with his ex who had moved to Paris, a classic case of chasing a ghost. Absolutely not. Another was currently playing a toxic game of hide-and-seek with a runway model he kept in a penthouse downtown. Pass. A third had just bought a yacht for an actress twice his age. No, thank you. After crossing off the disasters, I thought of Andrew. The few times I had seen him at charity galas, he had always seemed the picture of quiet elegance. His name sounded like the perfect fit for a brooding billionaire CEO, yet he was the only man in his circle of heirs who didn’t run a company. Andrew was a doctor. A genuine, terrifyingly brilliant academic who had pushed himself through an elite MD-PhD program at the country’s top medical school. He fit the part perfectly. He spoke with a gentle, measured cadence, and he always looked impeccably clean and put together. Whenever I saw him, he was clad in crisp, pale suits, giving him a sort of serene, saintly aura, likely amplified by my own bias toward his profession. Our match came together with ridiculous ease. The moment our parents sat down to discuss it, they practically shook hands on the spot. When they asked Andrew, he reportedly agreed without a single second of hesitation. Within a month, I went from a girl who had never even held hands with a boy to a married woman. On our wedding day, I moved into the townhouse he had bought for us. The warm beige decor and minimalist aesthetic suited his calm demeanor perfectly. After showing me around the place, Andrew led me to the door of the master bedroom. His voice was soft and warm. “Even though this is an alliance, I don’t want our marriage to be a hollow contract. I want us to take our time, get to know each other, and build something real.” He pointed toward the guest bedroom across the hall. “I’ll sleep in there. Don’t feel pressured. I won’t touch you until we both feel ready.” I closed the door to my new room and let out a breath. To be honest, he was far better than I had anticipated. Even though I had never heard a whisper of scandal about him, his closest friends were all notoriously high-maintenance playboys with a penchant for keeping dramatic side-pieces. Birds of a feather usually flock together. But Andrew seemed entirely different from them. Even so, I guarded my heart. I only hoped we could maintain a polite, respectful distance. As long as he didn’t bring his messes to my doorstep, I had no intention of policing his private life. Two months flew by in a blur of domestic peace. One evening, after a long shower, I lay on my bed and stared at the ridiculously sheer lace nightgown draped over the vanity chair. My heart began to hammer against my ribs. Andrew was a perfect gentleman, completely content to keep his hands to himself. But I wasn’t a saint. I was twenty-four, and my romantic experience was practically nonexistent, but my mind was firmly in the gutter. I had a gorgeous, tempting husband living right across the hall. Why on earth was I voluntarily living like a nun? Besides, during these past two months, we had fallen into a beautiful rhythm. He was home by six every evening. We shared cozy, quiet dinners. We spent weekends wandering through museums, and he would sit patiently in the salon while I got my nails done, or curl up on the sofa with me to watch terrible soap operas. I had to admit, I was falling for him. 2 One afternoon, while out shopping with my friends, I glanced at my phone and realized it was already half past five. A sudden, instinctual thought flashed through my mind: I need to go home. The thought made me pause, a strange, complex wave of emotion washing over me. I realized I was no longer calling the townhouse a house. In my mind, it had become home. I had developed a deep, unexpected sense of belonging to that space, and to Andrew. I had grown up watching the chaotic, miserable marriages in our social circle. My own parents were a masterclass in dysfunction, with my father parading a revolving door of mistresses and my mother pretending not to notice. I thought I was entirely immune to the concept of love and family. But the quiet, steady pull of daily life with Andrew had worn down my defenses. Thinking about the kind of man he had shown himself to be over the past few weeks, a tiny spark of courage flared in my chest. I wanted to take a gamble. Maybe, just maybe, trusting someone wouldn’t end in disaster. Andrew’s parents were one of the rare couples in high society who genuinely loved each other. A son raised by them had to have some decent bones in his body. And if it turned out to be a trap, well, perhaps everyone had to touch the fire once to learn it was hot. I slipped into the black lace nightgown, walked quietly over to Andrew’s bedroom door, and leaned against the frame in a pose I had seen in a magazine. I tapped gently on the wood. The door opened, and Andrew froze. His eyes darted frantically left and right, searching for a jacket or a blanket to wrap around me, but there was nothing within reach. As the seconds stretched, his gaze darkened, burning with a sudden, intense heat. His voice dropped to a low, husky register. “Evie, are you sure?” When I nodded, he didn’t hesitate. He swept me into his arms. The room was dark save for the warm, amber glow of the bedside lamp. My temperature spiked, my thoughts scattering into a hazy fog. As I lay back, my eyes caught the stark white of his bedsheets, and a highly inappropriate, mundane thought popped into my head: Those sheets are so white, they must be a nightmare to bleach. I never got to test that theory. Just as Andrew untied his tie, his phone began to wail on the nightstand. He drew in a sharp, ragged breath, his chest rising and falling against mine. He braced one hand beside my ear, leaning over me to grab the device. “Andrew, Gavin drank way too much tonight. He’s doubled over in agony. Can you please come take a look at him?” The voice on the line was frantic. It belonged to an assistant I vaguely recognized from one of Andrew’s trust-fund friends. Andrew went still. When he spoke, his voice was rough and thick with friction. “I understand. I’ll be there soon.” The fog in my brain vanished instantly. I grabbed the lapels of his half-undone shirt, a sudden, sharp ache blooming in my chest. “Don’t go,” I whispered. Andrew looked down at me, his eyes softening as he leaned in to press a gentle kiss to my forehead. “Be good, sweetheart. I need to go check on him.” Watching him pull away to put his clothes back on, a wave of hot anger rushed through me. I stared at his back, screaming silently in my head: Oh, “be good, I’ll go check.” Sure. Who knows if you’re checking on your buddy or your secret soulmate. Andrew paused mid-motion, his shoulders tensing. He slowly turned around, giving me a profoundly complicated look. “What?” I asked aloud, keeping my face blank. He shook his head, looking slightly dazed, and went back to buttoning his shirt. I continued my silent tirade: Go ahead, run along. Nobody can stop the great Saint Andrew. Who needs 911? Who needs a hospital? You must have magic hands, since apparently a grown man’s stomachache can only be cured by you. Having vented my frustration internally, I felt a bit better. But as Andrew walked toward the door, he stumbled slightly over his own feet. I must have imagined it. He was famous in our circle for being completely unshakeable, a man who never lost his cool. “Evie,” he said softly, pausing at the door. “I’ll be back before you know it.” I fell asleep long before he returned. When I woke up the next morning, he was sleeping soundly beside me, back in his usual pajamas. The sight of him only made my annoyance flare up again. What kind of man gets dressed and runs out of the house in the middle of that? I had literally felt the heat radiating off his skin when he reached for his phone. He had wanted me. And yet, he had still walked out. I chewed viciously on a piece of toast at the kitchen island. Andrew padded into the kitchen a few minutes later. Seeing my dark expression, a soft, helpless laugh escaped him. He stepped up behind me, wrapping his arms around my waist and pressing his lips to the shell of my ear. “I’m so sorry, Evie. Gavin has been dealing with some massive crises lately. He drank himself into a bleeding ulcer last night, and I was genuinely worried about him.” What was done was done. I didn’t want to drag out the argument. But later that afternoon, while I was lounging on the sofa, a cheesy romance drama started playing on the television. The plot was a classic: the toxic billionaire lead was chasing the female lead, she got hurt, and the male lead immediately summoned his doctor friend in the middle of the night to treat her. A lightbulb suddenly went off in my brain. All the romance novels I had ever read came rushing back to me in a wave of sudden clarity. My god. Andrew wasn’t the main character. He was the exhausted, midnight-summoned doctor friend who existed solely as a plot device for his chaotic billionaire buddies. Billionaire CEOs? We had plenty of those in our circle. Drinking themselves to the point of hospitalization? Check. A doctor friend on speed dial? Check. Summoned in the middle of the night? Double check. I pictured Andrew being dragged from pillar to post by a bunch of dramatic, emotionally stunted men, running around like a tired golden retriever trying to put out their self-inflicted fires. I couldn’t help but chuckle. That evening, I didn’t make a move, but Andrew knocked on my bedroom door anyway. His hair was perfectly styled, and the faint, woody scent of his cologne drifted into the room. He leaned against the doorframe, a brilliant, hopeful smile playing on his lips. “Any chance you have room for me tonight?” 3 I arched an eyebrow. “What’s the matter? No urgent medical crises to attend to tonight?” He didn’t answer with words. Instead, he cupped my face in his warm palms, tilted my head up, and kissed me. His lips were soft, parting mine with a slow, deliberate hunger. With the ice broken from the night before, everything fell into place naturally. But just as he pulled his shirt over his head, we both froze. We stared at each other, then slowly turned our heads to look at his phone resting on the nightstand, terrified it would start buzzing again. The sheer absurdity of the moment broke the tension, and we both burst into quiet laughter. He leaned down, his voice thick with amusement. “I’m not going anywhere tonight, I promise.” My cheeks burned. He made it sound like I was the one who couldn’t wait. That night taught me a valuable lesson: appearances can be highly deceiving. Andrew was a good man. In every sense of the word. Professionally, he was entirely dedicated to finding a cure for a rare, terminal illness. He had a heart of gold, treated his family with utmost respect, and remained fiercely loyal to his friends. To me, he was always gentle and attentive. But being too good of a person came with its own set of complications. It wasn’t long before our plans began to suffer. We would set aside an evening to celebrate a milestone, or plan a quiet weekend getaway, only for his phone to interrupt us. It didn’t happen every day, but when it did, it was always at the worst possible moment. The assistants calling his phone sounded more panicked and pathetic with every call. One night, it was a billionaire friend who had drunk himself into another stupor. Another night, it was someone else who had gotten into a toxic, screaming match with a lover and allegedly collapsed from exhaustion. When people claimed someone was on the brink of death, how could I hold him back? Even though I found the drama ridiculous—since calling a private ambulance was hardly a monumental task—they always insisted it had to be Andrew. Andrew always tried his best to resolve the issue quickly and rush back to me, but the damage was always done. The romantic mood would be thoroughly ruined, leaving a cold, lingering disappointment in its wake. Today was our first wedding anniversary. The night before, I had sat Andrew down and told him explicitly that I did not want a single interruption. He had been working late at the research lab for weeks, and we had barely spent any quality time together. This anniversary was supposed to be our sanctuary. We spent the afternoon wandering through a quiet gourmet grocery store. It felt like a luxury just to walk side by side. For my last birthday, Andrew had surprised me by cooking a full three-course dinner. The food had been spectacular, perfectly tailored to my tastes. Back when we first realized we had feelings for each other, we had gone all out for every holiday. But for our first anniversary, we wanted nothing more than to cook a simple meal together in our kitchen. I leaned against the dining table, watching Andrew move around the stove, a sudden wave of warmth washing over me. A year ago, I never could have imagined my married life would look like this. It wasn’t wild or theatrical, but it was incredibly warm. I walked over and wrapped my arms around his waist from behind. He let out a soft laugh and began to turn around to face me. Then, the phone rang. My stomach dropped. Over the past year, I had developed a physical, pavlovian dread of that ringtone. I pressed my forehead against his back, listening to him answer. On the other end, an assistant’s voice crackled with familiar, practiced panic. “Dr. Vance, please, you need to come right away…” Anger, sharp and hot, flared in my chest. I reached around him, snatched the phone straight out of his hand, and spoke directly into the receiver. “Is your finger broken, or are you physically unable to dial 911? If he is dying, take him to a hospital.” The line went dead silent. I ended the call and tossed the phone onto the counter. I was shaking. “That was Chase Montgomery’s assistant, wasn’t it? I know his voice by now. You seriously believe a playboy like Chase is drinking himself to death over some girl?” Andrew looked torn, his brow furrowing. “I heard he actually fell hard for someone this time…” “He falls hard every single Tuesday!” I snapped, my voice trembling. “If you walk out that door tonight, don’t talk to me about us anymore. Since your precious bros are so important to you, go spend the rest of your life with them.” And yet, he still walked out.

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1 The midday sun beat down relentlessly on the main gates of Westbrook University. Tristan, the reigning bad boy of the campus, had his fists twisted tightly into the collar of my shirt. His eyes were bloodshot as he screamed at the reigning campus queen, Serena. “Keep running your mouth and see if I don’t punch her lights out! If she calls the cops, the fine is five hundred bucks tops. That’s enough for you to buy a whole mountain of snacks!” Serena’s hands visibly trembled as she unzipped her designer handbag. She pulled out five crisp hundred dollar bills and shoved them directly into my hand. “Let him hit you. Keep the cash. I want to see if he actually has the guts to do it.” When that five hundred dollars hit my palm, I was still dangling in the air like a captured kitten. My name is Harper. I am a sophomore, tragically single since birth, and my bank account rarely sees a balance over fifty dollars. The physical texture of those five hundred dollar bills was infinitely more thrilling than an underwear model’s abs. Serena stared at the money in my hand and swallowed hard. “Not enough? Fine, I will add two hundred. But that is my absolute limit. I need the rest of my allowance for junk food.” Tristan’s face instantly turned the color of spoiled spinach. He was the untouchable campus tyrant. The guy who drove a cherry red Ferrari to his morning lectures. “Are you an actual psychopath, Serena? I am trying to threaten you!” The veins on the back of Tristan’s hands popped. In a fit of absolute rage, he violently shook me back and forth. My vision blurred into a dizzying mess. No. I had to earn this money. I wrapped both of my arms around Tristan’s forearm and screamed at the top of my lungs. “Hit me! Right here in the face! If you don’t swing, you’re a absolute coward!” That completely spooked him. Tristan ripped his hands away from my shirt and stumbled three steps backward. I took the opportunity to throw myself onto the scorching concrete. I clutched my chest and started violently twitching. “Oh my god! My ribs are completely shattered! I cannot physically stand up unless I am compensated with ten thousand dollars!” A massive crowd of students immediately formed a tight circle around us. Whispers and pointed fingers rained down on Tristan. “That is so messed up. A grown guy beating up a girl.” “Seriously. Look at her. She is literally foaming at the mouth.” Hearing that, I quickly swallowed my chewing gum and rolled my eyes back into my skull for dramatic effect. Tristan couldn’t defend himself. His face flushed a brilliant, panicked red. “I barely touched her! She threw herself on the ground!” Serena crouched down next to me and poked my shoulder. “Ten thousand is way out of my budget. I can’t afford that. How about you just let him actually beat you up, and I will bump my offer to eight hundred?” How was the campus beauty queen’s brain even more twisted than mine? Right at that moment, someone aggressively shoved their way through the crowd. A pair of limited edition Jordans stopped inches from my head. It was Jaxon, the star athlete of the sports management program, completely infamous for his explosive temper. “You really think you’re tough, Tristan? Picking on someone half your size makes you a man?” Jaxon pointed an accusing finger at Tristan, radiating absolute righteous justice. But in his sheer excitement, his foot slipped. That massive size twelve Jordan slammed squarely onto the back of my right hand. A bloodcurdling scream ripped out of my throat. Jaxon jumped out of his skin and scrambled backward. He stared in pure horror at my hand, which was rapidly swelling into the shape of a red balloon. He whipped his head around and glared at Tristan. “You are a monster! You completely broke her bones!” Tristan let out a hysterical, manic laugh and pointed right back at Jaxon. “Are you legally blind? You are the one who just stomped on her!” One word led to another, and the two of them instantly tackled each other to the ground. Ferrari keys and limited edition sneakers flew through the air in a chaotic blur. Taking advantage of the total anarchy, Serena subtly pinched the five hundred dollars right out of my hand. “Since you didn’t technically take a hit from him, I am reclaiming my investment.” Ignoring the throbbing pain in my hand, I lunged forward and wrapped my arms around her leg. “Absolutely not! Emotional distress damages! If you don’t pay up, I am suing you too!” The scene spiraled into complete madness. The campus security guard suddenly appeared on a golf cart, a megaphone blaring loud enough to shake the trees. “Break it up! Public brawl on university property! All of you, straight to the disciplinary office!” Thirty minutes later, the four of us were lined up shoulder to shoulder against the wall of the security office. 2 Dean Higgins gripped his thermos, his mustache twitching with pure irritation. “Getting into a massive brawl at the front gates on the very first day of the semester! Call your parents! Now!” Tristan let out a cold scoff, pulled out his phone, and dialed a number. “Dad. I got detained on campus. Bring the checkbook and bail me out.” Serena pulled out her phone right on cue. “Dad. Tristan is causing trouble again. You need to get down here.” My brain immediately caught the massive blind spot. Why did their tone of voice sound exactly like they were calling the same household? Half an hour later, a sleek black Rolls Royce pulled up outside the administration building. A wealthy, heavy set man wearing a tailored suit marched through the double doors. Tristan pointed straight at Serena and started whining. “Dad, she tried to steal my VIP parking spot this morning and cursed me out.” Serena grabbed the wealthy man’s arm and put on a spectacular crying face. “Dad, my brother stole my spot and then beat up a random pedestrian to vent his anger.” Case closed. They were step-siblings. Dean Higgins cleared his throat and looked over at Jaxon and me. “Where are your guardians?” Jaxon kept his chin raised high in defiance. “I don’t have any parents. I’m an orphan.” Dean Higgins slammed his hand on the desk. “You literally filled out ‘both parents living’ on your registration forms last month! Cut the crap!” I quietly pulled out my ancient, shatter screen phone. “My mom guts fish at the seafood market down the street. She is on her way.” The second the words left my mouth, my mother kicked the office door open. She was wearing heavy waterproof rubber overalls completely coated in fish scales, and she was gripping a massive, razor sharp butcher cleaver. “Who did it! Who dared to lay a hand on my baby girl!” The air inside the security office turned instantly to ice. Tristan’s dad stumbled a full step backward in sheer terror. But when he looked up and caught a glimpse of my mother’s fierce, fiery energy, a weird, fascinated sparkle flashed in his eyes. Dean Higgins frantically waved his hands. “Mrs. Harper, please put the weapon down. Let us use our words.” My mom slammed the heavy meat cleaver directly onto the dean’s desk. She pointed a stained finger at my swollen, purple hand. “What happened to her hand? My daughter is on a full ride academic scholarship! How the hell is she supposed to take notes with a broken hand?” Jaxon guiltily averted his gaze to the ceiling. Mr. Sinclair waved his hand with the absolute arrogance of a billionaire. “It is just a matter of money. Spit it out. How much compensation do you want?” My mother’s eyes lit up like casino slot machines. She instantly switched into fish market haggling mode. “Medical bills, lost wages, and severe emotional distress. Add it all up, it is a flat fifty thousand dollars!” Mr. Sinclair let out a dry laugh. “Fifty thousand? Is her hand made of solid gold? Five thousand. Max.” “Forty five thousand! Not a penny less!” “Ten thousand! Take it or leave it!” “Deal!” My mom grabbed Mr. Sinclair’s hand and pumped it up and down. “You are a straightforward guy, boss. You wanna Venmo me or do you have cash on hand?” Mr. Sinclair totally froze. He clearly had not expected my mom to drop her price that violently, and he suddenly looked like a man who realized he just got scammed. But as he looked down at my mom’s calloused hand gripping his, the corners of his mouth twitched up into a tiny smile. “I will… use Venmo.” He gritted his teeth and scanned her QR code, but his eyes never left my mother’s face. My mom was entirely oblivious. She was busy counting the zeros on her screen. Once she verified the transfer, she flashed him a brilliant grin. “You are a good guy, boss. Next time you come to the market, I will give you a major discount on salmon!” The tips of Mr. Sinclair’s ears turned inexplicably red. He cleared his throat. “Sure.” Jaxon let out a massive sigh of relief, clearly thinking he had dodged a bullet. My mom slowly turned her head and locked eyes with him. “Kid. I watched the security footage. You were the one who stomped on her foot. You owe us ten thousand too.” Jaxon desperately patted down his pockets, pulling out two crumpled twenty dollar bills. “Ma’am, I am totally broke. Can I pay off my debt in physical labor?” 3 Because Jaxon couldn’t cough up the cash, Dean Higgins sentenced him to scrub the men’s restrooms for a solid month. I was walking around campus feeling like a millionaire with my ten thousand dollar payout, heading straight to the dining hall for a feast. Just as I passed the third floor men’s restroom, a foul, eye watering stench hit my nose. It wasn’t a bathroom smell. It was the smell of fermented garlic, ghost peppers, and canned anchovies. I peeked my head inside. Jaxon was sitting cross legged on the marble bathroom counter, viciously slurping down a massive container of the spiciest, smelliest seafood pasta on the planet. Right next to his food was a dripping mop he had just used to clean the toilets. The visual was just too powerful to ignore. I quietly pulled out my phone and started recording in stunning 4K. “Star athlete eats garbage in the campus restroom. I bet this hits the top of the university Reddit page in ten minutes.” Jaxon heard my voice and choked, spraying spicy noodles everywhere. He frantically scrambled off the counter, wiping his mouth and glaring at me like a cornered animal. “Harper! Delete that video right now!” I casually wiggled the phone in the air. “I will delete it, but it comes at a price. You are buying my lunch at the dining hall for a month. And I want meat. Real meat.” Jaxon ground his teeth together and agreed. The next day at noon, I sat at a cafeteria table like royalty, waiting for my meal to be served. Jaxon walked over with a plastic tray and slammed it down in front of me. I looked down. Boiled bitter melon, a pile of soggy carrots, wilted cilantro, and a bowl of unpeeled, boiled potatoes. “You call this meat?” Jaxon sneered. “There was a dead caterpillar in the bitter melon. Protein is protein. Eat it or starve.” I was so furious I slammed my fork down, grabbed the tray, and marched straight to the serving station to chew out the lunch lady. As I stormed up to the glass sneezeguard, I saw Serena standing there. She was holding a tiny leather notebook, actively debating the cafeteria worker. “Ma’am, this portion of braised pork costs fifteen dollars. There are exactly three pieces of meat in this scoop, and two of them are pure fat. Based on the current wholesale market price of pork belly, your profit margin is sitting at three hundred percent. That is illegal price gouging.” The metal serving spoon in the lunch lady’s hand shook violently. “Listen here, little girl. The university sets the portion rules. I just follow them.” Serena was absolutely relentless. “Show me the written policy. Pull up the binder. Otherwise, I am calling the state pricing commission to report you for fraud.” I was completely stunned. Was this the same girl who got chauffeured in a Ferrari and carried a ten thousand dollar bag? How was she cheaper than me? The lunch lady finally broke under the pressure. She aggressively scooped up a massive, perfect chunk of lean pork and dumped it onto Serena’s plate. “Fine! Take it! Just get out of my line!” Serena looked incredibly satisfied. As she walked past me with her prize, she leaned in to share her wisdom. “When dealing with these stingy servers, you just have to crush them with raw data.” I decided to copy her strategy. I stepped up to the glass and launched a verbal assault at the lunch lady. “Ma’am, the insect protein levels in this bitter melon are a serious health hazard. It could trigger an allergic reaction. Swap this garbage out for the BBQ ribs.” The lunch lady completely lost her mind. She threw her metal spoon straight into the vat of mashed potatoes. “I quit! You kids are a nightmare!” She ripped off her apron and walked out the back door. The massive line of hungry students groaned in despair. My brain short circuited. I practically vaulted over the glass counter, grabbed the heavy metal spoon, and yelled to the crowd. “Don’t panic! I got you guys! Step right up!” I served with absolute integrity. Massive, overflowing scoops of ribs and chicken. Not a single shake of the spoon. The students cheered like I was a superhero. The line wrapped completely out the doors of the building. Just as I was really getting into the rhythm, a middle aged man in a sharp business suit stormed into the kitchen, his face dark with fury. “Who the hell authorized you to serve food! You emptied an entire tray of ribs in ten minutes! You are bankrupting my dining hall!” The man aggressively snatched the spoon out of my hand. I took a good look at his face. Around the eyes, he looked remarkably like Tristan. “You are the owner of the cafeteria?” The man scoffed. “I am Tristan’s uncle. Arthur Sinclair. You must be Harper, the little scammer who extorted ten grand out of my older brother.” Crap. I walked right into the lion’s den. Arthur pointed a rigid finger at the exit doors. “You are blacklisted! You are never eating at any dining hall or restaurant I own ever again!” I was kicked to the curb, my stomach practically screaming in hunger. Jaxon stood on the sidewalk, laughing so hard he was gasping for air. “Karma is real. You got greedy, and now you don’t even get the bitter melon.” 4 Refusing to serve me food? The word “starve” does not exist in my dictionary. I turned right around and walked straight to an upscale, Michelin star French restaurant just off campus. A restaurant completely owned by Arthur Sinclair. I walked in and applied to be a waitress. If you won’t let me eat your cheap cafeteria food, I will infiltrate your high end establishment and eat you out of business from the inside. The general manager interviewed me. He saw how fast I moved and hired me on the spot for the dinner shift. That evening, Arthur brought a massive corporate client into the VIP dining room. Within twenty minutes, he was throwing an absolute tantrum. “This Wagyu steak tastes like wet cardboard! Get the chef out here!” The manager was sweating profusely as he sprinted into the back kitchen. “The boss’s condition is acting up again. He lost his sense of taste due to stress. Everything tastes like ash to him. What are we going to do?” I immediately volunteered. “Let me whip up a custom sauce. I guarantee it will wake up his tastebuds.” I grabbed the salt shaker, unscrewed the lid, and dumped half the container directly into the peppercorn demi glace. Then, I grabbed a bottle of pure habanero chili extract and dumped half of it in. If he couldn’t taste this, he might as well cut his tongue out. I proudly carried the heavily doctored steak into the VIP room. Arthur aggressively sliced off a piece and shoved it into his mouth. His face instantly turned paper white. Then beet red. Then a deep, alarming shade of purple. He violently jumped out of his chair, clutching his throat and frantically looking around. “Water! Get me water!” I helpfully handed him an ice cold glass of lemon water. Spiked heavily with white vinegar. Arthur chugged the entire glass. Tears exploded from his eyes. The corporate client was terrified. “Arthur! Are you having a medical emergency?” Arthur gasped for air, his chest heaving heavily. Suddenly, he threw his head back and burst into hysterical laughter. “Ha! I can taste it! It’s salty! It’s sour! My taste is back!” He lunged forward and grabbed both of my hands in pure gratitude. “Kid, what on earth did you put in that sauce? It’s a miracle cure!” I awkwardly pulled my hands away. “I just… added a little extra seasoning.” Arthur waved his hand grandly in the air. “From this day forward, any meal you eat at this establishment is entirely on the house!” To show his gratitude, Arthur insisted on making me an honorary VIP of the restaurant. He threw a massive dinner party and forced Tristan and Serena to attend. When Tristan walked in and saw me standing next to his uncle, his eyes practically bugged out of his skull. “Uncle Arthur, are you insane? She is a professional scam artist!” Arthur smacked Tristan right on the back of his head. “Show some respect! She is practically family now! Call her Auntie Harper!” Tristan clutched his head, his jaw clamped shut. He refused to speak. Serena, however, adapted immediately. She grabbed a champagne flute and slid right next to me. “Auntie Harper. If I come eat here, can I use your family discount?” I waved my hand like a mob boss. “I’ll get you eighty percent off.” Tristan was so angry he kicked a chair and stormed out. The next morning, a viral post exploded on the university’s anonymous gossip forum. Exposed: Local Ag-Science Major Sells Her Soul To Cafeteria Boss For Free Meals! The post painted me as a manipulative, gold digging psycho who would do absolutely anything for a free lunch. Every single comment was trashing me. I didn’t even need to use my brain to know exactly who posted it. I hunted down Arthur and managed to sweet talk him into giving me a specific old photograph. It was a picture of a ten year old Tristan, standing in the backyard butt naked and crying after wetting his bed. I pixelated the sensitive areas and uploaded it straight to the top of the forum. Headline: The Dark, Humiliating Childhood Secrets Of Our Ferrari Driving Bad Boy. The post broke the school servers. Tristan was sitting in his morning lecture when he saw the post. He literally passed out from sheer rage. When he regained consciousness, he marched straight to the agricultural greenhouse to hunt me down. “Harper! I challenge you to a duel!” I was busy tilling the soil with a heavy metal hoe. I didn’t even look up. “A duel in what? Farming? Because I will destroy you.” Tristan ground his teeth. “A panhandling contest! Whoever can beg for the most money at the front gates wins. The loser has to get on the campus radio and bark like a dog!” Begging for money? He was literally stepping into my professional arena. That weekend, outside the main university gates. Tristan was wearing artificially distressed designer jeans. He purposefully messed up his hair and placed a cracked ceramic bowl on the sidewalk in front of him. But his ego was too massive. He couldn’t bring himself to say a single word. He just sat there, glaring at people. Nobody gave him a dime. I, on the other hand, went full method actor. I wore my mom’s old rubber boots. I smeared charcoal dust across my cheeks. I brought a cheap plastic megaphone. “Ladies and gentlemen! Please have mercy! I have a rare, incurable disease, and my final wish is just to afford one last hot meal!” I was sobbing, tears streaming down my face. An absolute Oscar winning performance. Passersby were incredibly moved. Dollar bills kept raining into my bucket. Suddenly, Serena appeared out of nowhere. She tossed a crisp hundred dollar bill directly into my bucket. “Honestly, it’s a crime you aren’t a theater major. Here is a hundred. Teach me how to cry on command like that.” Seeing his own sister commit treason, Tristan furiously kicked his ceramic bowl into the street. “Serena! Whose side are you even on?!” Serena crossed her arms, completely unbothered. “I am on the side of high art, obviously.”

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1 My sister had seen object values since childhood. Through her gifts, she moved our parents from the slums to a river-view villa. On leave from the research institute, I found her showing off a stone in the living room. “Mom, Dad, this holds imperial green jade worth a fortune,” she claimed. Our parents fawned over it, touching it in awe. One glance told me the stone contained a deadly radioactive source. Panicked, I grabbed gloves and rushed to contain it. My mother shoved me back. “Jealous of your sister’s talent? Stop spouting nonsense!” With no choice, I suited up and cut it open. The dull gray mineral inside horrified me—but not them. My mother slapped me. “You ruined Serena’s treasure!” They stripped my suit and locked me in the storage room with the source to “reflect.” I pounded the door, bleeding from every orifice, until I died. When I opened my eyes, my sister was again holding that stone. This life, I would let them bask in their own blessed glow. Perhaps my gaze stayed on the stone too long, because Serena Brooks glanced at me suspiciously and hugged it closer. Then her eyes turned, and a smug smile spread across her face. Her tone was full of disdain. “Alyssa, you finally dragged yourself out of that shabby research institute? You work yourself to death for that tiny salary all year. It’s not even a fraction of what I make finding one bargain.” “If you ask me, quit already and come be my driver. At least then you’d contribute something to the family.” My parents immediately echoed her. My mother rolled her eyes, her voice thick with sarcasm. “Exactly, Alyssa. You were born without that kind of luck. You found some useless job and work yourself to the bone, but what you earn in a year can’t compare to one of Serena’s outings.” “You might as well come back and work for Serena. Maybe you can borrow a little of her luck and change that hard-life face of yours.” Their belittling and insults had long ago become routine whenever I came home. My ears were numb to it. They called me cursed, laughed that I had no fortune, then lifted Serena up as the family’s lucky star. As if my existence was only meant to highlight Serena’s luck. My face showed no emotion. I was too lazy to respond. I only wanted to find my documents quickly, so I mumbled something vague and turned toward the stairs. But my refusal to react displeased Serena. What she enjoyed most was watching me become humiliated and helpless. My calm gave her no satisfaction. So she grabbed my mother’s arm and shook it, malice glittering openly in her eyes. “Mom, since Alyssa is back, didn’t Grandma leave behind a silver bracelet? Why don’t we divide it today?” “Same old rules. You and Dad put the items in two boxes. This time, I’ll let her choose first, so she can’t keep whining behind our backs that you favor me.” She said it playfully, as if this were a fun game. She did not treat Grandma’s belongings as keepsakes, nor did she care about my feelings. This choose-one trick had long been her favorite way to humiliate me. Everyone knew she could see the value of objects. For her, this was never a fair choice. It was a rigged game, set up so she could laugh at my lack of fortune. At first, the boxes only contained toys or jewelry my parents bought. But later, when they saw I did not care about those things, they turned their attention to Grandma’s relics. Before Grandma died, she had clearly said those things were for me. But over the years, in Serena’s little games, she snatched them away one by one. Whether valuable or worthless, she refused to leave me even one memory. And this silver bracelet was the last thing Grandma had left behind. This game had finally reached the point where it should end. My mother skillfully took out two identical wooden boxes from the cabinet and placed them on the coffee table. She looked at me with a half-smile, unable to hide the mockery in her voice. “Alyssa, look how considerate Serena is. She’s even letting you pick first. Don’t be ungrateful.” My parents and Serena all stared at me. Their eyes shone with excitement, waiting for me to choose the empty box so they could mock me together. With memories from my previous life, I remembered exactly what was inside each box. Watching them struggle to suppress their smiles, I sneered inwardly and pointed directly at one of the boxes. “I want this one.” 2 My parents’ and Serena’s smiles froze instantly. They stared at me in disbelief. After a long silence, my mother forced herself to speak, bluffing. “Alyssa, I’ll give you one more chance. Think carefully. Everyone knows your luck is terrible. Are you sure you don’t want the other one?” I caught the undisguised shock in her eyes and shook my head firmly. “This one. Open it.” My words did not make them move. Instead, the three of them exchanged glances. After their eyes met, my mother suddenly pointed at me and shrieked. “Alyssa, did you peek when I was putting the things in?” Serena looked at me with contempt too. “You cheated even at a game. How boring. This round doesn’t count. We’re choosing again.” As soon as she said that, my parents snatched the boxes back and went into another room to switch them behind my back. They did not even bother asking my opinion. Soon, the two boxes were placed back on the coffee table. My mother pressed down on the lids as if guarding against a thief. “Choose.” Expressionless, I lifted my hand and pointed at one at random. This time, my parents finally relaxed. Serena immediately opened the other box and proudly snapped the silver bracelet onto her wrist. “I knew you cheated earlier. Alyssa, how could you possibly have good luck? A cursed thing like you thinks she can compare to a lucky star like me?” I curved my lips into a cold smile and slowly stepped back. I did not bother defending myself. She was right. From childhood to now, my luck had never compared to hers. Before Serena could even speak, my parents once pushed her out for a walk in her stroller. When they passed a scratch-off lottery stand, she grabbed one ticket and refused to let go. When my parents tried to take it, she cried loudly, so they had no choice but to buy it. That one scratch-off ticket changed our family’s life overnight. At first, everyone thought it was a coincidence. But as Serena grew older, every time she went out, she could bring back treasures worth thousands or even hundreds of thousands. Only then did my family quietly understand her special ability. As for me, I was not a cursed disaster star by nature. I was just an ordinary person who could not win the lottery. But compared with Serena’s glow, I looked especially unlucky. At first, my parents did not treat me too badly. I was their eldest daughter, after all. Although they favored the younger one, they still treated me decently. But as Serena brought the family more and more profit, they lifted her up as the treasure of the household. They obeyed her every wish and helped her push me down wherever they could. Over time, they truly began to hate me, the older sister Serena called cursed. For years, I endured silently. After all, the family had benefited because of her, and I had also enjoyed some of that comfort. As long as my giving in could maintain a surface-level peace at home, I did not argue. Even when Grandma’s belongings were taken from me one by one, I said nothing. But in my previous life, when I died in that storage room, blood pouring from every opening, I finally woke up completely. My parents and Serena had long since lost every trace of family affection toward me. In their eyes, I was only a toy for their amusement. Even if they killed me with their own hands, they would feel no guilt. Thinking of how, after my death, they lied to the outside world and said I had illegally researched radioactive materials and suffered the consequences, ruining my reputation and all my hard work, hatred surged inside me. My life had already been repaid to them. This time, it was their turn to taste Serena’s radiant luck. I had planned to take my documents and leave. But unexpectedly, Serena suddenly carried that deadly stone and strutted into my room. Then she shoved it right in front of my face. 3 The moment I saw the stone that had killed me in my previous life, every hair on my body stood up. I instinctively stepped back, my voice tightening. “Serena, why did you bring that thing here?” Right now, I had no protection on. I did not dare get close to the stone at all. Even though the radioactive material inside was still wrapped by rock, I did not want the slightest contact with it. Serena did not care. She only glanced at me dismissively, then looked around my room, her tone full of arrogance. “Why are you reacting so dramatically? Are you still bitter about losing the bracelet? That was your own bad luck.” “My treasure room is full. Dad already contacted someone to come this afternoon and turn half your room into storage shelves for me.” As she spoke, she pushed the stone even closer to my face, her eyes high and superior. “Don’t you have any sense? I’ve been holding it this long. Don’t you know to take it from me?” “Store this jade rough properly for me. If it gets chipped or damaged, selling you wouldn’t be enough to pay for it.” Seeing how guarded I remained, refusing to reach out no matter what, Serena sneered. Then she simply placed the mud-stained stone directly on my bed. She did not care that dirt and gravel spilled all over my sheets. Then she turned and walked away. Staring at that unremarkable stone, I felt the pain of radiation poisoning from my previous life sweep over me again. The memory was so vivid that cold sweat poured down my back. I did not dare delay. I hurried to take out a protective suit from my suitcase and put it on. Only then did I feel slightly able to breathe. I refused to spend another second in the same room as that lethal thing. I grabbed the documents I had found, stuffed them into my bag, and quickly headed out. “Alyssa, where are you going? Didn’t I tell you to watch my stone properly?” Just as I reached the living room, Serena’s questioning voice crashed down on me. When my mother heard it, she immediately joined in with sharp accusations. “Alyssa, this family raised you for so many years. Now you’re making excuses when we ask you to do one little thing?” “Go back and guard that treasure. If anything happens to it, I’ll hold you responsible.” Before she finished, she reached out and grabbed my arm, trying to drag me back to the room. Of course I was not willing to go down with their whole family beside that damned radioactive object. I struggled hard. During the struggle, my coat was accidentally pulled open, revealing the protective suit underneath. Serena had been yelling for Dad to come teach me a lesson. When she saw the suit, her face instantly darkened. Her suspicious gaze swept over the protective suit several times. Her voice became guarded. “Alyssa, why are you dressed like that at home?” At Serena’s question, my mother tightened her grip on my arm, as if she would not let go unless I explained. I sneered inwardly. What was there to say? In my last life, I had fought with all my strength to stop them from being harmed by radiation, only to be locked up and left to die. If I exposed the truth about the stone now, they might once again force me to cut it open, just like before. I would be the one to suffer again. Seeing me remain silent, Serena stepped closer. Her eyes were full of urgent suspicion, her tone sharper and sharper. “Alyssa, why are you acting mute? Wearing that creepy thing at home, are you trying to disgust us? Or did you hide something shameful in your room to harm the whole family?” As she spoke, she reached out to tear at my protective suit. 4 My heart tightened. I yanked myself free from my mother’s grip and stepped back, creating distance. Then I said coldly, “You’re overthinking. I’m wearing this because the institute recently received a batch of samples that might contain radioactive material. I’m used to taking precautions.” “I already said I’m busy today. I only came back to get some things. I don’t have time to watch your treasure.” “Radioactive material?” Serena instantly stepped several paces back and covered her mouth and nose, her face full of disgust. “You handled that kind of thing and still dared come home? Alyssa, how malicious can you be?” My mother quickly shook the hand that had touched my clothes, as if she had been contaminated by something filthy. Disgust nearly spilled out of her eyes. “I knew you were up to no good. Alyssa, get out of this house right now. Don’t come back if you don’t need to. Don’t bring bad luck to our family.” They cursed at me and shoved me toward the door. When the door slammed shut in front of me, the heart that had been hanging in my chest finally settled completely. Now I would not have to enjoy the radiation blessing with them. Not long after, news spread through the circle that the Brooks family had obtained an imperial green rough stone and would soon host an auction. Although the Brooks family had only risen in recent years as nouveau riche, Serena’s ability to find overlooked treasures had already attracted many admirers. This time, to witness the cutting of imperial green with their own eyes, business owners and jewelers came in endless waves, filling the banquet hall. At the banquet, Serena stood in the center holding the rough stone. Listening to the waves of praise around her, she smiled so widely her eyes narrowed into slits. Her face was full of pride. My parents stood beside her, surrounded by flattery. Their backs were straighter than ever, as if they had already reached the threshold of top-tier high society. From beginning to end, no one mentioned me, the Brooks family’s eldest daughter. It was as if I had never existed. Amid endless compliments, Serena grew even more pleased. She waved for my parents to bring over the cutting machine so everyone could see. The machine sliced down several times, peeling away the stone layer by layer. But the expected imperial green did not appear. What emerged was only a dull gray stone with somewhat unusual patterns. The smiles on the guests’ faces froze instantly. The banquet hall, noisy moments ago, suddenly fell into dead silence. People glanced at one another and began whispering in low voices. Serena’s smile froze too. Her eyes filled with confusion and panic. But under my parents’ anxious, helpless gazes, she forced herself to stay calm and promised confidently, “Mom, Dad, don’t panic. When have I ever missed?” “Even if this isn’t imperial green, look at these special patterns. It must still be a priceless treasure.” “It’s fine if we don’t recognize it. There are so many knowledgeable buyers here. Someone will know its value.” After saying that, she took a deep breath, picked up the cut stone, raised it high, and put a confident smile back on her face. “Everyone, although this isn’t imperial green, I’m sure you can see how unique it is.” “The starting bid for this stone is ten million. Anyone interested may begin bidding.” She waited expectantly for bids from the crowd. But what answered her was my mother’s shrill, distorted scream from behind. “Serena. You… Why is your nose bleeding so much?”

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1 On the smoke-choked balcony, I gripped the taut rescue rope with everything I had left. I turned and shouted at the crowd gathered behind me. “Someone help me pull! They’re about to fall!” “That’s the cheap nylon rope my wife bought because she wanted to save money,” my husband yelled. “If anyone pulls too hard, that’s basically murder.” “Don’t help her, everyone. If it snaps, who takes responsibility? We’re not getting dragged into this.” Ryan stood by the door, filming my back while I fought to save a life. His loud voice drowned out my pleas. The crowd, stirred up by him, stepped back again and again. A few men who had been about to help hesitated and withdrew their hands. My strength was nearly gone. The rope scraped little by little against the balcony edge. If everyone worked together, the person below could be saved. But my husband, a man who never knew when to shut up and always thought cruelty was a joke, stomped beside me on purpose to scare people away. Watching him stare smugly at the soaring livestream numbers, I suddenly felt my strength drain. He must have been secretly delighted. He thought the person hanging below was my elderly, paralyzed grandmother. How could I bear to tell him that the illegitimate son he treasured like a precious jewel had never gone to kindergarten today? The fire roared from the windows below. Black smoke climbed the outer wall. The nylon rope cut deep red marks into my palms. Blood ran down along the fibers. “Help me! Please, just pull!” My voice echoed on the top floor, then scattered in the wind. Ryan held up his phone, the camera almost pressed against my face. “Everyone, look. This is my penny-pinching wife. To save a few bucks, she bought some junk rope from a street stall. Now that something’s happened, she wants to drag everyone else down with her.” He smiled at the camera, teeth flashing. Several neighbors who had been about to step forward stopped, hesitant. “Is the rope really no good?” A man in a tank top stopped three yards away, rubbing his palms against his pants. Ryan stomped hard. The concrete floor gave a dull thud. “Don’t be stupid, man. The rope’s already fraying. If you touch it and it snaps, that’s on you.” “My wife is looking for a scapegoat. Her grandma’s been paralyzed for years. She’s been a burden for ages.” Then he leaned close to my ear and lowered his voice. “Elise Morgan, stop acting. That old woman should have died long ago. This fire came at the perfect time.” “Let go. I’ll cover for you. We split the insurance payout fifty-fifty.” I stared at him, teeth grinding. “Ryan Cole, this isn’t Grandma. Come here and see who it is.” Ryan sneered and took two steps back, adjusting the livestream angle. “Still pretending? I saw that old woman wearing black before I left this morning.” “You want me to go over there and take the blame? Not happening.” The rope made a sharp, grating sound. The balcony tile edge was cutting through the fibers. My arms burned. There was blood and dirt beneath my nails. From below came faint crying. It was the person hanging in midair. The voice was young, terrified. “Help… Daddy… save me…” The wind was too strong. The sound disappeared into the fire and smoke. Ryan didn’t hear it. He was staring at the gift animations on his livestream, laughing. “Thanks for the sports car, Justice Warrior. Don’t worry, everyone. I’ll supervise this closely. I won’t let this murder attempt succeed.” “We have to talk law here. Using bad rope to save someone is the same as killing them.” As he spoke, he kicked my tense ankle with the tip of his shoe. I staggered, my body pitching forward, one shoulder leaning over the railing. “Ryan! Are you insane?” I screamed and braced my legs hard against the base of the wall. He shrugged and made a helpless face at the camera. “See? She’s panicking. That’s guilt. She wants to drag me down with her.” The wavering crowd retreated to the stairwell. The man in the tank top shook his head and turned away. “Forget it. It’s a fight between husband and wife. Outsiders shouldn’t get involved. If they really blame us, we can’t afford it.” The crowd dispersed. Only Ryan’s voice remained in the hallway. Then I felt the rope drop suddenly. The fibers were breaking. Thin nylon strands snapped apart in the air. I looked back at Ryan. He was still demonstrating “risk avoidance” to the camera. “Ryan, I’m begging you one last time. Help me pull. You know the person below.” Every word tasted like blood. Ryan snorted, eyes full of contempt. “Elise, are you losing it?” “Besides that useless old woman, who else could be down there? Your secret lover?” He walked closer and looked down at me. Because of the angle, he could only see my tense back, not the figure hanging outside the railing. 2 He lifted his foot and stepped on my bloodied hand. “Let go. Stop struggling. Look at the livestream. A hundred thousand people are watching your performance.” “If you don’t let go, the rope snaps and you’ll fall too. Then all your secret savings will be mine.” His shoe ground down hard. Pain exploded. I didn’t let go. Instead, I wrapped the rope around my wrist one more time. “Ryan, did Charlie really go to kindergarten today?” My voice was suddenly cold. Ryan froze, then spat impatiently. “Of course. I put him on the school bus myself. Why are you bringing Charlie up? I’m warning you, don’t you dare target my son.” Charlie was the child he claimed belonged to a distant relative. In truth, he was the illegitimate son Ryan had hidden for five years. Half a month ago, Ryan used the excuse that the child’s parents had been in a car accident and brought him home temporarily. Looking at Ryan’s malicious face, I almost laughed. “Really? Then look at this.” I released one hand, pulled something from my pocket, and threw it at his feet. It was half of a burned superhero watch. Ryan’s face stiffened. He stared at the watch, his breath stopping for a moment. It was a limited-edition watch Ryan had secretly bought for Charlie’s fifth birthday. He told Charlie every day to wear it carefully, saying it was Daddy’s love. “How… how do you have this?” Ryan bent to pick it up, fingers trembling. Before he touched it, the livestream comments flooded the screen. “Why did the host stop? Look at his wife. Her hand is about to snap.” “That rope is so thin, and it still hasn’t broken. His wife is strong.” Ryan glanced at the screen, and his face darkened again. He straightened and kicked the watch away. It hit the corner, the casing cracking apart. “Elise, stop playing mind games.” “Charlie is fine at kindergarten. You grabbed some cheap fake watch and think you can trick me? Are you trying to push me when I lower my head?” He backed up three steps, aiming the phone at my back again. “Everyone, look closely. This woman not only wants to kill her grandmother, now she’s making up lies to fool me.” “She just tried to scare me with a fake watch. This is terrifying behavior.” My wrist had gone numb. Blood ran down my sleeve. The sound of the rope snapping grew more frequent. “Help… help… hurts…” The crying below weakened. Smoke had damaged the child’s throat. I gritted my teeth and shouted with all my strength. “Charlie! Hold tight! Don’t let go!” Ryan’s face shifted. But soon, he burst into wild laughter. “Elise, are you addicted to acting? Charlie?” “Why not shout for angels while you’re at it? You think if you yell Charlie’s name, I’ll help you pull up that old woman?” He waved at the camera, tone light. “Don’t believe her, everyone. She’s desperate.” “To get me blamed, she’ll even use a child’s name. Everyone, be careful of women like this.” The livestream count broke one hundred and fifty thousand. Abuse and doubt filled the screen. “This wife is terrifying.” “Host, run. If she pulls you down with her, you’re done.” Ryan watched his follower count soar, his face flushed with excitement. He danced strangely on the balcony, stomping deliberately. Every stomp made my body sway. The rope scraped against the railing edge. “Ryan, come look. Just look once, and I’ll give you the deed to the house.” I spoke softly. Ryan stopped. Greed flashed in his eyes. “The deed? You’d give it up?” “As long as you come here and help me pull.” I buried my face in my arm so he wouldn’t see the impatience in my eyes. Ryan hesitated. He took two steps forward, the camera moving with him. But when he was still three feet from the railing, he stopped. “No. You’re a wicked woman.” “You must be waiting for me to get close so you can drag me down with you to die with that old woman. Nice try.” He retreated to a safe distance and shut the sliding glass door. Through the glass, he pointed at me. “Elise, give up. When the rope snaps, I’ll call the police for you.” “When the cops come, I’ll say you insisted on saving someone and wouldn’t listen.” “I’m a witness. The hundreds of thousands in this livestream are witnesses too.” I turned and looked at him through the glass. He was greeting the camera with a grin like a madman. He didn’t know that Charlie had never gone to kindergarten. This morning, Charlie had demanded sticky rice cakes from downstairs. Ryan found him annoying, dumped the boy on Grandma while she napped at home, and ran off to meet Sabrina. And Sabrina was hiding right now in the storage room downstairs. The fire started from that storage room. To escape, Sabrina had used Charlie as a stepping stone. Now Charlie was holding onto the rescue rope I had lowered, hanging outside the fourteenth-floor window. And his biological father was celebrating on the balcony. “Look! The rope is about to snap.” Ryan suddenly screamed. He yanked open the glass door and shoved his phone over the railing. “Everyone, time to witness the truth.” He even reached out, trying to flick the cracked rope. “Let me help it finish the job.” Before Ryan’s fingers touched the rope, I turned my head sharply and bit into his wrist. The taste of blood filled my mouth. “Ah! You psycho!” Ryan screamed. His phone dropped onto the balcony floor. He ignored it and struck my shoulder with his other hand. “Let go! Let go!” I didn’t. My teeth sank into his flesh. I could almost feel bone. The rope, still clutched in my hands, made its final breaking sound. The livestream camera faced the sky. It only picked up crashing sounds and Ryan’s curses. “Elise Morgan, you’re dead.” He grabbed my hair and yanked backward. My scalp screamed with pain, forcing my head up. But I still did not release the rope. Instead, I slid closer toward him. “Ryan… look… look down…” I released my bite and spat out blood. Then I suddenly let my strength go, my body sliding strangely to the side. Ryan, who had been pushing me from behind, lurched forward with his own momentum. His phone camera happened to point downward. “Everyone, look closely. The rope is about to break… Char… Charlie?” Ryan’s voice changed instantly. His hands began to shake. I wiped blood from my face, stepped hard on the back of his hand, and leaned close to his ear. “Ryan, you guessed right. This rope really is street-stall junk. But I didn’t buy it for your grandma. I bought it for your son.” “Every stomp you made just now landed on Charlie’s life. Was it fun?” He collapsed against the railing. His phone continued livestreaming on the floor. The viewers heard that name too. “Who’s Charlie? Didn’t he say it was the grandma?” “The host’s face is wrong. He looks like he’s about to lose his mind.” Ryan snapped back to himself and reached for the rope. “Charlie! Daddy’s here. Daddy will pull you up.” His movements were frantic. He nearly pushed me down with him. I looked at him and shifted slightly to the side. “Ryan, didn’t you say the rope was defective?” My voice was clear. Ryan didn’t hear me. He was desperately pulling upward. But he had never done hard labor in his life. After only two pulls, he began gasping, arms shaking violently. “Help me… Elise, help me pull! That’s Charlie. That’s my son!” He turned and screamed at me. Tears and snot covered his face. I slowly rubbed my swollen wrist and stood aside. “Don’t help him, everyone. If it snaps, who takes responsibility? We’re not taking the blame.” I repeated what he had said earlier, calm and steady. Ryan froze. He looked at me, eyes full of terror. “Elise Morgan, are you even human? That’s Charlie. He’s only five.” “Oh. Five.” I nodded and walked to the balcony edge. “When you were stomping to scare people earlier, did you think about the fact that the person below was only five?” Ryan opened his mouth but couldn’t speak. He turned back and clawed at the rope with all his strength. “Charlie! Hold on! Daddy is going to…” A crisp snap. The last few nylon fibers broke under Ryan’s stare. Because he had pulled too violently, the friction against the railing had worsened. “No!” Ryan let out a scream.

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1 Three days after my miscarriage, I returned to the office despite the pain. Eric had insisted I rest, promising to oversee our new multimillion-dollar contract himself. Still, a gnawing unease wouldn’t leave me. I pushed open my office door. Eric’s cousin, Kayla—fresh from dropping out of vocational school—was lounging in my executive chair, using my ten-thousand-dollar tea set to mix powdered milk tea. She was lecturing my department manager. “This project is mine now. You employees better behave,” she declared. Newly signed outsourcing contracts littered the table, stamped with my company seal. Eric spotted me but didn’t flinch. He stepped in front of Kayla, frowning. “Why aren’t you resting? Kayla needs a starting point. You’re the boss anyway—what’s wrong with her being project director for a while? We can have another child. Don’t damage family harmony.” I looked at his self-righteous face. Strangely, I didn’t even feel like slapping him. “You’re right. We’re family.” I walked over and placed the highest-authority company seal in Kayla’s hand. “The director position is yours. Tomorrow, you’ll sign the thirty-million-dollar performance agreement yourself.” Eric and Kayla both froze. Clearly, they had prepared a stomach full of arguments. Eric had even arranged his frown in advance, waiting for me to make a scene so he could accuse me of being unreasonable. Kayla held the seal, and her eyes instantly lit up. Although she had dropped out of vocational school, even she knew that with this thing in hand, she could walk sideways through the company. “Natalie, you gave this to me willingly, right? My cousin said this is called… what was it? Oh, right. Promoting talent without avoiding relatives.” Kayla lifted her chin, sat back down in my chair, and even spun around twice. “Then you should hurry home and rest. Women need to keep warm after a miscarriage. Don’t bring bad luck into the office and ruin the fortune of our big project.” Bad luck. I had just lost our child on the operating table, and now, in his cousin’s mouth, I had become a woman carrying bad luck. How ridiculous. This was the “honest family” I had supported through countless sleepless nights. Eric heard it and not only failed to stop her, he even walked over and patted my shoulder. “Kayla speaks bluntly. Don’t take it to heart. She’s worried about your health too.” He put on a loving expression, as if he had not been smug and self-righteous moments ago. “I’ll keep an eye on the big contract myself. Kayla is just holding the title for experience.” “All right, hurry home and lie down. I ordered you some chicken soup. Remember to pick it up when it arrives.” A bowl of takeout chicken soup worth a few dozen dollars. In exchange for a core project with nearly ten million in net profit. Eric’s calculation was so loud it could probably be heard from the moon. Just then, a heavy cramp twisted through my lower abdomen, as if a hand were stirring inside me. I endured the pain and looked at him coldly. “Fine. Since it’s Kayla’s project now, from tomorrow on, she signs every document related to Pinnacle. Don’t overstep your authority.” After saying that, I turned and began packing the personal items from my desk. Kayla immediately watched me like a thief. “Natalie, don’t take company property.” I ignored her and picked up a client contact list from my drawer. Just then, my right-hand man and deputy project manager, Martin, rushed in with several reports. “Ms. Grant, this outsourcing contract can’t be signed like this.” “If we use these inferior materials, Pinnacle Group’s quality inspection will never pass. If we breach the contract…” Before Martin could finish, Kayla cut him off. “Why are you yelling? I’m the project director now.” Kayla slammed the desk, sweeping my designer bag onto the floor. “That supplier was introduced by my uncle. Their price is half the market rate. That’s called controlling costs for the company. What does an employee like you know?” Martin’s face went pale with anger. He turned to me. “Ms. Grant, this is the order you spent half a year securing. The agreement states clearly that if there’s a quality issue, we pay triple damages. They’re destroying the company.” Eric immediately put on the posture of a boss and scolded Martin. “Martin, you’ve been with the company for years. How do you still not understand obedience? Ms. Grant needs rest. From now on, I make the decisions here. If you can’t do the job, go to finance and settle your salary.” Martin looked at Eric in disbelief, then at me. For five years, Eric had been the “nice guy” who never managed anything in the company, collecting dividends under the title of “Ms. Grant’s boyfriend.” This was the first time he had seized power in public. I took a deep breath and suppressed the stabbing pain in my abdomen. “Martin.” “Do what Mr. Bell and Director Bell say. Hand over your work.” 2 Martin’s eyes widened. He looked at me as if I were a stranger. I said nothing more. He shook his head, sighed, slammed the reports on the desk, and turned to leave. Kayla laughed smugly. “Natalie is still sensible. Oh, and that genuine leather back cushion of yours, I want it too. It won’t do you any good at home, so leave it here.” “Fine. Keep it.” Holding a small paper box, I did not look at the two cousins again. I walked straight out of my company. The moment the door closed, I heard Kayla laughing inside. “Eric, look at her. She really thinks she’s some strong career woman. But you still have her wrapped around your finger.” “Now our family is going to be rich. A thirty-million-dollar deal. My uncle’s kickback alone will be this much.” Eric lowered his voice and scolded her with a laugh. “Enough. Keep it down. Once this money comes in, I’ll buy you an apartment in the city.” Standing by the elevator, I looked at my reflection in the glass doors and smiled. Wrapped around your finger? Eric, you probably don’t know that Pinnacle Group’s project was never some gift from heaven. It was a life-or-death contract I deliberately signed to prepare the company for going public. Our cash flow was already tight, and Pinnacle’s requirements for materials and deadlines were almost insane. If even one link went wrong, the settlement clause in the performance agreement would trigger immediately. Originally, I planned to mortgage a villa under my own name and personally supervise every detail, risking everything to earn that money. But since you and your cousin want this “chance to get rich” so badly, and since you’re bold enough to take kickbacks and use defective materials, then I’ll generously hand it to you. Outside the office building, the sunlight made me dizzy. I sat in my car, pulled out the contact list, and dialed the private number of Pinnacle Group’s executive president. The call connected after three rings. I put away my weakness and said coldly, “Mr. Whitaker, it’s Natalie Grant.” “The person coming to your company tomorrow to sign the thirty-million-dollar performance agreement will be our new project director, Kayla Bell.” “Also, I have some internal information about the material supplier for this project. I think you’ll be very interested.” The other end was silent for two seconds. Then he laughed. “Ms. Grant, this is your company’s performance agreement. If the materials go wrong, not only is the thirty-million-dollar order canceled, you’ll also owe me ten million in damages. Are you smashing your own rice bowl?” I leaned against the car seat and looked at the bruise on the back of my hand from the IV. “Mr. Whitaker, that company is now under Eric Bell’s control. The damages will naturally fall on him, the legal representative and majority shareholder.” Back when we registered the company, to protect Eric’s pride, he was made the legal representative with a sixty-percent share. I only took forty percent. He had always thought it was proof of my love. But legally, if anything went wrong, he was the one carrying joint liability. “The new director, Kayla, found a supplier with extremely low prices. All defective goods.” “Mr. Whitaker, just let her sign. In three days, when the materials enter the site, bring quality inspection officers for a surprise check. The ten million in damages will become Pinnacle’s lawful income.” After hanging up, the cramping pain in my lower abdomen returned. Cold sweat had already soaked my back. I gathered my strength and drove home. The large apartment downtown was bought in full with my own savings years ago. To protect Eric’s self-esteem, I had always told people we rented it together. The moment I opened the door, a strong smell of burning herbs mixed with the stench of spicy noodles hit me in the face. When I reached the living room, I froze. On the custom leather sofa I had spent eighty thousand on, an oily old bedsheet had been spread out. Eric’s mother was sitting cross-legged on it, slurping noodles. By her feet lay several baby clothes, cut to pieces. Last month, full of anticipation, I had personally gone to a baby store to pick out soft cotton clothes for a newborn. Now they were being used as rags, stained with sunflower seed shells and noodle soup she had spat out. “Oh, the big boss finally came home?” My mother-in-law kicked the little clothes on the floor and spoke sarcastically. “You couldn’t even keep a child, yet you still keep running outside.” “Our Eric is kind. If this were back in the village, any other man would’ve thrown out a hen like you who can’t lay eggs.” I stared at the ruined baby clothes on the floor. My nails dug deep into my palm. Just then, the front door opened again. Eric came in with Kayla, holding beer and cooked food. “Mom, look who’s here. Kayla made our family proud today. She signed a thirty-million-dollar deal.” Eric’s voice was filled with feverish joy. The moment his mother heard this, she pushed her bowl aside. Her face filled with smiles as she grabbed Kayla and praised her nonstop. When Eric realized I was home, he frowned, his tone full of impatience. “Why are you standing there? Can’t you see Mom made the floor dirty? Hurry up and mop it.” He pointed at the baby clothes being used as rags and said matter-of-factly, “Mom said those things are unlucky. They’ll affect the fortune our family is about to make. Throw them into the trash later.” My heart felt as if someone had crushed it. That had been his child too. Yet he felt no grief at all. His mind was filled only with that imaginary thirty million. Kayla joined in, her greedy eyes fixed on the Porsche keys by the entryway. “Exactly, Natalie. I’m a project director now. From now on, I’ll cover all the household expenses. You can just stay home and take care of my cousin and my aunt.” “Oh, by the way, lend me your Porsche for a few days. If I’m going out to discuss million-dollar business, I need some proper style, right?” Looking at the three parasites in front of me, I suddenly found it all absurd. This was the man I had loved for five years with my whole heart, the man I once wanted to spend my life with. I unclenched my fists and took a deep breath. “Fine. You can drive it.” I looked coldly at Eric and said calmly, “Since you all think I’m unlucky, I also think this apartment is getting a little crowded. I’ll go back to my parents’ place for a few days to recover.” Eric froze. He probably thought I would argue with him like before over his mother’s cruelty. He had not expected me to give in this time. “Fine. Go cool your head.” “Come back when you’ve thought it through. But let me say this first. I’m a boss now, big or small. Don’t expect me to lower myself and come pick you up.” “Don’t worry. You won’t need to.” I turned into the bedroom and dragged out the small suitcase I had already packed with the property deed and important documents. When I passed through the living room, I did not even lift my eyes. I opened the door and walked out. Behind me, my mother-in-law’s harsh voice continued. “Go then. Unlucky thing.” “Eric, when you get that thirty million, Mom will find you a proper young girl who can give you a big fat son.” The moment the elevator doors closed, I took out my phone and sent a message to the property manager. “I’m Natalie Grant, owner of Unit 1602. Please cancel all door codes and fingerprints for my unit first thing tomorrow morning.” 3 “Also, help me contact a junk removal company. Have them come to my apartment tomorrow and remove the trash. Anything that is not my personal clothing can be taken away as garbage.” After sending the message, I took a cab straight to a budget hotel. After a hot shower, I had the first peaceful sleep since the surgery. At ten the next morning, I was leaning against the hotel bed and drinking warm water when my phone chimed. Kayla had posted on social media. In the photo, she wore an ill-fitting business suit and held up the stamped performance agreement. The background was Pinnacle Group’s large conference room. Caption: “Thirty-million-dollar deal signed. From today on, call me the youngest female CEO.” Below it was Eric’s immediate like and comment. “Kayla made me proud. Tonight I’m taking you and Mom out for seafood to celebrate.” I looked at the screen and sneered. Then I casually liked the post, took a screenshot, and sent it to my lawyer. “The evidence is complete. The contract has taken effect. Proceed with the rest according to plan.” The lawyer replied quickly. “Understood. Pinnacle Group’s legal department has connected with us. Quality inspectors are already at the entrance of their worksite.” Less than five minutes later, Eric called. The moment I answered, his furious roar came through. “Natalie, are you insane? Why did the property management change all the door codes?” “And why did a bunch of junk collectors run into the apartment and drag my mother outside?” “My mom has a bad heart. If something happens to her, I’ll kill you.” Listening to my mother-in-law wailing like a slaughtered pig in the background, I frowned and moved the phone farther away. “Correction. That is my apartment. The property deed has only my name on it, and I paid for it in full.” “So I asked the property manager to clear out the garbage I don’t want. That’s reasonable, isn’t it?” Eric froze. He had never known the apartment was fully paid for under my name. But he reacted quickly and began cursing again. “Stop acting so high and mighty. You think kicking us out means you control me?” “I’m telling you, Natalie, I usually let your attitude slide. But today Kayla just signed a thirty-million-dollar deal. The Bell family is about to be worth millions.” “You come back right now, kneel to my mom, apologize, and change the locks back. Otherwise I’ll divorce you immediately and make sure you get nothing.” I laughed out loud. “Great. See you at city hall at two this afternoon. Whoever doesn’t show is a coward.” Eric clearly had not expected me to accept the challenge. He snorted coldly. “Fine. Don’t regret it. I’m a big boss now. What kind of woman can’t I get?” “Big boss?” I could not help interrupting his dream. “Mr. Bell, before you throw a tantrum, why don’t you check how much money is left in the company account?” The other end suddenly went silent. Then came the sound of frantic mouse clicking. “Where’s the money? Where’s the three million in operating capital?” Eric’s voice instantly changed pitch. “Natalie, where did you transfer the company’s money?” “That was money I advanced under my own name. I withdrew it all.” “Oh, and I already submitted my withdrawal statement yesterday.” Listening to his breathing grow heavier and heavier, I said calmly, word by word, “By the way, the agreement Kayla just signed is a performance contract. The defective supplier she found has already sent goods to Pinnacle’s site.” “Just now, Mr. Whitaker from Pinnacle messaged me. The quality inspectors have already detained that batch of defective products at the worksite gate.” “Eric Bell, not only is the thirty-million-dollar order dead, but according to the contract, as the legal representative holding sixty percent of the shares, you must immediately pay Pinnacle Group ten million in damages.” “What… You tricked me?” Eric finally panicked. “Natalie, are you insane? That company was your hard work too.” “Yes. So what’s wrong with me destroying it with my own hands?” Just then, Kayla’s scream rang out from the other end. “What are you doing? I’m Director Bell. Let go of me.”

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1 When we were kidnapped, the kidnappers told my parents to choose one of us. They chose my younger sister. I was locked in a sealed shipping container for twenty-four hours and developed severe claustrophobia. After I was rescued, my parents were consumed by guilt. From then on, the lights in our house were never turned off. To ease my fear, my mother quit her job and slept beside me every night. She was even afraid my sister would trigger me, so she sent her to the countryside and did not bring her back until she started high school. But on the day of my sister’s school admission banquet, they wanted to turn off the lights to surprise her. Panic rose in me. “Mom, I’m scared of the dark. Can I go back to my room?” My mother suddenly broke down. Her face twisted with anger. She grabbed my wrist hard and threw me into the bedroom. “Scared of the dark? How many years has it been? You’re still scared of the dark? Will you die if the lights are off for a few minutes?” “Hasn’t your sister paid enough? Today is her banquet. What else do you want? Will you only be satisfied if she stays in the countryside forever?” I shook my head in terror, wanting to say I had never hated my sister. But my mother had already slammed the door shut, cutting off my voice. In the darkness, my breathing turned rapid. My trembling hand reached for the light switch. Click. The switch sounded. But the room remained pitch black. My eyes widened in the dark. My hand kept pressing the switch again and again. Click. Click. Still, no light came. The black space around me seemed ready to swallow me whole. My breathing grew frantic. Why? Why wasn’t the light turning on? Was there a power outage? I searched my clothes and realized my phone was still in the living room. There was not a single source of light in the room. “Mom! Mommy!” I cried out twice in terror, but my voice suddenly stopped. I remembered the last time the power went out at home. My whole family had found every usable candle and flashlight and stayed beside me. My mother had held me gently in her arms, patting my back over and over. “Celine, my sweet Celine, don’t be afraid. There won’t be bad people again. Mom and Dad will always stay by your side.” But just a moment ago, the gentleness that once filled her face was gone. She had looked tortured and furious. Maybe I should learn to be independent. I shouldn’t trouble Mom anymore. I could not trouble her anymore. Even so, facing the darkness in front of me, my whole body still shook. My blood seemed to turn cold inch by inch. The scene from ten years ago remained painfully vivid. After my parents exchanged the ransom for my sister, the kidnappers originally wanted to get rid of me at once. Then the police arrived. In their panic, the kidnappers stuffed me into a box in the cellar and fled. They had drugged me. I couldn’t move. I didn’t even have the strength to scream. Children are already afraid of the dark, let alone in a sealed, damp space like that. My empty stomach burned after a day and a night without food. I breathed in tiny sips, feeling the air grow thinner and thinner. Would the oxygen run out? I was so terrified I barely dared to breathe loudly. Tears kept falling. I heard the rustling of rats moving near me. Some unknown insect crawled onto my ear. Fear froze my entire body. I prayed for it to leave, begged silently for it to get off me. But it crawled into my collar instead, cold and slick against my spine. “So scary… so scary…” I cried and muttered to myself. In the darkness, my hollow eyes stared into nothing. My consciousness sank into chaos. Now, I was trapped in complete darkness again. This time, there were no terrifying insects. No damp, suffocating cellar. No oxygen running out. But I was still so scared I could barely breathe. My eyes fixed ahead. That was where the curtains were. If I opened them, would moonlight come in? Using all my strength, I pushed up my limp body and stumbled to the window. But heaven had not heard my prayers. Outside, there was only more darkness. It was cloudy tonight. I pressed myself against the window, head lowered, looking at the ground below as my mind grew heavy. My parents had wanted to give me as much sunlight as possible. Across from my room was an entire beautiful garden. During the day, sunlight would pour through this huge glass window and brighten the space before it. I loved sitting on the garden swing to bask in the sun. Now that night had fallen, I seemed to see the garden’s beautiful scenery anyway. My body couldn’t help leaning forward. Light. If I moved just one more step forward, would I see light? With that thought, I finally leaned my whole body out. 2 Thud. It hurt. It hurt so much. I gasped weakly. The smell of blood mixed with damp earth filled my nose. The back of my head was wet. When I fell, my skull struck one of the decorative landscape stones. A sharp edge had cut into the back of my head. “Mom…” My voice was faint. I wanted to call for someone. Suddenly, a room upstairs lit up again. That small light pulled at my fading awareness. I knew I should call for help now. Otherwise… maybe I would die. But as that room lit up, I heard faint cheers. Then came the sound of several people singing a birthday song together. Mom was there. Dad was there. My sister’s moved sobs were mixed in. They sounded so happy. How long had it been since I had seen my parents so happy? After I was rescued, I spent three whole months trapped in my own world. I feared everything around me and every unfamiliar person who came close. Because of that, my mother quit her job and slept beside me every night. Every night, the lights stayed on. During the days when I screamed constantly, my parents made a decision. They sent my sister, Ava, to the countryside. That night, my mother held me, her eyes full of pain and determination. “Celine, we wronged you. Back then, we chose your sister. Now we can’t let her stay at home and trigger you.” “Sending Ava to the countryside is our joint decision. It’s what she should do. She needs to atone.” At that time, my mind was too broken to understand what it meant. I only burrowed deeper into her arms, trying to absorb a little warmth. Later, I gradually became clearheaded again. The first thing I wanted was to bring Ava home. What happened back then was not her fault. But my parents refused to listen. “Celine, this is what your sister owes you. Don’t bring it up again.” “She owes you a life. So what if she studies in the countryside? Your grandparents will take good care of her.” I wanted to speak again. I wanted to say it had nothing to do with Ava. But the moment I opened my mouth, I had to think of the kidnappers, and my voice got stuck in my throat. Later, I discovered Dad often secretly went to the countryside. The company was family-owned, yet Monday through Friday, Dad told me he had to go to work. Then I overheard Mom on the phone. Her tone was full of regret. “I want to see Ava too. She was so little when she went to the countryside alone. How could I not worry?” “Next time you go, I’ll say I’m buying groceries and go with you. I feel awful when I can’t see her. She was so young when she was kidnapped too. Even though we rescued her, she was frightened badly.” “Sigh… but in the end, we owe Celine.” So on the days Dad claimed to be working, he actually drove two hours to the countryside to spend time with Ava. No wonder Dad was busy until nine every night. Thinking of Dad’s exhausted face from traveling back and forth, and the sorrow in Mom’s eyes whenever Ava was mentioned, I suddenly didn’t want to call for help. Today was Ava’s banquet. They were finally so happy. Was I supposed to disturb them again? Instead of caring for a useless person like me, someone with a psychological illness, they were better off with a healthy, normal daughter like Ava. I silently closed my mouth. My eyes stayed fixed on the lit room as my body grew colder and colder. The light in my eyes slowly faded. 3 Suddenly, I felt light. My vision lifted. The dark world became clear before me. I looked down at my body below and realized that I had died. So people really did become spirits after death. I floated and drifted through the wall, entering Ava’s room. My parents had prepared a school admission celebration for her, and it was now near the end. They were happily cutting cake, their faces more relaxed than I had ever seen. In front of Ava, my parents did not have to be cautious. They did not have to worry about her emotions every second. My usually composed father had been smeared with cream by Ava, but he only smiled indulgently. My mother watched everything gently, her eyes full of happiness. Compared to their time with me, this looked more like a real family. Looking at the scene before me, my now weightless body suddenly filled with sour pain. My mother’s smile paused. As if remembering something, she picked up a slice of cake and pushed the door open. Curious, I followed her. She came to my room. She knocked twice. No answer. Her brows tightened. She did not call me “Celine” affectionately this time. She called my full name. “Celine Hale, today is the day your sister comes home. I’ve thought about it. We can’t keep indulging you.” “Tonight, I won’t sleep with you.” She bit her lip, expression firm. “The whole family has accommodated your illness, but this can’t go on forever. You need to learn independence. Tomorrow, I’ll go back to the company. I won’t stay with you every day anymore.” After saying that, she took a deep breath. “Don’t blame me either. Even if your sister owed you, she has paid enough all these years.” She placed the cake at the door and left. I crouched there and looked at the slice of cake. A pretty strawberry sat on top. It looked delicious. What a pity. I could no longer eat it. I returned to Ava’s room. It was late. My parents looked tired, but their joy and relief were impossible to hide. My mother gently held Ava in her arms, tears glimmering. “Ava, from now on, Mom won’t leave you alone again.” In the years she spent with me, my mother had said the same thing to me countless times. Now, she held Ava and said it again. Maybe in her heart, leaving me to face the kidnappers and sending Ava away to the countryside were the same kind of sin. That was why she had refused to bring Ava back. It was the atonement she had decided on. Now, she believed Ava’s punishment was over. Ava’s eyes reddened. She hugged Mom gently. “Mom… can you sleep with me tonight?” My mother agreed at once without hesitation. My father looked confused. “What about Celine… won’t she be afraid?” My mother said coldly, “Don’t worry. I already talked to her. From now on, I won’t sleep with her anymore. She was being stubborn too, didn’t say a word to me. After all these years, she should overcome her fear.” Seeing that, Dad couldn’t say more. My heart ached dully. Mom, I wasn’t being stubborn. I just couldn’t answer you anymore. If you wanted me to be independent, as long as the lights were on, I could have stayed alone. Unfortunately, I no longer had that chance. The next morning, I watched my parents and Ava sit at the dining table. The atmosphere was tense and oppressive. 4 After a long silence, Ava spoke. “Should we call my sister to get up? She hasn’t eaten anything since last night…” “Hmph. This is all because we spoiled her.” My mother slammed her chopsticks onto the table, her face angry. “The first day you came home, she refused to come down to eat. Is she trying to teach you a lesson?” “In my opinion, you’ve long since repaid what you owed her. If she insists on being unreasonable, then let her starve.” After saying that, my mother picked up her chopsticks first. Dad and Ava couldn’t say anything, so they silently began eating. I watched from the side, my heart aching. Mom, don’t worry. From now on, you will no longer have this disobedient daughter. You won’t have to worry about me anymore. Though my mother had spoken harshly, after Dad sent Ava to school, she still stood and came to my room. This time, after knocking with no answer, she opened my door. The curtains swayed. The room was dim, with no lights on. My mother froze. “Celine… you didn’t turn on the lights?” I looked at her expectantly from the side, hoping she would realize something was wrong and collect my body. The back garden was full of plants. If she didn’t find me soon, many terrifying insects might crawl onto my body. Because of the kidnapping, I was terrified of insects. I didn’t want my corpse to be defiled by them. But my mother didn’t notice anything wrong. Instead, she looked delighted. “Celine, see? You can overcome the dark. We spoiled you too much. After sleeping alone once, you realize darkness isn’t that big a deal.” She came over happily and sat by my bed. Looking at the raised blanket, she couldn’t help sighing. “You. Still being stubborn, still refusing to answer Mom.” After saying that, she lifted a corner of the blanket. At last, she realized there was no one in the bed. Mom froze, then panic filled her face. Since the kidnapping, she had quit her job and stayed beside me day and night. Because of fear and avoidance, I had not stepped out of the house once. Seeing me gone, Mom finally sensed something was wrong. She searched everywhere in a panic, even opening the wardrobe. But I wasn’t there. Nowhere. After searching the whole villa from top to bottom, my mother’s expression became frantic. Then she suddenly exhaled. “I was too anxious. How could I forget? Celine must be on the garden swing. The sun is so good today, and she loves sunbathing.” Yet her steps grew faster and faster. A strange panic rose in her heart. The words she said were only to comfort herself. “Celine! Celine!” My mother called loudly, desperately hoping I would answer. Even though she had expected it, when she saw the empty swing, her eyes still reddened. “Celine… where did you go? Mom can’t find you.” For years, she cared for me, stayed with me, and let me withdraw from the normal world, placing me inside a private Eden at home. She allowed me to hide and kept me under her wings. Though she had grown tired of caring for me, now that I had left her first, she panicked. Her calls gradually turned tearful. She looked around, tears blurring her vision. Suddenly, her foot stepped into something sticky. Mom looked down. Dark brown blood had dried along the stone path. Her vision swayed. She staggered and fell to her knees. She pulled aside the bushes. My body was there, back turned toward her, eyes still staring at the distant window.

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1 On my first day at the design firm, I wasn’t handed a stylus or a notebook. I was handed a plastic specimen cup. “Company policy,” Maggie said, pushing the cup across the desk. Her voice dripped with casual arrogance. “Pee in the cup. Once we verify you’re not pregnant, we’ll sign the contract.” I gripped my offer letter so hard my knuckles turned white. “I made it very clear during my interview that I have no plans to start a family, and I am definitely not pregnant.” Maggie scoffed, her eyes scanning my resume with blatant contempt. “Vivian Summers, right? You have a boyfriend.” “Everyone talks a big game. Girls your age love to brag about being child-free, only to turn around, get hitched, and go on maternity leave three months later.” I remained silent. “See? Silence means consent.” “As long as there’s a man in your life, whether you get pregnant isn’t entirely up to you.” “What if you walk in and immediately take paid leave? The company takes a massive financial hit just to keep you on the payroll. Can you personally cover that loss?” “You’re doing the test today. No exceptions.” With that, she reached out and snatched at the fabric of my long skirt. In that exact moment, I realized something. I didn’t want to use my digital pen to sketch designs anymore. I wanted to use a real pen to stab some people. … To end this ridiculous circus as quickly as possible, I pulled out my phone and opened my period tracker. “My period ended just the day before yesterday. This should be proof enough.” Maggie snatched the phone straight out of my hand, squinting at the screen. She didn’t just check the dates; she deliberately swiped through my private calendar, pointing a manicured finger at the heart icons. “Well, well! Look at all these intimate little dates. You busy girls sure have active social lives.” “You quiet ones are always the wildest. This is a massive liability. We are testing you, period.” Seeing that I wasn’t backing down, she tried a softer approach, though her tone remained slimy. “Look, if you really don’t want to do it, just show me a medical certificate proving your boyfriend is infertile.” “Otherwise, get to the bathroom.” I let out a harsh, dry laugh. My father had been breathing down my neck for months, begging me to come back and run the family conglomerate, the Summers Group. I had refused. I wanted to prove to him that I could survive and thrive in the real world without the family fortune. We had a deal: if I couldn’t make a name for myself as a designer within a year, I’d pack my bags and head back to the corporate throne. But the old man was right about one thing. The world outside was much dirtier than I had imagined. At that moment, I wanted nothing more than to dump that plastic cup right over her head. But I held back. Being a designer was my dream, and this agency was one of the top firms in the industry. “Fine,” I spat, grabbing the cup. “I’ll do it.” I turned toward the restroom, but Maggie followed me like a cheap shadow, sticking to me all the way into the stall. She blocked the door with her arm before I could lock it. “Oh, don’t be shy, Vivian,” she smirked. “Last month, a headhunter sent over a girl who snuck in someone else’s urine sample in her sock. It got flagged, and the director chewed me out for thirty minutes.” “Just pretend I’m not here. Pull down your pants and get on with it.” The restroom door opened directly onto the main hallway. People were walking back and forth, their footsteps echoing clearly. Every few seconds, some male colleagues strolled past, heading toward the balcony for a smoke. “Maggie, this is completely inappropriate. I have a basic right to privacy.” “Privacy? Once you sign that contract, you belong to the company. Privacy is for the executives.” She raised her voice, deliberately shouting out toward the hallway. “Hey, guys! Clear out of the hallway! The new girl, Vivian, needs to use the bathroom! Stop hanging around!” “She’s no innocent virgin anyway, but that doesn’t mean you get a free show!” A wave of muffled laughter drifted in from the corridor. Standing in that cramped, sterile stall, a wave of pure humiliation washed over me. “I’m done. I’m leaving.” I turned to walk out, but Maggie grabbed my arm with surprising strength. Her other hand reached out, lifting the hem of my dress. She stared at my stomach with a cold, assessing gaze, like a butcher inspecting a slab of meat at a slaughterhouse. “Well, your waist is thin enough, Vivian. Doesn’t look like you’re showing.” “But girls these days are clever. Without that test, I can’t sleep easy.” Just then, a male colleague strolled by the half-open door. He stopped, staring right through the gap, his lips curling into a sickening, greasy grin. “You’re doing great, Maggie. This company needs a tough woman like you to keep things in check.” “The HR team is usually too scared of lawsuits to do their jobs, letting all these freeloaders slide in. You’re the one holding this place together.” 2 Flattered by the praise, Maggie raised her voice even louder. “You can never be too careful these days. Even the ones from Ivy League schools have the same shady tricks. I have to be strict.” “Anyone who’s looked for a job lately knows how brutal the market is. If a company takes you in, you should be on your knees thanking them.” “Isn’t that right, Vivian?” I took a slow, deep breath, staring up at the stained ceiling tiles. In that split second, I decided I was done playing by their rules. I was just about to shove her out of the way when my eyes flicked down. I noticed a slight, barely perceptible curve in her lower abdomen. A sudden realization hit me. I let out a long breath, forcing myself to look submissive as I lowered my head to hide the fury in my eyes. Using the sink basin to block her view while she was busy flirting and gloating with the guy in the hallway, I quickly scooped a small amount of water from the toilet bowl with the plastic cup. I spun around, handing the lukewarm, cloudy liquid to her. “Are we done now?” Maggie took it with a satisfied smirk, holding it like a hard-won trophy. The moment she walked away, I pulled out my phone and dialed the one number I never wanted to call. “Dad, that boutique design firm you were planning to acquire… how are the negotiations going?” There was a brief pause, followed by a surprised chuckle on the other end. “Well, well. Had a change of heart?” “I want you to sign the acquisition papers immediately. On one condition.” “I want to be appointed as the head of Human Resources.” “Right now. Today.” The old man laughed, a sound full of sharp, corporate calculation. “What happened to our one-year wager?” “Nothing. I just realized that instead of drawing pretty pictures, I’d rather use a pen to sign some pink slips.” When I got back to my desk, Maggie had already put on a different mask. She patted my shoulder with maternal condescension. “Vivian, don’t take it personally. I was just looking out for the company. It’s nothing against you.” “People have too many tricks up their sleeves these days. You have to understand our position.” I brushed her hand off my shoulder and sat up straight. “You sure love throwing your weight around, Maggie. Must feel great to have a little power.” Her smile vanished. “What did you say?” “We run the same check on candidates with master’s degrees and PhDs. Who do you think you are with just an undergraduate degree?” I looked her dead in the eye, my voice ice-cold. “You love talking about credentials. What about yours?” “Everyone who works here graduated from a top-tier university.” “They say people overcompensate for what they lack. Tell me… did you even graduate from high school?” The moment my dad acquired the company, I had accessed the internal database. Her educational background listed elementary school as her highest completed level. She had zero credentials and even less actual talent; she had clearly climbed her way up through nepotism and office politics. “You’re pushing your luck, Vivian!” Maggie hissed, leaning down until her breath brushed my ear. “Let me tell you something. If this test comes back positive, I won’t just fire you. I’ll blacklist you across the entire industry. I’ll make sure you never work as a designer again.” “This is a minefield, and you just stepped right on it.” I tilted my head, studying her face. “Does this policy apply to everyone in the company? Equally?” “Of course! If anyone tries to pull a fast one, I’ll be the first to kick them out the door!” “Thanks. Good to know.” I let out a genuine smile for the first time since walking into the building. Ten minutes later, the test results were ready. Maggie came bursting out of the office, waving a white plastic test strip like a flag of war. She looked like she had just caught a high-profile fugitive, screaming before she even reached my desk. “Vivian Summers! What do you have to say for yourself now?” She slammed the lab report onto my desk. “Positive! You’re pregnant!” She marched right into the center of the open-plan office, raising her voice for the entire floor to hear. “Everyone, look at this! Vivian Summers, is this what you call ‘passion for design’?” She slapped the paper repeatedly, her voice screeching through the room. “Sneaking in here on your first day with a bun in the oven just to scam us for paid maternity leave! You are an absolute embarrassment to professional women everywhere!” 3 Several of Maggie’s sycophants immediately joined the chorus. “No wonder she took so long in the stall. She was terrified of getting caught.” “Thank goodness Maggie has eyes like a hawk. Otherwise, we’d be doing her share of the work while catering to a pregnant princess. How pathetic.” I took a step back, biting my lower lip, letting my shoulders tremble slightly. “Maggie, are you absolutely sure that’s my test result?” Thinking she had completely broken me, Maggie sneered, leaning in so close her spit nearly hit my face. “It’s right here in black and white! I watched you fill the cup myself. You can’t wiggle your way out of this.” “Pack your things and get out of our office. Your contract is null and void!” She reached out to shove me toward the door. I slipped past her touch effortlessly and picked up the paper. With a gentle flick of my fingernail, the small adhesive label over the name at the top left of the report peeled away. Underneath, the printed name read: Margaret Potts. I stared at it, briefly stunned. When the company health records were being processed, I had immediately swapped my name label onto Maggie’s physical report. I wanted her to think the positive result belonged to me. Only by exposing her pregnancy in front of the entire office could I completely uproot this toxic weed. But why was my name still visible on the database screen she had printed? Did I accidentally grab the wrong paper earlier? Does that mean… I actually was pregnant? My heart skipped a beat. Two weeks ago was my anniversary with my boyfriend, Noah. That night had gotten a bit wild, and though we took precautions afterward, my body had been acting strange lately. I had been exhausted, falling asleep at odd hours. Every morning, a wave of nausea hit me, leaving a bitter taste in my mouth. And my period had been a week late, showing up only as a light, brief spotting. If that spotting was actually implantation bleeding… Forget about saving my job. Deciding whether or not to marry Noah would become an immediate crisis. My dad had always been dead-set against my relationship with a self-made guy like Noah. Maggie noticed the brief flash of panic in my eyes, and her grin widened. “What’s the matter? Cat got your tongue? You were so smug a minute ago.” “Well, Miss Big-Shot Designer, got nothing else to say?” “Get your things and get out of my sight.” Just then, I caught sight of Vice President Davis standing by his office door, a smug smile playing on his lips. In an instant, everything clicked. I knew I hadn’t made a mistake. I quickly opened the company’s internal portal on my phone and pulled up the official digital medical records. The system database clearly showed that my test was negative. The positive test belonged to Maggie. Paper reports could be altered with cheap stickers, but the secure company database couldn’t be manipulated so easily. No evidence was more ironclad than the digital ledger. I turned the screen around, displaying the records for the entire room to see. Maggie’s face froze, the smugness instantly draining away, leaving her pale and hollow. “Maggie, when you were cornering me in that stall, I noticed the slight curve of your stomach.” “I wasn’t sure at first.” “But when you instinctively cradled your lower abdomen during our argument, I knew my hunch was right.” Maggie’s face flushed a deep crimson before turning a sickly, ash-gray. “You… what kind of lies are you spreading?!” “How did you even get access to the company’s secure network?” “This is fake! It has to be fake!” I tapped my phone screen, showing the official corporate announcement that had just landed in every employee’s inbox. “Actually, as of ten minutes ago, I am the new HR Director.” “Reviewing employee records is well within my job description.” I stepped closer, lowering my voice so only she could hear. “And didn’t you just say that anyone who gets pregnant should be fired immediately?” She let out a desperate, screeching laugh, her voice cracking under the pressure. “You? An HR Director? You’re a junior designer! Have you lost your mind?!” Right then, heavy, hurried footsteps echoed down the hallway. The actual executive board members marched in. Holding the official acquisition papers, they bypassed Maggie entirely and walked straight to my desk, bowing slightly. “Director Summers, the transition is complete.” Maggie collapsed back into her chair, her eyes glazed with shock. I opened my tablet, displaying her original file for everyone to see. “Now, let’s see just how much fiction is in your resume, Margaret Potts.”

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1 My fiancé asked the girl who used to bully me to be my bridesmaid. He said, “Tina knows she was wrong. Letting her be your bridesmaid can count as her apology.” I lowered my head and stared at the little burn scars on my wrist, the ones left by cigarette butts. Then I nodded. And turned around to invite Nathan’s worst enemies to be his groomsmen. The wedding was getting close, but I still didn’t have bridesmaids. The few close friends I had were either overseas or already married with kids. Just as I was wondering whether I should hire professional bridesmaids, Nathan said he had the perfect candidate. Tina Walsh. When I heard that name, my heart clenched hard. It sounded so sharp in my ears that I instinctively asked, “Which Tina Walsh?” Nathan sounded casual. “The one from our high school. You forgot?” “She started working as a receptionist at our company a few days ago. When she heard we were getting married, she asked if you still needed a bridesmaid.” Old memories rushed back at once. Cockroaches in my desk. Hair in my thermos. Water poured all over my bedding. Scene after scene surged into my mind. My stomach turned. I bit down hard on my lower lip to swallow the nausea. I looked at Nathan through clenched teeth. “You know I’m not on good terms with her. And you still want her to be my bridesmaid?” “Are you trying to disgust me?” Nathan and I had been in the same class in high school. He knew exactly what Tina meant to me. I transferred there in sophomore year. In my first monthly exam, I placed first in class. My total score beat the original first-place student by more than twenty points. That student was Tina. She was not happy. At first, she made sarcastic comments and encouraged the other girls to isolate me. Then she began bullying me outright. She threw cockroaches under my desk and laughed when I screamed. She spat in my thermos and dropped hair and nail clippings inside, giving me a lifelong disgust toward thermoses. Once, she poured water over my bedding. I cried and reported it to the dorm supervisor. The next day, Tina was called to the office. That night, she blocked me in the bathroom. She brought several girls with her. They pressed lit cigarette butts into my wrist, leaving blisters that scarred over and never fully faded. Nathan knew all of this. Back then, he protected me. When Tina bullied me, he would stand up for me. When everyone isolated me, he ignored their strange looks and talked to me anyway. Yet now, he was saying Tina should be my bridesmaid. Seeing my anger, Nathan sat beside me and pulled me into his arms. “Gia, it’s been so many years. Don’t keep holding onto it.” “We were all young back then. Nobody understood these things. She knows she was wrong now.” “She’s coming to be your bridesmaid as an apology. Isn’t that enough?” “Be the bigger person, okay?” “Do it for me.” Hearing the person I loved most ask me to forgive the person who had tormented me, hearing him comfort me by telling me to be generous, made me feel sick. He suddenly felt like a stranger. I shoved Nathan away. “Nathan, even if I have no bridesmaids, I will not let Tina Walsh stand beside me.” If she became my bridesmaid, this marriage would sooner or later end. Seeing that I wouldn’t listen, Nathan got angry too. “Gia Morgan, I’m doing this for your own good. Don’t reject help when it’s handed to you.” “If you had friends around you and could find bridesmaids, would I need to help?” “I found someone for you, and now you’re picky? People like you deserve not to have friends.” After saying that, he grabbed his jacket from the sofa and slammed the door behind him. 2 Watching Nathan leave, I felt my chest clog with pain. Nathan knew everything. My fears. My grievances. My resentment. Every single thing. He knew. Our homeroom teacher in high school was a woman in her forties. When it came to bullying between girls, she always turned a blind eye. As long as the bully had good grades and things didn’t get too big, she pretended not to know. I went to her more than once to report Tina. She didn’t even lift her eyelids. “Tina is only joking with you. Don’t be so petty. Learn to take a joke.” I told my parents. They only said, “Why don’t they bully other people? Why only you? You should reflect on yourself.” No one believed me. No one stood on my side. Being so helpless back then made me afraid of getting close to people even now. I thought Nathan would stand beside me for the rest of my life. But now, even he said I deserved it. Nathan came home around noon the next day. I was cooking in the kitchen when the front door opened. Laughter floated in from outside. Nathan said, “Gia, look who’s here.” I looked out and saw Tina’s smiling face. She was holding a carton of milk. When she saw me, she greeted me warmly. “Gia, long time no see.” Seeing that face I had hated for ten years, my hand holding the spatula began to tremble. Nathan had actually brought her into our home. Tina sat on the sofa. Nathan poured her water, then came into the kitchen. He said, “Gia, I invited Tina over for lunch today. Whatever misunderstandings you two had, just talk them out.” “You don’t have many friends here. Tina was our high school classmate, and she works at my company now. We can all hang out together when we have time.” “All you do is stay home and write. You barely know how to socialize anymore.” I was so angry my teeth clenched. “Nathan Carter, are you sick?” “You know I hate her most, and you still brought her here. Are you doing this on purpose?” “Gia, don’t be angry. There must be misunderstandings between you two. Once you clear them up, it’ll be fine.” He untied my apron. “How about this? I’ll cook. You go out and chat with her. She really isn’t the same as before. Trust me.” Maybe the memories were too heavy. Just seeing Tina’s face triggered me. I would always remember the smile on her face as she pressed a lit cigarette into the back of my wrist. “Gia Morgan, don’t you love tattling? Go on. Keep tattling.” “Lift your wrist and show everyone. Tell them I bullied you.” She raised her brows and met my eyes. “Go ahead. See if the Ice Witch punishes me.” Tina had always been our homeroom teacher’s favorite student. Her English grades were always first in the year. Why would the teacher punish her over such a small thing? Even if I told the teacher, I would only hear, “She was just joking.” Nathan half-pushed me out of the kitchen and sat me beside Tina. The moment I sat down, my whole body felt wrong. I still hated Tina. Very, very much. So much I wanted to tear her apart. Nathan went into the kitchen to cook. Only Tina and I were left in the living room. Tina held her cup and chatted with me. “I can’t believe you and Nathan are getting married. Time really flies.” “In high school, I already thought something was going on between you two. Nobody believed you’d actually end up together, but I said you definitely would.” “I heard you started dating in college. That’s eight or nine years now, right?” “School sweethearts. So romantic.” After saying that, she looked almost nostalgic. I said nothing, head lowered, thumb scrolling across my phone. There was nothing for Tina and me to talk about. What would we discuss? How she bullied me in high school? Seeing me silent, Tina continued. “I want to apologize for what happened before. We were young and ignorant back then. I didn’t know right from wrong.” “But seeing you now, I’m happy for you.” “Nathan said you still haven’t found bridesmaids. I’m free that day. I can be one.” “No need.” I looked up at Tina, my tone firm. The air went awkward for a moment. Tina laughed dryly and took a few sips of water. 3 Dinner was ready soon. Nathan brought dish after dish to the table. They were all foods I liked. Four dishes and a soup. Very generous. During dinner, Nathan kept trying to create conversation. He talked about our college years, their company, the wedding, the future. Then he said, “Gia, it’s been so many years. Stop clinging to old grudges. People will laugh if they see you like this.” “How about this? I’ll make the decision today. You two drink this, and all past grievances are erased. How does that sound?” Tina immediately lifted her glass and held it in front of me. “Gia, I was ignorant before. I apologize.” “I’ll be your bridesmaid. You can order me to do anything at the wedding. Consider it my apology.” Under the table, Nathan kicked my leg and gave me frantic looks. In his eyes, Tina had already made the biggest concession. I should know better. One drink, and we would smile away the past. I slowly picked up the glass on the table and lightly clinked it against Tina’s. Then I drank it all. “Good,” Nathan immediately clapped. “That’s more like it.” “Then it’s settled. Tina will be your bridesmaid.” Tina said, “Bridesmaids are usually in even numbers, right? Quinn is free that day too. I’ll call her.” Quinn had been Tina’s little follower, one of the girls who bullied me alongside her. Nathan immediately praised Tina for being thoughtful, then said to me, “See? Just like that, the bridesmaid problem is solved.” I lowered my head and looked at the scars on my wrist. Ten years had passed, and they were still there. The marks were faint now, but no matter how faint, they proved that cigarette butts had once burned my skin. I nodded. “Fine.” Nathan and Tina smiled at each other, as if finally relieved. Soon, the wedding day arrived. The bride was about to go onstage, but Tina and Quinn still hadn’t arrived. Nathan looked at me apologetically. He had called Tina more than ten times. No answer. Only just now had Tina finally picked up, saying she overslept and was rushing over. Where we lived, bridesmaids played a very important role in weddings. When the bride went onstage, bridesmaids had to follow beside her. During the toasts, they helped carry things. Without bridesmaids, not only would things be inconvenient, the bride would also be laughed at. After all, having no bridesmaids meant the bride had poor relationships. People would imagine all kinds of strange stories. “Gia, wait a little longer. Tina already left. She’ll be here soon.” I smiled. “It’s fine. I found bridesmaids a long time ago.” Two bridesmaids in matching dresses came out of the dressing room. They were professional bridesmaids I had hired long ago. They had attended more than a dozen weddings and were very familiar with the process. Seeing the two bridesmaids behind me, Nathan froze. The apology on his face instantly sank. “Gia, if you found two more bridesmaids, then you’ll have four bridesmaids.” “I only have two groomsmen.” “That’s why I found two more groomsmen for you too.” As I spoke, two of Nathan’s former colleagues, Ryan Wells and Sean Brooks, stepped out in groomsmen suits. They walked to Nathan’s side and hooked their arms around his shoulders. “Nathan, that’s not cool. You’re getting married and didn’t even tell us?” “If your wife hadn’t called, we wouldn’t have known today was your wedding.” The moment Nathan saw them, his face darkened.

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