The Third Year After My Death Three years after my death, my blind ex-boyfriend returned from abroad. He brought back the luxury car and million-dollar engagement ring I had once dreamed of. But he said he never loved me. He just wanted to see the regret on my face, thinking I was a gold digger. What he didn’t know was that the corneas he received three years ago were my final gift to him after I died from breast cancer. I saw James Foster again three years after my death. His limited edition Bentley was parked in front of my old, rundown apartment, nearly blocking the entire street. He stepped out of the car in an expensive suit, his eyes filled with arrogance as he looked down on my younger sister, who was still in college. “Where’s Lily Adams? Tell her to come out and see me,” he demanded. When he mentioned my name, a clear hatred flashed in James’s eyes. My sister, feeling indignant on my behalf, angrily replied, “Why are you back? My sister is already dead…” As he was an ex-boyfriend, she had expected James to be saddened by the news of my death. But James just let out a cold laugh. “That gold digger, is she regretting abandoning me and faking her death to trick me?” With that, James snapped his fingers, and a group of men in black suits swarmed into our cramped yard. Each of them carried a briefcase, which they opened in unison, revealing stacks of crisp bills. A rough estimate put it at about ten million dollars. Neighbors gathered at our door to watch the spectacle, murmuring in astonishment. “Back then, Lily rejected me because I couldn’t afford an engagement ring, and she cruelly abandoned me when I went blind. Now that my eyesight is restored, let her come out and see if she’s worthy of this ten-million-dollar ring!” James declared, arms crossed and chin held high as he stared at my sister. He continued, “Tell Lily, I will never forgive her for what she did, unless…” James’s threat was obvious. “She kneels down and begs me.” The onlookers began to whisper among themselves. “Ten million dollars for an engagement ring? That’s insane! She always seemed like such a nice girl, who would have thought…” “Come to think of it, we haven’t seen that girl in about three years. Did she run off with some rich guy?” These hurtful comments reached my ears, and I saw my sister’s expression darken. “I told you, my sister is dead. Now get out of here, I don’t want to see you,” she snapped. When I died, my family had spent almost all their money on my treatment. To leave something for my sister’s education, my funeral had been a simple affair. So most people didn’t know about my death. It was understandable that James didn’t believe it. I had said some hurtful things to leave him, but I loved him. I would rather have the man I loved hate me than spend his life in sorrow! Clearly, James enjoyed seeing me subjected to public criticism. After hearing those comments, he left, satisfied. The commotion quickly died down. I was relieved… If James had walked in a bit further, he would have seen the memorial tablet my sister had set up for me. My sister was still shaking with anger over those nasty comments. After everyone left, she went back inside, muttering to herself. “Sis, was this man really worth it?”
James’s blindness wasn’t congenital. He lost his sight as a child after being kidnapped. As the illegitimate son of the Foster family, with his mother long gone and his father always away, no one really cared about him, which delayed his treatment. Our meeting wasn’t exactly a fairytale. I was running a small flower shop at the time. He got lost and stumbled into my shop asking for directions. I guess you could call it love at first sight. In the sea of flowers, the handsome boy’s face was half-hidden by petals. Though his eyes were vacant, they couldn’t hide his noble air. I remember thinking what a shame it was that such a good-looking boy couldn’t see. Later, I was the one who pursued him. I figured there was nothing wrong with a girl making the first move. They say it’s easy for a girl to catch a boy, and James quickly surrendered to my advances. I found a sense of home with James, while James experienced being truly loved for the first time. The unexpected happened three years ago when I was suddenly diagnosed with late-stage liver cancer. Afraid that James couldn’t handle it, I made up an excuse to break up with him. I still remember the day we broke up. It was snowing heavily. James stood across from me. When I said, “I don’t want to be with a useless illegitimate son anymore. I want to find someone rich,” James bit his lower lip hard. “So all those promises about staying together forever were lies?” he asked. “Of course. I just thought you were good-looking and wanted to play around. Did you really think I liked you?” Those words were like a knife carving out his heart, and they hurt me just as much. The cold wind crept under my clothes. I gritted my teeth, clutching the medical report in my pocket, trying to keep my voice steady, but it still trembled. “Lily, I’ll talk to my dad about working at the company. Even though I can’t see, I’ll work hard to learn. Trust me, I’ll give you a future, please don’t leave me.” “A future? You’re blind, with no money or connections. How can you compete with your brothers and sisters? How can you give me a future?” “Let’s just end this on good terms,” I said, unable to look at James’s face. I was afraid I’d break down crying the next second, so I turned and walked away. But I couldn’t help worrying about James, so I secretly followed him. That day, James fell several times on the path that usually took only ten minutes to walk. It took him a full hour to get home. Each time James fell, my heart ached. I hated myself for not being able to tell James the truth, but I couldn’t selfishly let him suffer for the rest of his life. Now, as I floated above, watching James achieve success and fame, I felt a mix of emotions. My soul followed James. To my surprise, the second place James visited after returning to the country was the flower shop I used to run. The door hit the wind chimes, making a crisp sound. A young girl turned around to greet James warmly. It felt like a lifetime ago. That girl looked a lot like me when I was younger – pure and innocent. A wave of bitterness washed over me. This flower shop held all my beautiful memories; it meant so much to me. James carefully looked around. I don’t know if it was my imagination, but I saw James’s eyes turn red. “Can I help you with anything, sir?” the girl asked as she approached. James snapped out of his thoughts and apologized. “I’m sorry, we don’t sell irises here.” The girl noticed some irises in the corner and pointed at them. “Aren’t those irises over there?” “Those… are reserved for someone I love,” James replied. His cold and cruel tone sent chills through me. “But the business here looks pretty good…” his assistant remarked, surprised. James’s face showed annoyance. “This place is my shame. It must be destroyed!” My heart clenched. So James hated me this much.
In just a week, James bought the flower shop. He came in person to watch as bulldozers razed it to the ground. I stood at the shop’s entrance, stretching out my arms to try and block them, screaming desperately. “No! Please, don’t…” My voice grew fainter. I had almost forgotten – they couldn’t see or hear me. But James used to cherish this flower shop as much as I did. He cared for it no less than I did. Once, when some thugs came to collect protection money and I couldn’t afford it, they threatened to wreck the shop. Although James couldn’t see, he still stood at the door, vowing to protect our little shop that felt like home. The thugs beat him mercilessly. Even when he could barely stand, covered in bruises, he still shielded me and wouldn’t let them come near the shop. If the police hadn’t arrived in time, he might have been beaten to death. That night, as I tended to his wounds with tears in my eyes, I asked him why he was so foolish. James said, “This is where we met. I can’t bear to lose it.” I think at that time, James must have loved me deeply, protecting our memories with his life. How many times had others tried to destroy this place, and James had desperately protected it? But now, it was he who personally ordered it to be razed to the ground. I looked back at what was once called home, now just a pile of rubble. I collapsed to the ground. James’s face was hidden in the dust, his eyes cold as ice. A woman stepped out of the car, thoughtfully draping her coat over James’s shoulders. The woman was beautiful and elegant, dressed in designer clothes from head to toe. Standing next to James, they looked like a perfect match. “It’s just an old flower shop. Why did you have to come here in person?” she asked. I recognized her. She was Vanessa Thompson, James’s high school classmate, known as a social butterfly. How did they end up together? James seemed to rely on Vanessa quite a bit. I was shocked. Even though I was dead, I worried about James being deceived by such a manipulative woman. I hurried to follow them. In the car, James held Vanessa’s hand, looking somewhat tired. “Thank goodness I have you. You helped me find the cornea donor.” These words hit me like a thunderbolt, making my ears ring. Vanessa snuggled into James’s arms, smiling. “Silly, it’s because I love you. I’m not like Lily, who abandoned you when you needed her most.” At her words, a crack appeared in James’s previously calm expression. “Don’t mention that gold digger. She doesn’t deserve to be compared to you. She makes me sick.” The disgust in James’s eyes was obvious, sending a sharp pain through my heart. No, the corneas were donated by me. I clenched my fists tightly, my shoulders shaking. Vanessa chuckled softly. “Alright, we’re getting married soon. You’d better give me a romantic wedding.” Vanessa rested her head on James’s chest again. My mind went blank. James was getting married? To such a liar? I felt suffocated, staring at James in disbelief. Only then did I notice the diamond ring on his finger. A heartbreaking pain spread through my entire being. If I had known that the corneas I donated to James would be claimed by an imposter, I wouldn’t have died so quietly. But it was too late now. James absent-mindedly looked out the car window, gripping his phone tightly, his knuckles turning white. I could see that the phone displayed the last message I had sent him. [I wish you happiness.] That was the message I sent to James with my last moments of sight before donating my corneas. I had been following James for a long time now, so long that I had lost track of time. It seemed that after death, my sense of time had become vague. “Still haven’t found her?” James looked up at his assistant from his desk in the office, his eyes full of impatience. “I’m sorry, Mr. Foster. We’ve been searching for a week, but there’s no trace of Lily Adams,” the assistant said, hanging his head. “Useless! All of you are useless! How hard is it to find one woman? I refuse to believe she’s vanished into thin air! Keep looking! Even if she’s dead, dig her up from the grave!”
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