When my wealthy mom and dad divorced, Mom wanted to take me with her, but I insisted on going to Grandma Rose’s house out of town. Everyone thought I was crazy. But what they didn’t know was that this was the third time I’d answered that question. The first time, I joyfully moved into a big, beautiful new house with Mom. But when I accidentally messed up one of Matteus’s drawings, she fractured three of my ribs. “I never wanted to take you!” she screamed. “Why are you so shameless, clinging to me like this?” With my broken ribs piercing my organs, I gasped my last breath in despair. Reborn, I smartened up. The next time, I let Mom take my younger brother, Matteus: “Matteus is younger, he needs you more than I do. I’ll just stay with Dad!” But after she took Matteus, she tricked me into coming to her house anyway. She locked both Matteus and me in the basement, where we slowly starved to death. “I didn’t want to take your brother,” she hissed. “Why did you have to meddle?” Now, I’ve been reborn again. Watching Mom’s gentle smile, a chilling dread spread through me. Who was it, really, that she wanted to take with her?
“I don’t want to go with Mom, and I don’t want to go with Dad. I want to go to Grandma Rose’s place out of town!” My whole body trembled as I spoke those words. But I forced myself to look up, meeting Mom’s gaze directly. Mom’s face instantly twisted, her eyes turning red. She grabbed my hand, her voice thick with tears: “Chloe, why? Did I do something wrong? Don’t you like me anymore?” Her hand was soft and warm, but I violently pulled away, afraid to look at her again: “No!” “I just miss Grandma Rose!” “That kid must be out of her mind!” Aunt Brenda’s sharp voice pierced my ears: “Not going with her mom is one thing, but not even going with her dad? What kind of life will she have out in the sticks?” “Exactly, Chloe, your exams are coming up. Don’t be so stubborn!” Aunt Margaret also tried to persuade me. A bitter laugh echoed in my mind. Whether I went with Dad or Mom, I couldn’t escape the fate of being tormented to death. So this time, I had to find my own way out! Ignoring the chaos around me, I turned and ran back to my room. I emptied my piggy bank into my backpack, and without a backward glance, I secretly slipped out of the house. It wasn’t until I was on the bus heading out of town that I finally let out a sigh of relief. Scenes from my previous two lives flashed through my mind like a nightmare. In the first life, when Mom asked that question, I agreed without hesitation. Happily, I went with her to that big, beautiful new house. I foolishly believed Mom hadn’t abandoned me, just moved to a different place. Until that day, when I accidentally knocked over a glass of water, staining a crayon drawing Matteus had made for Mom. When Mom found out, her eyes changed instantly. She snatched up the golf club beside her and swung it fiercely at me, her previous gentleness completely vanished: “Who told you to touch it! I never wanted to take *you* when I divorced!” “I just asked as a courtesy, why are you so shameless, clinging on just to live a good life!” She shattered three of my ribs, causing internal bleeding, but Mom made no move to call an ambulance. After drawing my last breath in despair, I was reborn, returning to the moment Mom said she wanted to take me. This time, I was smarter. I immediately pushed elementary-aged Matteus towards Mom: “Mom, please take Matteus. He’s still small and can’t be without you. I’ll be fine with Dad!” Mom’s face immediately darkened, her eyes chillingly sinister, but in the end, she took Matteus. I thought I was safe. But less than a month later, Mom tricked me into going out, saying she’d take me to the amusement park. Instead, she locked both Matteus and me in the villa’s basement. Through the iron grate, Mom screamed like a madwoman: “Why are you forcing me? I never wanted him! Chloe, why did you have to meddle?” There was no water, no food in the basement. Matteus cried until his throat was raw. I held him close, and in the darkness and hunger, I lost consciousness once more. Now, it was my third life. Clutching my backpack, tears streamed down my face. Mom, who exactly do you want to take with you? Are neither Matteus nor I what you want?
Grandma Rose saw me and was both surprised and overjoyed. She quickly pulled me inside, looking me up and down: “Oh, my sweet girl, why did you come back alone?” “Are you hungry? Grandma will cook for you!” Looking at Grandma Rose’s gray hair and her concerned eyes, a lump formed in my throat. In this world, Grandma Rose was probably the only one who truly cared about me. That night, I snuggled beside Grandma Rose, listening to her chatter about how much money she’d saved. It was all for my college education, she said, telling me to settle in and not worry. My heart felt both warm and terrified. I was scared that even hiding here with Grandma Rose, Mom wouldn’t easily let me go. Right now, I had to figure out who Mom truly wanted to take, and why she was doing all this. Otherwise, it would just be putting off the inevitable. On the day I went to handle my school transfer paperwork, I secretly snuck off to Matteus’s school. Matteus saw me and jumped in surprise: “Chloe, why are you back? Mom came to school yesterday looking for me, asking if I knew where you were.” I pulled him into a corner and lowered my voice: “Matteus, tell me the truth. Have you felt like something’s wrong with our family lately?” Matteus’s eyes suddenly changed, filling with fear. He looked left and right before whispering: “Chloe, I had a really scary dream. I dreamt we both died!” My whole body stiffened! “In the dream, Mom and Dad divorced, and she wanted to take you, but you pushed me towards her! At first, she was really nice to me, but then one day, I accidentally messed up a photo of you…” Matteus’s voice choked with tears: “Mom saw it and became a different person. She hit me hard with a hanger, saying I wasn’t worthy of touching your things. Later, she tricked you into coming, and she locked both of us up…” The more I listened, the more alarmed and confused I became. This was too strange. In the first life, I was beaten to death by Mom for ruining Matteus’s drawing. At that time, I thought Mom loved Matteus and wanted to take him. But in the second life, Matteus was punished by Mom for messing up my photo. Mom seemed to love both of us siblings, yet she also seemed to love neither. What was going on? “Matteus, when you go back, secretly observe Dad.” I instructed Matteus: “See if he’s acting strangely. I have a feeling Mom and Dad’s divorce wasn’t as simple as it seemed!” After settling things with Matteus, I used the money I’d saved to hire a private investigator, asking him to focus on the real reason for my parents’ divorce. My gut told me that the person Mom truly wanted to take was closely linked to the reason for their divorce. A few days later, the detective told me my parents had divorced peacefully due to irreconcilable differences, and the property division went smoothly. Neither of them had been cheating. However, the detective mentioned an old secret. My Aunt Sarah, who had died in a car accident many years ago, had apparently been with my dad before marrying Uncle Daniel. But she was gone, so that lead seemed dead. I comforted myself, thinking that in this life, neither Matteus nor I had gone with Mom, so she should have no reason to go crazy again, right? However, I was still too naive. That day after school, as I walked out of the school gates, I saw Mom standing by her car, smiling and waving at me. She was holding a fancy cake box. A chill shot down my spine.
“Chloe!” Mom hurried forward, her eyes red: “You just left without a word, kid! Do you know how worried Mom was?” She reached out to grab me, and I instinctively took a step back. Her smile faltered, but quickly softened again: “Look, Mom brought you a cake. Why don’t you come home with me for a couple of days?” “Mom also bought you lots of new dresses, and your room is all decorated, it’s your favorite princess style.” If I hadn’t died twice, I almost would have been fooled by her again. I eyed her warily: “I’m fine, you don’t need to worry. Grandma Rose is taking good care of me.” “Chloe, why are you being so disobedient!” Mom’s voice took on a tearful tone: “Mom is doing this for your own good. How can the education in the countryside compare to the city? You’ll fall behind in your studies!” Just then, the back door of the sedan opened, and Dad and Matteus surprisingly got out of the car. Dad looked a bit awkward. He adjusted his glasses and said: “Chloe, your mom is right. Go back with her. Grandma Rose is getting old and can’t take care of you properly…” Matteus stood behind Dad, head down, not daring to say a word, his small hands nervously clutching his shirt. My heart sank. Dad’s attitude was off! In the previous two lives, while he didn’t object to me going with Mom, he certainly didn’t push me away so eagerly! And his gaze, when he looked at me, was somewhat evasive. Mom saw I wasn’t speaking and reached for me again: “Come on, Chloe. Mom even had Aunt Maria cook all your favorite dishes…” Just then, a figure suddenly rushed over and pulled me behind her. It was Grandma Rose! Her face was flushed with anger as she pointed at Mom and scolded: “Eleanor Vance! Have you no shame! You’re divorced, and you’re still harassing my granddaughter!” “I wondered why Chloe wasn’t home so late. Turns out you ambushed her here!” Mom’s face went pale, then green, then white again: “Mom… I’m doing this for Chloe’s own good…” “Who’s your Mom!” Grandma Rose wouldn’t listen: “My granddaughter is doing perfectly fine here! Do you think we need your fake concern?” “Now get lost! If you dare to bother Chloe again, I’ll call the police on you!” Seeing the two of them, a ridiculous thought suddenly popped into my head. Mom treated me so badly in the previous two lives—could it be because she had a bad relationship with Grandma Rose? And since I resembled Grandma Rose, maybe she transferred her hatred for Grandma Rose onto me? Mom seemed intimidated by Grandma Rose’s presence and backed down. She took a deep breath, picked up the cake box, and her tone softened: “Alright, I won’t take Chloe. But this cake, I made it myself.” She said, opening the cake box. Inside was a beautiful cream cake, but it was covered with chopped walnuts. My brow furrowed. I never liked walnuts, even as a child. Mom was here to convince me to come back, so why would she specifically make a walnut cake that I hated? This made no sense at all! And it wasn’t my birthday today, so why make a cake? “Chloe, have a bite! Mom made it especially for you.” Mom held a small spoon out to me, her eyes full of expectation. I didn’t take it. Instead, I looked up at her: “Mom, you know I don’t like walnuts, so why did you make a walnut cake?” Mom paused, then a look of helpless, doting affection appeared on her face: “Silly girl, of course Mom knows you don’t like walnuts, but walnuts are good for your brain! Mom is just thinking about your health!” Her eyes were clear, and her explanation was perfectly reasonable. For a moment, I even wavered. Maybe I was the one who did something wrong, causing Mom to torment me like a madwoman in my previous lives. She remembered all my preferences, had been meticulously caring for me since I was little, would braid my hair beautifully, and would stay up all night when I was sick. Dad traveled frequently for work, so Mom was often the one taking care of Matteus and me. Even though she was busy, she always had patience for us. When did she start changing?
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