I once believed Ronald would be my salvation.My parents always told me we were poor, and I believed them. But now, I realized that my sister and I are actually heiresses to the renowned Fall Corporation."Alice, be a good girl. All the family's money has gone to your sister’s treatment and education. We don’t have any extra, so you have to work hard and help pay for her medical bills."My sister, Beatrice, was born fair-skinned and beautiful, with an extraordinary talent for music. The family adored her, treating her like a precious jewel. They gave her the only chance to attend college, sending her to the prestigious Bartin College of Music overseas, paying for her expensive education.Meanwhile, I gave up on pursuing university, even though I scored top marks on my high school exams. I didn’t apply to any colleges. Instead, I graduated and went straight to work—washing dishes and delivering food. And every few months, I had to donate blood to Beatrice.Now I realized, all those lies
I watched his back as he walked away, my lips parted slightly, whispering, “Goodbye, Ronald.”Just then, an unfamiliar doctor walked in with my parents.“This time, it’s no small amount. Has the blood donation consent form been signed?”My parents glanced at me, then nodded. “It’s signed, doctor. Beatrice’s surgery can start. Please take good care of her.”Seeing how easily they signed the consent form, I murmured softly, “Mom, Dad, I will always love you.”It was something I used to say to them when I was little.I remember a time when things were different. There was a period when my parents, possibly after some business failure, seemed defeated for a long time. Little me would place my soft hands on their faces and gently comfort them, and they’d find the strength to carry on.“With me here, our Beatrice will get better. Everything will get better.” I repeated those words now, as I was being wheeled into the operating room, in a bitter, almost pleading tone.For a brief moment, my
But this time, I couldn’t respond to him.Shawn, not even bothering to wipe the sweat from his brow, hurriedly pressed the defibrillator against my chest. Once. Twice. Again and again.Each shock sent my body jolting upward, my chest convulsing with every surge. But there was no response. The heart monitor stayed flat, the red light blinking steadily, without a flicker of hope.“Wake up! You can’t sleep, Alice!”He tried every life-saving measure he could, but it was too late. I had no more signs of life.Exhausted, he collapsed onto the floor beside me, his hands burying themselves into his hair, his shoulders shaking as he broke down in sobs.“I couldn’t save you… I was too late. I didn’t learn about this in time, I’m so sorry.”My soul hovered next to him, wanting so badly to comfort him, to pat his shoulder and tell him it wasn’t his fault. But my hand passed right through him.He began removing the tubes from my body, one by one, and even took away the bag of unused blood, which h
"Get out of my way, I need to see my daughter!" My father couldn’t accept the truth. He shoved the medical staff aside and stormed into the operating room.I lay there, silently, my face pale from the severe blood loss with no sound left in me.His steps faltered when he felt the dried blood beneath his feet.“Whose blood is this?” Shawn answered coldly, “It’s your daughter’s blood. Don’t you recognize it?”When my father saw my lifeless body, he reached out while trembling to feel for any breath. His pupils widened in shock.For a long moment, he was speechless. Then, in a voice hoarse with grief, tears streamed down his weathered face as he touched mine.“Alice, my Alice... please wake up.”Behind him, my mother rushed into the room. The moment she saw me, her face turned as white as mine. She let out a heart-wrenching scream. "Alice! I can’t live without you!"Even Ronald stood frozen as if he finally had to accept the grim reality of my death. His knees gave way beneath him, an
I once secretly saved up money, dreaming of marrying Ronald.We’d have a cat and a dog, and the house wouldn’t need to be big—just enough to keep us warm. I imagined sunny afternoons where I’d polish his guitar strings, brew him a cup of tea, and listen to him play the guitar while dancing for him.In countless dark moments, those daydreams carried me through sleepless nights. The only light in the darkest corners of my life, I held onto it carefully, cherishing it like a treasure. All because of a promise he once made in passing.“If my Alice doesn’t have an umbrella, then I’ll be your umbrella. From now on, I’ll shield you from the storms, and no one will ever hurt you again.”I believed him.But, in the end, the man I clung to as my last lifeline was nothing more than a fleeting illusion. True love could be a steady anchor, but it was also unpredictable and fleeting.Now, I lay in the cold confines of the hospital morgue, waiting for my turn in the cremation line.Beatrice had woke
Extra: Shawn TuckerI once treated a young girl who regularly donated blood to save her sister’s life. She had a rare blood type, RH-negative—something hard to come by and highly sought after for transfusions.At first, I was deeply moved by her. In a time when kindness and loyalty seemed so rare, she was willing to sacrifice her own health to donate blood to her sister. When she first came to me, she was cautious, but there was a playful spark beneath her careful demeanor.She once teased me, “Dr. Tucker, you’re so young and successful—why are you still single at thirty?”I flicked her forehead lightly and said, “You’re too young to worry about grown-up matters. I just haven’t met the right person yet.”But over time, I began to notice something wasn’t right. She started coming in more and more frequently. The playful smile on her face disappeared, replaced by a frail, exhausted expression. After pressing her for answers, I finally learned the truth—she had given up her education an
Extra: Shawn TuckerI once treated a young girl who regularly donated blood to save her sister’s life. She had a rare blood type, RH-negative—something hard to come by and highly sought after for transfusions.At first, I was deeply moved by her. In a time when kindness and loyalty seemed so rare, she was willing to sacrifice her own health to donate blood to her sister. When she first came to me, she was cautious, but there was a playful spark beneath her careful demeanor.She once teased me, “Dr. Tucker, you’re so young and successful—why are you still single at thirty?”I flicked her forehead lightly and said, “You’re too young to worry about grown-up matters. I just haven’t met the right person yet.”But over time, I began to notice something wasn’t right. She started coming in more and more frequently. The playful smile on her face disappeared, replaced by a frail, exhausted expression. After pressing her for answers, I finally learned the truth—she had given up her education an
I once secretly saved up money, dreaming of marrying Ronald.We’d have a cat and a dog, and the house wouldn’t need to be big—just enough to keep us warm. I imagined sunny afternoons where I’d polish his guitar strings, brew him a cup of tea, and listen to him play the guitar while dancing for him.In countless dark moments, those daydreams carried me through sleepless nights. The only light in the darkest corners of my life, I held onto it carefully, cherishing it like a treasure. All because of a promise he once made in passing.“If my Alice doesn’t have an umbrella, then I’ll be your umbrella. From now on, I’ll shield you from the storms, and no one will ever hurt you again.”I believed him.But, in the end, the man I clung to as my last lifeline was nothing more than a fleeting illusion. True love could be a steady anchor, but it was also unpredictable and fleeting.Now, I lay in the cold confines of the hospital morgue, waiting for my turn in the cremation line.Beatrice had woke
"Get out of my way, I need to see my daughter!" My father couldn’t accept the truth. He shoved the medical staff aside and stormed into the operating room.I lay there, silently, my face pale from the severe blood loss with no sound left in me.His steps faltered when he felt the dried blood beneath his feet.“Whose blood is this?” Shawn answered coldly, “It’s your daughter’s blood. Don’t you recognize it?”When my father saw my lifeless body, he reached out while trembling to feel for any breath. His pupils widened in shock.For a long moment, he was speechless. Then, in a voice hoarse with grief, tears streamed down his weathered face as he touched mine.“Alice, my Alice... please wake up.”Behind him, my mother rushed into the room. The moment she saw me, her face turned as white as mine. She let out a heart-wrenching scream. "Alice! I can’t live without you!"Even Ronald stood frozen as if he finally had to accept the grim reality of my death. His knees gave way beneath him, an
But this time, I couldn’t respond to him.Shawn, not even bothering to wipe the sweat from his brow, hurriedly pressed the defibrillator against my chest. Once. Twice. Again and again.Each shock sent my body jolting upward, my chest convulsing with every surge. But there was no response. The heart monitor stayed flat, the red light blinking steadily, without a flicker of hope.“Wake up! You can’t sleep, Alice!”He tried every life-saving measure he could, but it was too late. I had no more signs of life.Exhausted, he collapsed onto the floor beside me, his hands burying themselves into his hair, his shoulders shaking as he broke down in sobs.“I couldn’t save you… I was too late. I didn’t learn about this in time, I’m so sorry.”My soul hovered next to him, wanting so badly to comfort him, to pat his shoulder and tell him it wasn’t his fault. But my hand passed right through him.He began removing the tubes from my body, one by one, and even took away the bag of unused blood, which h
I watched his back as he walked away, my lips parted slightly, whispering, “Goodbye, Ronald.”Just then, an unfamiliar doctor walked in with my parents.“This time, it’s no small amount. Has the blood donation consent form been signed?”My parents glanced at me, then nodded. “It’s signed, doctor. Beatrice’s surgery can start. Please take good care of her.”Seeing how easily they signed the consent form, I murmured softly, “Mom, Dad, I will always love you.”It was something I used to say to them when I was little.I remember a time when things were different. There was a period when my parents, possibly after some business failure, seemed defeated for a long time. Little me would place my soft hands on their faces and gently comfort them, and they’d find the strength to carry on.“With me here, our Beatrice will get better. Everything will get better.” I repeated those words now, as I was being wheeled into the operating room, in a bitter, almost pleading tone.For a brief moment, my
I once believed Ronald would be my salvation.My parents always told me we were poor, and I believed them. But now, I realized that my sister and I are actually heiresses to the renowned Fall Corporation."Alice, be a good girl. All the family's money has gone to your sister’s treatment and education. We don’t have any extra, so you have to work hard and help pay for her medical bills."My sister, Beatrice, was born fair-skinned and beautiful, with an extraordinary talent for music. The family adored her, treating her like a precious jewel. They gave her the only chance to attend college, sending her to the prestigious Bartin College of Music overseas, paying for her expensive education.Meanwhile, I gave up on pursuing university, even though I scored top marks on my high school exams. I didn’t apply to any colleges. Instead, I graduated and went straight to work—washing dishes and delivering food. And every few months, I had to donate blood to Beatrice.Now I realized, all those lies
I watched as the blood slowly flowed from my body through the IV tube, drop by drop. My lips turned pale, and the veins on my wrist stood out clearly, thin and fragile.I had long lost count of how many times I’d donated blood for Beatrice Fall.My doctor, Shawn Tucker told me that my body, weakened by malnutrition, was no longer fit for donating blood.He gave me a stern warning, "Alice, if you keep this up, you’re going to die. You need to stop thinking only about your sister. What about the people who care about you?"I smiled fearlessly. “But those people only care about her. As long as she’s alive, they might spare me a little affection.”Shawn’s voice was resolute. “If you come back to donate again, I won’t be part of it.”Beatrice had a rare blood disorder, and to make matters worse, she had RH-negative blood—a rare type that's hard to match. Every so often, she needed a transfusion.I was the only one in the family who could donate for her.Since the day I was born, I had been