Stepping out of the hospital, an overwhelming sense of despair clung to me.

Just then, Frank's call came in at the most inopportune moment.

"Where did you go on leave today?"

"I wasn't feeling well, so I went to see a doctor."

"There's an important banquet at home tomorrow. You're in charge of the preparations. Don't mess it up."

After hanging up, I stared at the bustling street, and in an instant, my vision blurred with tears. I knew my life was in the countdown.

The next day, I arrived at Frank's house early and plunged headlong into the banquet preparations. As I polished every piece of cutlery and arranged every bouquet of flowers, my body became increasingly disobedient.

The weakness brought on by amyotrophic lateral sclerosis grew more intense.

"This is a banquet that alpha Frank attaches great importance to. If you mess it up, you can't afford the consequences!" the butler frowned and reminded me.

Frank, from his seat on the living - room sofa, watched my every laborious move with cold indifference.

Finally, the banquet commenced smoothly. Everything was flawlessly executed. The guests' compliments rained down one after another, but I was on the verge of collapse, my legs barely able to support my weight.

Then, in the middle of the banquet, Frank called me over in front of everyone.

He took a long drag from his cigarette.

Without warning, he reached out and pressed the burning tip of the cigarette onto the back of my hand.

I let out a sharp cry of pain.

The stench of burning flesh filled the air, and the guests around us gasped in horror.

"Look at you, so clumsy. You can't even hold a tray without shaking. I don't know why I ever hired someone as incompetent as you," he sneered.

He then roughly grabbed my hair, pulling my head back so that I was forced to look up at him. He spat in my face, the warm spittle running down my cheek.

I bit my lip and said nothing.

A noblewoman, who had witnessed the scene, took pity on me. S

he rushed over, trying to pull Frank away from me.

"Stop this madness! How can you treat a person like this?" she exclaimed angrily. But alplha Frank just shoved her aside.

She approached me later and said, "You're clearly more capable than he gives you credit for. Why stay here and endure such treatment? You could come work for me." I smiled faintly.

I shook my head, "I can't leave. I have to stay."

After the banquet, it was already late at night.

I dragged my tired body to the kitchen to clean up. I was so exhausted that I didn't notice Frank following me.

He watched my staggering steps.

Just as I was about to pick up the rag, I was suddenly grabbed by the wrist from behind and spun around.

The next second, I was pinned against the kitchen counter.

Frank pressed his body close to mine, his hands firmly gripping my shoulders. He began to nuzzle my neck.

I thrashed and squirmed with all my might.

"Frank, stop! Please, for God's sake, stop!" I gasped.

But he was deaf to my pleas.

He roughly pulled down my pants and violently penetrated me from behind.

The searing pain exploded through my body.

After what felt like an eternity of suffering, he finally released his hold.

I crumpled to the floor, my body completely limp.

I sat there, gasping for air. Tears streamed down my face.

"Always acting like this. Do you want to make me feel sorry for you? Why won't you leave!"

"If I leave, I'll never have the chance to make up for it."

This infuriated Frank even more.

He suddenly punched the countertop.

The hatred in his eyes was like a sharp blade, cutting me to pieces,

"Then why don't you go die? Go die!"

I gave a bitter smile.

As he wished, I was really dying.

Just as I was about to speak, Frank's phone suddenly rang.

I looked down and saw the name on it. Lisa, his current fiancée.

Frank's breathing became heavier. After answering the phone, he seemed to be back to the elegant Frank in front of others.

"Lisa."

The next second, he let go of me, said nothing, and turned to leave.

I leaned against the countertop.

After watching his back disappear, I finally couldn't hold on anymore.

A strong sense of dizziness hit me. I completely fainted.

I had a dream.

In the dream, it was a sunny day at the family's annual charity event.

I was a volunteer, busy arranging the donation boxes.

Frank was there as one of the main donors.

In a hurry, I accidentally bumped into him, causing the donation receipts in my hands to scatter all over the ground.

I was extremely embarrassed and quickly squatted down to pick them up, but Frank was one step ahead of me.

He handed the receipts to me, "Are you okay?" .

From then on, Frank always appeared by my side, helping me solve all kinds of problems.

Later, we got together naturally.

Until, five years ago.

Elena and I went to a party.

It ended very late that day.

On our way home, we encountered a sudden car accident.

A runaway car rushed straight towards us.

At the critical moment, Elena pushed me away with all her strength, but she was hit by the car.

I watched in horror as Elena fell in a pool of blood, my mind going blank.

By the time the ambulance arrived, it was already too late.

When Frank arrived, what he saw was his sister's tragic appearance.

He suddenly grabbed my hand, questioning me painfully and despairingly,

"Why are you okay? Why did you let her bear this for you? Why!"

I hated myself more than anyone else.

Later, Frank's family could no longer forgive me.

I lost my best friend and turned against the man I loved deeply.

Fortunately, now, I'm about to die.

I was walking down the busy street. The memory of Elena's death still haunted me.

My legs turned to jelly, and I lost all control.

People around me shrieked in horror,.

Just then, Nill happened to pass by.

He sprinted towards me. "What's wrong? Hang in there!". With a strength that belied his lean frame, he scooped me up and rushed towards his car.

At the hospital, Nill paced back and forth in the waiting room while I was being examined.

When the doctor handed him the diagnosis, his face paled. "Amyotrophic lateral sclerosis? This can't be happening".

When I woke up, Nill was by my side.

His eyes were bloodshot.

"How could you keep this from me? And you're still going back to that Alpha Frank? He's been tormenting you!"

I looked away, unable to meet his gaze. "I have to. It's my fault Elena died. I need to make amends,"

Nill grabbed my shoulders, his grip almost painful.

"You're killing yourself! " he roared.

I pulled away "I've made my decision. Please, just let me be."

Nill knew he couldn't change my mind.

He watched as I left the hospital the next day and made my way to Frank's mansion.

Today was Lisa's birthday, and Alpha Frank was throwing a grand party for her. I was scurrying around to make everything perfect for the celebration.

As soon as Lisa saw me, her eyes narrowed with disdain.

" I can't believe you still have the nerve to be around Frank after what you did,"

I ignored her, focusing on my tasks.

I had long since grown accustomed to her cruel words. Lisa had been in love with Alpha Frank since we were young, and her jealousy towards me had only grown after Elena's death.

Now that she was his fiancée, she took every opportunity to torment me.

Frank entered the room, and Lisa immediately latched onto his arm, purring, "Alpha, I'm so glad you're here."

Frank landed his eyes on me. "What are you doing here? Get to the kitchen and stay out of sight,"

I retreated to the kitchen.

I worked tirelessly, preparing food and drinks for the guests.

As I was carrying a set of delicate silver - plated goblets through the living room, Lisa deliberately stuck out her foot.

I tripped and went flying, the goblets crashing to the floor and shattering into a million pieces.

"You clumsy beta! You did that on purpose!"

I bowed my head in apology. "I'm sorry. I'll clean it up right away."

"Sorry? Do you know how much these goblets are worth? They were passed down through Frank's family for generations. You'll pay for this!" she snarled.

Frank's eyes blazed with anger. "Clean this mess up and then go to the stables. I want every horse groomed and the stalls spotless. Fail to do it, and you'll regret it," .

The stables were freezing cold, and the work was back - breaking.

My hands were raw from the cold and the hard labor, but I didn't stop. I knew better than to disobey Frank's orders.

As the night wore on and the party came to an end, Lisa and Frank emerged from the house. They saw me still working in the stables.

"Not done yet? You're slower than a snail. Get a move on!" he barked.

As we walked past a display of rare artifacts, Lisa let out a shrill scream. "My ancient werewolf amulet! It's broken! You must have knocked it over!" she accused, pointing a finger at me.

I shook my head desperately. "I didn't. I swear, I didn't touch it."

"Don't lie! Alpha Frank, you have to punish her. This amulet is priceless!" Lisa wailed.

Frank's eyes bore into mine.

"Pick up every single piece. If one is missing, you'll be locked in the dungeon for the night," he ordered coldly.

I began to pick up the broken pieces of the amulet.

I was huddled in the corner, my hands bleeding, my knees raw from hours of scrabbling on the concrete floor.

The sharp shards of the broken crystal were like needles, slicing through my skin.

As the first light of dawn filtered through the dirty windows, my fingers finally closed around the last fragment.

Stumbling out of the garage, I made my way back to the mansion.

When I finally reached the living room, Lisa was there, looking as perfect as ever in her designer clothes and flawless makeup.

I held out the crystal ball, my hands shaking so badly that the pieces rattled. Lisa's eyes widened in disgust.

"What the hell is this? It's covered in blood! You're disgusting!" she shrieked, snatching it from me and hurling it to the ground. She stomped on it with her high - heeled shoes.

Frank, who had been sitting on the couch, barely looked up. "If you don't like it, I'll buy you a new one. It's not a big deal," he said cold.

I backed out of the room, my head bowed. The servants' eyes were filled with pity, but I was used to it.

After quickly bandaging my hands, I went back to my chores.

The study was filled with ancient books and important documents, and I had to be careful not to damage any of them. By the time I finished, my back was aching, and my hands were throbbing.

That evening, Lisa came to me with a fake smile.

"You, come and help me change the flower arrangements," she said sweetly.

As soon as I put the baby's breath in the vase, she let out a scream that could have shattered glass.

"Ah! Don't you know I'm allergic to baby's breath? Are you trying to kill me?" she screeched.

Frank's face darkened. "Are you deliberately trying to cause trouble? Throw those flowers away and get new ones, now!" he roared.

I started to clean up the flowers, but as soon as I touched them, my hands began to itch and turn red.

The allergic reaction was getting worse by the second, but I forced myself to pick a new bunch of forget - me - nots. When I presented them to Lisa, she exploded again.

"Are you stupid? I'm allergic to all pollen! You're doing this on purpose to spite me!"

Frank's voice thundered through the room. "You can't even do this simple thing right. No dinner for you tonight. Go and do it again!"

I went to start over.

By the time I was done, I was so weak that I could barely stand.

And my ALS, which had been slowly getting worse, was now at a critical stage.

I was taking herbs to ease the pain, but they were barely working.

It was the weekend, and I was lying on my small, uncomfortable bed, in so much pain that I couldn't even move.

That's when Frank's call came. "Lisa's custom - made dress needs to be changed. Go and pick it up right away!"

"Can someone else go? I'm in so much pain..."

"When did I ever give you the right to refuse? Either go right now or get out of my sight forever!" he roared.

I forced myself out of bed and made my way to the tailor shop.

The dress was expensive and delicate, and I carried it back to the mansion with trembling hands. When I handed it to Lisa, she threw it on the ground.

"Who told you to pick this one? I don't want to wear this style anymore!" she screamed.

I was so tired, so in pain, that I could barely speak. "But... you said..."

Lisa stomped on the dress. "I changed my mind. Are you deaf?"

Frank's cold voice cut through the air. "Go and get another one. Now."

I made several trips back and forth, each time coming back with a dress that Lisa found something wrong with.

By the last trip, it was dark, and I was on the verge of collapse.

As I reached the front gate of the mansion, a cold wind blew, and I stumbled.

I fell hard, my head hitting the steps, and blood gushed out.

The dress was torn, and my body was covered in cuts and bruises.

Lying on the ground, I could hear Lisa's shrill voice. "Look what you've done! You've ruined my dress!"

Frank's voice was like a whip. "Get out of here! I never want to see you again!"

Then, everything went black.

When I woke up, I was in a hospital room.

Nill was there, his face pale and drawn. "Nancy! You're awake!" he cried.

But I was too weak to answer.

I could only cough up blood.

The doctor's voice was grave.

"Advanced ALS, combined with long - term fatigue and abuse. Her body is shutting down."

I lay there, my consciousness fading in and out. I kept murmuring Frank's name, even though I knew he didn't care.

Nill held my hand tightly. "I'll go get him. Just hold on,".

He picked up my phone and dialed alpha Frank's number.

When alpha Frank answered, Nill roared,

"It's Nill! You get to the hospital right now! Nancy's dying!"

There was a moment of silence, and then Frank's voice, panicked. "What happened?"

Nill was about to shout, but then I weakly grabbed his arm. "Don't... tell him... don't let him come,"

Nill stared at the monitor, his eyes wide. "She's okay! She's going to be okay!" he shouted, and then he rushed to get the doctor.

On the other side, Frank was left standing in the living room, his phone still in his hand.

Lisa, seeing his distress, tried to comfort him. "She's probably faking it. Don't worry about her," .

Frank pushed her away. "Leave me alone,".

That night, the light in Frank's study stayed on all night.

The next day, at the hospital, Nill pleaded.

"Nancy, you have to. You'll die if you don't," .

But I just smiled sadly. "I'm tired, Nill. I don't want to fight anymore."

A few days later, I left the hospital.

It was Elena's death anniversary, and I went to the abandoned factory where we used to play.

As I walked through the old, dusty building, memories of Elena flooded back.

We had been so happy there, once. I looked at the wall where we had written "Best sisters forever" and my heart ached.

"Elena, I'm so sorry. I wish it was me instead of you,".

I curled up in the corner, sobbing. "I'll be with you soon. I hope you'll forgive me."