Beyond Reach

My stepbrother hated me.

He hated me and my mom for coming into his life, for ruining what he believed was his perfect family.

Whenever he saw me, his face would turn cold, and he would tell me how disgusting I was, asking cruelly when I was going to die.

In the end, I gave him what he wanted.

But then he regretted it.

He cried, begging me to come back, saying he never should have broken up with me and never should have treated me so cruelly.

But I was already dead.

Who was he putting on this show of affection for now?

When I found out I did not have much time left, it had been six years since Zac Xander and I broke up and six years since we became family.

I rushed home in a panic and went straight to his study.

I asked him if he was really going to marry Evelyn Gibson.

He sneered at me, saying I was delusional and could not stand to see him happy.

I stood there frozen, unable to muster a single word in response.

Looking into his cold eyes, I slowly realized that Zac had probably hated me all along.

Forcing a smile, I said, "But Evelyn isn’t the right match for you."

I had my own selfish reasons, but I also knew there would never be a good outcome for the two of us.

So, his future wife should not be someone like her, a socialite with a terrible reputation.

"And what about you, the daughter of a mistress? Are you supposed to be my perfect match?"

He glanced at me sideways, his eyes filled with disdain, as if he could see right through my thoughts.

Zac stood up, the light casting half his face in shadow. His hair fell loosely across his forehead, obscuring his expression.

"Emma, nothing in the Xander family has anything to do with you, an outsider."

"But I never..."

I tried weakly to explain that I did not care about the Xander family’s wealth.

But Zac did not listen. He got up and walked away without a second thought for my words.

"Brother..."

Zac, dressed sharply in a suit, suddenly turned around, his wolf-like eyes glaring at me.

"What did you just call me?"

When I first saw Zac at my mom’s new husband’s place, I knew why he had broken up with me.

But I thought we could get along peacefully, never imagining he had hated me all this time.

He allowed people at school to bully me without a second glance, standing by as rumors about me spread.

Yet I stubbornly refused to call him "brother," as if doing so would mean there was no future left for us.

"Brother, can we stop fighting, please?"

I pleaded, the pain in my chest becoming unbearable.

"Don’t call me brother! Emma, aren’t you disgusted with yourself?"

Hearing his harsh words, I started to feel dizzy.

I staggered and collapsed to the floor.

"Emma, what kind of act are you putting on this time? If you’re going to die, go do it somewhere else!"

He ignored me and walked out of the study without looking back.

I struggled to get up. I touched my nose, and looked at the blood on my hand, my gaze dimming.

But...

Zac, I was sick.

I was dying.

Couldn't you just care for me?

Could you just hold me, even for a moment?

……

I knelt on the floor, frantically trying to wipe away the bloodstains.

But as soon as I cleaned it up, bright red droplets fell again.

It felt like it would never stop, like no matter how much I wiped, it would never be clean.

I completely broke down.

Sitting on the floor, curled up into a ball, I cried silently.

I could not understand why fate was treating me like this.

When I thought I had found true love, I discovered that my ex-boyfriend was about to become my stepbrother.

When I wanted to stop loving Zac, I was diagnosed with late-stage liver cancer.

Dazed, I walked toward the door, only to find my mom waiting there, worry etched on her face.