From Neglected Girl To Unstoppable Heiress

Tentu, saya akan menambahkan POV (Point of View) ke setiap bab sesuai dengan permintaan Anda, tanpa mengubah format atau konten lainnya.

I lay dying on a hospital gurney, my internal organs crushed from shielding my sister during the crash.

Yet, my parents were down the hall, cooing over Estrella' s minor scratches while ignoring my fading pulse.

"She' s faking it for attention," my father spat. "She' ll regret this stunt when she gets home."

When the nurse frantically told them I was gone, my mother didn't shed a tear. She laughed.

"Nice try," she sneered at the nurse. "Tell Carolina to stop playing dead. It' s pathetic."

My spirit watched helplessly as they turned my funeral into a performance, painting me as the "difficult" child who finally ruined their lives.

I thought my suffering was over, but then a violent pull dragged me back from the void.

I opened my eyes in a stranger's body-Claire Tillman, a billionaire heiress betrayed by her fiancé.

Now armed with a new face and unlimited resources, I realized I had a second chance.

I wasn't just going to survive; I was going to destroy the fiancé who wronged Claire, and then I was coming for the family that let me die.

Chapter 1

Carolina POV

My blood was a chilling tide, ebbing away with every shallow breath. I could feel it, even as my spirit hovered above the gurney, watching my own body. My hair, usually pinned back for work, was a tangled mess around a face too pale. The sterile white of the hospital gown felt like a shroud already. This was it. The end.

My parents, Hulda and Carleton, weren't by my side. Of course not. They were down the hall, their voices carrying the familiar cadence of parental concern-but not for me. Their anguish was reserved for Estrella, my younger sister, who lay in a private room.

"Oh, my precious Estrella," Hulda sobbed, kneeling by Estrella' s bedside, her designer handbag forgotten on the pristine floor. "My poor baby. Thank goodness you' re safe." She clutched a rosary, her eyes cast heavenward, as if bargaining with God for Estrella' s minor scratches.

Carleton stood beside her, his jaw tight, but his gaze was fixed on Estrella, not me. "This is all Carolina' s fault," he growled, his voice a low rumble of accusation. "Always causing trouble. Always looking for attention. When she finally gets home, I swear, she' ll regret this stunt." The words were a physical blow, even to my disembodied self.

A familiar, icy pain bloomed in the center of my chest, a cold flower of neglect that had been cultivated my entire life. It pulsed with a dull ache, mirroring the internal bleeding that was stealing my life. I was dying, and they believed I was faking it.

A bitter, silent laugh choked in my non-existent throat. Faking it for attention? Is that what this looks like, Mother? Father? This slow, quiet fade into nothingness?

Doctors and nurses swarmed around Estrella, their hushed tones a stark contrast to my parents' dramatic pronouncements. They checked her pulse, adjusted her IV, their faces etched with professional concern for the golden child.

Then, a kind voice broke through the haze. A nurse with tired but gentle eyes, her name tag read Kandy Wallace, approached my parents. "Mr. and Mrs. Fitzgerald," she began softly, "we really need to check on Carolina. Her vitals are declining, and she has significant internal trauma."

Hulda' s head snapped up, her eyes blazing. "Declining? Internal trauma?" She scoffed, a truly ugly sound. "That girl is fine. She' s always been overly dramatic. This is just another one of her little acts to draw attention away from Estrella." She waved a dismissive hand. "Focus on my daughter, Nurse. Estrella needs you."

The words hit me like a physical punch. A cold shock rippled through my ethereal form, quickly followed by a crushing weight that stole what little spiritual breath I had left. It wasn' t a surprise, not really. This was their default setting. But the sheer cruelty, voiced so carelessly, still pierced.

Why did I ever think I mattered? Why did I always hope for something different? Each breath I hadn't taken, each beat my heart had skipped, felt like a testament to my insignificance.

Hulda pulled out her phone, her thumb stabbing at the screen. "I' ll call her myself. She knows what happens when she ignores us."

A junior nurse, looking flustered, approached my body. She carefully picked up my phone, which had fallen beside the gurney. The screen was cracked. She brought it to my still fingers, as if I could answer. Helpless, I watched.

Hulda' s voice, amplified by the phone, was sharp and laced with venom. "Carolina! You answer me right now! Where are you? How dare you disappear when your sister is hurt? This is just typical, isn' t it? Always making things about you."

A cold, complete despair settled over me. There was no hope. Not a flicker. The call was not one of concern, but of pure, unadulterated contempt. It was the same tone she' d used when I' d fallen off my bike at seven and broken my arm, only to be told I was clumsy and had ruined our family picnic. It was the same tone when I' d gotten food poisoning on vacation, and she' d accused me of trying to get out of sightseeing.

Hulda then turned back to Kandy, her voice dripping with disdain. "See? I knew it. She' s fine. Just ignoring my calls. She knows how to manipulate people into giving her attention. Don't fall for it, Nurse." She gave Kandy a look that dared her to defy.

Carleton nodded in agreement. "She' s always been a burden. A black cloud over this family." He looked at Estrella, then back at the nurse, as if to reinforce the contrast.

Estrella, seemingly jolted by the commotion, stirred from her light sleep. She blinked, her perfect lashes fluttering, and then her eyes widened as if suddenly remembering. "Caro?" she whispered, her voice weak, theatrical. "Is Carolina okay? Is she… is she mad at me?" A single tear tracked a path down her cheek. "It was an accident. I didn' t mean for anything bad to happen."

Hulda rushed back to Estrella' s side, stroking her hair. "Of course not, my angel. You did nothing wrong. It' s always Carolina." Her earlier anger at the nurse was instantly replaced by saccharine concern for Estrella.

"That ungrateful girl," Hulda muttered into the phone, convinced I was still listening. "When you finally decide to show your face, Carolina, you' d better have a good explanation. This is the last straw. The very last straw." She ended the call with a furious stab at the screen.

Carleton, still stone-faced, chimed in. "Your mother' s right. She's caused enough trouble. This family doesn' t need her negativity."

Estrella, sniffling delicately, added, "I just hope she's okay. Even though she always hates me, I still worry about her." Her eyes, though watery, held a faint, triumphant gleam.

A hollow, agonizing laugh resonated within my spirit. Hates you? You cause this, Estrella. You always do. They would never see it. They would never see her for the manipulative, selfish creature she was. They would always believe her innocent tears, her fragile victimhood.

And the crash. I knew the truth of that too. The reckless texting, the swerving, my desperate lunge to protect her, to shield her perfect face with my body. My last act of love, met with dismissal.

My spirit felt a faint pull, a deepening chill. The room, the voices, everything began to recede, swallowed by a vast, echoing darkness.