I plucked up my courage and went home.

When I came home, Mary said, "I thought you died outside."

I raised my eyes and said, "I would rather die outside than have a child."

Jack's face darkened, and Mary pointed at me, her voice trembling. "You must give birth to a child. You owe us two lives!"

I felt a little tired and wanted to go back to my room, but Mary grabbed me.

"You ungrateful girl! Back then, if your brother had survived, I wouldn't have given birth to you!

"If you don't have a child, you will be sorry for your dead brother and us!"

I said, "Did I want to be born?"

I was immediately slapped in the face.

Jack looked at me with a look of disappointment.

I felt sad in my heart.

Before he spoke, I apologized to them.

Why did they blame me for everything?

My brother died before I was born, but they put the blame on me.

After my parents got married, they soon had a boy, my brother.

The family was happy.

Unexpectedly, the following year, Mary was pregnant with me.

My parents decided to have an abortion.

They had made an appointment with the hospital.

I shouldn't have lived more than three months in my mother's womb.

But my brother fell seriously ill at this time.

Although my parents took good care of him and prayed for him, he still couldn't survive the winter.

Mary canceled the abortion appointment but gave birth to me.

But I would rather have died in her womb.

I would rather my brother survive so that he could bear this for me.

In that way, I wouldn't have to spend every day in pain.

This was not the first time Jack had hit me.

He often looked at me with indifference.

Since I was young, I had always been afraid of Jack because I would always remember the way he looked at me with indifference.

When Mary punished me, Jack would use all his strength to whip me.

His tall body completely covered me and frightened me.

I was used to that.

Once, when Mary was on a business trip, there was no one to cook for me at home.

Jack could only take me with him to a dinner outside.

At that time, I looked at the people coming and going and Jack's smile.

I pulled his sleeve with my hand, wanting to say something to him.

He never lowered his head to pay attention to me, but I still said it.

I didn't know if he heard my words. "Dad, I always thought you wouldn't smile."

It turned out he just wouldn't smile at me.

In the end, I compromised.

I added Luis' WhatsApp.

He accepted my request quickly.

After chatting for a while, we had nothing to say.

I threw my phone away, feeling terrible.

Luis sent me a message: [Were you scolded by your parents just now?]

Did he guess it?

Then he added: [They seem to be sharp-tongued. I'm worried that you will be wronged.]

A subtle feeling rose from the bottom of my heart.

I thought he was on the same side as my parents.

But suddenly, I realized he was not.

He was on my side.

I didn't know how to answer him, so I pursed my lips and replied: [Since you know what kind of people they are, why don't you stay away from my family?]

He replied: [The person I want to know is you, not them.]

My eyes were dry.

[But I don't know you.]

He replied: [It's okay. Let's meet up on the weekend. It's late now. Have a good sleep.]

I felt moved in my heart and buried my head in the pillow.

But I couldn't fall asleep.

My disease always struck in the night.

I could feel the pain in my bones clearly.

I turned over and over again.

"Jessica, can you please be quiet?"

Mary's hoarse voice sounded.

She stood at my door with an impatient look, and I couldn't avoid the light she turned on suddenly.

There was only a wall between my parents' room and mine.

Mary always slept very soundly before. They were the ones who would wake me up, but I never woke them up.

I tried to open my eyes and look at her.

Mary's face was flushed red. She took a breath and wanted to continue scolding me.

But she covered her chest and coughed violently.

I realized something was wrong.

The next second, she fainted.

I was startled and hurriedly called the hospital.

Mary fainted due to overwork.

The doctor asked her to stay in the hospital for observation for a few days and got treatment.

Jack said to me, "Your mother is sick, so don't make her angry."

I smiled bitterly.

From childhood to adulthood, the question I thought about every day was why I always made my parents angry.

Why did my mother always scold me?

Why did my father always look at me with cold eyes?

Over the years, I hadn't been able to come up with an answer.

Early the next morning, Luis sent me a text message.

[Good morning, Jessica. Have you got up?]

I wanted to reply immediately, but I felt that just saying "good morning" would be too perfunctory.

After thinking for a long time, I didn't know what to say.

Mary woke up.

She said this had happened before, but she thought it was not a big deal and didn't take any medicine.

After waking up, she said she was fine and wanted to go home.

I knew she wanted to save money.

"The doctor recommended hospitalization for observation. I will pay the medical expenses."

Mary stopped me and said, "No need. Keep the money for yourself."

"You need to stay in the hospital, and I have money."

She said, "We also have money. Have we ever refused to give you money before?"

I stared at the ceiling of the hospital, lost in thought.

They had, but didn't remember that as if the suffering I had experienced seemed like a joke.

When I was in junior high school, my parents had a lot of fights.

I couldn't fall asleep at night and almost had a nervous breakdown.

Although I was in great pain, I didn't often ask them for money.

They always said, "If you need money, just tell us."

Later, I said, "Dad, the teacher asked us to pay 500 dollars to buy books."

Jack said, "Go ask your mother!"

Mary said, "Go ask your father!"

"Your mother keeps money to herself. Go ask her for it!"

"Your father is always generous to his friends. Is he unwilling to even give you five hundred dollars? Go ask him!"

In the end, I didn't get any money.

The teacher reached out to me and asked for money.

"I have no money."

The teacher sneered, "No money? Why did you go to junior high school if you didn't have money? You should go to work after graduating from elementary school.

"I have informed your parents about the payment. It is impossible for them not to know about it. Did you secretly spend the money?

"I tell you, a dishonest child like you will never achieve anything in your life!"

I thought my teacher was also a mother.

I didn't admit that I secretly spent the money.

Because of this matter, my parents were invited to the school.

Mary said to the teacher, "I gave her the money."

She didn't give me any money.

But their questioning looks were like knives, stabbing my body one after another as if saying, "She is such a bad student."

I wanted to explain.

But my throat was so dry that I couldn't utter any word to defend myself.

Mary paid the money to the teacher.

It took me a long time to suppress the discomfort in my throat, and I said, "Mom, you didn't give me money before."

Mary pretended not to hear and walked away.

Jack said to me, "Your mom knows that, but you have to give her face outside, you know?"

He went after Mary, and they had a rare conversation in harmony.

I was left behind.

They were reconciling, while I was like a rag doll cut into pieces.