On the seventh anniversary of my marriage, I received a pregnancy test report.

Just as I was about to share the joy with my husband, I was involved in a car accident.

The doctor called my husband more than twenty times, but he never answered a single call. In the end, I had no choice but to endure the pain and sign the surgical consent form myself.

When I woke up again, the doctor looked at me with undisguised displeasure.

"Ms. Mcallister, our system shows that you're single. Why did you lie about having a husband?"

"Do you know that because the rescue was delayed, the child in your womb has already..."

I sat frozen on the hospital bed, unable to decide which piece of news hurt more.

Trembling, I placed a hand over my abdomen. The child who had just reached ten weeks was gone—silently, completely.

My eyes burned red as I stared at the doctor in disbelief.

"I've been married for seven years. How could I possibly be single? Your hospital system must be wrong."

My protest came to an abrupt halt when the hospital produced its official records.

Staring at the stamped seal on the documents, my vision shook.

I walked out of the hospital stiffly, holding both a miscarriage report and a certificate proving I was single.

The very next second, I saw my husband stepping out of the Civil Affairs Bureau—arm in arm with my younger sister, who had been missing for seven years.

He had his arm around her shoulders, their intimacy unmistakable. The red marriage certificate in their hands stabbed painfully into my eyes.

At that moment, my heart sank to the very bottom.

The wind carried their conversation to my ears.

"Emmett, if Camille finds out that we registered our marriage, she'll probably blame us. After all, she's been your wife for the past seven years."

Emmett replied without hesitation, "I've never considered her my wife. In my eyes, you're the only one who truly matters. What we're holding is the real marriage certificate."

"If you want, I can get rid of her."

As the truth laid itself bare, a deafening roar filled my ears.

Seven years of devotion wasted... It was time for me to leave.

——

I stood frozen in place as the documents slipped from my hands and scattered across the ground.

At some point, Leanne and I met eyes. There was unmistakable pride in hers—as if she had noticed my presence long ago.

"Emmett, I really didn't expect you to say something like that," she said softly. "I thought you no longer cared about me. Seven years ago, at the wedding, I wasn't ready, so I chose to run away. I never imagined that you would still love me so deeply."

Overwhelmed with emotion, Leanne began to cry. Emmett gently wiped the tears from her cheeks, his eyes filled with a tenderness I had never once seen directed at me.

"My wife was always meant to be you," he said solemnly. "Even when you left me seven years ago, I never blamed you—not for a single moment."

After saying that, Emmett lowered his head and kissed Leanne deeply.

My breathing turned ragged as a sour, suffocating pain spread through my entire body.

But Leanne was still not satisfied. She narrowed her eyes and glanced in my direction before lowering her voice.

"Emmett, you don't have to say this just because of my illness. After all, you and my sister have been together for seven years. You must love her. I'll be fine on my own..."

Emmett immediately grabbed her hand, his expression earnest.

"I've never loved her," he said without the slightest hesitation. "It was only because her face resembles yours. I kept her by my side so I could look at her and miss you."

At an instant, the world spun before my eyes. The overwhelming dizziness forced me to stagger backward.

In a daze, I seemed to see Emmett smiling at me gently—just like he used to.

We had grown up together, childhood sweethearts in name.

But in his eyes, there had only ever been one person—my younger sister, Leanne.

He and my brothers all adored the coquettish, lovable Leanne. I was forever the silent shadow standing behind them.

No one knew that even a shadow longs for sunlight.

Or that I had secretly loved Emmett for years.

Emmett was originally my fiancé.

But as we grew older, his bond with my sister only deepened, and no one ever brought up our engagement again.

Naturally, my engagement to him became hers instead.

I thought my life would simply continue like that—until the day of their wedding.

The venue was extravagantly decorated. Everything was tailored to my sister's tastes: the most luxurious, the most expensive, the very best.

Yet that day, Emmett waited from dawn until nightfall.

Leanne never appeared.

Even after the officiant left the venue, she still did not come.

Only then did Emmett finally break down.

That night, he drank himself senseless at a bar.

When I found him, he looked at me as if he were seeing me for the first time.

He told me everything.

He said he had long known that Leanne might flee the wedding. But he believed that if he treated her well enough, she would eventually understand his sincerity.

It wasn't until he was abandoned at the altar that he finally realized—her heart was never something he could warm.

I stayed with him and listened the entire night.

The next morning, when Emmett woke up, he proposed to me.

I knew that perhaps he was only wounded, desperately searching for a harbor to shelter in.

But I wanted his love far too badly.

So I blindfolded myself—and accepted his proposal.

Over the course of seven years, Emmett's attitude toward me changed. From distant and indifferent, to attentive and gentle.

I thought my sincerity had finally moved him.

But now I understood.

I was nothing more than Leanne's substitute.

Every gentle touch, every tender word, every whispered declaration of love—he had been thinking of Leanne all along.

And I was still that same shadow in the darkness.

Nothing had ever changed.

I thought this was already the deepest pain imaginable.

But the next moment, my brothers' voices pierced my ears.

"Congratulations. You've finally waited long enough to see the light."

My eldest brother, Jace, smiled broadly as he lightly shoved Emmett's shoulder, amusement dancing in his eyes.

My second brother, Antonio, laughed even harder. "I'll definitely prepare a big gift for the wedding. But first, we need to deal with Camille."

"She's not the obedient type. If she finds out Emmett and Leanne are getting married, she'll definitely show up and make a scene. That would be ugly. You know how she is—sometimes she's just like a shrew."

The irritation in Antonio's voice was unmistakable.

In an instant, everyone burst into laughter.

The brothers who once cursed Leanne in rage for fleeing the wedding had once again become her devoted protectors.

They had forgotten everything I had done for them since childhood. Forgotten that after Leanne left, it was I who stayed by their side.

In their eyes, as long as Leanne returned, I was nothing more than a disposable substitute—a toy that could be thrown away at any time.

I existed only to fill their boredom.

After realizing this, I numbly crouched down, just as I had every time I was hurt as a child, wrapping my arms tightly around myself.

Before long, a familiar hand reached out in front of me—and picked up the scattered reports from the ground.

Leanne's mocking voice rang out above my head.

"A miscarriage report?" she sneered. "Camille, don't tell me you're trying to use something like this to win Emmett back?"

Trembling, I lifted my head, my face deathly pale as I looked at Leanne standing before me.

"Give it back to me."

My voice came out hoarse and broken. Not only did Leanne refuse to return the report, she leaned closer, her tone dripping with contempt.

"I know you saw everything just now. So what if I was gone for seven years?" she said smugly. "You're still the same loser. As long as I want it, everyone will abandon you. You pitiful worm."

"Seven whole years, and you couldn't even get a marriage certificate. In the end, not a single person chose you. If I were you, I'd have killed myself long ago."

Her voice pierced my ears like sharp knives. My pupils shrank as I clutched my ears tightly.

Ever since childhood, Leanne had taken everything I treasured.

I once thought that seven years of companionship could break this curse. But the moment she returned, everything I longed for fell back into her hands.

My chest burned with pain, my vision blurring with tears.

Just then, a shrill car horn suddenly sounded.

I looked up—and saw a vehicle that had lost control, speeding straight toward us!

My eyes widened in terror as I lunged to the side. But at that moment, Leanne grabbed me and held me down with all her strength.

Her expression twisted grotesquely, her eyes filled with malicious delight as she looked at me.

"Sister," she said softly, "let this car accident show you the difference between you and me."

Before I could even process what was happening, someone shoved me hard.

"Leanne! Are you okay?!"

Emmett and my brothers rushed to shield Leanne, their faces full of panic and concern. Not a single one of them spared me a glance.

A sharp crack rang out as searing pain exploded in my ankle.

The next second, the grotesque front of the car slammed straight toward me.

Bang!

With a deafening crash, my world plunged into darkness.

...

When I opened my eyes again, a whimper escaped my throat.

Every inch of my body screamed in protest. The pain burned through me like raging flames.

Memories from before the accident flooded back.

Leanne's twisted, triumphant expression as Emmett and my brothers chose her without hesitation.

The sensation of my heart being torn apart—everything vanished again into darkness with that violent impact.

I struggled to sit up, but a nurse gently pressed me back down, looking at me with sympathy.

"You can't move yet," she said softly. "Where's your family?"

"You were in an accident with that other girl. She only suffered minor injuries, but her family all came immediately. Why hasn't anyone come to take care of you?"

Hearing this, I let out a bitter smile.

My family was right beside Leanne.

Through the crack in the door, I could see the ward across the hall.

It was a VIP suite—costing tens of thousands a night.

The door was wide open. Leanne sat on the bed, rosy-cheeked and radiant, while my husband and brothers crowded around her, feeding her fruit and coaxing her into laughter.

Not one of them had thought to come and check on me—even though my injuries were far more severe than hers.

"Could you please hand me my phone?" I asked quietly.

The nurse passed it to me.

I didn't try to contact Emmett or my brothers.

Instead, I sent a message to a single number.

[You once promised me that no matter when, as long as I needed you, you would appear by my side. Does that promise still count?]

I clenched the phone tightly, waiting for a response.

One minute passed.

Nothing.

I lowered my head in disappointment. Of course. Seven years had gone by—how could that person possibly still remember?

The next second, my phone vibrated.

My hands trembled as I opened the message.

[It will always count. Where are you? I'll come get you right now.]

A rush of warmth surged in my chest, yet tears spilled uncontrollably from my eyes.

I replied. [I still have something to take care of here. Can you come pick me up in seven days?]

Before the other party could reply, Emmett's voice suddenly sounded from the doorway of the ward.

"Camille," he asked coldly, "who are you texting?"

Instinctively, I turned off my phone and looked at him calmly.

"Nothing. Just a friend."

Emmett frowned, clearly wanting to ask more. But at that moment, Leanne's cry of pain came from behind him, and his expression instantly changed.

"Camille, why did you push Leanne?" he demanded. "Do you know she was almost hit by a car?"

On hearing his words, my chest tightened as if I couldn't breathe.

After a moment, I took a deep breath and intoned coldly. "Believe it or not, I didn't push Leanne. If I had, why is it me lying here after the accident?"

The mockery on my face was unmistakable.

Emmett's gaze fell on the wounds covering my body, and a trace of concern flashed across his face.

He reached out, as if wanting to touch my cheek.

"Camille, you've loved lying ever since you were a child. If Emmett hadn't pushed you away back then, the one in the accident would have been Leanne!"

Jace's sharp voice cut in from the doorway.

He strode over and yanked Emmett aside, then looked at me sharply.

"Emmett, Camille has always been good at playing the victim. Don't be fooled by her. Leanne is already ill, and she's still competing for attention like this—so immature. Leanne would never lie. It must have been Camille who pushed her."

He looked at me with undisguised disgust. With just a few words, he sentenced me to guilt.

Leanne had been gone for seven years, and for those seven years, Jace had treated me kindly.

It made me believe that I had finally become the sister he liked.

But a single car accident stripped everything away and returned me to reality.

My brothers had never truly liked me. Neither had Emmett.

The nurse standing nearby couldn't hold back her anger.

"Are you Ms. Mcallister family? How can you treat her like this?"

"She was the most seriously injured in this accident—and she just suffered a miscarriage..."

Before she could finish, Antonio rushed in, panic written all over his face.

"Emmett! Jace! Come back quickly—Leanne's illness has flared up. She fainted!"

Emmett reflexively glanced back at me.

Jace grabbed his wrist.

"There's no need to care about Camille. She brought this accident upon herself."

Antonio shoved the two of them toward the door, then turned back to look at me with open scorn.

"Camille, you tried to get Leanne into a car accident so Emmett would stay devoted to you. I never knew you were this vicious. If anything happens to Leanne, I will never let you off."

I lay stiffly on the hospital bed, enduring pain multiplied by the cruelty of both family and the man I loved, until their figures disappeared from sight.

...

From that day on, until I was discharged from the hospital, Emmett and my brothers never appeared again.

It was as if they had completely forgotten my existence.

Yet the moment I opened my phone, I could see their radiant smiles.

While I struggled alone in pain at the hospital, they took Leanne on a trip.

The photos were taken in the Maldives—a place I had always wanted to visit. Golden sunlight bathed their faces, making their smiles dazzlingly bright.

The caption read: [Seven years later, our family is finally reunited. May our little sister stay with us forever.]

I tried my best to hold back my tears—but they still streamed down my face.

Whether it was family or love, I was never the one who was chosen.