During the SAT exam, My sister and I both had an emergency at the same time.

Overwhelmed by stress, I suffered a heart attack and was on the brink of death.

Yet my mom, who was working as an invigilator that day, rushed to tend to my sister—who only had a stomach ache—without a second thought.

I begged her to save me.

But she kicked me away fiercely. “Can’t you pick the right time to put on a show for attention? If you ruin your sister’s grades, I’ll beat you to death, you beast!”

Later, I failed to respond to resuscitation and died in the hospital.

Mom collapsed overnight.

Three minutes after my death, I wandered beside mom as a spirit.

In the hospital room, mom gently laid my sister down on the bed and asked anxiously.

“Doctor, why does my daughter have a stomach ache?”

The doctor replied with a professional calm, showing no particular emotion.

“Your daughter ate something bad this morning—she’ll feel better with some medication.”

“What…?”

After hearing the doctor’s words, mom stared worriedly at my sister, who looked weak in bed.

“Did Zinnia Lewis that little villain give you something unclean to eat, making you unable to take the exam properly!”

My sister clutched her stomach, looking miserable.

“Don’t blame Zinnia, mom. She was just being kind…”

With that, she turned to the side, covered her mouth, and retched, while holding onto the edge of the bed to gasp for breath.

Mom quickly patted her back, helped her sit up, and handed her a glass of water.

“You’re still defending her even like this!”

“I heard from your good friend—your sister picked that food up from the ground and gave it to you. She deliberately wanted to stop you from taking the exam!”

A flash of panic crossed my sister’s eyes, as if she couldn’t believe it, and she looked ready to cry.

“Zinnia isn’t like that…”

Picked it up from the ground?

I stood aside watching, a wave of bitterness washing over me.

She had clearly seen the entire process of me buying hotdog.

That was the last hotdog left—I’d struggled to get it.

I never would have given it to her if she hadn’t said she was starving.

Yet that gave her and her friend an excuse to frame me.

My heart ached fiercely.

“Ring ring ring!”

A sharp phone call broke the silence. Mom answered it, and a heavy voice came from the other end.

“Are you Zinnia Lewis’s mother? We’re sorry to inform you that your daughter failed to survive the heart attack—please accept our condolences. Could you come to the hospital when you have time to claim her body?”

The worry on mom’s face instantly turned to disgust. She shouted into the phone, “How much did Zinnia Lewis pay you to put on this act? Faking a faint wasn’t enough, so now you’re faking her death? She’s really grown some nerve! How could I have given birth to such a villain!”

Before the person on the other end could speak, mom hung up abruptly and threw her phone far away. Her breathing was rapid, and her chest heaved violently with anger.

“All she does is beg for attention! Now she’s hiring people to act with her! Does she really think I’m stupid!”

My sister placed her hand on mom’s to comfort her.

“Don’t be angry, mom. Zinnia just wants you to spend more time with her—she didn’t mean it.

And I saw her faint… maybe something really is wrong. Why don’t you go check on her? I’ll be fine alone.”

Mom calmed her breathing and patted my sister’s hand affectionately.

“Leave her be! She’s in perfect health—how could she suddenly faint? She’s been faking since she was a kid, and now she’s faking death. If she dares, let her die and spare me the sight!”

I floated in the air, trembling uncontrollably. Sharp pains stabbed at my chest, and overwhelming despair wrapped around me, suffocating me.

Mom, I wasn’t putting on an act.

I really am dead.

Sylvia said nothing, just hung her head.

Mom looked at her with disappointment, lifting her chin gently.

“You’re going to get into a top university and inherit your father’s company someday—you’re nothing like that ungrateful wretch who can only get into a lousy second-tier college. Haven’t you forgotten how she snuck into the homeroom teacher’s office during the second year of high school and deleted your name from the math competition?”

“If you hadn’t begged us to spare her, we would have kicked her out of school long ago. How could we have let her frame you during the SAT exam!”

“Sylvia, did she ever consider you a sister? Look at her now—first it’s feigned sickness, then a pretended death, all an act to win sympathy. Next she’ll be up to something far more serious! Had I known her true nature, I should’ve never given birth to her in the first place!”

Mom’s words were like poisoned swords, stabbing into my heart one after another. I was in so much pain that I curled up into a ball, gasping for air.

Is this really how mom sees me?

The truth was nothing like this, yet mom believed it without a shred of doubt.

My sister was never as good at math as me—she was jealous that I could join the math competition. So she teamed up with the homeroom teacher to frame me.

Mom didn’t look at any evidence. She slapped me as soon as she heard my sister’s story.

She refused to listen to my explanation, convinced that I was jealous of Sylvia.

If she’d cared even a little about my grades, she would have noticed that my math scores were always first in the grade, while Sylvia was only twentieth.

I needed that math competition to get early admission to a top university with a tuition waiver—but my sister ruined it all.

Memories of the past flashed through my mind, and my heart turned to ashes.

I just wanted to leave here.

But things didn’t go as I wished.

After the SAT exam, I followed mom back home.

I hadn’t been home in two years. Looking at the familiar yet unfamiliar surroundings, I felt a sense of dizziness.

Every corner of the house was filled with traces of their little family of three.

Mom packed Sylvia’s luggage while muttering angrily, “How can Zinnia be such a terrible sister? The exam’s over, and she still hasn’t come home to help Sylvia pack! She’s always running around outside—just like her deadbeat dad!”

Sylvia coughed weakly. “Zinnia didn’t do it on purpose. Maybe she’ll be home later.”

Mom frowned even more after hearing that.

“You're just too nice, that's why you've always been letting her walk all over you. She’s a born villain, not worth defending. If she doesn’t come back soon, we’ll pretend she’s dead and never let her step foot in this house again! I’ll act like I never had that daughter!”

Mom, I can never come back.

Are you happy now?

I smiled bitterly, my heart aching as if it would shatter.

Sylvia stepped forward to pat mom’s back, calming her down. My thoughts drifted further and further away.

I grew up wandering around with mom, living in a small, shabby rental apartment.

Mom always said that if I hadn’t existed, she wouldn’t be so miserable now.

So I always thought of myself as a burden to her.

That changed when I was ten. Mom, with her stunning looks and clever tactics, married a CEO of a listed company.

She put on a gentle and virtuous act, taking my hand and leading me to meet my stepfather.

That was the first time I saw Sylvia. She was dressed like a beautiful doll, with clear, bright eyes—while my T-shirt and shorts were faded from countless washes.

When she saw Mom, she ran over and threw herself into her arms, her voice sweet and cute.

“Mommy!”

The hand I’d been clutching tightly was pulled away.

I looked up to see Mom hugging Sylvia tightly, her eyes soft and loving. She even spoke to Sylvia in a gentle whisper.

I froze, memories flooding my mind—memories of countless days and nights.

“Starving? Why don’t you find food yourself!”

“Get out of my way—don’t bother me when I’m going out!”

“Why are you crying? Stop crying this instant—you’re so annoying!”

Mom would always yank her hand from mine, leaving me sobbing on the ground from the pain of the fall, never once looking back.

Yet now I see it plainly: my mother was capable of loving a child.

It just wasn’t me.

My stepfather never had any affection for me—he never allowed me to call him “Dad.”

Even Mom told me to avoid calling her “Mom” at home.

I’d never felt loved, so I tried my best to obey them, hoping to earn just a little of their attention.

If Mom told me to play with Sylvia, I did.

If Mom told me to make Sylvia happy, I did.

Sylvia was very cute, and I would gladly pretend to be a dog and bark for her amusement.

I thought that’s just how siblings played.

Later, I brought a small cake made by the maid to her room, but I heard her and her friend laughing mockingly at the door.

“Who would want her as a sister? I only play with her because she’s willing to act like a dog!

“If Dad had bought me a puppy, I wouldn’t even bother with her. She and her mom just came here because they know we’re rich—all poor people are like that!”

Their sharp, harsh words pierced my ears, and my hands began to tremble uncontrollably.

I dropped the cake plate and ran downstairs crying, throwing myself into Mom’s arms without hesitation.

“Mom, Sylvia doesn’t like me! She only plays with me because she thinks I’m a dog! I don’t want to play with her anymore!”

The cake fell to the floor. Mom pushed me away roughly and slapped me hard.

“Why are you so filthy-minded? Making up lies about Sylvia just to steal her attention! You’re not allowed to eat dinner tonight—think about what you’ve done! You’re really getting too big for your boots!”

I fell to the ground from the force of the slap, staring at her in disbelief.

Mom didn’t believe me.

After that, I learned to be good. I never cried in front of Mom again.

When the whole family took Sylvia out to play, I stayed at home and did my homework quietly.

When Sylvia was unhappy, I found ways to cheer her up.

The first time I got first place in the grade, I rushed home excitedly to show Mom my report card—but she tore it to pieces.

“What’s so great about getting first place? Can’t you see your sister is crying because she got third? You heartless thing—get out of my sight!”

That’s when I noticed Sylvia sitting next to Mom, sobbing softly. She pulled on Mom’s sleeve.

“Don’t talk to Zinnia like that, Mom. It’s amazing that she got first place—I’m just not good enough…”

Mom’s face turned even darker after hearing that.

“Get out! Never show me your report card again!”

No matter what I did, I could never make Mom happy.

All Sylvia had to do was cry, and she got all of Mom’s love.

Even though I walked on eggshells in that house, I’d once felt a moment of happiness.

Maybe my stepfather felt sorry for me—he gave me a piece of cake on Sylvia’s birthday.

Mom even smiled at me that day.

I ate that small piece of cake carefully, even though it wasn’t whole.

I thought that was the start of better days.

Later, Sylvia invited me to play hide-and-seek. It was the first time I’d been in her room.

Sylvia’s room was a huge princess bedroom, far more gorgeous than mine. She smiled and pulled me to lie on the bed. We fell asleep tiredly after playing.

I was woken up by Mom, who was hitting me violently.

Mom looked furious. I hadn’t even fully opened my eyes when I was slapped.

“Where is Sylvia! Tell me!”

Even my stepfather stood aside, his face dark and terrifying, hatred evident in his eyes.

I held my cheek, glancing at the bed instinctively.

It was empty—only traces of me sleeping there.

“But we fell asleep together…”

Mom knelt down, grabbing my collar roughly. Her voice was fierce: “You’re always putting on an act! Now you’re stealing Sylvia’s room too! The maid said it’s just you and Sylvia at home today—what did you do to her!”

Before I could answer, the nanny’s urgent voice echoed: “Sylvia is locked in the storage room!”

When Sylvia was carried out by my stepfather, she was covered in bruises. When she saw me, she trembled, her voice shaking: “I’m sorry, Zinnia—I didn’t mean to! Don’t hit me…”

I was too shocked to speak.

I hadn’t done anything before falling asleep!

Why was she pretending I’d hit her?

I staggered forward, only to be shoved hard by Mom. She stood over me, looking down from a place of cold authority.

“Nanny , throw her out.”

That day, I dragged my injured leg away, limping with endless grievances.

That’s when my heart attack struck. I fainted before I could leave the community.

Somehow, I survived.

Mrs. Wilson, our neighbor who didn’t know about my family situation, sent me home and scolded my parents.

“How can you let a child with a heart condition run around like this? What kind of parents are you!”

They didn’t care.

Mom looked at me with disappointment, blaming me for not dying somewhere farther away.

My original room was turned into Sylvia’s toy room, and I was sent to live in the storage room where Sylvia had been locked.

They forbade me from appearing in front of them. If I dared to show my face, I’d be beaten and scolded.

I thought Mom really hated me.

I never should have been born.

My thoughts slowly drifted back. A sharp doorbell rang at the front door.

Mrs. Wilson stood there with a sad expression, holding a small box in her hands.

My breath caught in my throat. I could feel a familiar aura surrounding the box—as if it was part of me.

Inside was my ashes.

I never thought Mrs. Wilson would be the one to bring me home in the end.

Our family had business dealings with Auntie Wang’s. When Mom saw her expression, she asked casually, “Mrs. Wilson, what’s wrong?”

Then she seemed to realize something, her face turning dark.

“Did Zinnia that troublemaker cause you problems again? I told you she’s an ungrateful wretch—always stirring up trouble! I never should have raised her. I wish she were dead!”

She forced a smile at Mrs. Wilson.

“Don’t worry! I’ll find that little bitch and make her kneel down to apologize to you!”

“Shut up!”

Mrs. Wilson’s roar cut off Mom’s cruel words.

Mrs. Wilson had always been kind to me. She’d never been married or had children, and she once said she wished she had a daughter like me. I’d always smiled and replied that I already had a mom.

Now her eyes were red with anger. She held out the box to Mom, her hands trembling.

“She is gone. The hospital asked me to pick up her ashes…”

“The hospital said her mother refused to come—I couldn’t believe it, so I brought them back for you…”