(Present)

Even though I was dead,the weight of my life lingered like a dull ache.Yesterday,I watched myself get my medical report—mid-stage liver cancer.The doctor’s words still rang in my ears:“With proper treatment,you can live up to ten more years.”

I remember how my former self stood in the hospital hallway,tears streaming silently down her face.I hovered above,watching,and wondered why fate never granted me mercy.Couldn’t I be allowed just one moment of peace?

(Flashback to the Past)

After receiving the news,I thought of only one person—Bill.He was a renowned businessman in A City,with connections to top doctors,not to mention his own private laboratory.Surely,he could help me get the best treatment.I clung to that thin hope and went straight to his company.

For five years,I had been married to Bill,but I had never set foot in his office.It wasn’t because I didn’t want to visit;it was because he didn’t want anyone to know about me.In his eyes,I wasn’t a wife to be shown off.Only a few close friends knew about our marriage.

When I reached the 33rd floor,the secretary stopped me and asked if I had an appointment.

Through the glass doors,I could see him inside,sitting with Annie,the woman he had always loved.They were sharing a meal,laughing like everything was perfect.

“I’m here to see Bill,”I said,trying to keep my voice steady.

The secretary went in to report my arrival.A few moments later,Bill stepped out,irritation clearly written on his face.He pulled me to the side,away from prying eyes.

“What are you doing here?”he demanded,his tone sharp.

I knew his patience was wearing thin,so I blurted out the reason I had come.“I’m sick,Bill.The doctor said I have—"

“Bill,why are you standing out here?I’m hungry,”Annie's voice interrupted us as she appeared beside him,gently linking her arm through his.

She turned to me with a smile that didn’t quite reach her eyes.“Oh,Sister,you’re here too?Have you eaten yet?Bill’s cola chicken wings are delicious.”

My nails dug into my palms,my heart aching.This morning,I had watched him spend hours in the kitchen,cooking that very meal—just for her.

“Go to the hospital if you’re sick,”Bill said coldly.“What can I do?I’m not a doctor.”

Before I could say anything more,he pushed me away.“High Assistant will send you home.”

(Present)

I floated there,staring at the memory of my past self being forcibly removed from his life.But now,in death,I saw the truth clearer than ever.No matter what I did,no matter how much I loved him,Bill would always belong to Annie.

Flashback to the Past:

The day after my diagnosis,he dragged me back to the hospital—not for treatment,but to draw more blood for Annie's transfusion.

I was in the hospital lobby,still nursing the pain from my liver,when I saw her latest social media post at 3 a.m.

"I can’t stop hurting myself,but Bill is always by my side,reminding me that life is worth living."

My vision blurred as the pain in my side grew sharper,but I waited for Bill.He had promised to come home,but once again,he didn’t show up.

It wasn’t until the following evening that he returned,eyes red from exhaustion.He glanced at the untouched food on the table and asked casually,“Why haven’t you cooked?”

“You know I can’t eat outside food,”he added without waiting for a response.“You’ve been home all day,and you can’t even manage a meal?”

Bill’s palate was as refined as his tastes—he refused to eat anything made outside,and I had spent three months learning recipes from top chefs just to meet his standards.Yet,it was never enough.

That day,while waiting for him,I found another post from Annie's social media—photos of the two of them eating at a street stall.

"Bill is so sweet for joining me at a street stall.I’m the happiest woman alive!"

I didn’t respond to his scolding.I didn’t have the strength.

He paused,noticing my silence.“Are you still not feeling well?Wait here.”

He returned moments later with a bowl of medicine.

“You probably have a cold,”he said,barely looking at me as he typed on his phone.“Drink this,sleep,and sweat it out.”

I glanced at the phone in his hand and saw the contact name:Annie.

"When are you coming?I don’t want to stay in the hospital alone."

He responded without missing a beat.“Tomorrow.”

I didn’t touch the medicine.

Instead,I said quietly,“Yesterday,you said you’d come back home.But you didn’t.”

He shrugged,his eyes still glued to the screen.“You know how your sister is.Her emotions are unstable,and she faints at the sight of blood.I stayed to make sure she wouldn’t do anything stupid.”

I felt a bitter laugh rise in my throat.Annie,the woman who had tried to take her own life multiple times.But each time,she never followed through.She would call Bill before it was too late,and each time,he would rush to her side.

This time,it was wrist-slashing.

“Bill,”I said,my voice calm despite the storm inside me,“people who truly want to die don’t announce it to the world.They find a quiet place and leave without a word.”

He stood abruptly,fury clouding his face.“Belle,don’t think for a second that I don’t remember how you manipulated me into this marriage.You should have known what you were getting into.”

He stepped closer,his words seething with contempt.“Anne is pure.Unlike you.You won’t even help your own sister.You’re just...cruel.”

I closed my eyes,taking a deep breath.

“Bill,let’s get a divorce.”

His grip tightened around his phone for a second.Then he shrugged.

“Do whatever you want.”

(Flashback)

I spent the entire afternoon packing the few clothes I owned,determined to leave the cage that had confined me for five long years.It was almost laughable how little I had to take with me after all these years.But even with so little,each step felt heavier,as if the past itself was trying to pull me back.But I wouldn’t stay.I couldn’t.

That night,Annie sent me a video.

In the dim light,Bill sat comfortably,his lips pressing against the edge of a wine glass,his arm resting casually behind her on the couch,making it seem like he was holding her waist.

“Big sister,you’ve lost.No matter what tricks you pull to stay with Bill I’m still the one he loves the most.”

Her words should have hurt,but they didn't.I had no more energy to be hurt.I had lost completely.

If it hadn’t been for Bill’s grandmother,he never would have married me in the first place.I was nothing more than Annie's shadow back then,always following her,protecting her.As time passed,I grew close to Bill’s grandmother.She saw how little I had in the Annie household,often inviting me to dine with her.When she lay on her deathbed,her final wish was for Bill to marry me.

Back then,I was so young,thinking that maybe,with time,I could earn Bill’s love.I don't know that the melon that is twisted by force is not sweet at all.

I stared at the video Annie sent,feeling nothing.Numbness had taken over.All I wanted now was to get better.Even if Bill refused to find me the best doctors,I had saved enough from my time at the Bill’household.I could afford my treatment and leave.Start anew.I would never again be Annie's blood bank.She wasn’t really my sister anyway.

When I was seven,Annie’s mother had carefully picked me from the orphanage to be Annie's playmate.A playmate?No,more like her personal blood bag.We both had the rare RH-negative blood,and whenever Bai Yueguang got hurt,I had to be ready to give her my blood.

To outsiders,Annie’s parents appeared to be kind philanthropists,but in private,they were tormentors.They would starve me for two days,then toss bones into a dog’s bowl and watch me fight the dog for scraps.They loved sticking needles under my nails just to hear me scream,recording it all as a reminder.

“If you ever betray Annie,we’ll upload these videos to the dark web.You know how much men like girls your age.”

Annie would press her foot against my face during these moments.

“You are my slave.You hear?”

It was only after they died in that car crash that I had any hope of escape.With them gone,I thought I could finally breathe.But even without them,Annie still had me under her thumb.

(Present)

Annie’s joyous laughter ripped me from the depths of my memories.

She threw herself into Bill’s arms,laughing uncontrollably as she cradled a heart-shaped shell in her hands.

“Bill Ausie,you’re amazing!You really found a heart-shaped shell!I’m going to post this on my feed and tell the world that Bill Ausie found it for me.”

Bill tapped her nose playfully.

“You’re too old to be acting like a child.”

“I don’t care!Bill Ausie is the best!”

He sighed,shaking his head,but as he reached for his phone,his expression turned serious.He must have seen my message.

He typed,then deleted,typed again,and deleted once more.

Annie’s gaze turned to him,worried.

“Bill,did big sister call you?Do you think she had something important to say?”

Bill scoffed.

“What could be important?She’s probably just playing another game like she did before.Let her be.She’ll come back once she’s done.”

Annie pouted,her childish tone laced with mockery.

“Big sister is so inconsiderate,always causing trouble for you.I’m sure she hates me for disrupting your life.I'll apologize to her tomorrow if that’s what it takes.”

Bill smiled faintly and reminded her to fasten her seatbelt.

“It’s not your fault.Just take care of yourself.”

On the way home,Bill’s car passed by the lab,but he only glanced at it briefly.He wasn’t planning on stopping.

As they neared the forest,his brows furrowed,and he spoke with concern.

“It's some large animal hunting or fighting for territory again,such a heavy smell of blood,you should stay away from these places in the future.”

I looked down at my own body and silently agreed.

Yes,something was indeed hunting.Yeah,hunting for food,your wife's corpse is half torn up.