My wife's "eco-prince charming," as he called himself, was a real piece of work. He convinced my wife to limit every single expense for me and my kid to under fifty bucks. He wanted us using leaves and rocks instead of toilet paper. Eating with our bare hands instead of silverware. My son, bless his heart, felt bad for me. He snuck out to do odd jobs, and ended up getting hit by a car. By the time he reached the ER, my boy was barely clinging to life. I begged my wife for money to save him, but her eco-freak boyfriend piped up, "We can’t be rewarding handouts! We're Earth's guardians, remember!" "Hey, why doesn't your old man plant a hundred trees? I'll give him ten bucks a tree!" To save my son, I swallowed my pride and planted a hundred saplings in the freezing wind. But when I got back to the hospital, the promised grand was nowhere to be found. My son passed away, in agony. I frantically called my wife, and the eco-jerk’s smug voice answered: "My sweetie got me a new yacht! We're heading out, so don't bother us." I blew a fuse, yelling, "Just give me the thousand dollars! I need to bury my son!" He flatly refused. "Burial is so wasteful!" "Just dump the used-up trash in the woods; it's free!" I was livid, but my wife cut me off, ice in her voice: "You’d pretend to be dead to get money from me!" "Fine, go to the woods and reflect on your life! "If he really dies, I'll pick up the body later." Before I could answer, she hung up. Clutching my phone, hatred burned in my gut. 1. "Prepare for the worst..." Those words hit me like a bomb. My legs gave out, and I knelt, banging my head on the floor, pleading with the doctor: "Please, Doc, he's only ten! You gotta save him! I'll pay whatever you want, just save him!" The doctor helped me up, sighing, "We waited too long...I'm sorry. We did everything we could." I couldn't believe it. I stared at my son's colorless face in the hospital bed. I remembered him feebly trying to wipe my tears a little while ago, smiling and saying: "Dad, I made twenty bucks handing out flyers outside the amusement park. I can buy you a burger now." "But Dad, I’m kinda tired. Let me take a nap." "Don't cry, Dad..." I beat my head, refusing to accept it. A nurse came over, looking at me with sympathy: "Mr. Johnson, you should arrange for burial, get him some rest.” She calmed me down, and I found my phone to call my wife, Brittany. Each second of waiting felt like an eternity. When I thought it would automatically disconnect, it went through, and her boyfriend, Chad, answered, sounding annoyed: "What's up, old timer? Brittany and I are about to set sail. Don't bother us." I was already on the edge, so I couldn't contain my rage: "Get me the thousand dollars from planting those damn trees, now!" Then, Brittany's cold voice came through, full of reprimand: "All you ever think about is money! I guess you haven't learned your lesson. You and Junior's allowance is now cut in half!" I wanted to curse her, but to give my son a proper burial, I held back, "Whatever you want, just give me the thousand I earned." Brittany scoffed at my tone, "Without me, you two losers couldn't even find trash, and you dare talk back to me?" "Since you're so ambitious, stop trying to con me out of my money." For my son, I dug my nails into my thigh, enduring the humiliation as I begged, "Brittany, please, Junior died, I need that thousand to bury him..." "No burial!" Chad’s voice screeched through the speaker, "It’s not eco-friendly! You gotta dump the trash in the woods. It saves money, a total win-win." Before I could speak, Brittany said, "Let's listen to Chad. Dump him in the woods and reflect." I said in a shaky voice, "Brittany, your son really did die..." Brittany’s words pierced me like a thousand arrows: "Enough! Stop using excuses to beg for cash!" "If he dies, I'll pick him up when I'm free." Click— The phone hung up without hesitation. I called back, but no one answered. Looking at my son's body, I felt utterly helpless. Waiting for my thousand dollars, he endured excruciating pain, clawing at his arms, only to close his eyes forever. Leaning down to kiss his forehead, I choked, "I'm sorry, son. Dad's useless...I'll bury you properly, just you wait.” I returned to our home's garden, finding the hidden Moonlight Orchid among a bunch of wildflowers. I didn't know Chad played the eco-friendly act; planting wildflowers gave me my only hope. I carefully removed the full orchid and planned to sell it for cash. Suddenly, a bunch of people appeared, surrounding me. They held up cameras and filmed, pushing me back. "Look everyone! He went to someone's house and started digging around!" "Look at what he did to those flowers!" "Brittany's the eco-ambassador. Now, he's ruining her flowers, and he'll toss garbage next! We gotta teach him a lesson!" 2 Clicks, shouts, pushes, I started seeing stars. To protect the flower, I quickly explained: "I'm not destroying anything. This is my house, the flowers I planted..." A brawny guy at the front shoved me hard. I lost my balance and fell. He stood above me, spit flying in my face: "Don't try to take credit for yourself. Everyone knows Brittany has a boyfriend, she's getting married soon." "There's no way this is your house! Look at yourself!" Brittany and I didn't have money for a wedding, we only had a marriage license. Her eco-boyfriend Chad said a wedding would pollute the environment, wasting money. So, our marriage was a secret. Right now, I need to bury my son, I can't waste time. So, I opened my phone to show them the marriage license. "Here's a picture of Brittany, my son, and me. I'm her husband, this is my house. I didn't destroy anything!" The brawny man smacked the phone away, kicking me in the gut. "AI can swap faces. It only takes a few minutes to fake pictures and licenses." He pulled out his phone, and photoshopped a picture of him and Brittany's wedding. "See, that's me, Brittany, and our daughter." I knew AI could swap faces, but mine was real. The man didn't give me a chance to speak, kicking me. I tried to cover the orchid. My son was waiting at the hospital... "You're Brittany's stalker, trying to destroy the flowers to get her attention!" "You’re destroying the environment, and we're going to stop you!" I opened my eyes, seeing the phone in my face, live streaming. The comments were all insults. Catching my breath, I said in pain, "I'm not lying..." The man slapped me: "Still lying? Looks like we gotta beat you until you learn your lesson." "Come on, let's teach the stalker a lesson!" They started to punch and kick me. The man stepped on my chest. I screamed, spitting blood. Someone got scared, afraid of killing me. "Is he dead...?" The man grabbed my hair, exposing my face, then grabbed the flower. I tried to grab it, but he stomped me. "See, still fighting back, pretending to be dead, wanting to run." They spat on me. I focused on the flower, saying weakly: "This flower is important to me. Please, give it back..." "It's Brittany's flower." He pulled me up. "Since you dug it out, you'll plant it back." "It's everyone's responsibility to be eco-friendly. People are watching, you must remember, don't destroy the environment!" The man didn't know how to dig and plant a flower. Plus, I couldn't just plant it back. "This is a Moonlight Orchid. You can't just plant it back." Someone kicked me: "Did you know how much it costs? You're destroying it. You'll get shamed, fined, and arrested!" They didn't give me a chance to speak, and dragged me to the garden. The man dug a hole and planted the flower. He grabbed my hand and pushed the soil back in. The root broke. My hope broke. I coughed up blood and fainted. 3 I woke up at the hospital. Remembering my son, I tried to sit up, but a hand gently pushed me back. "Don't move. I just treated your wounds, you have a concussion, you need to rest." Seeing her, I felt sad. "Aunt Carol..." After my parents died, my aunt raised me, sacrificing finding a husband. I married Brittany, breaking contact with her. Aunt Carol wiped my tears, "You never listen...If I wasn't visiting for work, you'd be..." "Fine, you should rest." I swallowed, clearing my throat, "Aunt Carol...can you bring my son? He should be at the hospital...the morgue." Before my aunt could answer, Brittany and Chad rushed in. Brittany yelled, "Danny Johnson, you couldn't scam me for money, so you destroyed my home and got it on the internet! I'm embarrassed!" Chad, eyes red, said, "Danny, how could you destroy the environment? Brittany helped me make an eco-garden!" "The flower stem is broken," He cried. "Brittany, the flower's dying." Brittany consoled him. "Don't cry. I'll take care of it." She looked at me, her gentleness gone: "Danny, you and Junior won't get any more money!" "Not until you learn your lesson!" Aunt Carol slapped Brittany. Brittany fell, Chad gasped, "Why did you hit her!" Brittany stood, protecting Chad, glaring at me: "Danny, aren't you done yet?" "You said our son died, then you destroyed my garden, and now you're teaming up with your aunt to con me!" Hearing my son, I looked at her, "Your son is at the hospital's morgue. You said he died, he'll pick up his body?" Brittany shouted: "Danny! Don't you curse my son. I'll hurt you!" Aunt Carol raised her hand, but an assistant cut her off. "Ms. Sterling, we have the boy." Aunt Carol raised her hand, and the assistant brought a stretcher. He hesitated, saying: "But we went late. There were stray dogs on the mountain..." I grabbed Aunt Carol, asking. Aunt Carol said someone took my son and dumped him on the mountain. "I'm sorry, Brittany. I was late." I fell to my son, removed the sheet, and held my breath. His body was torn open, empty. His face was unrecognizable. "Ah—" I cried, falling to my aunt. Brittany asked: "Danny, what are you doing, what's that disgusting thing?" "Brittany." Chad pulled her. "The flower is waiting for me. Let's go." A nurse came. Seeing me, she was surprised: "Danny, didn't you have people pick up the body to bury him? What are you doing here?" Brittany shook, "What? Body?"
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