On my eighteenth birthday, I wasn't blowing out candles. I was being arrested for aggravated assault. No matter how hard I tried to prove my innocence, it was useless. The star witness against me was my own brother. "Ava, you have a severe sleepwalking condition. You just didn't know about it!" "But this time you hurt Chloe. I can't cover for you anymore!" Just like that, I was thrown into prison with a five-year sentence. Fast forward to one week before my release. I was getting beaten into the concrete floor by the cell block boss again. During the beating, my nose started bleeding uncontrollably, and I passed out. I was rushed to the infirmary. In a haze, I heard the correctional officers talking outside. "Man, that rich kid Ethan is cold-blooded. Framing his own sister just to help his adopted one get ahead." "Keep it down! Take that to the grave. We don't know anything." I opened my eyes, clutching the diagnosis paper for acute leukemia in my hand, and suddenly laughed. I laughed until tears streamed down my face. Ethan, I’m finally doing what you wanted. I'm really going to die. The prison doctor looked at me, terrified as I laughed and cried at the same time. He sighed, trying to comfort me. "Don't be too pessimistic. If we can find a matching bone marrow donor, the five-year survival rate is still decent." He walked around to my side, and I felt a sharp sting in my hand. "This IV might burn a little. Just bear with it." I looked down blankly. Pain? I didn't feel it. Compared to five years of unanswered prayers and hopeless torment, what was a little needle prick? The doctor asked me again. "Do you have family? You can ask them to come in for testing. Siblings usually have the best..." "No." I cut him off, my voice flat, though my heart throbbed with a dull ache. "I don't have family." I paused, my throat dry and scratchy. "I'm an orphan." I finally realized it. From the beginning to the end, I had always been like an orphan. No one loved me. The doctor froze. Another heavy sigh. He opened the door, and two guards walked in. They exchanged a look with the doctor, hesitating. They pitied me. But they had no choice. Ethan, the heir to the Pierce family fortune, had given instructions. They had to follow them. "Finish the IV and head back. You have one month left on your sentence." It was evening when I returned to the cell. The other inmates were already asleep. I dragged my exhausted body inside and accidentally bumped into the boss’s bunk. Screeech. A loud, jarring noise. "You looking to die?! Watch where you're walking!" She flipped out of bed and kicked me square in the lower back, eyes full of malice. "Five years, Ava. You really have nine lives, don't you?" Big Red was serving a life sentence. Seeing someone like me, who was about to taste freedom in a month, only made her hate me more. Fists rained down on me like hail. I curled up on the floor, covering my head with my hands, silently taking it. "Hey! Knock it off!" A guard banged his baton on the bars. "Quiet down! Or you're all going to solitary!" Big Red stopped and spat on me. "Pfft! I got a whole month left to mess you up!" I lay on the cold floor. The chemotherapy drugs made me weak, draining every ounce of strength from my body. I could only curl up like a turtle, using my shell for protection. Pathetic. Absurd. I stumbled back to my bunk and pulled the thin blanket over my head. After a long while, a small sob escaped my lips. The physical pain was nothing compared to the agony in my heart. Thinking about what the guards said, I felt a wave of desolation. The prison sentence, the suffering, the torture. It was all because of one thing Ethan had said: Chloe just got here. Ava, you're the big sister now. You need to be more understanding. Six years ago, when Ethan first adopted Chloe, an orphan girl, I truly treated her like a sister. But over the next year, I realized my brother had changed. At the dinner table, my favorite dishes disappeared. They were replaced by the seafood feasts Chloe loved. He forgot I was severely allergic to seafood. So allergic that when I was a kid, a single bite of abalone almost killed me. I still remember that day. Ethan was so frantic he wanted to beat himself up. "I'm sorry, Ava. I didn't know. I'll remember from now on. I promise." But after Chloe arrived, all he said was: "If you don't want to eat, leave the table. Stop being dramatic!" From then on, I sat alone on the edge of the sofa while they cuddled together, a happy family of two. At school, Ethan stopped coming to my parent-teacher conferences. Instead, he canceled important meetings to attend Chloe's. Gradually, I lost my brother. I lost the brother who once said he would spend his whole life protecting me... Chapter 1 After crying myself into a fitful sleep, I was woken by a guard banging on the bars. He looked at me. "Inmate 1745. Your parole paperwork went through. You're released today." I froze. It felt like a joke. Walking out of those iron gates, looking up at a sky that wasn't cut into squares by bars, felt like stepping into another life. "Ava." A familiar figure walked toward me. I looked up, my gaze hardening. It was my brother. He walked over, looking as dashing and pristine as ever. Standing next to me, in my ragged state, the contrast was jarring. "You're out. I came to pick you up." I stared at him for two seconds. He felt like a stranger. He looked away, guilt flashing in his eyes before he could hide it. I saw it clearly. "Ethan, I don't have a sleepwalking disorder, right? And I never hurt Chloe." His face stiffened. I kept going. "Everything was just a way for you to protect Chloe. But I don't understand. I never hurt her." "What could possibly make you do something so cruel to me?" He stopped walking, lips pressed into a thin line, afraid to meet my eyes. I forced a smile and continued. "Also, I'm sick." He took a deep breath and turned around, his eyes full of impatience. "Ava, you just got out and you're already starting drama?" "First you question the sleepwalking, now you're sick? What's next? You're going to say you were framed and now you're dying?" I opened my mouth to say yes. But his sharp, disgusted glare shoved the words back down my throat. He suppressed his temper. He led me toward the car. "Wait." I reached for the front passenger door, but he stopped me. He pursed his lips. "The front seat is Chloe's spot. You sit in the back." My throat clicked as I swallowed. I laughed at myself. "So now, in your heart, is Chloe your only sister?" He frowned, correcting me. "It's Chloe Pierce now. I've added her to our family registry. She's your sister too." He didn't deny it... On the way home, I felt a warm liquid rush from my nose. I quickly tilted my head back. But the blood still dripped out. "What's wrong?" Ethan frowned, watching me in the rearview mirror as he handed back a tissue. I endured the bone-deep ache radiating through my body. "Just stress. It's nothing." He nodded and didn't ask again. Returning to the home I hadn't seen in five years felt surreal. "Ava!" A girl fluttered toward me like a social butterfly. "You're finally back! I missed you so much." I looked at her, and a wave of inferiority washed over me. In five years, I had gone from confident to cowardly, while she showed no trace of the timid girl she used to be. I brushed her hand away. "We aren't that close. Cut the act." Chloe froze, looking wronged. Ethan's face darkened instantly. He stepped forward to scold me. "It seems five years in prison didn't teach you how to behave. Ava, apologize!" My body went stiff. But I still bowed slightly to her. "I'm sorry, Chloe." Back inside the villa, I went upstairs to my room. Ethan followed me. "By the way, I forgot to tell you. Your room is Chloe's now. You'll stay in the guest room for the time being." My fingers curled into a fist, slowly tightening. "...Okay." Dinner was the same nightmare. A seafood feast that could kill me. Later, I sat on the edge of the sofa, out of place as always. When I went back to the guest room, Chloe followed me in. This time, the fake sweetness was gone. Her expression was vicious, hateful. "Looks like you're hard to kill. I can't believe you didn't die in there." I looked up, realizing everything in an instant. "So Big Red... you arranged that?" Chloe smiled and shook her head. "You're wrong. It wasn't me. It was Ethan." "Ethan knew that without you around, I wouldn't have to suffer anyone's cold looks." "I could finally be the true princess of the Pierce family." It hit me like a truck. So the five years of prison... It was just because Ethan wanted the world to accept Chloe without question. A scheme to ensure she never felt "less than"... It was insane. I lowered my head and laughed out loud. Chloe frowned at me. "Are you crazy?" Slap! Chloe turned her head, clutching her stinging cheek, eyes wide with shock. "You're crazy! You dared to hit me!" I stepped forward, grabbing her neck with one hand. "I'm going to die anyway, Chloe. Why don't you come to hell with me!" "Cough... Cough! Let go of me!" Her face started turning blue, her eyes rolling back. Bang! The door was kicked open. I was kicked away, slamming into the foot of the bed. "Ava!" Ethan looked at the finger marks on Chloe's neck, grinding his teeth in rage. "Have you lost your mind?!" I lay on the floor, spitting out a mouthful of blood. It soaked into the black carpet, invisible. Ethan wasn't done. He scolded me coldly. "If you dare hurt Chloe again, I'll throw you right back in prison!" The door slammed shut. Bang. It felt like a hammer to my heart. I lowered my eyes. My nose was bleeding again. It hurt so much... I bit my hand hard, but a painful whimper still escaped. I dragged my suitcase downstairs. This wasn't my home. Ethan saw me in the living room with my bag and frowned. "What? You hit someone and now you're running away?" I didn't speak. He sneered. "Then get lost! Go far away!" I looked at him, and suddenly my brain spun. My eyes rolled back, and I collapsed to the floor. "Ava!" Chapter 2 When I woke up, I was in the hospital. Ethan stood there with a dark expression. Next to him were a doctor with his head lowered and Chloe, whose eyes were dancing with amusement. Seeing me open my eyes, Ethan stepped forward. He ripped the IV tube out of my hand, scolding me in a low voice. "So your goal was to make me think you have leukemia, right? To make me feel guilty? Or are you trying to push Chloe out of the house step by step?" "Ava Pierce!" He roared, making my scalp tingle. "You are absolutely despicable!" I opened my mouth to explain, to tell him I really was sick. But I was interrupted by the very doctor who had diagnosed me with leukemia in prison. "I'm sorry, Miss Pierce. I've already returned the money to your account." "As a doctor with ethics, I cannot help you lie to your family." My eyes widened. My ears started ringing. "What did you say?" Realizing something, I instinctively looked at Chloe. The smugness, the schadenfreude, the hate—I saw it all. "It's you again..." I spoke, my voice hoarse, sounding like I was weeping blood. My eyes were terrifyingly red. Ethan frowned, instantly shielding Chloe behind him, his face dark. "You never learn!" "Didn't you want to run away from home? I'll grant your wish. Get out of the Pierce family. Now!" With that, he took Chloe's hand and stormed out. The woman turned around. She smiled at me and mouthed, "You lose again." The room fell silent. The doctor looked down. His eyes were full of struggle. "I'm sorry..." "My child needs money to study abroad. Ava, I really am sorry..." I twitched the corner of my mouth. Whatever. Every man for himself. But tears still fell from the corners of my eyes, drop by drop, onto the hospital bed. I was kicked out. I rented a run-down apartment in the slums. That night, just as I took my medicine and was about to sleep, I heard the lock being picked. I sat up instantly, grabbing a bat I kept by the bed. Someone outside was cursing. "Damn, what kind of dump is this little b*tch living in? Can't even pick the lock!" The moment I heard her voice, I froze. It was her! Big Red from prison... But she was serving a life sentence. How was she out? Before I could process it, the person outside kicked the door open. The impact sent me crashing to the floor. Big Red sneered. She squatted down, snatched the bat from my hand, and tapped it rhythmically against the floorboards. The sound drained the color from my face. I looked at her and suddenly laughed. "It was Chloe, right? Since prison, was it Chloe ordering you to torture me?" She paused, her eyes flickering. "Who's Chloe? I don't know her. I just don't like your face. You got a problem with that?" I stood up shakily. Without money for treatment, my body was screaming in pain again. "In prison, you used the excuse that my sentence was short and you were jealous." "But I just got out, and you're out right after me? Do you think I'd believe such a ridiculous lie?" Big Red's eyes turned dark and sinister. I scoffed. "Seems like Chloe paid you well if you were willing to sit in prison for five years just to hurt me!" Bang! "Shut up, b*tch!" My back slammed into the coffee table. Shattered glass sliced into my flesh. Pain. Excruciating pain! Suddenly, the door was pushed open, and a deep voice demanded, "What are you doing?!" Chapter 3 Ethan walked in with Chloe, his face grim. Big Red caught Chloe's eye and immediately put on a guilty expression. "We... we weren't acting. No, wait..." She hurriedly covered her mouth and glanced at me. Ethan closed his eyes. His voice dropped. "Speak!" Big Red trembled in fear. "I'm sorry, Mr. Pierce. It was Miss Ava. She hired me. She told me to beat her up." "So she could frame the young lady next to you." Chloe's eyes widened, looking like she had suffered a massive injustice. "Ava?" "How could you..." I stood up. My back was a bloody mess. My nose started bleeding again. Drip, drip. Blood hit the floorboards. "Chloe, I already left the family. Why won't you let me go?" Ethan sneered. He protected Chloe behind him while mocking me. "She won't let you go?" "Ava, you're still acting!" Ethan shook his head, the disappointment in his eyes stinging my heart. "How did you become like this?" His gaze froze on my bleeding nose, and suddenly his heart gave a strange lurch. He frowned hard. But he quickly shook it off. For some reason, he just got angrier! "You really prepared thoroughly to frame Chloe. Ava, your heart is venomous!" "I can't believe I even came to check on you. What a waste of my feelings!" He took Chloe and turned to leave. The room went quiet. Big Red suddenly scoffed. "Looks like being a rich missy isn't that great after all." She reached out and pinched my face, viciously. "Don't worry. Your 'good days' are just beginning!" I slumped to the floor. My eyes lost focus as I stared at the closed door. My heart felt numb. It didn't feel that sad anymore. A week later, I fainted again. Perhaps out of guilt, that doctor paid for a round of painkillers out of his own pocket. "If you don't find a bone marrow donor... you don't have much time left." I clenched my fingers. I just nodded silently and left the hospital. In the time that followed, Ethan never came to see me again. Chloe, however, came by often to torture and mock me. I lay sick in bed. Like a fish on a chopping block, I didn't even have the strength to struggle. I just let them cut. "Ava, don't blame me." "You had everything. I had nothing. I had no choice but to take it. Ethan... he can only have one sister." That night, Ethan unexpectedly called me. "Do you know you were wrong?" I fell silent. I didn't speak. I asked myself: Was I wrong? Where did I go wrong? "Ethan, the day after tomorrow is my birthday. Will you celebrate with me? Like on my eighteenth birthday?" The line went quiet, save for Ethan's heavy breathing. "I'm in Iceland with Chloe watching the aurora. I might not make it back. But..." "If you admit your mistake, I'll bring you a gift." I looked down. The pain in my body made my hand shake as I held the phone. "Is that so? But Ethan..." I paused, holding back the overwhelming bitterness and grief. "I don't even know what I did wrong." Ethan's voice turned sharp again. "Ava, I really shouldn't have had any expectations for you." Beep. Beep. Beep. The call ended abruptly. My hand lost strength, and the phone crashed to the floor. Tears shimmered in the corners of my eyes. They sparkled in the moonlight. The wind blew. It was so, so cold. For the next two days, I didn't even have the strength to get my medicine. I lay on the bed. Watching the clock tick away, second by second. In the final moment, I finally accepted the fact that my brother wasn't coming back. I'm so tired. My breathing grew faint. "Ava, happy birthday." I whispered to myself, breathed my last breath, and closed my eyes forever. The very next second. A loud banging came from the door, followed by Ethan's muffled voice. "Ava, open the door!" Chapter 4 Ethan banged on the door, a wave of inexplicable irritability rising in his chest. That feeling. It was exactly like when Ava was a child and had that allergic reaction to seafood, her life hanging by a thread. Ethan's hand froze mid-knock. "Seafood allergy..." He murmured the words, his heart tingling with unease. Right. He remembered that because Chloe liked it, the table had been full of seafood for days. He had completely forgotten about Ava's allergy. Seeing no movement inside for a long time, he lost his patience. "Still not opening up? I bought you a cake, Ava. My patience is limited!" He pursed his lips, listening intently for any sound inside. But in the silent night, it was dead quiet. Ethan frowned and picked up his phone, tapping on 'Ava'. One second, two seconds. He pressed his ear to the door, listening for a ringtone. Looking at the unanswered call, he felt annoyed. He thought Ava was throwing a tantrum. "Fine. Won't open the door? Ava, I literally flew back overnight to celebrate your birthday!" "Suit yourself!" He slammed the cake box down in front of the door and turned to leave. Inside the room, the girl lay quietly in the moonlight. Her body grew colder and stiffer. Her breathing had stopped long ago. Back at the villa, he ripped off his tie and threw it aside, feeling suffocated. He thought of Ava's words on the phone: But Ethan, I don't even know what I did wrong. Ethan felt restless. It was true. Sending her to prison was his idea, just a way to stop people from criticizing Chloe's background. Come to think of it, she hadn't actually done anything wrong... The more he thought about it, the more gloom settled in his chest, giving him a bad premonition. Just then, Chloe walked downstairs. She sat next to Ethan, a shadow crossing her eyes. "Ethan, what's wrong?" He pinched the bridge of his nose, feeling exhausted. "I can't reach Ava. She's probably sulking. It's fine." Chloe's eyes flickered. He didn't know what happened to that b*tch Ava, but she knew very well. She was probably cold by now! Heh. Chloe felt a surge of triumph. As long as Ava was dead, she would be the true Pierce heiress from now on! Ethan would belong only to her! Two people sat in the living room, their thoughts miles apart. One anxious, one gloating. For the next two days, Ethan went to knock on Ava's door during his breaks from work. No matter how hard he knocked, there was no response. He looked down at the moldy cake at the door. He finally realized something was wrong. "Ethan?" "Chloe?" Ethan stopped trying to ram the door, frowning. "What are you doing here?" She opened her mouth. She couldn't say she came specifically to see Ava's miserable state. She made something up. "I came to see Ava. I wanted to apologize. I shouldn't have dragged you to see the aurora on her birthday." Ethan paused, not contradicting her. Chloe clenched her fists, malice flashing in her eyes. What did he mean by that silence! At this point, Ethan started slamming his shoulder into the door. Crash! The door burst open. A thick, putrid stench hit them in the face. They stumbled back two steps. Chloe covered her nose, her face full of disgust. "Ethan, did something rot in Ava's house? What is that smell?" Ethan pressed his lips together. He didn't know. But the anxiety haunting him reached its peak. "Ava?" He walked around but saw no one. Finally, they stopped in front of the bedroom door. The source of the stench! Bang bang bang! Ethan knocked louder and louder, his expression starting to crack. "Ava! Open the door! I'm counting to three. Don't make me angry!" "Three, two, one!" Silence. In the corner, my spirit floated, watching them, scoffing. Open it? I'm already dead. Ethan closed his eyes, took a step back, and kicked hard. Crash! The door splintered. The overwhelming stench rushed out. "Ugh!" Chloe almost vomited, looking repulsed. But Ethan rushed in regardless. When he saw the person on the bed, already decomposing and crawling with maggots... His legs gave out, and he collapsed to the floor.
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