Chapter 4
“Jenny, if it hadn’t been for you paying to replace the school’s lab equipment, I would’ve been expelled long ago. From that moment, I secretly vowed to protect you for the rest of my life.”
Matt’s words pulled me back from my thoughts.
I watched as Jennifer, moved to tears, threw herself into his arms. I had grown numb.
The difference between people is as vast as the difference between people and dogs.
I would never be able to compare to Jennifer.
Everyone loved her.
And me, I was despised by everyone.
“Matt, it’s enough just to hear you say that. At least our love wasn’t in vain. But how can I let you borrow from loan sharks? It would ruin you. In the end, it’s my fault for upsetting my sister. She must have gotten mad and disappeared because I took you away from her. If she can forgive me, I’d even kneel before her to apologize…”
Jennifer sobbed quietly in Matt’s arms.
Matt quickly comforted her, “Jenny, don’t say things like that. You did nothing wrong. With a personality like hers, no one could be happy with her.”
“Exactly. She’s always nitpicking over the smallest things and then hides away when things don’t go her way. She’s just a country girl with no manners!”
My mother chimed in, then turned to my father.
“Honey, I can’t reach her by phone. Try contacting someone else. There’s no way she can disappear off the face of the earth!”
My list. But he had never cared about me, so how could he possibly have anyone in his phone who knew me?
ather frowned as he opened his contact
Just then, an unexpected call came in.
I leaned in closer to look–it was from the hospital director.
“Mr. Smith, I heard you visited the hospital today looking for Judith. I still have some of her belongings here. Whenever you have time, come pick them up.‘
My father had a habit of answering calls on speakerphone, so everyone in the room heard the director’s words.
His first reaction was disbelief.
“Director, how old are you now? Are you really playing along with Judith’s nonsense?”
The director let out a long sigh, “Mr. Smith,
Judith has been gone for six months. I thought you would’ve come to terms with it by now, but it seems… well, never mind. I’ll just keep her things here until you’re ready to collect them.”
With that, the director hung up.
My mother’s expression shifted from stunned to suspicious.
“Honey, Judith… is she really dead?”
Jennifer spoke softly, “The hospital director said it himself, it couldn’t be fake. But my sister was always so healthy, and she was a doctor. How could she just…”
“Doctors have intense workloads and irregular schedules. I remember before we broke up, she could perform up to ten surgeries a day. No one can handle that kind of pressure,” Matt added.
My father snorted, clutching his phone.
“Well, at least she’s dead. Peaceful and quiet. Good riddance!”ConTEent bel0ngs to Nôv(e)lD/rama(.)Org .
I closed my eyes and let out a bitter smile.
Father, you got what you wanted. Are you happy now?
And to my disbelief, my father actually smiled.
But it wasn’t a smile of relief–it had a hint of calculation.
That smile made me feel an uneasy foreboding.
Sure enough, early the next morning, my father brought a group of reporters to the hospital, along with my family, and unfurled a white banner at the entrance.
“This heartless hospital worked my daughter to death, forcing her into intense shifts that led to her sudden death. Afterward, they not only hid the truth from us but even took her body to the crematorium without our consent. We didn’t learn she had passed until six months later. Where is the justice?!”
They spoke tearfully in front of the cameras, playing the part of the grieving family as much as possible.
The internet erupted immediately, with waves of outrage aimed at the hospital.
“This hospital is truly despicable. The last time I took my mom there, they deliberately prescribed expensive medications.”