Chapter 2

With nowhere else to go, I ended up at Ryan's place. Ryan Quinn was my fiancé.

The moment I opened the door, the stench of alcohol hit me. I flipped on the lights and saw Ryan lying there surrounded by wine bottles.

He was totally wasted, and when the light hit him, he threw an arm over his eyes.

I pushed down my sadness, hauled him onto the couch, and grabbed a towel to wipe his face.

As I was wiping his wrist, he blurted out, "If you'd just said yes to Lily back then, she wouldn't have done that, right?"

I couldn't even put my feelings into words. I just stared at him, completely stunned.

He wasn't satisfied. He leaned close, staring straight into my eyes. "If I hadn't found that diary, I would have never known you could be so cruel. She was your sister."

"But she asked me to—" I stammered, my voice barely holding together. "Ryan, we've been together for so many years. Do you honestly believe what she said about me?"

"Who knows?" Ryan leaned back, a mocking grin twisting his lips. "You even did such a cruel thing to your own sister. I'm starting to doubt whether I ever really knew you at all."

Every humiliating word he spat out hit me like a slap. I snapped, grabbed a bottle off the floor, and hurled it to the ground.

Ryan just sat there on the couch, watching me with that cold stare, like none of this meant a thing to him.

The noise got so out of hand that the neighbors couldn't stand it anymore. They rushed in, and the moment they saw the scene, they called the cops.

Ryan sneered and got to his feet, not giving a damn about my dignity as he warned me in front of everyone. "Whether Lily is gonna wake up or not, I'm going to marry her. You should stay far away from us."

Then he just walked out, leaving me alone in the wreckage, under the neighbors' judging eyes.

I sent the neighbors off, feeling totally disheveled. Left alone in the chaos, all I could do was stare at the wrecked room as a suffocating wave of frustration pressed down on my chest.

Someone posted Lily's diary online, and overnight, the whole internet turned on me.

My university withdrew my graduate placement, claiming "ethical concerns". Every job I had already lined up fell through, one after another.

Friends avoided me as if touching me would stain them.

Even the teachers who once treated me kindly grew distant. They were never openly cruel, but cold enough to make the message unmistakable.

With nowhere else to go, I could only hole up in my dorm. My roommates didn't really like me, but at least they weren't as blatant as everyone else. They only threw occasional barbs my way, and I swallowed each one in silence.

Everyone was telling me to die, but I knew I couldn't let that happen.

I knew I wasn't wrong. I still had dreams. And I still had my parents and Lily to take care of, even if they didn't need me anymore.

Time kept moving, and right before I graduated, the hospital called, saying Lily had woken up.

I rushed to the hospital with Lily's favorite salmon. When I arrived at her ward, it was already packed with people.

My parents and relatives, whom I hadn't seen in three months, were all crowded around Lily, showering her with concern.

Lily looked both moved and excited, unable to take her eyes off Ryan as he gently fed her.

"Mom, let Ryan have a break. If Emma sees him doing it, she'll totally lose it again," Lily mumbled.

Lily lay curled up on her side, her face so pale and lost that she looked heartbreakingly weak.

Ryan paused, then grabbed a tissue and wiped Lily's mouth, not even looking at me. He just said, "Who cares about her?"

My mom said, "Yeah, if it hadn't been for your diary, I would have never known what Emma was putting you through.

"Don't do this again, honey. You have no idea how worried your dad and I have been these past few days."

Even my usually stern dad, who almost never showed any emotion, awkwardly brushed Lily's hair aside and tried to comfort her. "Once you're back on your feet, I'll host an engagement party for you and Ryan."