Chapter 2

The next day, Richard froze all my cards.

He also canceled my treatment authorization, and the hospital immediately stopped my medication, following the rules.

A few expressionless security guards escorted me out of the hospital room.

I didn't have enough for a taxi ride, so with nothing but my battered body, I shuffled step by step to the front of Grant Holdings.

This was my last hope.

But as I stepped into the lobby, the private elevator doors slid open.

Richard came out, pushing a massive, multi-tiered cake on a cart, flanked by his entourage of top executives.

He was celebrating Yvonne's nineteenth birthday.

Desperately, I pushed through the crowd and held out my crumpled, blood-stained diagnosis report to him. "Richard, please, save me."

But Yvonne let out a spoiled little cry and snatched the paper right out of my hands before I could react.

She didn't bother to look at it and stuffed it straight into the whirring shredder next to her.

She sneered, "Oh, Anna, Richard rented out the whole building for my birthday today. Why are you showing up with your pathetic paperwork to kill the vibe?"

With the shredder's harsh grinding, my last hope of survival was shredded to pieces was gone.

Lucas Reed, the young streamer trailing behind Yvonne, stared at the plastic bag of loose cancer meds dangling from my fingertips. His face went very pale.

He'd been about to step forward to keep up with Yvonne, but he stopped in his tracks, his hand balling into a fist in his pocket.

Ten minutes ago, Yvonne was in the livestream, tipping Lucas 600 thousand dollars with Richard's account. The chat was going crazy, praising Yvonne for her lavish spending.

Yvonne hooked her arm through Richard's, beaming and showing off. "Richard, look at her, so shabby and pathetic. She's obviously here to pull a sob story and scam you for money."

Richard looked down at me, his eyes filled with pure disgust. "Where the hell are security? Since when does Grant Holdings let garbage like her walk in here?

"Get her out of my sight. And tell the front desk neither Anna nor beggars are allowed in here again."

The security guards dragged me out through the revolving doors.

Before Lucas walked out, he hesitated, looked back at me with a lingering, searching gaze, and secretly pressed the record button on his phone, still hidden in his pocket.

It turned out this was how Richard passed his final sentence on me.

Right before everything went black, I used the last of my strength to make a phone call.

I called the organ donation center. "I'd like to donate my body and any organs that can be used."

"My blood type is rare. Maybe it could help save someone. I only have one request. Please don't contact my family."

Because I had no family.

*****

I woke up, surrounded by blinding white light.

Nope, it was not heaven, but the hospital's special care ward.

A doctor in a white coat was standing next to my bed. As I opened my eyes, he smiled kindly at me. "You're awake, Ms. Carter."

I looked at him, lost and confused.

"I-I'm not dead?" I murmured.

"Barely," the doctor said. "By the time you got here, you were bleeding out, and your heart had nearly stopped.

"Luckily, someone stepped in and covered all your medical bills right away and insisted we use only the best medicine and equipment for you."

I froze. Who was it? Richard? No, that was impossible. He wishes I were dead already.

A warm, soothing male voice came from the doorway. "I did."

I turned my head and saw Lucas, the streamer, standing by the door.

He'd swapped out his trendy clothes for a plain white T-shirt and jeans, looking clean, fresh, and approachable.

He was carrying a lunchbox. "You've been unconscious for two days. The doctor said you can start eating some light, liquid food now."

He walked over and set the lunchbox down on the bedside table. "I'm Lucas Reed."

I watched him, wary and defensive. "Why? Aren't you with Yvonne?"

Lucas's eyes brimmed with tears. "I don't really need the money. I only started streaming to cover my sister's medical bills.

"Three months ago, she died of acute leukemia. She waited and waited, but a matching donor never came.

"Seeing your meds and your chart, it was like seeing my sister all over again.

"The way Yvonne flaunts someone else's life-saving money, treating a life like it's nothing, honestly disgusts me.

"I gave back every cent of that 600 thousand dollars to the streaming site.

"Helping you is the least I can do to make up for what I couldn't do for my sister."

So that was the truth. I managed a bitter smile, but it only made everything hurt more.

"You feel sorry for me?" I asked.

"No." Lucas shook his head, his eyes serious. "I'm paying you back. Yvonne used your life-saving money to tip me. I can't take that money.

"I've already contacted the platform to refund every cent, but it'll take some time to process. I've covered your 600 thousand dollar surgery fee for now."

For a streamer, 600 thousand dollars was a huge deal. I looked at him, feeling all sorts of mixed emotions.

A complete stranger, to pay back a debt, was willing to spend everything for me.

But the guy who kept saying he loved me, who promised to marry me, was the one who threw me right into the pit.

It was so ironic.

"Thank you," I said. "But I can't accept it. I've already given up on getting treated."

Lucas got worked up. "Why? They already found a bone marrow match, didn't they? You can have the surgery any day now."

I shook my head. "It's too late now. I won't last until the surgery."

Years of high fevers and infections have already done serious damage to my organs.

The doctor said I was only brought back temporarily.

Right now, I was barely clinging to life, kept going by costly meds and machines.

Lucas's eyes brimmed with tears. "Why is this happening? How could Richard do this to you?"

He punched the wall, furious.

I looked at him, calm inside. "This doesn't concern you. I'll pay you back, somehow."

Lucas was about to say something else when the door to the hospital room swung open again.

This time, it was Richard's assistant, James Harper.

James froze for a moment when he saw Lucas, then quickly slipped back into his blank expression.

He walked over to my bed and handed me a document. "Ms. Carter, Mr. Grant wanted you to have this."

It was an agreement to call off our engagement. He also handed me a check for 300 thousand dollars.

He said, "Mr. Grant said he thanked you for all these years. Here's 300 thousand dollars as compensation. From now on, you and the Grant family are done. No more ties."

I took the agreement, stared at the words, and couldn't help but laugh out loud.

Just then, I was hit by a violent coughing fit. A gush of bright red blood burst from my lips, splattering all over the breakup papers.

I panicked, desperately scrubbing the blood off the paper with my sleeve, even if it meant scraping my hand raw and bleeding.

I clung to the agreement like it was all I had left, then looked up at James and forced a pale, broken smile. "Sorry for staining it. Could you let him know I've already signed it?

"I'll stay far away. I'll never stain his eyes again."

He traded ten years of my youth to make Yvonne happy.

And in the end, my life was cashed out for 300 thousand dollars.

I slumped back against the headboard, feeling like every last bit of strength had been drained from me.

Then, I quietly handed the 300-thousand-dollar check to Lucas. "The card password is six zeros.

"If that's still not enough, after I'm gone, sell my organs to cover the rest. And if that still doesn't cover it..."

I paused, then glanced at James. "Go ask Richard to cover the rest. Tell him, whatever I owe, let him settle it for me."

James's expression flickered, but in the end, he stayed silent and accepted it.

Lucas clutched the check, struggling to find the right words to stop me. "Anna, don't do this."

I ignored him and let my eyes drift shut. I was so tired. This crazy mess was finally over.

*****

Once again, I lost consciousness.

Drifting in and out of awareness, it felt like I was floating through a long, endless dream.

In my dream, I found myself back at the orphanage.

The sun was warm, and I was playing on the grass with my friends.

Richard stood under a big tree not far away, dressed in a crisp white shirt, giving me a gentle smile.

He said, "Anna, wait for me. I'll come back and marry you."

That was the very first time we met.

He came to the orphanage for charity work, and right away, he saw how much I resembled Sophia.

He took me home and gave me the best life I could ever imagine.

He treated me like a precious treasure.

Back then, I really thought he loved me.

But then, one day, I accidentally found a photo of Sophia in his study.

The girl in the picture wore a radiant smile, and she was almost my mirror image. That was when it hit me that I was nothing but a shadow, a vessel for his grief.

But I loved him anyway. I loved him in the most pathetic, stubborn way.

I worked so hard to pick up the manners he liked, dress like Sophia, and learn to cook her favorite dishes.

I thought if I was good enough, maybe someday he'd finally notice me.

He would see the real Anna, not a knockoff of Sophia.

During ten whole years, no matter how hard I tried, his heart stayed frozen.

At the end of my dream, the scene shifted.

Richard stood in front of my tombstone, his expression empty.

Yvonne clung to his arm, her voice bright and cheerful. "Richard, look. She's finally gone. We don't have to deal with that annoying woman anymore."

Richard nodded, his tone indifferent. "Yeah, it's peaceful now."

Then they turned and walked away, never looking back.

*****

"Patient's vitals are crashing."

"Clear for defib."

"One shot of epi."

The noisy shouts and urgent voices in the hospital dragged me out of my nightmare.

I struggled to open my eyes and saw doctors and nurses scrambling frantically around my bed.

Lucas was standing there, pale as a sheet, eyes locked on the heart monitor. The line was about to go flat.

I felt my body getting lighter and lighter, like I could drift off any second.

I knew my time was up.

I looked at Lucas, barely able to move, and silently shaped the words with my lips. "Thank you. And I'm sorry."

I was sorry. I wouldn't be able to pay him back after all.

I was sorry for him to see me like this, so miserable and so helpless.

Lucas seemed to get what I was saying, and he broke down in tears.

He rushed over, reaching for my hand, but the nurse held him back. "Sir, please stay calm. Don't interfere with our emergency care."

When I saw him break down and cry like that, something inside me softened.

Maybe that was okay. At least in this world, there was still someone who would really mourn me when I was gone.

The heart monitor blared out a harsh, endless tone. Everything faded to black. That was it. I died.