Chapter 3
That night, Kyla had a low fever and started mumbling softly in her sleep.
Kyla whispered, "Yolanda, please don't hate me. I just want to live. I want to survive. Mom and Dad are getting old, and I can't let them go through the pain of losing their child.
"It's not right for parents to outlive their children."
Her face was pale, sweat streaming down her forehead, but she kept whispering nonstop.
Mom was so furious that she threw the towel down and stomped on it hard.
It was like she imagined that towel was me, venting all her anger for Kyla's sake.
I took a step back, and Mom put her hands on her hips, cursing me out.
She said, "That bitch. Even now, she's still throwing a tantrum and won't even come to check on Kyla. Kyla's sick and still worrying about her.
"I really regret ever giving birth to someone like her. She's a curse on this family. If anything happens to Kyla, I swear I'll make her pay tenfold."
Mom thought Kyla was being treated unfairly and was ready to fight for her.
Lying in bed with her eyes squeezed shut, Kyla's lips twitched into a sly little smile, her lashes fluttering ever so slightly.
This was all just her performance. She was faking it to paint me as the villain, making our parents hate me even more.
That way, they'd never feel guilty about me, and they'd keep showering all their love on that twisted sister of mine.
My head was pounding in waves of pain, and I shouted back at them, my voice hoarse and desperate.
"I am dead. You don't need to torment me anymore, and you won't have to feel guilty about it," I yelled.
No one heard me. Dad pulled out his phone and started calling. I noticed right away that he was calling me.
His plan was obvious. He just wanted to chew me out and take it out on me for Kyla's sake.
But he was bound to be disappointed. I was dead, and dead people couldn't pick up the phone.
Watching call after call and text after text sink into silence, Dad got so furious that he smashed his phone against the wall.
Dad shouted, "Where the hell is that bitch now? I want to see how she dares to show her face after what she did to Kyla. If it weren't for Kyla, she wouldn't even be here.
"Not only is she ungrateful, but she's downright vicious. She was born to be trash."
Everyone kept rubbing it in that I was only born because of Kyla. But honestly, if I had a say in it, I'd rather be anything but their kid, so I wouldn't always get blamed and mistreated.
Mom was fuming. She and Dad quickly joined forces. Once they saw that Kyla was okay, they began hunting for me around the hospital.
This was Mom's turf, so it was a breeze for them to track me down.
They followed a young nurse as she led them deeper and deeper into the hospital, until finally, they stepped into the chilly morgue.
Mom exploded in anger.
"I'm looking for Yolanda. Why did you bring me here? Is this her doing? She's jealous of Kyla, so she's pulling this cheap stunt? Tell her to get her ass out here now!" Mom yelled.
The young nurse shivered, looking at Mom with disappointment in her eyes.
The nurse said, "Dr. Kelley, Yolanda is dead. She suffered terribly before she passed, all because you took away every nurse and doctor. No one was left to care for her.
"Since you are a doctor, you should know that she wasn't fit for a bone marrow transplant. Her body just couldn't take it."
Mom was left dumbfounded by the nurse's words, then suddenly burst out laughing.
Mom scoffed, "How much did Yolanda pay you to put on this little drama? You really nailed the act.
"Seriously, it's just a bone marrow transplant. Who dies from that? Do you expect me to believe this crap?"
Mom laughed so hard that tears streamed down her face. The young nurse simply swung the door open, her voice icy. "Then go see for yourself."
It only took a single step to enter the room, but Mom stumbled, her legs shaky. She hesitated for a long moment before finally making her way to where my body lay.
She was actually scared. I just couldn't get what she was so afraid of.
I thought she always wanted me dead. I thought she should be thrilled now, seeing my body and getting ready to burn it as soon as possible.
Dad was a mess. He buried his face in his hands, unable to even look, let alone pull back the sheet. The nurse just went ahead and did it herself.
The sheet slipped away, exposing my grayish, lifeless face and my eyes, wide open in death, refusing to rest.
Mom was stunned, her hand flying to her mouth as big, heavy tears rolled down her cheeks.
Dad, his hands shaking, reached out to touch me, but the instant he felt that coldness, he pulled his hand back in a hurry.
The nurse suddenly let out a cold laugh.
"What are you so scared of? Isn't this exactly what you wanted?" she said.
She said exactly what I'd always wanted to say. They had no right to be sad. This was what they'd been wishing for all along.
The nurse pulled back the sheet completely, exposing every scar on my body, some left by Mom and Dad, others from countless needle marks, all because they needed to draw blood for Kyla.
The nurse said, "I've never seen anyone with so many scars. You brought her into this world just to save your other daughter, but she's a human being too. Why couldn't you love her, just a little?"
I had always wondered the same thing.