Chapter 3

Mom stopped chopping and gave me a sharp look, but didn't say anything else.

The mouthwatering aroma of the food filled the house as dinner was quickly finished.

I helped bring the dishes out and got the table ready.

Grandma went to call Lauren for dinner.

Once I had the table set, I went to get Dad for dinner.

Dad was worn out from working all day and barely made it home before crashing on the bed.

I tried to wake him, but he wouldn't budge.

I already knew that the venom was kicking in.

"Have you seen Lauren?" Grandma asked me.

I shook my head.

Grandma suddenly remembered something and gave a half-joking scold. "That little troublemaker. She probably smelled something good and just wandered off to eat at someone else's place."

That was just Lauren, spoiled rotten, always doing whatever she pleases, helping herself to other people's food without caring if they were okay with it or not.

Grandma would just laugh and call her a sharp little foodie, saying she'd grow up to be a real food lover.

I was the only one who knew. Lauren might've already passed out somewhere.

In my last life, Lauren got bitten by a banded krait.

The teacher explained once that banded kraits are pretty common around here, and their venom is really potent, but they rarely bite unless provoked, unless someone pisses them off.

Lauren was basically courting death.

Mom came out of the kitchen, took off her apron, and noticed Dad's seat was still empty.

"Didn't you call Dad for dinner?" she asked.

"Dad's already crashed. I tried, but he wouldn't wake up," I replied.

She looked doubtful and went in to try and wake Dad up.

Dad was curled up on his side, totally knocked out. No matter how much she called, he wouldn't budge.

Mom just gave up and muttered under her breath. "Seriously, those two are just alike."

She grabbed a plate and set aside some food for Dad.

I stayed quiet and just buried my head in my food.

After cleaning up, I went to my room to do my homework.

Not long after, a neighbor came running in, yelling that something had happened to Lauren. She'd been found passed out on the side of the road.

Lauren was carried inside, her eyes closed tight, and no matter how much we called her name, she didn't respond.

Grandma's and Mom's faces went pale with panic.

The neighbor looked baffled. "She's always so energetic. How could she just collapse on the side of the road? Did she get food poisoning or something?"

Grandma immediately glared at me, her eyes full of suspicion. "What did you do this time?"

Lauren's skin was pretty tan, so you couldn't really tell if she looked sick or not.

"No, I've been helping out since I got home," I replied.

Grandma shot me a suspicious look, clearly not buying it.

I mumbled, "Maybe it's the snake venom acting up?"

"Why are you saying such things, you little troublemaker?" Grandma snapped.

"Did she get bitten by a snake?" the neighbor blurted out.

Grandma and the neighbor both spoke at the same time.

Grandma's face darkened. "Yeah, that brat dragged Lauren off to play in the weeds, and Lauren ended up getting bitten by a snake. But I sucked out all the venom, so she's fine now."

The neighbor frowned. "You didn't take her to the hospital?"

Grandma just laughed. "Her blood's clean now. Why bother with the hospital?"

The neighbor immediately felt for Lauren's breath and lifted her eyelids to check her eyes.

"Are you out of your mind? She needs antivenom! Get her to the hospital now, while she's still alive!" the neighbor shouted.

Grandma just stood there, totally confused.

Mom froze for a moment, then as soon as it clicked, she rushed into the room. "Harrison might've been hit by the snake venom too!"

Chaos broke out in the house.

The neighbor rounded up a few folks, and everyone scrambled to get Lauren and Dad loaded up and rushed off to the town clinic.

Cramped in the corner of the van, I watched the scenery blur past outside. "Aren't we supposed to go to a real hospital?" I muttered.

Grandma shot me a death glare. "It should've been you who got bitten! So nasty at your age. Are you hoping your dad and Lauren drop dead on the way or something?"

I kept my eyes on the window, staying silent.

Back in my last life, I told them straight up. The only place with banded krait antivenom was the county hospital. But no, they said it was too far, took too long, and ended up delaying treatment. That was how Lauren got stuck with permanent damage.

Every single time I tried to warn them, they always made it out to be my fault.

This time, whatever. Let's do it their way and head to the town clinic. Let's see if they could actually survive this.

When we finally got to the clinic, the doctor immediately asked, "What kind of snake venom are we dealing with?"

Grandma was freaking out. "How am I supposed to know? The kids were messing around in the fields, ran into some tall grass. It's all that little troublemaker Lauren's fault!"

Grandma practically dragged me over, gripping my arm tight. "Spit it out. What did the snake look like?"

In my last life, I kept a close watch on Lauren, so I knew exactly which snake bit her.

This time, I didn't see it, but I still gave them an answer.

"I just saw black and white bands," I said.

After examining the bite marks and listening to my account, the doctor immediately identified it as a banded krait. His expression darkened.

"The county hospital is the only place with antivenom for banded krait bites," he said grimly. "But it's been too long since the bite. Even if we rush there now… it may already be too late."

Grandma couldn't contain herself. "This can't be happening! We already got all the poison out! Her dad was fine, working away in the fields, and my darling Lauren was bouncing around like nothing had ever gone wrong!"