Chapter 2

The poster went silent, only to share more of my diary the next day.

It read: [April, 13th, 2020. Victor was such a bastard.

[He made me hang out with his buddies and even beat me up. But I got paid in the end.

[After quietly sending the money to Lucas, I went back to the hospital for another check-up.

[I really wished they'd messed up the diagnosis before. If only it had been a mistake, I could have gone back to Lucas's side.

[Lucas was so soft-hearted. If I admitted I was wrong, he'd forgive me without any hesitation.

[But the doctor looked at me with a serious expression and asked, 'Miss, where are your parents? This is a very serious heart condition. You need to be admitted to the hospital immediately.'

[Genes were weird. They worked in ways one couldn't predict.

[Lucas had a heart condition, and I had gotten hit with it, too.

[Lucas always said tears never solve anything, but I still ended up crying.

[I was only eighteen, and I'd just gotten my college acceptance letter. I didn't want to die.

[The doctor, a bit flustered, tried to reassure me, 'If we act quickly, there's still a chance.'

[Through my tears, I told him I wasn't going to get treatment.

[The money Victor gave me was only enough to cover Lucas's treatment.

[The doctor, furious and trying to call my parents, gave me the perfect chance to slip out unnoticed.

[I couldn't let Lucas know about this.

[After our family went bankrupt and our parents died in a car crash, Lucas was running around nonstop, doing whatever he could to make money.

[When the debt collectors showed up at our door, he'd plead with them desperately, his voice breaking, to give us a few more days.

[He couldn't even afford a decent meal for himself, but he kept transferring money to my account so I could study without worrying about anything.

[I told him I could drop out of school and face everything with him.

[For the first time, Lucas snapped at me.

[He said my only job was to focus on my studies, and he'd never let anything bad happen to me.

[But Lucas ended up collapsing from his illness.

[I'd never seen him like that before. His face was so pale; it looked like he'd never wake up again.

[The doctor told him he needed surgery right away, but he refused. Even while hospitalized, he kept hustling, making calls to clients from his hospital bed.

[I knew what he was up to. He was ready to skip his own treatment, so he could save up some cash for me before he died.

[He said he wasn't scared of dying. He was only scared I'd end up struggling after he was gone.

[Who in this world wasn't afraid of dying?

[That night, I cried my eyes out. I felt I was nothing but a burden to Lucas.

[I couldn't imagine what Lucas would do if he knew I was sick, too.

[Later that same night, I bumped into Victor.

[He mocked me for a bit, then gave me a sly look and said, 'Why don't you stick with me? I might not have much else, but I've got money to burn.'

[Right then, I thought I'd found a way to save Lucas.]

After the post went up, a reporter came specifically to interview Lucas.

The reporter's eyes grew a little misty. He said, "I had no idea there was so much behind all this. Your sister really cared about you."

Lucas was caught off guard, and then his eyes landed on the comments.

[Who'd actually believe that? I bet Hannah is spinning stories now that Lucas is loaded.]

[Chasing money is whatever, but this is seriously trashy.]

The light in Lucas's eyes faded, and he gave a cold, mocking laugh.

He said, "Sure, the writing's touching, if you buy into that kind of thing. Don't let her fool you. Since we were kids, she'd pretend to pass out the moment she got scolded.

"No one in the family dared to even speak loudly around her after that. When it comes to acting, she's in a league of her own."

Lucas's reaction was streamed live and spread across the internet in no time.

The backlash got even worse, with people throwing out really nasty comments.

Maybe the poster was triggered; they dropped the following diary entries right away.

One read: [June 7th, 2020. I started coughing up blood.

[It hurt like hell, starting from my chest and spreading all over my body.

[Did Lucas hurt this much when his heart acted up?

[I really missed Lucas. Whenever I got sick before, I'd cry, and he'd stay with me, talking to me until I drifted off to sleep.

[But then, I had to hold back my tears. Victor couldn't stand people who cried or whined.

[But last night, I couldn't help it. I cried out in pain.

[Victor looked annoyed, grabbed my chin, and stared at me for a while. Then he sneered, 'Why do you look so ugly now? Whatever, this is boring.'

[He was about to kick me out.

[I rushed over, stripped off my clothes, and fell at his feet, sobbing as I begged him for money.

[Lucas's surgery was still short of the final amount. I needed that last bit to make it happen.

[Victor stared at me, completely shocked. He sneered, 'Hannah, how did you become so pathetic? You're seriously gross. Where's the proud Ms. Miss Shea I used to know?'

[I didn't say a word. I grabbed his leg, sobbing and begging desperately.

[He completely lost patience, threw me a bank card, and kicked me out.

[That kick felt like it cracked my ribs. It hurt like hell, but all I felt was relief and joy. Lucas was saved.]