Chapter 1

Two kids ended up in a car crash at the same moment, but I chose to save only one.

My husband accused me of being too heartless, while my mother-in-law went crazy and demanded, "Why didn't you save your own son? Why didn't you save my grandson?"

Well, I did it on purpose.

*****

At the hospital, Sheldon was still undergoing emergency surgery. Eileen clung to me, her little body trembling. "Aunt Jasmine, is Sheldon gonna be okay?" she asked.

I glanced at the surgery room as memories flashed in my mind.

Sheldon's legs were almost completely shattered. He wasn't in mortal danger, but there was no way to save his legs.

I took out a wet wipe and gently cleaned the dirt off Eileen's face. "He'll be fine, Eileen. Don't worry," I replied softly.

While speaking, I checked her scrapes again. Her arms and knees were all banged up. The wounds had already been taken care of, but my heart still ached for her. "How about you, sweetie? Does it hurt?"

Eileen shook her head and gently poked my arm, her eyes red. "I'm not hurt, Aunt Jasmine. But you're really hurt. You should get the nurse to bandage you up, too."

I'd been so caught up worrying about the kids that I didn't even realize I was also hurt until she mentioned it.

A big patch of skin was scraped right off my elbow. It was bloody and pretty scary to look at. I must've gotten it when I grabbed Eileen and rolled during the car crash.

Seeing the fear and worry in her eyes, I softened my tone even more. "Alright, I will go get patched up. Don't cry, sweetheart. Once everything's settled, I'll get you some ice cream, okay?"

Eileen quickly shook her head, acting so sensible. "I'll wait until Sheldon wakes up. Then we can buy some for him."

Yeah, with all her thoughts on Sheldon right now, there was no way she'd care about ice cream or anything fun.

I reached out and ruffled her hair, staying silent.

*****

After I got my wounds taken care of, my mother-in-law, Portia, and her daughter, Zella, showed up at the hospital.

They hurried over and grilled me about Sheldon. After I told them what happened, Portia completely broke down, grabbing my arm and screaming, "Why didn't you save your own son? Why didn't you save my grandson?"

I just stared back at her blankly, saying nothing.

"He's the Fletcher family's only grandson. Do you want to end our bloodline? Jasmine, if anything happens to my grandson, you'll have to answer to me!" she yelled.

I finally spoke up quietly and indifferently. "It all happened so quickly that I only had time to save one child."

With her eyes blazing red, Zella grabbed my arm furiously. "Jasmine, are you out of your mind? Why is Sheldon the one in there?"

I sneered, watching her completely lose control. "Who else do you think it should be? Eileen? Would you rather it be her lying in there? She's your own daughter, for god's sake."

"You!" Zella was at a loss for words.

Eileen squeezed herself between us, hugged Zella's leg tightly, and wailed, "Mommy, don't pull Aunt Jasmine. She's hurt!"

"Get out of the way!" Zella shoved Eileen aside with a harsh kick, but I reacted fast and scooped her straight into my arms.

I couldn't hide the anger anymore. I shot Zella a fierce glare and warned, "Zella, if you dare throw another tantrum like that, don't blame me for what I do next."

Zella and Portia both froze in shock. As far as they could remember, this was the first time I'd ever spoken to them so harshly.

Just then, a doctor happened to pass by and came over to warn us to quiet down. Only then did they finally stop their crazy outburst.

As we waited outside the operating room, Zella and Portia clung tightly to each other, both of them a bundle of nerves and barely holding it together from fear.

I almost found the scene ironic, but then I caught a glimpse of Zella's gloomy expression. For a moment, something in my chest ached, so I pulled Eileen closer and asked gently, "Are you hungry, Eileen? Want me to take you for a little snack?"

Before Eileen could speak, Zella shot me a murderous glare. "What kind of timing is this? You seriously want to go eat now?"

I forced down the frustration bubbling inside and replied coldly, "Who knows how long Sheldon's surgery will take? Are we supposed to sit here starving? Besides, Eileen is your daughter, too. She's hurt and shaken up, but you only care about my son. You don't even bother asking about your own kid."

Zella was left speechless, her face flaming with anger. Eileen tugged gently on my hand, saying, "Aunt Jasmine, I'm not hungry. Let's just wait for Sheldon to come out."

For Eileen's sake, I forced myself to shut up. Otherwise, I would've blurted out more awful things.