Chapter 1

My sister is in the hospital again, all because I opened a window to let some air in.

Mom is yelling at me outside the hospital ward:

“I never should have taken you back! Your grandmother didn’t raise you right. You only came back to bully your sister! If Chloe gets sick, you won't live either!”

Late at night, the house is completely still.

A man dressed in black walks straight through the wall and heads for my sister’s bedside.

“Chloe, your time is up. Come with me.”

Chloe was sound asleep, but I was wide awake.

I scrambled up from my spot on the floor, blocking his path to her bed.

“You’ve got the wrong person. The one in bed is my older sister. I’m Chloe Johnson.”

I glanced back at mom, who was still asleep, a frown etched on her face even in her dreams.

Maybe she’d be happier without me.

I looked at the man in black.

“I’ll go with you. But can you give me three days? I want to celebrate Mom’s birthday.”

The man in black paused.

“You’re willing to die in your sister’s place?”

I didn't hesitate, nodding hard.

I looked back at Chloe in the hospital bed.

Her face looked a little rosier, and even in her sleep, a faint smile touched her lips.

Mom had told her three fairy tales before bedtime.

As for me, I was curled up on the cold floor, not even daring to pull a corner of the blanket closer.

“I’m willing. Anything to stop Mom from crying. Just three days. I just want to celebrate Mom’s birthday.”

The man in black was silent for a long time before he spoke:

“I agree.”

With that, his figure vanished into the wall.

I touched my wrist. A faint purple mark glowed there, slowly burning.

This was my life’s countdown.

I should have been terrified.

But for some reason, a sudden sense of peace washed over me.

Grandma Evelyn used to say that when people die, they turn into stars, watching over the ones they love most.

If I became a star, would I finally see Mom smile at me?

Just once would be enough.

The sky was just beginning to lighten when a violent cough woke me up.

I tried to get up, but my head spun, my vision blurred, and my forehead was burning hot.

“What’s with all the coughing?”

Mom stood over me, draped in her jacket, her face etched with irritation.

“If you wake Chloe, I swear I’ll tear your mouth off!”

Terrified, I clapped my hand over my mouth, forcing down the remaining coughs.

Tears stung my eyes.

“I’m sorry, I didn’t mean to.”

Mom scoffed, her eyes full of disgust.

“Get up already! Chloe will be awake soon and she'll want pumpkin soup. Go make it now.”

She turned and sat back by the hospital bed, her movements becoming incredibly gentle as she dabbed Chloe’s forehead with a wet cloth.

I pushed myself up from the floor, swaying unsteadily.

My knees ached like they were being pricked with needles from kneeling so long last night.

I didn't dare say I had a fever too.

Last time I said my head hurt, Mom said I was faking it to avoid chores.

If I said it again, she’d definitely get even angrier.

I patted my pocket.

There was a small, heavy coin bank inside.

I’d been saving coins for a whole year since I came back from Grandma Evelyn's, planning to buy a new backpack.

My current backpack strap was broken, held together with a safety pin, and the kids at school always made fun of me.

But it didn’t matter now.

I wouldn’t need a backpack anymore anyway.

I was going to use that money to buy Mom a birthday cake.

Before, whenever Mom had a birthday, it was always Chloe who cut the cake, and the wishes were always for Chloe.

I wanted Mom to make a wish for me too.

Even if it was just an afterthought.

Clutching the coin bank, I slowly shuffled out of the room.

The hospital hallway felt so cold, chilling me to the bone.

But as I looked at the purple mark on my wrist, a faint smile tugged at my lips.

Three more days. I had to make them count.