Chapter 2

As I walked up to the door of VIP Room 3, I could hear laughter and conversation from inside. David's mother, Mary Carter's voice was loud and clear, easily reaching me through the door.

"Oh, our David is really blessed. It's so hard to find a liver match, and this one is a perfect fit. Must be our ancestors watching over him," she said.

Then came David's weak but proud voice. "Mom, it's all thanks to Nina. She went through the matching process for me."

"Of course, she should," Mary cut him off. "That's her duty as your fiancée. If she can't even make this little sacrifice, how can she call it true love?"

"You're absolutely right, Mrs. Carter," another soft, delicate voice chimed in. I recognized it instantly; it was Serena.

She was actually here.

Back in my previous life, at this exact moment, Serena said she had a cold and didn't want to pass it to David, so she stayed away from the hospital.

Only after I donated my liver and David was safe did she finally get over her issues and show up at the hospital, clutching a bouquet of white roses, her eyes all puffy from crying.

"Serena, don't say that." David's voice was so gentle that it could make anyone's heart melt. "I know you've been worried sick about me. Look at you, you've gotten so skinny."

"As long as you get better, it's worth it no matter how much weight I lose," Serena said, her voice thick with tears. "These past few days, I've been at the church every day, praying for you."

"Silly girl," David said softly, full of concern.

Standing outside the door, I almost had to stifle a laugh.

Turned out, they had been putting on this whole show of deep feelings right in front of me from the very start. In my previous life, I was so blinded by love that I actually fell for Serena's whole they were friends act.

I took a deep breath and pushed open the door.

The room fell silent instantly.

David was propped up in bed, his skin had that sickly yellowish hue from his liver problem, but when he saw me, his eyes lit up—the way he looked at me was pure hunter spotting his catch.

Mary was sitting by the bed, peeling an apple. When she saw me walk in barefoot, she frowned, saying, "Nina, why are you coming in without shoes? That's not sanitary at all."

Serena stood on the other side of the bed, holding a thermos. She wore a white knitted dress, her long hair draped over her shoulders, and her makeup was so perfect, one'd never guess she had been up all night worrying.

"Nina," Serena flashed me a flawless smile, saying, "You're here. I made some soup for David. Want some? You must be tired after all those compatibility tests for him."

Looked at her, acting all considerate.

I couldn't believe I bought her sweet little act for three years straight in my previous life.

"No, thanks," I replied calmly, turning to David. "I need to have a word with you."

David instantly put on that gentle, worried face. He said, "Nina, you don't look so good. Are you nervous? Don't worry, Mr. Grant said the liver transplant is really advanced now. You'll be fine."

"Yeah, exactly," Mary chimed in. "Medicine's so advanced these days, donating half your liver is nothing. It'll be back to normal in a few months. David can't afford to wait—doctor said he's got at most two months left."

"Mom!" David cut her off in time, then turned to me, his eyes full of fake guilt. "Nina, I'm sorry for putting you through all this. Once I recover, I promise I'll spend the rest of my life making it up to you."

Made it up to me?

He expected me to give up my health for the rest of my life, all for his casual promise to make it up to me?

"David, don't say that," Serena chimed in at the right moment, her eyes misty with tears. "Nina did this willingly. She loves you so much, she'd do anything for you. Isn't that what real love is? Giving selflessly, not asking for anything in return."

As she said this, she turned to me, giving me an earnest look. "Isn't that right, Nina?"

In my previous life, this was the moment I was so moved I burst into tears, grabbing Serena's hand and saying, "Serena, you're the only one who truly understands me."

Now?

I laughed.

They all stared at me, totally stunned.

"Serena's right," I said, slowly walking over to the bed, my gaze sweeping over all three of them. "True love really is about giving selflessly, not expecting anything in return."

David's expression eased, settling into the confident assurance of someone who thought he had already won.

He always believed Nina was so crazy about him, she'd die for him if he asked. So, donating half her liver? He saw it as her privilege.

"So," I said, still smiling, pulling the folded consent form from my pocket. "I've made up my mind. I'm not going through with it."

Time seemed to freeze.

David's smile froze on his face.

Mary dropped the apple and knife with a loud clatter.

Serena's hand holding the thermos shook, hot soup spilling out and scalding her hand. She let out a startled cry, but nobody paid her any attention.

"N-Nina," David spoke up, his voice shaking. I couldn't tell if it was anger or fear. "What... What did you say?"

I unfolded the consent form and held it up for them to see.

"I said, I'm not donating. I'm not signing this," I repeated.

"Nina!" Mary jumped to her feet, shouting in a sharp voice. "What kind of joke is this? This is not the time for tantrums. Don't you get it? David can't afford to wait."

"Yeah, I know," I said, blinking. "He's got late-stage liver cancer. If he doesn't get a transplant, he's got maybe two months left."

"Then why are you—" Mary was trembling with fury.

"Mrs. Carter," I cut her off, keeping my voice steady. "I had a thought. If true love means giving without expecting anything back, shouldn't the person who's really selfless be the one to be the donor?"

I turned to Serena, who was hurriedly wiping her hands. She snapped her head up at my words, her face drained of color.

"Serena," I smiled at her, asking, "Didn't you say you'd do anything for David, as long as he gets better?"

"I..." Serena spoke up, refusing to meet my eyes.

"And," I went on, my voice ringing out in the silent room, "there's something I forgot to tell David."

I watched David's face turn uglier by the second, and I enunciated every word. "When I went for my check-up yesterday, I asked the doctor.

"Turns out, your precious Serena is actually a better match than I am. She's a perfect ten-point match. Me? I only got eight."

With a loud thud, the thermos dropped from Serena's hand, hitting the floor as scalding soup splattered everywhere.

David's eyes went wide in disbelief as he stared at Serena.

Mary stood there stunned, looking from me to Serena, then finally at David.

The silence in the room was suffocating.

Slowly and deliberately, I folded the consent form in half, then again, right in front of them.

The sound of the paper tearing was sharp and harsh in the silent room.

Bit by bit, I ripped it apart, slow and forceful, until all that was left were scraps. Then I raised my hand and tossed the pieces into the air.

The white fragments drifted down like snowflakes, landing on David's pale face, his shaking hands, and the spotless white sheets.

"Almost forgot to mention," I said quietly, "your donor? It's gone."