Chapter 2

I sat on the hospital bench for a long time, watching the blood on my hand dry into a dark crust.

When the nurse came by and saw the blood drops on the floor, she gasped in shock.

"Why did you pull out your IV? Your fever hasn’t even broken yet!"

I shook my head quietly.

"I can't afford the treatment."

The nurse froze, her eyes overflowing with helpless pity.

I called an Uber and went back to my cold rental studio.

One by one, I pulled my soaked, muddy clothes from my bag.

To save money for that condo, I only bought two or three cheap shirts a year.

And my mother had tossed every single one of them into the garbage like worthless trash.

I closed my eyes. Her shrill screams from the phone call kept ringing in my ears.

Tyler. My so-called cousin.

Ever since we were kids, whatever Tyler wanted, my mother forced me to give it to him.

When we were little, it was my toys. In college, it was my allowance. And now, he wanted my condo.

I used to think my mom was just soft-hearted because Uncle Frank’s side was struggling financially.

But looking back now, the way she spoiled Tyler wasn't charity—it was an obsession carved into her very bones.

I pulled up my banking app and started combing through years of transaction history.

Ever since I graduated, I transferred a thousand dollars to my mom every single month without missing a beat.

Five years. Sixty thousand dollars.

When I bought the condo, my mother cried that she was broke and didn't give me a single dime.

Even the renovation costs were funded by maxing out my own credit cards.

As I scrolled through the records, something caught my eye.

Every single month, after my money hit my mother's checking account, a massive chunk was transferred right out.

The recipient's name was Frank Davis—my uncle.

I let out a bitter, mocking laugh as tears splashed against the glowing screen.

All these years, I starved myself not just to support my mother, but to fund my uncle's entire household!

I kept scrolling back. Three years ago, my mom sent a lump sum of fifteen thousand dollars to Frank.

That was the exact semester Tyler started college—it was his tuition and spending money.

And that very same year, I was evicted because I couldn't make rent, spending an entire freezing night huddled under an overpass.

When I called my mom crying back then, she told me our home was burglarized and all her savings were stolen.

I actually believed her. Looking back, I was the biggest fool on the planet.