Chapter 1

I collapsed in the kitchen and was rushed to the hospital. That very day, I was diagnosed with terminal lung cancer.

The nurse found my son's and daughter's numbers in my phone's emergency contacts.

But when she urged them to pay the admission deposit, not a single one of them stepped forward.

“You collapsed in the kitchen yourself. Why on earth should we be the ones paying for this?”

“We might be your kids, but we have our own families to feed. Aren't you just making things difficult for us?”

“Whatever. She is our biological mother, after all. How about we just split the medical bill?”

I froze.

My children looked so serious that for a moment, I couldn't tell if they were joking or not.

“Split... split the bill?”

Before my voice could even fade, my youngest daughter, Chloe, started whining with a look of pure disgust.

“I am not splitting anything! I’m the youngest! You guys spent way more years living with Mom than I did. The most I can chip in is five hundred bucks, and not a penny more!”

Hearing this, my eldest son, Ethan, immediately got defensive.

“Sure, I’m the oldest, but I moved out to work ages ago! If you’re only giving five hundred, then five hundred is my limit too!”

My second son, Tyler, jumped up in a panic, terrified of losing out.

“I'm the middle child, the most invisible one! I'll give two hundred! Take it or leave it!”

Watching them bicker and push the responsibility onto each other, my heart turned to ice.

I had spent thirty backbreaking years raising them.

Not only did I end up with terminal lung cancer, but I didn't even have a single cent left to my name.

And now, in return, they wanted to split my life-saving medical bills like a casual dinner check.

Seeing them still making excuses and dodging the bill, the nurse’s face darkened instantly.

She said angrily,

“Sarah’s cancer is already terminal! It has almost spread throughout her entire body!”

“We cannot delay this any longer. You need to pay the deposit immediately so we can start managing her pain and stopping the spread!”

Hearing the nurse’s words, I was completely stunned.

All these years, I had been busy taking care of my children. After finally raising them, I had to take on odd jobs to help support their households while simultaneously babysitting my grandkids.

I hadn't even noticed I was this sick.

“Sweetheart... how much time do I have left?”

The nurse adjusted my IV drip, trying her best to soothe me.

“Sarah, if you actively receive treatment, living for another thirty years won't be a problem.”

Then, she glared fiercely at my three children standing aside.

“But if you delay treatment, your body might not even make it past next spring.”

Hearing this, the three siblings put on a show of utter ignorance, playing on their phones as if they hadn't heard a single word.

Seeing that still no one had paid, the doctor walked into the ward with a stern expression.

“What is going on here? Why hasn't anyone paid the deposit yet?”

“Every minute you waste reduces the patient's chances of recovery. What are you children doing!”

Ethan’s expression turned awkward. He asked tentatively,

“Doctor, how much... are we talking about for the treatment?”

The doctor handed over the billing sheet. The moment Ethan saw the total, he gasped and started shouting.

“Fifty thousand dollars for the initial treatment? Is this hospital trying to rob us?”

“I don't have that kind of cash! I already said my limit is five hundred. I don't have a single penny more!”

Ethan’s words made my eyes widen in shock.

Just last month, Ethan begged me for two hundred thousand dollars, claiming he couldn't pay his mortgage.

That two hundred thousand was my entire life savings, meant for my retirement and burial. But the moment I heard my son was in trouble, I gave it all to him without holding back a single cent.

I never expected to receive such a cold, heartless 'I don't have money' in return.

Before I could speak, Tyler immediately chimed in to support Ethan.

“If Ethan doesn't have money, I have even less! I only have around two hundred dollars left in my Snapchat wallet. I can transfer all of it to you guys, but after this, any future treatment costs have absolutely nothing to do with me.”

When Tyler got married at the beginning of the year, he said he wanted to upgrade to a larger house and asked if I could help.

I had no choice but to sell the cozy home I was living in just to scrape up enough cash for his down payment.

Because of that, I had to move into my current damp, run-down rental apartment.

At that memory, a sharp, suffocating pain suddenly squeezed my chest.

The next second, I coughed up a massive mouthful of black blood, staining the entire white bedsheet a horrifying crimson.

The nurse rushed over to wipe me clean, but Chloe just stood there, watching coldly.

“I’m just a daughter, and I’ll marry out eventually,” Chloe said indifferently.

“If my fiancé's family finds out I have a deadweight mother to take care of, they will definitely mind.”

“So, thinking about it, I shouldn't pay this money. I’m taking back the five hundred I just promised. Just pretend I never said it.”

To pay for Chloe's lavish dream wedding so she wouldn't feel looked down upon by her in-laws, I had borrowed two hundred and eighty thousand dollars from my relatives and friends.

I honestly believed my unconditional love would be met with the same affection from my children.

Who would have thought I would end up with this?

Before I could open my mouth, the nurse beside me completely lost her temper.

“I’ve worked in this hospital for years, and you are the most shameless children I have ever seen!”