My mom screamed and almost fainted. Beatrice was taken to the hospital. In the end, my parents did nothing to me. They just looked at me as if I were crazy and made me go to the hospital to apologize to Beatrice.
When I arrived at the hospital, my brother, Michael, was there, too. He had just gotten off the plane, dusty and tired, his suitcase still by the ward door.
I stood at the door, looking at the brother who once bought me lollipops and stayed up all night when I was sick.
He wore a neat suit, showing the confidence of a successful man, but his tired eyes revealed his rush to get back.
When he saw Beatrice’s face in thick gauze, his eyes turned red. Without asking, he rushed over and grabbed my collar.
“Elena, do you want to drive this family crazy?!” His spit nearly hit my face.
I looked at him calmly. After five years, he had grown taller and more handsome, but his gaze showed more disgust than he would show a stray dog. I once thought blood was the strongest bond, but now I knew it could be thinner than paper.
Beatrice’s weak voice reached me. “Brother, don’t blame her... I was careless... I made her unhappy… She must have suffered a lot in there. It’s natural she hates me…” Her half-hearted words only added fuel to the fire.
My brother’s rage grew, but I saw a brief hesitation in his eyes that lasted less than three seconds.
“Apologize!” he roared. “Apologize to Beatrice now! If you don’t, I’ll tie you up and take you back where you belong!”
My mother cried, “Elena, just give in. Beatrice is already like this… What more do you want?”
My father’s face darkened. “Apologize to Beatrice!”
Under their angry stares, I calmly said to Beatrice, “I’m sorry.”
Seeing me “give in,” their faces softened a little. My parents and brother left the ward to get Beatrice’s hospital paperwork and supplies.
Once the door closed, only Beatrice and I were left in the ward. She quickly wiped away her tears and weakness.
Half her face was bandaged, but her uncovered eyes were full of smugness and mockery. “See? In this family, you’re worthless. If I cry, they’ll blame you.” She smiled, touched her wound and hissed in pain.
“Oh, I forgot. To make up for the ‘grievances’ I endured, Mom and Dad gave me your sixteenth birthday gift, the limited edition red sports car you hadn’t registered. It’s mine.”
That car was Grandpa’s gift. Before he died, he held my hand and said, “From now on, Elena and I will live like fire, passionate and free.”
She admired my cold gaze and said, “They said someone with a criminal record like you shouldn’t drive such a nice car. They also said when you get out, they’d marry you off to an honest man far from this family, so you won’t cause trouble and affect my brother and me.”
