Hearing my answer, my sister visibly relaxed.
“Bert, the doctor said you need to stay in the hospital for a few more days for observation. There’s no rush to be discharged.”
Yet, for some reason, a flicker of unease flashed through her eyes as she spoke.
The next morning, I woke up to find that both my sister and younger sister—who had stayed by my side the night before—were gone.
Left with no choice, I climbed into my wheelchair and decided to go home to grab a few things.
But the moment I opened the door, I was met with a sight that sent a chill down my spine.
The maple trees in the garden—the ones I had painstakingly cared for over the years—had been completely uprooted.
In their place stood large, jarring patches of cacti.
Beyond them, the house’s massive French windows revealed a gathering of people I knew all too well.
My elder sister was pushing a ten-layer cake.
My younger sister held a diamond-studded crown.
Among the guests were classmates, teachers, and even employees from the company.
Everyone was there…
Except for me.
And then my eyes landed on the red banner hanging on the wall.
[Warmly congratulating Leo on his admission to graduate school!]
A sharp pain stabbed through my chest.
Still dazed, I barely registered the figure moving toward me.
Leo—dressed in an expensive suit, exuding an air of entitlement—spotted me in the crowd.
He immediately stepped forward, feigning concern.
“Brother, I heard you were seriously injured, and I wanted to visit you.”
“But…” He hesitated, then continued with exaggerated innocence. “But my sister told me you’ve been urinating and defecating everywhere… She said she didn’t bring you here because she was afraid you’d scare me.”
His voice carried through the air, loud enough for everyone to hear.
A wave of murmurs rippled through the crowd.
At the back, my sister—who had been cutting the cake—froze at the commotion. She quickly hurried over, a flash of embarrassment crossing her face.
“Ah… Bert, why are you back? Didn’t the doctor say you needed to stay in the hospital and recover?”
I forced myself to ignore the whispers around me.
“I missed Milo, so I came back to see him.”
Milo—the puppy I had raised for ten years.
My sister knew how much he meant to me.
Her expression stiffened for a brief moment before she quickly pushed my wheelchair forward. “He’s in your bedroom.”
But before I could go any further, Leo stepped in front of me, blocking my path.
“Brother, today is my celebration party for getting into graduate school. You know how hard I’ve worked for this…”
As if on cue, the crowd turned their judgment toward me.
Murmurs grew louder.
People whispered that I had only achieved top grades through immoral means, almost robbing a real hard worker of his rightful spot.
But who was to blame for all the sleepless nights I had spent studying?
Still, I had no strength left to argue.
I simply nodded. “Congratulations.”
Satisfied, Leo finally let me pass.
As soon as I opened my bedroom door, my sister slipped away.
Inside, my room was in shambles.
And under the bed—
Milo lay there, barely breathing.
At that moment, the tears I had been holding back for so long finally broke free.
I finally understood.
The sea-view room my sister had built for me after my father remarried…
It was no longer mine.
This house, this place—I didn’t belong here anymore.
I had no intention of staying.
I would take only one thing with me—Milo.
Just as I reached for him, the door slammed open again.
Leo stepped in, holding a slice of cake.
His eyes, once filled with fake warmth, now burned with undisguised hatred.
“Jen,” he sneered. “Look at yourself now. What difference is there between you and this mutt?”
His voice dripped with satisfaction.
“I told you—I’d take everything from you. Your father. Your sister. Your younger sister. Everything that was once yours… now belongs to me.”
“Oh, and by the way…” He smirked, leaning in as if to share a secret.
“Do you want to know how your mother really died?”
I froze.
Leo’s smirk deepened.
“I made sure she saw the video of your father and my mother together. She was already battling postpartum depression…” He chuckled. “So she jumped.”
A red haze clouded my vision.
Fury surged through me, raw and uncontrollable.
I wanted to strangle him.
To end him.
But before I could do anything—
I fell.
Helplessly.
From my wheelchair.
