After I finished the call with my father, Henry called again.
"Suzanne, do you have any idea how much you embarrassed me by not showing up? You truly aren't as sensible as Willa."
My eyes stung as I stared at the words on the screen. My heart felt like it was being squeezed by a giant hand and tears completely blurred my vision.
It wasn't until after I was discharged from the hospital that I finally called Henry myself.
Just as the ringtone was about to end, he finally answered. An impatient voice, tinged with slight breathlessness, came through the line. "What is it? I'm on a business trip."
My voice caught in my throat. My fingers clenched the phone so tightly I couldn't utter a sound.
Perhaps sensing that his tone was harsh, Henry cleared his throat and softened his voice before speaking again. "We'll talk about it when I get back. It's late now and I need to rest."
Before I could respond, Henry hung up irritably. As the screen went dark, my shoulders slumped in exhaustion.
I reached out to turn on the bedside lamp, but to my surprise, I found an open box of condoms from an unfamiliar brand sitting on the nightstand. Tucked underneath the box were several receipts from a love hotel.
Recalling Henry's strange voice on the phone just moments ago, my heart instantly sank to rock bottom.
Henry and I had a shared cloud drive, which he suggested creating after we decided to be together.
He said it would be the ocean of our love, a place that would preserve every little moment we had shared. Yet, the album hadn't been updated in nearly a year.
I nervously opened the album and the photos that met my eyes made my breath catch.
The newly uploaded pictures started last month. Every single one of them showed intimate photos of Henry and Willa together.
Tears streamed down my face without warning, one drop, two drops.
The once-sweet vows and frozen moments now felt like tiny needles pricking my heart, causing a dense, numbing pain.
After deleting the album I decided to go find Henry. However, that love hotel wasn't far from my home.
Soon, I arrived at the underground parking garage, where Henry’s car was parked smoothly in its spot.
I drove over and soon reached the hotel. Looking at the receipts again, I noticed it was always the same room number—512.
When I reached the door, I didn't expect it to be slightly ajar. From inside came the sound of Henry and Willa laughing and fooling around.
"Henry, you're so good to me. My brother's eyes were able to recover thanks to you."
Willa's cheerful voice was muffled by a low groan as Henry replied while panting slightly. "My research results were only confirmed because your brother and Suzanne's mother contributed so much. I should be the one thanking them."
My raised hand froze upon hearing Henry's words. Meanwhile, my heart began to beat uncontrollably.
What did Henry mean? What did he mean by saying my mother "contributed so much"?
"Keep this a secret from now on. It's best if you never mention a single word of it."
Henry's voice came again, followed by Willa's flirtatious, breathless tone.
"Oh, stop it. There's no one else here and Suzanne can't hear us anyway. She'll probably never know in this lifetime that her mother's corneas were transplanted into my brother."
Henry continued, "Ugh, that woman was dying anyway. What's the use of saving someone that old? It wasn't easy to find a matching cornea. Of course, I helped you. Otherwise, why would I have gone through so much trouble to transfer her away?"
The conversation between the two inside the room plunged me into an icy abyss, leaving me paralyzed. Everything around me felt as if it were shrouded in a thick fog, blurred and surreal.
What did Henry just say? My mother's death had been deliberately arranged by them. For Willa's brother, Henry had killed my mother and stolen her corneas.
My throat began to itch and a metallic taste rushed into my nose. I opened my mouth in agony, yet I couldn't breathe.
