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“Fat and weak, she’ll never be a Luna,” they whispered. I believed it once. But tomorrow night, everything changes. At the stroke of 11:12, I’ll shift into the legendary Wolf—the Moon Goddess’s chosen. No longer the ugly duckling, I’ll shine with bronze fur and fierce power. The same pack that mocked me will bow before the beautiful wolf I’ve become. And Cassian Mercer, the Alpha who rejected me at first sight? He’ll regret ever doubting me. Skyla’s POV “Skyla, Selene, Sebastian—get down here now!” our mom, Luna Camilla, shouted from downstairs. “Breakfast is ready, and we still need to go over the final details for your birthday party.” Oh, right! I probably should’ve mentioned this earlier—we’re triplets, and tomorrow we turn 18! It’s a huge deal in our world. Tomorrow, we’ll not only discover who our fated mates are, but we’ll also shift for the first time at exactly 11:12 p.m.—the minute we were all born. “Triple S, move it or you’ll be late for school!” That’s what Dad calls us when we’re dragging our feet. It’s his way of rounding us up all at once. While I’m getting ready, let me give you a quick intro to Triple S. First up: Sebastian, the oldest of us three. He’s a towering 6'8 with warm almond-toned skin like Mom’s, and he’s just as muscular and athletic as Dad. His piercing blue eyes are bound to make his mate melt the moment she meets him. He keeps his long dreadlocks meticulously groomed, and even though half the girls in school can’t stop f1irting with him, Sebastian’s saving himself for his mate. He’s not just my brother—he’s my best friend and the future Alpha of our pack. Then there’s me. I’m the middle triplet. I’ve got a golden-beige complexion and hazel eyes like Dad. Physically, I’m in great shape because I’ve been secretly training extra hours with Dad. You see, the Moon Goddess gave my parents a vision—my wolf is supposed to be something special once I shift. But no one really knows what I look like underneath my baggy hoodies and loose joggers. I wear oversized clothes on purpose—I’d rather avoid the stares. And I always wear glasses, which doesn’t help. People call me names—“homely,” “fat,” “four-eyes.” If only they knew the truth. And then, sigh, there’s Selene. She’s got radiant bronze skin, chestnut eyes, and long hair she always keeps sleek and straight. She’s undeniably gorgeous—but she’s a walking flirt. Lately, she’s been shamelessly chasing the future Alpha of the neighboring pack. Since their school burned down, we’ve been sharing a campus with their pack, and Selene treats it like her own personal runway. We finally make our way downstairs. Sebastian’s dressed in slim-fit jeans, a V-neck tee, and the brand-new Jordans that just dropped. I’m layered up in my usual oversized hoodie and loose joggers, rocking my trusty Vapormax sneakers—even though it’s blazing hot outside in Arkansas. Selene, true to form, is dressed like she’s headed to a nightclub—miniskirt, skintight low-cut top, and five-inch red heels. Time to head to school. I’m not a fan, but at least it’s our last year, and I’ve kept a perfect GPA. “Mom, Dad, I don’t want to ride with Skyla. She’s so embarrassing,” Selene complained. “Yes, you are riding with her,” Dad said firmly. “Your brother’s already gone and you’ve totaled three cars this year.” “STAY AWAY FROM ME AT SCHOOL, NERD!” she screeched at me as we walked out. Great. This is going to be a long day. But thank the Moon Goddess it's Friday! We finally make it to school, though Selene didn’t stop complaining the entire ride. I pulled into my usual parking spot—one of the designated spaces for Alpha family members—behind the wheel of my sleek black 2023 Dodge Durango SRT. Right beside me, Sebastian’s glossy black 2023 Jeep Grand Cherokee Trackhawk was already parked. Yeah, our parents are loaded. In the human world, Dad’s a wildly successful entrepreneur with more businesses than I can count. On the other side of Sebastian’s car sat a deep navy Tesla Model S, and the moment Selene squealed like she’d won the lottery, I knew exactly who it belonged to—Cassian Mercer, the future Alpha of the Bloodmoon Pack. I do my best to avoid Cassian. For some reason, he absolutely hates me. He leads the pack when it comes to name-calling and insults. It doesn’t help that our birthdays fall on the same day—tomorrow. His twin sister Alexia and I share the date too. Since our families are so close and Selene’s convinced Cassian is her mate, our dads decided to throw one massive birthday bash for all of us. Even though Cassian treats me like garbage, I won’t lie—he’s ridiculously good-looking. He stands about 6'8, just like Sebastian. He’s got these intense green eyes—yes, this smooth-skinned, bronze-toned man has emerald green eyes that could make you forget your name. His hair is always laid in tight waves, the kind you want to run your fingers through. And don’t get me started on those abs—always visible under those fitted tees he wears like a second skin. Wait. No. Snap out of it, Skyla. I hate him just as much as he hates me. Period. The moment I get to my locker, the usual chorus of insults begins. “Hey fatso, nerd, loser, four-eyes,” they snicker from down the hallway. They always wait until Sebastian isn’t around to start. Selene, her flock of mean-girl clones, and Cassian are always front and center in the cruelty parade. I never say a word. The unspoken rule around here? “Snitches get stitches.” But I’m not scared of them. Not one bit. My dad says I’m strong enough to take down anyone—even an Alpha. I’ve already learned how to make him submit when we spar, and that’s saying something. Cassian might hate me, but his twin sister Alexia? She’s my best friend. She’s always trying to get me to dress a little less… baggy. She wants me to ditch my oversized hoodies and definitely those chunky glasses. We’re werewolves, after all—I don’t actually need them. Alexia strolls up, slings an arm around my shoulder, and sighs. “Skyla, why do you let them treat you like that? You know you could wipe the floor with them. So why are you holding back?” I don’t answer her. Instead, I pull my books from my locker and say with a tired breath, “Let’s just go to class.” At least Alexia and I have every class together. That’s a win. My brother’s best friend Tristan—soon to be Beta—and his future Gamma Paxton are in my first few periods too. They always keep a close eye out for trouble and report back to Sebastian if anything happens, which keeps things fairly uneventful. It’s the only part of my day I can actually breathe without having to be on guard. Then the bell rings—lunchtime. Oh joy. Time to reunite with all my beloved peers at Blue Moon High. (Can you hear the sarcasm?) Right on cue, the fat jokes start rolling in. I brace myself. “Just ignore it, Skyla. You know none of it’s true,” I remind myself. And I do know it. But that doesn’t mean it doesn’t hurt. What cuts deepest isn’t the cruelty from strangers—it’s the betrayal from my own sister. She laughs with them. Every. Single. Time. Alexia and I walk into the lunch room. "Alexia, why are you hanging with that l0ser?" "Hey biggie, you should skip lunch." "Alexia, sit over here with us and let the loser eat alone." Everyone is pointing and laughing. My eyes tear up but I won't give them the satisfaction of letting one fall. Suddenly, I'm no longer hungry and turn and run out only to run straight into someone landing straight on my ass. "Watch where you're going, frog!" Cassian shouts as he kicks me in the side. "I feel sorry for whoever will be tied to you as a mate. He's probably going to reject your pathetic ass as soon as he lays eyes on you. After all, who would want a weak, pathetic, fat four eyed frog as a mate. I bet you will be alone for the rest of your miserable life. Look at how you dress. Who would want to be seen with you?" Cassian continued to shout at me and then finally, he walked off after kicking me in the face. I know that will leave a nasty bruise. I stayed there for a moment wondering why people could be so cruel. Sebastian walks in and sees me lying in the hallway floor crying. He sits beside me and wraps his arm around me screaming, "Who did this to you Skyla?" Tristan and Paxton walk up and they are just as mad as Sebastian because they see me as their little sister as well. I don't answer. I just lean into Sebastian and cry. "Skyla, answer me, darn it! Who did this to you?" I cry even harder. He kisses me on my forehead and said, "I will leave it alone for now but if I find out who it is, they have a beat down coming!" I just mind linked my Mom and told her I didn't feel well and wanted to come home. My Dad is at the school in a meeting with the Superintendent about some rogue sightings at the edge of the woods closest to the school but I didn't want him to see me like this because it would be a lot to pay and I much as I hate Cassian, I didn't want him to die today if my Sebastian or my Dad found out. My Dad, is an Alpha that you don't want to mess with. Get your neck twisted if you tried. My Dad does not play about his princess. Yes, I'm a Daddy's girl in case you haven't figured that out yet. Mom told me I can come home; so, I'm out of this nightmare. Maybe she will let me skip the shifting night tomorrow night. Alpha Orion, Luna Jocelyn, Cassian, Alexia, his future Beta, Yale and future Gamma, Beckett will all be staying in our pack to help prepare for the shifting night. FML.....Why can't they have their own shifting night at the Bloodmoon Pack? Selene’s POV I’m sitting on Cassian’s lap in the middle of the cafeteria, my tongue halfway down his throat, when I spot my sister walking in—with his twin, Alexia. Without thinking, I start hurling insults at her. The whole table bursts into laughter. I know it’s cruel. I know she’s my sister. But I don’t care. Honestly, she deserves it. Dad treats her like she hung the moon. His little perfect princess. Sure, Skyla’s got the straight A’s, she follows all the rules, and does exactly what he asks—but still. I’m his daughter too. And what do I get? They handed Sebastian and Skyla brand-new cars as early birthday gifts. And me? I’ve wrecked four, and now I have to ride to school with her—just because Dad refuses to buy me another one. We’re rich. He could buy me one with zero effort. But no. He said if I want a new car, I can work part-time at his company like they do and earn the money myself. Absolutely not. Why should I slave away like some lowly pack pup when I know exactly what my future holds? I’m going to be the Luna of the Bloodmoon Pack—Cassian’s Luna. Their family’s just as wealthy as ours, and once we’re mated, I’ll never have to lift a finger. Skyla ran out of the lunchroom crying, just like I knew she would. She won’t say a word. I made sure she knows what’ll happen if she does. If she even thinks about telling anyone, I’ll make her life a living nightmare. More than it already is. Tonight’s the shift. Our eighteenth birthday. According to legend, one of us is destined to become the Golden Wolf—a powerful being blessed by the Moon Goddess herself. And I know it’s me. It has to be. Once I shift and it's revealed, everyone will see that I’m meant for greatness. Cassian and I will be unstoppable. The ultimate power couple. Skyla? Please. She’s weak. Soft. Pathetic. She couldn’t handle power if it begged her. Sebastian? He’s too gentle. Always fussing over Skyla, checking in on her like she’s some fragile little bird. Maybe that softness will make him a decent Alpha someday. He is a good big brother, I’ll give him that. Still... I can’t pretend I don’t feel the sting when I see how close he and Mom and Dad are with Skyla. But none of that will matter. Not after tonight. Not when I shift and the truth comes out. They’ll all see. They’ll finally see me. Just wait until they see me as the Golden Wolf. Luna Camilla’s POV It’s hard to believe the triplets are turning eighteen tomorrow. Feels like just yesterday when my mate and his father—who was still Alpha at the time—came to my old pack, the Silvermoon Pack, to formalize an alliance. Back then, I was just the Beta’s 19-year-old daughter, and Dorian Bellamy was a striking 21-year-old future Alpha. The moment our eyes met, we knew—we were mates. I couldn’t believe this tall, gorgeous, caramel-skinned man was mine. That night, while the rest of the pack slept, he snuck into my room. We kept doing it until sunrise. But the next morning, he shattered everything. He stood in front of me and said, "I, Dorian Bellamy, future Alpha of the Bluemoon Pack, reject you, Camilla Monroe, to be my mate and future Luna." I accepted his rejection with my head held high, refusing to let him see how deeply he’d broken me. What neither of us knew then was that he wasn’t just walking away from me… He was walking away from three lives growing inside me. Halfway through my pregnancy, the Bluemoon Pack held a ceremony to celebrate Dorian’s ascension as Alpha. My family was expected to attend. Though my parents already knew I was carrying a child, I begged them to let me handle things on my own. I told them if they didn’t, I’d run away. They respected my wishes and stood by me. As I was unpacking in one of the guest rooms at Bluemoon, Dorian barged in, fury in his eyes. He grabbed my arm roughly and growled, "You let another man touch what’s mine?" I yanked my arm away. “You don’t get to say that,” I snapped. “You gave up your claim on me the day you rejected me.” His voice dropped, and the golden hue overtook his eyes—his wolf had taken over. "Whose child is that, Camilla?" he growled. But I wasn’t scared—I was just as furious. Locking eyes with him, I said, “You’re the only man I’ve ever been with—if I can even call you that. You’re the sperm d0nor of my three babies. You rejected me, and that means you rejected them too. And you’ll stay far away from us.” Something in him snapped at those words. A single tear slid down his cheek before he leapt out the window, shifting mid-air into his powerful jet-black wolf, and vanished into the woods. As I prepare for my former pack to arrive for the party, all those memories come flooding back. It wasn’t easy for Dorian to win me back after what he did. But over time, I forgave him. We married before the babies were born—something not required in the wolf world, but Dorian wanted everyone to know I was his chosen mate, both in our realm and in the human one. And so, eighteen years ago, I officially became Luna of the Bluemoon Pack. And even after everything... I still love that fine Alpha of mine. Skyla’s POV The Night of the Shift It was 4 a.m., and I was wide awake. I still couldn’t believe we were finally eighteen. Even though we wouldn’t shift until 11:12 p.m., I knew I’d be able to sense my mate before then. Maybe—just maybe—it would be someone from my mom’s old pack. Someone who could take me away from this place. I had everything lined up to graduate early. I’d miss my mom, dad, Breck, and Alexia, but definitely not the rest of the scumbags around here. Since there was no way I’d fall back asleep, I decided to head down to the kitchen for a snack. Oreos dipped in milk were my favorite. I threw on my oversized hoodie and matching sweats and headed downstairs. But the moment my foot hit the bottom step, I was engulfed by the most intoxicating scent I’d ever smelled. It was a blend of musk and Savage—my favorite cologne. I recognized that cologne because my brother wore it sometimes, but this scent… this wasn’t Sebastian. This was something else. Something more. I stood there, completely mesmerized, drawn in by the mouthwatering scent, wondering who it could be. Was this love at first smell? Just as I was lost in the sensation, a sharp s1ap to my face snapped me back to reality. Before I could react, a hand wrapped tightly around my throat. Sparks shot through me—just like in the stories. Then came the words I think, deep down, I’d always feared were coming. “You of all people! You're nothing but trash to me. How could the Moon Goddess screw up this badly by pairing me with someone like you? You're weak. Fat. You have no class. You're a nerd. I wouldn’t be caught dead with a pathetic she-wolf like you! I, Cassian Mercer, future Alpha of the Bloodmoon Pack, reject you, Skyla Selene, as my mate and future Luna.” And that was it. Mates are supposed to be loving—gentle. What happened to the stories of love at first sight? I remembered my mom once told me how my dad had rejected her at first, but later asked for forgiveness, and he’d treated her like royalty ever since. But I would never forgive this guy. Ever. Even if he somehow did come crawling back—not that someone like him would. He’d been with Selene. I wouldn’t touch him with a ten-foot pole. Oddly, it didn’t hurt the way everyone said rejection does. What I felt wasn’t heartbreak. It was pure, burning rage. I tore his hand off my throat, locked eyes with him, and said, “Do you honestly think I’d want to be mated to you? The guy who spent the night with my skanky sister? The guy who’s treated me like garbage from the very beginning? I, Skyla Bellamy, accept your rejection!” Then I turned and walked back up the stairs, completely satisfied with the stunned expression frozen on his face. I’d forgotten all about my snack.

I asked to stay over 4 times in 4 years. He said no every time. "We're not married yet. I want to respect your space." Then I saw the photo. My intern—the one who stole my work—posted a picture of her feet in my slippers. Standing in his living room. He gave her the spare key. Made her instant ramen—the same late-night snack he always made for me. Drank wine with her—and he never drinks. When I confronted him, he called me petty. "She's just a tenant," he said. "Show some empathy." Two days later, he posted a video in our company Slack. Apologizing for me. Telling everyone I bullied her. Destroying my reputation—for her. I called him. He didn't answer. She did. "Julian's asleep," she purred. "He's been with me all night." Four years I gave him. Four years of waiting, of respecting his boundaries. And he threw me away the second someone new smiled at him. I packed one bag, deleted every photo, and blocked his number. A man not worth waiting for—good riddance. I complained when Julian Brooks rejected my request to stay over—for the fourth time. "Julian, you're so rigid." My apartment's AC had died in the middle of a hun//dred-degree heatwave. Yet he insisted on being old-fashioned about it. Throughout our four years together, no matter how late it got, he always insisted on driving me home. Julian sighed and tried to soothe me. "Be sweet, Chloe. We aren't married yet, and I want us to respect each other's space. I don't want anyone at the office gossiping about us living together." My heart warmed at his words, so I fell right back into our usual routine, venting to him about the recent drama at my office just like I always did. But he kept checking his watch, clearly distracted, and urged me to head back. Fortunately, the HVAC technician found a sudden opening and rushed over to my place. While waiting for him to finish the repairs, I happened to scroll through my Instagram feed and saw a post from our company's new marketing intern, Savannah Cross. [My landlord suddenly canceled my lease, but thank god someone stepped up to help. Otherwise, I'd be sleeping on the streets.] I recognized the background of her photo immediately. It was Julian's apartment. I stared at my phone screen, completely frozen. I stood there so long the technician finished fixing the unit and carefully lowered the thermostat. "Too hot for you, kiddo?" He looked at me with a sympathetic sigh. "Tell you what, I'll knock twenty bucks off the bill. Take it from an old man—there's no rough patch in life you can't get through." Only then did I realize tears were streaming down my face. I forced a smile. "Thank you. You're absolutely right." Julian was a rough patch I was finally moving past. ****** Savannah's photo only showed her legs and her luggage. She was wearing my slippers, standing right inside Julian's living room. The moment I stepped out of his apartment, she stepped right in. Before leaving, I had playfully begged Julian to let me stay. He refused without a second thought. "Chloe, you need to go home. I have urgent work to finish in a bit." As it turned out, there was no urgent work. The only urgency was Savannah. She was the new intern in my department, and we hadn't been getting along. I mentioned this to Julian before. But he never seemed to care, let alone listen. I had no idea Julian even knew Savannah. He'd never mentioned her. Yet it was glaringly obvious that she was spending the night at his place. Another red notification popped up on my screen as Savannah updated her feed again. [Meeting a soft-hearted god at my absolute worst. Blessed.] This time, Julian was in the photo. He was looking down at her with a helpless, fond smile. Two bowls of instant ramen with Spam sat on the table. On weekends, when Julian and I curled up together, that was the exact late-night snack he always made for me. Now, he was making it for Savannah. Savannah's comment sat right beneath the post, smug and flaunting. [Rent is two hun//dred, utilities are free, and no deposit. Best landlord ever.] Landlord. He had let Savannah move in. A sharp, suffocating pain flared in my chest, stealing my breath. To make his commute easier, Julian had rented a two-bedroom apartment near the office. It was a great place—twenty-five hun//dred a month. It used to be a shared rental, but his old roommate had moved out, and they hadn't found a suitable replacement. Worried the rent would be too much, I suggested moving in to split the cost. He flatly refused. "Chloe, I won't take your note, and I don't think it's right to move in together before marriage." It wasn't right for me, but it was perfectly fine for Savannah. I remembered those boundaries so clearly. The first time I asked to stay over was during our honeymoon phase, and Julian strictly turned me down. The second time, I came down with a sudden high fever. Julian still drove me back to my place, watched me take my medicine, and left the moment I fell asleep. The third time was the worst—someone had left a strange mark on my apartment door. I was losing my mind with fear, but Julian still wouldn't let me stay at his place. Instead, he booked me a hotel room. He spent the next day contacting landlords, agents, and movers, ensuring I relocated to a new apartment within twenty-four hours. Four years, and I couldn't get into Julian's place. Savannah managed it without lifting a finger. I had to admit his "traditional" boundaries were reserved exclusively for me. My phone buzzed with a text from Julian. [Goodnight.] No explanation. No mention of her. [By the way, I found a new roommate. She's moving in tomorrow under an emergency circumstance.] [Chloe, make sure to let me know in advance before you come over from now on.] Staring at the text, I wanted to laugh. But my tears hit the screen first. I wiped my eyes and didn't reply. Savannah posted a third update. One photo showed her clinking wine glasses with Julian, and the other was a selfie where their cheeks were practically pressed together. [Celebrating the new place. Here's to the future, Mr. Brooks.] Late at night. An unmarried man and woman. Living together. Julian never touched a drop of alcohol. Yet he was drinking with her tonight. In an instant, all the determination holding my heart together vanished. It was all so pathetic. I didn't text Julian for the next two days. He didn't seem to notice. It wasn't until later that week, when a sudden torrential downpour hit right at the end of the workday, that our paths crossed. I was waiting for an Uber under the office awning. Savannah was standing right next to me. She was holding her phone, whining cutely to whoever was on the other end. "Can you pull up a little closer? Hurry, the wind is freezing..." A car pulled up right in front of us. Entirely too familiar. Sure enough, the window rolled down to reveal Julian in the driver's seat. He hadn't sent a single text to check on me during this storm, yet he'd rushed over to pick up Savannah. Julian froze when he caught sight of me. "Chloe, you..." Savannah closed her umbrella, opened the door, and hopped straight into the passenger seat. "Julian, you actually know Chloe?" She looked out at me from the dry comfort of the car, her smile radiating sweetness. "Chloe, why don't you get in? Let Julian give you a ride. It's impossible to get an Uber in this weather." My own boyfriend was offering me a ride, and only because she'd graciously granted him permission. Julian remained silent, merely looking at me. I shook my head expressionlessly. "No need." My ride was already confirmed and only three minutes away. No reason to get in that car just to make myself sick. Savannah nodded and rolled up the window. The car lingered for a few seconds before driving off into the rain. When I finally got home and stepped out of the shower, I found Julian waiting in my living room. He still had the code to my smart lock. "Chloe, are you throwing a tantrum?" "When you refused to get in the car, I thought you were just busy, but the more I thought about it, the more off it felt." Julian reached out to grab my hand, but I stepped aside, dodging him. "Is this about me picking up Savannah today?" "Or because I didn't let you stay over the other night and didn't drive you home?" He let out a helpless chuckle. "Don't be so petty. Savannah's an old classmate. I only picked her up because I was passing by—and it's hard to say no when she asks." "Not letting you stay over was for your own good. I promise I'll drive you home next time..." "Julian, let's break up." Julian stiffened, his face instantly darkening. "Chloe, over something this minor?" "Yes." My eyes were entirely dead. "I can't stay at your place, but Savannah can. Don't you find that hilarious?" He'd never intended to tell me about her because he knew exactly how I'd react. "You... let me explain." Julian's eyes widened in shock, clearly not expecting me to already know. "Savannah moved to the city all by herself from a small town, and I'm the only person she knows here." "It's tough for a young girl, and her landlord suddenly kicked her out. If I hadn't stepped in, she'd be on the streets." "Chloe, you're a woman too—show some empathy." Seeing my silence, he let out a heavy sigh. "It's just an emergency temporary stay. Besides, there's nothing going on between us, so we don't need to overcomplicate things." "She's different from you. She's just a tenant." "Just a tenant?" I laughed. "Julian, I told you before that Savannah is the new intern in my department." "During her first week, she spent every single lunch break on the phone in the breakroom. When people teased her about it, she claimed it wasn't a boyfriend, just an old classmate." "That old classmate was you, wasn't it?" Julian's eyes flickered with guilt for a fraction of a second, but he didn't deny it. I used to love sharing things with him, flooding his phone with texts whenever I had a free moment. But his replies were always agonizingly slow, if they came at all. We'd fought about it a few times. Back then, Julian would just look exhausted and say, "Chloe, we're adults. Work is busy, and I need to rest during lunch. Can you stop making things difficult for me?" But when it came to Savannah, it was never difficult. "For the past two days, Savannah started bringing homemade lunches to work. You made those for her too, didn't you?" "And you're still trying to tell me she's just a tenant?" Those lunchboxes were a matching couple's set I'd bought, left behind at Julian's apartment. Now, Savannah was using them. Julian knitted his brows, completely unable to comprehend my anger. "Chloe, aren't you reading way too much into this?" "Don't be prejudiced against Savannah. She told me there was just a misunderstanding between you two at work..." He didn't listen to a single word I said, but he took everything Savannah said as gospel. I had nothing left to say. The silence in the room grew suffocating until the doorbell suddenly rang. Julian turned to open it. A second later, Savannah poked her head in, smiling warmly at me. "Hi, Chloe. Sorry to drop by unannounced." My gaze pierced right through Savannah and landed coldly on Julian. "You brought her here?" Savannah couldn't have found my address on her own. Julian stood beside her, deliberately avoiding my eyes. "Chloe, Savannah isn't the kind of person you think she is." "Since there's a misunderstanding, you two should just talk it out..." I let out a sharp, mocking laugh. "I spent two weeks pulling all-nighters for our latest marketing campaign, and she intentionally deleted my name from the pitch deck. You call that a misunderstanding?" I was the lead on that project, and Savannah was only supposed to assist me. After all my hard work, she secretly wiped my version from the shared drive history and submitted the campaign under her own name. I'd confronted her directly, but I couldn't recover the deleted file history in time to prove it to management. The drama had caused a massive stir in the office. "Chloe, you shouldn't bully me just because I'm the new intern." "That campaign was clearly my..." Savannah's eyes welled with tears, her voice trailing off vulnerably. "Forget it. You're Julian's girlfriend, and I don't want things to be tense between us. I definitely don't want you two fighting because of me." "Let's just say it was my fault. I apologize." Heartache flashed across Julian's face. "Savannah, I know what kind of person you are. Right is right." He turned to me, his tone hardening. "You shouldn't have to compromise yourself just for my sake." Then he looked straight at me. "Chloe, just apologize to Savannah, and we can all move past this." The final trace of agonizing heartache vanished from my chest. I felt entirely, completely numb. "Julian, let me make this incredibly clear. We are broken up." "Now, take your little friend and get the he11 out of my apartment." Savannah flinched, tears cascading down her face as she clutched the edge of Julian's jacket, shrinking behind him. Julian's expression turned vicious and mocking. "Chloe, are you seriously trying to threaten me with a breakup? You honestly think I'll just bow down to that?" "You are completely unhinged." He grabbed Savannah's hand and pulled her out the door. The door slammed shut with a deafening thud. I collapsed onto the sofa, completely drained of energy. Right then, my phone rang. It was my mom. "Chloe, are you really moving back home? Did something happen out there?" "No, Mom. I already turned in my resignation. I'm just wrapping up my files over the next two days before heading back." "Did you and Julian have a fight?" "No fight. We broke up." I'd already been thinking about changing companies anyway. And after the nightmare with Savannah, I immediately submitted my two weeks' notice. Our director thought he'd struck gold with Savannah, so he approved my departure without a single complaint. My mom went quiet for a few seconds. "Broken up... well, as long as you've thought it through." "It's good that you're coming back. Your dad and I won't have to constantly worry about you getting mistreated out there." My throat tightened, and my eyes stung. "Mom, don't worry about me." "I've already been looking at job openings, and there are plenty of great marketing agencies back home..." "I'm not worried about the job, sweetie. Just don't push yourself too hard." A lump formed in my throat, leaving me completely speechless. I'd hoped to spend my last two days in the city in peace. But Savannah had no intention of letting me go quietly. Just as the workday ended, the company Slack workspace absolutely exploded. Savannah had dropped a video into the main public channel. The person in the video was Julian. His face was dead serious, completely devoid of any playfulness. "Regarding the recent campaign pitch, I am formally apologizing to Savannah Cross on behalf of my girlfriend, Chloe Vance."

I asked to stay over 4 times in 4 years. He said no every time. "We're not married yet. I want to respect your space." Then I saw the photo. My intern—the one who stole my work—posted a picture of her feet in my slippers. Standing in his living room. He gave her the spare key. Made her instant ramen—the same late-night snack he always made for me. Drank wine with her—and he never drinks. When I confronted him, he called me petty. "She's just a tenant," he said. "Show some empathy." Two days later, he posted a video in our company Slack. Apologizing for me. Telling everyone I bullied her. Destroying my reputation—for her. I called him. He didn't answer. She did. "Julian's asleep," she purred. "He's been with me all night." Four years I gave him. Four years of waiting, of respecting his boundaries. And he threw me away the second someone new smiled at him. I packed one bag, deleted every photo, and blocked his number. A man not worth waiting for—good riddance. I complained when Julian Brooks rejected my request to stay over—for the fourth time. "Julian, you're so rigid." My apartment's AC had died in the middle of a hun//dred-degree heatwave. Yet he insisted on being old-fashioned about it. Throughout our four years together, no matter how late it got, he always insisted on driving me home. Julian sighed and tried to soothe me. "Be sweet, Chloe. We aren't married yet, and I want us to respect each other's space. I don't want anyone at the office gossiping about us living together." My heart warmed at his words, so I fell right back into our usual routine, venting to him about the recent drama at my office just like I always did. But he kept checking his watch, clearly distracted, and urged me to head back. Fortunately, the HVAC technician found a sudden opening and rushed over to my place. While waiting for him to finish the repairs, I happened to scroll through my Instagram feed and saw a post from our company's new marketing intern, Savannah Cross. [My landlord suddenly canceled my lease, but thank god someone stepped up to help. Otherwise, I'd be sleeping on the streets.] I recognized the background of her photo immediately. It was Julian's apartment. I stared at my phone screen, completely frozen. I stood there so long the technician finished fixing the unit and carefully lowered the thermostat. "Too hot for you, kiddo?" He looked at me with a sympathetic sigh. "Tell you what, I'll knock twenty bucks off the bill. Take it from an old man—there's no rough patch in life you can't get through." Only then did I realize tears were streaming down my face. I forced a smile. "Thank you. You're absolutely right." Julian was a rough patch I was finally moving past. ****** Savannah's photo only showed her legs and her luggage. She was wearing my slippers, standing right inside Julian's living room. The moment I stepped out of his apartment, she stepped right in. Before leaving, I had playfully begged Julian to let me stay. He refused without a second thought. "Chloe, you need to go home. I have urgent work to finish in a bit." As it turned out, there was no urgent work. The only urgency was Savannah. She was the new intern in my department, and we hadn't been getting along. I mentioned this to Julian before. But he never seemed to care, let alone listen. I had no idea Julian even knew Savannah. He'd never mentioned her. Yet it was glaringly obvious that she was spending the night at his place. Another red notification popped up on my screen as Savannah updated her feed again. [Meeting a soft-hearted god at my absolute worst. Blessed.] This time, Julian was in the photo. He was looking down at her with a helpless, fond smile. Two bowls of instant ramen with Spam sat on the table. On weekends, when Julian and I curled up together, that was the exact late-night snack he always made for me. Now, he was making it for Savannah. Savannah's comment sat right beneath the post, smug and flaunting. [Rent is two hun//dred, utilities are free, and no deposit. Best landlord ever.] Landlord. He had let Savannah move in. A sharp, suffocating pain flared in my chest, stealing my breath. To make his commute easier, Julian had rented a two-bedroom apartment near the office. It was a great place—twenty-five hun//dred a month. It used to be a shared rental, but his old roommate had moved out, and they hadn't found a suitable replacement. Worried the rent would be too much, I suggested moving in to split the cost. He flatly refused. "Chloe, I won't take your note, and I don't think it's right to move in together before marriage." It wasn't right for me, but it was perfectly fine for Savannah. I remembered those boundaries so clearly. The first time I asked to stay over was during our honeymoon phase, and Julian strictly turned me down. The second time, I came down with a sudden high fever. Julian still drove me back to my place, watched me take my medicine, and left the moment I fell asleep. The third time was the worst—someone had left a strange mark on my apartment door. I was losing my mind with fear, but Julian still wouldn't let me stay at his place. Instead, he booked me a hotel room. He spent the next day contacting landlords, agents, and movers, ensuring I relocated to a new apartment within twenty-four hours. Four years, and I couldn't get into Julian's place. Savannah managed it without lifting a finger. I had to admit his "traditional" boundaries were reserved exclusively for me. My phone buzzed with a text from Julian. [Goodnight.] No explanation. No mention of her. [By the way, I found a new roommate. She's moving in tomorrow under an emergency circumstance.] [Chloe, make sure to let me know in advance before you come over from now on.] Staring at the text, I wanted to laugh. But my tears hit the screen first. I wiped my eyes and didn't reply. Savannah posted a third update. One photo showed her clinking wine glasses with Julian, and the other was a selfie where their cheeks were practically pressed together. [Celebrating the new place. Here's to the future, Mr. Brooks.] Late at night. An unmarried man and woman. Living together. Julian never touched a drop of alcohol. Yet he was drinking with her tonight. In an instant, all the determination holding my heart together vanished. It was all so pathetic. I didn't text Julian for the next two days. He didn't seem to notice. It wasn't until later that week, when a sudden torrential downpour hit right at the end of the workday, that our paths crossed. I was waiting for an Uber under the office awning. Savannah was standing right next to me. She was holding her phone, whining cutely to whoever was on the other end. "Can you pull up a little closer? Hurry, the wind is freezing..." A car pulled up right in front of us. Entirely too familiar. Sure enough, the window rolled down to reveal Julian in the driver's seat. He hadn't sent a single text to check on me during this storm, yet he'd rushed over to pick up Savannah. Julian froze when he caught sight of me. "Chloe, you..." Savannah closed her umbrella, opened the door, and hopped straight into the passenger seat. "Julian, you actually know Chloe?" She looked out at me from the dry comfort of the car, her smile radiating sweetness. "Chloe, why don't you get in? Let Julian give you a ride. It's impossible to get an Uber in this weather." My own boyfriend was offering me a ride, and only because she'd graciously granted him permission. Julian remained silent, merely looking at me. I shook my head expressionlessly. "No need." My ride was already confirmed and only three minutes away. No reason to get in that car just to make myself sick. Savannah nodded and rolled up the window. The car lingered for a few seconds before driving off into the rain. When I finally got home and stepped out of the shower, I found Julian waiting in my living room. He still had the code to my smart lock. "Chloe, are you throwing a tantrum?" "When you refused to get in the car, I thought you were just busy, but the more I thought about it, the more off it felt." Julian reached out to grab my hand, but I stepped aside, dodging him. "Is this about me picking up Savannah today?" "Or because I didn't let you stay over the other night and didn't drive you home?" He let out a helpless chuckle. "Don't be so petty. Savannah's an old classmate. I only picked her up because I was passing by—and it's hard to say no when she asks." "Not letting you stay over was for your own good. I promise I'll drive you home next time..." "Julian, let's break up." Julian stiffened, his face instantly darkening. "Chloe, over something this minor?" "Yes." My eyes were entirely dead. "I can't stay at your place, but Savannah can. Don't you find that hilarious?" He'd never intended to tell me about her because he knew exactly how I'd react. "You... let me explain." Julian's eyes widened in shock, clearly not expecting me to already know. "Savannah moved to the city all by herself from a small town, and I'm the only person she knows here." "It's tough for a young girl, and her landlord suddenly kicked her out. If I hadn't stepped in, she'd be on the streets." "Chloe, you're a woman too—show some empathy." Seeing my silence, he let out a heavy sigh. "It's just an emergency temporary stay. Besides, there's nothing going on between us, so we don't need to overcomplicate things." "She's different from you. She's just a tenant." "Just a tenant?" I laughed. "Julian, I told you before that Savannah is the new intern in my department." "During her first week, she spent every single lunch break on the phone in the breakroom. When people teased her about it, she claimed it wasn't a boyfriend, just an old classmate." "That old classmate was you, wasn't it?" Julian's eyes flickered with guilt for a fraction of a second, but he didn't deny it. I used to love sharing things with him, flooding his phone with texts whenever I had a free moment. But his replies were always agonizingly slow, if they came at all. We'd fought about it a few times. Back then, Julian would just look exhausted and say, "Chloe, we're adults. Work is busy, and I need to rest during lunch. Can you stop making things difficult for me?" But when it came to Savannah, it was never difficult. "For the past two days, Savannah started bringing homemade lunches to work. You made those for her too, didn't you?" "And you're still trying to tell me she's just a tenant?" Those lunchboxes were a matching couple's set I'd bought, left behind at Julian's apartment. Now, Savannah was using them. Julian knitted his brows, completely unable to comprehend my anger. "Chloe, aren't you reading way too much into this?" "Don't be prejudiced against Savannah. She told me there was just a misunderstanding between you two at work..." He didn't listen to a single word I said, but he took everything Savannah said as gospel. I had nothing left to say. The silence in the room grew suffocating until the doorbell suddenly rang. Julian turned to open it. A second later, Savannah poked her head in, smiling warmly at me. "Hi, Chloe. Sorry to drop by unannounced." My gaze pierced right through Savannah and landed coldly on Julian. "You brought her here?" Savannah couldn't have found my address on her own. Julian stood beside her, deliberately avoiding my eyes. "Chloe, Savannah isn't the kind of person you think she is." "Since there's a misunderstanding, you two should just talk it out..." I let out a sharp, mocking laugh. "I spent two weeks pulling all-nighters for our latest marketing campaign, and she intentionally deleted my name from the pitch deck. You call that a misunderstanding?" I was the lead on that project, and Savannah was only supposed to assist me. After all my hard work, she secretly wiped my version from the shared drive history and submitted the campaign under her own name. I'd confronted her directly, but I couldn't recover the deleted file history in time to prove it to management. The drama had caused a massive stir in the office. "Chloe, you shouldn't bully me just because I'm the new intern." "That campaign was clearly my..." Savannah's eyes welled with tears, her voice trailing off vulnerably. "Forget it. You're Julian's girlfriend, and I don't want things to be tense between us. I definitely don't want you two fighting because of me." "Let's just say it was my fault. I apologize." Heartache flashed across Julian's face. "Savannah, I know what kind of person you are. Right is right." He turned to me, his tone hardening. "You shouldn't have to compromise yourself just for my sake." Then he looked straight at me. "Chloe, just apologize to Savannah, and we can all move past this." The final trace of agonizing heartache vanished from my chest. I felt entirely, completely numb. "Julian, let me make this incredibly clear. We are broken up." "Now, take your little friend and get the he11 out of my apartment." Savannah flinched, tears cascading down her face as she clutched the edge of Julian's jacket, shrinking behind him. Julian's expression turned vicious and mocking. "Chloe, are you seriously trying to threaten me with a breakup? You honestly think I'll just bow down to that?" "You are completely unhinged." He grabbed Savannah's hand and pulled her out the door. The door slammed shut with a deafening thud. I collapsed onto the sofa, completely drained of energy. Right then, my phone rang. It was my mom. "Chloe, are you really moving back home? Did something happen out there?" "No, Mom. I already turned in my resignation. I'm just wrapping up my files over the next two days before heading back." "Did you and Julian have a fight?" "No fight. We broke up." I'd already been thinking about changing companies anyway. And after the nightmare with Savannah, I immediately submitted my two weeks' notice. Our director thought he'd struck gold with Savannah, so he approved my departure without a single complaint. My mom went quiet for a few seconds. "Broken up... well, as long as you've thought it through." "It's good that you're coming back. Your dad and I won't have to constantly worry about you getting mistreated out there." My throat tightened, and my eyes stung. "Mom, don't worry about me." "I've already been looking at job openings, and there are plenty of great marketing agencies back home..." "I'm not worried about the job, sweetie. Just don't push yourself too hard." A lump formed in my throat, leaving me completely speechless. I'd hoped to spend my last two days in the city in peace. But Savannah had no intention of letting me go quietly. Just as the workday ended, the company Slack workspace absolutely exploded. Savannah had dropped a video into the main public channel. The person in the video was Julian. His face was dead serious, completely devoid of any playfulness. "Regarding the recent campaign pitch, I am formally apologizing to Savannah Cross on behalf of my girlfriend, Chloe Vance."

My mom always said I was just lazy by nature. As a fitness coach, she made me and my sister wear fitness trackers since we were kids. But no matter what I did, my arms and legs would suddenly stiffen, and I’d fall flat on the ground. My teachers even thought it might be ALS. Mom just snorted. “Stop making things up. She’s just lazy.” If I didn’t burn enough calories, she punished me even harder. “Your sister can do it. Why can’t you? You’re just lazy!” I cried and tried to explain. She didn’t believe me. “Data doesn’t lie. You’ll learn your lesson once you’re exhausted.” At the school track meet, I signed up for the 800 meters. When the whistle went off, I ran as hard as I could. But my legs got stiffer and stiffer. Mom sat in the stands, her face dark. Then my vision went black, and I fell. She looked at me with disgust. “Again? Playing dead so you don’t have to run?” “Fine. I’ll fix this today. Let’s see how long you stay down.” I lay there, watching her and my sister blur in front of me. Mom… this time, I’m really not being lazy. I just… can’t move anymore. Mom always said I was just born lazy. As a personal trainer, Mom had Mia and me wearing fitness trackers practically from birthAs a fitness coach, she put fitness trackers on me and Mia from the day we were born. But whether it was running laps in PE or doing the long jump, my arms and legs would suddenly lock up, and I would go sprawling across the ground. My teachers worried it might be ALS, also known as Lou Gehrig’s disease. Mom only scoffed. “Please. She’s just lazy.” Whenever I failed to meet my daily calorie goal, she punished me twice as hard. “Mia can handle the exact same workout, so why can’t you? You’re just lazy!” At first, I cried and tried to explain. Mom didn’t believe me. “The data doesn’t lie. Once you’re tired enough, maybe you’ll finally learn your lesson.” After a while, I started blaming myself too. Why was I so lazy? On the day of the school track meet, I signed up for the 800-meter race. The starting pist0l went off, and I ran as hard as I could, but my legs grew stiffer and stiffer. Mom sat in the bleachers, her face dark with anger. At last, my vision went black, and I collapsed. The back of my head struck the concrete curb, and blood spread across the ground. Mom stood beside me, frowning in disgust. “This again? You think playing dead gets you out of exercising?” “Fine. I’m going to break this bad habit of yours today. Let’s see how long it takes before you finally get up“Fine. I’m curing you of this attitude today. Let’s see how long it takes before you finally get up.” I lay on the ground as Mom and Mia blurred in front of me. Mom, I really wasn’t being lazy this time. I just could not move anymore. *** The wound on the back of my head hurt so badly it felt like my skull was splitting open. I opened my mouth, trying to explain, but I could not make a sound. Then the whole world went silent. A few classmates noticed something was wrong and quickly rushed over to me. Their faces were full of concern, nothing like Mom’s cold expression. Before they could say anything, Mia, standing beside Mom, spread her arms and blocked their wayBefore they could say anything, Mia spread her arms and blocked them. “You don’t have to help her. She’s just trying to get out of exercising!” With that, she lifted my limp wrist and pulled up the numbers on my fitness tracker for everyone to see. “Mom says this number has to reach 2.0, and she’s not even at 1.0 yet!” She meant the daily calorie burn Mom required from us. We were supposed to hit 2,000 active calories every day. Then Mia let go of my hand. My hand slammed hard against the ground, and my knuckles made a dull little thud against the pavement. That finally made Mom glance over. Out of habit, I shut my eyes and waited for the pain to come. A few seconds passed before I realized that once a person was dead, pain stopped coming. I had not even had time to feel relieved before I caught Mom’s gaze, and my stomach dropped all over again. But in the next second, after Mia tapped open the data on her own fitness tracker, the question in Mom’s eyes turned back into disgust. There was a smiley face beside Mia’s number, which meant she had hit her goal. Mia looked smug as she bragged to the other students. “I’m telling you, she’s always like this! She never hits the goal.” “And I’m two years younger than her, but I can still do it!” “Mom says she’s lazy, and she always talks back and makes Mom mad.” Hearing Mia take her side, Mom smiled and stroked Mia’s hairHearing Mia defend her, Mom smiled and stroked her hair. Seeing how calm the two of them looked, the classmates began to hesitate. “But is she really okay like that?” “I heard Chloe Parker is Ms. Morgan’s daughter. Chloe is always saying how much Ms. Morgan loves her and how well Ms. Morgan treats her, so Ms. Morgan wouldn’t just ignore her“I heard Chloe Parker is Ms. Morgan’s daughter. Chloe is always saying how much Ms. Morgan loves her and how good she is to her, so Ms. Morgan wouldn’t just ignore her.” “Maybe they just had a fight.” As they talked, more and more students gathered around. But Mia stopped them one by one, and no one managed to come close enough to check on me. Mom’s expression grew worse and worse. Out of habit, I apologized to her, but she could not hear me. She pointed at me, her voice full of disgust. “Chloe Parker! Are you done making a scene?” “You may not have any shame, but I do. Are you proud of this? Do you really want everyone laughing at us“You may not care about embarrassing yourself, but I still have a reputation. Is this supposed to make you proud? Do you really want everyone laughing at us that badly?” In the past, even when my limbs stiffened and I fell again and again, I would still force myself to get back up because I did not want to make Mom angrier. But now I stayed where I was, face down on the ground, without moving at all. Mia stared at my tracker and added fuel to the fire. “Mom, look. Chloe’s number is still going up.” “She’s totally fine. She’s just doing this to defy you“She’s totally fine. She’s just doing this to get back at you!” Mom was so angry her chest rose and fell sharply. “You want to put on a show? Fine. I’ll play along with you all day if I have to.” Watching Mom’s face turn red with fury, Mia stomped over and kicked my hand. “Bad Chloe! That’s what you get for making Mom mad!” By pure coincidence, my curled fingers slipped through the loop in the bow of her sneaker lace. Mia’s sneaker lace caught on my fingers before she could react, and she lost her balance, hitting the ground hardMia was caught off guard. She lost her balance and fell hard onto the ground. Her shrill crying exploded through the crowd. Mom hurried to help Mia up and carefully checked her for injuries. When she saw that Mia had split her lip, the fury in her eyes turned even more viciousWhen she saw that Mia’s mouth had been scraped open, the hostility in her eyes deepened. Then she raised her foot and kicked me hard. My limp, powerless body flipped over from the force of the kickMy soft, powerless body flipped over from the force of the blow. My body lay faceup, but my head, too heavy to turn with it, remained twisted to one sideMy body had landed faceup, but my head was still twisted to the side because it was too heavy to move with the rest of me. Anyone who looked closely would have seen that my head and body were positioned all wrong, almost unnaturally so. But Mom was too busy fussing over Mia to notice. All I could hear was her cursing at me. “Chloe, how could you be this cruel?” “That was Mia! Your own sister“That was Mia! Your own family!” “You’re a girl too. How would you feel if your face got smashed up like that?” The more she spoke, the angrier she became. Then she simply raised her hand and slapped me across the face again. “You just have to fight me on everything, don’t you? You have to go against Mia too!” “How did I end up raising something so lazy and so vicious? I wasted every bit of love I ever gave you!” The crack of the slap rang through the crowd, and some students covered their eyes in fear. Mia’s eyes were full of tears, but there was no hurt in them. If anything, there was a flicker of satisfaction, as if she had finally gotten even. “It wasn’t me... I was already... dead...” I murmured the words. For some reason, even though my body could no longer feel pain, my heart still felt as if it had been cut open again and again. It had not always been like this. In my hazy childhood memories, Mom had never treated me this way. Back then, she would always smile, give me a thumbs-up, and tell me I had done a great job. Whatever I wanted, she would buy it for me. Every day, she put so much thought into making me balanced meals, and at night, she would tell me stories until I fell asleep. I remembered all of it. Things only changed later, after my body started having problems. Her attitude toward me grew worse and worse. At first, she would still patiently talk me through what had gone wrong. Then she gradually became impatient. In the end, that impatience turned into deeper and deeper disgust. The truth was, I had never blamed Mom. I could even understand her. Dad once told me that Mom had a younger brother when she was little. But when he was ten, he died after a sudden high feverBut when he was ten, he died after running a fever. The doctors said his body had always been too weak, and he could not survive such a sudden, severe illness. After that, Mom became especially focused on physical fitness. When she was preg...n@nt with me, she and Dad had already talked about raising us in the healthiest way possibleFrom the time she had me, she and Dad had talked about raising healthy kids. She researched children’s exercise and ways to build strength, collecting thick stacks of notes and plans. She even had our fitness trackers custom-made. “Your mom just cares about you girls too much,” Dad told me. After hearing that, I finally understood that everything Mom did was for our own good. I did not want to disappoint her, so even when I fell over and over again, even when my whole body was covered in injuries, I kept getting back up and trying to meet her expectations. But no matter how hard I tried, in her eyes, I was still the lazy child. Several teachers finally noticed what was happening and rushed over to stop Mom, who was still slapping me. “Ms. Morgan, calm down!” My head swung from side to side under her blows. The wound on the back of my head, which had been pressed against the ground, lost that pressure, and more blood poured out with each movement. One teacher frowned and tried to come check on me. Mom stopped her at once. “Don’t bother with her! It’s just a little scrape. If it actually hurt, she would have screamed by now. She isn’t stupid“Don’t bother with her! She only scraped herself a little. If it actually hurt, she would have screamed by now. She isn’t stupid!” I gave a bitter smile. A long time ago, that had been true. Back then, Mom still cared about me. Whenever I fell or bumped into something, I would go to her so she could clean it, put ointment on it, and blow on it to make it hurt less. But later, whenever I cried, Mom would not even look at me. Over time, I learned to get back up quietly and stop saying it hurt. The teacher still looked uneasy. “She really doesn’t look well to me.” “Just to be safe, I’m going to call the school nurse.” Before Mom could stop her, the teacher had already made the call. Mom scoffed and did not even bother looking at me again. When the school nurse arrived, Mom talked her into leavingWhen the school nurse arrived, Mom sent the nurse right back. “She’s acting. Of course she has to commit to the part.” “Don’t worry. I’m her mother. You can trust me. Nothing is going to happen“Don’t worry. I’m her mother. If I say she’s fine, she’s fine. Nothing is going to happen.” “Everyone, go on. Clear out.” With that, she dispersed the crowd, then gave me one more glance. “If you’re so determined to stay here, then stay. Let’s see how long you can keep lying there.” Over the loudspeaker, Mia’s name was called. The announcement said she had taken first place in both the long jump and the sprint. Mom picked her up and kissed her twice on the cheek. “Come on. Let’s go get your awards.” “You did so well today. What do you want as your reward?” I watched their backs grow farther and farther away. The track meet was almost over, and all the students and teachers were packing up the equipment. Everyone was busy with their own tasks, leaving me lying on the ground all alone. A sour ache spread through my chest. Forty minutes later, the track meet officially ended. People walked past me in twos and threes. Every now and then, a few students who did not know what had happened worried about me. “Chloe has been lying there for so long. What if something really happened to her?” “Could she have heatstroke?” But their concern was quickly drowned out by louder laughter. “Her? I heard she’s throwing a tantrum at her mom. I would never upset my mom like that.” “All she does during recess and PE is run, but it’s not like she ever gets good results. It just makes her look like she’s pretending to work hard.” “She just pulled that sneaky little stunt and made Mia get hurt. What could possibly be wrong with her?” Those rumors sounded painfully familiar. I did not need to think hard to know Mia had spread them. Everyone shook their heads and moved on. When the voices faded, I was once again the only one left on the track field. According to the school’s schedule, after the track meet, there would be a school family flea market in the front lobby. The decorations had all been made by the students, and some of the best projects were displayed on the backdrop wall. Mia picked out a booth and set out the finished beaded bracelets. Mom took the lunches she had prepared out of her backpack. When her fingers touched my lunch box, they paused. She handed lunch to Mia, then absentmindedly poked at the food in my container with her spoon before asking coldly, “Where is Chloe? She doesn’t want to run, and now she doesn’t want to come to the market either?” Mia was wolfing down her food. She mumbled through a mouthful, “I asked her. She insisted it was your fault and said you had to apologize first, so you wouldn’t force her anymoreMia was wolfing down her food. She answered unclearly, “I asked her. She insisted it was your fault and said you had to apologize first, so you wouldn’t force her anymore.” Mom’s expression, which had just softened a little, darkened again. Mia looked deeply wronged and spoke carefully. “Mom, maybe I should go apologize to Chloe.” “Maybe she’s upset because I did well today. She isn’t usually like this.” Mom sighed and gave Mia the meat from her own lunchMom sighed and gave Mia the best part from her own lunch. “This has nothing to do with you. I’ve just spoiled her too much.” “I used to let things slide because I didn’t want to make a big deal out of it, and now she thinks she can challenge me“I used to let things slide because I didn’t want to argue with her, and now she thinks she can challenge me.” “Today, I’m going to make her understand exactly who the parent is and who is supposed to listen.”

My mom always said I was just lazy by nature. As a fitness coach, she made me and my sister wear fitness trackers since we were kids. But no matter what I did, my arms and legs would suddenly stiffen, and I’d fall flat on the ground. My teachers even thought it might be ALS. Mom just snorted. “Stop making things up. She’s just lazy.” If I didn’t burn enough calories, she punished me even harder. “Your sister can do it. Why can’t you? You’re just lazy!” I cried and tried to explain. She didn’t believe me. “Data doesn’t lie. You’ll learn your lesson once you’re exhausted.” At the school track meet, I signed up for the 800 meters. When the whistle went off, I ran as hard as I could. But my legs got stiffer and stiffer. Mom sat in the stands, her face dark. Then my vision went black, and I fell. She looked at me with disgust. “Again? Playing dead so you don’t have to run?” “Fine. I’ll fix this today. Let’s see how long you stay down.” I lay there, watching her and my sister blur in front of me. Mom… this time, I’m really not being lazy. I just… can’t move anymore. Mom always said I was just born lazy. As a personal trainer, Mom had Mia and me wearing fitness trackers practically from birthAs a fitness coach, she put fitness trackers on me and Mia from the day we were born. But whether it was running laps in PE or doing the long jump, my arms and legs would suddenly lock up, and I would go sprawling across the ground. My teachers worried it might be ALS, also known as Lou Gehrig’s disease. Mom only scoffed. “Please. She’s just lazy.” Whenever I failed to meet my daily calorie goal, she punished me twice as hard. “Mia can handle the exact same workout, so why can’t you? You’re just lazy!” At first, I cried and tried to explain. Mom didn’t believe me. “The data doesn’t lie. Once you’re tired enough, maybe you’ll finally learn your lesson.” After a while, I started blaming myself too. Why was I so lazy? On the day of the school track meet, I signed up for the 800-meter race. The starting pist0l went off, and I ran as hard as I could, but my legs grew stiffer and stiffer. Mom sat in the bleachers, her face dark with anger. At last, my vision went black, and I collapsed. The back of my head struck the concrete curb, and blood spread across the ground. Mom stood beside me, frowning in disgust. “This again? You think playing dead gets you out of exercising?” “Fine. I’m going to break this bad habit of yours today. Let’s see how long it takes before you finally get up“Fine. I’m curing you of this attitude today. Let’s see how long it takes before you finally get up.” I lay on the ground as Mom and Mia blurred in front of me. Mom, I really wasn’t being lazy this time. I just could not move anymore. *** The wound on the back of my head hurt so badly it felt like my skull was splitting open. I opened my mouth, trying to explain, but I could not make a sound. Then the whole world went silent. A few classmates noticed something was wrong and quickly rushed over to me. Their faces were full of concern, nothing like Mom’s cold expression. Before they could say anything, Mia, standing beside Mom, spread her arms and blocked their wayBefore they could say anything, Mia spread her arms and blocked them. “You don’t have to help her. She’s just trying to get out of exercising!” With that, she lifted my limp wrist and pulled up the numbers on my fitness tracker for everyone to see. “Mom says this number has to reach 2.0, and she’s not even at 1.0 yet!” She meant the daily calorie burn Mom required from us. We were supposed to hit 2,000 active calories every day. Then Mia let go of my hand. My hand slammed hard against the ground, and my knuckles made a dull little thud against the pavement. That finally made Mom glance over. Out of habit, I shut my eyes and waited for the pain to come. A few seconds passed before I realized that once a person was dead, pain stopped coming. I had not even had time to feel relieved before I caught Mom’s gaze, and my stomach dropped all over again. But in the next second, after Mia tapped open the data on her own fitness tracker, the question in Mom’s eyes turned back into disgust. There was a smiley face beside Mia’s number, which meant she had hit her goal. Mia looked smug as she bragged to the other students. “I’m telling you, she’s always like this! She never hits the goal.” “And I’m two years younger than her, but I can still do it!” “Mom says she’s lazy, and she always talks back and makes Mom mad.” Hearing Mia take her side, Mom smiled and stroked Mia’s hairHearing Mia defend her, Mom smiled and stroked her hair. Seeing how calm the two of them looked, the classmates began to hesitate. “But is she really okay like that?” “I heard Chloe Parker is Ms. Morgan’s daughter. Chloe is always saying how much Ms. Morgan loves her and how well Ms. Morgan treats her, so Ms. Morgan wouldn’t just ignore her“I heard Chloe Parker is Ms. Morgan’s daughter. Chloe is always saying how much Ms. Morgan loves her and how good she is to her, so Ms. Morgan wouldn’t just ignore her.” “Maybe they just had a fight.” As they talked, more and more students gathered around. But Mia stopped them one by one, and no one managed to come close enough to check on me. Mom’s expression grew worse and worse. Out of habit, I apologized to her, but she could not hear me. She pointed at me, her voice full of disgust. “Chloe Parker! Are you done making a scene?” “You may not have any shame, but I do. Are you proud of this? Do you really want everyone laughing at us“You may not care about embarrassing yourself, but I still have a reputation. Is this supposed to make you proud? Do you really want everyone laughing at us that badly?” In the past, even when my limbs stiffened and I fell again and again, I would still force myself to get back up because I did not want to make Mom angrier. But now I stayed where I was, face down on the ground, without moving at all. Mia stared at my tracker and added fuel to the fire. “Mom, look. Chloe’s number is still going up.” “She’s totally fine. She’s just doing this to defy you“She’s totally fine. She’s just doing this to get back at you!” Mom was so angry her chest rose and fell sharply. “You want to put on a show? Fine. I’ll play along with you all day if I have to.” Watching Mom’s face turn red with fury, Mia stomped over and kicked my hand. “Bad Chloe! That’s what you get for making Mom mad!” By pure coincidence, my curled fingers slipped through the loop in the bow of her sneaker lace. Mia’s sneaker lace caught on my fingers before she could react, and she lost her balance, hitting the ground hardMia was caught off guard. She lost her balance and fell hard onto the ground. Her shrill crying exploded through the crowd. Mom hurried to help Mia up and carefully checked her for injuries. When she saw that Mia had split her lip, the fury in her eyes turned even more viciousWhen she saw that Mia’s mouth had been scraped open, the hostility in her eyes deepened. Then she raised her foot and kicked me hard. My limp, powerless body flipped over from the force of the kickMy soft, powerless body flipped over from the force of the blow. My body lay faceup, but my head, too heavy to turn with it, remained twisted to one sideMy body had landed faceup, but my head was still twisted to the side because it was too heavy to move with the rest of me. Anyone who looked closely would have seen that my head and body were positioned all wrong, almost unnaturally so. But Mom was too busy fussing over Mia to notice. All I could hear was her cursing at me. “Chloe, how could you be this cruel?” “That was Mia! Your own sister“That was Mia! Your own family!” “You’re a girl too. How would you feel if your face got smashed up like that?” The more she spoke, the angrier she became. Then she simply raised her hand and slapped me across the face again. “You just have to fight me on everything, don’t you? You have to go against Mia too!” “How did I end up raising something so lazy and so vicious? I wasted every bit of love I ever gave you!” The crack of the slap rang through the crowd, and some students covered their eyes in fear. Mia’s eyes were full of tears, but there was no hurt in them. If anything, there was a flicker of satisfaction, as if she had finally gotten even. “It wasn’t me... I was already... dead...” I murmured the words. For some reason, even though my body could no longer feel pain, my heart still felt as if it had been cut open again and again. It had not always been like this. In my hazy childhood memories, Mom had never treated me this way. Back then, she would always smile, give me a thumbs-up, and tell me I had done a great job. Whatever I wanted, she would buy it for me. Every day, she put so much thought into making me balanced meals, and at night, she would tell me stories until I fell asleep. I remembered all of it. Things only changed later, after my body started having problems. Her attitude toward me grew worse and worse. At first, she would still patiently talk me through what had gone wrong. Then she gradually became impatient. In the end, that impatience turned into deeper and deeper disgust. The truth was, I had never blamed Mom. I could even understand her. Dad once told me that Mom had a younger brother when she was little. But when he was ten, he died after a sudden high feverBut when he was ten, he died after running a fever. The doctors said his body had always been too weak, and he could not survive such a sudden, severe illness. After that, Mom became especially focused on physical fitness. When she was preg...n@nt with me, she and Dad had already talked about raising us in the healthiest way possibleFrom the time she had me, she and Dad had talked about raising healthy kids. She researched children’s exercise and ways to build strength, collecting thick stacks of notes and plans. She even had our fitness trackers custom-made. “Your mom just cares about you girls too much,” Dad told me. After hearing that, I finally understood that everything Mom did was for our own good. I did not want to disappoint her, so even when I fell over and over again, even when my whole body was covered in injuries, I kept getting back up and trying to meet her expectations. But no matter how hard I tried, in her eyes, I was still the lazy child. Several teachers finally noticed what was happening and rushed over to stop Mom, who was still slapping me. “Ms. Morgan, calm down!” My head swung from side to side under her blows. The wound on the back of my head, which had been pressed against the ground, lost that pressure, and more blood poured out with each movement. One teacher frowned and tried to come check on me. Mom stopped her at once. “Don’t bother with her! It’s just a little scrape. If it actually hurt, she would have screamed by now. She isn’t stupid“Don’t bother with her! She only scraped herself a little. If it actually hurt, she would have screamed by now. She isn’t stupid!” I gave a bitter smile. A long time ago, that had been true. Back then, Mom still cared about me. Whenever I fell or bumped into something, I would go to her so she could clean it, put ointment on it, and blow on it to make it hurt less. But later, whenever I cried, Mom would not even look at me. Over time, I learned to get back up quietly and stop saying it hurt. The teacher still looked uneasy. “She really doesn’t look well to me.” “Just to be safe, I’m going to call the school nurse.” Before Mom could stop her, the teacher had already made the call. Mom scoffed and did not even bother looking at me again. When the school nurse arrived, Mom talked her into leavingWhen the school nurse arrived, Mom sent the nurse right back. “She’s acting. Of course she has to commit to the part.” “Don’t worry. I’m her mother. You can trust me. Nothing is going to happen“Don’t worry. I’m her mother. If I say she’s fine, she’s fine. Nothing is going to happen.” “Everyone, go on. Clear out.” With that, she dispersed the crowd, then gave me one more glance. “If you’re so determined to stay here, then stay. Let’s see how long you can keep lying there.” Over the loudspeaker, Mia’s name was called. The announcement said she had taken first place in both the long jump and the sprint. Mom picked her up and kissed her twice on the cheek. “Come on. Let’s go get your awards.” “You did so well today. What do you want as your reward?” I watched their backs grow farther and farther away. The track meet was almost over, and all the students and teachers were packing up the equipment. Everyone was busy with their own tasks, leaving me lying on the ground all alone. A sour ache spread through my chest. Forty minutes later, the track meet officially ended. People walked past me in twos and threes. Every now and then, a few students who did not know what had happened worried about me. “Chloe has been lying there for so long. What if something really happened to her?” “Could she have heatstroke?” But their concern was quickly drowned out by louder laughter. “Her? I heard she’s throwing a tantrum at her mom. I would never upset my mom like that.” “All she does during recess and PE is run, but it’s not like she ever gets good results. It just makes her look like she’s pretending to work hard.” “She just pulled that sneaky little stunt and made Mia get hurt. What could possibly be wrong with her?” Those rumors sounded painfully familiar. I did not need to think hard to know Mia had spread them. Everyone shook their heads and moved on. When the voices faded, I was once again the only one left on the track field. According to the school’s schedule, after the track meet, there would be a school family flea market in the front lobby. The decorations had all been made by the students, and some of the best projects were displayed on the backdrop wall. Mia picked out a booth and set out the finished beaded bracelets. Mom took the lunches she had prepared out of her backpack. When her fingers touched my lunch box, they paused. She handed lunch to Mia, then absentmindedly poked at the food in my container with her spoon before asking coldly, “Where is Chloe? She doesn’t want to run, and now she doesn’t want to come to the market either?” Mia was wolfing down her food. She mumbled through a mouthful, “I asked her. She insisted it was your fault and said you had to apologize first, so you wouldn’t force her anymoreMia was wolfing down her food. She answered unclearly, “I asked her. She insisted it was your fault and said you had to apologize first, so you wouldn’t force her anymore.” Mom’s expression, which had just softened a little, darkened again. Mia looked deeply wronged and spoke carefully. “Mom, maybe I should go apologize to Chloe.” “Maybe she’s upset because I did well today. She isn’t usually like this.” Mom sighed and gave Mia the meat from her own lunchMom sighed and gave Mia the best part from her own lunch. “This has nothing to do with you. I’ve just spoiled her too much.” “I used to let things slide because I didn’t want to make a big deal out of it, and now she thinks she can challenge me“I used to let things slide because I didn’t want to argue with her, and now she thinks she can challenge me.” “Today, I’m going to make her understand exactly who the parent is and who is supposed to listen.”

My mom always said I was just lazy by nature. As a fitness coach, she made me and my sister wear fitness trackers since we were kids. But no matter what I did, my arms and legs would suddenly stiffen, and I’d fall flat on the ground. My teachers even thought it might be ALS. Mom just snorted. “Stop making things up. She’s just lazy.” If I didn’t burn enough calories, she punished me even harder. “Your sister can do it. Why can’t you? You’re just lazy!” I cried and tried to explain. She didn’t believe me. “Data doesn’t lie. You’ll learn your lesson once you’re exhausted.” At the school track meet, I signed up for the 800 meters. When the whistle went off, I ran as hard as I could. But my legs got stiffer and stiffer. Mom sat in the stands, her face dark. Then my vision went black, and I fell. She looked at me with disgust. “Again? Playing dead so you don’t have to run?” “Fine. I’ll fix this today. Let’s see how long you stay down.” I lay there, watching her and my sister blur in front of me. Mom… this time, I’m really not being lazy. I just… can’t move anymore. Mom always said I was just born lazy. As a personal trainer, Mom had Mia and me wearing fitness trackers practically from birthAs a fitness coach, she put fitness trackers on me and Mia from the day we were born. But whether it was running laps in PE or doing the long jump, my arms and legs would suddenly lock up, and I would go sprawling across the ground. My teachers worried it might be ALS, also known as Lou Gehrig’s disease. Mom only scoffed. “Please. She’s just lazy.” Whenever I failed to meet my daily calorie goal, she punished me twice as hard. “Mia can handle the exact same workout, so why can’t you? You’re just lazy!” At first, I cried and tried to explain. Mom didn’t believe me. “The data doesn’t lie. Once you’re tired enough, maybe you’ll finally learn your lesson.” After a while, I started blaming myself too. Why was I so lazy? On the day of the school track meet, I signed up for the 800-meter race. The starting pist0l went off, and I ran as hard as I could, but my legs grew stiffer and stiffer. Mom sat in the bleachers, her face dark with anger. At last, my vision went black, and I collapsed. The back of my head struck the concrete curb, and blood spread across the ground. Mom stood beside me, frowning in disgust. “This again? You think playing dead gets you out of exercising?” “Fine. I’m going to break this bad habit of yours today. Let’s see how long it takes before you finally get up“Fine. I’m curing you of this attitude today. Let’s see how long it takes before you finally get up.” I lay on the ground as Mom and Mia blurred in front of me. Mom, I really wasn’t being lazy this time. I just could not move anymore. *** The wound on the back of my head hurt so badly it felt like my skull was splitting open. I opened my mouth, trying to explain, but I could not make a sound. Then the whole world went silent. A few classmates noticed something was wrong and quickly rushed over to me. Their faces were full of concern, nothing like Mom’s cold expression. Before they could say anything, Mia, standing beside Mom, spread her arms and blocked their wayBefore they could say anything, Mia spread her arms and blocked them. “You don’t have to help her. She’s just trying to get out of exercising!” With that, she lifted my limp wrist and pulled up the numbers on my fitness tracker for everyone to see. “Mom says this number has to reach 2.0, and she’s not even at 1.0 yet!” She meant the daily calorie burn Mom required from us. We were supposed to hit 2,000 active calories every day. Then Mia let go of my hand. My hand slammed hard against the ground, and my knuckles made a dull little thud against the pavement. That finally made Mom glance over. Out of habit, I shut my eyes and waited for the pain to come. A few seconds passed before I realized that once a person was dead, pain stopped coming. I had not even had time to feel relieved before I caught Mom’s gaze, and my stomach dropped all over again. But in the next second, after Mia tapped open the data on her own fitness tracker, the question in Mom’s eyes turned back into disgust. There was a smiley face beside Mia’s number, which meant she had hit her goal. Mia looked smug as she bragged to the other students. “I’m telling you, she’s always like this! She never hits the goal.” “And I’m two years younger than her, but I can still do it!” “Mom says she’s lazy, and she always talks back and makes Mom mad.” Hearing Mia take her side, Mom smiled and stroked Mia’s hairHearing Mia defend her, Mom smiled and stroked her hair. Seeing how calm the two of them looked, the classmates began to hesitate. “But is she really okay like that?” “I heard Chloe Parker is Ms. Morgan’s daughter. Chloe is always saying how much Ms. Morgan loves her and how well Ms. Morgan treats her, so Ms. Morgan wouldn’t just ignore her“I heard Chloe Parker is Ms. Morgan’s daughter. Chloe is always saying how much Ms. Morgan loves her and how good she is to her, so Ms. Morgan wouldn’t just ignore her.” “Maybe they just had a fight.” As they talked, more and more students gathered around. But Mia stopped them one by one, and no one managed to come close enough to check on me. Mom’s expression grew worse and worse. Out of habit, I apologized to her, but she could not hear me. She pointed at me, her voice full of disgust. “Chloe Parker! Are you done making a scene?” “You may not have any shame, but I do. Are you proud of this? Do you really want everyone laughing at us“You may not care about embarrassing yourself, but I still have a reputation. Is this supposed to make you proud? Do you really want everyone laughing at us that badly?” In the past, even when my limbs stiffened and I fell again and again, I would still force myself to get back up because I did not want to make Mom angrier. But now I stayed where I was, face down on the ground, without moving at all. Mia stared at my tracker and added fuel to the fire. “Mom, look. Chloe’s number is still going up.” “She’s totally fine. She’s just doing this to defy you“She’s totally fine. She’s just doing this to get back at you!” Mom was so angry her chest rose and fell sharply. “You want to put on a show? Fine. I’ll play along with you all day if I have to.” Watching Mom’s face turn red with fury, Mia stomped over and kicked my hand. “Bad Chloe! That’s what you get for making Mom mad!” By pure coincidence, my curled fingers slipped through the loop in the bow of her sneaker lace. Mia’s sneaker lace caught on my fingers before she could react, and she lost her balance, hitting the ground hardMia was caught off guard. She lost her balance and fell hard onto the ground. Her shrill crying exploded through the crowd. Mom hurried to help Mia up and carefully checked her for injuries. When she saw that Mia had split her lip, the fury in her eyes turned even more viciousWhen she saw that Mia’s mouth had been scraped open, the hostility in her eyes deepened. Then she raised her foot and kicked me hard. My limp, powerless body flipped over from the force of the kickMy soft, powerless body flipped over from the force of the blow. My body lay faceup, but my head, too heavy to turn with it, remained twisted to one sideMy body had landed faceup, but my head was still twisted to the side because it was too heavy to move with the rest of me. Anyone who looked closely would have seen that my head and body were positioned all wrong, almost unnaturally so. But Mom was too busy fussing over Mia to notice. All I could hear was her cursing at me. “Chloe, how could you be this cruel?” “That was Mia! Your own sister“That was Mia! Your own family!” “You’re a girl too. How would you feel if your face got smashed up like that?” The more she spoke, the angrier she became. Then she simply raised her hand and slapped me across the face again. “You just have to fight me on everything, don’t you? You have to go against Mia too!” “How did I end up raising something so lazy and so vicious? I wasted every bit of love I ever gave you!” The crack of the slap rang through the crowd, and some students covered their eyes in fear. Mia’s eyes were full of tears, but there was no hurt in them. If anything, there was a flicker of satisfaction, as if she had finally gotten even. “It wasn’t me... I was already... dead...” I murmured the words. For some reason, even though my body could no longer feel pain, my heart still felt as if it had been cut open again and again. It had not always been like this. In my hazy childhood memories, Mom had never treated me this way. Back then, she would always smile, give me a thumbs-up, and tell me I had done a great job. Whatever I wanted, she would buy it for me. Every day, she put so much thought into making me balanced meals, and at night, she would tell me stories until I fell asleep. I remembered all of it. Things only changed later, after my body started having problems. Her attitude toward me grew worse and worse. At first, she would still patiently talk me through what had gone wrong. Then she gradually became impatient. In the end, that impatience turned into deeper and deeper disgust. The truth was, I had never blamed Mom. I could even understand her. Dad once told me that Mom had a younger brother when she was little. But when he was ten, he died after a sudden high feverBut when he was ten, he died after running a fever. The doctors said his body had always been too weak, and he could not survive such a sudden, severe illness. After that, Mom became especially focused on physical fitness. When she was preg...n@nt with me, she and Dad had already talked about raising us in the healthiest way possibleFrom the time she had me, she and Dad had talked about raising healthy kids. She researched children’s exercise and ways to build strength, collecting thick stacks of notes and plans. She even had our fitness trackers custom-made. “Your mom just cares about you girls too much,” Dad told me. After hearing that, I finally understood that everything Mom did was for our own good. I did not want to disappoint her, so even when I fell over and over again, even when my whole body was covered in injuries, I kept getting back up and trying to meet her expectations. But no matter how hard I tried, in her eyes, I was still the lazy child. Several teachers finally noticed what was happening and rushed over to stop Mom, who was still slapping me. “Ms. Morgan, calm down!” My head swung from side to side under her blows. The wound on the back of my head, which had been pressed against the ground, lost that pressure, and more blood poured out with each movement. One teacher frowned and tried to come check on me. Mom stopped her at once. “Don’t bother with her! It’s just a little scrape. If it actually hurt, she would have screamed by now. She isn’t stupid“Don’t bother with her! She only scraped herself a little. If it actually hurt, she would have screamed by now. She isn’t stupid!” I gave a bitter smile. A long time ago, that had been true. Back then, Mom still cared about me. Whenever I fell or bumped into something, I would go to her so she could clean it, put ointment on it, and blow on it to make it hurt less. But later, whenever I cried, Mom would not even look at me. Over time, I learned to get back up quietly and stop saying it hurt. The teacher still looked uneasy. “She really doesn’t look well to me.” “Just to be safe, I’m going to call the school nurse.” Before Mom could stop her, the teacher had already made the call. Mom scoffed and did not even bother looking at me again. When the school nurse arrived, Mom talked her into leavingWhen the school nurse arrived, Mom sent the nurse right back. “She’s acting. Of course she has to commit to the part.” “Don’t worry. I’m her mother. You can trust me. Nothing is going to happen“Don’t worry. I’m her mother. If I say she’s fine, she’s fine. Nothing is going to happen.” “Everyone, go on. Clear out.” With that, she dispersed the crowd, then gave me one more glance. “If you’re so determined to stay here, then stay. Let’s see how long you can keep lying there.” Over the loudspeaker, Mia’s name was called. The announcement said she had taken first place in both the long jump and the sprint. Mom picked her up and kissed her twice on the cheek. “Come on. Let’s go get your awards.” “You did so well today. What do you want as your reward?” I watched their backs grow farther and farther away. The track meet was almost over, and all the students and teachers were packing up the equipment. Everyone was busy with their own tasks, leaving me lying on the ground all alone. A sour ache spread through my chest. Forty minutes later, the track meet officially ended. People walked past me in twos and threes. Every now and then, a few students who did not know what had happened worried about me. “Chloe has been lying there for so long. What if something really happened to her?” “Could she have heatstroke?” But their concern was quickly drowned out by louder laughter. “Her? I heard she’s throwing a tantrum at her mom. I would never upset my mom like that.” “All she does during recess and PE is run, but it’s not like she ever gets good results. It just makes her look like she’s pretending to work hard.” “She just pulled that sneaky little stunt and made Mia get hurt. What could possibly be wrong with her?” Those rumors sounded painfully familiar. I did not need to think hard to know Mia had spread them. Everyone shook their heads and moved on. When the voices faded, I was once again the only one left on the track field. According to the school’s schedule, after the track meet, there would be a school family flea market in the front lobby. The decorations had all been made by the students, and some of the best projects were displayed on the backdrop wall. Mia picked out a booth and set out the finished beaded bracelets. Mom took the lunches she had prepared out of her backpack. When her fingers touched my lunch box, they paused. She handed lunch to Mia, then absentmindedly poked at the food in my container with her spoon before asking coldly, “Where is Chloe? She doesn’t want to run, and now she doesn’t want to come to the market either?” Mia was wolfing down her food. She mumbled through a mouthful, “I asked her. She insisted it was your fault and said you had to apologize first, so you wouldn’t force her anymoreMia was wolfing down her food. She answered unclearly, “I asked her. She insisted it was your fault and said you had to apologize first, so you wouldn’t force her anymore.” Mom’s expression, which had just softened a little, darkened again. Mia looked deeply wronged and spoke carefully. “Mom, maybe I should go apologize to Chloe.” “Maybe she’s upset because I did well today. She isn’t usually like this.” Mom sighed and gave Mia the meat from her own lunchMom sighed and gave Mia the best part from her own lunch. “This has nothing to do with you. I’ve just spoiled her too much.” “I used to let things slide because I didn’t want to make a big deal out of it, and now she thinks she can challenge me“I used to let things slide because I didn’t want to argue with her, and now she thinks she can challenge me.” “Today, I’m going to make her understand exactly who the parent is and who is supposed to listen.”

My mom always said I was just lazy by nature. As a fitness coach, she made me and my sister wear fitness trackers since we were kids. But no matter what I did, my arms and legs would suddenly stiffen, and I’d fall flat on the ground. My teachers even thought it might be ALS. Mom just snorted. “Stop making things up. She’s just lazy.” If I didn’t burn enough calories, she punished me even harder. “Your sister can do it. Why can’t you? You’re just lazy!” I cried and tried to explain. She didn’t believe me. “Data doesn’t lie. You’ll learn your lesson once you’re exhausted.” At the school track meet, I signed up for the 800 meters. When the whistle went off, I ran as hard as I could. But my legs got stiffer and stiffer. Mom sat in the stands, her face dark. Then my vision went black, and I fell. She looked at me with disgust. “Again? Playing dead so you don’t have to run?” “Fine. I’ll fix this today. Let’s see how long you stay down.” I lay there, watching her and my sister blur in front of me. Mom… this time, I’m really not being lazy. I just… can’t move anymore. Mom always said I was just born lazy. As a personal trainer, Mom had Mia and me wearing fitness trackers practically from birthAs a fitness coach, she put fitness trackers on me and Mia from the day we were born. But whether it was running laps in PE or doing the long jump, my arms and legs would suddenly lock up, and I would go sprawling across the ground. My teachers worried it might be ALS, also known as Lou Gehrig’s disease. Mom only scoffed. “Please. She’s just lazy.” Whenever I failed to meet my daily calorie goal, she punished me twice as hard. “Mia can handle the exact same workout, so why can’t you? You’re just lazy!” At first, I cried and tried to explain. Mom didn’t believe me. “The data doesn’t lie. Once you’re tired enough, maybe you’ll finally learn your lesson.” After a while, I started blaming myself too. Why was I so lazy? On the day of the school track meet, I signed up for the 800-meter race. The starting pist0l went off, and I ran as hard as I could, but my legs grew stiffer and stiffer. Mom sat in the bleachers, her face dark with anger. At last, my vision went black, and I collapsed. The back of my head struck the concrete curb, and blood spread across the ground. Mom stood beside me, frowning in disgust. “This again? You think playing dead gets you out of exercising?” “Fine. I’m going to break this bad habit of yours today. Let’s see how long it takes before you finally get up“Fine. I’m curing you of this attitude today. Let’s see how long it takes before you finally get up.” I lay on the ground as Mom and Mia blurred in front of me. Mom, I really wasn’t being lazy this time. I just could not move anymore. *** The wound on the back of my head hurt so badly it felt like my skull was splitting open. I opened my mouth, trying to explain, but I could not make a sound. Then the whole world went silent. A few classmates noticed something was wrong and quickly rushed over to me. Their faces were full of concern, nothing like Mom’s cold expression. Before they could say anything, Mia, standing beside Mom, spread her arms and blocked their wayBefore they could say anything, Mia spread her arms and blocked them. “You don’t have to help her. She’s just trying to get out of exercising!” With that, she lifted my limp wrist and pulled up the numbers on my fitness tracker for everyone to see. “Mom says this number has to reach 2.0, and she’s not even at 1.0 yet!” She meant the daily calorie burn Mom required from us. We were supposed to hit 2,000 active calories every day. Then Mia let go of my hand. My hand slammed hard against the ground, and my knuckles made a dull little thud against the pavement. That finally made Mom glance over. Out of habit, I shut my eyes and waited for the pain to come. A few seconds passed before I realized that once a person was dead, pain stopped coming. I had not even had time to feel relieved before I caught Mom’s gaze, and my stomach dropped all over again. But in the next second, after Mia tapped open the data on her own fitness tracker, the question in Mom’s eyes turned back into disgust. There was a smiley face beside Mia’s number, which meant she had hit her goal. Mia looked smug as she bragged to the other students. “I’m telling you, she’s always like this! She never hits the goal.” “And I’m two years younger than her, but I can still do it!” “Mom says she’s lazy, and she always talks back and makes Mom mad.” Hearing Mia take her side, Mom smiled and stroked Mia’s hairHearing Mia defend her, Mom smiled and stroked her hair. Seeing how calm the two of them looked, the classmates began to hesitate. “But is she really okay like that?” “I heard Chloe Parker is Ms. Morgan’s daughter. Chloe is always saying how much Ms. Morgan loves her and how well Ms. Morgan treats her, so Ms. Morgan wouldn’t just ignore her“I heard Chloe Parker is Ms. Morgan’s daughter. Chloe is always saying how much Ms. Morgan loves her and how good she is to her, so Ms. Morgan wouldn’t just ignore her.” “Maybe they just had a fight.” As they talked, more and more students gathered around. But Mia stopped them one by one, and no one managed to come close enough to check on me. Mom’s expression grew worse and worse. Out of habit, I apologized to her, but she could not hear me. She pointed at me, her voice full of disgust. “Chloe Parker! Are you done making a scene?” “You may not have any shame, but I do. Are you proud of this? Do you really want everyone laughing at us“You may not care about embarrassing yourself, but I still have a reputation. Is this supposed to make you proud? Do you really want everyone laughing at us that badly?” In the past, even when my limbs stiffened and I fell again and again, I would still force myself to get back up because I did not want to make Mom angrier. But now I stayed where I was, face down on the ground, without moving at all. Mia stared at my tracker and added fuel to the fire. “Mom, look. Chloe’s number is still going up.” “She’s totally fine. She’s just doing this to defy you“She’s totally fine. She’s just doing this to get back at you!” Mom was so angry her chest rose and fell sharply. “You want to put on a show? Fine. I’ll play along with you all day if I have to.” Watching Mom’s face turn red with fury, Mia stomped over and kicked my hand. “Bad Chloe! That’s what you get for making Mom mad!” By pure coincidence, my curled fingers slipped through the loop in the bow of her sneaker lace. Mia’s sneaker lace caught on my fingers before she could react, and she lost her balance, hitting the ground hardMia was caught off guard. She lost her balance and fell hard onto the ground. Her shrill crying exploded through the crowd. Mom hurried to help Mia up and carefully checked her for injuries. When she saw that Mia had split her lip, the fury in her eyes turned even more viciousWhen she saw that Mia’s mouth had been scraped open, the hostility in her eyes deepened. Then she raised her foot and kicked me hard. My limp, powerless body flipped over from the force of the kickMy soft, powerless body flipped over from the force of the blow. My body lay faceup, but my head, too heavy to turn with it, remained twisted to one sideMy body had landed faceup, but my head was still twisted to the side because it was too heavy to move with the rest of me. Anyone who looked closely would have seen that my head and body were positioned all wrong, almost unnaturally so. But Mom was too busy fussing over Mia to notice. All I could hear was her cursing at me. “Chloe, how could you be this cruel?” “That was Mia! Your own sister“That was Mia! Your own family!” “You’re a girl too. How would you feel if your face got smashed up like that?” The more she spoke, the angrier she became. Then she simply raised her hand and slapped me across the face again. “You just have to fight me on everything, don’t you? You have to go against Mia too!” “How did I end up raising something so lazy and so vicious? I wasted every bit of love I ever gave you!” The crack of the slap rang through the crowd, and some students covered their eyes in fear. Mia’s eyes were full of tears, but there was no hurt in them. If anything, there was a flicker of satisfaction, as if she had finally gotten even. “It wasn’t me... I was already... dead...” I murmured the words. For some reason, even though my body could no longer feel pain, my heart still felt as if it had been cut open again and again. It had not always been like this. In my hazy childhood memories, Mom had never treated me this way. Back then, she would always smile, give me a thumbs-up, and tell me I had done a great job. Whatever I wanted, she would buy it for me. Every day, she put so much thought into making me balanced meals, and at night, she would tell me stories until I fell asleep. I remembered all of it. Things only changed later, after my body started having problems. Her attitude toward me grew worse and worse. At first, she would still patiently talk me through what had gone wrong. Then she gradually became impatient. In the end, that impatience turned into deeper and deeper disgust. The truth was, I had never blamed Mom. I could even understand her. Dad once told me that Mom had a younger brother when she was little. But when he was ten, he died after a sudden high feverBut when he was ten, he died after running a fever. The doctors said his body had always been too weak, and he could not survive such a sudden, severe illness. After that, Mom became especially focused on physical fitness. When she was preg...n@nt with me, she and Dad had already talked about raising us in the healthiest way possibleFrom the time she had me, she and Dad had talked about raising healthy kids. She researched children’s exercise and ways to build strength, collecting thick stacks of notes and plans. She even had our fitness trackers custom-made. “Your mom just cares about you girls too much,” Dad told me. After hearing that, I finally understood that everything Mom did was for our own good. I did not want to disappoint her, so even when I fell over and over again, even when my whole body was covered in injuries, I kept getting back up and trying to meet her expectations. But no matter how hard I tried, in her eyes, I was still the lazy child. Several teachers finally noticed what was happening and rushed over to stop Mom, who was still slapping me. “Ms. Morgan, calm down!” My head swung from side to side under her blows. The wound on the back of my head, which had been pressed against the ground, lost that pressure, and more blood poured out with each movement. One teacher frowned and tried to come check on me. Mom stopped her at once. “Don’t bother with her! It’s just a little scrape. If it actually hurt, she would have screamed by now. She isn’t stupid“Don’t bother with her! She only scraped herself a little. If it actually hurt, she would have screamed by now. She isn’t stupid!” I gave a bitter smile. A long time ago, that had been true. Back then, Mom still cared about me. Whenever I fell or bumped into something, I would go to her so she could clean it, put ointment on it, and blow on it to make it hurt less. But later, whenever I cried, Mom would not even look at me. Over time, I learned to get back up quietly and stop saying it hurt. The teacher still looked uneasy. “She really doesn’t look well to me.” “Just to be safe, I’m going to call the school nurse.” Before Mom could stop her, the teacher had already made the call. Mom scoffed and did not even bother looking at me again. When the school nurse arrived, Mom talked her into leavingWhen the school nurse arrived, Mom sent the nurse right back. “She’s acting. Of course she has to commit to the part.” “Don’t worry. I’m her mother. You can trust me. Nothing is going to happen“Don’t worry. I’m her mother. If I say she’s fine, she’s fine. Nothing is going to happen.” “Everyone, go on. Clear out.” With that, she dispersed the crowd, then gave me one more glance. “If you’re so determined to stay here, then stay. Let’s see how long you can keep lying there.” Over the loudspeaker, Mia’s name was called. The announcement said she had taken first place in both the long jump and the sprint. Mom picked her up and kissed her twice on the cheek. “Come on. Let’s go get your awards.” “You did so well today. What do you want as your reward?” I watched their backs grow farther and farther away. The track meet was almost over, and all the students and teachers were packing up the equipment. Everyone was busy with their own tasks, leaving me lying on the ground all alone. A sour ache spread through my chest. Forty minutes later, the track meet officially ended. People walked past me in twos and threes. Every now and then, a few students who did not know what had happened worried about me. “Chloe has been lying there for so long. What if something really happened to her?” “Could she have heatstroke?” But their concern was quickly drowned out by louder laughter. “Her? I heard she’s throwing a tantrum at her mom. I would never upset my mom like that.” “All she does during recess and PE is run, but it’s not like she ever gets good results. It just makes her look like she’s pretending to work hard.” “She just pulled that sneaky little stunt and made Mia get hurt. What could possibly be wrong with her?” Those rumors sounded painfully familiar. I did not need to think hard to know Mia had spread them. Everyone shook their heads and moved on. When the voices faded, I was once again the only one left on the track field. According to the school’s schedule, after the track meet, there would be a school family flea market in the front lobby. The decorations had all been made by the students, and some of the best projects were displayed on the backdrop wall. Mia picked out a booth and set out the finished beaded bracelets. Mom took the lunches she had prepared out of her backpack. When her fingers touched my lunch box, they paused. She handed lunch to Mia, then absentmindedly poked at the food in my container with her spoon before asking coldly, “Where is Chloe? She doesn’t want to run, and now she doesn’t want to come to the market either?” Mia was wolfing down her food. She mumbled through a mouthful, “I asked her. She insisted it was your fault and said you had to apologize first, so you wouldn’t force her anymoreMia was wolfing down her food. She answered unclearly, “I asked her. She insisted it was your fault and said you had to apologize first, so you wouldn’t force her anymore.” Mom’s expression, which had just softened a little, darkened again. Mia looked deeply wronged and spoke carefully. “Mom, maybe I should go apologize to Chloe.” “Maybe she’s upset because I did well today. She isn’t usually like this.” Mom sighed and gave Mia the meat from her own lunchMom sighed and gave Mia the best part from her own lunch. “This has nothing to do with you. I’ve just spoiled her too much.” “I used to let things slide because I didn’t want to make a big deal out of it, and now she thinks she can challenge me“I used to let things slide because I didn’t want to argue with her, and now she thinks she can challenge me.” “Today, I’m going to make her understand exactly who the parent is and who is supposed to listen.”

My mom always said I was just lazy by nature. As a fitness coach, she made me and my sister wear fitness trackers since we were kids. But no matter what I did, my arms and legs would suddenly stiffen, and I’d fall flat on the ground. My teachers even thought it might be ALS. Mom just snorted. “Stop making things up. She’s just lazy.” If I didn’t burn enough calories, she punished me even harder. “Your sister can do it. Why can’t you? You’re just lazy!” I cried and tried to explain. She didn’t believe me. “Data doesn’t lie. You’ll learn your lesson once you’re exhausted.” At the school track meet, I signed up for the 800 meters. When the whistle went off, I ran as hard as I could. But my legs got stiffer and stiffer. Mom sat in the stands, her face dark. Then my vision went black, and I fell. She looked at me with disgust. “Again? Playing dead so you don’t have to run?” “Fine. I’ll fix this today. Let’s see how long you stay down.” I lay there, watching her and my sister blur in front of me. Mom… this time, I’m really not being lazy. I just… can’t move anymore. Mom always said I was just born lazy. As a personal trainer, Mom had Mia and me wearing fitness trackers practically from birthAs a fitness coach, she put fitness trackers on me and Mia from the day we were born. But whether it was running laps in PE or doing the long jump, my arms and legs would suddenly lock up, and I would go sprawling across the ground. My teachers worried it might be ALS, also known as Lou Gehrig’s disease. Mom only scoffed. “Please. She’s just lazy.” Whenever I failed to meet my daily calorie goal, she punished me twice as hard. “Mia can handle the exact same workout, so why can’t you? You’re just lazy!” At first, I cried and tried to explain. Mom didn’t believe me. “The data doesn’t lie. Once you’re tired enough, maybe you’ll finally learn your lesson.” After a while, I started blaming myself too. Why was I so lazy? On the day of the school track meet, I signed up for the 800-meter race. The starting pist0l went off, and I ran as hard as I could, but my legs grew stiffer and stiffer. Mom sat in the bleachers, her face dark with anger. At last, my vision went black, and I collapsed. The back of my head struck the concrete curb, and blood spread across the ground. Mom stood beside me, frowning in disgust. “This again? You think playing dead gets you out of exercising?” “Fine. I’m going to break this bad habit of yours today. Let’s see how long it takes before you finally get up“Fine. I’m curing you of this attitude today. Let’s see how long it takes before you finally get up.” I lay on the ground as Mom and Mia blurred in front of me. Mom, I really wasn’t being lazy this time. I just could not move anymore. *** The wound on the back of my head hurt so badly it felt like my skull was splitting open. I opened my mouth, trying to explain, but I could not make a sound. Then the whole world went silent. A few classmates noticed something was wrong and quickly rushed over to me. Their faces were full of concern, nothing like Mom’s cold expression. Before they could say anything, Mia, standing beside Mom, spread her arms and blocked their wayBefore they could say anything, Mia spread her arms and blocked them. “You don’t have to help her. She’s just trying to get out of exercising!” With that, she lifted my limp wrist and pulled up the numbers on my fitness tracker for everyone to see. “Mom says this number has to reach 2.0, and she’s not even at 1.0 yet!” She meant the daily calorie burn Mom required from us. We were supposed to hit 2,000 active calories every day. Then Mia let go of my hand. My hand slammed hard against the ground, and my knuckles made a dull little thud against the pavement. That finally made Mom glance over. Out of habit, I shut my eyes and waited for the pain to come. A few seconds passed before I realized that once a person was dead, pain stopped coming. I had not even had time to feel relieved before I caught Mom’s gaze, and my stomach dropped all over again. But in the next second, after Mia tapped open the data on her own fitness tracker, the question in Mom’s eyes turned back into disgust. There was a smiley face beside Mia’s number, which meant she had hit her goal. Mia looked smug as she bragged to the other students. “I’m telling you, she’s always like this! She never hits the goal.” “And I’m two years younger than her, but I can still do it!” “Mom says she’s lazy, and she always talks back and makes Mom mad.” Hearing Mia take her side, Mom smiled and stroked Mia’s hairHearing Mia defend her, Mom smiled and stroked her hair. Seeing how calm the two of them looked, the classmates began to hesitate. “But is she really okay like that?” “I heard Chloe Parker is Ms. Morgan’s daughter. Chloe is always saying how much Ms. Morgan loves her and how well Ms. Morgan treats her, so Ms. Morgan wouldn’t just ignore her“I heard Chloe Parker is Ms. Morgan’s daughter. Chloe is always saying how much Ms. Morgan loves her and how good she is to her, so Ms. Morgan wouldn’t just ignore her.” “Maybe they just had a fight.” As they talked, more and more students gathered around. But Mia stopped them one by one, and no one managed to come close enough to check on me. Mom’s expression grew worse and worse. Out of habit, I apologized to her, but she could not hear me. She pointed at me, her voice full of disgust. “Chloe Parker! Are you done making a scene?” “You may not have any shame, but I do. Are you proud of this? Do you really want everyone laughing at us“You may not care about embarrassing yourself, but I still have a reputation. Is this supposed to make you proud? Do you really want everyone laughing at us that badly?” In the past, even when my limbs stiffened and I fell again and again, I would still force myself to get back up because I did not want to make Mom angrier. But now I stayed where I was, face down on the ground, without moving at all. Mia stared at my tracker and added fuel to the fire. “Mom, look. Chloe’s number is still going up.” “She’s totally fine. She’s just doing this to defy you“She’s totally fine. She’s just doing this to get back at you!” Mom was so angry her chest rose and fell sharply. “You want to put on a show? Fine. I’ll play along with you all day if I have to.” Watching Mom’s face turn red with fury, Mia stomped over and kicked my hand. “Bad Chloe! That’s what you get for making Mom mad!” By pure coincidence, my curled fingers slipped through the loop in the bow of her sneaker lace. Mia’s sneaker lace caught on my fingers before she could react, and she lost her balance, hitting the ground hardMia was caught off guard. She lost her balance and fell hard onto the ground. Her shrill crying exploded through the crowd. Mom hurried to help Mia up and carefully checked her for injuries. When she saw that Mia had split her lip, the fury in her eyes turned even more viciousWhen she saw that Mia’s mouth had been scraped open, the hostility in her eyes deepened. Then she raised her foot and kicked me hard. My limp, powerless body flipped over from the force of the kickMy soft, powerless body flipped over from the force of the blow. My body lay faceup, but my head, too heavy to turn with it, remained twisted to one sideMy body had landed faceup, but my head was still twisted to the side because it was too heavy to move with the rest of me. Anyone who looked closely would have seen that my head and body were positioned all wrong, almost unnaturally so. But Mom was too busy fussing over Mia to notice. All I could hear was her cursing at me. “Chloe, how could you be this cruel?” “That was Mia! Your own sister“That was Mia! Your own family!” “You’re a girl too. How would you feel if your face got smashed up like that?” The more she spoke, the angrier she became. Then she simply raised her hand and slapped me across the face again. “You just have to fight me on everything, don’t you? You have to go against Mia too!” “How did I end up raising something so lazy and so vicious? I wasted every bit of love I ever gave you!” The crack of the slap rang through the crowd, and some students covered their eyes in fear. Mia’s eyes were full of tears, but there was no hurt in them. If anything, there was a flicker of satisfaction, as if she had finally gotten even. “It wasn’t me... I was already... dead...” I murmured the words. For some reason, even though my body could no longer feel pain, my heart still felt as if it had been cut open again and again. It had not always been like this. In my hazy childhood memories, Mom had never treated me this way. Back then, she would always smile, give me a thumbs-up, and tell me I had done a great job. Whatever I wanted, she would buy it for me. Every day, she put so much thought into making me balanced meals, and at night, she would tell me stories until I fell asleep. I remembered all of it. Things only changed later, after my body started having problems. Her attitude toward me grew worse and worse. At first, she would still patiently talk me through what had gone wrong. Then she gradually became impatient. In the end, that impatience turned into deeper and deeper disgust. The truth was, I had never blamed Mom. I could even understand her. Dad once told me that Mom had a younger brother when she was little. But when he was ten, he died after a sudden high feverBut when he was ten, he died after running a fever. The doctors said his body had always been too weak, and he could not survive such a sudden, severe illness. After that, Mom became especially focused on physical fitness. When she was preg...n@nt with me, she and Dad had already talked about raising us in the healthiest way possibleFrom the time she had me, she and Dad had talked about raising healthy kids. She researched children’s exercise and ways to build strength, collecting thick stacks of notes and plans. She even had our fitness trackers custom-made. “Your mom just cares about you girls too much,” Dad told me. After hearing that, I finally understood that everything Mom did was for our own good. I did not want to disappoint her, so even when I fell over and over again, even when my whole body was covered in injuries, I kept getting back up and trying to meet her expectations. But no matter how hard I tried, in her eyes, I was still the lazy child. Several teachers finally noticed what was happening and rushed over to stop Mom, who was still slapping me. “Ms. Morgan, calm down!” My head swung from side to side under her blows. The wound on the back of my head, which had been pressed against the ground, lost that pressure, and more blood poured out with each movement. One teacher frowned and tried to come check on me. Mom stopped her at once. “Don’t bother with her! It’s just a little scrape. If it actually hurt, she would have screamed by now. She isn’t stupid“Don’t bother with her! She only scraped herself a little. If it actually hurt, she would have screamed by now. She isn’t stupid!” I gave a bitter smile. A long time ago, that had been true. Back then, Mom still cared about me. Whenever I fell or bumped into something, I would go to her so she could clean it, put ointment on it, and blow on it to make it hurt less. But later, whenever I cried, Mom would not even look at me. Over time, I learned to get back up quietly and stop saying it hurt. The teacher still looked uneasy. “She really doesn’t look well to me.” “Just to be safe, I’m going to call the school nurse.” Before Mom could stop her, the teacher had already made the call. Mom scoffed and did not even bother looking at me again. When the school nurse arrived, Mom talked her into leavingWhen the school nurse arrived, Mom sent the nurse right back. “She’s acting. Of course she has to commit to the part.” “Don’t worry. I’m her mother. You can trust me. Nothing is going to happen“Don’t worry. I’m her mother. If I say she’s fine, she’s fine. Nothing is going to happen.” “Everyone, go on. Clear out.” With that, she dispersed the crowd, then gave me one more glance. “If you’re so determined to stay here, then stay. Let’s see how long you can keep lying there.” Over the loudspeaker, Mia’s name was called. The announcement said she had taken first place in both the long jump and the sprint. Mom picked her up and kissed her twice on the cheek. “Come on. Let’s go get your awards.” “You did so well today. What do you want as your reward?” I watched their backs grow farther and farther away. The track meet was almost over, and all the students and teachers were packing up the equipment. Everyone was busy with their own tasks, leaving me lying on the ground all alone. A sour ache spread through my chest. Forty minutes later, the track meet officially ended. People walked past me in twos and threes. Every now and then, a few students who did not know what had happened worried about me. “Chloe has been lying there for so long. What if something really happened to her?” “Could she have heatstroke?” But their concern was quickly drowned out by louder laughter. “Her? I heard she’s throwing a tantrum at her mom. I would never upset my mom like that.” “All she does during recess and PE is run, but it’s not like she ever gets good results. It just makes her look like she’s pretending to work hard.” “She just pulled that sneaky little stunt and made Mia get hurt. What could possibly be wrong with her?” Those rumors sounded painfully familiar. I did not need to think hard to know Mia had spread them. Everyone shook their heads and moved on. When the voices faded, I was once again the only one left on the track field. According to the school’s schedule, after the track meet, there would be a school family flea market in the front lobby. The decorations had all been made by the students, and some of the best projects were displayed on the backdrop wall. Mia picked out a booth and set out the finished beaded bracelets. Mom took the lunches she had prepared out of her backpack. When her fingers touched my lunch box, they paused. She handed lunch to Mia, then absentmindedly poked at the food in my container with her spoon before asking coldly, “Where is Chloe? She doesn’t want to run, and now she doesn’t want to come to the market either?” Mia was wolfing down her food. She mumbled through a mouthful, “I asked her. She insisted it was your fault and said you had to apologize first, so you wouldn’t force her anymoreMia was wolfing down her food. She answered unclearly, “I asked her. She insisted it was your fault and said you had to apologize first, so you wouldn’t force her anymore.” Mom’s expression, which had just softened a little, darkened again. Mia looked deeply wronged and spoke carefully. “Mom, maybe I should go apologize to Chloe.” “Maybe she’s upset because I did well today. She isn’t usually like this.” Mom sighed and gave Mia the meat from her own lunchMom sighed and gave Mia the best part from her own lunch. “This has nothing to do with you. I’ve just spoiled her too much.” “I used to let things slide because I didn’t want to make a big deal out of it, and now she thinks she can challenge me“I used to let things slide because I didn’t want to argue with her, and now she thinks she can challenge me.” “Today, I’m going to make her understand exactly who the parent is and who is supposed to listen.”