Chapter 2

Mark assumed, just like he always had, that my mother was the one whose vision deteriorated three years ago and needed a transplant.

What he didn't know were two crucial facts.

First, my family's financial situation was the complete opposite of the “modest, ordinary” background I had told him about. Three years ago, my father had used his private connections to fly my mother abroad for a successful transplant, and her eyesight had fully recovered in no time.

Second, late last month, Mark's mother had been rummaging through construction debris on her walk home from the grocery store and suffered severe chemical burns from quicklime, blinding her completely.

When she was rushed to the hospital, the staff had called my number first.

“Chloe, please don't tell Mark about this. He works so hard at his job every day. I don't want him wasting his precious energy taking care of an old woman like me.”

A child had the right to know about their own parent's health, so I had fully intended to tell Mark that very day.

Yet during that entire stretch of time, he was out day and night partying with his precious childhood bestie. Whenever he stumbled back, it was the dead of night, and the next morning he'd sleep like a rock until noon. I never even got a chance to speak to him.

Then the hospital notified me that donor tissue had cleared ahead of schedule, so I figured I might as well wait until the surgery date was locked in before breaking the news to him.

Who could have guessed things would play out like this?

Poetic justice at its finest.

“Chloe, didn't you say the corneas would be ready soon? Why did the nurse tell me today that the hospital doesn't have any available?”

Looking at the old woman sitting blind on the hospital bed, I replied flatly, “Well, they were ready. But Mark decided to check them out of the clinic to let Rachel play with them like a toy, and they shattered. You'll just have to wait your turn again.”

I thought she would scold her son for being an irresponsible idiot.

Instead, she shrieked my name and whipped her head toward the sound of my voice. “How could you be so wicked! This is all your fault for being so stingy! If you weren't such a miserable nag, they never would have taken the cooler out of the clinic! You're the one who kept me from seeing again! You murderer!”

“Was there something unclear about what I just said?”

I had initially planned to explain the situation calmly, but seeing her unreasonable, hysterical tantrum, I realized she wasn't worth another second of my time.

I turned to leave. Remembering that she had previously been looking into engagement jewelry for us, I tossed over my shoulder, “By the way, I'm calling off the engagement. You don't need to waste your time scouring discount pawn shops for cheap gold anymore.”

As I clicked the hospital door shut, the sound of items smashing echoed from inside the room.

Along with a barrage of vile curses.

“Who the hell do you think you are, you ungrateful little bitch? My son is a senior corporate executive! Your family should be thanking God every day for the honor! Otherwise, I'd never let a woman like you into our family!”

“You think having a master's degree makes you special? You aren't even worthy of washing Rachel's feet!”