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His Exclusive Favor
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When my SAT results came out, I had scored an impressive 1580, while my younger sister only managed a 1000. Relatives and friends came over with heartfelt congratulations, praising how I was definitel...
章節（7）
第1章
When my SAT results came out, I had scored an impressive 1580, while my younger sister only managed a 1000.
Relatives and friends came over with heartfelt congratulations, praising how I was definitely bound for Harvard and how I would bring glory to our family.
But my mom quietly packed my suitcase behind their backs and handed me a train ticket.
“Anna, your younger sister will be the one going to college. You’re going to work at the factory and earn money to support her,” she said flatly. “If anyone from the village asks, just tell them you chose not to continue your studies.”
Mom had always favored my sister, but she despised me.
“Why don’t you just drop dead already?” she often spat at me, venom lacing her words.
Later, when I really did die, she went insane. Kneeling before my grave, she banged her head on the ground over and over.
——
The day the exam results were released, I had just received my diagnosis: advanced-stage stomach cancer.
The doctor told me it was terminal and advised me to go home, eat well, and stay in a good mood. Maybe, just maybe, I’d last another few weeks.
But what he didn’t realize was that dying felt more like a relief to me.
I went back to the house I could never call warm, the diagnosis still crumpled in my pocket.
Inside, I could hear the voices of relatives and friends congratulating my family.
“Congratulations, Marianne,” one of them gushed to my mom. “Your Anna scored so high. She’s definitely going to Harvard!”
“This is amazing! No one from our village has ever gone to Harvard. Your ancestors must be smiling down on you!” another added.
“We should make sure we send her off with a grand celebration,” someone else chimed in.
My mom kept wiping down the table without looking up, uninterested. “What’s there to celebrate? You all know our situation – we can only afford to send one kid to college.”
Everyone knew about our family’s financial struggles. We survived on what little my dad could send back from his job in the city.
“But surely you’d send Anna,” they insisted. “She’s got a shot at a top-tier school, unlike your younger daughter who can only manage a community college. You wouldn’t take that away from her, would you?”
From my sister’s room came the sound of sobbing and things being thrown.
My mom’s face hardened, and she threw the rag down, shoving the guests out the door. “That’s enough! Out with you all. This is none of your business!”
As the crowd dispersed, I stood there, my heart hammering and my palms damp with sweat, clutching the diagnosis in my hand.
Should I tell my mom that I was dying?
Maybe, just maybe, she’d feel a twinge of compassion, despite her usual disdain for me.
Could she cry for me, hold me, and say, “Anna, please don’t die. I do love you. I was just teasing you all this time”?
Holding onto that desperate hope, I moved toward my sister’s room, only to stop dead at the doorway when I overheard my mom’s words.
“Don’t worry, Mia,” she said with steely conviction. “You’re the one who’ll be going to college.”
And then, I heard her on the phone with Dad.
“Hey, the results are out. Mia scored much higher than Anna,” she lied effortlessly.
It was like a bucket of cold water had been dumped over me, chilling me to the bone.
My legs gave out, and I nearly collapsed, clutching the wall for support as a sharp pain stabbed through my chest.
How foolish of me to hope, even for a moment.
Mom had always favored my sister. After all, she never liked me.
第2章
From the moment I was born, my mother never liked me.
I once overheard our elderly neighbor, Julia, saying that when my mother first saw me in the delivery room, she let out a horrified scream, thrashing and nearly rolling off the birthing bed as if I were some kind of plague.
During her postpartum period, she treated me like I was something venomous, refusing to feed me.
She wouldn’t even change my diapers, leaving me soaked for so long that my skin began to rot, until that same kind neighbor took pity and stepped in to help.
Yet, my twin sister, born just minutes after me, was cherished and adored.
She was the treasure in my mother’s eyes, while I was nothing but a weed.
When a big bowl of chicken soup was served, it was placed before my sister, and my mother would lovingly cool each spoonful for her.
I, on the other hand, was left with nothing but plain bread.
Once, she handed over a chicken drumstick, and just as I eagerly reached out my plate, she tossed it to the family dog, muttering, “I’d rather feed the dog than you.”
My sister always got brand-new clothes, and when they were finally outgrown, they were used to wipe down tables before being tossed my way.
If I shed even a single tear, my mother would snatch them back, throwing them straight into the trash.
“Wear it or don’t. I don’t care,” she’d snap.
While my sister never had to lift a finger, I was forced to take on all the chores.
After school, she’d do her homework while I washed clothes.
She’d watch TV while I cooked.
When she slept, I’d stay up late struggling with my own schoolwork.
Originally, my mother didn’t even want to send me to school. She bought a few goats and planned to have me herd them up in the fields.
It wasn’t until a local community organization stepped in that I finally got my chance to attend school, which is why I treasured it all the more.
I studied diligently, believing that if I excelled, maybe – just maybe – my mother would learn to love me.
But when I brought home a perfect score, she wouldn’t even glance at it, crumpling it up and throwing it straight into the trash.
Then, she’d turn around and praise my sister, who had barely managed to pass, rewarding her with a bag of chips I had never tasted.
My mother hated me, always wishing I’d disappear from her sight. The only time she pretended to be a loving parent was when my father was around.
I suspect that if it weren’t for fear of his anger, she would’ve left me at the hospital the day I was born.
My sister, in contrast, grew up plump and radiant, dressed in beautiful dresses like a little princess.
I, on the other hand, malnourished and overworked, was skinny, short, and as tanned as could be – a real “ugly duckling,” as the neighbors would say.
While my mother paraded my sister around to anyone who would listen, she’d keep me at a distance, as if ashamed to acknowledge our connection.
I couldn’t understand it – what had I done wrong?
第3章
Just as the sun began to rise, my mother woke me up and shoved a bus ticket into my hand.
It was a ticket to the city.
“You know our family’s situation,” she began. “We can only afford to send one of you to college. Your father and I have decided that it’ll be your sister.”
She had not an ounce of guilt as she spoke. “She’s younger, and you should take on more of the burden.”
My sleepiness vanished in an instant, replaced by a cold, stinging feeling that spread through my entire body.
Tears began to fall as I finally reached my breaking point, shouting with all the frustration that had been building up inside me.
“Why?! I’m the one with the better grades. I deserve to go to school! How can you be so unfair?”
Slap!
Her hand struck my face with such force that my head snapped to the side, the words I wanted to say dying on my lips.
She glared at me, her eyes full of undisguised disgust. “What’s the point of you going to school? You’ll just end up getting married someday. But your sister, she’s destined for something greater.
“Besides,” she added coldly, “I spent quite a bit of money to arrange that factory job for you. When you get your salary, make sure to send some of it to your sister’s account every month. She can’t be struggling while she’s at school.
“And remember,” she said, almost as an afterthought, “if anyone in the village asks, you’re to tell them that it was your choice to work and help the family out.”
“I won’t go! I’d rather die than do this!” I screamed, ripping the ticket into pieces and letting them flutter to the ground like snow.
A sharp pain twisted in my stomach, and I clutched my abdomen, sweat dotting my forehead.
“Then just go and die already!” she shrieked, lifting the suitcase and hurling it at me, cursing me through gritted teeth.
It hurt, but what hurt more was my heart.
As I stared at her furious, twisted face, something inside me broke.
So this was it. Even if I died right in front of her, not a single tear would fall from her eyes.
How foolish of me to think that she’d ever care, that she’d ever love me.
I left the house still wearing my pajamas, walking aimlessly into the chilly morning, trying to escape this loveless hell.
第4章
It was a stifling July morning with no breeze in the air.
Wearing only my pajamas, my hair a tangled mess, I walked along the small country road. The villagers working in the fields called out to me.
“Hey, Anna, what did you do this time to get kicked out by your mom so early?”
This wasn’t new to them. I was often thrown out of the house, not because I’d done something wrong but because my sister would start trouble, and my mother would always take her side.
Every time, I’d hear my mother’s screams telling me to get out.
Somehow, whenever something went wrong, I was always to blame.
Ignoring their taunts, I trudged on, not knowing where to go.
The world felt vast, but there was no place for me to belong.
Why was I even born if there was no room for me?
A stray mother cat darted across the path, her kittens following closely behind. Even animals knew to protect their young. Why did my mother hate me so much?
I followed the cat up the hill until I lost track of her.
I collapsed onto a large rock, staring at the sheer drop below. I was dying anyway – what did it matter if I jumped?
But I didn’t. There was still one person in this world who cared about me, and no matter what, I had to see him one last time. My father.
Unlike my mother’s hatred, my father loved me deeply.
He worked far away most of the year, but whenever he returned, he always brought gifts.
If my sister got one, I got one too.
Whenever he bought new clothes, he’d buy two – one for my sister and one for me.
When he took us out, he’d hold my sister’s hand in one hand and mine in the other.
With him around, I felt just as cherished as my sister.
A sharp pain twisted in my stomach, forcing my eyes shut. Tears streamed down my face, falling into the abyss below.
Suddenly, the sound of rain woke me.
Fat raindrops splattered on my face, and I opened my eyes to the sight of the pouring rain. Finally, I broke down and cried.
“Dad, I miss you so much.”
第5章
I hid on the hill for three days and nights before my dad finally found me, weak and barely alive, on the fourth morning, leading a group of villagers.
I hadn’t eaten or drunk anything and had caught a fever from the rain. I was delirious, but I’d never forget the warmth of my father’s arms as he held me.
“Anna, it’s okay. I’m taking you home,” he kept saying.
I forced my eyes open just a little, and the bright sunlight fell across his familiar face. He was like a warm ray of light breaking through all my darkness.
At that moment, I felt that even if I died, it would be worth it.
“Dad...” I whispered before everything went black.
When I woke up again, I was back in my bed.
Dad was sitting beside me, and I clung to his hand like it was my lifeline.
My mother pretended to care, bringing me some ginger tea to warm me up, her face painted with concern.
“Anna, you’ve really been acting up lately, disappearing without a word. You know how worried I was,” she lied through her teeth.
In truth, she hadn’t even bothered to tell Dad that I was missing, nor had she called the police. She hadn’t searched for me at all. She’d probably hoped I’d never come back.
It was our kind neighbor, Julia, who noticed I was gone and called my father.
Mom shot me a warning look, afraid I’d spill the truth. Then she put on her sweetest smile and urged Dad to hurry back to work.
He had taken time off to come home and check on me, and now that I seemed to be okay, he stood up to leave.
But I couldn’t let go of his hand.
I knew that if I did, I’d lose him forever.
I made up my mind to expose my mother’s lies.
It wasn’t about the chance to go to college – after all, I was dying. I just wanted to remain the pride of my father’s heart.
“Dad, I didn’t score in the low range. I actually did really well. I could’ve made it into a top university.”
My mother’s face twisted in rage. She slammed the ginger tea down, and it splashed across my face.
It didn’t hurt. Instead, it felt oddly satisfying.
For once, her mask slipped in front of Dad.
My sister, afraid of losing her chance at college, started crying and throwing a fit.
The house descended into chaos, and everyone waited for Dad to be the voice of reason.
I believed in him. I was sure my loving father would be angry and demand justice for me.
But reality hit me like a punch to the gut. He gently pried my fingers from his hand, avoiding my gaze.
“Anna,” he said quietly, “It’s too late to change things now. I’m sorry.”
My mind went blank.
The father I’d always seen as fair and just had chosen my sister over me.
I felt the ground collapse beneath me.
A metallic taste rose in my throat, and I coughed up blood. I turned away, wiping my mouth with a tissue as the door closed behind him.
The room was silent, and I looked at the bloodstained tissue in my hand.
“Is this finally the end?” I laughed, but tears blurred my vision. “Why, Dad? Why are you just like her?”
Dad no longer loved me. No one cared about me in this world.
Maybe I really was just an extra person all along.
第6章
I drifted in and out of consciousness for a long time, only waking up when a parched throat forced me to.
Desperate for water, I struggled out of bed, stumbling along the walls as I left my room.
In the kitchen, I overheard my dad, speaking in hushed tones over the phone.
“Hey, honey, I’ll be back soon. Could you pick up our son for me?”
My heart froze. In that instant, everything clicked into place.
My dad, the one I thought loved me the most, had another family – a wife, a child.
So that’s why he always took my sister’s side. He was afraid the truth would get out, and it would ruin things for him.
I was nothing but a convenient sacrifice, a means to keep his two worlds in balance.
The realization hit me like a slap.
The man I believed cared about me never truly did.
Ha! What a perfect calculation.
I had always believed that my dad loved me the most, but the truth was, he never really loved me at all.
All along, I was nothing but a pathetic fool, abandoned by love.
He turned and spotted me, his face going pale. “How much did you hear?” he demanded, trying to sound authoritative but failing.
“Dad... I’m dying,” I cried out, hoping that maybe, just maybe, he’d wake up to the reality and care for me in my last moments.
But he merely frowned, frustrated. “Anna, stop making a scene. Can’t you just be reasonable for once?”
My last shred of hope shattered into a thousand pieces.
At that moment, my mom walked in, her mask finally slipping as she snapped, “All these years, and you’re still around? Always pretending to be at death’s door just to get attention.”
My sister clapped mockingly, sneering, “Finally, good riddance! Maybe now I won’t be embarrassed every time someone asks about you.”
The three people I called family turned on me, united in their disdain.
Fury surged through me, nearly making me cough up blood again.
Stumbling, I turned on my heel and staggered out of the house.
I left that hellhole behind without a shred of regret.
I wasn’t looking back.
第7章
Thunder roared in the distance as lightning cracked through the sky.
The rain poured even harder.
Dragging my exhausted body up the muddy path to the hill behind our house, I found myself standing at the edge of the cliff once more.
The wind whipped around me, threatening to pull me into the abyss.
The rain mixed with my tears, and I couldn’t tell which was which.
Maybe I did something wrong in a past life to deserve this suffering.
Dad had a new family now, people he wanted to protect.
But why did my mom hate me so much?
I’d always been more obedient, more considerate, more caring than my sister, yet she never saw any of it.
When she spoke of my sister, her eyes lit up as if she’d caught a star from the sky.
And me? I was nothing but dirt beneath her feet – a stain she couldn’t wait to wash off.
I remembered once when my sister stole Julia’s money, and Mom forced me to take the blame.
“You have to keep your sister’s reputation spotless,” she told me. “If you admit to it, I’ll love you more.”
I took the blame, hoping for her love, but instead, she tied me to a tree and beat me until the branches broke.
She told everyone I was a thief.
And my sister watched, grinning in her pretty dress, looking every bit the princess while I became the villain.
Julia was the only one who saw through it all, claiming the money was never stolen to stop the beating.
I was covered in welts and bruises, and even then, I couldn’t understand why my mother hated me so.
I’d always thought maybe I wasn’t really her child.
I even asked her once, kneeling in front of her, tugging at her sleeve with trembling fingers.
“Mom... am I really your daughter?”
Her eyes burned with rage, and she hissed, “I wish I’d never given birth to a bastard like you.”
The thunder boomed, and the wind howled, cutting through my bones.
I guess it would be better if I had never been born at all.
After all, there was nothing left to tie me to this world.
Pain shot through my body, spreading from my stomach like wildfire.
The doctor said I’d live longer if I stayed positive, but how could I feel any joy when I was trapped in this hell?
Maybe it was time to go.
I was so tired.
As the rain lashed against my face, I let my eyes close.
If I died, maybe everyone would finally be happy.