A Lost Love: No More Us

"This is the body donation agreement, Mr. Lewis. Please sign here." Amy Hanks, a staff member of the body donation department, handed the agreement over.Joel Lewis stared at the thin paper placed before him. His hand trembled slightly around the pen he was gripping.Amy noticed his hesitation and said kindly, "It's normal to have second thoughts—after all, body donation is a big decision. You can take some time to talk it over with your family before deciding on it."Joel could tell that Amy was giving him an out, allowing him to back out if he wanted. However, he only smiled and signed his name in the bottom right corner. "It's done."Amy thanked him sincerely. "Thank you for your contribution to the medical field, Mr. Lewis. This is your body donation certificate."…The house was empty by the time Joel returned. On the table lay the breakfast he had prepared before leaving that morning. It remained untouched.There was an unread text message on his phone. It was a text from

Joel found himself waking up in the toilet the next day.His mental state was affected as his condition worsened for the past few days. Sometimes, he would faint from the pain.All he remembered was vomiting a lot of blood yesterday, staining the toilet bowl red.Joel flushed the toilet, watching the thick, red liquid swirl away.The doorbell rang suddenly. He wondered if Rachel had come back.Joel hurriedly cleaned up the mess and rinsed his mouth. He then wiped the bloodstain off the washroom floor before heading to the door."Rach—" he started.However, Rachel wasn't the one standing outside—it was Christopher.Christopher had already changed into a set of designer clothes. His hair was perfectly styled, and his complexion looked healthy.He looked nothing like someone who had just gone through a suicide attempt due to depression.Christopher smiled and greeted, "Hello, Mr. Lewis, I'm Christopher Scott."Joel wasn't sure what made him come unannounced. "Why are you here?

Joel put away his phone and calmly replied, "It's nothing."He turned to leave, but Rachel ran after him and blocked his way.She asked, "Tell me what exactly is going on. Are you donating your body? Why would you do that when everything is fine with you?"Joel looked up at her and said, "I'm about to die. Are you happy now?"Rachel's gaze grew angrily cold. "How could you possibly die when you don't have depression?"Joel spat, "Depression is not the only condition that will cause death!"Rachel retorted, "You're probably just dealing with a slight cold. Don't act as if it's some terminal illness!"Joel felt a sharp pang in his heart. He struggled to maintain his composure."That's right. It's just a slight cold." He continued, "A friend of mine recently started working in the body donation department. I'm just bringing something for her."Rachel asked, "Which friend of yours is that?""You don't know her," Joel replied."Rach!" Christopher was calling for Rachel.She hurr

Rachel drove Joel to a remote, unfinished building on the outskirts of the city. There were weeds everywhere, and it was completely abandoned.She dragged him along, swiftly making her way into the unfinished building, but his body no longer could keep up with her pace.Joel staggered along, struggling to catch his breath in gasps, yet Rachel was seemingly blind to it. She was only moving forward anxiously.She finally came to a halt.Joel looked up and saw Christopher with his hands bound. He was hanging from the rooftop. He cried out, "Save me, Rach!""Chris!" Rachel was heartbroken. She tried to comfort him and said, "Don't be afraid, I'm here now. I won't let anything happen to you!""Just as the rumors say, Ms. Rachel really does love her lover very much." A group of abductors walked out while asking gleefully, "Have you brought the money?"Rachel coldly replied, "How am I supposed to get you five million dollars in such a short time?"One of the abductors said, "So the de

Rachel tried to convince herself with that ridiculous excuse.Joel's phone was on, but no one answered her calls. A cold, emotionless automated voice followed after the busy signal.The more she listened to it, the more agitated she grew. Her initial rationality was now completely taken over by panic.Wasn't what Joel had just a slight cold? Why wasn't he back yet? What was going on with those test results?Rachel couldn't bring herself to connect him with something as dreadful as stomach cancer no matter how much she tried.She continued to call him tirelessly, listening to the automated voice repeatedly until a blood-curdling scream came from the room next door.Christopher had woken up.Rachel could only end the call she had just made and rush in to check on him. However, she found the door, which she had gently closed earlier, entirely locked from the inside. She pushed against it but it didn't budge."What happened, Chris? Please just open the door! It's me!" she yelled as