Choosing One Life Over Many

My mom, dad, and other relatives were all in the emergency room. The doctor said that there were only two hours left before the time window for receiving a cure closed up.

I called my boyfriend, Harrison Somers, who promised to come with the cure. But two hours had already passed, and he still hadn't shown up.

I held my parents' hands tightly as I heard my relatives crying in agony beside me. I begged desperately for them to hold on.

My young nephew clung to the hem of my sleeve and sobbed, "Aunt Mikayla, you said Mr. Somers would save us. You lied!"

I couldn't hold back my tears. I sobbed uncontrollably as I watched them take their last breaths right in front of me.

At that moment, I was paralyzed by grief. A doctor supported me as I walked to the hallway outside dejectedly. My tears had already run dry by then. Yet, there was no reply from Harrison.

"Please accept my condolences, miss. I know how sad you must be feeling, but I still need to ask you to go and get the paperwork done," the doctor said softly.

I followed the nurse downstairs in a daze. But just as we reached the staircase, I saw Harrison walk in with his arm around a young woman.

"Why are you so careless?" he scolded her.

The woman replied, "Oh, it's just a little cut. It's no big deal. You're such a worrywart!"

Harrison frowned deeply. "That knife was rusty. What if you get an infection?"

I had never seen that expression on his face before. He seemed tense and worried.

When he looked up and saw me, he froze and blurted out, "Mikayla?"

I must've looked terrible with my red, swollen eyes. I didn't even know how I managed to walk up to him.

"Where's the medicine you promised me?" I asked, my voice trembling.

The woman giggled and spoke up. "Oh, so you're Harry's girlfriend? I'm so sorry about this. I accidentally cut myself. Harry was so worried about the cut that he drove me here to have it treated."

Fury surged within me, and my voice shook even more. "Where's the medicine, Harrison?"

He frowned and replied, "Alright, alright. I'll get someone to send it over. Look at you. You should go freshen up. I'll see you later."

He walked off with the woman in his arms. At that moment, I could only see the pained faces of my parents before they died. My vision went black, and I passed out.

When I woke up, a young nurse was by my side. "You're finally awake! The doctor said you were too upset and overwhelmed. Just rest, and you'll be fine. Here's your file. Let me know if you need anything."

I thanked her weakly and forced myself to sit up. On the nightstand was a stack of death certificates. I was so stricken by grief that I had no more tears left to cry.

My relatives from far away were hurrying over, and I couldn't collapse just yet.

As for Harrison, he gave me hope and then shattered me with a fatal blow. The lives of over a dozen of my family members now lay between us. I was going to make him pay.

I got up and went back to our apartment—our little home together.

It still looked the same as when I left. Harrison hadn't come back for four days.

That suited me just fine. It gave me time to take care of things. I cleaned every nook and cranny. After that, I installed surveillance cameras. Then, I threw out the photo we took together and all our matching couple items.

I spent the whole day cleaning, and Harrison finally came back at night.

He was surprised to see that I was in the living room. He said indifferently, "I had the medicine sent over. They're fine now, right? I told you that it was only mild poisoning. It's nothing serious."

"How did you know?" I caught the slip of his tongue and immediately grew alert.

Harrison immediately realized he'd said too much. "I mean… Just think about it. Which company would dare discharge highly toxic wastewater into a river?"

I narrowed my eyes at him. I had never told him that my family was poisoned by wastewater.

This indicated that he knew everything all along but still chose not to come. My family was gone because of him. No matter who was responsible for the poisoning, I was going to seek justice.

When I didn't respond, he stepped closer and wanted to hug me. I turned aside, avoiding his arms.

His hand froze awkwardly in mid-air before he grew angry. "What's the matter with you, Mikayla Redwood?"