第5章

After they resuscitated me, I woke up in the middle of the night.

The first thing I saw when I opened my eyes was Diana, right in front of me, sniffling and teary-eyed.

"Nat, I'm so sorry. The kitten was just so adorable. I couldn't bear the thought of it out on the streets all alone, so I brought it home."

Weak as I was, I felt strangely calm and asked in a low, steady voice,

"But you know I'm allergic to cat fur."

Diana blinked through her tears, glanced at Vincent, then at our parents.

Then she whimpered out an answer.

"I thought you'd give in to me, the way you always do. I was sure you'd agree to me keeping the cat."

Vincent jumped in right away.

"You can't blame Di. She kept the cat in her bedroom upstairs. We had no idea your allergy could be triggered even when you weren't in the same room."

Gerald and Patricia rallied to Diana's defense too.

"Your sister didn't mean to hurt you. Just give in to her!"

"You're getting married next month and moving out anyway. What's wrong with your sister keeping a cat?"

...

Fighting through the pain, I reached over and pressed the call button.

Rosa pushed through the door immediately.

I forced the words out. "Get them all out of here!"

Then I squeezed my eyes shut, my insides churning.

Every one of them knew about my cat allergy, and they still expected me to give in to Diana.

It was as if Diana keeping a cat was the only thing that mattered.

And my going into anaphylactic shock was just a minor inconvenience.

But I knew my reaction shouldn't have been that severe. Not unless I'd inhaled a large amount of cat fur in a short span of time.

That was when Dr. Morrison brought me a report.

When I was admitted, my clothes had been covered in cat fur.

I thought back. After waking up, the only place I'd gone was the kitchen for some bread.

The only thing I'd come into contact with was the wedding dress Diana had shoved into my arms.

Then my phone buzzed with a flood of messages from the family group chat.

Vincent:

"We read Dr. Morrison's report and went back to check the house. There was a lot of cat fur on the wedding dress. The kitten must have gotten into it. It's not Di's fault."

Gerald:

"Nat, don't be unreasonable. The allergy is your own health issue. Your sister just likes animals. What did she do wrong? She already gave the cat away that same night. She was devastated. Give in to your sister for once!"

Patricia:

"You were allergic to cats back in elementary school when Diana had one. How are you still allergic at your age? And you call yourself a doctor? What was the point of all those years of medical school!"

Diana:

"Nat, Vincent and I talked it over. I promise I won't keep any more cats. He's already forgiven me. You're not still upset with me, right?"

...

Every person in that group chat was either my own flesh and blood or the man I loved.

And not one of them showed the slightest concern for the woman who had just been pulled back from the edge.

After dawn, I checked myself out early and went home alone.

Just as I expected, the house was empty.

A poster that Diana's team had designed was being unveiled at the city's main plaza today.

They had all gone to see it and celebrate Diana.

It was a poster her team had designed.

Diana was one of the forty people who worked on it.

But Gerald, Patricia, and Vincent had all rushed out to celebrate her achievement.

They threw a party, set off fireworks, gave her gifts...

Meanwhile, there were all my own milestones: matching into a surgical residency, performing my first solo surgery, becoming an attending physician, leading emergency resuscitations, publishing medical papers, winning an international medical award...

None of it had ever mattered to them. They couldn't have cared less.

But by now, I no longer cared about them either.

I packed up all my documents and a few changes of clothes.

Half an hour later, I walked out the front door, suitcase in hand.

Dr. Morrison had already taken care of everything.

She'd rebooked me on an earlier flight. I was leaving that night.

I would report early to the Doctors Without Borders International Office in Geneva.