Chapter 2

The swelling in my throat from the allergic reaction made it impossible to swallow. I started vomiting uncontrollably.

Seeing this, Dad kicked me again. "You little brat. Are you trying to gross someone out on purpose?"

Mom pulled Katrina closer and stepped back a few paces, as if I were something filthy.

My vision began to blur, and large patches of red rashes spread across my arms. Driven by survival instinct, I reached out to them one more time.

"M-Mom, save me."

Mom frowned at the rashes covering my arms. "What if something's really wrong? Maybe we should just give her the medicine."

Katrina immediately said, "I know where Chelsea's medicine is. I'll go get it."

She hurried inside and emerged moments later with a pill in her hand. Then, she bent down as if to help me take it.

But I recognized immediately that it wasn't my allergy medicine. I pressed my lips together in protest.

Without hesitating, Katrina grabbed my jaw and shoved the pill into my mouth. Then, she leaned close and whispered in my ear, "You can't blame me for doing this, Chelsea.

"If you'd just stayed in the countryside where you belonged, none of this would be happening. But no, you had to come here and compete with me for Mom and Dad's love. Today, I'm going to make you regret it if it's the last thing I do."

When I first came to the city for high school, I was nothing special academically. The gap between rural and urban education was just too wide.

And after years of exposure to the sun and wind back in the countryside, I looked plain and faded, like everything about me had been dulled.

Because of this, my parents and Katrina all thought I was an embarrassment. None of them wanted to be associated with me in public. In fact, when it came to school opening ceremonies, they only ever went to Katrina's.

Desperate to earn their attention, I threw myself into my studies. Finally, during the final exams of my freshman year of high school, I got first place in the entire grade.

The school publicly recognized my achievement and even awarded me a scholarship.

For the first time, my parents' attention shifted just slightly from Katrina to me. They tossed me a scrap of acknowledgement, as if it were charity.

"Your father and I will be there with you at the opening ceremony of your sophomore year."

That single sentence was enough to send me over the moon with joy. I thought that if I just kept working hard, someday my parents would love me the way they loved Katrina.

It was never my intention to compete with Katrina for anything. I just wanted Mom and Dad to acknowledge my existence. After all, they were my parents too.

Never did I imagine that this simple wish would drive Katrina to want me dead.

With nothing but resentment and hatred burning in my eyes, I bit down hard on the finger Katrina had used to force the pill into my mouth.

She let out a bloodcurdling scream. "My hand!"

Seeing this, Mom and Dad immediately slapped me across the face several times. Then, they pried my jaw open and pulled Katrina's finger free.

The moment he saw the deep teeth marks on her skin, Dad kicked me again without mercy and roared, "You animal! Katrina is your sister! How could you be so vile?"

Yes. She was my twin sister, and yet she had just tried to kill me.

Holding Katrina's hand gently, Mom frantically cleaned the wound with alcohol and put a Band-Aid on it.

Dad hovered close by, showering her with concern and comfort.

The three of them huddled together, forming a tight little circle.

No one noticed me, lying on the floor, dying.

Katrina nestled in Mom's arms, her face full of wounded innocence.

"Mom, how could Chelsea do this to me? I was only trying to help."

Mom shot me a furious glare. "She grew up wild in the countryside, and now she's completely uncivilized. I'm sending her back there to work the fields right now."

Dad nodded in agreement. "Exactly. With a heart this poisonous, keeping her around is just asking for trouble. She belongs in the countryside for good."

With that, he reached down and yanked me up from the floor.

But my eyes were shut tight, my whole body convulsing and trembling. I couldn't stand at all. The moment he let go, I collapsed straight back down.