Gone Family, Leftover Boyfriend

I woke up aching all over just as the first light of dawn seeped through the window. I turned around, and Xavier Wright opened his eyes at the same time. He was blind. A car accident six months ago had taken his sight.

My sister, Amanda Portman, had broken up with him countless times, complaining that he was poor and disabled. Those beautiful eyes of his never seemed to focus on anything before, and he was always staring emptily into nothing.

For a fleeting moment, I felt as if he was staring straight at me. Then, just as quickly, the vacant, lost look returned. He whispered hoarsely, "Mandy, is that you?"

The comments flooded the screen.

"Wait, what? The doomed one didn't die and is now in bed with Xavier?"

"Are you kidding me? She can't be trying to pretend to be Mandy. Xavier's eyes have been fine for ages. If she lies to him, she's doomed!"

He could see all along.

I bit my lip, struggling to steady my racing heart.

"I'm not…" I said helplessly. "I'm her sister, Claire Portman. My sister passed away. Yesterday, I meant to bring you some of her things, but I drank too much. I can't remember anything after that."

I cast a glance at the crumpled clothes scattered on the floor and quickly looked away. "Did you mistake me for Mandy yesterday? I'm sorry for drinking. I was just so sad… Now, it's only me left."

Tears silently slid down my cheeks.

The comments kept flooding in.

"Come on, she's making excuses for Xavier. He's not blind—he reacted immediately when she fell into his arms soaking wet."

"No man could resist a beautiful woman clinging to him like that. She's definitely plotting something."

My body trembled slightly. The thin blanket slipped off my shoulders, revealing red marks across my pale skin.

Xavier's Adam's apple moved as he swallowed. After a long pause, he said, "Sorry. I mistook you for someone else."

I wrapped the torn clothes around myself clumsily, feeling exposed and awkward. "Let's pretend none of this happened. I should go. Don't be sad."

As I tried to stand, my legs gave way, and I nearly fell. Xavier reached for me, and the instant his fingers touched my wrist, a jolt of shivers ran through me.

The comments kept flashing.

"Xavier won't be sad. He already knows Mandy faked her death."

"Even the debt collectors? He sent them to pressure Claire. That was his first warning to Amanda."

"Mandy has no idea her home's been taken from under her."

"I can't with this doomed one. Let her die already."

I lowered my head and hurried out the door.

By the time I got home, the debt collectors who had been lingering outside were gone. My stomach sank. They were definitely sent by Xavier.

I closed the door and sank to the floor in exhaustion. My body ached all over.

I hadn't been drunk. I was desperate, trying to coax even a shred of sympathy from Xavier, hoping he would take it easy on me. I never imagined he would react so strongly, keeping me restless all night.

I tugged at the corners of my mouth in a bitter half-smile.

Xavier had lost his sight trying to save Amanda, yet once he became "disabled", she wouldn't even glance at him. She ignored his messages, left him waiting in the rain for hours while she video-chatted upstairs, and threw his gifts in the trash, mocking them as cheap.

I used to feel sorry for him, but now, I saw the truth—it had all been a game for him.

The comments exploded again.

"I think Amanda made the right choice. Who wants a poor, blind boyfriend? Xavier doesn't need to play games to test love."

"Sure, she's selfish, but her life is perfect. After making up with Xavier, she became the Wright family's young mistress, and he spoils her endlessly."

"Exactly! Good women get reputations, while bad women get everything."

Reading that, I only felt absurd.

Ever since we were kids, my parents favored Amanda. She took my toys, my clothes, and my scholarships. When I started working, I worked late every night while they used my salary to pay for Amanda's expensive dance classes and luxury goods.

I was expected to support her, to make her life easier.

Now that they were suddenly rich with 300 million dollars from the lottery, they had left me behind with nothing but debts and demanded I make way for her life.

Why should she have everything while I have nothing? My resentment clung to my heart like poisonous vines. I had always picked up what Amanda discarded. If Xavier was also someone she didn't want, then I would take him and make him mine.