I’ve Been Dead for Three Years

I watched as Katrina died right before my eyes. Grief and sadness enveloped me even while hatred filled my heart. I was so angry that my whole body shook. The second Katrina took her own life, the last shred of love I had for Samantha died. Even though she had caused all this, Samantha was expressionless. She only looked down at the ground and left with a huff. When she walked past Katrina’s body, she even cursed me once again. “You’re truly a cold one, Aiden. Your wife’s dead, but you still haven’t even shown up. Don’t forget that you still have a daughter in kindergarten.”I gritted my teeth when I heard her. She really was determined to ruin my entire family. I had died years ago, so how was I supposed to show up?After Katrina took her life, the landlord considered the place unlucky and threw out all the things in the apartment. He also changed the locks. When my daughter, Madison, came home from kindergarten and found out that Katrina had died and that she could not en

Samantha was looking at my canceled phone number with hatred on her face.Even though Katrina and Madison were dead, Samantha had yet to give up on finding me. She first went to the hospital to visit Anthony. Anthony was lying in bed and playing a game on his phone. When he saw Samantha enter, he immediately started putting on a show, acting weak and fragile. “Is Aiden still unwilling to come and help me? I knew he always hated me. It’s all my fault that I’m in bad health, and you were forced to put all your attention on me. It’s justified for him to feel slighted by that.”Seeing that Anthony was sad, Samantha quickly reached for his hand and reassured him. “How could any of this be your fault, Anthony? We had him because we wanted him to take care of you. Without you, he would never have been born. He should be thanking you.“Don’t worry. I’ll find Aiden and make him donate his kidney to you. Your father’s last wish was that I take good care of you.”Anthony sighed deeply

Afterward, Samantha received a phone call from the police. She went to the morgue to collect the bodies of Katrina and Madison. Arnold had come along. Arnold was not only the family’s old neighbor but also my childhood friend. He had been my best man during my wedding and had helped Katrina and Madison a lot after my death. He patted Samantha on the shoulder and comforted her. “Don’t be too sad, Mrs. Harding. After Aiden passed, Katrina developed severe depression. It’s been hard for her these past three years. Death could be a form of release for her.“It’s a shame about Madison, though. According to the police, there were no cameras along that stretch of road, so they couldn’t find the driver behind the hit-and-run. Plus, she could have been saved if someone had brought her to the hospital in time.“I know your relationship with Aiden hasn’t been the best. If you had found out about his passing earlier, I’m sure Katrina and Madison wouldn’t have ended up like this. Too bad

Anthony was not the type of person who could sit still and behave. After being discharged, he went against the medical advice given to him to stay home and rest. Instead, he went out late at night with his friends to go drinking. When Samantha arrived at the diner Anthony frequented for supper, she found him and his friends drinking. She was about to go over and tell him off, but then she heard Anthony saying something conspiratorially. He said, “You don’t know how hard I’ve been having it! It’s been so tough faking it! I never liked studying or being all nerdy. I like sports and playing basketball. But to keep up the act of being physically weak, I had to suffer for thirty whole years!“When I found out that my horrible little brother died a few days ago, I was overjoyed! I’ve hated him since he was born. I’ve been doing everything I can to frame him since I was a kid. I wanted my parents to either beat him up so badly that he wouldn’t survive or send him away, but he still kep

Anthony did not go home all month. Samantha shut herself in her room and kept holding onto the family photo. She kept apologizing and occasionally interjected with loud curses. It was like she had gone mad. When she got hungry, she would order takeout. She did not shower or clean herself, and she developed a stench. One day, her cloudy eyes suddenly gained clarity. She looked out the window. “If I cared more about you, would things have ended up differently? Would I have had a good and loving son, a sweet daughter-in-law, and an adorable granddaughter?”This supposition was pointless. There were no “what ifs” in life. She only felt regret because her reality did not match up with what she wanted. The hospital called Samantha. Due to the way Anthony had been eating, drinking, and staying out late, his kidneys were failing again. He might not survive the month. After hanging up, Samantha slapped herself hard. Then, she let out a laugh. “This is karma. This is all karma. We