Chapter 3

When I woke up the next morning, the house was already empty.

I felt extremely dizzy.

I suddenly could not feel my leg, which had been in excruciating pain since the previous day.

When the strange smell in the air got thicker, I suddenly realized that something was wrong.

When I turned to the kitchen, I saw that it was billowing in smoke.

A familiar fear crept up on me.

I fell from the couch and crawled toward the door with all my strength.

I wanted to open the door when I realized someone had locked it from the outside.

After I called the emergency services, I kept shaking the door knob and called my parents.

However, whenever I called them, they would immediately hang up.

When I passed out from the thick smoke, I could only hear the robotic voice asking me to leave a voice mail.

When I woke up in the hospital, I saw Mom’s anxious expression first.

I immediately was overwhelmed with sadness.

I could not help but tear up and said with my hoarse voice, “Mom.”

However, Mom’s eyes were suddenly filled with rage.

She glared at me with hatred.

“Don’t call me Mom.

“How dare you set the house on fire? I don’t have a son like you!”

Dad continued soothing Daphne, who seemed to be in shock.

He said coldly, “The firefighters managed to find the ignition point. It’s because the stove was not turned off.

“Jude, all of us were not at home. You’re the only one at home.

“You’ve really overstepped the line this time.”

My mind went blank.

I subconsciously looked at Dax.

A hint of guilt flashed in his eyes. He hung his head and avoided my gaze.

He was the one who forgot to switch off the stove!

However, before I could say anything, Mom suddenly yelled at me erratically.

“Yes, I admit that we brought Dax to his track competition today.

“We also locked the door on purpose, because we were afraid that once you found out, you’d ruin Dax’s chances.

“Jude, we’ve given you all of our love in the past few years. Why can’t you be content?”

My ears were ringing from her shouts.

The other patients sharing the same ward and their family members gave me strange looks.

Mom was still yelling non-stop.

“It’s the same back then. The three of you were home, and suddenly there was a fire.

“You’re the only one not trapped in the fire, yet you had the energy to save them.

“Jude, when did I have such a scheming son like you?”

I felt my heart drop.

At that moment, I almost could not breathe from the pain.

I stared dumbfoundedly at Mom. My eyes were filled with disbelief.

“Mom, so after all these years, this is what you thought of me?”

Mom did not look at me. She turned around and started to wipe her tears.

She did not say anything, yet her silence was evident.

I had a lot to say but I was tongue-tied. In the end, I said nothing.

It was not because I did not want to speak, but I felt that it was pointless.

I clearly knew my parents had not said these words out of anger.

Maybe they had been thinking and wishing that I did not survive from that fire.

Then, they would not need to be responsible for me.

They did not have to favor me over the others.

My heart was numb from the pain. I should be crying, but when I touched the flight ticket scheduled for the next day in my pocket, I suppressed the urge to cry.

I did not inhale too much smoke from the incident, so I was discharged on the same night.

When I was about to get into the car to head home, Daphne suddenly dragged me out of the car.

“Jude, where’s my money?”