Chapter 4

After Alicia kicked open the study door that day, she and my parents erupted into a fierce argument.

From then on, my parents treated me with almost painful caution.

At the dinner table, they always waited for me to pick up my spoon first.

Mom insisted on blowing on my soup herself, spoonful by spoonful, before feeding it to me.

Dad even dug out old photo albums that had been gathering dust for years and pointed through them page by page.

"Look, Ronnie—this was your third birthday… and this was the first time you played soccer…"

"Our Ronnie was so lovable when he was little."

Alicia happened to pass by and stopped when she saw the scene, letting out a cold laugh.

"What an incredible performance. Trying to act pitiful so you can push Eric out of this family? Just looking at you like this makes me sick."

My gaze fell on a photo in the album—a picture of me with my sister.

She used to treat me so well that I no longer dared to remember when everything had started to change.

What pulled me back to reality was the sharp sound of a slap landing across Alicia's face.

For the first time, my parents were truly angry.

Eric hurried over and wrapped himself around their arms, coaxing them softly.

"Mom, Dad, don't be angry. Alicia just has a bad temper. She didn't mean it. We'll definitely get along with Ronnie from now on."

He paused, as though suddenly remembering something.

"Oh, right. Isn't there a party next week? I remember Ronnie used to love lively events. I'll take him out to have some fun. Maybe… it'll help him feel better."

My parents looked at the smiling little boy in the photograph for a long time before finally nodding in agreement.

On the day of the party, Eric grabbed my hand the moment we entered.

"Come on. I will take you out back to get some fresh air."

I obediently followed him, letting him half-drag me away from the crowd.

When we reached the edge of the swimming pool, he suddenly stopped. Leaning close to my ear, he hissed viciously, "You think acting pathetic is enough to steal everything that belongs to me? Dream on. Mom, Dad, and Alicia love me. They'll only ever love me."

A malicious smile curled across his lips.

"How about a bet? If I win, you'll get out of the Spencer family yourself and never show your face again."

Before he even finished speaking, a violent shove slammed hard into my back.

With a loud splash, the icy pool swallowed me whole.

After leisurely watching for a while, Eric jumped into the water too.

Then he immediately screamed, "Alicia! Save me!!!"

When Alicia heard him, she rushed over—only to freeze mid-step. She hesitated for only a second before diving into the pool and swimming desperately toward Eric.

By the time she dragged him to the edge, shocked cries were already erupting around them.

"There's still someone in the water!"

"He's not moving! He's about to sink!"

Alicia whipped around. The color drained from her face instantly. In a panic, she dove back into the pool and frantically hauled me out of the water.

Curled on the freezing ground, I coughed violently, trembling nonstop.

Alicia pressed her lips together, and for a brief second, worry flashed through her eyes.

But the next moment, Eric's tearful sobbing cut off whatever concern she had been about to show.

Looking at Eric's reddened eyes, it was as though she suddenly remembered something. Her face darkened again immediately.

"Get on your knees and apologize to Eric! Look how badly you frightened him!"

I wanted to nod. But my body had already begun trembling even harder beyond my control.

Seeing that, her gaze turned completely cold.

"Ronnie! Everyone knows you were an excellent swimmer growing up! You even won the city elementary school swimming championship! You're so addicted to acting that you just can't stop, is that it?!"

As she shouted, she violently yanked me to my feet, trying to force me onto my knees in front of Eric.

And in that rough pull, I lost my balance and fell forward.

That was when the prosthetic leg came loose. The flesh-colored prosthetic, metal screws exposed, rolled several times across the ground.

The entire world went silent in an instant.

Then the crowd erupted into horrified screams.

The moment Alicia saw my empty pant legs, the color drained from her face.

Staggering backward two steps, she stared at me with wide, disbelieving eyes before collapsing heavily onto the ground.