Chapter 1 The Day Everything Fell Apart

"You shameless disgrace! I threw you out of the house back then to teach you a lesson, not so you could run around half-dressed, currying favor with women! You've brought nothing but shame upon our family!"

At that, Mackenzie slapped me. My head snapped to the side, and only then did I see the fury churning in her eyes.

"You filthy, shameless wretch! We gave you a chance to make something of yourself, but you chose to sink into the gutter! Three hundred dollars? Is that all you're worth?"

Excuse me?

Hadn't she kicked me out, cut off all my financial support, and severed every means of contacting our family? Hadn't she watched me plead desperately outside the house on a rainy night, only to shut the door in my face and leave me to fall from the heights of privilege into the depths of misery? How dare she stand here, looking down at me as though she had every right to lecture me now?

I wanted to retort, but a tearful voice interrupted us.

"Please, Mackenzie, stop hitting Mason!" Kieran hurried over and stepped in front of me, his eyes reddening as he tugged at my sister's arm. "Mason must have his reasons for doing this. He didn't mean for things to turn out this way. Please, just forgive him this once…"

He couldn't hide the smugness in his eyes, yet he seemed the most aggrieved out of everyone present.

Mackenzie yanked her arm free of his grasp, her voice turning icy. "He nearly sold you off to work in the mines back then! And now, he has willingly thrown his life away, rotten to the core. He's not worth your sympathy!"

When had I thrown my life away?

I laughed incredulously. "Mackenzie Schaefer, look me in the eye and tell me honestly. Who forced me into becoming the person I am today?"

Kieran turned around, his eyes still red. "Mason, please, just stop, okay? Apologize to Mackenzie. She'll forgive you if you just admit you were wrong…"

Before he could finish, I drove my fist straight into his face. "Kieran Jorgensen, who the hell are you trying to fool? Isn't everything that happened to me today your doing?"

Once upon a time, I had been the apple of my family's eye. My parents pampered me endlessly.

When I told them I loved the northern lights, my mother had put her publicly traded company aside to take me to Antarctica.

When I said I loved fireflies, Mackenzie suspended an overseas work project and flew back home overnight just to catch them for me.

My fiancee, Everly Lockwood, had nearly fallen out with her own family and severed ties with them just to attend the same university as me.

Back then, even my most offhand remarks were treated like top priority. They showered me with so much love and tenderness that I once believed their devotion would last a lifetime.

Then, Kieran came along and tore it all apart.

At first, Kieran wore a school uniform faded from countless washes. During breaks, he would hide in a corner, gnawing on dry bread. Our teacher told us that his parents had divorced and that he lived with his elderly grandmother, surviving on welfare.

My heart ached for him. I took the initiative to befriend him, sharing my snacks and stationery. On weekends, I even dragged him home. When my mother heard about his circumstances, her eyes reddened with tears, and she accepted him as her godson.

Mackenzie went even further, declaring that she would cover all his tuition and living expenses from then on.

Back then, we were so close that we were practically inseparable. I shared everything with him. When I first fell in love, he would carry love letters between Everly and me and help us exchange gifts.

I had thought we were the best of brothers, never realizing that the way he looked at Everly had long since changed into something else. Nor had I noticed how the two of them had begun using me as an excuse to share details of their daily lives, secretly arranging to watch newly released movies together and even going on trips behind my back.

It wasn't until my 18th birthday, when I had eagerly anticipated Everly's gift, that I pushed open a door and came face-to-face with the most devastating sight imaginable.