All Chapters of Because I Once Saw the Light: Chapter 1 - Chapter 9

On the day Mom and Dad divorced, two divorce agreements lay on the table.The first one stated that the child was to stay in the old house in the old town with Dad, Chuck Browning, who was addicted to gambling and riddled with debt.The second one stated that the child was to go to the coastal town with Mom, Marina Dillon, who had remarried a wealthy businessman.In my previous life, my younger sister, Tamara Browning, cried and begged to stay with Mom, so I silently packed my bags and went with Dad instead.Later on, Dad quit his gambling habits and received a large settlement for selling off his old house in a land expropriation project, and that was when he began pampering and showering me with affection.Meanwhile, Tamara suffered emotional abuse at her stepfather's home as she was forbidden from leaving the house at all. Eventually, she died of depression.Now that we were reborn, Tamara snatched the cigarette away from Dad's fingers and hugged him tightly."I feel sorry fo

Hence began my life in this household as an invisible person.Leonard preferred the quiet. Even the maids in the house walked on tiptoe.Meanwhile, Mom kept trying every possible way to please him and curry his favor.She made him stews, massaged him often, and also kept him company when he was watching those dry and boring financial news reports on TV.In other words, Mom was acting more like a nanny than a wife in this household.As for me, I barely left my room unless it was for meals.I made sure to keep the storeroom spick and span. It might be piled high with old furniture, but the sunlight in here was divine. I would often position my chair before the windows and stay there for the entire afternoon, just like an old lady basking in the sun before her imminent death.At times, Leonard would walk past my door and pause when he saw me in front of the windows. However, he never spoke a word to me.His gaze was a little strange. It looked as though he were looking at one of h

My hands that had been holding the chess pieces suddenly stiffened abruptly, and I felt my heart thumping hard against my chest.Leonard knew.It made sense, though. Nothing in this household could be kept a secret from him if he really wanted to know about something."You went through my stuff, didn't you?" I asked, my throat dry."You didn't hide it properly," Leonard said, releasing his hold on the chessboard and leaning back against the couch, his eyes cold and indifferent."You have late-stage brain cancer. You might die anytime. Why aren't you receiving treatment for it?"Now that the cat was out of the bag, there was no reason for me to continue hiding it anymore."I don't have the money for it. Also, I'm not interested in getting it treated," I said, looking at him calmly. "I'm still going to suffer even if the treatment was a success. I'd rather be free from all this pain. The sooner, the better."Leonard remained silent for a long while."You also saw the bottle in t

Leonard said, "The doctor told me that if you don't do anything about it, you might just—"He didn't finish his sentence, but I knew what he wanted to tell me.I might just die anytime."That's good," I said with a grin. "That's a lot faster than I expected."Leonard looked at my smile; his eyes filled with sorrow."You're only 18, Tiana.""What's the big deal about being 18?" I asked. "Some people live till 80 like a zombie on a walking stick. I've lived 18 years. That's more than enough for me."Just then, there was a loud commotion downstairs. I could hear Mom's voice and another crying voice beside her.It was Tamara. She was here.I frowned, and Leonard got to his feet."Stay in bed. I'm going down to have a look.""I'm coming with you," I said, pulling the blanket aside."You—""I want to have a look," I said.I wanted to see how terribly Tamara had been beaten up in this lifetime.Leonard didn't stop me anymore. Instead, he helped me down the stairs slowly.The l

My condition only kept getting worse and worse. My vision began to blur, and I often couldn't make out the faces of people anymore. I could only differentiate them by their voices now.Mom wouldn't stop crying every day until her eyes got so swollen she looked like she had been stung by bees.She also kept counting rosary beads as she chanted her prayers, saying that she was praying for my recovery. However, I only felt irritated listening to her chanting and the sound of the beads rubbing against each other."Stop it, Mom," I said. "If God had a conscience, then he would never have let me suffer like this."Mom dropped her beads onto the floor, frozen in shock."Tiana—""I want some roast beef," I said, interrupting her."Alright, okay. I'll go home and make it for you now."She then hurriedly picked up the brands from the floor and ran out of the ward.I knew that I couldn't bear to stomach anything anymore. I just wanted to get rid of her for some peace and quiet.Only Leo