All Chapters of The One They Never Chose: Chapter 1 - Chapter 10

"Sorry, but your time is up. You've failed the mission, and you can't try anymore," the mysterious voice of the system told me as I stood outside the grand wedding hall.Inside, Patrick Smith and Lucia Jones were sharing a kiss on stage. Patrick was the last guy I was supposed to win over. However, like the rest, I did not succeed.When I first arrived in this world, the system promised me a deal—if I could win the heart of just one of the four guys it picked for me within 25 years, I would get to go back to my real life.However, 25 years went by, and I did not manage to win over any of them. Maybe it was just my fate.I walked all the way to the busiest overpass I could find.The system told me I had to face failure on my own. As I looked at the cars zooming by, I remembered all the cold looks from those guys. It was all because of Lucia Jones, the one everyone loved.The system said it was not my fault. After all, Lucia was the star, and the guys just could not help but fall f

I did not want to draw attention to myself.Oh, and to avoid frightening anyone, I had also left a note behind.[Don't worry, I'm now a star shining in the sky.]Slowly, my mind started to blur. As death loomed close, a rush of memories from this world flew through my mind. No matter how hard I tried, Lucia always seemed to win. Everyone liked her more than me.Just when I thought it was the end for me, someone suddenly lifted me up.I was grateful to be taking in fresh air and breathed deeply."Yoana, have you lost your mind?"The man in front of me was Calvin Scott, my former doctor. He was eight years older than me. He was also a man I had once tried to get close to.Back when I was diagnosed with depression, he was the one who treated me. The system told me that he could be someone I could connect with, so I spent a lot of time trying to be good to him.We shared meals, painted together, and visited amusement parks. He even introduced me to his beloved grandmother. He told

The next day, I had to go to the hospital for a bunch of tests. It turned out I was truly depressed, and it was severe.I used to be sad before, but I kept on smiling, acting all happy when other people were around. Calvin knew about it. However, after Lucia accused me of doing something really bad to her, he thought I was just pretending to be sick.I lay on the hospital bed. I had not eaten anything for eight whole hours.Jim tried to make me eat some oatmeal and drink some water, but I could not keep it down.He got mad and said, "Yoana, let's see how long you can go without eating or drinking!"After he left, Calvin tried to talk to me, being as kind as he was the first time we met.However, I would not listen to him, and he got so mad that he broke a cup and grabbed my face really hard. "Yoana, don't think you can scare us by acting like this. I'm telling you, even if you're gone, nobody would feel sorry for you."I grabbed his hand, my eyes full of hope. "Then let me go. I

I thought Jim would feel bad for me this time and agree to my request. However, in the next second, he said, "Nobody who's sick ever thinks they're sick. We're doing this to help you."That was how I ended up in a tiny hospital room with just a bed and nothing else.Every day, a nurse would bring me food, and four other nurses would stand guard. They just watched me without saying anything.I felt like I was going to fall apart. I wanted to end it all, but there was no way. I had never felt so hopeless.I begged the system to just end it for me. However, it said, "Sorry, host, I can't do that. You have to do it yourself."That just made me despair even more.Whenever I moved the slightest bit in bed, a nurse would pop in and ask what was wrong.I watched every single second tick by. On the night I got there, Lucia showed up. She got the nurses to leave and strutted over to me in her high heels, looking all smug. "Feeling pretty hopeless, huh? Want to die but can't? You know, I

Then, I saw tears in Jim's eyes.I could not believe it. My brother, who had been so mean to me just a little while ago, was actually sad about my death."You weren't protecting her. You were torturing her!" Shane punched right back, and they started wrestling.Finally, I was taken back home.…Jim was crying in front of me. The last time I tried to hurt myself, Mom had to go to the hospital. Now, seeing me gone for good, she passed out again. She had to go to the hospital once more.I felt so bad for her, but I could not do anything.I was never really part of this world and could not stay with her forever.Then, Calvin showed up. When he saw my body on the bed, he just fell down.Calvin, who was always so cool and calm, was really upset then."Yoana... Yoana," he said, shaking as he took my hand. "Don't scare me. Wake up and look at me, okay?"Shane was really mad at him. "You care now, only when she's gone? What were you doing before?"Calvin did not say anything back.