Semua Bab Cowardly Me: She Bleeds When I Bleed: Bab 1 - Bab 9

When I opened my eyes again, I wasn't dead.I was lying on the bed in my room, my wrist wrapped in thick layers of gauze. The whole family stood gathered around me.My sister, Lizzie Zeder, looked as pale as paper. To my surprise, her wrist was wrapped in bandages too.My mother's eyes were red and swollen. She clutched my hand, her voice trembling."Jeff, why would you do this? Whatever it is, why couldn't you tell me?"Before I could say a word, Shane began his performance."Jeff… do you not like me? Is that why you resorted to something as extreme as suicide—to get Mom and Dad's attention? Do you know how worried you've made them…?"His voice was low, and the look he gave our parents was filled with guilt and helplessness."Dad, Mom… maybe I should move out. I don't want to make Jeff unhappy."Our parents' expressions darkened.Pathetic as I was, I couldn't come up with a single word to fight back.Shane was delighted, shooting me a smug, provocative glance."Shane, you'

"Jeff, this is where you're in the wrong. Even if your adoptive parents didn't give you a good life before, they still raised you all these years. They gave you a second life."How can you, the moment you learn you're the true heir of the Zeder family, rush to cut ties with your benefactors?!"Shane looked as if he were sincerely speaking up for me, but the glee in his eyes was barely contained.My eyes reddened, and I choked out, "You're right. This is my fault."Seeing that I was still as spineless as ever, my adoptive parents' family immediately regained their earlier swagger."If you want our forgiveness, that depends on your sincerity," my adoptive father, Jack Hughes, said, his gaze greedy as he looked around the villa."Your sister has taken a liking to a rich young man recently. His family expects quite a hefty dowry. Your mother and I… we're in a bit of a difficult position…"He didn't finish, but I nodded obediently. Leaning closer to my adoptive parents, I lowered my

Lizzie rushed forward and tried to force my mouth open to make me vomit, while my parents fumbled in panic to call an ambulance.I shoved her hand away and bolted for the door.She chased after me relentlessly from behind. "Jeff! Spit it out! I'm begging you! Don't die! I'll do anything for you—I'll be your servant if I have to!"And just like that, I ran while she chased me, the two of us circling the villa like trapped animals with nowhere to escape.After who knows how many laps, there was a dull thud. My knees buckled, and I collapsed straight to the ground.I had swallowed an entire bottle, and the intense running only sped up the poison's spread.This time, the onset came early.In the final second before I lost consciousness, I saw Lizzie behind me, also collapsed on the ground, foam at the corners of her mouth.So that was it.…The sharp scent of disinfectant and the steady beeping of hospital monitors pulled me back to consciousness.I turned my neck slightly and,

Shane blinked at me with wide, innocent eyes.It was too abnormal.When had I ever seen him look at me like that?But we had to be downstairs at five in the morning for a whale-watching trip, and it was already close to midnight. He clung stubbornly to my door, clearly unwilling to leave unless I agreed.Helpless, I let him in.That night, I slept without dreams.The next morning, it was Shane who woke me.It was already five.I wiped my face casually and pulled on the outdoor jacket he handed me.Fortunately, nothing went wrong—we boarded the boat without incident.And honestly, the Zeder family's wealth really showed. A boat worth hundreds of thousands—booked outright without a second thought.Aside from the four of us, there was Captain Eric and his assistant.The trip out to sea went smoothly.Captain Eric was a humorous Treicelandic man, telling us stories about whales and Viking legends along the way.Soon, we reached the best whale-watching spot."Look! Humpback w