All Chapters of Ground to Dust for My Sister's Fate: Chapter 1 - Chapter 10

10 Chapters

Chapter 1

My limbs felt as heavy as lead.Through the thick door, I heard my older sister, Danielle Campbell's voice. "Mom, Dad, please just let Sophie out! She has excellent grades, and you can't let this ruin her SAT—""Shut up!" My mom, Marie Edwards, snapped, her voice sharp and frantic, "How could you still defend her at a time like this? Have you forgotten the year she scored first place and rubbed it in your face?"I knew what Mom was talking about.I was ten years old then. I had scored full marks on my math test, beating Danielle by 20 points.When I ran home waving my test paper, my face was flushed with excitement as I shrieked, "I'm better than Danielle!"Danielle's eyes immediately turned red-rimmed when she heard.Mom broke down in panicked tears, while my dad, Thomas Campbell, rushed over and slapped me so hard that he knocked me onto the floor. Blood dripped from my nose, staining the perfect score on my test paper.That night, I was locked in the freezer to reflect on my

Chapter 2

"Mrs. Campbell."A hand reached out and caught Mom's wrist. It was my childhood best friend, Ethan Hart, who had grown up with me and once promised we would get into the same college together.Standing at the door of the freezer, he frowned slightly and said, "Sophie has always been competitive. She's not going to listen, no matter what you tell her right now."He paused before turning toward the freezer. "I know this feels unfair, Sophie, but Danielle is innocent. She shouldn't have to be the sacrifice for your life. Behave just this once, okay?"There was no response from behind the freezer door because I could no longer move. My body was like a frozen popsicle that had snapped in half, locked in the position of knocking on the door.Blood from my forehead had glued my eyes shut, and the warm liquid had frozen solid across half of my face.I kept my eyes locked on the crack in the door."Please, Mom. Open the door. Just a little more, and I'll be saved."But soon, the light v

Chapter 3

Just then, Dad called Mom and asked, "Why aren't you back yet? Danielle is waiting for her water."Mom hesitated for two seconds before releasing the doorknob."I'm dealing with you after the exams," she muttered before returning to leave.In the freezer, my lifeless body remained leaning against the door, while my hand was frozen mid-knock.I floated in the air and watched her walk away in despair."You were just a single turn away, Mom. If you'd just turned around, you would've found my body."That night, Danielle texted me immediately after learning that I was still locked in the freezer."Sophie, Mom said the key is hidden under the doormat. Hurry up! Unlock the door and get something to eat!"I left some food for you in the kitchen. You've had a sensitive stomach lately, so make sure to heat it up before you eat."Danielle always remembered that I had severe stomach issues. Over the years, whenever I was locked in the freezer, she would always find a way to get me food.

Chapter 4

I smiled bitterly."Mom, if you'd just looked for three more seconds or zoomed in a little more, you would've noticed that my chest wasn't moving at all. You were so close to realizing that I was dead."When the final exam ended, Danielle was the first candidate to sprint out of the exam hall."Mom, Dad, I did really well! I'm going to be okay. Let's go home and share the good news with Sophie right now!"Dad nodded. As he started his car, his eyes turned red-rimmed."Great. Now that it's all over, let's go home. Sophie had been home alone for two days; she'd probably had enough time to clear her head and think things through."We'll pick her up and visit the chapel to pray as a family."Sitting in the passenger seat, Mom couldn't stop crying. "I admit that I was far too harsh on Sophie. As long as she's willing to mend her ways, she'll get whatever Danielle gets from now on."Hovering above them, I forced a smile that looked worse than a crying face."Mom, Dad… I've waited 18

Chapter 5

When Mom dragged Danielle away from the door, the latter cried so hard that her voice cracked."Sophie is still in there, Mom! We promised we'd take her to the chapel once we've returned—"Ignoring her frantic struggles, Mom dragged her out and snapped, "Since she loves being in the freezer so much, we'll leave her there and see just how long she can keep this up! Let's go!"The front doors slammed shut with a loud bang and locked with a click. The house plunged into a dead silence once more.As I floated in the air, my face was covered in tears."Mom, you were just a door away from the truth. Just a step closer, and you would've seen me."…Mom and Dad took Danielle away on a three-day trip.They traveled up to a chapel on a hill and prayed that Danielle would safely survive her 18th birthday. They knelt at the pews and softly murmured their prayers, hoping that she would get into a prestigious college.Danielle prayed devoutly, too, but she was praying for me with a rosary i

Chapter 6

When the freezer door swung fully open, my body was seen leaning against, stiff, frozen, half-bent forward.Half of my face was caked in frozen blood, while the other half was coated in a fine layer of frost crystals. Only my right hand remained raised, frozen in the act of knocking on the door.Mom collapsed onto the floor.There were several times when she tried to get up on her feet, only to fail miserably. In the end, she had to crawl over and drag her knees through the leaked ice water, inch by inch, until she finally reached my body.When she reached out to take my hand, her fingertips brushed against my flesh that was frozen hard like stone."Sophie… How did this happen…" she mumbled, her voice shaking uncontrollably. "I never turned on the cooling system… Sophie, my baby…"Just then, her eyes slowly drifted to the temperature control panel on the wall, which read "-22°F".The red numbers glowed like blood.It felt as if a thick lump of cotton was shoved down her throat,

Chapter 7

The commotion in our apartment soon alarmed the neighbors, and someone called the police.Half an hour later, police officers arrived and sealed off the house with police tape.After I was lifted onto a stretcher, the forensic pathologist meticulously examined my body.When the official autopsy report was placed in front of Mom and Dad, they stared at the words on the pages and read the lines over and over again."The deceased, Sophie Campbell, died of hypothermia. The estimated time of death is approximately five days ago."As memories of that morning surfaced in Dad's mind, he stared at the line of text and softly whispered, "Five days ago… That was the first day of the SAT."Then, his shoulders began shaking violently."That morning, Sophie got on her knees and pleaded with me, knocking her head against the floor until it bled. She begged me to give her exam permit back, and I… was the one who kicked her into that freezer and told her to stay in there to reflect on her action

Chapter 8

The first entry of my notes app read, "The test scores were released today, but I couldn't feel happy at all. Danielle didn't do as well as I did, so I was terrified of going home. I don't know what to say when Mom asks; I'm afraid she's going to lock me in the freezer again."The second entry read, "I got locked in again, just as I feared. Mom slapped me several times and repeatedly demanded to know why I was trying to ruin Danielle's life. It hurts so much."I swear I didn't do it on purpose. It's freezing in here, and I'm starving. Fortunately, Danielle stuffed some chocolate in the teddy bear. Eating something sweet might make me feel better and hurt less, right?"The third entry read, "It's the first day of school. The teacher wanted me to be the class president, but I said no and dared not accept. The last time I became the class president, Mom found out and didn't talk to me for three whole days, just because I wasn't allowed to be better than Danielle."I just don't underst

Chapter 9

Ethan completely lost his mind after that day.When his SAT results were released, he scored a brilliant 1570. It was a score high enough to get him into any college he wanted, but he ripped the score report into shreds.Every day, he came to my apartment and stood in front of the freezer door, knocking on it over and over again."Open the door, Sophie. I know you're in there."Stop messing around and come out, okay? Didn't we promise each other we'd go to the same college?"His mom wept as she told him that I was dead, but he acted as though he couldn't hear her and showed up again the next day. This time, he crouched outside the door and pulled out his phone."I'm calling your parents right now and telling them to let you out, Sophie. Don't be scared. I'll call them. I'm dialing their numbers right this second."He pressed the phone to his ear and waited for a long time, but no one answered.Clutching the phone tightly, he sat at the door all afternoon before his parents show

Chapter 10

That night, Danielle fell asleep on the pew cushion.When I stepped into her dream, it was the first time she had seen me since I died. I was wearing my clean school uniform, with no blood on my forehead or frost on my face.Just like when I was alive, I stood in a place filled with bright, radiant light.Danielle froze before she ran forward and threw her arms around me tightly."Sophie…"She stroked my face, as if trying to make sure I was real."I failed to protect you, Sophie. There were so many times I could have made Mom and Dad open that door."Are you cold, Sophie?"I smiled and shook my head at her. "I'm not cold anymore, Danielle. Don't be sad."She held me and cried so hard that she could barely say a single word."It's my fault. I knew something was wrong, so I shouldn't have been so weak. I should've been braver and insisted on tearing down the door."I took her hands and said, "You did your best, Danielle. I'm serious."In all 18 years of my life, I never once

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