All Chapters of The Version of Me You Wanted: Chapter 1 - Chapter 9

9 Chapters

Chapter 1

"By the way, Asher, what was it like being abused by thirteen people?"Finn glanced back at me, one arm around Evelyn's shoulders, curiosity all over his face.I froze.Before I could react, Evelyn lightly tapped his forehead. "That's nasty stuff. You don't need to hear about it."Then she looked at me, completely indifferent. "I spoiled Finn. He doesn't mean anything by it. Don't take it personally."Finn smirked at me, waiting for me to blow up like I used to.But I stayed calm. "An orphan who was never taught manners wouldn't know any better. Why would I care?"With Evelyn protecting him in Hawthorne Bay, no one had dared bring up Finn's past in years.His smile faltered, then came right back. "Yeah. Evelyn feels sorry for me, just like you do. That's why she even gave me the Andersen family heirloom ring."It was the keepsake Mom had left me. I'd fought Finn over it countless times.Now, I barely glanced at it. "Keep it if you want."I paused. "I don't like things other

Chapter 2

"Asher Andersen!" Natalie's eyes hardened as she pulled Finn close. "Let's see how long you can keep up this act."Then she kissed him. Hard. Right in front of me.Evelyn immediately grabbed my wrist."Asher."Guess she thought I'd make a scene.I just turned and headed upstairs.I'd rather crash in my room than stand there watching them make out.On my way up, I even bumped the AC up two degrees.How thoughtful of me."Damn it!"Behind me, Natalie kicked the door, then peeled out, her engine roaring.Evelyn stayed put, staring after me with a look I couldn't read."Asher, didn't you used to love Natalie more than anything? Why are you..."I almost laughed.'So she knew. Could've fooled me.'But who made me give up on Natalie in the first place?Just because Finn said he liked her, Evelyn kept pushing them together—even when Natalie and I were about to get engaged.The night before our engagement party, she even drugged us and sent Natalie straight to Finn's bed.She

Chapter 3

My phone buzzed.A message from Finn popped up with a photo.[Don't think this little act will make Evelyn go soft on you. You'll never matter to her as much as I do.][And you seriously think she punished those thirteen guys for you?]My chest tightened, panic choking me.But I forced myself to calm down.Evelyn had never broken a promise to me. Not once since we were kids.Finn had always been good at driving a wedge between us, making us doubt each other until everything fell apart.I took a breath and opened the photo.My whole world crashed.The thirteen men Evelyn swore she'd make pay were living better than ever.Luxury cars. Women on their arms. Not a care in the world.Their lives were even better than they'd been three years ago.My phone slipped from my hand.It hit the floor with a crack.But I couldn't hear anything anymore.Only one thought kept pounding through my head.'If they were never punished, then what the hell were those three years in prison for

Chapter 4

The second the screen lit up, my blood ran cold.It was footage from that night three years ago.They'd filmed what they did to me from every angle, just for fun.My whole body started shaking. I went ice-cold, barely able to breathe."N-No..."The words wouldn't come. I could only stare at the screen.Evelyn had promised me she'd destroyed every copy.My head snapped up. Eyes wide, I stumbled toward her."Please, Evelyn. Don't post it. Please..."The pain and trauma wouldn't disappear just because I left this world.But Evelyn was terrifyingly calm."I swore at Mom and Dad's graves that I'd raise you right. That's my responsibility as your sister."Her expression didn't change. "I'm teaching you a lesson. If Mom and Dad were still here, they'd agree with me."Then she hit send.No hesitation.Evelyn walked over and grabbed my wrist."Come on. Apologize to Finn for what you just did."The second she touched me, the terror from three years ago came rushing back.I stum

Chapter 5

The second I hit the ground, I felt nothing.I thought I'd go straight home.Instead, my soul slipped out of my body and stayed near Evelyn.The System sounded annoyed.[The target's emotions have been too unstable these past few days. The passage can't open safely yet. I'm fixing it.]There was nothing I could do.Luckily, death had wiped out all my emotions, so I just stayed at the wedding.After our eyes met for that split second, Evelyn froze.Then she almost ran outside.But she stopped herself."That couldn't have been Asher," she muttered, like she was trying to convince herself. "He'd never kill himself. He couldn't stand leaving me..."I watched from the side, cold and detached.How ironic.Evelyn had always been like this.Whenever I told her Finn bullied me, if she didn't see it or hear it herself, then apparently it never happened.She watched Finn and Natalie take each other's hands, then turned to Natalie."If Finn suffers even a little because of you, I w

Chapter 6

Evelyn and Natalie reached the ground floor almost at the same time.The place was already chaos.People screamed. Some covered their mouths. Others turned away, unable to look.Both women stopped cold behind the police tape.Neither of them dared move another inch.Natalie turned ghostly pale, swallowing hard. Her voice barely came out."Is it really... him?"No one answered.Evelyn just stood there like her soul had left her body.She couldn't say a word.Then someone in the crowd blurted out, "Wait—isn't that the guy from that viral video? The one with those thirteen men?"The words hit Evelyn like a knife.All the color drained from her face.She shoved through the crowd and rushed forward.It was the first time I'd ever seen my own body.I lay on the ground at a twisted angle.The fall had broken my body beyond repair.My limbs lay twisted, my clothes torn, blood and dust smeared together.My neck bent at a sick angle. The eyes that used to be so bright were half

Chapter 7

Meanwhile, at the morgue, Evelyn stared at the bones showing through my thin wrist, like she was only now realizing how much weight I'd lost."You told me."Natalie suddenly grabbed Evelyn by the collar, her eyes bloodshot."You told me Asher was from another world. You said his feelings for me were fake—that I was just some mission, someone he had to win over!"Her voice cracked into a scream. "That's why I got with Finn! I wanted to piss Asher off. I wanted to get back at him!"You knew this wedding was my final test. Afterward, I was going to dump Finn for good!"Natalie glared at Evelyn, teeth clenched. "So what happened? Tell me. How the hell did Asher end up like this?!"Floating above them, I froze.'So... that was it.'No wonder.No wonder Natalie had turned into a completely different person in just a few days.More than ten years of growing up together. All those promises. All those feelings.Gone, just like that.Not because she'd stopped loving me.She'd been

Chapter 8

From what Evelyn muttered, I finally pieced together the whole story.It had been raining the day of our parents' funeral.After the last of the family and friends who'd come to pay their respects had left, she found me at the end of the hall.My back was to her as I spoke to thin air."System, even though Evelyn's affection for me is maxed out, I've decided to stay."I'm the only family she has left. I can't leave her alone in this world."Her heart seemed to stop.Suddenly, every memory between us felt fake.Had everything I'd done for her—all the care, all the love—just been part of some mission? Had it all been for a bunch of cold, meaningless points?And worse, she got scared.Scared I'd leave her and disappear from this world.No matter how many times I promised I wouldn't, she never believed me.So to prove my love for her as a brother was real, she brought Finn home.The truth was, Evelyn knew Finn had staged a lot of what happened.She just never called him out.

Chapter 9

Finn's face turned red as he clawed desperately at Evelyn's arm."Evelyn... I don't know... what I did wrong..."Her face went terrifyingly cold. "Tell me what really happened three years ago."Finn's eyes darted around. "I-It was Asher. He hired those guys to hurt me—"Evelyn's grip tightened, nearly crushing his throat."Don't play me for a fool. This is your last chance. You know damn well I could kill you."Finn's eyes started rolling back."It was me! I told them to pretend they were going to hurt me, then blame Asher when you showed up."Evelyn, I just... wanted you to care about me more..."Evelyn tossed Finn to the floor like a rag doll.Slap!Then she slapped herself.Again.And again.Hard.Finn freaked out. He scrambled over and grabbed her leg."I was wrong! I only did it because I cared about you too much. Asher's gone now, so I can be your real brother from now on."He looked up, a flicker of hope in his eyes. "Evelyn, can't we just keep living like we ha

SCAN CODE TO READ ON APP