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Todos los capítulos de I Was the One Erased: Capítulo 1 - Capítulo 10

10 Capítulos

Chapter 1

I stumbled back home in a daze, clutching the fake birth certificate in my hand.I had just reached the front door and was about to pull out my keys when I heard voices inside."The renovation on the new house is all paid for. We'll be able to move in next month." It was my dad, Hank Zimmer, and he sounded almost relieved."Then what are we going to tell Josh?" My mom, Bertha Greene, sounded unsure."What's there to tell him?" Fred Zimmer, my older brother, asked sharply. "Mom, you're not actually planning to let him move in with us, are you?""The new house only has three bedrooms. One for me, one for you and Dad, and I'm using the last one as my study."Mom sighed. "He's still your brother, after all.""That's enough!" Fred scoffed. "If it weren't for him, would my classmates have spent all these years laughing behind my back because my younger brother was stupid?"I wish he'd—""Fred!" Dad snapped, cutting him off. "Don't bring up what happened back then! If you hadn't push

Chapter 2

I obediently went inside the house.Fred was sitting on the couch. When he saw me, a flicker of guilt crossed his face.He had been unemployed for two years. He spent his days eating, drinking, and doing whatever he pleased at home.Mom and Dad never once gave him a hard time about it."Mom." I lowered my head and put on a tearful expression. "I lost my job. My boss fired me because my memory is so bad."Mom froze for a moment, and then her face broke into an even brighter smile. She pulled me down beside her and said, "There's nothing to worry about! So what if you lost your job? Now you can stay home and keep me company. I'll take care of you for the rest of your life!"Fred gave a mocking snort from beside us. "Yeah, with a brain like yours, what could you possibly accomplish?"Dad quickly cleared his throat a few times. Fred took the hint and went back to his room.…At dinner, the table was covered with a variety of dishes.Mom kept piling food onto my plate. "Josh, ea

Chapter 3

Everyone stopped what they were doing and turned to look at me.Under the table, Fred's hand tightened around the hem of his shirt.Dad gave an awkward laugh that sounded especially forced. "Oh, that… that has to be a problem with the system. You know how government officers are. They're always screwing things up."Mom quickly caught on and chimed in, "That's right! It must be a system error. Josh, don't worry about things like this. You've always had trouble remembering things."What if someone takes advantage of you?"Dad slapped his thigh and immediately came up with a solution. "Here's what we'll do. Don't worry about the unemployment benefits."Your mom and I will go take care of it for you. You've had a hard time remembering things since you were young. What if someone bullies you?"I looked at how tense they were and couldn't help but laugh to myself.They weren't afraid I'd miss out on the benefits. They were just worried I'd realize I didn't belong in this family."Oh

Chapter 4

The next morning, I got up really early.When Mom and Dad came out of their bedroom, breakfast was already waiting for them."Good morning, Mom and Dad!" I smiled sweetly as I set breakfast on the table.Mom and Dad exchanged a look of relief."See? I told you. One night's sleep and he forgets everything," Mom muttered under her breath. Then she came over and put an arm around me. "Josh, you're such a great kid."After breakfast, I left home, telling them I was going out to look for a job.First, I went to see an old classmate who worked at the police department.With his help, I finally found out who I was registered under. It was under the name of one of Dad's distant cousins in a small town in the next county.I headed straight for the town.When I met Dad's cousin, Robbie Smith, I got straight to the point."Uncle Robbie, Mom and Dad said they've changed their minds about having my records registered under your name. They want to try to amend my birth certificate, so they

Chapter 5

There was dead silence on the other end of the line.After a long pause, Mom finally exploded. "What? Norland? Who told you to go all the way there? With a memory like yours, someone could sell you off, and you'd never know!"Quit your job and come home right now. Do you hear me?""Mom, didn't you say you'd take care of me for the rest of my life?" I gave a quiet laugh. "Now I'm supporting myself. You should be happy for me."Anyway, I'm busy. I have to go."I hung up and blocked the number.I only heard bits and pieces about what happened later from an old classmate, Scott.After I left, the whole household fell apart.Fred was used to being spoiled. He still did nothing all day except buy designer sneakers and eat at expensive restaurants.To support his lifestyle, Mom and Dad soon burned through the little savings they had left after buying the new house.With me gone, they no longer had a free housekeeper. Mom had to handle all the chores herself while catering to Fred, w

Chapter 6

"So what if Josh remembers?" Fred tossed his phone onto the couch. "Mom, Dad, he's working for a big company in Norland. He's probably making good money."We can't even keep up with the mortgage anymore. Are we really going to sit back and let the bank take back the house?"Mom wiped away her tears and hesitated. "But he blocked all of us and took back his birth certificate. He's clearly trying to cut ties with us.""He wants to disown us? It won't be that easy!" Fred leaned toward Mom and Dad. Then he lowered his voice as he laid out a cruel plan. "Dad, fake an illness. Pretend you have a terminal disease, then tell him you need a huge amount of money for surgery."He won't dare refuse unless he wants everyone to condemn him."The moment Mom heard the word "money", the little guilt she had left vanished."Yes, you're right! Hank already has a bad heart. It shouldn't be hard to say he collapsed from overwork, right?" Mom hurriedly searched for her phone. "I'll call him right now.

Chapter 7

When I pushed open the hospital room door at noon the next day, Dad was propped up in bed, happily gnawing on a greasy fried drumstick.Mom sat beside him, peeling grapes while they discussed whether to use the money I sent to buy Fred a limited-edition pair of sneakers or make next month's mortgage payment."Dad, you've got late-stage stomach cancer, and you can still eat something so greasy? Your stomach must be pretty tough." My icy voice rang out in the hospital room.They both froze in terror, and the drumstick slipped from Dad's hand onto the blanket."Josh? Didn't you say you'd be here tomorrow? Why are you here today?" Mom went pale and nervously tried to shove the takeout on the table under the bed.I walked straight over and tossed the diagnosis I had gotten from the doctor's office in front of them."Dad has indigestion, and light meals are recommended. Is this the condition that supposedly needs 30 thousand dollars for surgery?"Dad's face reddened, but he doubled do

Chapter 8

The hospital room fell deathly silent.Mom and Dad were frozen in shock.When Mom finally spoke, her voice trembled. "Josh, what are you talking about? Didn't you fall into the river because you were fooling around?"I looked at her and scoffed. "You still don't know, do you? The summer I was six, Fred took my toy car and led me down to the river."He pushed me in himself, then he stood on the bank and watched me struggle. He let me sink without even calling for help."Dad went pale. He turned sharply toward Fred, his voice shaking. "Fred, is Josh telling the truth? Did you really do it?"Fred didn't even bother to pretend anymore. He yanked his arm free from my grip and broke into a crazed laugh.His eyes were filled with hatred. "So what if it was me? Mom, Dad, who are you trying to fool with those shocked faces?"You've always wanted to have a daughter, didn't you? If he had actually drowned back then, you could've tried for a girl. I was helping you get rid of a burden!""

Chapter 9

After leaving the hospital, I returned to Norland and threw myself into my job.Without the constant strain of my family weighing me down, my career took off.Three years later, I became a mid-level manager at the branch.Just when I thought my life would stay peaceful like this forever, Scott called me again. "Josh, something terrible has happened to your family."Fred had run away.While Mom was at the grocery store, he stole every bankbook in the house. He even took the little bit of gold jewelry Mom and Dad had kept tucked away.He left town that very night with a bleached-blonde delinquent he had met at a bar.When Dad heard the news, the shock was too much for him, and he collapsed right there in the living room.By the time Mom found him, he was barely clinging to life.Because he didn't get treatment in time, Dad was left partially paralyzed and permanently bedridden.This time, Mom didn't call me to ask for money.In the end, I still couldn't bring myself to abandon

Chapter 10

Later, I happened to hear about Fred from Scott.The delinquent he ran away with wasn't some rich heiress. She only took him with her for the little money he had stolen.Once the money ran out, she beat him badly in the countryside and disappeared without a trace.Fred was penniless and had none of his documents, so he could only survive on odd jobs.I heard he had grown thin and weathered, with unkempt hair and a dirty face. The arrogance he had once had was gone.I only smiled faintly when I heard.After all, he had chosen this path himself. He had no one else to blame.I settled down in Norland. Then I started a charity to help children from struggling families in remote areas who had been forced to drop out of school.One day, one of the boys I sponsored came to see me. He was the top student at the local high school."Josh, I don't want to stay in school anymore." He lowered his head, nervously twisting the edge of his shirt. "I ranked first in my entire school, but my pa

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