All Chapters of DARE TO LIVE: The Moment I Chose Myself: Chapter 1 - Chapter 10

Serena's POV“You have six months to live.”The words had replayed countless times in my head since the moment the doctor said them to me.Staring at my reflection in the mirror, I saw nothing but misery.My hair was packed in a messy bun, my eyes swollen from the silent tears I cried throughout last night.My reflection was a huge mess.A stray tear rolled down my cheek as I continued to stare. I didn't wipe it off.The sound of the birds singing their beautiful songs could be heard right outside my window, but nothing, absolutely nothing about my life was beautiful.The banging from behind my door immediately forced me back to the reality of my environment.“Serena!” Came the unmistakable voice of Amanda Vale.My mother-in-law.“Get your lazy ass out here right now!”I closed my eyes and let out a heavy sigh.It was nothing new.Every morning I would wake up as early as four in the morning. Prepare breakfast and prepare Lucy for school. I did this day in and day out, but no one ever

Serena’s POVI looked at Marcus, waiting for him to scold or correct her, but he didn’t do any of that.Instead, he patted Lucy lightly on her head. “You should get some sleep. It's late already.”“Oh, Dad!” Lucy dragged, but Marcus didn't give her room for complaints. He signalled one of the maids to take her to bed.“Goodnight, Mom,” Lucy said, waving at Alicia.My chest tightened.I blinked several times just to make sure I didn't let the tears out, but they still came out anyways.“It's late already; you should get going as well,” Marcus said to Alicia.She nodded, giving him a light kiss on his cheek before heading out.Marcus handed his bag and suit jacket to me as he walked past.“Meet me in my study.”That was all he said.I knew it was time.And for some reason, I wasn't as furious as I thought I would be when I first heard the news.He didn't waste time; the moment I got into the study, he went straight to the point.“As I have mentioned countless times before, I want us to

Marcus’ POVThat image kept coming to me, again and again.​The hurt in her eyes when I raised my hand at her.​My stomach clenched.​I tried to focus on the meeting, but every effort to concentrate was futile.​My mind kept going back to her, to the tears that dropped from her eyes.​To the way she withdrew from my touch.​I should have explained things to her; I should have just told her the truth.What happened between Alicia and me that night was a mistake.​All I wanted was for her to be our surrogate. But when we went to the hospital to check if she was healthy enough to carry our child, that was when we found out that she was already having a baby.​I wanted to scold her for keeping our hopes high when she knew she was already pregnant, but she reminded me of the night we got drunk while celebrating her return, and then we had sex.​“I didn’t want to bring up what happened that night cause I was scared of what it would do to your marriage,” Alicia said with sadness in

Serena’s POV“Who is Nyla?” I frowned.“I'm sorry, you've got the wrong person.”“Not at all.” One of them shifted closer to me.I flinched.He immediately stopped, his eyes filled with something I couldn't quite understand.Was it guilt? Sadness?Or perhaps pity?I didn't know these men. I had never seen them before in my life, yet they were looking at me as though I were someone precious they had lost and only just found.“Please, don't be afraid of us,” the one who had spoken earlier said gently. “We're not going to hurt you.”“Then who are you, and why do you keep calling me Nyla?”“Because that's your name, little sister,” another answered, his voice thick with emotion. “You're Nyla Caldwell. Our baby sister.”I shook my head.“My name is Serena Hart. I'm not Nyla, and I certainly don't have four brothers.”“Serena?” The man standing closest to the window repeated, exchanging a look with the others. “Your medical records say Serena Vale.”My stomach tightened.“That's because I'm

Serena’s POVThe only face I had ever seen that looked like mine belonged to my daughter, and she was seven years old.Now a woman stood just inside the door with that same face, both hands pressed flat against her chest, as if she was holding something in.She looked to be in her fifties, in a white blouse so clean it seemed out of place in that room. Dark hair pinned back, a few silver strands at the temples. The same brows as mine. The same mouth, pulled tight at one corner the way I pulled mine when I was trying not to cry.Nobody had to tell me who she was.“Serena,” she said. Her voice shook, but she got the whole name out. “They told me you go by Serena now. May I come closer?”I should have said no. A minute ago I had never heard her name. But my mouth wouldn’t work, so I nodded.She crossed the room slowly, like she thought I might disappear if she walked too fast. When she reached the side of my bed, she didn’t touch me. She just looked. Her eyes went over my face, the stitc