Familial Bond Imagination 단편 소설 & Awakening 소설

I find myself standing at the same intersection again after I die in a car accident. I assume that I've been given a second chance at life. However, when I notice the number "4" on my arm, I realize that things aren't as simple as they seem. I die for the first time when Dad is rushing me to go home. I'm swallowed by the shadow of a truck amid the screeching sounds of a brake. In the next second, my phone rings again. Dad's familiar voice echoes from the receiver, "When are you coming back to do the chores, Luke? I'm old and weak, while Miles is too young. Do you think that we can do the chores?" My mind goes blank just as the truck barrels toward me again. I instinctively roll forward and barely avoid getting run over by the wheels of the truck, feeling relieved that I have escaped death this time. However, after I return home, Dad kicks me out of the house because I get into an argument with my brother, Miles Dover. Unfortunately, I bump into a killer in the stairwell. My blood splatters all across the scene. When I jolt awake once more, I see the familiar truck again. The number on my arm has gone down from "4" to "3". A chill runs down my spine. It turns out that I haven't been given a second chance at life. Instead, I'm stuck in a cycle! If I'm unable to break out of the cycle, I'll never wake up again once the number on my arm reaches zero.

The day Dad rents out an entire hospital floor for Mom to deliver my baby brother, a young, attractive nurse can't stop staring at him. She insists Mom needs her rest right after labor and offers to take my baby brother, Alex Hardy, to the next room for a nursing session. In my past life, I was too busy staying by Mom's side, and Dad didn't think much of it, so he agreed. To our surprise, by the very next day, the nurse and Alex vanished without a trace. Unable to cope with the devastating loss, Mom fell into a deep depression and took her own life. Dad couldn't forgive himself for what happened. He left me with Grandpa and followed Mom to the grave. Overnight, I lost every member of my family. I became severely withdrawn, and less than two years later, I fell from the balcony because of my nanny's negligence. My whole family ended up dead. Meanwhile, 18 years later, that same nurse used her status as a foster mother to bring Alex back to claim his place in the family, taking over our family's entire fortune. Even on her deathbed, she still smugly told everyone around her, "Raising this boy was the best investment I ever made." Reborn, I am back to when I was three years old, right after Mom gave birth to Alex. The young, attractive nurse walks into the room with a smile. "Mr. Hardy, it's time for the baby's feeding. Let me take him next door so your wife can get some rest. "Hey little girl, how about I take your baby brother next door for a quick feed?" She gives a sweet, innocent smile, but a cold shiver runs down my spine. Memories of losing my parents flood back to my mind. Gathering all my courage, I shout, "No thanks! My mom can feed him just fine! We don't need you!"

I have only recently been reunited with my family. Desperate to fit into their wealthy world, I follow every instruction from the voice in my head, which calls itself the Council. At my father's birthday banquet, my stepsister, Giselle Chatham, suggests playing Truth or Dare. When it's my turn, the Council's authoritative voice rings out in my mind. "Choose truth! Admit that you stole Giselle's necklace. Sometimes, you have to hit rock bottom before you can rise to the top. Your father will see you as an honest person!" Just as I'm about to speak, a series of comments suddenly flashes before my eyes. "The Council is spouting nonsense! Don't listen to it!" "Don't admit to stealing if you never did it! If you do, you'll be kicked out of the family for good!" "Listen to the comments! Whatever you do, don't admit to it!" I bite down hard on my lip, torn between the Council's instructions and the warnings flashing before my eyes. Who should I trust?

On her eighteenth birthday, the long-lost heiress, Cassie Bailey, was finally tracked down by her mother, Ann Moore, CEO of the Bailey Group. However, Cassie refused to come back with her. Instead, she chose to remain adopted by a man living on government assistance. “So what if you’re rich? The bonds ordinary people share can’t be measured with money. Since you weren’t there for me for the past eighteen years, then I won’t acknowledge you for the next eighteen years either!” [Oh my God, she’s such a queen. That fearless, untouched-by-materialism energy is exactly why we love her.] [But her mother is literally the richest woman in Orkta. Is turning that down really a good idea?] The richest woman in Orkta? I shook my head and rubbed my eyes several times before finally accepting the fact that I could somehow see those floating comments. Well, if Cassie did not want a life of unimaginable wealth, I was more than happy to take her place. As everyone watched in stunned silence, I shoved my way through the crowd and grabbed Ann’s hand. “Mom, are you here to take me home?”

For six months, I pick through trash to scrape together enough money to buy Mom a beautiful dress for her birthday. I can't wait to give it to her. But the moment I hand her the dress, her gentle smile vanishes. She screams, shoves me to the floor, and grabs a chair. She brings it down on me again and again. "Did that monster put you up to this? Did he tell you to give me this dress just to hurt me? You've got his blood in your veins! I should've known you'd turn on me!" She beats me until I'm barely breathing, then runs out of the house, leaving me alone on the cold floor. As my vision blurs, a book suddenly opens before my eyes. That's when I learn the truth. I'm the tragic male lead in a dark novel. The story has that monster force himself on Mom just to give me a miserable childhood. I'm the reason her whole life was ruined. I smile and reach toward the glowing pages with a bloodied hand. I'll save Mom, even if it means I was never born.