His Countdown Ended, but I Died
"You ought to stop defending him, Eli. That brat has been jealous of you since he was young and couldn't bear to see you doing well. Have you forgotten what happened on your 14th birthday?"
It was during Eli's 14th birthday that I fully grasped the truth that Eli would die. That day, Mom and Dad unprecedentedly bought a cream cake, which had 14 slender candles stuck into it.
Mom carefully lit the candles while Dad held the old camera that had been around for years, wanting to capture one of the few birthdays Eli would have in his life.
I hid behind the door and looked on—at the candlelight glowing on Eli's face, at him closing his eyes to make a wish, and at Mom and Dad trying desperately to