Crushed by Debt, Forbidden to Die
However, it held a stack of crumpled ledger slips that was covered in my tiny handwriting.
"December 1st. Earned 12 dollars recycling plastic bottles. Bought a pack of cigarettes for Dad.
"December 15th. Earned 60 dollars distributing flyers. For paying off the debt.
"December 20th. Worked overtime for 200 dollars. For paying off the debt.
"Current debt balance: 4,798,367 dollars left."
Finally, on the last slip of paper, I had scrawled on the paper that was stained with dried blood, saying, "I'm sorry, Mom, Dad. If you're reading this, that means I wasn't able to hold out in the end to pay off your debts.