Chapter 3

I wiped the tears off my face, forced myself to breathe evenly, and walked into the ward with a thermos of warm water. Damien looked as pale as paper. He was propped up against the bed, coughing hard into the trash can like his lungs were being wrung out. I poured him some water. The second Damien saw me, his eyes lit up. He then reached out, pulled me close, and wrapped his arms around my waist. He looked up at me with that pitiful look. "Babe, selling blood must've hurt. When I'm better, we'll get married." I would've happily imagined a future with him before. But now, the thought alone turned my stomach. "Okay, then get better soon." I swallowed the ache and responded as though I knew nothing at all. Seemingly satisfied with my response, Damien took his medicine, settled back down, and fell asleep. After that, I took my pill bottle straight to the doctor and asked her to test it. She didn't even hesitate. She told me the tablets inside were vitamins, not cancer medication. I couldn't process it, and soon, everything spun, and I blacked out. When I woke up, the doctor said she had run a full examination while I was out. Apparently, my lung cancer had come back. But the only good news was that they'd caught it in time, and she strongly recommended I go overseas for treatment. I told her I would think about it, then I went back to the ward. At the nurses' station, I made Damien a bowl of oatmeal. When I brought it in, he slid the oatmeal toward me instead. "Babe, you still have to sell your blood. You need to eat more and keep your strength up," he softly said, watching me with worried eyes, as if my pain mattered to him. There wasn't an extra bed in the room, which meant I still had to go back to the park at night. Before I left, I handed him my medical report. "Open it only after I'm gone." Damien's hands trembled as he sat up and hugged me again. "Babe, I don't want you to leave." For a second, my heart softened the way it always did. Then, the question slipped out before I could stop it. "Damien, you haven't done anything to hurt me, have you?" Damien's body went still. A moment later, he brushed a kiss against the corner of my lips and smiled. It was as if he was the most devoted man in the world. "With a girlfriend like you, I'd never do anything to hurt you." I was disappointed all over again. Even now, he was still lying to me. I lifted my hand and gently ruffled his hair. "I knew you wouldn't lie to me," I said with a smile. When I stepped out of the ward, I took the bowl of oatmeal he'd given me and dumped it into the trash. Everything from him felt disgusting. I didn't want a single bite. After all, trash belonged in the trash. I walked outside and sat down on the steps. Then, I called my mom. "Mom, I want to go abroad and find you!" Three years ago, Mom had been terrified my cancer would return. She had insisted on taking me overseas to recover, but I'd refused for the sake of love. Mom had been so angry that she'd never once reached out to me in the three years since. I was ready to be rejected, but instead, she nagged me like always. "When are you coming? Have you gotten your passport? Tell me when you're arriving, and I'll pick you up at the airport." All the bitterness I'd swallowed back earlier rushed up at once. My eyes burned, and tears gathered along my lashes. "I want to stay here for one more month before I leave. Damien and I are about to celebrate our fifth anniversary, and I want to give him a gift he'll never forget." … After I left, Damien dropped the act. He didn't even glance at the medical report. He simply tossed it straight into the trash. He then replayed what I'd said in his head and slowly frowned. After a moment, he opened his livestream account and checked the views. Then, he looked again at the photo of me selling blood on the black market. His shoulders loosened, like he'd just talked himself down. He thought I was stupid, that I could never know the truth. But still, to be safe, he temporarily shut the account down. Julian called Damien right away. "Damien, there's only one month left until the prank ends. Why did you close the account?" Damien stared out the window, his voice calm and cold as he said, "I changed my mind. If any of you tell Edith about the prank, I'll cut you to pieces!" The last words came out through clenched teeth. Julian froze for a moment, but he soon continued pushing. "What about Celeste? Have you thought about how she'd feel?" Irritated, Damien simply hung up. Then, he looked toward the hospital entrance. He still wanted the crystal heels, just not for Celeste anymore. There was only one month left, and his love was still waiting for him to propose.