My Death Was Just "Drama" to Her

When my sister, Cindy Saddler, and I perform our gymnastics routine, we both slip up.

My spine snaps as I hit the ground. The pain makes my face go completely pale, and my life is hanging by a thread.

But my mother and spotter, Cordelia Saddler, pushes me away in annoyance. "This isn't the time for you to fight with your sister for my attention. She's twisted her ankle! Go die if you want to die. Don't bother me!"

Later, I die due to complications in the hospital, as she wishes.

But after she finds out I'm dead, she goes crazy.

In the final moments before my death, my soul drifted to Cordelia Saddler's side. Cordelia was my mother.

Mom's face was tense as she grabbed the doctor and asked, "Doctor, will Cindy's foot injury affect her career as a gymnast in the future?"

Only after confirming that it wouldn't did she finally breathe a sigh of relief. Then, she started fussing over my younger sister, Cindy Saddler.

Cindy lay on the hospital bed, coughing weakly a few times. "Mom, I think Flora was injured, too. Is it really okay that you're staying here with me and not going to see her?"

Mom frowned in disgust. "Don't bring her up! I'm a spotter. Wouldn't I know her condition? What could happen from a fall at such a low height?"

She patted Cindy's back and handed her a cup of warm water. "You, on the other hand… If you hadn't been worried about her, how could you have made a mistake and sprained your ankle? If you hadn't gotten treatment in time, she could've ruined your entire career."

Her eyes were full of affection as she looked at Cindy and went on, "You're a future star gymnast. You matter the most. Don't waste your breath worrying about that ungrateful wretch. She lies through her teeth. Some things never change. She's just as disgusting as her cheating father!"

My eyes widened as pain tore through my heart. So, this was what Mom truly thought of me.

Cindy's injury wasn't my fault at all. She had twisted her ankle on purpose just to draw Mom's attention away. She did it so that I—whose spine had snapped from the fall—wouldn't receive treatment in time.

And yet, Mom believed it without question. In her eyes, I was the one who deserved to die. I was the liar who was forever making trouble and using various clumsy excuses to compete with Cindy for her affection.

I closed my eyes and felt my life slipping away at a terrifying speed.

During these few minutes that Mom spent fussing over Cindy, my body jolted again and again as the defibrillator pressed down on my chest.

In the emergency room, a nurse shouted anxiously, "The patient has no will to survive. The resuscitation isn't working!"

A doctor responded, "Wait. Her heartbeat is coming back! Call her family! If they say a few words to encourage her, we might be able to bring her back!"

Mom's phone suddenly rang.

She picked it up, and from the other end came an urgent voice, "Are you Flora Saddler's family? She's in an extremely critical condition. We're still trying to resuscitate her. Could you say a few words to encourage her?"

Mom froze for a moment. Her expression shifted slightly before settling into even deeper disgust.

She didn't hesitate at all before scolding, "Flora, how long are you going to keep pretending? How dare you team up with other people to lie to me now? Are you threatening me with your death now? You've grown awfully bold, haven't you?"

A threat? How could this be a threat?

As I looked at Mom, my heart ached even more.

She stood up, and veins popped on her hand that was gripping the phone. "How can you still be obsessed about competing with Cindy for attention at a time like this? Don't you care that Cindy twisted her ankle and almost lost her chance to compete forever?

"Listen to me. If you want to die, then hurry up and die! The moment you're gone, I'll be the first to throw a celebration!"

With that, she hung up and slammed the phone onto the nightstand, looking extremely furious.

She fumed, "Flora really has some nerve! As if pretending to be sick once wasn't enough. Now, she even staged being in a critical condition. What's next? Is she going to say she's dead?"

Cindy comforted her, "Don't get mad, Mom. Maybe Flora just wants to trick you into going to her. She didn't mean to upset you."