Ninety-Nine Times Does It

I packed my few belongings into my suitcase. I had originally requested time off school for my wedding, but that wasn't needed now.

I was just about to call my professor to let him know I was returning to the lab tomorrow when my phone suddenly rang.

It was a call from Brandon. I assumed he was calling to figure out what to do about the wedding. I never imagined he would lash out at me the moment I answered.

"Sadie, what did you do to Nina? Why is she hospitalized?"

This was a man who was usually calm and poised, yet he had lost his composure twice in the same day. The first was when he heard Nina was returning to the country; this was the second.

The funniest part was that he was supposed to be my fiancé.

"She had an allergic reaction."

"It was your fault, wasn't it? How could you do that to your own sister?" Brandon sounded very angry. "Sadie, I always thought you had a kind heart. I can't believe you put Nina in the hospital for something so trivial. Are you even human?"

I couldn't even be bothered to explain as I listened to his accusations.

"Yeah, I'm not human. It's all my fault. I'll apologize to her when she gets back. Is that enough? If you're done talking, I'm hanging up. I still have things to do."

Brandon was taken aback. He never expected me to react like that.

Before this, we had fought countless times over Nina. On our dates, he would get so caught up with texting her that he would forget I was with him.

When we had meals together, he never remembered foods I had to avoid but always made sure to order her favorites.

I had screamed and questioned him countless times, but I always got the same response—I was overthinking things; Nina was my sister, and he was just taking care of her for me.

His indifference to the situation made me look like a petty lunatic. My parents and Adrian took his side too, saying I was too controlling.

So, during the year Nina was abroad, I secretly took pleasure in it.

But I was so starved for love that I forgot shattered glass could cut. I had clung to the broken shards stubbornly, unwilling to let go. Even now, my hands were covered in blood.

"Sadie, that better be the case. If anything happens to Nina again, you can forget about the wedding!" Brandon warned.

It sounded like he had just gotten out of his car and closed the door. His surroundings grew noisier. He must have arrived at the hospital—of course, he had gone rushing to see my dear little sister.

He was blatantly using me as an excuse to care for the woman he truly loved. Did he really think I was a fool? I sneered and hung up, then reached out to my professor.

By the time my parents and Adrian finally dragged their exhausted bodies home, I had already finished packing and was ready to move back to campus.

I was pulling my suitcase out the door when I heard Mom sigh.

"If only Brandon didn't come from a poor family, he would've been such a good match for Nina. Did you see how thoughtful he was at the hospital?"

I froze, then heard Dad add, "Yeah, he's a good-looking young man. It seems like Nina is quite fond of him too. We shouldn't have introduced Brandon to Sadie."

"Stop your wishful thinking. I won't allow Nina to live a poor life with Brandon. He's better off with Sadie. They're a better match. Nina is meant to be a famous pianist, after all. And he'll still be able to dote on Nina as her brother-in-law."

Mom continued speaking absentmindedly, but when she looked up and saw me standing on the stairs, she was so startled that she staggered backward.

"S-Sadie, what are you doing here?"