Paying a Debt With My Life

Only I knew Ethan never wanted me to have his child.

The first day he decided to be intimate with me, he asked his private doctor to embed a contraceptive implant under my skin behind his parents' backs.

I was allergic to the silicone capsule, so my left arm in which it was embedded was always slightly red and swollen. The itch was unbearable.

However, Ethan only cared about satisfying his desires and paid no attention to my health.

Afraid that his parents might find out, he forbade me from removing the implant. Therefore, I could only put up with it.

Three months later, the itch disappeared, but my left arm was unusually swollen. Finally, I fell unconscious in the Sadler's residence.

I heard the siren of the ambulance. I heard the doctor say that because of the severe allergic reaction, my body resisted the implant. As a result, there was a leak in the core where the hormone was stored.

My body absorbed too much of the substance, so I would never get pregnant.

I was glad that I could finally escape the torture of the indescribable itch. But at the same time, my heart bled for I could never be a mother.

After that incident, Brianna treated me with increasing disdain, and my life in the Sadler family was akin to treading on eggshells.

Ethan probably felt guilty, so he was nicer to me. He no longer pinched me at the waist or scorched me with his cigarette.

As he had nothing to worry about anymore, he became increasingly attracted to my body. In the dark, he'd imagine me as Rosalie and force me to do various embarrassing actions. I could only weep in silence under him.

Often, I wondered when those days would come to an end, until one day, he slipped and fell while taking his shower.

Not only was he taller than me by several inches, but he was also much heavier than me. I couldn't stop his fall in time. He bumped his head, whereas I sprained my leg.

That day, Brianna slapped me and locked me into the small guest room. Ethan was taken to the hospital.

After the check-up, he was found to be alright. In fact, his once-compressed optic nerve showed signs of healing. Even the doctors said this was a blessing in disguise and he might recover his sight in no time.

On the day he was discharged, his eyes could indeed sense a faint light.

I was released from the guest room. For the first time ever, I was treated like his wife.

They got me a private doctor to treat my leg. The housekeepers prepared my meals and did my laundry. From that day onward, Brianna stopped asking me to do those tiring chores, and I started having allowances.

I learned a massage technique from the doctor and helped Ethan massage his eyes every single day.

Finally, I could finally have a life like everyone else.

During Ethan's first follow-up at the hospital, his eyes could already differentiate darkness and light.

As I'd been coughing for more than a month, I did a check-up at the hospital too.

A month later, Ethan went for his second follow-up. He could start seeing blurred, overlapping images by then.

Meanwhile, I received my medical report. The doctor suggested I undergo a biomarker screening for lung cancer and a case biopsy.

I didn't know how I completed the examination and returned to the Sadler residence.

The Sadlers were happy to learn that Ethan's condition was improving, but I returned to my room with a numb expression.

All I knew was that I had contracted lung cancer, and my days were numbered.

But I was only 28! I hadn't lived my life to the fullest!

I refused to believe it. While Ethan was in a good mood, I got his consent to leave the house and did another check-up in another hospital.

However, I had to accept the reality. The results of the medical check-up were exactly the same as the previous one.

Another month later, Ethan went for his third follow-up. The blood clot compressing the optic nerve had dispersed. He could now perceive another's figure. The doctor said he could soon see again.

Meanwhile, I was diagnosed to have contracted end-stage lung cancer. The cancer had spread across half of my lungs.