Kidnapped 100 Times, I Refused to Go Home

I was kidnapped 99 times by my husband Caleb Hayes's enemies.

The hundredth time, I cut my ropes and escaped home, just wanting to fall into his arms and cry.

But at the door, men's and women's clothes were strewn across the floor. The tie I'd given him for our anniversary was draped over a piece of sexy lingerie.

From the bedroom, Willow Fairmont's voice drifted out. "Caleb, you have Mia kidnapped every time you want to avoid taking her out, and then you sleep with me. What exactly is she to you?"

Through the crack in the door, Caleb's low chuckle echoed.

"What can Mia compare to you? She doesn't even have a high school diploma. She's too embarrassing to bring out."

"Besides, even if she found out, what could an orphan with no money or power do?"

I froze, my blood running cold.

It turned out that every single kidnapping over the past five years had been orchestrated by him.

But he didn't know that my billionaire parents had just reconnected with me three days ago.

Mia POV

I was kidnapped 99 times by my husband Caleb Hayes's enemies.

During the 100th kidnapping, I used a small knife hidden in my shoe to cut the ropes and escape.

Stumbling and scrambling to my feet, my first thought was to go home.

Caleb must be frantic, searching for me.

But when I opened the door, what I saw were men's and women's clothes scattered from the entryway into the living room.

Among them was the tie I'd given Caleb for our fourth wedding anniversary.

Draped over the tie was a piece of sexy lingerie.

My mind went blank, and my breath hitched.

I stiffly walked toward the bedroom, the intimate sounds growing clearer as I approached.

"Caleb, every time you need a date for a public event, you have Mia kidnapped and send me in her place. I'm the one you're sleeping with, so who's really your wife? Aren't you afraid she'll find out?"

"Or is it that Mia just can't satisfy you?"

The voice belonged to Willow Fairmont, Caleb's former arranged marriage partner, and supposedly his enemy.

Yet now, despite her provocative words, her tone was clearly triumphant.

Then, Caleb's husky, satisfied voice came from behind the half-closed door.

"What can Mia compare to you?"

"Her embarrassing appearance at her first formal event cost me a major project and made me a laughingstock for a year."

"Business is war, and the woman by a man's side reflects his capability. I can't have a woman without even a high school diploma standing beside me. She just lacks the refinement I need."

"Besides, even if she found out, what could she do?"

Caleb sounded supremely confident. "She'd never give up the status of Mrs. Hayes now."

"I only have her kidnapped because I'm afraid she'll make a scene if she knows. It's a hassle."

Willow chuckled. "Then why not just drug her? We could even do whatever we want while she's incapacitated. Wouldn't that be more exciting?"

"Drugging her..."

Caleb mused for a moment, then replied lightly, "Drugging her would be too harsh on her body. Kidnapping is more straightforward."

He laughed, teasing, "What, are you jealous? Want a title? How about being my mistress?"

"You think you qualify as my lover?" Willow wasn't offended. "Don't forget who called me a bitch and then crawled into my bed."

"Yes, I fell first. From the first time I saw you, I was captivated."

"Willow, I'll tell them to keep Mia for a few more days... will you stay with me for another week?"

The atmosphere grew increasingly intimate, and I couldn't bear to listen anymore.

I fled from what, just a second ago, had felt like my safest haven.

I ran faster and faster, but my leg injury, still not fully healed from a previous kidnapping, flared up.

With a thud, I fell into the mud from the recent rain, splattering myself from head to toe. My elbow scraped raw, leaving me utterly disheveled.

"Don't cry." I bit down hard on my lower lip, forcing myself to hold back the tears.

"Mia, there's nothing to cry about!"

From childhood, when I was homeless with no parents, I didn't cry. When I was robbed of food and beaten on the ground, I didn't cry. Every time I fell, I never cried.

I shouldn't cry now either.

But tears welled up uncontrollably.

It turned out that all my suffering over the past five years had been inflicted by Caleb.

From the first kidnapping, I was pushed from a third-story window, breaking my leg.

During the second kidnapping, I was so traumatized that I miscarried the baby I was carrying, making it impossible for me to conceive again.

The third kidnapping left me with claustrophobia. I nearly suffocated.

By the 99th kidnapping, I was suffering from severe PTSD.

I was terrified of strangers, the dark, ropes. Any small fright would send me into trembling fits and make me vomit.

At my worst, I spent three months in the hospital, surviving only on IV drips, unable to eat anything.

My stomach churned. Even though I was safe now, the illness struck, and I couldn't stop dry heaving.

I began to sob softly, then burst into uncontrollable tears.

It was as if I needed to release all the love I had for Caleb.

It started twenty years ago, when I was six and saved a dying Caleb.

We scavenged for food together, hid from human traffickers, and then entered the same orphanage.

When I was in tenth grade, the orphanage closed, and we ended up on the streets.

Our teacher said Caleb's grades meant he had a good chance of getting into a prestigious university like Harvard. I couldn't bear for him to miss a life-changing opportunity, so I started working to support his education.

During our poorest times, I gave him all my money, surviving on instant noodles once a day for three months.

Caleb watched me waste away, his eyes red as he promised, "Mia, I will give you the best life possible."

His promise was fulfilled in another way.

After graduating from Harvard, the Hayes family found him.

Still with grease stains from the kitchen on my pants, I was brought by Caleb to their opulent mansion.

The Hayes family was extremely displeased with me, threatening Caleb with disinheritance if he didn't break up with me.

"Who are you to be his wife?"

Caleb immediately took me to register our marriage.

"My Mia deserves all the best things in the world. I can disown myself from your family, but I will only marry her in this lifetime."

So, when Caleb said he was worried I'd be kidnapped by more enemies and therefore never appeared with me in public or in the media, I understood.

No matter how much pain I suffered because of him, I never blamed him.

But I failed to notice that Caleb had changed long ago.

From the first formal event I attended, where, unaccustomed to high heels, I was intentionally tripped, and a champagne tower spilled all over me.

I became a laughingstock.

But that wasn't my last public embarrassment.

Some people laughed because I didn't understand French and deliberately taught me to insult myself in the language.

They mocked my cheap food, called my name old-fashioned, and covered their noses, saying I smelled.

I endured it.

I thought as long as Caleb didn't find me embarrassing, it didn't matter.

But now, his heart belonged to another woman.

All that was left for me was deceit and pain.

If that's the case, then I don't want him anymore.

I don't want our twenty years together.

Wiping away my tears, I stood up and borrowed a stranger's phone to call his mother.

"As you wish, I agree to divorce Caleb."

Mia POV

Afraid I would change my mind, she demanded I come sign the divorce papers the next day.

"You don't need to worry about Caleb. Don't tell him about this. Just wait a month until the divorce is finalized, and then leave immediately."

"And of course, you won't get a penny."

I had no objection.

No sooner had I hung up than a Maybach screeched to a halt on the roadside.

Caleb got out of the car and strode quickly to my side, not caring about the dirt on me as he hugged me tightly.

"Mia, I was so worried about you!"

He held me as if he wanted to absorb me into his body, his voice trembling with obvious urgency.

In the past, every time I was rescued, I only felt safe in his arms.

But now, as I smelled Willow's perfume on him, I only felt revulsion and a chill throughout my body.

"Worried about me?" My voice was cold. "Were you really worried?"

When he laughed about having me kidnapped for a few more days, was he worried about me, or was he savoring Willow's kiss?

Caleb keenly sensed I was different from usual, assuming it was just because I was traumatized.

When he saw the scratches on my hand, his expression changed.

"How did you hurt your hand? Did you get injured while escaping? Does it hurt?"

"I'm sorry, it's my fault. I failed to protect you again. Don't be afraid, we're going home."

Without waiting for my answer, Caleb picked me up and placed me in the car.

Less than an hour later, the mansion was spotless, with no trace of another woman.

After applying medicine to my wounds, Caleb was about to hold me and sing my favorite songs repeatedly, as he had the ninety-nine times before.

But I refused his touch.

"I want to be alone today."

Caleb paused but didn't seem to suspect anything.

The next morning, after signing the divorce papers, I went to the orphanage to sort things out before my departure.

After Caleb brought me back to the Hayes family, I gradually used my savings to build an orphanage.

Even when my condition wasn't suitable for work after being kidnapped, I continued to serve as director, personally managing its affairs.

But now that I was leaving, I needed to arrange for the children's future.

The vice-director was the best candidate.

We grew up in the same orphanage, and I trusted her character and ability.

Things were a bit sudden, but Chloe eventually solemnly promised not to let me down.

"Mia, you're leaving? Where are you going?"

I shook my head. "I don't know, I just want to live in a different city."

"Are you going with Caleb? I still remember when he was ten, someone wanted to adopt him, but he clung to you and refused to leave, saying he couldn't be separated from you."

I paused, not answering.

But Caleb had changed.

Once a person changes, all their past promises mean nothing.

Now, I just wanted to be as far away from him as possible.

Chloe was about to say something else when a girl suddenly rushed into the office, smiling and bowing to me.

"I haven't had a chance to thank you personally. I got an internship at Hayes Corporation. If Mr. Hayes hadn't given me an interview opportunity because of you, my qualifications would have surely been screened out at the resume stage."

I was a bit taken aback. "An interview?"

Chloe explained, "You didn't know? Caleb has actually been helping you all along."

"Not just with the internship. Last month, when you were hospitalized, a girl who had been abandoned was taken back by her parents. If Caleb hadn't intervened, that girl would have been sold to Southeast Asia. Several children in the orphanage who needed surgery, he connected us with hospital specialists and paid for their treatments."

"Yes, yes!" Lily, the girl next to us, chimed in. "Mr. Hayes cares so much about you! He's been secretly donating to the orphanage and said you weren't well and he didn't want you to worry too much about the place."

"He said he would prepare everything for you."

I was stunned for a long while.

In the five years since returning to the Hayes family, Caleb had not truly gained his parents' approval or real power within the company.

Therefore, I wouldn't trouble him with my own affairs.

Even during the early days of establishing the orphanage, when funds were scarce, I never asked for his money.

It turned out Caleb had done so much behind my back.

But then I thought, what else had he hidden from me?

Mia POV

After spending a week completing the handover, I returned to the mansion with a complicated heart, only to see Willow standing in my room.

She held a lighter, using it to set fire to a stuffed doll.

"What are you doing?!"

My face instantly drained of color.

I ran over, snatched the doll, and extinguished the flames with my bare hands, but it was too late.

The cloth doll, once ignited, burned quickly. Even with my desperate attempts to save it, only a few charred cotton remnants and shredded fabric remained.

This doll was the only thing I had carried with me during my homeless days, and my only connection to my birth parents.

I had carefully preserved it for twenty years, and now it was gone, just like that.

"How dare you destroy my property?!"

Willow, however, merely chuckled dismissively. "Oh, I thought it was just some trash."

"You're getting so worked up over a piece of garbage. How can you be Caleb Hayes's wife and still be so common?"

"Did you get addicted to picking up trash when you were a kid?"

I frowned. "What nonsense are you talking about!"

The commotion attracted Caleb and Willow's mother, but before they reached us, Willow suddenly slapped herself.

By the time I realized what she was doing, Willow had completely changed her expression, her face a mask of grievance as she rushed into her mother's arms, who had just entered the room.

"Mom, Mia suddenly lost it and slapped me because of a broken doll."

Willow's mother's gaze instantly turned icy.

"Caleb, are you trying to insult us? My daughter finally forgave you for breaking off your engagement, and now you let her suffer such humiliation? Do you still want our families' collaboration to continue?"

Caleb's face darkened. "Mia, what are you doing? Apologize at once!"

The blisters on my hand from the fire stung, and I gritted my teeth. "Apologize for what? Can't you see this blatant setup? I didn't hit her; she burned my doll!"

"You know that doll was the only thing my parents left me!"

Willow, her eyes red and swollen with tears, said, "I'm sorry, Mia. That doll was so tattered, I thought it was garbage. I didn't know what it meant to you."

"But your parents didn't want you, and keeping that doll won't make them want you now."

Her words completely infuriated me. I bristled, like a cat whose tail had been stepped on, and lunged forward, wanting to slap Willow's provoking face.

But before I could even touch Willow, Caleb shoved me away. My head slammed directly against a table, the pain so intense that my vision blurred.

"Enough, Mia! Look at where we are!"

"This isn't a big deal; why would you hit her?"

Caleb's face was grim. "Besides, is she wrong? It's been over twenty years. If your parents really wanted you, they would have found you by now."

"Hitting someone over a broken doll. When did you become so unreasonable?"

"You may not have parents to care for you, but others do! Apologize!"

The man before me spoke the most hurtful words.

He had personally witnessed people pinning me down, forcing me to admit I was unwanted trash.

I was beaten until I coughed blood, but I never broke down.

Yet, he would still, for Willow, stab a knife into my heart.

And the sharpest blade, no less.

I suddenly laughed.

Laughed at my own foolish self-pity.

He said he would prepare everything for me, secretly handling the orphanage's problems.

I had thought he at least held a little genuine feeling for me.

Slap! I landed a harsh blow across Caleb's face.

Before anyone could react, I raised my hand again.

Another slap!

"Caleb, this is unreasonable."

My voice was ice-cold.

Caleb's face darkened, and he, too, was enraged.

After all, even during his time on the streets, no one had ever hit him like that.

And after five years with the Hayes family, he was no longer the orphan who had to endure to survive.

"I've spoiled you too much, allowing your old bad habits to fester into this. You're due for a bit of hardship."

Mia POV

Caleb locked me in the basement and didn't even send food down.

"Go reflect on your mistakes. You'll come out and eat when you admit you were wrong."

Over the years of being kidnapped, I had developed severe stomach problems.

I also had nyctophobia; I had to sleep with the lights on, or I would tremble uncontrollably.

Caleb knew all this.

He had seen me white-faced with stomach pain and had stayed up all night caring for me; he had cried with concern when he saw me huddled in a corner, shivering.

Yet, he still did this to me because of Willow.

I laughed, a truly bitter laugh.

This stalemate lasted three days.

On the evening of the third day, huddled in the corner, I received an audio message from Willow:

"Back then, I was afraid of her rude and unreasonable personality, which is why I faked her kidnappings."

"You wouldn't believe it, there was a girl who sent Caleb a love letter once, and Mia had her face disfigured."

"Honestly, I somewhat regret impulsively rushing into marriage with her back then."

My heart felt a dull ache, and I gritted my teeth, suppressing a surge of bitterness.

Caleb only remembered me disfiguring that person's face but forgot that the girl had deliberately pushed me down the stairs first.

At the time, that girl had sent him a love letter only because she had made a deal with someone.

To date him and sabotage his grades to knock him from the top of his class.

I hadn't told him these things.

But it made him wrongly believe I was jealous.

After he got involved with Willow, he feared I would harm her, so he chose to hurt me instead.

I suddenly felt like a complete joke.

As if the audio wasn't enough, Willow continued.

"Mia, that day you escaped, you heard the sounds from the mansion, didn't you?"

"Your husband plans to take me to Australia to buy a vineyard as compensation. Guess what, will you be kidnapped again?"

She sent me details of all the places she and Caleb had visited over the years and what they had done.

Last month, they drank wine under the Eiffel Tower.

At that time, I was abandoned in a desolate area, listening to wolves howl for nights.

Last winter, they went to the Southern Hemisphere to enjoy spring.

At that time, I was being harassed with lewd comments by kidnappers, too terrified to sleep, clutching my clothes in fear for a week.

They traveled the world.

And these locations were all places Caleb and I had wished to visit together when we were kids, huddled under blankets.

It turned out that the wishes two people made together could be fulfilled with someone else.

While I prayed countless times for Caleb to save me from my predicament, he was gently kissing Willow, laughing so happily.

The contrast was too stark; my stomach clenched physiologically, the pain making me break into a cold sweat.

Eventually, I even threw up a mouthful of blood.

I fainted.

I woke up again in a hospital, with an IV drip in my arm.

Caleb sat by my bed, his eyes shadowed with dark circles, clearly having stayed up all night to care for me.

We looked at each other in silence.

After a long time, he sighed deeply and was the first to lower his head.

"Alright, it's my fault. I shouldn't have said such harsh things. My mistake."

"But you also have to understand me. You slapped me in front of our guests; where does that leave my dignity?"

"But you can't bully Willow anymore. You're so strong; how could a fragile young woman like her withstand your slap?"

He still thought it was my fault, but I no longer bothered to explain.

Whether he believed me or not, it didn't matter anymore.

Seeing my silence, Caleb thought I was still angry. He took my hand and coaxed,

"Alright, don't let this affect our relationship. Your birthday is in two days. For the past few years, you were either kidnapped or I was busy, so we never celebrated properly. This year, how about I take you to your favorite restaurant for your birthday?"

I pulled my hand away, closed my eyes, and said nothing.

There were still twenty days until the divorce was finalized.

Just twenty more days to endure.

On my birthday, a driver picked me up and took me to a private dining room at a restaurant.

After sitting down, it wasn't Caleb who arrived.

"Well, well, isn't this Caleb Hayes's little... woman? Why are you alone? Did Caleb leave you lonely?"

I looked over; it was Victor Thorne, a business partner of Caleb's.

He seemed to have been drinking, his face flushed, as he steadily advanced towards me.

I immediately realized his intent, and my scalp tingled with dread.

"What are you doing? Get away! Or I'll call for help!"

My threat had no effect. He lunged at me, pinning me to the ground with one hand and fumbling with my clothes with the other.

"Blame your husband! He's ruined my plans too many times. Today, I'm going to make him taste what it's like to have his wife humiliated!"

Mia POV

"Let go! Let go of me!"

"Help!"

I struggled, landing a punch on Victor's face, which completely enraged him.

His eyes were vicious, and he clamped his hands tightly around my throat.

"You want to die, don't you?!"

A sudden wave of suffocation washed over me. He really intended to kill me, and I couldn't break free.

Gradually, I lost my strength.

Just as I despaired, the private room door was kicked open.

The next second, Victor was yanked up by Caleb, his fists smashing into bone with increasing force.

Caleb's voice was as cold as ice.

"Who gave you the guts to lay a hand on my person?!"

Caleb was in a frenzy, his eyes blazing with a terrifying crimson.

After dealing with Victor, he carefully took off his jacket and draped it over me, his hands shaking as he held me.

"Mia, are you okay? It's over, I'm here."

Tears streamed uncontrollably from my eyes. I tried to say something but passed out.

When I woke up, it was night.

The marks on my neck had been treated with medicine. Caleb stood a short distance away, talking on the phone.

"Mom, Dad, I will press charges against Victor. Even if you object, even if it jeopardizes our collaboration with his family and costs the company, I will make him pay."

"I can't let Mia be wronged."

On the phone, his parents vehemently opposed him, but Caleb was no longer listening to them as he usually did.

His mother, furious, blurted out, "Mia is about to divorce you! Are you still going to jeopardize the company's development for her?"

My heart skipped a beat at her words.

Caleb frowned.

"Mom, what are you talking about?"

"I told you, even if Mia can never have children, I will not divorce her."

"She only has me now."

With that, he hung up the phone.

Seeing me open my eyes, he walked to the bedside, his coaxing voice so gentle it could melt ice.

"You're awake? Does anything hurt?"

"It's okay; the bad guy has been dealt with. No one will hurt you again."

My throat was terribly sore, and I couldn't speak for a moment.

"Throat hurts? Here, the doctor said drinking this medicine will help."

Caleb held the medicine and personally fed it to me.

For a moment, I was lost in a haze, feeling as if I had returned to the days when we relied on each other.

"Oh, right, I prepared a birthday gift for you."

After feeding me the medicine, Caleb pulled out a beautifully wrapped gift box.

Inside was a thick gold bangle, with roses carved all around its surface.

"You always said you'd buy gold when you had money. It's a bit late, and I didn't expect tonight to turn out like this, but... happy birthday, Mia."

He put the gold bangle on my wrist, held my hand, his expression sincere.

"I hope my Mia is always happy and joyful."

I was speechless.

If it had been before, I probably would have been moved to tears.

Moved that he remembered my casual remark.

But this gift came truly too late.

My throat injury wasn't severe enough to require hospitalization. Back home, I collapsed from exhaustion and fell asleep.

I woke up in the middle of the night due to discomfort in my throat and got out of bed to get a glass of warm water.

Passing Caleb's study, I overheard him talking on the phone with his lawyer friend.

"Caleb, I didn't realize you'd sacrifice your own wife to get revenge for Willow."

"But your plan was brilliant: drug Victor, make him lust after Mia and sexually harass her, then you swoop in as the hero, taking the moral and legal high ground to punish him."

"After this incident, the Thorne family is doomed, and he'll never dare to offend Willow again."

I was stunned, my blood freezing in my veins.

"But why didn't you let Willow handle Victor herself? With the Fairmont family's connections, Victor could have gotten a harsher sentence."

Caleb frowned.

"That method, while effective, carries risks."

"Victor is quite strong, and Mia has been good at fighting since she was a child, so she wouldn't truly be harmed. Unlike Willow; she's never even gotten a scratch since she was little, how could she endure a beating?"

"Aren't you afraid your wife would get hurt? No matter what, she's still a woman. Victor was so brutal then, what if..."

Caleb pressed his lips together, and there was a moment of silence.

After a while, he spoke softly:

"But what you said didn't happen, did it? Mia has always been strong. A few injuries are nothing. A little hardship, and I can compensate her."

"Besides, Mia offended Willow a few days ago, so this was a good opportunity to make amends to her."

"Willow is different."

His voice carried a note of preciousness. "She's a princess; how could I bear to let her suffer any hardship?"

Mia POV

Outside the door, I felt as if an invisible hand was squeezing my throat again.

I rubbed my dry eyes.

Looking at the gold bangle on my wrist, I smiled bitterly.

So, this was compensation.

So, resisting his parents to sue Victor wasn't for me after all.

In his eyes, what was I?

Injured, but it wouldn't hurt; wronged, but it was nothing.

I meant nothing at all!

Even though my heart ached, I was already numb. I didn't rush in to confront him; I just quietly returned to my room.

During my recovery, Caleb cared for me meticulously, except when he was at work.

Meanwhile, I began to deal with the things Caleb had given me.

I sold the gold bangle and all the luxury items Caleb had given me, converting everything into cash and depositing it into the orphanage's account.

With fifteen days left until the divorce was finalized, Caleb took me for a follow-up check-up at the hospital.

Willow came with us.

"I need a check-up, too. Caleb, can you give me a ride on the way? Mia, you don't mind, do you?"

Without waiting for my answer, she opened the car door and sat directly in the front passenger seat.

Caleb frowned slightly. "You should sit in the back. It's not appropriate for you to sit in front."

Willow pouted. "Oh, is that Mia's exclusive seat? But I always sit in the front passenger seat. Otherwise, I won't go."

"Mia, do you mind if I take your seat?"

I ignored her and got into the car.

Willow paused for a moment, then smiled. "See? Even Mia doesn't care. Caleb, I don't care, I'm sitting in the front."

On the way, the car was filled only with Willow's sweet, delicate voice.

Caleb, however, responded distractedly, constantly checking me in the rearview mirror.

"Mia, what do you want to eat after your check-up? Should I cook for you personally?"

"Whatever."

Caleb was about to say something else when Willow suddenly reached into his suit pocket and exclaimed.

"Caleb, so my lipstick was here all along! No wonder I couldn't find it."

"It must have fallen in when you slept over at my place, I wasn't careful."

Her words were intimate, and Caleb instinctively looked at me, but I showed no reaction.

He hastily said, "Mia, I stayed overnight at Willow's house to discuss a project; it wasn't for any other reason. Don't misunderstand."

Willow also smiled and explained, "Yes, Mia, there's no way anything could happen between Caleb and me. Even though we're collaborating now, he and I will always be enemies."

I heard the provocation in her words.

I could foresee that if I hadn't discovered the truth about the kidnappings, if we hadn't divorced, then scenes like today, designed to cause 'misunderstanding,' would play out countless times in the future.

Once I questioned Caleb, I would be labeled as an unreasonable, crazy woman.

But I didn't want to be a crazy woman.

"Understood."

Caleb saw my cold reaction and was about to speak when suddenly, BAM! Our car was rear-ended directly by a large truck.

Through the rearview mirror, I saw the driver was Victor Thorne, who had escaped.

"Caleb Hayes, you want to send me to prison, you want to ruin me, right? Then let's die together!"

His eyes were savage, and his car sped wildly, clearly intending to take us all down with him.

Just as we were about to collide with the vehicle ahead, Caleb swerved the steering wheel sharply.

Our car slammed into the roadside barrier, and Victor's truck careened into the opposite lane, crashing into a large concrete barrier. Victor died instantly.

A dull pain exploded in my abdomen. In the second before I lost consciousness, I saw Caleb quickly shield Willow beneath him.

When I regained consciousness, I felt as though my internal organs had shifted. The immense pain made every breath feel like torture.

"Caleb, I'm in so much pain." Willow's face was covered in blood, and she cried piteously. "I've lost so much blood; am I going to die?"

"But I don't want to die..."

I saw Caleb tightly holding her hand, hooking his pinky finger to promise, "No, you won't. I won't let you die."

Beside me, there was no one.

All three of us were injured. Caleb's injuries were the lightest, and he could still walk.

Willow and I, however, were both lying on stretchers.

Nurses rushed over after checking our blood.

"Doctor, both patients are O-negative, but the hospital blood bank is out of O-negative blood. It'll take at least half an hour to get emergency blood delivered."

The doctor frowned. "That's too long."

Caleb quickly stepped forward. "I'm O-negative; I can donate blood to them."

"Doctor, he's also injured. We can't take too much. Right now, it's only enough for one patient."

"Which one first?"

The doctor pointed at me. "Give Mia the transfusion first. Willow can still speak and can wait for the blood to arrive. But Mia has lost too much blood. If she doesn't get a transfusion soon, she'll die."

At these words, Willow clung to Caleb, her wails suddenly escalating.

"Caleb, I hurt! Save me! I feel like I'm going to die!"

I strained against my heavy eyelids. I felt myself teetering on the edge of death. Only Caleb was familiar in this chaos; I wanted him to hold me.

I wanted to say I was scared, I was so cold.

And I hurt, too.

But I didn't even have the strength to speak.

In the silence, my eyes met Caleb's.

I also saw him hesitate, then point at Willow.

"Save her first."

The doctor tried to persuade him further, but Caleb insisted, "It's my blood. I say who gets saved first. Otherwise, I won't donate."

In that instant, I stopped myself.

I didn't want to say anything.

It was pointless.

In Caleb's eyes, I was no longer important.

It was a good thing I didn't love him anymore.

I would never love him again in this lifetime.

After a brief stalemate, the doctor didn't dare wait any longer. She told Caleb to get ready while urging the nurses to rush the emergency blood delivery.

That day, waiting for the blood, I felt like I was going through all the pain I'd ever experience in my life.

Every breath tugged at the wound in my abdomen, every tiny movement hurt so much it made my vision blur.

I could hear Caleb constantly encouraging Willow.

I wanted to cry, but my tears seemed to have dried up along with my blood.