My Saintly Father Tried to Destroy Me

My dad, Sebastian Miller, was a total saint.

When I was a kid, he made me give some bread to a homeless man down the street.

The man grabbed me and groped me under my clothes. I ran home, sobbing hysterically.

But Sebastian just shrugged it off. So what if he touched you a little? He didn't mean any harm. He just likes kids.

"We live in a civilized country. What could he possibly do to you?"

When I was ten, Sebastian threw his back out. A neighbor came over, asking him to help move some heavy furniture.

I felt bad for my dad, so I told the neighbor the truth about his back and politely declined on his behalf.

When Sebastian found out, he locked me in my room and beat me with a belt for a whole day.

"You ruined my perfect reputation!"

"Saying that makes the neighbors think I'm just making up excuses to avoid helping them!"

Later, a young thug named Mark Vance moved in next door.

Sebastian forced me to cook meals for him and clean his filthy apartment.

On my eighteenth birthday, I overheard my dad talking to the other neighbors.

"Im planning to have Kate marry Mark. With his background, hell probably never find a wife otherwise."

I confronted him immediately, but Sebastian pointed a finger at me and screamed.

"You need to make sacrifices! I'm trying to build good karma for you!"

"I've raised you for eighteen years! How long are you going to be a parasite?!"

He locked me in a room with that thug.

During the struggle, Mark drove a paring knife straight into my heart.

When I opened my eyes again, I was back to the day the thug first moved in next door.

The neighbors were gossiping downstairs.

"The new kid who just moved in, Mark? He always glares at people with those creepy, shifty eyes. It's terrifying!"

"He smells like a trash can. Hes eighteen, but does he even know how to brush his teeth or wash his face?"

"Do you think he's a criminal hiding out here?"

"So scary. I'm staying far away from him."

I woke up with a gasp, cold sweat drenching my back.

The horrific memories of my past life flashed vividly before my eyes.

After Mark stabbed me to death, my soul hadn't departed right away.

I had to watch as Sebastian and Mark carried my cold body back to my room and forged a suicide note.

When the local reporters came to interview him, Sebastian sobbed uncontrollably on camera.

"Kate was always a troubled child. She took the tiniest things to heart."

"I raised her all by myself, and she just abandoned me like this. What am I supposed to do now?"

People online flooded his comments with sympathy, calling me an ungrateful, selfish daughter.

Sebastian seized the opportunity to start a TikTok account.

He did daily live streams, crying about his tragic life while selling cheap products. He made a fortune.

Thanks to the "saintly" reputation he had built over the years, whenever someone questioned his parenting, the neighbors rushed to defend him.

"Sebastian is the sweetest man alive. He deserves every penny!"

"What a wonderful father. It's Kate who didn't appreciate him."

"Shes gone, so why shouldn't Sebastian make a living? Let the poor man be happy."

"It's because of trolls like you that good people don't dare to do good deeds anymore."

Sebastian didn't just get incredibly rich; he became a celebrated local hero.

My soul hovered beside him, watching it all.

I couldn't understand why my own biological father would cover up for my murderer.

Until one day, I saw him whispering to a photograph of a woman.

"Maria, don't worry. I will take good care of your son."

"Not ending up with you is the biggest regret of my life. I will never let you down again."

That was when I realized the truth. Mark was the son of Sebastians first love, Maria, and her ex-husband.

Maria's ex-husband had died, and she had remarried into a filthy rich family.

Terrified that her new billionaire husband would find out she had an adult son, she dumped Mark onto Sebastian.

How utterly hilarious.

"What are you guys gossiping about?" Sebastian walked over, carrying a grocery basket.

He smiled warmly. "Don't talk about the poor boy behind his back. Life hasn't been easy for him. We should help him out as much as we can."

One neighbor frowned and spoke up.

"Im not getting anywhere near him. The other day, my grandson saw him standing alone in the yard and tried to give him a lollipop."

"Mark literally shoved my grandson to the ground and screamed profanities at him. The kid is mentally unstable!"

Sebastians smile faded into a disapproval frown.

"Don't say that. He was probably just having a bad day. Teenagers go through rebellious phases."

The neighbor opened her mouth to argue, but shrugged, too embarrassed to keep arguing with the neighborhood "saint."

Another neighbor, Bella, smiled and patted Sebastian on the shoulder.

"Hey, Sebastian, my son absolutely loved those fried chicken wings you made last time. When are you making them again?"

"What a coincidence!" Sebastian lifted his basket.

"I was actually planning on making some today. I'll send them over to your place later."

Bella nodded, taking his labor for granted.

As soon as we walked through our front door, Sebastian tossed the grocery basket at me.

"Kate, go fry those wings. Bella is waiting."

I glanced at him and said slowly, "Dad, last time you had me deliver those wings to Bella, she knew immediately that you didn't cook them."

"I had to make up a bunch of excuses to cover for you. If you keep doing this, what will the neighbors say?"

"Your perfect reputation will be ruined."

Sebastians eyes widened in panic. He quickly grabbed the basket back. "Fine, don't worry about it. I'll do it myself."

"Honestly, you've lived with me for so long and you still haven't learned my recipes. What are you even good for?"

I ignored his complaining and went straight to my room.

My dad was a "saint" to the world, but his sainthood was entirely built on exploiting me.

When I was five, he made me give bread to a homeless man who groped me and tried to pull up my skirt.

When I cried and told him, he snapped, "What lies are you telling at your age?"

"He just likes children. Why would he do that to you?"

"You have a dirty mind to think of a poor man like that."

Whenever neighbors needed help, he agreed instantly.

But once the door was closed, he dumped all the work on me while he soaked up their praise.

In middle school, I was competing for a scholarship meant for low-income students. He forced me to withdraw my application.

"We are poor, yes, but there are students who need that money way more than you do!"

Afterward, he complained, "It's all your fault we're so broke. If you didn't have to go to school, I wouldn't be struggling so much!"

Yet, he conveniently forgot that our poverty was entirely his own doing.

When my parents got married, my grandfather gave Sebastian five thousand dollars.

Back then, that was a small fortune.

But to please his so-called "friends," Sebastian lent the money to whoever asked, without even asking for a receipt.

"Sebastian, I want to buy a motorcycle. I'm short five hundred bucks."

"Sebastian, my kid needs a laptop for school. You have to lend me the money!"

When my mom found out and went to demand the money back, Sebastians friends literally beat her up and threw her out.

Instead of defending her, Sebastian slapped her across the face.

"You embarrassed me! You made me look cheap!"

Later, in a desperate attempt to make the money back, he got hooked on gambling.

After losing everything, the other gamblers mocked him.

"Sebastian, you have nothing left to bet."

Sebastian grabbed a young me and threw me onto the poker table.

"I still have Kate! If I lose again, shes yours to keep."

My mom couldn't take it anymore. She packed her bags and left when I was four, never to return.

I never blamed her.

Sebastian didn't love her, and he was a terrible husband. She had no reason to stay in this living hell.

I started working part-time jobs in middle school to help pay off Sebastians debts.

I thought that after all these years of surviving together, we had some kind of father-daughter bond.

But I was wrong. He didnt just want to ruin my life; he actively helped Mark murder me.

"Kate! What are you daydreaming for? Answer the door!"

A loud, aggressive banging interrupted my thoughts. I opened the door to find Mark standing there, scowling.

Sebastian rushed over with a huge grin. "Mark! Come on in. Have you eaten?"

Mark rolled his eyes. "Sebastian, my mom told me to come to you if I needed anything."

Sebastians face lit up with absolute devotion. "Of course! Whatever you need, I will"

"Give me a thousand bucks. I need it," Mark interrupted rudely.

Sebastian froze. After a brief pause, he turned to me.

"Kate, go get that thousand dollars you saved up and give it to Mark."

I scoffed internally. I had been working non-stop, and only managed to clear the last of Sebastians debts last year.

This year, I had finally saved up a thousand dollars. I was planning to use it for SAT prep classes.

And my dad couldn't wait to hand it over to his lover's son.

I gasped, putting on a shocked expression.

"Oh my god, Dad! Why didn't you tell me earlier? I just lent all that money to a friend."

Sebastian pointed a finger at me, screaming, "Kate! What is wrong with you?! How could you lend that much money without asking me first?!"

"But Dad, didn't you always say that people only borrow money when they're in an emergency? There was no time to ask!"

Sebastian choked on his words, his face turning red.

I quickly added, "And Dad, my friends were so grateful. They said only a parent as generous as you could raise a daughter so kind-hearted."

"They said you're a true saint. If I had said no, wouldn't that make you look bad?"

Sebastians mouth hung open, his face flushing crimson.

Mark snapped impatiently, "Do you have the cash or not? If not, Im calling my mom."

"Yes, yes, we do!" Sebastian stammered. He reluctantly pulled out his own wallet and started counting bills. Mark snatched the cash right out of his hand.

Without a word of thanks, Mark turned to leave. Sebastian yelled after him, "Mark! At least take some sandwiches! You can't skip meals!"

He grabbed two sandwiches and ran after him, glaring back at me like I was a criminal.

Just like in my past life, Sebastian started demanding that I cater to Mark's every whim.

His excuses were always the same: "We're neighbors. You help him now, and he'll help you in the future."

He knew I used to be soft-hearted, so he constantly tried to make me feel pity for Mark.

"Poor Mark, he dropped out of school so young. What kind of future does he have?"

"He and I are just men. We don't have a woman's touch. Just think of it as helping me out with some chores..."

I smiled and nodded.

"Sure, Dad."

Then, I took the food Sebastian made for Mark, picked out every single piece of meat, ate it, and left Mark with nothing but cold, plain vegetables.

When Sebastian ordered me to clean Mark's bathroom, I poured half a bottle of body wash all over the tile floor.

Every other day, I would hear Mark screaming and cursing from next door after slipping and falling.

I even caught some frogs and mice and slid them under his bedsheets.

In my past life, I would have been terrified of those creatures.

But now, I knew that human hearts were infinitely filthier than any pest.

Three days later, Mark came over and kicked our door open.

His face was contorted with rage. "Sebastian! If you can't take care of me, don't make promises to my mom!"

"Is Kate trying to humiliate me on purpose?!"

He got more and more worked up, spitting insults. "You useless, pathetic old simp!"

That struck a nerve. Sebastian, losing his temper, gave Mark a light shove.

He didn't expect Mark to completely lose his mind. Mark tackled Sebastian to the ground, pinning him down and punching him repeatedly in the face.

Marks eyes were bloodshot, his face monstrous.

Sebastian was terrified. He looked at me, screaming, "Kate! Help me! Call the police! Do something!"

I stood three meters away, screaming in "panic." "Stop! Please stop hitting him!"

But I didn't take a single step forward, making sure I was completely out of harm's way.

Sebastians face was swollen, and he could barely speak. He weakly grabbed Mark's arm, mumbling, "Stop... stop... I'll make... I'll make Kate move into your place. Shell take care of you twenty-four hours a day..."

Hearing this, Mark stopped. He stood up, wiping the sweat from his forehead, and stared at me.

His eyes ran up and down my body with a disgusting, slimy gaze that made me want to vomit.

Sebastian dragged himself up, trying to act like nothing happened as he patted the dust off his shirt.

"Kate, starting today, you do whatever Mark tells you to do."

"You have to take care of him perfectly. No slacking off."

"To make sure you do your best, you should start viewing yourself as Marks future wife."

"You know how a good wife is supposed to treat her husband, right?"

"Be submissive. Take care of his laundry, his cleaning, his meals. Everything."

I burst out laughing.

"Im so sorry, Dad," I said, dripping with fake regret. "But I just got approved for the school dorms. I'm moving out tomorrow."

His face contorted with anger, but I cut him off before he could yell.

"The boarding fee is non-refundable. I already paid it."

"And if I suddenly back out, the school administration will want to know why."

"I can't exactly tell them that my dad is forcing me to drop out to be a live-in maid for a random eighteen-year-old guy, right?"

"If I say that, what would people think of you?"

Sebastians face turned a violent shade of purple. He pointed a trembling finger at me.

"Kate... you... you're talking back to me now?!"

I added with a sweet smile, "Dad, you'll have to take great care of Mark yourself. To show your ultimate devotion, maybe you should start acting like his real dad."

I meant it as a sarcastic jab, but to my horror, Sebastian froze.

A creepy, blissful smile slowly spread across his face, as if he was daydreaming about that exact scenario.

I was completely speechless. That very night, I packed my bags and moved straight into the school dorms.

As I walked out of the apartment complex, I noticed the door next door was cracked open.

In the shadows, Mark's hostile, snake-like eyes watched my every move.

Once I was at school, I threw myself into my studies. I wanted to change my destiny.

I put my revenge on hold for a moment. I wanted to build my own strength before destroying them completely.

But they just couldn't wait to deliver themselves to my doorstep.

The next week, when the homeroom teacher introduced the new transfer student on the podium, I saw Mark standing there.

I knew I couldn't wait anymore.