Chapter 3

I picked up a piece of fried chicken and took a big bite.

The crispy coating and tender meat blended in my mouth. It was a flavor I'd never experienced before—sinful and satisfying all at once.

Before I realized it, tears had slipped down my face and fallen onto my fries.

I wolfed down the food, as if trying to fill the emptiness and grievances of the past ten years all at once.

Then suddenly, a familiar figure appeared in my line of sight.

It was my sister, Alyssa Salazar. She was dressed in plain clothes, her long hair flowing over her shoulders. There was nothing about her that looked like someone who had withdrawn from the world.

She spotted me immediately. Her gaze crossed the crowded restaurant and met mine.

My heart leapt into my throat. I lowered my head and froze, the piece of fried chicken still suspended in my hand.

She didn't come over. Instead, she took out her phone and quickly made a call.

I couldn't make out what she was saying, but a sense of dread seized my heart so suddenly that I could barely breathe.

After hanging up, she walked toward me, each step felt as though it were landing on my heart.

"Jordan, who said you could eat this kind of food?" Her voice was cold, demanding an answer.

I didn't answer and simply looked at her. The face that looked so much like mine was filled with disgust and distance.

She seemed uncomfortable under my gaze and looked away. "Our nephew is having surgery soon. I came back from the convent to check on him."

The convent?

I almost laughed.

Just yesterday, when I had gone to pick up my medical report, I had seen her myself at the far end of the hospital corridor. She had been holding Nathaniel in her arms, speaking to him gently.

"Don't be scared, Nathaniel. Jordan's healthy heart will be yours soon. After that, you'll never suffer again."

She had never withdrawn from the world at all. The prayers and the years of mourning for Nathaniel's soul had all been another lie.

She had simply moved to another city to stay by the side of the brother she loved while he received treatment.

In our family, I was the only one living inside a lie.

Before I could even finish the piece of chicken in my hand, Alyssa grabbed my arm and dragged me all the way home.

The KFC meal that I'd barely managed to eat half of was thrown into a roadside trash can without hesitation.

The moment the front door opened, my parents were already waiting for me. Their faces were twisted with anger.

Smack!

Another slap. This time it landed on the other side of my face, but both cheeks burned all the same.

My mother's shouting followed immediately after.

"You've got some nerve now, Jordan! We told you not to eat this stuff, and you insisted on sneaking a bite anyway!

"Are you trying to ruin your heart on purpose? Do you want to see this entire family suffer? Is that what would make you happy?"

My father spoke next, "What have we been teaching you for the last ten years? We taught you to atone for your sins, to live without desires or indulgence.

"Did all of that go in one ear and out the other? How are you going to face Nathaniel? How are you going to face Alyssa, who spent all these years praying for you?"

I stood there blankly. The pain in my stomach and the humiliation on my face had left me almost numb.

When my mother saw that I still hadn't apologized, she stepped forward and shoved me hard.

With a soft clatter, a tube of lipstick flew out of my school uniform pocket. It rolled across the polished floor, glaringly out of place.

The living room fell into dead silence.

Everyone's eyes landed on the lipstick.

The next second, my mother's anger exploded completely. She pointed at me and screamed ear-piercingly, "You shameless little thing! Instead of focusing on school, you've started messing around with this kind of garbage?"

She turned to my father as though she had finally found proof of every crime I'd ever committed.

"I heard from his teacher a few days ago that he's been getting close to a girl in his class recently! So that's why he hasn't been able to focus. He wants to follow those delinquent kids and start dating!"

"Jordan, have you no shame at all? The surgery is only a few days away, and look at what you've been doing!

"We raised you and educated you for ten years, and not only do you refuse to repay us, but now you want to disgrace the Salazars too!"