Cowardly Me: She Bleeds When I Bleed

It turned out it was Lizzie who had grabbed me.

"Jeff! Have you lost your mind?!" She looked furious. "Do you realize you could die doing that?!"

"Why won't you let me die?" I asked.

"Because… because…" Her expression turned oddly stiff, like she wanted to say something but held back. "Because… cherishing life is everyone's responsibility."

I was speechless.

Under my blank stare, she pulled out a black card and handed it to me.

"No password. Unlimited limit. Spend it however you like. Once you've experienced what it's like to live as the wealthy, I guarantee—you won't want to die anymore."

Strangely enough… I didn't feel like dying quite as much.

Only after she saw me calm down did Lizzie leave.

But then, Shane walked in again.

Tch. He was like a ghost that just wouldn't go away.

I quickly stuffed the black card under my pillow.

Seeing that, he let out a disdainful snort. "Heh, idiot. That kind of card? I've had several for ages. Even the grocery maid at home has one. Only a small-town hick like you would treat it like treasure."

Why was he insulting me again? What rotten luck.

Shane slowly strolled up to me, staring straight into my face, his teeth clenched.

"That face of yours… you really do look like a Zeder. They beat you for all those years—how come they didn't beat you to death?"

After a pause, a vicious smile curled on his lips.

"Next weekend, Mom and Dad are hosting a recognition party for you. You must be looking forward to it, huh? Here's a little spoiler—I've prepared a surprise just for you. I promise, you'll remember that day for the rest of your life… even in death."

He was going to target me at the party. How could I possibly fight him?

Forget it. I might as well just drift along and wait to die.

Over the next few days, all I did was spend money—day in, day out. Somehow, I felt a lot more alive.

A week passed in the blink of an eye.

Soon, it was the day of the recognition party. Dressed in a custom-tailored suit, I stood between my parents as they introduced me to prominent figures from every circle.

Suddenly, Shane stepped onto the center of the stage, drawing everyone's attention.

"Thank you all for coming to my brother's recognition party today. Jeff has been away from home for twenty years and has endured a lot of hardship. To help him feel the warmth of family, I've prepared a special surprise for him."

The moment he finished speaking, a commotion broke out at the entrance.

My adoptive parents arrived—bringing along their precious daughter—strutting in as if they owned the place.

The instant my adoptive mother, Julia Winfrey, saw me, she rushed over, grabbed my hand, and burst into loud, dramatic sobs.

"Jeff! You've become a rich heir—how could you not tell us? Your father, your sister, and I all thought you'd been lured away again by that delinquent Rita Muller!

"You can't let her trick you again, running around with her like that! She's been with who knows how many men! If you stay with her, sooner or later you'll catch something!"

The room fell into dead silence.

To prove she wasn't lying, Julia pulled out her phone and displayed a photo—me, tightly held by a heavily made-up woman.

Then she went around showing it to the guests.

"Look! This is that trashy woman! She tricked Jeff—took advantage of his body and his feelings," Julia said, her face full of bitter disappointment.

"We've tried to talk sense into him countless times, but he just wouldn't listen! We thought when he ran away again, he'd eloped with that delinquent! Turns out he just found rich parents and doesn't want us anymore…"

They really came prepared.

Fine then—maybe I should just die here and give everyone a bit of entertainment.