They Always Chose My Sister, So I Chose Myself

Chapter 2

"Insurance will cover part of it," I said. "I'm not here to ask for money."

Diane's shoulders dropped in relief, as if she had just dodged a bullet.

Richard raised his champagne glass again. "If you're not here for money, go home and handle it yourself. Diane's heart isn't strong. She doesn't need you dropping news like this in her lap."

"News like this?"

"A terminal illness is bad." He looked at me like he was talking about a bad debt that had no place at the dinner table. "Adults should know to keep their problems behind closed doors."

I turned to Ava. "The doctor said the immediate family should be tested first. Just a mouth swab. It takes only one minute."

Diane moved in front of Ava at once. "One minute? Don't try that on us! First comes the swab, then the blood draw, then the bone marrow. Ava is going to Seravelle in 12 days. Her hands, her body, her condition, none of them can afford to be put at risk."

"The test won't interfere with her performance."

"Of course you'd say that," Diane's voice rose sharply. "You're the one lying in a hospital bed waiting to be saved. You're not the one whose future will be ruined!"

Ethan tossed his silver fork onto the plate. "You chose Ava's celebration dinner to announce your terminal illness. Isn't that because you want everyone to remember there's a dying woman in the room? Ava has finally earned that solo spot, and you still have to steal her moment?"

"All I'm asking for is one match."

"Is that really all you want?" Ava finally set down the cake knife and wiped the frosting from her fingertips. "Admit it. You want Mom to choose you over me, right in front of everyone."

She stepped toward me and lowered her voice, each word cutting straight to the bone.

"If I refuse, you can tell everyone our family wanted you dead. If I agree, I'm your donor for life. Jessica, you won't let anyone have peace, not even when you're dying."

"Is that a no?"

"Of course."

I turned toward Diane. "If I can't find a suitable donor, I'll die."

Diane wrapped both arms around Ava, as though I'd rush forward and rip the marrow from her bones.

"Then go die! I almost lost my family for you. Now you want me to lose my daughter because of you?"

The entire living room went still.

Diane didn't take the words back. Tears streamed down her face as she stared at me, as though she were the victim.

My chest tightened, and for a moment, I could barely breathe. "I'm your daughter too."

"I don't want you!" Diane cut me off, almost lunging at me. "My biggest regret wasn't giving you to Claire. It was taking you back after Claire died!"

Ethan leaned back in his chair with a cruel laugh. "You heard her. If you die, that's your fate. Don't blame Ava for your rotten life."

I looked at Richard. He dabbed his mouth with a napkin and rose from his chair, as if he were finally dealing with an unpleasant chore.

"Let me make this clear. Diane has only one daughter, Ava. From today on, even if you die in that hospital, don't have anyone call us. The Bennett family won't pay a stranger's medical bills, and we won't claim your body."

Diane said nothing.

Ava actually smiled, "If I were the one who got sick, I would rather waste away in a hospital bed than use a terminal illness to force Mom to prove she loves me. I'll never get tested for you!"

"Not even one mouth swab?" I asked.

"No."

"What if refusing costs you your chance at treatment?"

She raised her chin. "Then that's my fate. I won't be like you, dragging someone else down with me when I'm dying."

Richard walked over and pulled open the front door. "Get out! And don't use the Bennett family name to ask for donations. We don't need someone like you dragging our name through the mud."

I set the sealed folder on the dining table. "It's for Ava. At least read it."

Ava glanced at it and pushed it away in disgust. "If it's about donations, I don't want to read a word."

Ethan slammed the cake box on top of it. Frosting squeezed out of the corner and smeared across the folder. "Take your bad luck and get out!"

When I reached the door, Diane suddenly called my name. I turned, thinking she might have regretted telling me to die.

Instead, she pointed at me and gritted her teeth. "Don't come back. Ava's life is only beginning. I won't let you haunt her after you're dead."

The door slammed shut in my face. Seconds later, I heard glasses clinking inside again. Someone turned up the music, as if they meant to drown out every last trace of me.