Killed by His First Love, Replaced as Their Favorite

Chapter 3

My eyes burned, as if they might bleed. Hatred made my soul tremble violently. I lunged at her like a madwoman, desperate to tear that mask off her face.

But again and again, I passed right through her. In the end, all I could do was watch helplessly as she leaned against Sean, enjoying everything that should have been mine.

"Sorry to keep you waiting." Sean's voice carried a softness I had never heard before. The affection in his eyes was almost tangible. "You must be starving. Come on, have some soup while it's hot."

Ana pouted, her tone sweet with mock complaint. "We've been starving. Mom and I already made everything. We were just waiting on you two."

"We got held up," my father said evenly. "They found a set of remains at a construction site. Sean and I went to take a look."

I saw it clearly. Ana's hand froze midair, the bowl trembling slightly. She forced a smile and asked carefully, "Is it… near the site from that case seven years ago?"

My mother's chopsticks clattered onto the table. A flicker of something complicated flashed through her eyes, but it was quickly buried under anger as she shot my father a glare.

"Why bring up something so unlucky at the dinner table?"

Before my father could respond, Ana lowered her gaze at once, putting on a look of sorrow and guilt. "Mom, it's my fault. I shouldn't have said anything. Did I… remind you of Lila again?"

Bang.

Sean slammed his spoon down on the table.

His expression was icy. Even in front of my parents, he made no effort to hide the disgust etched into his bones. "Shut up. Don't say that name. It's filthy."

A flash of satisfaction flickered in Ana's eyes, gone in an instant. Her voice, however, stayed soft and harmless. "Sean, don't be like that. They are right here…"

"He's right!" My mother grabbed Ana's hand, her face full of tenderness and pity. But her words were like a blade dipped in poison, driving straight into my heart. "I've long considered her dead. I never gave birth to a monster like her. From now on, you're my only daughter."

My father's face darkened as well. His voice was cold, like a verdict being pronounced. "She debased herself to protect a criminal. She's a disgrace to the police force. She should have died at the killer's hands back then. It would have saved this family the shame."

The three people I had loved most spoke of me with nothing but contempt.

It felt as if their words tore my soul into countless pieces. The pain was so intense I couldn't breathe.

Tears fell soundlessly, hitting the cold floor without leaving a single trace.

After they stopped talking about me, the table came back to life.

My parents held Ana's children, feeding them bite by bite, smiling with quiet joy.

Sean picked the bones from her fish and reminded her softly to eat more.

This was the future I had imagined countless times. Only now, the person sitting in my place was Ana.

Sean was the youngest head of the homicide unit in the city.

We met at a case conference. I put forward a bold theory about a decomposed body. Everyone doubted me. He was the only one who stood up and backed me with cold, precise logic.

In that moment, he shone in my eyes.

I chased him for three months before we finally got together.

He used to treat me well. He remembered everything I said. He respected my work. Everyone said I had found the best man in the world.

I believed it too. I thought we would last.