My Mom Gives Up My Life for My Younger Sister

After being kidnapped for three days, my sister and I were finally rescued. My mom, a doctor, pulled all the medical resources together to give my terrified sister a thorough check-up. She ignored the fact that I had a serious heart condition that needed immediate care. Even when I pled with her to help me, all I got was an angry shout. "Your sister nearly got scared into a heart attack. Can you try to be a bit more understanding? Stop making excuses for attention!" In the end, I sat alone in a corner and breathed my last breath. But later, my family, who had never really cared for me, each felt regret for how they had acted. *** The pain in my heart was unbearable, and my body felt as if it had been ripped apart by a strong hand. The light in front of me was blinding, and my mother's anxious face reflected in my eyes. Unfortunately, every bit of her worry and concern was directed at my younger sister. I wasn't even worth a second glance from her. It had always been this way. Thinking of this brought a wave of sadness that intensified the pain, while simultaneously making my soul feel lighter. I opened my eyes again and truly saw my mother's face. At that moment, she was wearing her white coat and nervously standing by my sister's hospital bed. My sister seemed to be having a nightmare. A thin layer of cold sweat covered her pale face, and her brows were tightly furrowed. My mother gently touched her forehead, her eyes filled with concern. "Layla, please wake up. I miss you so much..." I couldn't help but feel a bit helpless. My mother had never shown me such tenderness. My father's face darkened, and he gritted his teeth. "It's all Mia's fault. She can't even protect her sister. Just wait until I teach her a lesson. She can't compare to Layla in anything she does. What a loser!" Mia Martinez was my name. I was an unnecessary presence in their eyes. I listened to my parents' disdain for me, and that familiar feeling of bitterness spread through my heart again. Dad, Mom, I knew you had never liked me. You wouldn't have to worry about me anymore. I was already dead, just a wandering soul that hadn't made it to heaven yet. My mother, as the chief physician, personally examined Layla, carefully going over the reports. After confirming that she wasn't in serious danger, she finally breathed a sigh of relief. When she visibly relaxed, a nearby intern timidly spoke up. "Mrs. Martinez, what about the other patient? She looks like she's hurt pretty badly..." My mother's gentle expression instantly turned dark as she slightly turned her head. "What does it matter? Mia has always loved to play the victim, and now she's still trying to attract attention with this. There's no need to waste medical resources!" Hearing this sent a chill down my spine. Although I knew my mother favored Layla, I was still her daughter. Regardless of whether she loved me or not, I came from her. My mother pulled out her phone from her pocket and dialed my number. But I had long since stopped breathing in some corner that no one cared about. Only the nurse, who was dealing with my body noticed the incoming call. She answered but didn't have a chance to speak before my mother's furious questioning came through. "Mia, where are you? Where are you hiding? Layla ends up injured because of you, and you don't even come to apologize? She is your family! Come over right now! Or I'll teach you a lesson!" The nurse wanted to explain for me. "The patient has already passed away, and no one has come to claim the body. We're preparing to transfer her to the morgue..." But my mother thought I was just pretending and scoffed. "Enough, Mia. Do you think that if you find someone to help you act, I'll let you off the hook? Stop using such stupid tactics to get my attention!" With that, she hung up the phone, clearly furious, muttering, "Mia is such a troublemaker!" At that moment, Layla woke up slowly, rubbed her sleepy eyes, sat up, and pretended to be confused. "Mom, Dad, am I... safe now?" She threw herself into our parents' arms as if she had survived a disaster. "What about Mia? How is she?" Layla pretended to care about me. I had to admit, Layla really knew how to read people's minds. Seeing her act this way made my mother even more affectionate toward her, while her hatred for me deepened. "If only Mia was half as sensible as you, I wouldn't have to throw a fit every day!" Dad chimed in, rolling his eyes. "Why bring up that ungrateful brat? Who knows where she's off having fun!" Noticing this, Layla quickly flashed a smug look but then returned to her usual demeanor, lightly furrowing her brows as if she were a sympathetic victim. "Mom, Dad, don't be mad at Mia. I think she just can't accept that I took her piano competition championship. She didn't do this on purpose." Hearing her twist the truth like this made me seethe in silence. I wanted to tell Mom and Dad that things weren't as Layla said. The kidnapping by the human traffickers was all her doing, meant to take my life. But I knew my parents would never believe me. In their eyes, Layla was the good child who made their day, while everything I said or did was wrong.