At twenty-seven, I completely lost the ability to care for myself.

Hemiplegia, incontinence, and nearly blind in my right eye.

I hired a caregiver online, hoping to live my last days with some dignity.

But as fate would have it, the person who showed up was my ex-husband, whom I had dumped six years ago.

Carl stared at me with gritted teeth, "Serves you right, Janet. This is your fate."

A warm flow uncontrollably seeped out, and I stared at the wet sheets, finally breaking into tears.

"Are you trying to fool me again? I won't fall for it this time."

After saying that, he yanked off my blanket.

Then he saw the bedsores all over my body and the filth from incontinence.

——

I was dying, but my face was still beautiful. It was the only favor heaven had granted me.

I shifted my gaze from the reflection in the window to Carl's face.

Quietly, I tucked the half-written will under my pillow, then looked at him with a faint smile.

Carl's expression was grim.

"Janet, what trick are you playing now?"

I glanced at my soaked pants, relieved that I was wearing black today.

At least he didn't see me at my most pathetic.

Suddenly, a sharp pain shot through my waist.

It felt like my skin was burning, followed by a deep, bone-crushing agony.

When I looked up again, I could barely make out the figure in front of me.

I struggled to stay calm and forced a smile.

"It's nothing, just a minor illness. I thought I'd hire a caregiver to look after me for a while."

My father had passed away, and my mother had been paralyzed for years.

My elderly grandmother simply didn't have the energy to care for two people who couldn't take care of themselves.

So I had to hire a caregiver to look after me.

Carl stared at me coldly. "Is this fun for you? How many times are you going to mess with me?"

I looked down and scrolled through the chat history on my phone.

My eyesight had gotten so bad that I could barely make out the tiny, cramped text.

I had entered the last number wrong.

No wonder it felt so familiar…

But maybe this was for the best.

At least I could see him one last time before I die.

I held up the signed electronic contract in front of Carl. "The contract is signed. You can't back out."

"A poor guy like me isn't fit to take care of a beauty like you, Janet."

"I'll pay more."

But what I really wanted to say was.

"Please, stay with me a little longer. If you can, could you hold me?"

Carl said nothing and stood up to leave.

As he reached the door, he turned to look at me.

Under my hopeful gaze, he slowly spoke.

"Stop dreaming, Janet. Just looking at you makes me sick."

It hurt so much.

Worse than when the illness flares up.

It hurt so much that I almost cried.

I stayed silent, but the lady next to me wasn't pleased. She blocked Carl's path.

"Young man, how can you speak like that? Do you want us to report you?"

After being hospitalized for so long, the other patients had become like family.

They pitied me for being so young and alone; they would even bring me a bowl of dumplings whenever they made some.

Now that they thought I was being bullied, they couldn't help but stand up for me.

"Still acting, huh? Do you want the whole world to revolve around you?"

Carl stopped in his tracks, his beautiful eyes as cold as the moon in the sky.

"Just one month... one last month, and then I'll never bother you again!"

I tried to put on a relaxed front as I pulled out a stack of cash from my wallet.

Luckily, I had saved up some money over the years; otherwise, I wouldn't even have the chance to keep Carl around now.

Carl stared at me for a long time without taking the money.

"Fine. I'm curious to see how long you can keep up this act."

Suddenly, my hand started to tremble uncontrollably.

The money scattered across the floor, and my body began to collapse forward.

Carl instinctively caught me, but then, as if shocked by electricity, he pushed me back.

"Six years, and your prideful attitude hasn't changed a bit."

In the moment he held me, I caught the sweet scent of his cologne.

It smelled wonderful, like the scent of life itself, reminding me of when I used to stand in the spotlight wearing my dance costume.

Now, there was someone else by his side—she must be a graceful, elegant girl, fresh and fragrant.

"You should go now. I'll call you if I need anything."

Carl walked away without looking back, stepping on the money scattered on the floor.

I couldn't get out of bed, so I asked the neighbor lady to pick up the money for me.

As I looked at the bills stained with footprints, tears started falling uncontrollably.

There were things in this world that money couldn't buy.

I could pay for a caregiver's time,

But I could never bring Carl back into my life.

Carl's job was simple.

He brought me three meals a day, made sure I took my medication.

Occasionally, he pushed me outside for some fresh air.

Once his tasks were done, he would leave without saying a word to me.

The neighbor lady said I was wasting my money. "You should have him stay with you 24 hours. Look at you—you're almost getting bedsores."

"I can hire someone else for other things."

I said, lowering my head in embarrassment.

It wasn't that I had money to burn.

I just... I just didn't want Carl to see what I had become.

Under my clothes, my muscles had atrophied, my skin had lost its elasticity.

I was incontinent, and my body reeked.

I could endure the physical pain of my illness,

But I couldn't bear the humiliation.

I wanted Carl's last memory of me to be of someone beautiful.

Having Carl with me in my final days was enough.

I didn't dare ask for more; I didn't deserve to.

That afternoon, Carl brought me braised beef for lunch, but I couldn't chew it at all.

I remembered how my mother's braised beef was the best when I was a child. My father and I would always fight for the last piece.

Suddenly, I wanted to go home. I asked Carl to take me back.

I missed my mom.

"That's not part of my job."

"If you take me home, your work for the day will be done," I said with a smile. "That way... you won't have to see me as much."

Carl hesitated for a moment but finally agreed.

I gave him the address of my new home—it wasn't the upscale neighborhood from before but an old, rundown building in a remote area.

The apartment was on the first floor, but there were still a few steps in front of the building.

Carl couldn't find a ramp for the disabled, so he bent down and lifted me in his arms.

As I lay in his embrace, for a moment, it felt like old times...

But as soon as he opened the door, Carl's face darkened.

He frowned at the man in an apron standing inside.

"Who are you?"