Going to be the bridesmaid for my cousin.

When I was held hostage by a criminal, my mom was standing outside the door.

She angrily banged on my door. "Emily's husband used to be your boyfriend. If you don't be her bridesmaid, what will people think of her?"

I asked her if I died, would I be more important to her than Emily.

She responded coldly, "Now you're even learning to threaten, huh? If you want to die, do it after being the bridesmaid."

1

My cousin, Emily, was getting married to my boyfriend.

To prevent Emily from being criticized as a homewrecker, my mom volunteered me to be her bridesmaid.

"We're all family, don't be so petty. Look at yourself, with that long, dark face. Can you compare to Emily? Any man wouldn't choose you."

Seeing my silence, my mom glared at me, "Are you dead? Can't even nod your head? Talking to a dog is better than talking to you, at least it gives a reaction."

She didn't seem to like asking me why but was used to blaming me first to feel better.

So much so that she didn't notice anything unusual about me.

If she had looked closely, even a little, she would have noticed my evasive eyes, trembling hands, and the cold sweat dripping from my fingers onto the floor.

At that moment, a cold steel knife was pressed hard against my back.

I dug my nails into the doorframe and carefully said, "Help me."

But my mom impatiently turned her face away, "Can't you speak louder? So useless."

"Look at Emily. How graceful she is in her speech and actions. And then look at you. If you didn't resemble your dad, I'd seriously doubt you were switched at birth."

The knife pressed a few inches forward, causing sharp pain.

Through the half-foot wide door crack, just a few inches away, my mom sneered, "I've been standing here for so long, and you don't even open the door to let me in. After raising you for so many years, this is how you repay me? What's the use of having you?"

I bit my lip, tears welling up in my eyes, unable to say a word.

After scolding me, my mom turned and made a call, "Emily, don't worry. I saw Mia, and I'll make sure she will be your bridesmaid."

Emily was my biological cousin.

She devoured everything in my life like a nightmare.

Her gentle voice came through the phone, "Sorry to trouble Mia. Aunt, please thank her for me. Henry and I will treat her to dinner someday to thank her in person."

My mom finally smiled, her eyes forming crescent shapes. "No need to thank her. This is what she should do. She owes you and can never repay it in this lifetime."

They chatted and laughed, their voices low but piercing my heart.

A few minutes later, the call ended. When she turned to me, her eyes were cold and filled with disdain again.

She looked past me into the room, with suspicion and scrutiny. "Don't do anything disgraceful that would embarrass us."

After saying that, my mom left.

The door closed again, shutting off all my hope for survival.

An eight-hour-long nightmare continued...

I don't know how much time passed, but my vision became dim and unclear, and my posture was awkwardly twisted.

My body felt like it was folded into several pieces, placed in a small, confined space.

I was a little scared, and in my struggle, my body floated up.

When I saw my dark yellow suitcase, I understood that those four jerks hadn't stopped because of my pleas.

My final resting place was this dark yellow suitcase, now thrown into the bathroom corner.

"Oh God, why do you make me witness my own miserable state even after death?"

My soul floated in mid-air, wandering around the room, once again seeing my rented apartment clearly.

The room was a mess, with the disgusting stench of blood and sweat lingering on the floor and bed.

It was already daytime outside, though I didn't know which day it was.

The door creaked open, the rusted iron making a piercing sound, pulling my thoughts back.

My mom's voice rose a few decibels, and I could tell she was very angry. "Mia, get out here! Are you dead? Why aren't you answering your phone?"

"Emily's wedding is in two days. Don't mess it up. If you embarrass her, I won't forgive you."

It was Emily again. Since I was ten, these words were etched on my forehead, intertwined with my fate.

Hearing these words made me feel physically nauseous.

I floated to the doorway and saw two more people entering with my mom.

My dad and Emily.

Emily held my mom's arm, like a close mother-daughter pair.

My dad followed behind, constantly wiping sweat from his forehead. "What kind of place did Mia rent? There's not even an air conditioner."

"I told her to come back home, but she didn't listen and had to suffer out here."

Emily picked up a fan from the shoe rack, obediently fanning my parents, her face full of undisguised guilt. "Uncle, Aunt, please don't be mad. It's my fault that Mia got upset with you."

My mom's anger subsided in front of her favorite niece, and she sighed heavily.

"You don't need to defend her. I know exactly what she's like. She's just trying to make things difficult."

"We spoiled her too much before, which made her so willful. Otherwise, your father and your leg..."

My mom's eyes reddened as she spoke, and Emily's tears fell first.

"Don't blame Mia; she didn't mean it."

How genuinely touching.

If I weren't the one involved, I might have been moved by her pitiful appearance and felt sorry for her.

I had often wished that it had been me who died or lost a leg in that car accident.

Would that have been the only way to avoid this current pain?

Seeing that I didn't respond.

My mom angrily rushed into the bedroom, her face changing drastically when she saw the scene, smashing a white porcelain cup on the table in fury.

My dad's face turned visibly ashen as he awkwardly paced around the room before finally leaving.

"I'll go downstairs for a smoke and wait for you in the car."

Oh, I remembered. There were some revealing nightgowns, stockings, and some tools on my nightstand, brought by those people.

Emily held my mom's hand tightly, trying to defend me, "Aunt, Mia isn't like that. Don't overthink it."

Her defense only confirmed my mom's suspicions.

The veins on the back of my mom's hand bulged as she clenched her fist, trying to calm herself before calling me again.

Once, twice, three times...

The phone was still off.

"Mia, you're so disgusting."

Her words were like barbed steel needles, piercing my skin and stabbing into my limbs.

It hurt so much...

But Mom.

I was already dead, my body right in front of you.

If you had a bit of patience with me, you'd realize that the yellow suitcase shouldn't be in the bathroom corner.

You bought me that suitcase.

Back then, I was your Mia darling. You said I was the most important person in your life.

You said you'd take me to see the world, and give me the best things in life.

You bought me this suitcase on our first trip together. Don't you remember any of that?

The memories flooded my mind uncontrollably.

They made me restless and irritable. I wanted to rush over, grab her hand, and shout, "Look! Look, your daughter is right in front of you, in that suitcase you bought me!"

But as a soul, I could only helplessly pass through her body, unable to touch her at all.

She couldn't hear my hysterical cries.