Before I could leave the hospital...

My mother had thrown my belongings into the man's house. To make me give up, she took it upon herself to call the teacher and handle my withdrawal from school.

While I was unconscious, she deleted all my school-related contacts, preventing me from continuing my education.

I only learned about this on the day I was discharged.

To get my belongings back, I cried as I went to the man's house, only to be locked up there.

"Why are you always crying?

"You've brought misfortune to this house with your tears."

The man was rough.

He stood by, watching me for a while. He couldn't hold back and started hitting me.

I covered my face and fell to the ground. My cries of anguish stopped abruptly; I dared not cry out loud and could only bite my lip tightly.

There was no wedding or joyous celebration.

I was sent to the man's house by my mother. That day, Kody was very happy.

"Mom, please don't abandon me."

I clung to my mother's clothes, pleading with her not to leave me behind tearfully.

Before I could finish speaking...

I was thrown to the ground.

"Jakayla, don't be so shameless.

"You should be grateful that he's willing to marry you. Otherwise, you would spend your whole life in prison."

My mother was fierce. If she weren't holding a letter of forgiveness in her hand, her slap would have landed on my face.

Kody stood aside, laughing loudly.

He folded his arms, looking at me like I was a clown.

"Jakayla, enjoy your last laugh. If it weren't for the urgency, do you really think you could easily escape from us?"

Hearing this, my mother also started laughing.

"To be honest, we found a man for you half a month ago, a man of seventy years old. He won't live long and is quite rich.

"His bride price is one hundred thousand dollars!"

One hundred thousand dollars.

That was the price of selling a daughter.

I shook my head in disbelief, demanding answers.

"It's impossible. You paid for me to go to college, so you must be lying. I don't believe it."

I cried and gasped for breath.

Just a few days ago, I was lying on the hospital bed, and now I felt pain everywhere, my entire body uncomfortable.

My mother had planned to leave.

Hearing this, she turned back to look at me.

"It's one hundred thousand dollars after all.

"Sending you to college was just a delaying tactic."

My mother and Kody left laughing.

They left me in the house of a stranger.

The man was rude. He immediately grabbed my hair and dragged me into the house.

A month later.

Bruised and battered, I crouched on the floor, not far from the newly bought pregnancy test with two clear lines. I was pregnant.

It was two in the morning.

The man was somewhere having fun.

I sat on the floor, hugging my emaciated knees, reflecting on everything I had recently endured.

Tears fell from the corners of my eyes, running down my injured cheeks, and a dense, stinging pain spread across my head.

The room was very dark.

I fell into a daze.

The next day...

I was woken by pain.

"How dare you lie in bed, sleeping soundly. Get up and get me something to eat."

The man had somehow appeared by the bed and dragged me off without mercy.

I fell to the ground.

The man seemed dissatisfied.

He kicked me hard.

"No!"

I covered my stomach and curled up, my face contorted in pain, suffering greatly.

The man ignored me and kicked me again.

"Playing the victim? Do you want to starve me?"

After saying that, he tried to kick me again.

I remembered the pregnancy test from the night before and clumsily avoided his attacks.

I thought he might calm down after eating, but instead, he ate while cursing.

"Damn it, I lost twenty thousand dollars last night."

I hid in the room, pretending not to hear his outburst.

Before long...

The sound of a plate shattering came from the living room.

I hurried out to check. The uneven cement floor was covered with ceramic shards, and everything on the table was gone.

The man started throwing a tantrum for no apparent reason, sweeping all the dishes off the table.

The next moment, the table was overturned.

"What are you hiding for? What are you hiding for?"

The man turned and saw me standing by the side. Enraged, he walked over and grabbed my hair.

With a heavy force...

I was thrown hard onto the sofa.

The sofa was small and old, unable to catch me.

I reached out but grabbed nothing, and could only fall to the floor, my shoulder hitting the hard cement floor with great pain.

It was not just my shoulder.

The bruises from the other day started aching again due to this action.

The man seemed to be having a fit. He came up, grabbed my hair, started kicking me, and finally slapped me hard.

The frequent domestic violence had made me accustomed to biting my lip and enduring. At first, I would cry and struggle, but later I realized it was useless; I couldn't escape it.

I didn't know how long it lasted.

The man finally stopped. My ears were filled with only my rapid breathing.

Now my whole body hurt, especially my abdomen. The intense pain made me sweat in the middle of winter. Even with my lips bitten until they bled, I couldn't stop the moans escaping my mouth.

I wanted to get up and go to the hospital.

As soon as I pushed against the floor, my whole body slammed back down, and I lost consciousness.

When I woke up, I found myself in the same spot.

The cold wind howled outside the window.

Inside the room, I was cold and in pain.

"The baby is gone."

The doctor glanced at my diagnosis.

I sat numbly on the hospital chair, holding the diagnosis in my hands, trying to read it.

As I brought it closer, I realized my vision was blurred, like I had nearsightedness or was about to faint.

"Your physical condition is very poor. You are not only malnourished but also have injuries from different days. If you need help, I can assist you in reporting this to the police."

The doctor had been looking at me for a long time and finally hinted that domestic violence was illegal.

I shook my head, rejecting the doctor's kindness.

I wanted to report it, but I feared my mother might harm me if I did.

If the truth of the car accident was exposed...

I would die.

I would be beaten to death by my mother.

Thinking of this possibility, I lost the thought of reporting it and could only place my hope in my mother and Kody.

I didn't return to the man's house.

Instead, I went back to my own home.

"What are you doing back here?"

As soon as the door was pushed open, my mother's impatient voice came from inside.

The next second, she appeared with a frown.

"Mom…"

I called out softly and couldn't help but let tears stream down my face.

Seeing this, my mother became even more annoyed.

She reached to close the door.

I wouldn't let her, using my body to block the door.

"Mom, he abuses me every few days. I'm scared and don't dare to go back."

I cried while looking at my mother with wide eyes.

At that moment, I wished I could see compassion in her eyes.

Unfortunately, there was none.

My mother only stared at me for a moment.

"You can't even control your own man. Who's to blame? It's your own fault for being incapable.

"You should think about why you suffered domestic violence. Maybe it's your fault."

Not only did my mother not show any sympathy, but she also blamed me for the abuse.

"The baby… the baby is gone."

I lowered my head and murmured, unable to find a reason to continue living at that moment.

I had a family.

Yet I was living a fate worse than an orphan's.

"What? What do you mean the baby is gone?"

Just as the door was about to close, my mother suddenly opened it again, snatching the diagnosis from my hands.

She read it for a long time.

I waited outside for a long time as well.

"Come in."

My mother, holding the diagnosis, turned and went inside.

This time, the heavy door didn't close again.

Hearing this, my heart started to beat violently again, as if I saw sunlight breaking through the clouds.

My mother loved me.

I thought.

I carefully walked inside, my gaze scanning the room. This was the home I had lived in for twenty years, but in just a few months, I couldn't find any trace of my life here.

"Have some water and calm down. I will find time to talk to him about the domestic violence."

My mother came out of the kitchen with a cup of water and handed it to me.

When I heard this, I quickly shook my head.

"Mom, I don't want to go back.

"I swear I will work hard to earn money for you and Kody. Please don't make me go back. He hurts me so badly."

Afraid my mother wouldn't believe me, I hurriedly lifted my clothes to show her the injuries on my body.

My mother glanced at them, her expression showing no significant change, only advising me to drink the water and rest well.

"Drink the water first, and I will handle the situation."

After having the water, I wanted to continue.

But my heavy head wouldn't give me the chance.

Holding the cup, I fell into unconsciousness.