I should have known. They had sent me to a boarding school in faraway California when I was sixteen, just to give Scarlett more space in New York's social circles.

I was the afterthought.

I turned my last flicker of hope to Julian.

The man who'd sworn to love me forever, to protect me with his very life.

He frowned deeply.

"Chloe, your father is right."

He glanced at Scarlett with concern, then turned his icy gaze back to me.

"Scarlett needs to be in her best condition for the Starlight Gala. We can't let her take that risk."

He crossed his arms.

"Besides, you getting sick is your own carelessness. It has nothing to do with Scarlett."

His words struck me like a physical blow.

A sharp pain shot through my chest at the memory of the intimacy we once shared.

Julian continued, his voice cold and merciless.

"We can have other children. But Scarlett... her career, her image—those are things we cannot risk."

He spoke of me and our unborn child as if we were assets to be liquidated.

My mother, snapping out of her shock, rushed over and grabbed my arm forcefully.

"Chloe! How can you be so selfish?"

She shook me.

"We're all devastated that you're sick, Chloe. But you can't drag your sister down with you!"

"Have pity on your parents! We can't bear to see Scarlett suffer!"

Her sobs were exaggerated and shrill, as if she were the one on the verge of death.

I watched this ridiculous scene unfold, my heart filling with a desolate sorrow.

Scarlett walked over. She held our mother, glaring at me with resentment.

"Chloe, you're so selfish."

"You know our parents can't live without me. You know Julian has always treated me like family. You're only making this request to make all of us miserable."

"I won't let you get your way," she sniffed. She drew herself up, looking like a magnanimous queen preparing for her coronation.

"I will not give you my marrow."

"This has nothing to do with our parents or Julian. It's my own decision. If you want to hate someone, hate me."

"I can't put myself in danger for you. I have an important gala to attend soon. I won't make everyone who loves me worry."

Her words earned nods of approval from my parents and Julian.

They looked at her with a mixture of pity and pride.

They acted as if she were a hero.

And I was the villain standing in their way.

I slowly tore my gaze away from them.

I stared at Scarlett. Her face looked so much like mine, yet she was always the one showered with love.

"Are you sure? No matter what?"

Scarlett gave our mother a reassuring glance, then answered me decisively.

"Absolutely not!"

"My Starlight Charity Gala is in three days. I must be in perfect condition. I can't ruin my future because of you."

"Well said," I whispered. "Someone else's life is certainly not as important as your gala."

My father finally lost all patience.

"Leave this house. And never come back. The Hawthorne family has no place for a selfish, cold-blooded person like you."

He pointed to the door.

"If you upset your mother today, I swear you'll regret it!"

Julian walked over as well. He slipped the custom-made engagement ring from his finger and placed it on the table with a sharp click.

"Chloe, we're over."

"The way you are now... it's too extreme. It's terrifying. We're not right for each other."

Then, his voice dropped, becoming formal and sharp.

"I, Julian Croft of the Croft Group, formally dissolve my engagement to you, Chloe Hawthorne of the Hawthorne family."

Those words tore through me.

A pain so sharp it felt physical ripped through me, stealing the air from my lungs.

I staggered backward, a gasp escaping my lips.

In that moment, I finally saw everything clearly.

Family. Love.

In their hearts, none of it was worth a single hair on Scarlett's head.

I had begged so humbly. I had tried so hard to please them.

I thought if I just tried hard enough, one day I could truly become part of this family.

Now I understood. I was wrong.

The one who was the afterthought would always be the afterthought.

I looked at them calmly.

I watched as they cleared a path for me to the door.

They were waiting for me to leave, like waiting for a servant to take out the trash.

My heart was a gaping void.

I looked my father straight in the eye.

"If you wanted me gone so badly, why did you have me in the first place?"

"Didn't Mom fight back? Or did you just lose control?"

My father's face flushed crimson.

He raised his hand.

The slap cracked across my face, leaving a fiery sting in its wake.

I touched my cheek, my heart already numb.

I turned to my mother.

"And you. Stop crying."

"This pathetic victim act of yours is disgusting."

"When you were pregnant with me, did Father force you? With your personality, it shouldn't have been hard to get rid of an unwanted child."

My mother's crying stopped abruptly. She pointed at me, her whole body trembling.

"You monster!"

Julian rushed over and grabbed my wrist, his eyes burning with fury.

"Chloe! How can you speak to your parents like that?"

The hall descended into chaos.

My father's second slap landed squarely on my face.

Warm liquid trickled from the corner of my mouth.

"Get out!"

He pointed at the door, roaring like a beast.

"From this day forward, I, Prescott Hawthorne, officially disinherit you! You are no longer part of this family!"

I instinctively shielded my stomach.

For the sake of this little life I hadn't even met, I couldn't afford to be weak.

I wiped the blood from my mouth and glared at him.

"Fine."

"You're the one who said it."

"From now on, we have nothing to do with each other. No one contacts anyone."

Scarlett shrieked, her voice thick with tears.

"That's right! Whoever contacts the other first, may God curse them to never find peace for all eternity!"

A desolate smile touched my lips.

I took the real diagnostic report out of my bag.

It was the corrected version the lab had just emailed me.

I tossed it onto the table along with the ring.

"Very well, Scarlett."

"Remember the promise you just made."

"You can keep these."

"You might need to sell that diamond ring to pay for your funeral."

I pointed at the paper.

"The lab made a mistake with the first report. I'm not the one who's sick," I said, my voice dropping to a whisper. "You are."

After walking out of the estate gates, I thought I would break down in tears.

But I didn't.

I just felt empty.

There was a huge hole in my chest, and the cold night wind howled right through it.

The lingering pain from Julian breaking our engagement was a constant, dull ache.

My phone vibrated.

It was an email from Julian's lawyer.

"We have retracted the announcement of the engagement ceremony. We have informed all partners that we will not be marrying due to irreconcilable differences. As of today, we have no further connection."

Immediately after, my father released a public statement through the family office.

"My second daughter, Chloe, due to her malicious heart and disrespectful behavior, is hereby disowned from the Hawthorne family and removed from the family trust. All her actions henceforth are her own."

Then he kicked me out of the family group chat.

So swift. So final.