On the eve of the SAT, the authorities notify me that I need to claim the body of my father, who has died tragically in prison.

My mother comes to me and says she wants my father to take the blame for her first love, Joe Anderson, for a second time.

"Where's your dad? Joe accidentally caused a patient's death during surgery. Ask Andrew to go to prison for him again. Consider these two prison terms as compensation for that slap he gave Joe last time.

"After this, I'll return to the family and stay with you and your father."

I don't even look up as I mumble absentmindedly, "Dad is dead."

Mom lets out a scornful laugh and locks me inside a sauna room. Clenching her jaw, she presses the button on the remote control in her hand, turning the temperature up rapidly.

Then, she sends an angry message to my dad to threaten him.

She writes, "Andrew Miller, how dare you teach our son to lie to me? I'd like to see what kind of stunt you're trying to pull! If you don't want Chester to get hurt, show yourself right now!"

My skin turns bright red due to the burst capillaries. I pound desperately on the door, trying to explain and beg for help.

But Mom is busy comforting the frightened Joe and pays no attention to me at all.

As my body becomes severely dehydrated, I let out a bitter laugh.

I sneer inwardly, "Mom, Dad and I are making it up to your first love with our lives. Is that enough?"

Every time my hands slammed against the iron door, another layer of skin would get torn away. Blood kept beading from my fingers, and my throat burned like it was on fire.

Still, I forced myself to hold on to that last bit of strength, repeatedly begging for Mom to hear me. "Dad really died in prison! You tortured him to death—are you going to do the same to me, too?"

My tears wouldn't stop falling. The extreme dehydration had left my throat so dry that it felt like it was bleeding whenever I spoke.

Mom ignored my pleading and nodded angrily.

She stared at Dad's chat window, gritting her teeth as she shouted, "Very well, Andrew! Look at what you've turned our son into! It's one thing that you made him lie and convince me you were dead, but how could you make him say things cursing himself?"

Her phone was tossed aside. My cry for help only fueled her anger. She turned toward the sauna room and yelled impatiently, "Enough with the act! The heating system inside is broken! You can't even adjust the temperature!

"You learned all these tricks from your father, didn't you? I'm only doing this to force him to show himself!"

Mom was consumed by rage. She screamed until her face turned purple.

At that moment, Joe Anderson timidly stepped forward. He gently patted Mom's back, soothing her.

"Forget it, Winona. Don't let Andrew go to prison for me. After what happened last time, he must still hate me. I don't want to come between you two."

Mom immediately calmed down. She turned around and patted his back, comforting him. "Hey, it's not your fault. Andrew was just being suspicious and thinking the worst about our relationship.

"You two are different. He's already served time once. There's nothing worse he can't handle. And besides, I already made arrangements for him inside. He's actually living pretty comfortably in there."

Almost every inch of my skin was marred with burns. Breathing began to feel like a challenge.

When I heard what Mom said, I laughed until tears rolled down my face. Was the so-called arrangement she made meant to have Dad beaten to death?

When I went to collect his body, it was covered in fresh wounds and old scars, all mixed with dried blood. Several of his bones had been broken and pulled out.

Even when he passed, he died with his eyes wide open. Now, he had to suffer Mom's insults after death.

The thought of Dad made my choked sobs grow louder.

Mom clicked her tongue impatiently. "I must've been too nice to them. Andrew refuses to show up just because he's throwing a tantrum, while Chester actively goes against me. The sauna room is just dark. There's no reason for him to cry like that."

I couldn't believe her words. Did she just say she had been "too nice" to us?

Was that why she made Dad take the blame and go to prison for her first love? Was that why she left me alone in that barren villa and ignored me for three long years?

It was like she had completely forgotten she had a son. She never sent me any money and never made herself reachable. I had to earn all my tuition and living expenses by working as a food delivery guy every night after class.

Every day, I counted the days, forcing myself to keep going. I kept telling myself that everything would get better once Dad was out of the slammer and once I got into college.

Yet, after all that waiting, all I got was Dad's miserable passing and Mom choosing her first love yet again, even if it meant sacrificing my life.

It was getting harder for me to keep my eyes open. The fragile skin on my lips cracked and split, peeling apart with every breath. Without even realizing it, I licked the blood that had seeped from my lips.

I was so thirsty, so hot, and in so much pain.

As my consciousness faded in and out, I suddenly heard Dad's voice. "You must live on, Chester! Do not give up on yourself, Chester! I'm begging you, stay alive!"

My eyes snapped open as if it were no longer a task. Greedily, I gasped for air.

Dad was right. I couldn't give up on myself yet. I had worked hard and studied religiously for three years. Wasn't it all for tomorrow's SAT? Getting into Sage University was both my and Dad's dream.

Gathering strength I didn't know I had, I forced myself back up and pounded on the door. "Mom, can you please… Let me out first? If you do, I'll… take you to Dad."

I desperately held back the tremble in my voice, trying to make myself sound as gentle as possible. Mom seemed satisfied with my attitude. Her expression softened, and she waved at the bodyguard.

"Open the—"

Before she could finish speaking, Joe suddenly grabbed her arm and stopped her. "Winona, don't make the kid go through all that at this hour. He has the SAT tomorrow. The trip there and back will take several hours.

"Why don't we let him get some proper sleep in there first?"

It wasn't until his "reminder" that Mom suddenly remembered. She immediately told the bodyguard to step away. "Joe is right, Chester.

"Get a good sleep. Tomorrow morning, I'll have the bodyguard wake you up. We'll find your father first, then send you to your exam."

After arranging everything, she left with Joe.

No matter how much I cried and begged for help, no one answered. I kept pounding on the door regardless, with only one thought in my mind.

I had to live.

I didn't know how long had passed, but someone finally responded from the outside. "Quiet!"

Oh. It was the bodyguard Mom left behind. He had gotten annoyed with listening to me and shouted at me. Then, suddenly, I heard the sound of a lock turning from outside the door.

Hope lit up my heart, yet that tiny flicker of faith burned out in the very next moment.

The bodyguard rushed in and wrapped tape around my mouth, then tied up my hands. Then he closed the door impatiently. "Go to sleep when you're told to. She's your mother. Do you really think she'd hurt you? Now, zip it!"

I sobbed, but no sound came out. The dark, scorching room held nothing but despair. The blisters on my body burst one after another. In the silence of the night, each tiny pop sounded painfully clear.

Suddenly, my phone rang. I struggled with my bound hands and used everything I had to grab the phone and answer it.

It was my godfather, Dad's best friend, Larry Brown. The moment I found out something had happened to Dad, I called him for help.

"Chester, I've already had your father cremated. I have his ashes with me. I'll give them to you now. Where are you? Hello? Chester, are you listening?"

The more he asked, the more anxious he sounded.

I forced myself to speak, though my mouth was wrapped with tape. "Mom locked me… in the sauna room. I can't… hold on much… longer."

Larry let out a horrified cry. He started cursing Mom nonstop, then repeatedly shouted my name to keep me awake.

I tried my best to nod, but the ringing in my ears was overwhelming. As my consciousness slowly faded, I felt like I saw Dad coming to take me away.

A pair of hands pulled me out of a space. I spun around and realized that my body no longer hurt. There were no wounds on me, either.

Then, I realized I was in Larry's car. The sauna room from before must've been just a nightmare!

He was driving at a terrifying speed, staring straight ahead, tears running endlessly down his face. I knew he was crying because of Dad.

"Larry…"

I reached out and tried to wipe away his tears, but my hand passed right through his face. I stared blankly at my transparent body, and only then did I realize I was dead.

By the time I came back to my senses, we had already arrived outside the Stone residence.

Larry kicked the door open and roared like a ferocious beast, "Come on out, Winona Stone! Where did you hide Chester? That kid's barely holding on! Release him right now!"

His voice trembled as he recalled how weak I sounded on the phone. He couldn't imagine what was happening to me.

Meanwhile, Mom casually walked out of the room. A few buttons of her pajamas were fastened incorrectly.

"Larry? Did Chester tell you to come here? I told him I'll let him out tomorrow morning after a good night's sleep. It's just a little quieter there. Why is he being so dramatic like his father?"

Larry closed his eyes, forcing himself to calm down. "The sauna room is over 160 degrees. This isn't a joke! You've already got Andrew killed in prison. If you have any humanity left, don't let your son become your next victim!"

The villa fell into a dead silence.

Mom froze in place. After a long while, she said with a cold smile, "He knew Chester couldn't fool me alone, so he told you to come here, too. Well, isn't it only a few years in prison? Must he act so dramatically?

"Besides, he'll still be my husband after he gets out."

As she spoke, her eyes landed on the urn in Larry's arms. She sneered. "Your lies didn't fool me. So, what now? Are you going to tell me these are his ashes?"

Larry stared at Mom, so livid that he almost laughed. He was about to shout at her when Joe came out of the room and screamed, "Winona!"

He covered his head and hid behind her like a frightened kitten, trembling as he pointed at Dad's urn. "That thing he's holding—it must be some voodoo thing! I can't look at it! It's giving me the chills!

"Is Andrew doing this to get back at me?"

He looked so petrified that anyone would feel sorry for him. Mom immediately frowned with concern. She turned to the bodyguards and instructed, "Discard that urn!"

I panicked. Floating in the air, I instinctively wrapped my transparent body around Dad's ashes.

Larry looked at Mom in disbelief. His voice nearly tore apart as he shouted, "These are actually Andrew's ashes!"

He hugged the urn even tighter, protecting it with everything he had. The bodyguards rushed over, but he knocked them down one by one.

Behind Mom, Joe trembled in fear. Seeing him like that, she lost her patience.

She walked forward with a dark expression and snarled, "I really underestimated Andrew, didn't I? Not only did he send you two here to deceive me and make me feel sorry for him, but he also tried to terrorize Joe with that thing.

"Well, guess what? I won't let him have his way!"

With that, she gestured for the bodyguards to restrain Larry. Then, she snatched the urn away herself.

I spun frantically in the air, trying to reach out and grab the urn from her hands, yet everything I did was futile. I couldn't touch anything.

Mom walked away and stopped before a faucet. With a tilt of the urn, she did the unthinkable and washed Dad's ashes down the drain.

I stared at the rushing water, frozen in place. They were gone. Dad was gone. She didn't leave a single trace of him.

I knew I didn't have a heart anymore, but why did my chest still ache so much?