Chapter 1

On the day Ethan got his big break with a job in the city, he did something he'd never done before.

He bought me a massive bag of imported chocolates.

It must have cost him at least fifty dollars.

Before the chocolate could even melt in my mouth, Ethan looked at me with a serious face.

"Only one a day, Lola. By the time you finish them, Serena and I will be back to get you."

Terrified, I spat the chocolate out and grabbed his arm, begging him not to leave me behind.

Ethan frowned, his eyes filled with pain.

He whispered that his savings were only enough to get one person settled in the city.

Serena was an orphan. He couldn't let her feel abandoned again.

Ethan gently stroked my hair and made a promise.

"One year, Lola. I swear I'll come back, take you to the city, and get you the best doctors."

But after they left, the whole town started whispering.

They said Ethan took Serena to the city to live the high life, and that he had abandoned his useless, dumb sister for good.

I didn't believe them. I sat by the dusty road entrance every single day, waiting.

The local creeps in town started teasing me.

They said if I agreed to marry one of them, Ethan would definitely come back to attend my wedding.

When I screamed and said no, they beat me.

I dragged myself home, bruised and crying.

The pain was so bad that I couldn't help but eat three chocolates at once.

I just wanted Ethan to come back faster.

If he was here, he would protect me and punish them.

Then, Chloe noticed my belly was growing bigger day by day.

She gently touched my swollen stomach, her eyes filled with horror. "Lola... you're pregnant. Who did this to you?"

My head throbbed with a blinding pain. I couldn't find the words to explain.

Chloe held me tight and sobbed for hours.

When Ethan finally got the news through a letter, his only reply was cold:

"If anyone in town is willing to take responsibility, just let Lola marry him."

But I was already the town's joke, despised and tormented.

I couldn't survive the brutal labor, and I died giving birth in a cold, dark room.