11
Half a year later, I successfully graduated from university and received an offer from a prestigious foreign school.
I was hesitant between going abroad for graduate studies and inheriting the family business.
My parents firmly supported me going abroad, saying I had suffered enough in my first twenty years.
What they could make up for was to fulfill all my wishes and let me do whatever I wanted.
My dad flexed his still robust biceps.
“Dad can still look after the family business for you. You can come back to take over after you graduate.”
So I chose to go abroad for graduate school.
Every day before leaving, I wanted to stick to my parents.
Later, my parents took me to change my name, and I finally had my own surname.
Looking at the “Mia Bailey” on my ID card, I burst into tears, my hand caressing those three words over and over again.
My mom felt sorry for all the hardships I had endured and transferred the family’s real estate to my name in advance.
I didn’t want to accept it, but she said it was to cut off Lucas’s hopes.
Lucas was indeed restless.
He would occasionally send some things our parents liked to the house, but they were all thrown out.
Later, he started calling frequently, but the calls were hung up by the housekeeper or nanny.
Then Lucas began to harass me.
He cursed me as a demon who would harm people from birth, saying he wished he had pushed me into the lake and drowned me when I was
two.
But no matter how vicious his words were, they couldn’t provoke any emotion in me.
The little affection between us, which wasn’t much to begin with, had completely dissipated.
After I blocked Lucas, I had a few days of peace.
Then Olivia came to harass me.
As soon as I picked up the phone, I heard crying.
“Mia, don’t hang up, please, help me.”
She had always been good at playing the victim. Although I didn’t hang up, I just wanted to see what act she was putting on this time.
“Mia, I’m pregnant, Lucas kicked me out, and I don’t have a penny to my name.”
“Can you help me?”
She became more and more agitated as she spoke, even crying out loud.
“That bastard Lucas has been drinking at home since he was fired. He even took the house away.”
“I really have nowhere to go.”
I said “Oh.”
“Then go to the police.”
With that, I hung up the phone.
Later, Olivia still found our parents and confessed about her pregnancy.
Afraid she might do something rash, my parents agreed to give the couple some money, as long as they lived well and raised their child.
Lucas agreed.
None of us three attended their wedding.
We all knew clearly that Lucas agreed to marry only because of the money.
Less than a month after they got married, Olivia had a miscarriage.
Lucas probably thought the child was a burden, or maybe it was just his bestial nature, but he got drunk and beat Olivia until she miscarried. He went to jail for rehabilitation because of this.
My parents didn’t step in to help him, focusing all their attention on me.
Every item I needed for studying abroad was carefully selected by them.
The night before I left, I suddenly changed my mind.
“Dad, Mom, I’d better not go.”
My mom pointed her index finger at my forehead, “Don’t talk nonsense. You can go because you’re excellent. You must seize this opportunity!”
My dad also smiled at me from the side.
“If you miss home, you can come back anytime. It’s not like we can’t afford the plane tickets.”
Despite these words, the feeling of reluctance still tormented me.
Early the next morning, I cried in bed for a while.
My eyes were still red and puffy.
At the security check, I hugged my parents goodbye.
“Don’t stay up late, don’t eat junk food, take your medicine on time.”
“Don’t stay up late, don’t eat junk food, take your medicine on time.”
My dad nodded.
Mom patted my shoulder.
“Have a safe trip.
Looking back three times with each step, I seemed to see the Mia from my previous life waving at me through the crowd.
Her lips moved, as if saying.
“This time, you must be really happy!”
I nodded, saying in my heart.
! definitely will.
