Chapter 4

I followed my mom closely, supported by a colleague.

When we reached the room, Caleb's mom was feeding him chicken soup.

"This chicken soup smells so good, son, drink more! You'll recover faster! But there's too little meat in this chicken soup, why didn't she give more chicken drumsticks?"

Caleb, sipping his soup, slowly mumbled:

"Ms. Sterling's mom also made ribs, I smelled them. She didn't give me any. Mom, next time can you ask for some for me?"

Caleb's mom, of course, readily agreed:

"That old hag is hoarding ribs from you? How shameless! Wait until I get them for you!"

My mom couldn't stand it anymore and scoffed:

"Who's shameless now?! I cooked those ribs for my own daughter! What, you think they're for this greedy pig?"

I stopped my mom, who was about to lunge forward to argue, and glared at Caleb.

"You told your mom I was up for an award, didn't you? You told her to make a scene about it, right?"

I remembered. The day Ms. Davies came to give Caleb the donation money, she mentioned the award nomination.

Caleb’s mom wasn't there then; it could only have been Caleb who told her.

Later, when Caleb's mom asked me why I wasn't on the donation list.

I hadn’t thought much of it, just told her it was from the students and teachers at school, and since I was hospitalized, I wouldn't know.

She then muttered softly:

"She's getting such a big award for free, yet she wouldn't even donate a little money?"

At the time, I thought I'd misheard her.

Now, looking back, Caleb was already relaying information then.

They probably started plotting against me back then.

Caleb’s hand, which was tearing chicken meat, stopped. He glanced at me, then guiltily spoke.

"Ms. Sterling, my family has it tough."

My mom was absolutely livid:

"Your family has it tough? What about mine? I only have one daughter, and she donated bone marrow for you, and now she's still lying in this hospital bed! Is this how you repay her?"

"Don't listen to her BS!" Caleb's mom retorted, hands on her hips, not backing down.

"I asked around! You recover from bone marrow donation in about a week! Your daughter is just playing the victim, lying in bed like a hog for months!"

"Trying to play the victim and get an award? You think you can just lie there like some cheap floozy and get ahead? Look at yourself! I'm telling you, if you don't give me money to shut me up, I'll make sure you lose your job!"

I'd never been cursed at like that in my life, and I was utterly speechless with anger.

My mom's eyes turned red, she glared, her chest heaving abnormally.

"Shut up! Who gave you the right to curse my daughter like that?"

Caleb's mom became even more aggressive, striding up to my mom and poking her finger repeatedly into my mom's chest.

"Like mother, like daughter, right? Getting all worked up like this, did I hit a nerve with you two?"

My mom gasped, couldn't catch her breath, and collapsed onto the floor with a thud.

I was trembling with fright. Ignoring my own need for support, I rushed to my mom's side:

"Mom!!"