Chapter 1

I had two childhood best friends who once fought fiercely for my affection, each swearing they would never marry anyone else.

Everything changed when Zane was brought into the family.

Their eyes never lingered on me again.

Even when we were in a horrific car crash, Sonya, a traffic police supervisor, abandoned me while I was critically injured and shoved Zane into the ambulance first.

She said, "Zane is too fragile. He has to get to the hospital immediately."

I collapsed in a pool of blood.

By the time paramedics rushed me into the emergency room, Maya, the lead trauma surgeon, was nowhere to be found.

When the nurses frantically paged her, she replied, "He won't die right this second, but Zane needs me."

I lay on the cold operating table, my heart turning to ash.

If they threw me away, I would abandon them too.

1.

Whispers echoed in my ears.

Two nurses were murmuring softly beside my bed.

"The guy in the next bed must be Dr. Maya's sweetheart. She's hovering over him like he's made of glass."

"Tell me about it. Dr. Maya was so busy bandaging his tiny scrape that the anesthesia on Bed Eight completely wore off before a surgeon even showed up."

"Man, Bed Eight had it rough. I heard he was bleeding out at the scene..."

This was a shared three-patient room.

I was Bed Eight, lying there with only a nurse nearby.

In the adjacent bed, Zane was surrounded by Sonya and Maya, basking in their relentless pampering.

"Zane, does your head still hurt?"

Zane leaned weakly against Maya, relishing her gentle concern.

"Hold on, Zane. I'll have this peeled for you in a second."

Sonya was peeling an apple for him, matching Maya's devotion.

She used to soothe me the exact same way whenever I was sick.

Sonya caught me looking at them.

Her eyes flickered for a fraction of a second before hardening into cold disgust.

"What are you staring at? Are you still trying to steal his ambulance? Why do you always have to take everything from Zane?"

I stared at her silently.

Back then, my leg had been crushed under the twisted metal of the car frame.

The agonizing pain had made it almost impossible to breathe.

When Sonya sprinted over, I foolishly thought she had come to save me.

Instead, she didn't spare me a single glance, pulling Zane out when all he had was a superficial scratch.

I reached out, desperately grabbing the hem of her uniform pants, only to hear her ruthless words.

"Lucas, just hold on. Zane is weak and can't afford any delays. He needs the hospital right now."

"We can't wait for you. Wait for the next ambulance."

Sonya shook my hand off without hesitation, helping Zane onto the only ambulance on scene.

I would never forget that suffocating despair and humiliation for the rest of my life.