Chapter 87 087
EMILY
I didn’t understand what I was looking at.
Or maybe I did—and my mind just refused to accept it.
Everything felt… wrong. Tilted. Like the ground beneath me had shifted, and I hadn’t caught up yet.
The girl.
She looked like me.
Not in the vague, coincidental way strangers sometimes did. Not in the “you could pass for sisters” kind of way.
No.
She looked like me.
Same eyes.
Same face.
My breath hitched, and before I could even process that, my body reacted on its own.
I pushed myself up immediately.
The movement sent a sharp wave of dizziness through me, but I ignored it.
“What—”
I didn’t even get to finish.
The woman rushed toward me like she had been waiting her entire life for this moment.
And then she wrapped her arms around me.
Tightly.
Too tightly.
A broken sob escaped her as she clung to me, her entire body trembling.
“Oh my God… oh my God…”
I froze.
Completely.
My hands hovered awkwardly in the air before I slowly placed them against her shoulders, trying to create some distance between us.
“I—um…”
I shot Morgan a confused look over the woman’s shoulder, silently begging for some kind of explanation.
Morgan looked just as stunned as I felt.
That didn’t help.
“I’m sorry—” I started carefully, trying to keep my voice steady as I gently attempted to pull away. “Do I… know you?”
The woman didn’t answer.
If anything, she held me tighter.
Like letting go would break something.
Or someone.
“I found you…” she whispered against me, her voice shaking uncontrollably. “I finally found you…”
A chill ran down my spine.
I glanced past her.
The man standing behind her looked like he was barely holding himself together. His jaw was tight, his eyes fixed on me like he couldn’t look away.
And the girl—
The girl who looked like me—
She looked like she was about to cry.
My chest tightened.
What was this?
What was happening?
“Okay…” I said slowly, my voice strained now. “I think… I think you might be in the wrong room.”
The woman pulled back slightly, just enough to look at me.
Her hands stayed on my arms, gripping me like she needed to feel that I was real.
“No,” she said immediately, shaking her head. “No, we’re exactly where we’re supposed to be.”
That didn’t make anything better.
If anything, it made it worse.
Confusion turned into unease.
I gently but firmly removed her hands from me, shifting back against the bed.
“I don’t understand,” I said, my voice sharper now. “Who are you people?”
She didn’t answer right away.
Instead, she just… looked at me.
Really looked at me.
Like she was memorizing every part of my face.
Like she was trying to make up for lost time.
Then she turned slightly, her voice trembling as she spoke to the man.
“William… we need to get her out of here.”
I blinked.
“What?”
“I don’t think they’re taking proper care of her,” she continued, her panic rising again. “Look at her, she’s pale, she’s weak—we need to take her to a better hospital. Immediately.”
Something in me snapped.
I moved back further, putting more space between us.
“Okay, no,” I said firmly. “No, no—hold on.”
Morgan stepped closer to me, her hand resting gently on my shoulder.
I barely felt it.
“If you can’t tell me who you are,” I continued, my voice shaking now, “then you need to leave. I’m not in the mood for this. I’m going through enough already.”
My patience was gone.
Completely gone.
I didn’t have the strength for whatever this was.
Not today.
Not now.
Not when everything else in my life was already falling apart.
The girl stepped forward slightly.
Her movements were hesitant, like she didn’t want to scare me.
But her eyes—
Her eyes stayed locked on mine.
“You’re my sister.”
The words landed softly.
But they hit like a bomb.
My entire body went still.
“And these…” she continued, her voice barely above a whisper, “…these are your parents.”
Silence.
Heavy.
Suffocating.
For a second, I just stared at her.
Then—
I laughed.
A short, breathless sound that didn’t feel like mine.
“Okay,” I said, shaking my head as I looked between them. “Okay… wow. That’s—”
I turned to Morgan, still laughing lightly.
“Do you see this?” I asked, my voice laced with disbelief. “Is this actually happening right now?”
Morgan didn’t laugh.
She didn’t even smile.
She just looked at me.
Serious.
Too serious.
The laughter died in my throat.
Slowly.
Painfully.
I turned back to them, my chest tightening.
No.
No, this wasn’t real.
This couldn’t be real.
I closed my eyes, taking a deep breath like I could reset everything.
Like I could wake up from whatever nightmare this was turning into.
When I opened them again, they were still there.
Watching me.
Waiting.
“Get out,” I said quietly.
The woman’s grip on me tightened again.
“Please,” she whispered. “Just let me explain—”
“Get out.”
My voice was louder now.
Stronger.
Shaking.
“I’ve been looking for you for years,” she cried. “You don’t understand—”
“I said get out!”
The scream tore out of me before I could stop it.
It echoed through the room, leaving a ringing silence behind.
The woman flinched.
And then she broke.
Tears streamed down her face as she stepped back, her hand flying to her mouth to stifle a sob.
The man moved immediately, wrapping an arm around her shoulders.
He looked at me.
And for a second, something in my chest twisted.
Because his expression wasn’t anger.
It wasn’t frustration.
It was… sadness.
Deep, quiet sadness.
“I’m sorry,” he said softly.
The words confused me more than anything else.
Sorry?
For what?
For lying?
For whatever game this was?
He gently guided the woman toward the door.
She kept looking back at me like she couldn’t bear to leave.
Like leaving me again would destroy her.
I didn’t understand it.
I didn’t want to understand it.
The girl lingered for a moment.
She gave me a small, sad smile.
“You didn’t have to shout at her,” she said gently. “She’s been searching for you for so long.”
I said nothing.
I couldn’t.
My throat felt tight.
My head felt too full.
Too loud.
She nodded slightly, like she expected that.
Then she turned to Morgan.
There was something unspoken in that look.
Something I couldn’t quite grasp.
And then she walked out.
The door closed behind them.
And just like that—
They were gone.
Silence filled the room again.
But it wasn’t the same silence as before.
This one was heavier.
Unsettling.
I exhaled slowly, running a hand through my hair.
“Can you believe those people?” I muttered, shaking my head. “What kind of hospital is this? Just letting random strangers into patients’ rooms?”
Morgan didn’t respond.
I kept going, my voice rising slightly.
“I mean, seriously. This place isn’t safe. What if they were dangerous? What if—”
“Emily.”
Her voice stopped me.
I turned to her.
She was already sitting beside me.
Watching me.
Carefully.
“Don’t you see it?” she asked softly.
“See what?” I snapped.
“The resemblance.”
I looked away immediately.
“I don’t know what you’re talking about.”
“Emily.”
“I said I don’t know what you’re talking about,” I repeated, more firmly this time.
My chest felt tight again.
Too tight.
“I think they’re telling the truth,” Morgan said gently.
That did it.
I looked at her.
Really looked at her.
“You can’t be serious.”
“I am.”
A bitter laugh escaped me.
“Of course you are.”
“Emily—”
“No,” I cut in, shaking my head. “No, I’m not doing this. Not today. Not now. I can’t.”
Everything felt like too much.
Too much noise.
Too much emotion.
Too much everything.
I leaned back against the bed, staring up at the ceiling.
For a moment, I said nothing.
Then I let out a long, shaky breath.
“I can’t even cry again,” I whispered.
My voice sounded empty.
Drained.
“Why is everything happening at once?” I continued, my throat tightening. “What did I do to deserve all of this?”
Morgan didn’t interrupt.
She just listened.
“First Zara…” My voice cracked. “Then Ryan… now this?”
I let out a small, broken laugh.
“Can I just have a normal life for once?”
The question hung in the air.
Pointless.
Because I already knew the answer.
A single tear slipped down my temple, disappearing into my hair.
I didn’t bother wiping it away.
I didn’t have the energy.
Morgan pulled me into her arms again, holding me gently this time.
Like I might shatter.
And for the first time in a long time—
I didn’t fight it.