After I Died, My Sister Cried with Regret

When my elder sister, Melanie Grant, is 15, I inadvertently cause the death of our parents. I want to eat cake, so Mom and Dad make a U-turn halfway. Tragically, a drunk driver behind the wheel of a heavy-duty truck takes their lives on the spot. I suffer a severe blow to the head, causing my mental capacity to regress to that of a seven-year-old. Alone, Melanie buries Mom and Dad. When the orphanage offers to take me in, she holds back her tears and shakes her head. "My little brother needs me." Everyone believes she simply cannot bear to lose all her family members at once, but they assume that sooner or later, she'll remember what I've done and send me to the orphanage. Over the next decade, she takes me with her everywhere, from school to work. She even adopts another brother to help take care of me. One day, our little brother, Noah Cooper, burns his hand while pouring me a cup of hot water. Melanie suddenly shoves me to the floor. "It's been ten years! Haven't you had enough?" she barks. "I gave up my education and a good job for you! Why do you keep hurting us? You should've just died! Without you, all of us would be happier!" I don't understand why Melanie is so angry. But what I do know is that I must listen to her. Chapter 1 Elliot's POV This was the first time in ten years I had seen my elder sister, Melanie Grant, go ballistic. Even the day Mom and Dad passed, she hadn't flown off the handle at me like that, despite knowing the accident only happened because they made a U-turn for a cake I wanted. That day, when Melanie arrived at the scene, all that greeted her was her deceased parents, a little brother who had lost his mind, an insurance agent, and a remorseless drunk driver. My hands shaking, I tried to wipe the tears from the corner of her eye. "I'm sorry. Please don't cry, Mel…" Without hesitation, Melanie swatted my hand away. My skin swelled from the pain, looking more serious than the scald mark on our adopted little brother Noah Cooper's hand. She clenched her jaw and fixed her gaze on me. "Why did it have to be Mom and Dad? Why couldn't it have been you, Elliot Cooper?" After she finished speaking, she took Noah by the hand and led him to the first-aid kit. I stood alone in the living room, dazed. I wanted to follow them, but I thought it would only irritate them more. Helpless and overwhelmed with concern, I could only stand there and mutter, "I'm sorry…" Soon, Noah returned. Thanks to Melanie, his hand had been dressed and bandaged. I sat against the wall, hugging my knees, and looked up at him. He sat beside me the same way. "Actually, I did that on purpose." I looked at him in shock. No wonder Noah seemed different that day. "Mel is a mathematical genius, Elliot," he said. "She was featured in the news and praised by professors at a top university. But to make money to pay for your treatment, she gave up studying the subject she loved the most and went into finance." Noah continued, "After graduation, she turned down offers from abroad because she wanted to stay close enough to take care of you. She settled for grinding away at some small company here, building up her career from scratch. "She could've been somewhere she loved, studying mathematics, which she was so passionate about, with Mom and Dad's home-cooked meals waiting for her every month. But all of that became impossible because of you." I parted my lips, only to realize I was at a loss for words. "I'm… sorry." "Don't apologize to me," Noah said, barely glancing my way. "You should be apologetic to Mel and your parents instead. Call me cunning or whatever, but I only got to where I am in life today because of Mel. I won't sit back and watch her take what she doesn't deserve. "I'm just a guy she adopted, but even I feel terribly sorry for her. Why can't you, her brother, feel anything?" Noah rose to his feet and slammed the door behind him, the sound echoing through the room. Over the next few days, neither Melanie nor Noah paid me any attention. I had a rough idea of what I had done wrong, so I held back from bothering them. Still, I was starving. They seemed to have forgotten I hadn't eaten for quite some time. So, once they fell asleep at night, I tiptoed into the kitchen. I was just about to stuff a piece of bread from the fridge into my mouth when a cold voice sounded behind me. "Take one bite of the food we got for Noah's birthday party in two days, and you're out of this family." Chapter 2 Elliot's POV I quietly placed the bread back in the fridge and returned to my bedroom. My body felt unusually warm, my mouth was parched, and my throat was practically burning. I touched my lips, and they were so chapped that blood had seeped out. Needless to say, my voice was also hoarse. I yearned for a drop of water, but I dared not tell them. I didn't want the sound of running water to wake them up. I barely had the strength to get on all fours, so in the end, I lay on the floor and closed my eyes. When I woke up again, I saw a doctor berating someone. "He was burning up at 106.1 degrees! If he'd been here any later, he would've had irreversible brain damage! Is this how you look after him as his guardian? You're his sister!" Melanie stood in the hallway before the doctor, her head bowed like a child who'd done wrong. Her fists hung by her sides. "I'm sorry…" I wanted to tell her, "Don't say sorry, Mel. It'll only make me feel even more sorry." But when I reached the doorway, Noah suddenly appeared and stopped me, yanking me back to my bed. "Don't go!" Melanie turned around and saw me. Suddenly, all the words I had wanted to say to her melted in my throat. She looked at me, her eyes rimmed red and glistening with tears. In them, I saw indignation. The door closed. Noah crossed his arms before me. "Today was supposed to be the day Mel closed a deal with a major client. But because she had to bring you to the hospital, a coworker swooped in and took the account from her. She's spent three months working toward that promotion. Now it's gone." I twisted the hem of my clothes, not knowing what to say. In the end, it was the same two words again. "I'm sorry." Melanie returned to her office, while Noah took me back home. They were supposed to celebrate his birthday the next day, but since the major client had been snatched away from her, Melanie had to secure another investor to make up for the loss. Hence, she could no longer make the celebration happen and could only compensate him with a huge cake. At home, only Noah and I sat around the cake. The lights were off, but the candles were lit. I turned to him. "Noah, make a wish." He slammed his hand on the table and turned toward his bedroom. Then, with another bang, he shut the door behind him. Noah's birthday cake sat there melting that night. It wasn't until Melanie came home before dawn that she saw I was still sitting there in a daze. "I'm sorry…" I muttered, my arms around my knees. "I shouldn't have gotten sick. I'm sorry…" Melanie's hand tightened around the briefcase handle. Without a word, she walked past me. That morning, Noah diligently made her breakfast and put her to bed. I looked at him with red-rimmed eyes and asked, "Noah, what can I do to make you all happy?" His expression was blank. "Nothing." Ever since the car accident, my mind hadn't been the brightest. After some thinking, I recalled what Melanie had told me when Noah was scalded with hot water. "You should've just died! Without you, all of us would be happier!" There was something I could do to make them all happy. … No matter how much I thought about it, I still believed jumping from a building was the easiest solution. I drew the curtains open. From the fifth floor, it looked quite terrifying. My legs started to feel like jelly. Still, when I recalled Melanie's bloodshot eyes after a long day at work and the way she had looked at me so indignantly at the hospital, I decided to bite my tongue and jump. When I opened my eyes, I found myself at the hospital again. Pain shot through my entire body. This time, I had a cast around my right arm. "A patient with intellectual disabilities needs safety rails at home. Why didn't you have them installed? You're his sister! Can't you take some responsibility?" the same doctor scolded Melanie again. This time, I couldn't get out of bed. Melanie slowly opened the door to my ward. The way she looked at me was full of grievance and sorrow, even more so than the last time. "It's all because of you…" That was all she said before taking off. I looked at her retreating figure, still not understanding why. It wasn't until Noah came to take me home that I finally did. "That investor had agreed to sign the contract with Mel," he said icily, stuffing all my belongings into the backpack. Chapter 3 Elliot's POV "But when Mel heard you'd jumped off the building, she turned back and took you to the hospital," Noah said. "You were lucky. The huge umbrella over the fruit stand below broke your fall, and you landed in the bushes beside it." He sighed quietly. "But Mel screwed the deals up twice in a row. She got fired." My breathing stopped, and I began stuttering, "N-Noah, I didn't know—" How could I convince him that I truly wanted to end it all so I could end their misery? Noah's eyes were as soulless as a puppet's when he cut me off. "What's the point of saying anything now? Mel's lost everything." After dropping me home, he needed to head back to school. The SAT was around the corner. Before leaving, his soulless eyes finally glistened with tears. "Mel gave up her job to save you, while I used my study time to bring you home. The world sure revolves around you, doesn't it, Elliot?" I lay on the bed. Once he left, I cried until my blanket was wet. … I didn't know how to make up for my mistakes. It was Melanie's birthday today, so I spent the little money I had left on a piece of cake. I told the worker to write "Happy Birthday, Mel" on it. By the time I arrived home, it was dark. Melanie sat on the couch without the lights on. When she saw the cake and the words on it, she looked taken aback. I looked at her. "Mel, I'm sorry—" "What's the use of an apology now?" I was suddenly put in a chokehold, and the next second, I was slammed into the wall. This was the first time Melanie had gotten physical with me. I didn't know she was this strong. Air was running out of my lungs. "Why were you such a glutton? Why did you have to have that damn cake? I was doing things that I loved and having a great life with Mom and Dad. Now, I've lost them, my job, and everything I wanted!" It wasn't until then that I saw the countless photos of Melanie with Mom and Dad since her birth covering the coffee table. The smiles on their faces were contagious. I couldn't help but think of the last time I saw their faces. They were smiling, saying they would make a U-turn to get me the cake I wanted. Tears fell onto the back of Melanie's hand. She clenched her jaw. "Just die. Everything will get better if you just die." I slowly let go of the hands I had been wanting to pry away. At that moment, her arms stiffened. After a long while, she slowly released the grip around my neck. I plunged to the floor, hacking as I raised my eyes to her. I could barely see her face in the dark, but a few tears dripped onto the floor. "I'll buy you all the cakes from all around the city," she muttered flatly. "In return, can you give me back Mom and Dad?" … After that, Melanie never looked after me again. When Noah came home from school, he had to study and comfort our depressed sister on top of everything else. Nobody gave me any money. Nobody cooked enough food for me anymore. Even when I wanted to take a shower, someone would turn off the water before it was my turn. Noah and Melanie stopped responding to what I said. Everyone was quietly shutting me out. I regretted it so much. That day, I should've picked an angle that wouldn't have landed me on the fruit stand. Melanie was right. Everyone would be happier if I were dead. But I knew I had to do things right even after my death. Otherwise, once people found out I was Melanie's brother, they would come looking for her. What if I caused her trouble again? The day I left home, Noah happened to be heading out. Seeing that I was carrying a bundle of my belongings, he simply stared at me and let me go. From then on, I carried a garbage bag around and rummaged through trash piles wherever I went. When I was hungry, I ate whatever leftovers other people had thrown away. When I was tired, I slept in abandoned schools and factories or beneath bridges. After a while, I knew every trash can in the city by heart. Little by little, I learned how not to go starving. Nevertheless, it still wasn't enough. I needed to save up enough money to pay for a body removal service so professionals would take care of everything once I died. Chapter 4 Elliot's POV No matter what I did, I could never bother Melanie again. I started collecting bottles every day. Sometimes, I would see Noah on his way home from school. Our eyes would meet, but he would quickly look away and walk off as if he hadn't seen anything. I never called out to him, either. He was preparing for his SAT, and I couldn't afford to waste his time. Then, one day, I saw Melanie. We locked eyes, and she froze for a moment. The empty bottle in my hand slipped to the ground. She was carrying a briefcase again and was wearing a new suit. It looked like she had found a new job. How wonderful. My departure really did bring good things into her life. I smiled at her, but she merely frowned and walked away. I picked up the bottle and continued collecting the ones people had discarded, one after another, stuffing them into my garbage bag. As time went on, I started seeing Melanie more and more often. She was always the same, frowning and walking away whenever she saw me. I did my best to avoid her, but she probably had clients all over the city—no matter which corner I went to rummage through trash, I would somehow catch a glimpse of her nearby, going about her business. That day, I was crouched beside a trash can, eating half a piece of bread someone had tossed away. A bag of food then dropped before me. I looked up, and it was Melanie standing over me. She pulled out a bank card and held it out to me. "There are 15 thousand dollars in this account. It's all the money I've saved. Don't eat this kind of food anymore." I stared at her, overwhelmed with emotion. For a moment, I truly thought she had come to make peace with me. But her next words brought me straight back to reality. "I'll transfer money into this account regularly from now on, but you're not coming home anymore." I couldn't say a word. Melanie turned to leave. I hurriedly shoved the card back into her hand. "I don't want it." She forcefully pushed it back into my hand. "Take it!" For the first time, I resisted her. After several rounds of pushing the card back and forth, she finally lost her patience. "Take it so we can finally stop worrying about you! Do you understand?" I froze. Her breathing had grown labored. "Noah's taking his SAT soon. I don't want anyone distracting him. Spend this money for the rest of your life. Go somewhere far away and never come back." With that, she turned and got into the car. I gripped the bank card. Deep down, I told myself I would never use this money. I had already saved enough to pay the professionals to take care of my body. By then, I would have them return the money to Melanie. I went to Mr. Hamilton, who sold drugs by the bridge, and bought a bottle of prescription pills. He somehow managed to get me the whole bottle, even though the hospital would only dispense five tablets at a time, with refills available after one had finished them. How impressive of him. I bought myself a tiny cake and sprinkled the crushed pills over it. It was so sweet. At last, I could be reunited with Mom and Dad. … Third-Person POV It had been a while since Melanie had seen Elliot. Every month, she deposited three thousand dollars in the bank account linked to the card she had given him. Her new job paid better than the last, and she still had enough left over to take Noah on trips every month to help him relax. She just wasn't used to not seeing Elliot wandering around the city collecting bottles and rummaging through trash. Elliot had a phone, and she was the only person in his contacts. Since he'd left home and taken the money she'd given him to start a new life, she should've been relieved. But after all this time, couldn't he at least send a text? Maybe Noah had been right. Her parents had raised an ungrateful brat. She, too, had spent all these years taking care of an ingrate. She was still thinking about it when her phone rang. The number was familiar. After a moment of hesitation, she answered. "Elliot?" "Hello. Are you the sister of the owner of this number?" The unfamiliar voice made her freeze. "Your brother took his own life by overdosing three months ago. Would you like to come and claim his ashes?" Melanie's phone slipped from her hand and hit the floor with a loud thud. "Hello? Hello, ma'am? Are you still there?"