Because she wasn’t wrong. I really was about to play the role of an ungrateful daughter.
But my father let out a long sigh, clearly thinking I was just being childish.
“Oh, so that’s all this is? Fine, I’ll buy another one exactly like it.”
Yet I shook my head slowly, locking eyes with him.
“No. There’s no such thing as another fish exactly like it.”
His expression froze. His gaze sharpened, almost flinching, as though my words had burned him.
The truth was, the man sitting across from me wasn’t my biological father at all. He was my stepfather.
My real father had been murdered by a serial killer when I was three years old, but the killer was already caught two years later. And that same year, my mother met my stepfather.
At the time, Grandma worried he wouldn’t want me and even suggested my mom send me away to someone else. But unexpectedly, my stepfather had always treated me well.
Back then, my mom was still young, and my stepfather had luck on his side. When he started a small business, it turned into an overnight fortune. Soon, he bought several copper mines, and with favorable policies at the time, the profits poured in.
In just a few short years, he’d earned enough to keep our family comfortable for generations.
Once the money came, my mom worried he might change and tried to convince him to have more children. But he refused every time. Holding me close with a smile, he said, “Mirabelle is my lucky star. She’s the reason I became wealthy. She’s the only daughter I’ll ever have in this life.”
And he meant it. Back then, he treated me like a princess. A single diamond he gifted me would be worth millions. Luxury cars and mansions were also nothing unusual.
But life didn't always go the way you wanted it to.
A few years ago, my mother died in a sudden car accident.
Mirabelle's POV
The police had come by. From the scene, it was clear my mom’s death really was from a car accident.
She was the only car on the road that day. Driving way over the speed limit, she lost control on a curve and rolled over.
By some miracle, she survived the crash, but she never woke up. She slipped into a vegetative state.
My dad cared for her himself. He didn’t let my aunt or my grandmother lift a finger, wouldn’t even hire a nurse.
Still, after just a few months, she was gone.
My dad broke down really hard because of that.
I could remember, I was only a freshman in high school at that time.