Through the crack in the door, I saw Jimmy lounging casually against the hospital bed, swirling a glass of liquor in his hand. His cheeks were flushed, looking nothing like a sick man. A few rich, preppy guys surrounded him, their faces twisted in smug, disgusting grins.
I rubbed my eyes hard, convinced I must be seeing things.
"Man, Jimmy should’ve gone into acting," said one guy with bleached blond hair, clapping Jimmy on the shoulder. "She was totally fooled—selling her blood, even selling herself. Unreal!"
"Ha! You pulled it off for just $7,500? Hell, even that Tibetan mastiff you own cost more than that!" the blond guy laughed, slapping his thigh.
"Our boy Jimmy really went all in—pretending to be poor, pretending to be in love, pretending to be dying," another chimed in, laughing even harder.
"So, Jimmy, when are you dropping that video? She’s probably gonna throw herself off a building when it hits the net."
Jimmy glanced down at his phone and said nothing.
"Hey, don’t tell me you actually caught feelings for her?" someone nudged him, half-joking. "Don’t forget—if she hadn’t snatched Gina’s scholarship, Gina wouldn’t have been sent abroad by her family."
At the mention of Gina’s name, Jimmy’s expression suddenly turned cold.
“What’s the rush?” he said flatly. “The welcome dinner for Gina happens to be on her birthday…”
He paused, a cruel smirk playing at the corners of his mouth. “I’ll give her a surprise she’ll never forget.”
“Oh man, post that little video online,” the blond guy said, rubbing his hands together in excitement. “Let’s make sure she can never show her face again!”
I bit down hard on my lip until I tasted blood. Without thinking, I stumbled out of the hospital and into the street. The wind lashed against my face, sharp and stinging.
Back in my cramped apartment, I sank to my knees in front of the wall. There, taped above my mattress, was a photo of Jimmy and me. His smile in that picture was so bright, so warm—like it could melt snow.
Now, all it did was make my blood run cold.
Memories came crashing down on me like a tide.
A year ago, I was cornered in an alley by a group of thugs. They were pushing me around, laughing—until Jimmy showed up out of nowhere and pulled me out.
After we got together, Jimmy told me he had a congenital heart condition. I felt so sorry for him. I started working day and night, barely sleeping, just to save up for his surgery.