\[I'm sorry, Dad. I've given up.\]

\[After I get married, I'll try to persuade Mrs. Emma to accept you two as well.\]

I ran as fast as I could through the rain toward our apartment after reading the series of messages from Dad.

I knew what was going to happen next.

And I had to stop him.

Earlier that evening, Dad had deliberately asked me to take his place and stay with Hans at the hospital that night.

Now I knew why.

He wanted to run away.

Tonight.

With trembling hands and ragged breaths, I entered the password to our apartment door.

The moment it opened, I rushed inside.

"Dad!"

No answer.

I ran to the bedroom. Empty.

The living room. Empty.

"Dad!"

I opened the bathroom door, checked the kitchen, and even rushed out onto the balcony.

There was no one.

"You can't leave!" I screamed. "You can't abandon Hans and me!"

But the man who had been our only support in life was already gone.

Completely gone.

That coward had chosen to save himself rather than face the burden he was supposed to carry.

He had left us to drown on our own.

I sank to the floor.

Rainwater was still dripping from my hair and clothes, but I couldn't even feel it.

Then my gaze fell on the living room.

The television was gone.

Dad's laptop was gone.

Even some of the electronic appliances we still had were missing.

He had emptied the apartment.

Maybe he planned to sell everything.

Or perhaps he needed the money to buy a ring for the woman who was about to become his wife.

My chest tightened.

"You bastard, Dad."

My voice cracked.

"You're cruel."

My hand slammed against the tiled floor.

Once.

Twice.

Until my palm began to hurt.

"You're a coward!"

Ding!

The sound of a notification made me freeze.

I reached into my jeans pocket and pulled out my phone.

A new message.

RENT PAYMENT NOTICE

I opened it.

The due date.

Three days from now.

I stared at the amount displayed on the screen, then let out a small laugh.

A laugh that held absolutely no joy.

"You picked the perfect time to leave, Dad."

Before I could put my phone away, the screen lit up again.

Incoming call: City General Hospital.

My heart sank.

I answered with trembling hands.

"Hello?"

A nurse's voice came from the other end.

"Miss Evelyn?"

"Yes."

"This is the hospital calling. Hans's condition has deteriorated."

My breath caught.

"What do you mean?"

"Your brother is in critical condition. The doctor needs your consent to proceed with emergency treatment."

I stood up so quickly that my vision blurred.

"I'll be there."

"Miss, there's one more thing."

I froze.

"Hans's medical bill is also—"

"I'll pay it."

My answer came out too quickly.

Before I even knew where the money would come from.

"I'll be there right away."

The call ended.

I stood alone in the apartment my father had just abandoned.

On one side, my younger brother was fighting for his life.

On the other, our landlord would demand the rent in three days.

And my father—the one person who should have been shouldering all of this—had just disappeared, taking every last bit of hope we had with him.

I wiped away my tears.

Then grabbed my jacket.

I didn't have time to cry.

I had to save Hans.

The rain was still falling when I arrived at the hospital.

I barely had time to catch my breath. The moment the taxi door opened, I rushed straight into the lobby.

The smell of antiseptic filled the air. Several nurses hurried past me, while the sound of heart monitors echoed from behind the hospital room doors.

I stopped running when I reached Room 512.

Hans was lying on the bed.

His face was pale. An oxygen tube was inserted into his nose, and several wires were attached to his chest.

I stopped in the doorway.

For a moment, my legs felt weak.

"Han..."

I approached him and took his hand.

Cold.

Far too cold.

"Eve?"

The faint voice made my eyes burn instantly.

"I'm here."

Hans opened his eyes slightly.

"Dad?"

I fell silent.

How could I tell him that Dad was gone?

That the man we had trusted all this time had just abandoned us?

"He..."

I swallowed hard.

"He's taking care of something."

I lied.

For the first time that night, I wished a lie could save someone.

Hans closed his eyes again.

A few minutes later, a nurse entered carrying a folder.

"Miss Evelyn?"

I stood up.

"Yes?"

"I need to discuss your brother's condition with you."

My heart began pounding again.

We stepped out of the room.

The nurse opened the folder and handed me several documents.

"The doctor has performed emergency treatment to stabilize his condition. However, Hans needs further care."

I stared at the number on the first page.

"How much?"

The nurse pointed to the bottom of the document.

I read it.

$9,500.

I blinked.

Maybe I had read it wrong.

"This..."

"The cost of further treatment, medication, cardiac examinations, and the procedures he'll need over the next few days."

My hands began to tremble.

"And what happens if I can't pay?"

The nurse's expression softened.

"The hospital requires a deposit before the next round of treatment can proceed."

I looked at the number again.

Nine thousand five hundred dollars.

I didn't even have a tenth of that.

"How much time do I have?"

"Twenty-four hours."

Twenty-four hours.

I nodded slowly.

"Okay."

I didn't know who I was saying it to.

Maybe the nurse.

Maybe myself.

Or perhaps God.

I sat down in the hallway chair and immediately called Dad.

Once.

Twice.

Three times.

He didn't answer.

The next call went straight to voicemail.

I tried again.

His number was no longer in service.

"No..."

I quickly searched for Uncle Richard's number.

The call connected after several rings.

"Uncle?"

"Evelyn? What's wrong?"

I explained everything.

About Hans.

About the bill.

About the treatment that had to be carried out immediately.

There was a long silence on the other end.

"I'm sorry, Eve. I'm having financial problems of my own."

"But, Uncle..."

"I really can't help you right now."

The call ended.

I closed my eyes.

Then I called Aunt Clara.

The result was no different.

"I'm sorry, sweetheart. I don't have that much money."

I lowered my phone.

One by one, the people I thought I could turn to for shelter turned out to have no room for me.

And now I was truly alone.

I stared at Hans's hospital room door.

My brother was fighting for his life.

And I couldn't even afford to pay the price of keeping that fight going.

I picked up my phone again.

I opened my contact list.

There was one name that might still be able to help.

Mia.

My coworker at the restaurant.

I called her.

"Eve?"

"Mia, I need your help."

My voice sounded so desperate that I was almost ashamed to hear it myself.

"What's wrong?"

I told her about Hans.

Mia was silent for a long time.

"I don't have that much money, Eve."

"I know."

"I'm sorry."

"It's okay."

I was about to end the call when she said,

"Wait."

I pressed the phone back against my ear.

"There's an extra job."

"What kind of job?"

"Waitressing."

"I already work at a restaurant."

"Not at a restaurant."

I frowned.

"Where?"

"Velvet Crown."

I knew the place.

An exclusive club that only people with money and connections could enter.

"I don't have any experience."

"You just have to serve the guests. Drinks, food, things like that."

"How much does it pay?"

Mia told me the amount.

It wasn't enough to cover everything.

But it was far more than I could earn from a single night at the restaurant.

I looked at Hans's hospital room door.

"What's the address?"