I Would Never Be Their Daughter

I was abandoned by my family in a safari park and accidentally stepped into the territory of the brown bear, which would eat human beings.

Just as I wasn't loved by my family, the bear saw me as an unwelcome outsider.

The rescue team, on their way, tried to comfort me, saying, "Stay alert. Trust us. You'll be fine."

I felt the bear devouring most of my stomach and didn't rush them.

Actually, I wasn't asking them to save me.

I just didn't want my body to be left unattended after I died.

I was dying.

I called my family countless times, but no one answered my calls. The endless waiting drained my hope.

I was desperate, and my breath stopped.

Just then, the call connected...

1

"Do you have nothing better to do than bother us?" My father's angry voice came through the phone.

He wasn't worried about me or curious about why I called him.

He was simply annoyed by my disturbance and impatiently answered my call.

I clutched my aching heart.

So even my soul could feel pain.

"Say something. Just because we didn't take you with us when we left, do you keep bothering us? You have money on you, don't you?"

Baylee Steward's voice, with sobs, chimed, "Dad, it's all my fault. I forgot to call Chelsey when we left. She must be mad at me."

After saying that, Baylee apologized to me, full of self-blame.

Ha, she had the same tone and played the same trick.

I knew better what she would say next than she did.

Sure enough, my brother, Brodie Steward, chimed in, "Chelsey has always been like this. If things don't go her way, she acts out. It's disgusting. Baylee, don't bother with her. Just have your dinner."

When he spoke again, the phone's sound was much clearer. He must have taken over the call. "Chelsey, are you out of your mind? We don't answer your calls because you're annoying. But you keep calling each of us. So? Are you dying and rushing to leave your last words?"

In fact, I had indeed intended to do that.

But now, I couldn't go to the underworld like others.

The one from the underworld told me that I couldn't proceed normally without a funeral, so I remained a homeless soul.

I couldn't take the path of the afterlife like others.

Although I lived in this cold family for seventeen years, my family would impossibly hold a funeral for me because Baylee and Brodie hated me.

My silence made Brodie's impatience go to an extreme. "Damn it! Are you mute? Didn't you call to get an apology from us for leaving you behind? Actually, I did it on purpose. I wanted you to know no one cared about you in the family. "Don't flatter yourself thinking you're important. To us, you're not even worth a strand of Baylee's hair."

Those things were unspoken truths among us all.

But hearing him bluntly state them filled me with an indescribable pain.

The scolding voice continued in my ears. "What right do you have to throw a fit? Stop calling and bothering us. I suggest you know your place."

Even after the call ended, my parents didn't reprimand Brodie.

They tacitly agreed with him and maintained their usual indifference.

I found that even a bear eating half my body wasn't as cruel as they were.

2

Ever since my mother discovered Baylee was their daughter, they stopped loving me and doubled it on her.

Only I was left trapped in confusion and sleepless for countless nights.

I looked so much like my parents.

How could I not be their daughter?

I'd pondered that question for years.

Even in death, I couldn't understand it.

In the distance, lights flickered and brought me back to reality. I glanced at my bloody body below and was worried it might frighten the rescuers.

The bear had long disappeared without a trace after it had eaten its fill.

As the rescue team approached, the atmosphere grew heavier.

A young man at the front saw the remnants of my body and couldn't help but shake his head. "Alas, we arrived too late. Judging by the voice on the phone, she was a young girl. How did it come to this..."

The others sighed, and their expressions were filled with pity and regret for my death. "The safari park really needs to improve its management, especially in promoting visitor safety."

The others nodded emphatically.

I couldn't help but smile bitterly.

It's true I died at the bear's mouth.

But the root of the accident was my family.

The trip to the safari park was organized by Baylee.

She insisted on staying until dusk. When Jeffrey couldn't drive the car to the rest area in time, she asked me to accompany her into the forest to use the restroom.

I knew it was a predator zone and tried to stop her.

But I had no say in the family.

Under my mother's persuasion, my father's cold stare, and Brodie's orders, I was forced to accompany Baylee into the forest.

Baylee wanted to go even further inside, but I refused to continue, so she stopped.

Watching her go alone, I was worried for her.

But I was never unaware that she had taken another path back to the main road and got in the car before they drove away.

...

The whole family pushed me to my death.

Yet I couldn't blame them.

I had stolen the identity of my parents' daughter, making Baylee suffer hardship for eleven years.

Nor should I resent them.

It was my failure to recognize my place, foolishly hoping for my parents' and my brother's love.

Self-blame became second nature to me, and I couldn't possibly shake it off because those around me constantly reminded me and warned me to always be grateful.

Oh, that was my family.

I wonder if my death would finally make them happy.

When my thoughts returned, the brown bear had already been tranquilized and locked in a specially designed iron cage.

My remains were placed neatly on a stretcher.

The once gruesome scene had been cleaned up considerably.

However, the injuries were still there. Even if they tried to smooth them over, they could never fully heal.

I followed the rescue team to the park aid station.

A staff member picked up my phone and intended to contact my family and tell them about my death.

My fingers were mostly gone. After several attempts to unlock the phone, it was unsuccessful.

The rescue team planned to clean my face, which hadn't been mauled by the bear, and compare it with the visitors who entered the zoo today.

Just then, the phone rang, and everyone looked towards the sound.

It was my phone, displaying an incoming call from "Mom."

The call was connected, and a voice said, "Chelsey, it's late. You're not home yet."

My eyes turned red after I heard that.

Unlike my father, who was indifferent to me, my mother still cared about me.

The staff replied in a somber tone, "Hello, I'm a staff member at the safari park. I'm sorry to tell you that your daughter has been killed by a bear after she accidentally entered the wild animal enclosure. Please accept our condolences... Please know that the park will take full responsibility."

3

"Let Chelsey answer my call." My mother's words instantly chilled my heart.

I had imagined her reaction when she found out about my death. She perhaps felt sadness or maybe shock.

But I never imagined she would be in disbelief or indifferent.

She didn't have even a shred of suspicion.

The staff's sorrowful mood was disrupted by her words. "Excuse me?"

My mother continued in a calm tone, "Chelsey, I know you're upset we forgot you at the park. But you cannot make a joke like this. It is too much. Answer my call and come home quickly."

The staff member explained sincerely, "Ma'am, please listen to me. It's true that your daughter is already..."

This time, the interruption came from an angry male voice. "Chelsey, you didn't seem to listen to a word I said. Do you think teaming up with others to lie will make us worry about you?"

Brodie's disdainful tone echoed in the empty hall, stark and jarring. "Chelsey, who do you think you are? Even if you indeed die, don't think we'd rush to deal with your dead body."

The staff frowned and couldn't believe such words could come from my family. "Sir, it's true. Chelsey you speak of has indeed passed away. Please..."

Jeffrey's patience wore thin, and he snapped, "Fine! Since you insist Chelsey is dead, then send a photo to prove it."

The staff was in a dilemma.

My phone couldn't be unlocked, and it could only receive calls from others.

Just as he was about to explain the situation, Jeffrey snorted, as if seeing through the ruse. "Enough. Stop helping her deceive us. Chelsey, you've embarrassed yourself enough. Just wait until you get home and see how I'll deal with you."

My mother added, "Chelsey, how could you turn out like this? I'm so disappointed in you."

Even my father, who usually ignored me, said, "Why bother with her? She's not even our daughter. Why should it matter to us?"

I might not mind Brodie's harsh words, but every word from my parents pierced my heart.

My soul trembled uncontrollably.

The pain wasn't just in my heart, and my eyes began to sting.

The staff in the hall were shocked by what they heard.

They looked at my remains with sympathy. "Everyone, calm down and stop interrupting. Let me finish. Miss Chelsey Stewart has indeed passed away. We couldn't take a photo because we don't know her phone's password. If you refuse to claim the body, the park will still take full responsibility and handle her affairs."

The staff member finished speaking as he held back his anger.

After a brief silence, my mother said with a voice trembling slightly, "How... how could this happen? Brodie, go and see what happened."

Brodie was no longer as angry as before, but she was still skeptical. "Hmph, it seems to be quite a well-crafted lie. Mom, I think it's just a prank Chelsey arranged. I don't believe she's really gone. She always makes a scene."

"Brodie, what if... what if it's true..."

Brodie comforted my mother in a low voice. Then he turned to the phone and said in a threatening voice, "Chelsey, you'd better apologize before I get there. Otherwise, if I find out you're messing with us, I have ways to make your life miserable. Send me... tell me the address."

The staff was about to tell him that I was at the park aid station when my phone inconveniently ran out of battery and shut off.

However, before that, the staff had already told my mother of the circumstances and location of my death.

Others wished she would remember that.

The staff in the hall felt some injustice on my behalf.

"How can they be so heartless? Even if she's not their daughter, they shouldn't be like this."

"Well, maybe their love for her is deep. They'd rather believe it's a lie. When they face the truth, who knows how guilty they'll feel."

I curled my lips into a faint smile and closed my eyes helplessly.

Brodie would never feel guilty.

If he saw my miserable death, he'd probably be pleased.

Yet, I couldn't help but cling to a sliver of hope.

Maybe, just maybe, he would truly be sad at my death.