Chapter 766 One Last Favor
Natalie took a deep breath and kept going, "I didn't even buy clothes. When I go out, I walk if I can, and if it's too far, I take the subway. Even if I gotta switch trains a dozen times, I won't waste a single penny on a cab. I skipped the dorms in college to save money a semester on housing. I didn't dare to eat out or buy fancy stuff, and I even rinsed out shampoo bottles to use every last drop! I worked four jobs over the summer. Why? Just to pay for your pricey surgery!"
"Ever since you got kidney disease, I haven't had a single good day. I dreamed of you staying alive, even willing to give you my kidney, but we weren't a match. Now that I find it ridiculous. I'm not even your daughter, so how could we be a match?"
"Do you know how I scraped together the hundreds of thousands of dollars for your kidney transplant? I sold my body, endured threats, and humbled myself. But what about you? You trashed your kidney for your real daughter, Alice. You need a second transplant. And now you're here refusing to eat or take your meds in protest? You treat your life so cheaply, but have you ever thought about how I gave everything just to keep you alive for one more day?"
Natalie rarely cried.
She said she would cut ties with Rosalie before.
But this time, she felt all those pent-up emotions rushing in and enveloping her.
Rosalie was stunned, her eyes wide open.
Rosalie's lips trembled and quivered. "I'm sorry. It's all my fault. Natalie, you hate me, don't you? Just go ahead and hate me. I know it's all my fault. I'm the one who messed up both of your lives."
But the mistake had already been made.
Natalie wiped the tears from her face, finding it all very laughable.
Natalie chuckled, "I won't accept your apology. Say whatever you want. Isn't your refusal to take your meds just a way to see me? I'm here now, so speak."
"I have one last request." Rosalie pulled back the covers, got out of bed, and dropped to her knees.
Natalie looked at Rosalie, biting her lip hard.
Rosalie was very thin. Even the smallest size hospital gown was loose on her. The torment of illness had left her hair sparse, her face covered in gray spots, and the veins on her arms looked like mountain ranges, her bones so fragile they seemed like they could be broken with a touch.
Rosalie knelt on the ground and closed her eyes, ashamed to speak.
But then she thought of Alice.
Rosalie gritted her teeth. "I beg you, don't expose Alice, okay?"
Rosalie knew this request was disgusting and that she was exploiting the last bit of affection Natalie had for her.
Rosalie lowered her head and continued, "Please, you're doing well now. But Alice can't leave the Cullen family. Alice doesn't have the ability to live on her own. If she leaves the Cullen family, with her personality, she'll suffer and won't be able to survive."
Rosalie thought, 'Natalie is different. She's a beautiful rose, but also a resilient weed. But Alice is like a rose made of ice, beautiful but will melt the moment she steps outside, with no ability to fend for herself. My body is failing. Even if I can live a few more years, I won't be able to do much. Alice can't handle not being the young daughter of the Cullen family.'
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