Chapter 1The Ninety-Ninth Abandonment

On the day Caleb Sterling was about to exchange wedding rings with me, his "depressed" stepsister called.

"Caleb... my wrist is bleeding so much. My Prince is gone, and now the Little Mermaid has to turn into sea foam and sleep forever in the deep ocean..."

"Will you think of me when you look at the sea, Caleb?"

Caleb’s hand, which had been holding mine tightly, suddenly went slack. His voice trembled.

"Bella, tell me where you are. I’ll watch the ocean with you, okay?"

"Don't do anything stupid. I’m coming right now."

He hung up, his eyes turning to me with that familiar, apologetic look.

"Bella is unstable again. I have to go find her."

"Let’s reschedule the wedding, okay?"

"No!"

I grabbed Caleb’s sleeve tightly, ignoring the confused whispers of the guests below. I questioned him, my voice bordering on hysteria.

"Are you the only psychiatrist in the world? Why does she try to kill herself every single time we get married?"

"This is the ninety-ninth time, Caleb. Have you ever considered that maybe, just maybe, changing doctors would actually help her?"

Caleb’s dark eyes instantly turned sharp. His thin lips pressed into a line of displeasure.

He looked at me coldly, as if I were the one being unreasonable.

Bella was his trigger. Untouchable. Sacred.

* * *

I couldn't help but think back to the first time I met Bella.

She had stolen a handmade charm bracelet Caleb made for me.

Before I could even get angry, Caleb stepped in front of her like a knight in shining armor, explaining on her behalf:

"Bella developed kleptomania because of her depression. Don't blame her."

"I’ll make you another one exactly like it later. Since Bella likes this one, just let her have it."

I opened my mouth to say that there are no two handmade items exactly alike in this world.

I wanted to ask, If Bella likes you, do I have to let her have you, too?

But I couldn't say a word.

I’m a normal person. How could I argue with a clinically depressed patient?

While Caleb went upstairs to get her antidepressants, Bella, who looked somewhat like me, smirked with triumph.

"You’re just a cheap knockoff of me. Caleb only picked you because he can’t cross that moral line. He can’t bring himself to touch me."

"He studied psychology just for me. I will always be first in his heart. You can never compete with me. Giggle."

She curved her eyes into a sweet smile, looking nothing like a patient with severe depression.

Looking at Bella, I vaguely guessed why Caleb had fallen for me at first sight and pursued me so relentlessly.

I smiled politely, gently reminding her of boundaries.

"Of course. After all, you and Caleb are legally siblings on the family trust."

As long as they were legal siblings, and as long as Caleb’s old-fashioned, strict father was alive, he would never allow anything beyond a sibling relationship.

When Mr. Sterling found the love letters Bella wrote to Caleb, the first thing he did was try to force Bella to legally change her last name to Sterling to solidify the sibling bond.

Bella went on a hunger strike, took pills, and threatened to jump into the ocean. She refused.

Mr. Sterling was a tyrant who never compromised.

It wasn't until Caleb introduced me to his father that the old man finally dropped the name-change issue.

Rich families like the Sterlings care about reputation above all else.

Hearing my words, Bella’s face suddenly changed.

She lost control, grabbed a glass from the table, and smashed it violently against the coffee table.

Crash. Glass flew everywhere, slicing long, bloody gashes into her palm.

Startled, I instinctively took a few steps back.

But Bella, as if she couldn't feel pain, laughed wildly and recklessly.

"Guess what? Will Caleb blame you for not taking good care of me?"