Approved for Her, Rejected for Me Chapter 04

Approved for Her, Rejected for Me Chapter 04

Five dollars isn’t even enough to buy basic prescription medicine, let alone cover the cost of treatment at the Pack hospital.

I have no choice but to find a nearby urgent care clinic. With my legs weak and shaky, I spend almost an hour dragging myself there.

The pack doctor takes one look at the five dollars in my hand, then at my flushed face.

“Your wolf is dangerously weak. Five dollars wouldn’t even cover the intake fee, let alone the medicine you need.”

He sighs, then eventually brings some basic medication out of the exam room.

“Forget it. Take these. I’m not charging you.”

I take the medicine and swallow it with the water the clinic provides.

After leaving the clinic, I sit down on a bench in the Pack park. I don’t even have the strength to make it home.

Cars keep passing on the road. Pack members and humans are all rushing through their own lives, while I sit there alone, with no idea where I’m supposed to go.

After resting for a long time, I finally force myself back onto my feet and slowly make my way home.

Halfway there, a car pulls over beside me.

The driver rolls down his window. His scent is unfamiliar, but he doesn’t smell like a Rogue.

“Hey, do you need a ride?”

I nod.

He drives me back to the Beta House.

But the moment he sees the four-story mansion in front of him, the sympathy on his face quickly turns into contempt.

“You live here and you’re telling me you can’t afford anything?”

He lets out a scoff.

“Rich people really know how to play poor. Guess even an Uber is too expensive for you.”

Before I can explain, he rolls his eyes, hits the gas, and drives away.

I stand there, suddenly realizing I don’t even know who I can turn to with everything I’m feeling.

That night, I finally make up my mind.

I take the paintings my father has collected for years, my mother’s treasured antiques, Sebastian’s limited-edition figures, and all the dolls covering Phoebe’s walls.

I contact a secondhand collectibles dealer and sell them.

Together, those things are worth well over a million dollars.

But the dealer is only willing to give me $2,000.

I accept.

If they don’t care about my feelings, then I have no reason to keep protecting the things they value.

With the money, I go to the mall and buy myself a new outfit. Then I find a restaurant I like and sit down for a proper meal.

I spend the rest of the money on blind boxes.

Back in my room, I open them one by one.

But tears keep streaming down my face.

This is supposed to be the kind of happiness I haven’t had in years, yet I can’t bring myself to smile.

When the money runs out, I start selling more things from the Beta House.

A week later, they return from their trip.

The moment the front doors open, everyone freezes.

Most of the collectibles that once filled the living room are gone. The paintings on the walls have disappeared too.

And I’m sitting on the couch with my hair cut short, wearing my new clothes.

I even smile at them, “Long time no see.”

Mom and Dad immediately rush into the rooms, searching for the remaining collectibles.

Sebastian crouches on the floor, staring at the discarded packaging and broken pieces from the figures I sold.

His face changes completely.

Only Adrian remains where he is.

His eyes land on Phoebe’s display cabinet.

Even the custom cabinet is gone.

The next second, he strides toward me and grabs me by the arm, yanking me off the couch.

“Amelia, what the hell is wrong with you? We leave for a few days, and you trash the whole house?”

His fingers dig painfully into my arm.

I struggle against him, but I can’t break free.

“Do you seriously need this much attention?”

“Did you really have to pull something like this just to make everyone look at you?”

His voice grows colder with every word.

“You’re getting harder and harder to stand. You’ve turned into a selfish, shameless brat.”

One cruel sentence after another cuts into me like a red-hot iron, burning straight through my heart.

I look at him, my chest feeling painfully tight, “I only took back what belonged to me.”

I hold his gaze, “Was that really so wrong?”

For the last time, I hope to see even a trace of concern in his eyes.

There is nothing.

Only disgust.

Something inside me suddenly gives way, and I collapse back onto the couch.

The tears I’ve cried these past few days are already gone. Even my eyes ache from being so dry.

They keep yelling at me, calling me ungrateful and heartless, saying I have no conscience.

But their words can’t hurt me anymore.

Because I no longer expect anything from this family.

“Get on your knees!”

Dad roars as he walks over to the fireplace and pulls a silver-thread whip from the display cabinet.

Sebastian grabs my shoulder while Mom grips my arm. Before I can even react, my knees hit the carpet hard.

My eyes instinctively turn toward Adrian.

He doesn’t even look at me.

Phoebe is crying in his arms, and he is quietly comforting her.

What about me? Is my pain really that insignificant to him?

Crack!

The silver-thread whip comes down hard across my back.

The pain is so intense that my vision goes black and I lose my breath for several seconds.

Crack!

Mom turns her face away. Sebastian lowers his head.

Dad’s hand is visibly shaking, but he still raises it again.

Crack!

Three strikes.

This is what they call punishment.

All I did was try to take back the life that once belonged to me. What did I actually do wrong?

I brace myself against the floor and stand.

I grab my identification documents and the luggage I packed days ago.

If I’ve decided to leave, then I’m leaving for good.

As I walk past Adrian, he suddenly grabs my arm.

“Amelia, I want you to calm down and really think about what you did wrong.”

Even now, he speaks to me in that same condescending, lecturing tone.

“Don’t pull something like this again. You’re better than this.”

He doesn’t seem to notice my injuries at all.

He doesn’t see the blood seeping from my back, and he doesn’t realize that I’m no longer waiting for him to comfort me.

I look at him and give him a faint smile, “I won’t.”

This time, I won’t stay for them.

I won’t do anything for them anymore.

From this day forward, we owe each other nothing.

I pick up my luggage and walk out of the house without looking back.