On Graduation Day, I Received a Cry for Help from Ten Years Ahead Chapter 05

On Graduation Day, I Received a Cry for Help from Ten Years Ahead Chapter 05

I stared at the email for a long time. On the other end of the call, Ethan was still urging me.

“Liv, did you hear me?”

“I heard you.”

I said, “Where are the car keys?”

The car was registered under my name. The insurance and dashcam accounts were also tied to

my information. After the service center verified my identity, they let me pick up the car and gave

me a copy of the accident footage.

The employee said, “This is the dashcam’s automatic accident recording. Let us know if you’d like us to help submit it to the insurance company.”

I opened the video.

In the footage, Sophia leaned sideways, hooked her arm around Ethan’s neck, and kissed him. Her

voice came through the recording, sticky and sweet.

“Come on, Ethan. Kiss me. Just once.”

–

Ethan’s hand shifted. The steering wheel jerked sharply. The next second, there was a violent crash

and screaming.

So that was the car accident they were talking about.

The next day, Sophia called me.

“Liv, come to the hospital.”

Her voice sounded weak.

“The doctor said I lost too much blood after the crash. I might need a transfusion. We have the

same blood type. Come sign the authorization first then give a few tubes for testing.”

When I arrived at the hospital, she was leaning against the headboard. She had color in her cheeks

and looked nothing like someone who needed a transfusion. There was no transfusion order

beside her bed. No emergency order either.

But on the tray nearby sat several empty blood collection tubes and a specimen consent form. My

mother stood beside the bed. The moment she saw me, she frowned.

“What took you so long?”

Ethan sat at the foot of the bed. Sophia lowered her eyes, her voice soft as if she were enduring

pain.

“Liv, I know this is trouble for you. But I really don’t feel well. Maybe it’s a complication from the

crash. The doctor said they should take a few tubes from you first, just in case.”

I looked at her.

“Are you sure this is for a transfusion?”

She paused. Her eyes quickly reddened.

I picked up the consent form and lowered my voice

“This isn’t an emergency transfusion order. This is a specimen consent form. The patient field is

blank. So is the stated purpose. It’s just waiting for my signature.”

My mother grew anxious.

“What is that supposed to mean? You won’t even give a few tubes of blood? Sophia grew up with

you. Are you really going to stand there and watch her suffer?”

Ethan’s voice stayed gentle.

“Liv, it’s just a crossmatch. Nothing’s going to happen.”

“A crossmatch?”

I tossed the form back onto the tray.

“I’m guessing you want my blood sample to alter prenatal records, falsify paternity–test results, and

rewrite the medical files into whatever version you need.”

The ward went dead silent. Sophia’s frail expression froze on her face. My mother still tried to

come over and grab my hand. I looked at all of them, then turned and left.

My mother’s voice chased after me.

“Liv, stop right there!”

I did not look back.

Ethan called again and again. I did not answer once. Messages popped up.

“Liv, what’s wrong with you? Just give the sample first, okay?”

I turned my phone off.

After I returned home, I opened my suitcase and packed important documents, identification, and

a few changes of clothes. The suitcase was still half empty. My father, far away in New York, sent

me a message.

“Everything is ready. You can leave anytime.”

Over the next few days, Sophia stayed in the hospital, and my mother delivered meals to her every

day. Later, when my mother came home to pick up some things, she pushed open my bedroom

door and realized I was not there. The valuable items seemed to still be in place. She called me

several times, but my phone stayed off.

She had no choice but to call Ethan.

“Liv still seems angry. I don’t know where she went. It doesn’t look like she took much. Do you think

she found out something?”

When Ethan received the call, he was at the hospital with Sophia. He shot to his feet so fast that

his chair toppled over. Sophia tugged at his sleeve, her voice faint.

“Ethan, don’t panic. Liv is probably just angry. She’ll come back in a fe

days.”

and her lips pressed

Ethan lowered his head and looked at her. Sophia lifted her face, her eyes way

together as if waiting for him to comfort her. Ethan had always fallen for that look.

“Right.”

He slowly sat back down.

“She has nowhere else to go. She’ll come back sooner or later.”

A few days later, they returned home. Everything in the house looked the same as before. My slippers were still there, my clothes were still there and my toothbrush still sat in the cup by the

sink. My mother stood at the doorway of my room as if she wanted to say something, but she

could not reach me.

Ethan called everyone he could think of. No one knew where I had gone.

Someone joked, “How do you not even know where your own girlfriend is? Didn’t you already

propose?”

Sophia hugged him from behind, pressing her face against his back.

“Ethan, did she really leave? It’s all my fault. When Liv comes back, I’ll apologize to her.”

He sighed and pulled her into his arms. For one second, he even thought, if only Liv could be this

understanding too.

Just then, one of his friends called.

“I heard you’re looking for Liv. A few days ago, I went to the airport to chase after a first love I couldn’t forget, and I ran into her there. I just got back to Los Angeles and only now heard you’re looking for her.”