CHAPTER 1

VARYA’S POV

"That Varya agreed to give one of her kidneys to Leah doesn’t entitle her to demand anything from you, Theo. She just happened to be the unfortunate one with a matching organ.” I heard my fiancee's mother say.

In the shadows, I stood shocked and bewildered, I couldn't believe the words I just heard. They sliced through me like a dagger, as if I were pierced through, each word piercing deeper into my already broken and shattered heart. Giving up a kidney for his sister was supposed to be an act of love, not a ticket for his family to treat me like some disposable commodity.

“Is not as if you will be getting married to her, that engagement is just a facade. Quickly end things with her before Tia comes back, and her family begins preparation as we agreed” she continued.

I stood shocked, I couldn’t believe this was how they saw me, they couldn’t give me the money I needed for my mother’s illness but I could sacrifice my kidney for his dying sister. And what Tia? I thought he said Tia was a business partner, he was going to marry her not me.

“Well, I want to take things slowly Mother before she suspects that she was simply used and thrown away.” My fiancée said.

Tears welled in my eyes, blurring the world around me. His mother's cruelty echoed in my mind, contrasting sharply with the promises of love Theo had whispered in my ear countless times. How could he stand there, listening to his mother's cruel words, and not defend the woman he claimed to love? Did he say I was “simply used and thrown away”?

“We can just send a few amounts to her so it doesn’t look like she was given nothing for her donation. Your father and I helped her family when their business was failing and you have been taking care of her, they owe us too. so that much is enough” his mother said.

His mother's words cut through the haze of my despair, the callousness of her suggestion sending a chill down my spine. It was as if my sacrifice, my act of love, was nothing more than a transaction to be balanced with a token amount of money.

Anger simmered beneath the surface of my numbness as I listened to her speak, the injustice of her proposal burning like a fire in my chest. How could she reduce something so deeply personal, so profoundly selfless, to a mere financial transaction?

So I couldn't have believed that I hoped to join this family. I was looking back at the decision, realizing it was a terrible mistake. Turning to leave with the last word she just said, the weight of Theo’s betrayal was now very clear and heavy on my shoulder. Every step felt like trudging through quicksand, heaviness in my chest threatening to suffocate me. All the years together, all the dreams we shared, now shattered like glass at my feet! Theo played me, fooled me.

“Hey! Look where you are going. This is a hospital!” A boy who I just stumbled into "yelled” His voice broke through the fog of thoughts. Reality crashed back in; the pain of Theo's betrayal cut deeper with each passing moment! How can I be so blind? How can I love someone who never truly loved me back?

As I walk down the busy road, the bright neon lights of a bar catch my eye, beckoning me like a siren's tune. With every footstep, the heaviness of heartbreak weighs upon me, yet I shake it away, concentrating just on reaching the shelter am currently in search of. Reaching the poorly lit bar is all that matters at this moment.

As I went in, the noise from cars and people talking got softer. I felt better smelling drinks and hearing quiet talks around me. The bartender gave me a knowing nod as I took a seat, already reaching for a glass without a word.

Tonight, I didn't care about the risks to my health or the consequences of drowning my sorrows. What I needed more was the cold comfort that would come from the bottle of vodka in my hand, something to shield me from the painful truth that threatened to consume me from within. For now, all that mattered was finding temporary relief from the agony that clung to me like a shadow.

With the bottle squeezed tightly in my shaking hand, I couldn’t bother about the courtesy of pouring it into a glass. The hot liquid burned as it rushed down my throat, its bitter taste like the bitter ache in my heart. With each swallow, I felt a reprieve from the crushing weight of reality, a fleeting moment of oblivion during the chaos of my emotions.

As the weight of her words came to my mind again, I felt a surge of defiance rising within me. The fact is, it was not just about some amount of cash; it was about their blindness to the depth of my sacrifice, the lack of acknowledgment of the love that had driven me to give a part of myself to save another.

I dropped the bottle of Vodka on the table with my hands trembling, the slight sharp sound of glass against wood echoed like a gunshot in the quiet room. "Listen fuckers, I don’t want ya money," I said as if they were standing in front of me, my voice surprisingly firm even though there was a storm of emotions raging inside me.

"What I did, I did out of love. And if you can't see that, then perhaps you never will.”

My phone rang, it must be Jasmine, we haven’t spoken since morning, she filled in for me today at the office.

“Varya, how did it go? Have you sorted the medical bills already?” her voice came in.

"Hey, Jas," I choked out, my voice thick with emotion. "I... I haven't sorted out the bills yet." The weight of my confession hung heavy in the air, mingling with the guilt that gnawed at my insides.

"I know you warned me," I continued, my words coming out in a shaky whisper. "You tried to protect me from making a mistake, but I... I didn't listen." The tears gathered in my eyes spilling over as I reveal my foolish act to my friend.

"When I decided to give up my kidney for love, I thought I was doing the right thing," I confessed, the sound of my sobbing telling how the bitterness of the betrayal hurts.

"I’m so confused now... I don't even know what's right anymore." She was quiet for a while, the silence felt so heavy, filled with the weight of unsaid words... regrets, and shattered dreams. Will Jasmin even look at me again after this? I waited to hear from her.