Only One Kidney Left, Forced Surgery

My brother was in the final stages of kidney cancer.

My parents demanded I give him one of mine.

I told them I only had one kidney left.

I told them I would die if they took it.

They didn't believe a word I said.

Instead, they strapped me to the operating table.

It's just a kidney. Can't you stop being so damn selfish for once?

They didn't know I wasn't lying.

Years ago, after my father's car accident, I had already donated a kidney to save him.

I'm dead.

I died at the hands of my own parents.

When I opened my eyes again, I was standing outside the operating room.

My parents were pacing in circles, looking at the "Surgery in Progress" sign with frantic eyes.

The moment the doors swung open, they both rushed forward.

"Doctor, how's our boy?"

"Relax, the surgery was perfectly timed. There was no rejection. He's doing great."

I looked at the doctor's unfamiliar face and realized the truth.

They weren't waiting for news about me.

I let out a bitter, ghostly laugh.

It made sense.

Ever since I was a kid, they never cared about me.

I was always the one they threw away.

My brother, Quentin, was slowly wheeled out on a gurney.

My parents hovered over him, tears of joy streaming down their faces.

"How do you feel, Quentin? Are you in any pain?"

Quentin gave a weak nod.

"I feel better, Mom. But what about Silas?"

"Don't just stay here with me. Go see him, or he'll get moody again..."

The second they heard my name, their smiles vanished.

"Why even mention him? It's just a kidney, and he was too stingy to give it up!"

"You're his own brother, and he was making up lies while you were dying!"

"We raised a cold-blooded monster. From now on, we don't have a son named Silas!"

They got angrier as they spoke, as if my refusal to die was a criminal act.

Listening to their heartless words, my non-existent heart felt like it was being carved out.

No matter how much I did for this family, they thought they were entitled to it.

If I didn't give everything, I was a disloyal beast.

I trembled, my ghostly lips quivering, but I couldn't say a word.

Quentin smirked at their words, then quickly put on a worried mask.

"But... you tied him to the table. Won't he hate you for that?"

My mother snorted with pure disdain.

"He wouldn't dare! We paid for his food and clothes for years."

"It's just a kidney. What's he going to do about it?"

Her voice was full of venom.

My mind drifted back to the hour before the surgery.

They said we were just visiting Quentin, but their faces turned cold the moment we arrived.

"Get ready for the transplant. You're a match for your brother."

I had begged them, shaking with fear.

"No! I only have one kidney left! If you do this, I'll die!"

My father didn't hesitate. He knocked me out and tied me to the table.

As I lost consciousness, I heard his cold, detached voice.

"It's just a kidney. Don't be so selfish."

"He's your brother. Is anything more important than family?"

"I knew you'd say no, so I came prepared. You're a waste of space."

I wanted to ask them: Quentin is your child, but aren't I?

If family is so important, why are you doing this to me?

But my eyelids were too heavy.

I let my arms fall limp, letting them do as they pleased.

Now, I was nothing but a wandering ghost.

"It hurts..."

Quentin groaned slightly in his hospital bed.

That tiny movement sent my parents into a panic.

"What's wrong, Quentin? Where does it hurt?"

Quentin shook his head, looking pale.

"I'm fine. Mom, Dad, you should go check on Silas."

"He always complains that you guys don't care about him..."

Even now, he was playing the martyr to make me look bad.

My parents looked even more disgusted with me.

My father poured him a glass of water, his face softening.

"Quentin, you're too kind for your own good. That's why Silas walks all over you."

My mother wiped a few stray tears.

"Exactly. We're still here now, but what will happen to you when we're gone?"

She looked heartbroken over her favorite son.

Quentin was thrilled that his manipulation worked, but he kept his face neutral.

"Don't be mad at Silas. It's my fault my body failed me."

I floated above them, feeling sick to my stomach.

He provoked me constantly when I was alive, and now he was trashing my name after I was dead.

I had never neglected him.

Despite his lies, I had always tried to be a good older brother.

But I knew my parents would never believe me.

Eventually, I had just learned to stay silent.

My parents continued to comfort him.

"Quentin, don't blame yourself. You're sick, of course we care about you more."

"Silas has a dark soul. If we hadn't forced him, he'd have let you die."

"How can we expect him to take care of us when he won't even help his brother?"

The coldness in their voices left me feeling hollow.

I handled everything for them, from the big bills to the tiny errands.

I thought I'd earned some respect, but I was just an ungrateful son in their eyes.

I felt like a giant, pathetic joke.

The door burst open suddenly.

It was my girlfriend, Lauren.

We had been together for years, and she had seen exactly how they treated me.

She hated them, and they had gotten into screaming matches over the phone before.

She didn't say a word to the parents.

She grabbed Quentin and started screaming.

"You son of a bitch! There were other donors, why did you have to use Silas?"

"You killed him! You're a murderer!"

My parents were stunned for a second.

Then they jumped up and pulled Lauren away from the bed.

My mother raised her hand to slap her.

"You little brat! What are you talking about? Silas is fine!"

"Even if he were dead, it would be his own fault for being so weak!"

"It's just one kidney. Stop being so dramatic!"

Lauren was shaking with rage.

She grabbed my mother's wrist before the slap could land.

"I'll say it one more time. Your son, Silas, died on that table."

"He died because you forced him to give a kidney he didn't have!"

My parents didn't believe her for a second.

"You just want him to be dead! Can't you see Quentin is recovering? Get out!"

"You and Silas are a perfect matchDboth selfish and miserable!"

Lauren's whole body was trembling.

She looked at the three of them, a united front of cruelty.

"Fine. You want to build your happiness on Silas's corpse? I won't let you."

"I'm going to make you pay for this."

She slammed the door on her way out.

My mother spat toward the door.

"Good riddance. What a disaster of a woman."

I watched Lauren suffer from above, unable to do anything.

I screamed until my ghostly throat burned, but no one heard me.

With my parents' constant care, Quentin recovered quickly and was discharged.

They were beaming with joy as they packed his things, treating him like royalty.

When they arrived back at the house, I felt a wave of dizziness.

Years ago, they told me that as the big brother, I had to help Quentin.

They forced me to use all my savings to buy this house for him before he even finished school.

I was the one paying the mortgage and the renovation costs.

I had been stupid enough to agree.

Even though I paid for it, I had only been here a handful of times.

I didn't even have a key to the front door.

Until the day I died, I lived in a cramped, cheap rental.

That was the reason Lauren and I could never afford to get married.

I watched them sit on the designer sofa bought with my blood and sweat.

No one even mentioned my name.

They ate expensive Rainier cherries from a bowl on the coffee table.

Those were the kind of luxuries I never dared to buy for myself.

They ate them like it was nothing.

I felt a sudden sense of displacement.

Were these the same parents who cried poverty every month to get more money from me?

They told me to save every penny while they lived the life I dreamed of on my dime.

I was too numb to even feel angry.

Quentin swallowed a cherry and looked worried.

"When is Silas coming home? Is he going to make a scene?"

"It'll look so bad if the neighbors see him throwing a tantrum."

My father threw his keys onto the table with a loud thud.

"What right does he have to complain?" he barked.

"He made you wait on that table for hours. We should be the ones angry at him!"

"When he gets back, I'm going to make him get on his knees and apologize to you."

"He's always faking being sick for sympathy. I'm sick of his drama."

It was almost funny.

I was faking?

I worked overtime every single day to give them a better life.

I had chronic back pain and a ruined neck because I slaved away for them.

And in the end, I got nothing but their resentment.

I laughed, a sound only the shadows could hear.

Soon, my mother laid out a massive, steaming feast on the dining table.

My heart sank even further.

Whenever I was home, I had to do all the cooking and cleaning.

They told me they were old and Quentin didn't know how to cook.

It turns out they knew how to cook perfectly well.

They just didn't want to cook for me.

As soon as Quentin sat down, they piled his plate high with food.

Within seconds, he had a mountain of meat and vegetables in front of him.

"Eat up, Quentin. You need to rebuild your strength!"

Quentin looked guilty, but his fork never stopped moving.

"Mom, Dad... this food is so expensive. Are you guys running low on cash?"

I saw a predatory glint in his eyes.

He was already hunting for their next bit of money.

My father put his fork down and smirked.

"Don't worry about the money. We'll just make Silas work more hours."

"Besides, he has about fifty thousand stashed away for a wedding fund. We'll take that."

My soul erupted in fury!

I couldn't believe they were being this ruthless.

They were going to take my last cent.

They wouldn't be satisfied until they had sucked every drop of blood from my body.

Quentin's eyes lit up at the mention of the fifty thousand.

"Mom, Dad, things are a bit tight for me lately. Can I have that money now?"

My mother pulled out her phone immediately.

"Quentin, don't be silly! His money is your money!"

"I'll call him right now and tell him to bring the debit card over. He doesn't need it!"

But I had been dead for days. I wasn't going to pick up.

She called over and over, getting more frustrated with each ring.

Finally, she snapped.

"Ungrateful little brat! He's ignoring me? It was just one kidney!"

"Doesn't he know a mother's love is the most important thing on earth?"

When I still didn't answer, she scrolled through her contacts for Lauren's number.

The second Lauren picked up, my mother started screaming.

"Hey! You little bitch! Is Silas hiding at your place?"

"Tell him if he doesn't pick up, his father and I are disowning him!"

There was a silence on the other end, then Lauren's voice exploded with rage.

"Are you people ever going to stop? I told you, Silas is dead! HE IS DEAD!"

My parents froze for a second.

Lauren sounded too serious, too broken to be joking.

The fact that I hadn't answered my phone for days was starting to feel heavy.

They looked at each other, a flicker of panic in their eyes, but they forced themselves to stay calm.

"Listen, kid! Just because you had a fight doesn't mean you can wish death on him!"

"Where is he? Tell him to get his ass home right now!"

"He's probably just scared we're mad about the transplant. Tell him if he brings the money, we'll forgive him!"

Lauren let out a cold, hollow laugh through the phone.

I stood there, my heart aching for her.

I used to think they loved me deep down.

I was their flesh and blood, after all.

But in this moment, I finally understood.

They never loved me. They loved the ATM I had become.

Tears blurred my ghostly vision.

Quentin piped up, sounding like a victim.

"Lauren, it's my fault. I shouldn't have been a burden to Silas. Don't blame my parents..."

Lauren's voice was like ice.

"You people are unbelievable. You drained him while he was alive, and now you won't let him rest. You're leeches."

My father turned red with embarrassment and rage.

"This is family business! You're an outsider! Let him talk!"

"He can't hide forever. We're his family. He'll never be free of us!"

Lauren went silent again.

The eerie quiet made them uneasy.

I knew why she was quiet. She was finished with them.

She looked like she had aged ten years in a single week.

I hated myself for leaving her to deal with these monsters.

"I have no reason to lie to you," she said finally, her voice exhausted.

"You have his doctor's number, don't you? Call him and see for yourselves."

She hung up, severing the connection.

The room felt uncomfortably quiet.

"Should we... call?" my mother whispered.

My father grunted, trying to hide his fear.

"Fine! I'll call! I was worried Silas would be embarrassed when I caught him in a lie, but he's pushed me too far!"

He dialed the doctor's number and put it on speaker.

"Hello? I'm calling about a patient named Silas Vance. When was he discharged?"

He looked at my mother with a smug grin, waiting for the doctor to expose my "lie."

The doctor was silent for a few seconds.

"Silas Vance? The patient from the transplant surgery?"

"Yes, that's him," my father said confidently.

"Sir... Silas Vance died on the operating table. His heart stopped during the organ removal."

"Who are you? His body was already collected by a family representative days ago."

My parents didn't hear the rest. Their worlds went black.

"Died on the table."

The words echoed in the expensive living room.

My mother's glass fell from her hand.

It shattered against the floor, sending shards of crystal flying everywhere.