The heroine in the sadistic novel just wants to survive

 Chapter 1

I’m Ashley, and my sister, Taylor, and I were conjoined twins.

So, every time Mark and I, you know, did *it*, Taylor had to close her eyes.

It was awkward, but what could we do?

Then, on my birthday, Mark, a surgeon, finally mastered the separation surgery.

I thought we could finally be apart.

But then I saw these floating comments, like subtitles only I could see.

【The heroine is so stupid. She doesn’t know the hero is lying. Only one person can survive this separation surgery.】

【The hero is confused about his feelings. He thinks he loves the heroine’s sister, so he wants to sacrifice the heroine.】

【It’s fine if the heroine dies. The hero will regret it. It’s a good ending for her.】

But if I die, it’s all over. I want to live.

1.

Mark was holding my hand tight when I saw the comments.

“After all these years, we can finally separate you and Taylor.”

“We can finally be together, without any…constraints.”

Taylor was beside me, chiming in, “Yeah, Ashley, we’ve been attached for over twenty years. I’m actually excited to be separate.”

Yeah, I should be excited too.

But the comments told me Mark’s surgery was a trap.

He wanted to use my life to let Taylor live.

【After the surgery, the heroine will die. It’s the same old trope. The hero will be consumed by guilt.】

【The heroine is pathetically naive. All these years, she didn’t know the hero and the sister were having an affair. And she was stuck to her the whole time!】

【Second floor, you didn’t read carefully. The hero drugged the heroine’s juice, then slept with the sister.】

【The hero is always a jerk in the beginning, then regrets everything later. Classic.】

I froze, unable to process what I was reading.

I remembered Mark always gave me juice before we…you know.

He said it was for vitamins.

I trusted him completely.

I always drank it.

The next morning, I wouldn’t remember anything.

He’d say I was too tired and fell asleep.

Now I knew he was lying.

Looking into Mark’s tender eyes, I felt a pang of disgust.

“Mark, who do you really love?”

I fought to keep my voice steady.

I wanted to believe I was wrong, that Mark hadn’t betrayed me.

“Of course I love you, Ashley.”

He smiled, brushing my nose.

“Even though you and Taylor look identical, your personalities are totally different.”

“I only love you.”

“Trust me. After tomorrow’s surgery, everything will be perfect.”

His tenderness made it even harder to believe he was going to let me die tomorrow.

【Gotta hand it to him, the hero is a good liar.】

【Doesn’t matter, he’s hot. He can have my morals backwards. Team hero!】

【The heroine’s death will immortalize her in the hero’s heart. The sister’s the one who’ll suffer, tormented by the hero forever.】

My fists clenched, my body trembling.

Why should I die according to their script?

I wanted to live. There’s only hope if I’m alive.

“Ashley, what’s wrong? Why are you shaking?”

Taylor asked suddenly.

We were conjoined at the head, our left and right brains connected, and our left and right arms fused.

The surgery was high-risk. That’s why we’d been attached for so long.

“Nothing,” I mumbled.

Mark kissed me.

“Don’t be scared. Tomorrow, you’ll be free.”

2.

【Tomorrow is the heroine’s death day! Can’t wait for the hero’s regret scene.】

【Yeah, the best part of these stories is watching the hero suffer.】

The comments made my stomach churn.

Why did I have to die?

What good was it to make Mark regret my death?

If I’m gone, it’s all over.

I want to live.

That night, Mark took me to the bedroom.

He kissed me.

“Ashley, studies show sex relieves stress.”

“So, drink your juice, and let me take care of you.”

He handed me the juice.

Then, to Taylor, “Taylor, remember to close your eyes, okay?”

I looked at him, my heart aching with pain and disappointment.

I used to think he did this because he loved me.

Now I knew he was sleeping with Taylor every time he drugged me.

I gagged.

Mark asked what was wrong.

Taylor echoed his concern.

They pretended to care, but they were both lying.

The thought of Mark being intimate with Taylor beside me made me nauseous.

“I’m not in the mood,” I forced out.

【What’s her deal? She’s always loved the hero. Why is she refusing him?】

【Playing hard to get? Serves her right for being betrayed.】

【Not in the mood…yeah, right. Where was this attitude when she was begging him for it before?】

【No wonder the sister hates her. Always acting so aloof. I’m rooting for the sister and the hero.】

I stared at the comments, shocked.

Their hatred was intense.

What had I done wrong?

Mark was my husband. We’d been together for seven years.

Did I deserve to be betrayed?

Tears welled up in my eyes.

“Ashley, what’s wrong? Don’t cry.”

Mark hugged me.

“It’s okay, I won’t force you.”

【This is juicy. The hero’s copping a feel of the sister while hugging the heroine.】

【Haha, smooth move.】

My blood ran cold.

Because we were joined at the head, I couldn’t turn to see what Mark was doing.

He was still whispering sweet nothings in my ear.

I closed my eyes, tears streaming down my face.

3.

The next day, Mark prepped us for surgery at his hospital.

The nurses whispered amongst themselves, their glances lingering on us.

Taylor tried to comfort me, “Ashley, don’t be afraid. After the surgery, no one will laugh at us anymore.”

I couldn’t speak.

Taylor was always the favorite, the well-behaved one. Everyone loved her.

I’d even overheard people say, “They should just cut Ashley off. Taylor wouldn’t have to drag around that dead weight.”

It felt like the whole world hated me, wanted me dead, including the comments.

【The sister is being nice, but the heroine is ignoring her. Disgusting. Just die already.】

【This heroine is the worst. The author messed up her character.】

【When the hero brings the consent form, it’ll say the surgery is risky, might be fatal. That way he’s covered if she dies. I wasn’t going to root for her death, but now…yeah, I kind of want her to sign it.】

They all wanted me dead, but what had I done?

I was the one who was betrayed.

I just wanted to live.

Mark arrived with the consent form.

He didn’t mention the risks. He just knelt beside me and said, “Don’t worry, Ashley. It’ll be fine.”

“This is just a consent form. It means you agree to the surgery. Just sign it.”

【Sign it, you dummy! Sign it and die!】

【Hurry up and die already! I need to write my dissertation on the hero’s regret!】

A tear splashed onto the consent form.

Everyone wanted me dead, but I didn’t.

“I think the surgery is risky. I don’t want to do it anymore.”

“What?” Mark’s voice was sharp.

Taylor chimed in, “Ashley, Mark said he’s mastered the surgery. It’ll be fine.”

【Even though the sister knows the heroine will die so she can live, it’s normal to want to live. She hasn’t done anything wrong.】

【The sister has always loved the hero, but he never truly loved her back. In the end, he’ll kill her too. Let her live a little longer.】

What had *I* done wrong?

My mom stormed into the room and slapped me hard across the face.

“Ashley, how can you be so selfish? Taylor needs to go study abroad! She can’t be stuck to you forever!”

“For twenty years, Taylor’s been ridiculed because of you! Now we finally have a chance to separate you, and you refuse? What’s wrong with you?”

My cheek burned.

Mark stood there, silent.

My heart shattered into a million pieces.

Tears flowed freely.

“What about me?” I choked out. “Have you ever cared about me?”

My mother never loved me. She always blamed me for Taylor’s condition, for the stares and whispers.

But it wasn’t my fault we were conjoined.

【How dare she say that? She’s had it good! The hero loves her! Even if she dies, it’s her destiny.】

【I wish I could reach into the screen and slap her! Someone kill this heroine and make jerky out of her!】

“Stop it, Ashley. It’s okay. I don’t mind being ridiculed. It’s fine,” Taylor said weakly.

Mark’s face darkened. He grabbed my hand.

“This surgery has to happen.”

He forced my hand onto the consent form, making me leave a print.

I could barely breathe, the pain consuming me.

I’m a human being. Why should I die just because they want me to?

4.

Five minutes before surgery, a nurse came in to start an IV.

Mark comforted Taylor, “It’s okay. When you wake up, you’ll be on your own.”

Then he looked at me. “Ashley, don’t be mad that I was harsh earlier. I just want both of you to be free. You shouldn’t have to suffer like this anymore.”

Yes, he wanted to free Taylor by killing me.

I couldn’t see Taylor’s expression, but Mark’s eyes were bright with anticipation.

The comments said he loved *me*.

Then why was he so good to Taylor?

So good that he was willing to kill for her?

“This surgery is worth it. Trust me,” he said, his eyes fixed on mine.

If I hadn’t seen the comments, I would have believed him.

He got up to prepare the anesthesia.

We were wheeled into the operating room, the bright lights blinding.

I remembered the first time Mark and I met.

Taylor and I were at the library when some girls started mocking us, calling us freaks and telling us to leave.

He rescued us. He told us, “Don’t listen to them. If you have separation surgery, you’ll both be beautiful.”

He visited us often after that, always talking to me more.

We shared a love of books.

We fell in love quickly, and he married me.

People online said he was brave to marry a conjoined twin.

But at our wedding, he said, “I don’t care. I love Ashley. I’ll love her no matter what.”

Now, he was going to take my life.

【Yay! She’s finally going to die!】

【Bring on the hero’s regret!】

I saw the comments as Mark walked towards me with a syringe, injecting something into my IV bag.

“Don’t be afraid. It’s just the anesthetic.”

“You’ll wake up and everything will be fine.”

Suddenly, the doors burst open.