Can't Catch the Summer - Chapter 2

Chapter 2

But in truth, that period was the darkest time of my life.

After that day,

the boy I had a crush on, Ji Zhou, had his childhood sweetheart come back.

That girl had a beauty mark beneath her eye, exactly like mine.

In front of everyone, she looked at me with pity. “Did you really think he liked you?”

“Honestly, you’re pretty pathetic too. He was only treating you as my stand-in.”

He didn’t deny it. He only smiled gently.

“She’s just an illegitimate daughter. How could she ever compare to you?”

I panicked.

She stood there, proud as a peacock. “Hello, Zheng Xia. I’m Wei Zhengqu’s daughter, Wei Xiangying.”

I heard my classmates whispering among themselves.

That night, the school forum was flooded with discussion about it.

[Does being a mistress run in the family? Zheng Xia’s mom was a mistress, and so is she.]

[Isn’t Zheng Xia the mistress who ruined someone else’s relationship? So disgusting.]

[No wonder she kept saying she came from a single-parent family. Turns out she’s an illegitimate daughter.]

My fingers were trembling.

The comment I had just posted was instantly buried under hundreds of insults.

[My mother was not a mistress. She didn’t ruin anyone’s family either. That man abandoned his wife and daughter.]

[The mistress is here to whitewash herself. Puke!]

[Disgusting. Drop out!]

[Drop out!]

Only one account named “yyy” spoke up for me.

Someone said: [Wei Xiangying is way prettier than Zheng Xia.]

yyy: [When did you go blind?]

[Zheng Xia has nothing going for her except her face.]

yyy: [And she still wouldn’t look twice at trash like you.]

[What kind of person defends a homewrecker?]

yyy: [What kind of person slanders people without evidence?]

[Are you Zheng Xia’s alt account?]

yyy: [I’m your dad, and I take many forms.]

I cried for a long time.

But I didn’t dare let Mom know.

I didn’t dare let her know that because of me, people were slandering her like that.

I looked at her thin back.

I couldn’t help asking softly, “Mom, do you ever feel like I’m a burden to you?”

She ruffled my hair.

“In this world, what mother would ever think her own child is a burden?”

My eyes reddened in an instant.

That night, I tossed and turned, unable to sleep.

She quietly came in and tucked the blanket around me.

In the darkness, she let out a soft sigh.

“I’m sorry, sweetheart. I couldn’t give you a better life.”

Pretending to be asleep, I soaked my pillow with tears.