My Best Friend Faked His Death and Tried to Steal My Life

In my last life, my best friend faked his death, forced his child on me, and stole eighteen years of my future.

This time, when he lay bleeding on the ground and begged me to save him, I didnt expose his lie or call the police.

I simply accepted the money he prepared for his daughter

and sent the child to an orphanage where she would grow up exactly as he deserved to see her.

Cough, cough Ethan, youre finally here

Liam lay on the ground, filthy and covered in an ugly mosaic of purplish-blue bruises. Deep gashes bled on his arms and legs.

I froze, then suddenly realized I had actually been reborn!

Ethan, what are you standing there for cough, cough, take me to the hospital

Liam lay weakly on the ground, speaking to me without an ounce of strength.

In my last life, I received his desperate call and rushed to find him.

The sight of him covered in blood sent me into a panic, and I immediately thought of calling 911 for an ambulance.

But Liam insisted the location was too remote, and he'd be dead by the time 911 arrived.

So, I personally carried him on my back, stumbling for over two hours, back to the city, and straight to the hospital.

But now, the thought of it all being his elaborate scheme made a wave of profound disgust wash over me.

No need to call 911, its too remote here just carry me

Liam coughed a few times, looking at me pleadingly.

I frowned, feigning discomfort, and bent down to rub my ankle.

Im sorry, I wish I could carry you, but I just twisted my ankle. I really cant carry you.

Afraid he wouldn't believe me, I even pulled up my pant leg to show him my visibly swollen and red ankle.

In my last life, I had endured the pain to carry him, and by the time we reached the hospital, my ankle was practically useless. It cost a fortune to heal.

This time, I wouldn't be so foolish.

Liams face instantly paled, looking as if he was truly on his last breath.

Just then, an SUV pulled up beside us. The driver, a kind stranger, warmly asked if we needed help.

To avoid raising suspicion, I quickly smiled and accepted.

At the hospital, Liam was immediately rushed into the emergency room.

Soon, a female doctor, Dr. Sullivan, hurried out, saying Liam had lost too much blood and needed a transfusion.

The hospitals blood bank is severely low. A transfer would take too long and could delay treatment.

Mr. Ford said you have the same blood type as him. Please come with me to prepare for a blood transfusion.

I scoffed internally at her words.

This was the exact same spiel as in my last life. This doctor had used the same excuse, drawing 600cc of my blood without a single word of explanation.

Normally, blood donations don't exceed 400cc, but I was too distraught to notice then. After the blood draw, I felt weak all over and dizzy.

And Liam had used that moment to plead with me to take care of his daughter in the hospital room, and I, in my dazed state, had nodded and agreed.

So I told Dr. Sullivan, I apologize, but I have low blood sugar and anemia. I cant donate blood. Youll have to find another solution.

Dr. Sullivan didnt expect my refusal. She stomped her foot angrily and hurried back into the emergency room.

Another twenty minutes passed. Dr. Sullivan emerged, her face filled with sorrow.

Im sorry, we did our best, but Mr. Fords condition is too severe. Theres nothing more we can do.

Hes still conscious now. You can go in and spend his final moments with him.

I nodded, my face calm, and walked in.

Sure enough, Liam was lying on the hospital bed, pale and weak, just like in my previous life. He faintly called my name.

I walked to his side. What is it? Do you have anything you want to tell me?

Tears welled up in Liams eyes. Ethan, youre my best friend. Why didnt you donate blood for me? If you had, maybe I

Dr. Sullivan, standing nearby, interjected indignantly. Yes, Mr. Ford truly considered you his best friend, yet you refused. Its a tragedy Mr. Ford is so young and cant hold on. Youre truly heartless.

I said calmly, You should blame your hospital for not even having the blood a patient needs. I have low blood sugar and anemia. If something happened to me because of a blood donation, would your hospital pay with its life?

My words left Dr. Sullivan momentarily speechless.

Liams face was grim, but he quickly composed himself, his eyes red. Forget it, Ethan isnt to blame for this. Its just my bad luck

Im dying now. My wife betrayed me, my family sold me out, I dont even want to live anymore.

But I still have a daughter who just turned one. Shes so pitiful, abandoned by her mother, and her father cant live on. I just cant bear to leave her.

Ethan, youre the only good brother I have. Please, I beg you, raise her for me.

Dr. Sullivan, ever the empath, let two streams of tears fall.

Look, Mr. Ford is begging you like this. Just say yes. Youre his best friend, could you really be so cruel as to refuse? If so, you dont deserve to be a man!

Watching them play good cop, bad cop, perfectly coordinated, I felt nothing but disgust.

In my last life, I had too much blood drawn and was disoriented. Liam even colluded with Dr. Sullivan to set a trap for me.

I was genuinely soft-hearted, which was why I agreed to take care of his daughter.

But no good deed goes unpunished. My girlfriend was hostile toward this adopted daughter, believing her to be my love child with another woman.

She refused to listen to my explanations, packed her things, and left me, also falling out with her family.

At that time, I hadnt even graduated from my Masters program and couldnt juggle both studies and the child, so I had to drop out.

Because my major was a combined Bachelors and Masters program, and due to the circumstances, I didnt even have a Bachelors degree; I was just a college dropout.

Without a good degree, I could only do arduous manual labor.

To better support the child, I worked three jobs a day, often sleeping only three or four hours.

And the child had poor health from a young age, constantly ending up in the hospital, even undergoing several major surgeries, with money flowing like water.

I gritted my teeth and took out high-interest loans, but with the interest compounding, I couldn't pay them back at all.

The debt collectors were brutal, causing constant harassment for everyone, and my landlord refused to renew the lease, kicking me and the child out.

To avoid the debt collectors, I moved many times, living in dirty, dilapidated places.

After finally enduring the hardest ten years, I met a kind female boss.

She was divorced with a child herself and sympathized with my hardship, so she hired me to work at her barbecue restaurant.

After my job stabilized, I also thought about finding a partner.

However, I had no house, no car, nothing to my name, and I was raising a child in her early teens. It was truly difficult to date.

Finally, I met a simple woman from the countryside who seemed to genuinely not care about my financial situation. I thought I could settle down, but after less than two months, she ran off.

She only left me a note, apologizing and saying she could never let go of her ex-husband and child, so she had to quietly leave.

From then on, I completely gave up on looking for a partner.

Eighteen years passed. I painstakingly raised the child into an adult.

But at her celebration party, Liam, who was supposed to be dead, appeared.

And he claimed it was all just a test for me.

Did I have to be his friend?

I wasted the most precious eighteen years of my life!

Without that child, I could have smoothly graduated with my Masters, joined a good company, had a respectable job, and a loving, happy family.

My life should have been thriving, but it was ruined because of him!

Even the child I poured my heart and soul into, chose her biological parents at the moment of conflict, and turned against me.

Thinking of this, the hatred surging within me threatened to drown me.

I clenched my fists, saying each word clearly, No, I refuse.

I can send her to an orphanage, but I will absolutely not raise your child.

Hearing my refusal, Liam stopped playing the dying man, sat up abruptly, and pointed at me, yelling full of vigor.

Ethan, are you even human?! You call me your brother, but in reality, youre ungrateful, cold-blooded, and heartless!

You wouldnt donate blood to save me, fine. But you wont even raise my only daughter? What kind of a brother are you, you piece of garbage!

I watched him coolly. Oh, Liam, you seem pretty energetic now, dont you? You dont look like youre about to die at all. Did this quack doctor misdiagnose you?

As I spoke, I glanced at Dr. Sullivan, who stood by, and she instinctively averted her gaze.

Realizing his performance was off, Liam suddenly clutched his chest and collapsed, gasping for air and trembling all over.

I had to admit, his acting was good. Dr. Sullivan immediately reacted, pushing me out, saying she needed to perform emergency aid on Mr. Ford.

I wanted to see what other tricks Liam had up his sleeve, so I stood outside the emergency room and waited.

About ten minutes later, Dr. Sullivan came out holding a cooing baby.

Im so sorry, Mr. Ford is gone. That was just a final surge of life.

This child is his daughter. His dying wish was for you to care for her until she grows up.

As for the adoption procedures, dont worry, Mr. Ford made all the arrangements before he passed. The paperwork will be completed within two days.

You just need to raise the child well. If you abandon her, thats illegal, and if I find out, I will absolutely make sure you go to jail!

After saying this, she tried to thrust the baby into my arms. I immediately stepped back.

Are you kidding me? Forcing a child on someone like this is actually illegal!

In my last life, blinded by so-called brotherhood, I never questioned the truth of this series of events.

Thinking about it now, it's ridiculous. Even with proper adoption procedures, it couldn't happen this fast.

You said Liam died, right? Fine, then I want to see his body.

Saying this, I bypassed her and rushed into the emergency room.

It was completely empty inside.

Dr. Sullivans urgent voice rang out. What are you doing! You cant just go in there!

I pointed at the empty emergency room. Didnt you say he died? Wheres the body? Where did you send it?

Dr. Sullivan said matter-of-factly, The body was, of course, sent to the crematorium immediately for cremation.

I asked again, Sent to the crematorium that quickly? Alright, Ill go to the crematorium now to see him off.

Saying this, I ignored her protests and strode out of the hospital.

Want me to be a fool and raise his kid? In your dreams!

Upon arriving at the city crematorium, I immediately inquired with the staff about Liams remains.

To my surprise, they actually had registered information. Soon, a staff member brought me Liams urn.

In my previous life, I was too distraught. I just took his daughter home and only attended Liams funeral a week later after receiving notification.

Is this Liams ashes?

Yes.

The staff member gave a brief reply and quickly left.

But I still felt something was off.

Normal cremation of a body doesn't happen that fast. Even at the quickest, it takes at least a day.

And now, less than three hours had passed between Dr. Sullivan announcing Liams death and me receiving his urn.

It was practically a mockery of my intelligence.

So the next moment, I opened the urn and unhesitatingly poured its contents onto the floor.

Grayish-white powder spilled across the floor. A staff member nearby immediately shrieked.

Hey! What are you doing?!

People who were at the crematorium to handle arrangements for their deceased family members quickly backed away.

Is that person crazy? Why are they scattering ashes on the ground?

They must be sick. Dont they know thats bad luck? How unlucky!

Did something trigger them? Never mind, Ill just stay away.

Everyone murmured, pointing at me, their gazes unfriendly.

I expressionlessly kicked the "ashes" on the ground.

Look closely, everyone. Are these really human ashes?

At my words, everyones gaze fell to the ground.

It does look a bit strange. Why arent there any small pieces or fragments of bone?

Now that you mention it, youre right. Cremation cant turn all bones into dust.

I curved my lips into a slight smile and said loudly to the staff member, Dont you think you owe me an explanation?

The crematorium staff gave me fake ashes? Do you have any professional ethics left?

There are so many bereaved families here. Does this mean the ashes they received are also fake?

At my series of questions, many family members faces turned ugly.

The staff member anxiously said, Dont talk nonsense! We follow all procedures!

I pressed on. Is that really true? Liam was declared dead at the hospital just two hours ago. How could his body have been successfully cremated two hours later? When did your efficiency become so high?

The crowd instantly erupted.

What? Two hours?!

Are you insane?! I thought handling everything for my loved one was fast, and it still took a full day. How could it be cremated in two hours?

No wonder the powder on the ground didnt look like ashes. There really is something fishy going on!

Under the barrage of questions from the crowd, the staff member stammered nervously, completely flustered.

He never imagined I would scatter the ashes in public and then question the cremation time.

He managed to appease the crowd with a few hurried words, then rushed inside.

A moment later, he walked up to me, his face plastered with a forced smile.

My apologies, we had a mistake in our work. The ashes we just gave you belonged to someone else. Your friends body is still undergoing cremation. Please wait a bit longer.

Several hours later, the staff member brought me another urn.

And the female doctor from the hospital suddenly appeared at the crematorium.

Mr. Hayes, before Mr. Ford passed, he instructed me to ensure his child was given to you to raise. This was his dying wish, and you must fulfill it.

You were the best of brothers in life, so now that hes gone, his child is your child.

Also, here are his life savings, a total of fifty thousand dollars. He hopes you will raise his child well.

Her words were grand and righteous. She then thrust the baby and the bank card into my arms. The onlookers, unaware of the full story, were deeply moved and applauded me.

I looked down at the child and let out a soft laugh.

Liam, you really want me to raise your child, dont you?

Then I'll grant your wish.

Eighteen years passed in a blur.

Over these past decades, after earning my first significant capital, I started running my own Twitter account.