Branded a Liar

My little brother, Rylan, wanted to go to the park. However, Dad told me to keep an eye on him and make sure he didn't wander off. So, Rylan said he wanted to play hide-and-seek at home with me, and I agreed. Unfortunately, I couldn't find him after he hid. I searched everywhere for him. I looked through all three floors of the house and even searched the yard. At the time, I just thought that Rylan had found an incredible hiding spot. It wasn't until that evening that our neighbor brought him home with the police. Only then did I realize that Rylan had slipped out of the house while I'd been counting with my eyes covered. Terrified that Dad would find out he'd snuck off to play, Rylan threw his arms around Dad's leg and burst into tears. "Dad, Caleb threw me out of the house!" Dad flew into a rage and slapped me across the face. "How could you be so cruel? Your brother is only five years old! You told me he was playing hide-and-seek with you. You rotten liar!" But Dad... I was only seven. I tried to explain, but Dad never believed another word I said. From that day on, I ranked lower than even the chauffeur in our house. Every day, I was fed spoiled leftovers and forced to sleep in the doghouse. When I was 12, a bad woman kidnapped me and made me call Dad for ransom money. All I got in return was his furious voice yelling over the phone. "You rotten liar! You really will say anything for money, even something like this. If they won't let you live without it, then go ahead and die." The woman was so furious that she kicked me off the unfinished balcony of an abandoned building. I hit the ground, and my body was splattered beyond recognition. Before I even had a chance to feel the pain, I found myself drifting upward. Dad… I hadn't been lying. Chapter 1 The Fall No One Stopped The wind howled through the abandoned high-rise, cutting across my face like a thousand tiny knives. I stood barefoot on a concrete ledge. Sharp gravel dug into my feet until my soles bled, sending waves of stinging pain through me. However, I didn't dare move. The terrible kidnapper stood behind me and had a fistful of my hair in her grip. Whenever I flinched, it felt like my scalp would be ripped right off. I was terrified. I wanted to go home. I didn't care that the only place that belonged to me was the stairwell, and that it was dark because at least the wind wasn't this cruel. My kidnapper dialed Dad's number. I stared at the phone screen, my heart pounding so hard it felt like it would burst out of my chest. Would Dad save me? I hadn't run away. This awful woman had taken me. The call connected. The woman pinched me hard, causing me to cry out in pain, "Dad! Please save me! I'm scared…" I thought Dad would react the way fathers did on TV. I thought he'd call my name in a panic and tell me not to be afraid. Instead, his voice was cold when it came through the phone. It was cold enough to freeze me despite the howling winds beating at my face. "Caleb, what kind of stunt are you pulling this time?" His voice dripped with disgust. "You're even pretending to be kidnapped now? Rylan wanted a game console, so he earned it by getting perfect scores. And you? You're so pathetic that all you know how to do is lie and beg for money." "No, Dad…" I sobbed so hard I could barely breathe. Tears and snot covered my face. "I'm not lying… It's so high up here… I'm scared…" 'Dad, I'm not lying. If you don't give her the money, I'm going to die.' I thought to myself in fear. The woman lost her patience and shouted into the phone, "Enough talking! Five million! Pay up, or I'll shove your son off this building!" There was silence on the other end of the line. I held my breath, tears filling my eyes as I waited. Dad had to be frightened. He had to be figuring out how to save me. To my dismay, he laughed. "Go right ahead," he said casually. "Push him. Let him die. It'll save me the embarrassment. A kid who lies every time he opens his mouth isn't someone the Smyth family can afford to keep." The line went dead. The woman flew into a rage. She cursed and slammed both hands into my back. "Nobody wants you anyway. Go to hell!" The instant my feet left the ledge, I reached out wildly, trying to grab onto anything. I wanted to grab Dad's hand. When I was little, I'd have nightmares about falling off a cliff. At the time, Dad would scoop me into his arms and whisper, "It's okay. Daddy's here." But now, the only thing that came for me was the wind. As I plummeted toward the ground, I squeezed my eyes shut and curled into the smallest ball I could. 'Dad, I'm sorry. I think I'm really going to die this time. If I die looking this awful, will you hate me even more?' Chapter 2 They Didn't Care I felt as though I had just had a very long and painful dream. When I woke up, I was no longer in pain. At the same time, my body felt strangely light. It was as if I were floating. Then, I looked down and saw a pool of blood on the ground. In the middle of it lay a broken little boy. Was that me? I tried to get a better look, floating closer. My face had been smashed beyond recognition. However, my eyes were wide open, as if searching for the father who never came. I looked so ugly. If Dad saw me, he would definitely be terrified and scold me for dirtying the floor with my blood. I wanted to wipe the blood off the ground, but my hands passed straight through the ground. I couldn't grab anything. Was I dead? In that case… Could I still go home? I wanted to go home. I didn't care if Dad would still ignore me, and I could only hide in the stairwell; I still wanted to go back. I wanted to see Dad one more time. Perhaps God sensed my wish as I was back home in the blink of an eye. It was so warm inside the villa, and the air was filled with the cigarette scent I loved. Dad was sitting on the sofa with Rylan in his arms. Rylan was wearing that limited-edition blue jersey that Dad had bought for him last month. Back then, I had merely looked at it for a moment when Rylan accused me of trying to steal his jersey, which caused me to be punished by standing all night. Now, Rylan was playing with a new game console. Dad picked up a cherry and fed it to him. "Take it easy. Don't hurt your eyes," Dad said. Rylan held the cherry in his mouth, his cheeks puffed out like a cute little hamster. I floated in midair and watched Rylan enviously. I really wanted to eat cherries too. Matthew bought a box of those last time. I only dared to sneak a glance at them, but Rylan said I was greedy and poured all the remaining cherries into the trash rather than let me have any. "Dad." Rylan suddenly raised his head and asked innocently, "Is it true that Caleb said he was kidnapped?" When I heard his words, my heart tightened. I floated closer, wanting to hear what Dad would say. I wondered if Dad would believe me now. However, Dad snorted coldly and ruffled Rylan's hair. "Don't listen to his nonsense. He's just jealous of you and wants to scam me out of my money to buy a phone. A bad kid like him has a tough life. He wouldn't die that easily." I lowered my head sadly upon hearing my words. Dad still didn't believe me. Rylan blinked his eyes and suddenly giggled. "Dad, if Caleb really got pushed off a building, would he burst open like a watermelon? That would definitely be so much fun! It would look like fireworks!" I recoiled in fear. Rylan's smile was terrifying. I didn't know why he would say such bizarre words when he had such a cherubic face. I remembered when Rylan broke a little bird's wings when he was five years old. At that time, he had also smiled as he said, "Look, it can't fly anymore. This is so much fun." I was terrified back then and told Dad. However, Dad scolded me for making things up and said Rylan was only playing with the bird. In Rylan's eyes, I was just like that little bird. My death was nothing more than another form of entertainment for him. … On the third day after my death, Dad and Rylan were having breakfast. Just then, Dad's phone rang. It was my homeroom teacher. My teacher was a good person. When he realized I hadn't gone to school, he became very worried. "Mr. Smyth, Caleb hasn't come to school for three days, and I can't reach him by phone. Did something happen to him?" I excitedly floated over to the phone and shouted, "Yes, Dad! Something happened to me! Hurry and look for me!" Alas, Dad couldn't hear me. He took a sip of coffee and said casually, "Don't worry about him. That brat just doesn't want to go to school. He is just fooling around somewhere." "But..." The teacher sounded very worried. "Should we call the police?" "For what?" Dad laughed. "He's the best at pretending to be pitiful. He doesn't have a penny on him. He'll come crawling back on his own after two days of starvation." After Dad hung up, Rylan clapped his hands and giggled. "Dad, did Caleb go pick up trash to eat? Last time, I saw him staring at a stray dog eating by the roadside. His eyes were practically glued to the food." "Maybe." Dad wiped his mouth. "Trash is exactly what a worthless bastard like him deserves to eat." As I floated in the air, my tears fell. I drifted around the house until I finally floated into my room. It was the storage room beneath the stairs. It was dark inside. There was nothing but a bed made from wooden planks and a thin quilt spread over it. Although it was very simple, it was the only place where I felt safe enough to cry. Chapter 3 My Death Announcement On the morning of the fourth day, the police came. Matthew rushed in frantically and shouted, "Mr. Smyth, the police are here! They seem to be here for Caleb!" Dad was reading the newspaper. When he heard this, he threw the newspaper into the trash and stormed outside angrily. "What trouble has that brat gotten into this time? Did he steal something or get into a fight?" Dad walked to the door and saw two police officers. Before they could even speak, he immediately yelled at the top of his lungs, "Officers, although he's my son, he's full of lies and is a terrible person! I don't care what crime he's committed, just take him away. "It would be best to lock him up in juvenile detention so he stops causing trouble for us at home!" The police officers froze when they heard what he said. The young male officer's eyes were bloodshot. He gave Dad a very strange look before taking out a transparent bag. Inside was a cheap electronic watch stained with blood. It was my watch! I had bought it for five dollars with money I earned by collecting bottles. Although it wasn't worth much, I thought it was really cool. I had always kept it hidden in my pocket, planning to wear it for Dad during the New Year and ask him if I looked handsome. "Mr. Smyth." The young male officer's voice trembled slightly, as if he were holding back something. "Caleb didn't commit a crime. He was the victim. We've arrested the suspect, and she confessed that she kidnapped Caleb three days ago..." "Oh, give me a break!" Dad sneered, cutting him off. "Officer, did he fool you, too? Just a couple of days ago, he got someone to put on an act to scam money out of me. When I refused, he threatened to kill himself. Tell him that this trick won't work on me! Also, tell him to stop playing these stupid games and hurry back home!" Dad's voice was loud and piercing. I floated beside him, wanting to cover my ears. Unfortunately, I couldn't. Dad, stop talking. Please, just stop. The officer's expression turned grim. He raised his voice and said sternly, "Mr. Smyth, this isn't an act! We found Caleb's body beneath an unfinished building. He really is dead. When he died, he was still clutching this watch tightly in his hand." Dad froze. The sneer on his face stiffened, making him look so weird. "D-Dead?" he stammered. "How is that possible? How could he die? You're lying to me! He must have teamed up with you to trick me! There's nothing he wouldn't do for money. Faking his death? That's exactly the kind of thing he'd do!" Dad kept shouting, but I saw that his hands were shaking badly. Just then, Rylan poked his head out from the stairway. He held a handful of sunflower seeds, cracking them open as he blinked his eyes and asked, "Dad, is Caleb really dead? Does that mean I can tear his doghouse down and turn it into my game room?" His voice was clear and innocent. He sounded as though he was just asking whether he could have some ice cream. Dad suddenly spun around and glared at Rylan fiercely. At that moment, Dad's eyes looked terrifying. He looked as though this was the first time he was truly seeing Rylan. Rylan shrank back and stuck out his tongue. "I was just asking. After all, he's never coming back." I looked at Rylan, and my heart was filled with sadness. I wondered if he really hated me that much. After all, he seemed to only care about my room after I was dead. Dad said nothing. Instead, he turned back to the police officers and said, "Take me there. I want to see him with my own two eyes."