Lily Aurora NovelThey Chose Their Fake Daughter Over Me—100 Times

After my parents found a hundred different ways to kill me, I woke up with every single memory of my past lives intact.
The last time, as they left me to die in a fire, I had screamed at them, asking why. Their eyes were filled with pity, but their words were a blade to the heart.
The more you suffer, Lily, the faster Auroras illness will fade. You wont really die, after all. We have no other choice. Just bear with it a little longer.
Aurora was the girl they adopted after I went missing, the golden child who took my place.
In terror, I dragged my broken body to my fianc, begging him to help me escape. He agreed without hesitation, only to lead me to the ocean and watch as I was torn apart by sharks.
Cant you stop being so selfish for once? hed pleaded. Only you can save Aurora. Once shes well, I promise Ill make it all up to you.
They had all made a deal with the System, trading my agony for Auroras health.
But they didnt know that I had made a deal with the System, too.

1.
Weve finally done it ninety-nine times. Just one more, we just have to kill Lily one more time, and our darling Aurora will be free from her sickness forever!
Our little girl can finally have a normal life! After this is done, we have to throw a huge party for her to celebrate!
I jolted awake, the phantom sensation of drowning still clinging to me, only to hear the excited chatter of my own parents just outside my door. They were already planning a future that had no place for me in it.
Mommy, Daddy if you keep hurting Lily, wont she hate you when she finds out the truth? I mean shes your real daughter, after all.
Auroras voice, sweet and cloying. My fists clenched. I waited, desperate to hear my parents reply. After all the pain theyd put me through for her, was there even a shred of remorse?
Aurora, sweetheart, thats not for you to worry about, my fathers voice was a cold, smooth stone. You just need to be happy and healthy. Your sister even if she knew, shed be happy to do this for you. Besides, its not like she really dies. He then cooed, telling Aurora not to worry her pretty little head.
His words were like a physical blow, stealing the air from my lungs. They never once asked me what I wanted. Even though my memories were wiped each time, the agony of my body being tortured to death, over and over, was terrifyingly real.
I remembered when they first found me after Id been missing for years. My parents had clutched me, sobbing so hard they could barely breathe. They promised me a happy home. They promised I would never suffer again.
They broke every single promise, all for their adopted daughter, Aurora.
If Aurora shed a single tear, it was my fault. Her pathetic, clumsy acting was enough to make my parents scream at me, to lock me in the storage closet for three days and nights, to ignore me when I was burning up with a 104-degree fever.
Tears soaked my pillow, hot and silent. The next moment, the door creaked open and my parents walked in. A flicker of guilt crossed their faces before being replaced by practiced, loving smiles.
I made you some soup. You need to get your strength back after falling in the water, my mother said. Auroras birthday party is in a few days. She really wants you to be there. You know how she gets when shes upset. That girl is impossible to soothe.
The mention of Aurora brought a wave of adoration to my mothers eyes. She would indulge her every whim, while I was always expected to be the understanding one.
What about my birthday? I asked, my voice small.
Aurora and I were born on the same day, in the same month, of the same year. Her birthday was my birthday, too.

2.
My mother froze. It was true; Id never had a real party. She looked at me with a sigh of weary resignation.
Oh, look at my memory. Im so sorry, Lily, darling. Your mother has just been so busy. Of course, well celebrate your birthday too. Its just its too late to have a gown custom-made. Youre about Auroras size, so youll just have to make do with one of her old ones for now. Ill make it up to you later, I promise.
Ill make it up to you. Id heard those words a hundred times. The hope I once felt had curdled into a numb acceptance. I just nodded.
My mother, relieved, brought the bowl of soup to my lips. My eyes burned as I drank it down, spoonful by spoonful. This simple act of maternal care was a scene I had replayed in my head a thousand times, and now, finally, it was real.
I was about to ask them, to beg them not to kill me again, when a violent cramp seized my stomach. The world blurred.
In agony, I tumbled from the bed, my body convulsing on the floor as foam frothed at my lips. Through the haze of pain, I heard my mothers worried voice.
The poison in this soup it seems so potent. Are you sure Lilys body can handle it?
She looked conflicted, reaching for me, but my father pulled her hand back.
She has to die a hundredth time sooner or later, he explained patiently. Dont you want Aurora to be fully recovered before her birthday? The more she suffers now, the healthier Aurora becomes.
They had reached an agreement. My mothers face hardened. She gave me one last look before turning away.
Lily, she said, her voice distant. Once Aurora is well, youll be the hero of this family. Mom and Dad will make it all up to you.
Moments after they left, I heard Auroras cheerful giggles as she cuddled between them. A happy family, their joy complete now that I was gone.
In the encroaching darkness, my tears ran dry. My heart was a dead, empty thing as I called out to the System. After Id recovered my memories, it had offered me one compensation for its error.
System, I thought, my voice a faint echo in my mind. You said that after I died one hundred times, you would help me fake my death and escape. Does that offer still stand?
Of course, its disembodied voice replied. Allowing you to regain your memories was my failure.
With that confirmation, I closed my eyes and waited for the end. But it didn't come.
The housekeeper, passing by my room, found me unconscious and called for an ambulance. My parents were furious that their plan had been disrupted, but they couldnt risk their public image as loving, doting parents.
So I woke up in a hospital, my parents standing beside my bed with red-rimmed eyes, tearfully telling a news reporter how they had failed as parents.
When my mother saw I was awake, she pulled me into a tight, heart-wrenching hug. I froze. She had never held me like this. I had spent my childhood watching her embrace Aurora with that fierce, protective love, my own heart aching with a jealousy so sharp it was a physical pain.
Even knowing this warmth was a lie, I desperately wanted to hold on.