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Short filmTranscript
00:00I was born a liar. That's the label my mom gave me. It all started because my mom, a firm
00:05believer
00:06in scientific parenting, put honesty necklaces on me and my twin sister the day we were born.
00:11Whenever you lied, the pendant on the necklace would glow red, and mom would press a remote
00:16to send an electric current as punishment. My sister's necklace was always green, even when
00:21she cut mom's dress and blamed it on the cat. The necklace just blinked gently with a green light.
00:26But me, just saying mom, I'm hungry, would make my necklace flash red instantly, followed
00:32by a jolt of electricity straight to my skin. At first, I tried to defend myself, but mom
00:38said, machines don't lie. The pain will teach you a lesson. Mom's doing this for your own
00:44good. After thousands of electric shocks, I started to believe it too. Maybe I really was
00:49born a liar. On New Year's Eve, mom was taking my sister to see the fireworks. A sharp pain
00:55tore through my stomach. I curled up on the floor, begging. Mom, my stomach hurts so bad.
01:01Please help me. But my necklace flashed red like crazy. Mom looked down at me, drenched
01:06in sweat, and turned the current to Max. You're faking sick just to come with us to
01:11the fireworks? You're hopeless. She turned and walked out the door with my sister. I couldn't
01:16help but think, mom must be right. The necklace is red, so I must not really be in pain. I'm
01:21just
01:22lying for attention again. I'm sorry, mom. In my next life, I'll learn to be an honest
01:27kid. It hurts so much. It hurts so much. Mom was back. Mom's a doctor. She must have realized
01:39something was wrong. She came to save me. Are you done yet? The fireworks are about to
01:43start, and Jenny's getting impatient. Mom. Mom, it really hurts. It feels like my intestines
01:49are twisting. How long are you going to keep this up? You're such a liar. You can just stay
01:57home and reflect on yourself. Honey, come on. Hurry up. The fireworks show is about to
02:02start. If she don't want to go, fine. Should we save her some food? Save her food? She
02:07has a bunch of snacks in her closet, which she buy with the money she stole last time. She
02:10won't starve. Lock the door. We'll let her out. Only her necklace turns green.
02:14But what? Spare the rod and spoil the child. Look how honest Jenny is. Her necklace is always
02:21green. Stella's just a bad egg, and she needs to be corrected. But my closet was empty. That
02:28time, my sister took the money. She ate all the snacks, too. My sister just stood there,
02:34her necklace glowing soft green. I know one of you took the money. Who did it? It wasn't
02:40me. And mom believed her. When I tried to say I didn't take it either, my necklace turned
02:45red, and I got another shock. No, mommy. I did it.
02:55Bye-bye, sister. We're going to see the pretty fireworks.
03:17Tears streaming down my face. I hypnotized myself. I don't know how long passed. It didn't hurt quite
03:23as much anymore. With my last bit of strength, I crawled to my desk. I had to write a self
03:28-criticism.
03:29That was the rule. Whenever the red light came on, I had to write a thousand words of I am
03:34a liar.
03:34My hands shaking. I opened that crumpled, worn-out diary. It was filled with self-criticisms from
03:40before. But this time, I wanted to write the truth. Mom, I really love you. It really hurts so
03:48much. Why won't you believe me? Mom, please just believe me. Just once. Everything was getting
03:55blurry. Tears streaming. I used my last bit of strength to write. After I wrote the last word,
04:01the sharp pain in my stomach suddenly vanished. In its place was a lightness I'd never felt before.
04:06My body grew light. I floated up. I looked down and saw myself slumped over the desk,
04:12my hand hanging limply in the air. On my neck, the necklace was still blinking red like crazy.
04:17So this is what it's like to die? I still haven't learned to be an honest kid.
04:24I'm sorry, Mom.
04:25I was woken up by laughter. It was Mom, Dad, and my sister. Mom's voice held a tenderness I'd never
04:32heard before. I floated in the air, watching the front door open. Even though I was a soul now,
04:37I instinctively floated over to greet them, wanting to get their slippers like I always did.
04:42It was a habit carved into my bones, the need to please. Mom, I'm not in pain anymore. I'll be
04:50good. Please don't be mad. I opened my arms, wanting to hug the woman still carrying the winter chill.
04:57But my hands passed right through her, like wind through nothing. Why is it so cold in here? Is
05:01the heater off? I froze, staring at my own transparent hands. Yeah, I'm dead.
05:09Dead people can't hug the living. Go check on Stella. She hasn't come out to eat. Maybe she's
05:15really hungry. Good old Dad. I looked hopefully at Mom. If she found out I was dead, would she be
05:20sad?
05:21Would she regret it? Mom snorted and walked toward my room. She pushed my door open. She didn't turn
05:29on the light. In the glow from the living room, she saw me slumped over the desk, not moving,
05:34like I was asleep. Oh, still lying there? You think lying that will make me carry you
05:42to bed? Stella, you're ten years old, not five. Mom! I'm not pretending to sleep! I'm dead!
05:51Look at me! Touch me! I'm cold! But she couldn't hear me. She only believed what she could see.
06:02Sister's a big sleepy head. Look! My necklace is green, but Sister's is still red. Sister's always
06:09lying. She's even lying in her dreams. Our Jenny's such a good girl. Don't mind this liar. Let her lie
06:20there. See how long she can keep it up. Maybe we should put her in bed. It's cold out. Put
06:26her in bed?
06:27The experts in scientific parenting say you have to be cold in moments like this. She has to realize
06:32her own mistake. Look at that red light. It means her mental state is still extreme resistance.
06:38She hasn't repented at all. All right, time for bed. We're going to Grandma's tomorrow for New Year's.
06:44Mom turned sharply and closed the door again. I floated beside my body, staring at that single
06:49point of red light in the darkness. The sadness in my heart was colder than death itself.
06:54Mom, if you had taken just one step closer. If you had just touched my hand, you would have
07:00known I was dead. But you didn't. You only believed that cold, lifeless machine. Not the
07:06daughter you carried for ten months.
07:08Late at night, a mouse crept out of my empty closet. I used to be terrified of mice. I'd scream
07:14every time I saw one. But now, I could only float on the ceiling, watching it crawl all over
07:19my body. I whispered weakly. But no sound came out. The mouse spit through my toe. A little
07:25blackish-purple blood oozed out. I couldn't feel it anymore. Good. It finally didn't hurt.
07:31I said to the pitiful shell below me. It's okay. You can't feel it anymore. It'll be over soon.
07:38The next morning, sunlight fell on my body, but it brought no warmth. From the kitchen came the
07:44clatter of pots and pans. Mom was making breakfast. The smell of fried eggs drifted through the crack
07:49in my door. Usually, that was the smell I craved most. But all I ever got was boiled vegetables,
07:56because mom said,
07:57Liars didn't deserve meat.
07:59Today, she banged the spatula extra loud on purpose. I knew what she was doing. She was trying
08:05to tempt me. She wanted me to give in, come out, and admit I was wrong. If this were before,
08:11maybe I would have confessed to things I didn't do, just for one fried egg. But now,
08:17I didn't need to eat anymore. Stella still hasn't come out?
08:23Nope. Stubborn as a mule. Spoiled brat. Fine. Don't eat. See if I care.
08:30My sister drank her milk, her eyes darting around. She ran up to my door on purpose and took a
08:36big
08:36sniff. Then, with a dramatic yell. Mom! What? Sister's room stinks! Did she poop in there?
08:45The heater was too strong. After just one night, I was starting to smell.
08:52Mom would hate me even more.
08:55Stella! The bathroom's right there! Did your legs break? You actually pooped in your room? You're
09:02hopeless! You'd rather lose all self-respect than admit you're wrong?
09:06I remembered once, when I was little, I had acute gastroenteritis. I couldn't make it to the
09:13bathroom and messed up my pants. Mom not only refused to wash me, she made me stand in the yard
09:18as a punishment. She pointed at me and told the neighbors I was as dirty as a pig. Now,
09:23she thought I was dirty again. Leave her alone! Let her sit in her own stink! Let it choke her!
09:29The smell's pretty strong. Let me check it out. Maybe there's a dead mouse or something.
09:34Dad stood up and walked toward my door. My heart leaped.
09:37Dad! Open the door! Look at me! I'm right here! Just turn the handle and you'll see I'm not moving!
09:46You'll see my face already turning black!
09:52What? The server crashed? Okay, okay, I'm coming right now. Honey, emergency at work. I gotta go.
09:59Might not be back for a few days. But what about Stella?
10:02Mom didn't even finish before Dad slammed the door shut behind him. I was stunned. So close.
10:08Just one second. If that call had come a moment later, I'd have been found. Maybe then I wouldn't
10:14have to rot any longer. That afternoon, Mom took my sister out shopping. The house was empty except
10:20for my body. At night, they came back loaded with fancy seafood and gifts. The smell hit them the
10:25second they walked in. Mom covered her nose, even gagging.
10:31Stella! Does this place have to look like a lamb stilt?
10:34She wouldn't even open the door to yell at me, like looking at that room would somehow dirty her eyes.
10:39She grabbed wide packing tape, crouched down, and viciously sealed the bottom crack of my door.
10:44You like the smell so much? Fine! Rot in there by yourself! Just don't let it stink up the rest
10:50of us!
10:57Ah, peace and quiet.
10:59I stared at that sealed door. The last bit of hope in my heart suffocated along with the tape.
11:03Turns out, in Mom's heart, my life or death mattered less than a fancy seafood dinner.
11:09She'd rather seal me and then look to see if I'd died in there.
11:12Mom, you win.
11:18I'll never bother you again.
11:23The third morning, winter sunlight streamed into the living room, but it couldn't dispel the gloom
11:28hanging over the house. The underfloor heating was cranked up. 26 degrees.
11:33The tape couldn't hold back the smell anymore. It was a nauseating, greasy stench of decay.
11:39Mom was trimming freshly bought flowers, but no amount of floral scent could cover the reek of death.
11:44Mom cut a rose viciously, the thorns piercing her hand. She'd finally had enough.
11:49In her mind, I hadn't bathed. I'd pooped in my room. I'd probably hidden a dead mouse in there,
11:55all just to spite her, to defy her authority.
11:57Stella, you've gone too far. If you don't repent, I won't let you off easily.
12:03It seems that gentle reminders don't work for you. I must use hard ARBAP to teach you Jelfigwin.
12:08I floated in front of Mom, watching her twisted face, waving my arms desperately.
12:13Even though she didn't love me, I didn't want her to see me like that.
12:17But she passed right through me.
12:19I'm ugly! I'm rotten! You'll be scared!
12:32Stella! What have you done?
12:38She looked up and saw me, still slumped over the desk just like three days ago.
12:42My back to her, not moving. To her, it was silent defiance.
12:47The ultimate disrespect.
12:48I'm talking to you! You hear me? Still playing dead?
12:52Blind with rage, Mom charged in, raising the rolling pin.
12:56But she didn't strike. She wanted to grab me first, to see my defiant face.
13:00Her hand grabbed the back of my collar, touched the skin of my neck.
13:03Then she froze. No warmth of life at all.
13:06She blinked. But inertia kept her pulling.
13:09My body fell backward. Chair and all crashed to the floor.
13:13The chair slammed against the ground.
13:15My body, stiff as a statue, toppled over.
13:18My face was finally visible.
13:21It wasn't the shy little girl she knew anymore.
13:24My face was purple-black, my eyes bulging.
13:28My features twisted from the death throes.
13:30Dried white foam and black-red blood caked at the corners of my mouth.
13:34And around my blackened neck, pressed against the rotting flesh.
13:38That honesty necklace Mom was so proud of.
13:41Hanging there, lifeless.
13:43The skin on my neck was burned black by the constant current, fused with the metal pendant.
13:48No more red light.
13:49No more green light.
13:51Just dead silence.
13:53Thump.
13:53A soft sound.
13:55The diary that had been pinned under my arm slid out as my body fell.
13:59It landed at Mom's feet.
14:01Open.
14:02Facing her.
14:03On that page, crooked handwriting stabbed into her eyes like knives.
14:07Mom, my stomach really hurts.
14:09The necklace is broken.
14:11I'm not lying.
14:12Please don't shock me.
14:15Mom stumbled back, her lower back slamming into the bookshelf behind her.
14:20Faces shattered on the floor.
14:22But she didn't feel the pain.
14:24Her eyes were wide, fixed on me on the ground.
14:31No.
14:33It's a trick.
14:34Makeup.
14:35Special effects.
14:36Stella, get up!
14:37Mom's not mad anymore!
14:39Don't scare me.
14:41That feeling.
14:42It was too real.
14:44It was the temperature of death.
14:47Aunt Shelly called the police.
14:49She'd come running at Mom's screams and collapsed at the door when she saw the scene.
14:53Sirens soon filled the neighborhood.
14:55Police came.
14:56Forensics came.
14:58Yellow tape went up.
14:59I watched them come and go.
15:01Watched flashlights flicker over my body.
15:03Mom was pulled onto the living room sofa by a female officer.
15:06Officer, she was faking sick.
15:09She's lied since she was little.
15:11The necklace was red.
15:13Machines don't lie.
15:14I was just disciplining her.
15:16I did it for her own good.
15:18No one listened.
15:19Everyone looked at her like she was a monster.
15:21When the coroner moved my body, they ran into a problem.
15:25The necklace.
15:26Because of the prolonged high voltage current, the heat had fused the metal to my skin.
15:30Like it had grown into my flesh.
15:32Damn it.
15:33He had to get tools.
15:35Force the necklace off.
15:37Rip.
15:38The sound of skin tearing.
15:40An officer picked up the diary from the floor.
15:42Wearing gloves, he flipped through it.
15:45His face grew darker and darker.
15:47Mom stared at that diary, eyes locked on it.
15:50Suddenly, she lunged like a madwoman, trying to grab it.
15:54That's her self-criticism.
15:55She admitted it.
15:56She admitted.
15:57She lied.
15:58Look, she wrote it.
15:59We'll find out if she lie.
16:00That's when dad arrived.
16:01He saw the black body bag being carried out.
16:04That long zipper, sealing my whole life shut.
16:08Dad's legs gave out.
16:09He collapsed on the spot, wetting himself.
16:12My little sister was crying, terrified.
16:14She didn't understand what was happening.
16:17She just pointed at the blood-stained necklace on the table and asked.
16:21Mom, why is sister's necklace black?
16:24Mine's still green.
16:25She held up the pendant on her neck.
16:27The green light blinked innocently.
16:29Like a giant, cruel joke.
16:32The police started a temporary inquiry in the living room.
16:35Mom clutched at her last straw.
16:37She pointed at the bloody necklace, her voice shrill.
16:41Officers, check that necklace.
16:43That necklace proved she was lying.
16:45Red means lying.
16:47I only shocked her when it was red.
16:49I didn't abuse her.
16:50The machine showed it.
16:52I was just disciplining her.
16:53The officer frowned at her like she was insane.
16:56Ma'am, the deceased has multiple old electrical burns.
16:59That was discipline.
17:01Education.
17:02Mom screamed, cutting him off.
17:04To prove she was innocent.
17:06To prove she wasn't a murderer.
17:08She made a crazy demand.
17:10She lunged for the table, grabbing the necklace still covered in my flesh and blood.
17:14Ignoring the gore.
17:16Hands shaking.
17:17She forced it onto her own neck.
17:20I'll prove it.
17:21I'm innocent.
17:22As long as it's green, it means I'm telling the truth.
17:26She clicked the necklace around her own neck.
17:28Click.
17:29It locked.
17:30The cold metal touched her skin, sticky with my blood.
17:34Mom took a deep breath, trying to calm herself.
17:37She held up the pendant for the officers to see, her eyes wild with certainty.
17:41Watch closely.
17:43I'm Clara.
17:44I'm Stella's mother.
17:45That was the truth.
17:47Absolutely true.
17:49But...
17:54A piercing shriek erupted.
17:56The dormant red light blazed to life.
17:58Red as blood.
17:59Red as evil.
18:00In the dim living room, it was like a bloodshot eye snapping open.
18:04Mom froze.
18:05The confident expression on her face locked in place.
18:08She slapped the pendant, like fixing a glitching TV.
18:11What's wrong?
18:13It's broken?
18:14I told the truth!
18:16I'm Clara!
18:17Panic crept into her voice, her words tumbling out faster.
18:21It must be broken.
18:22That coroner broke it.
18:23Let me try again.
18:24One more time.
18:25It didn't abuse my child.
18:27I did it for her own good.
18:28I love her.
18:30The red light flashed even faster, a continuous strobe of red.
18:34Sensing her extreme heart rate, the necklace automatically released a leaf turn.
18:38Mom jolted, her neck spasming, hands flying to her throat as she doubled over.
18:43It hurt.
18:44Even that tiny current made her neck cramp, goosebumps rising over her skin.
18:49And suddenly she remembered.
18:51Ten years old.
18:52Me.
18:53The current at maximum.
18:55Curled on the floor, biting through my lip, afraid to even cry out.
18:59So this is what it felt like.
19:01Mom completely lost it.
19:03She screamed at the necklace, spittle flying.
19:06Why is it red?
19:07Why?
19:08I'm telling the truth!
19:10Why?
19:10I'm telling the truth!
19:12Turn green!
19:13No matter how she screamed, the red light kept flashing.
19:17Mocking her silently, you're a liar.
19:19You're a liar.
19:20Enough.
19:21Stopping doesn't detect lies.
19:24He grabbed the instruction manual found during the search and slammed it on the coffee table.
19:28It's just a simple galvanic skin response and heart rate monitor.
19:31It works like this.
19:32When you're nervous, anxious, scared, or in pain, your heart rate goes up, your galvanic
19:36skin response increases, and the light turns red.
19:39Right now, you're terrified, anxious, tachycardic.
19:42Of course it's all red.
19:43He stepped closer to mom.
19:45Your daughter had a perforated appendix.
19:48She was writhling on the floor in agony.
19:50The pain of internal perforation.
19:53How fast do you think her heart was beating?
19:55How terrified was she?
19:57In your eyes, the more it hurt.
19:58The faster her heart raced, the brighter the red light.
20:02And you thought that meant she was lying harder, so you cranked up the current.
20:07Your younger daughter-less has been set to green since it left the factory.
20:11No matter what she says or does, even if she murders someone, it stays green.
20:16Your scientific parenting?
20:19It's a complete, biased joke.
20:21Mom's world collapsed.
20:23She sat there, staring blankly at the red light flashing on her neck.
20:27Finally understanding.
20:29For ten years.
20:31Every time my red light came on, it was because I was afraid.
20:35Afraid mom would be mad.
20:37Afraid of being misunderstood.
20:39Afraid of the food I hated on the table.
20:41I was in pain.
20:43Pain made my heart race.
20:44Made me sweat with fear.
20:46I was longing.
20:47Longing for her hug.
20:49Longing for her to hold me like she held my sister.
20:51Every signal of a beating heart, she'd read as evidence of a lie.
20:55A wail erupted from mom.
20:57She clawed at the necklace around her neck.
21:02But the necklace's clasp, damaged by her violent struggle earlier, was jammed.
21:08Stuck tight around her neck.
21:10She couldn't pry it off.
21:12Can't get it off.
21:13Can't get it off.
21:14Stella!
21:15Take the necklace!
21:17Mommy was wrong!
21:18It hurts!
21:19Can't handle this little bit of pain, mom.
21:22I took it for ten years.
21:24To confirm the details of the abuse and build the case.
21:27The police opened the diary, the key piece of evidence, in front of mom and dad.
21:32That diary I'd kept for ten years, filled with humiliation and blood and tears.
21:36The female officer's voice was soft, but every word cut deep.
21:40February 14th, Sunny.
21:42Mom gave me celery.
21:43I'm allergic to celery.
21:45It makes my throat swell up.
21:48I can't breathe.
21:49I said I didn't want it, that it would make me sick.
21:52Because I was scared of making mom mad.
21:54My heart was racing.
21:56The red light came on.
21:58Mom said I was a picky eater and a liar, and made me eat the whole plate.
22:02That night, I coughed up blood.
22:04My throat burned like fire.
22:06Mom saw it and said I drank tomato juice and was faking it.
22:09She shocked me for another ten minutes.
22:11Mom covered her mouth, her whole body shaking violently.
22:15That night, she really had thought it was tomato juice.
22:18She hadn't even looked closely at my vomit before turning away to tell my sister a story.
22:23It was blood.
22:24Blood from a throat swollen and torn.
22:26The officer turned the page and continued.
22:29June 1st, Children's Day.
22:31Sister cut mom's dress.
22:33Sister's heartbeat was slow.
22:34Her necklace was green.
22:36I tried to explain, because I was scared of getting hit.
22:39All red lights.
22:40Mom shocked me for ten minutes.
22:42Current at level five.
22:44It hurt so much, but I didn't dare cry.
22:47Because if I cried, my heart would race faster, and mom would think I was defiant, and shock me harder.
22:53I had to hold my breath.
22:55Pretend it didn't hurt.
22:56Mom said, see.
22:58She's not even screaming.
23:00That means it doesn't hurt.
23:02She's faking.
23:03Dad couldn't take it anymore.
23:05This man, invisible in this family for so long, who turned a blind eye to my suffering, who just wanted
23:11peace and quiet.
23:12He lunged forward.
23:14Slap.
23:14You monster!
23:18You monster!
23:20Look what you've done!
23:22That was your own daughter!
23:23You raised her like an animal!
23:26Mom's mouth bled.
23:27She fell to the floor, but she didn't fight back.
23:31She didn't cry.
23:32She just stared blankly, muttering.
23:35Not me.
23:36It wasn't my fault.
23:38Suddenly, she pointed at my sister, cowering in the corner.
23:42It was her!
23:43Jenny!
23:44Sister's necklace was always green!
23:47Sister was the honest one!
23:48She misled me!
23:50If it weren't for that green light, I wouldn't have trusted the red one so much!
23:55The little princess who'd always been cherished.
23:58An officer walked over.
23:59He unclasped the green necklace from my sister's neck.
24:03Got a screwdriver.
24:05Pryed open the pendant.
24:10There were no complex sensor chips.
24:12No heart rate monitor.
24:14Just two cheap LEDs and a few button batteries.
24:17The circuit was hardwired.
24:19Permanently set to green.
24:22This is a $2 plastic toy.
24:24The officer tossed the broken pieces onto the table with a clatter.
24:28Your younger daughter-less has been set to green since it left the factory.
24:31No matter what she says or does, even if she murders someone, it stays green.
24:37Your scientific parenting?
24:39It's a complete, biased joke.
24:41Mom stared at the plastic fragments.
24:44The truth she'd believed for 10 years.
24:46The evidence that had sentenced me to death.
24:49Just a toy.
24:50A toy controlled my fate for 10 years?
24:53A game where only I was in hell, and my sister in heaven?
24:56So I wasn't a liar.
24:58I wasn't a bad kid.
25:00What were all those years of suffering for?
25:02I laughed.
25:04And as I laughed, I cried.
25:06Turns out, souls can cry too.
25:09The last page of the diary was opened.
25:11The female officer's voice cracked.
25:13The handwriting is shaky.
25:15Probably written right before she died.
25:18Mom, if I die, will the necklace stop glowing?
25:20Will you hold me then?
25:22I wasn't lying.
25:23My stomach hurts so bad like a knife twisting inside.
25:27Ma, in my next life, please don't make me wear a necklace.
25:30I'm begging you.
25:31I just want to be a normal kid.
25:33I want to eat the braid pork you make.
25:35Mom stared at the pile of plastic junk.
25:38The honest green light she trusted so blindly.
25:41Just a cheap toy.
25:42Because of it, she doted on my sister for 10 years.
25:46Because of that damned red light, she tortured me for 10 years.
25:51Fake.
25:53It's all fake.
25:55I killed my most honest child and raised a liar.
25:58My death became a city-wide sensation.
26:01Aunt Shelly, our neighbor, was a kind soul but a big mouth.
26:04She posted everything she'd seen online.
26:06The headline was shocking.
26:08Girl electrocuted by pseudoscience honesty necklace.
26:10The article detailed my corpse's condition, and the necklace fused into my flesh.
26:15It exploded.
26:16Online fury ignited instantly.
26:18Mom's personal information was doxxed.
26:21Electrocution demon.
26:22Murderer.
26:23She doesn't deserve to be a mom.
26:25Insults rained down like snow.
26:27Our front door was splashed with red paint, scrawled with the word death.
26:31Dad was also taken in for investigation, failure to prevent abuse, neglect of parental duties.
26:36Though he wasn't heavily sentenced due to lack of direct involvement,
26:39he lost his job.
26:41His reputation was ruined.
26:43His company fired him immediately to avoid association.
26:46The family went bankrupt.
26:48Pay compensation and legal fees.
26:50The house and car were sold.
26:52Dad couldn't handle the madwoman anymore.
26:55He took what little money was left and left with my sister.
26:58Even if my sister was a bad seed, she was still his only remaining child.
27:02Before leaving, my sister tried to take the green necklace.
27:06Dad crushed it under his foot.
27:08What the hell do you need that piece of junk for?
27:10My sister left, crying.
27:12Mom was released on bail pending trial.
27:15Psychological evaluation showed severe schizophrenia and PTSD.
27:19She was left in that rented room, filled with the memory of my stench.
27:24Completely isolated, her mental state deteriorated.
27:28She always felt I was still in the house.
27:30That red necklace, she refused to take it off.
27:34In fact, she became dependent on it.
27:36Because she found that wearing it, feeling that faint stain, eased her guilt just a little.
27:41It was her own self-inflicted punishment.
27:44I floated in the room, watching her daily descent into madness.
27:47She'd cook a whole table of food, calling out to empty air.
27:50Stella, dinner's ready.
27:52No celery today.
27:53All braised pork, your favorite.
27:55Then she'd pick up a piece of meat, hands shaking.
27:58From anxiety, the necklace turned red.
28:01She'd laugh, a nervous laugh.
28:03Heart is racing.
28:05Mommy's lying.
28:08Mommy doesn't deserve to eat.
28:11Liars must be punished.
28:12She'd put down her chopsticks, pick up the remote, point it at her own neck.
28:18Even though the battery was nearly dead, she'd found new ones somewhere.
28:22The strong current made her convulse, foam at the mouth, and put a look at the room across her face.
28:37It hurts.
28:38It hurts just like...
28:39Was this how much it hurt for Stella?
28:42I'm sorry, Mommy, taste it now.
28:44She started punishing herself according to my diary entries.
28:47I was shocked for refusing celery, so she forced herself to eat rotten food.
28:51Until she vomited blood, she forced it down.
28:54I was locked in my room, so she locked herself in there without light.
28:59In the darkness, she cowed out to my memorial photo.
29:04Her forehead bled.
29:06Blood stains covered the floor.
29:08Late at night, she'd watch the red light from the necklace cast shadows on the wall.
29:12Like my bloody eyes staring at her.
29:15On the back page of my diary, she scribbled frantically in red pen.
29:18I'm sorry.
29:19Mommy was wrong.
29:21Red light is pain.
29:22Red light is love.
29:24Please come back.
29:25Just say it hurts one more time.
29:27Mommy will save you this time.
29:29I promise.
29:30Too bad.
29:31I'm already dead.
29:32Dead people can't say it hurts.
29:34Mom was eventually committed to a psychiatric hospital.
29:37Her self-harm had gotten so bad she nearly electrocuted herself at home.
29:41Community services intervened and sent her in.
29:44She was the strangest patient there.
29:46She found some red plastic ring somewhere and wore it around her neck.
29:49A homemade necklace.
29:51If anyone tried to take it off, she'd bite like a rabid dog.
29:54Don't touch my light!
29:57Stella's watching!
29:58If you take it off, she'll get mad!
30:01She developed a terrible conditioned reflex.
30:03Whenever a nurse asked,
30:05Clara, have you eaten?
30:07She'd touch her neck first, then convulse and scream.
30:10Red light!
30:11Don't shock me!
30:12I'll eat!
30:13I'll eat!
30:14Even if the porridge was scalding hot, she'd gulp it down, burning her esophagus, too scared
30:19to spit it out.
30:20She was imitating me right before I died.
30:23Reliving my hell, over and over.
30:25Years passed.
30:27My sister grew up.
30:28And she grew up twisted.
30:30With no discipline and that reputation hanging over her,
30:33she ended up at the bottom of society.
30:35Broke, she remembered the mom still in the psych ward.
30:38She went to visit.
30:40Not for family love.
30:42For money.
30:43Old crazy lady!
30:44Dad's dead!
30:45Give me the secret stash you hid!
30:47My sister wore heavy makeup, her face full of malice.
30:50She looked at mom's pathetic state and spat in disgust.
30:53Just like your dear Delvis daughter.
30:56If you don't give me money, I'll pull your plug and let you join her.
31:00At those words, mom, who'd been in a daze, suddenly looked up.
31:04Her clotted eyes focused on my sister for a moment, sharp and clear.
31:08She remembered the always green toy necklace.
31:11The green that had fooled her for ten years.
31:14You tricked me!
31:16Your green light was fake!
31:18You killed Stella!
31:20Give her back!
31:21Give her back!
31:24Die!
31:25You die!
31:27You're the one who should die!
31:29Help!
31:32Doctors rushed in, sedated mom, and took her off.
31:35Help!
31:38Help!
31:39My sister fled in panic.
31:43She ran blindly out of the hospital gate.
31:46Crazy!
31:47All of you are crazy!
31:48A speeding truck couldn't stop in time.
31:50My sister flew through the air.
31:52She survived.
31:54But her legs were crushed.
31:56She'd spend the rest of her life in a wheelchair.
31:58Completely broken.
32:00And mom, strapped to a restraint bed, stared at the ceiling with tears in her eyes.
32:05In her dreams, she finally saw me.
32:07I was still ten years old.
32:09No necklace.
32:10Wearing a white dress.
32:12Smiling, I ran to her.
32:14She opened her arms joyfully.
32:17Then she saw her own hands, crackling with electricity.
32:21The moment she touched me, my body burned up like paper.
32:25Turned to ashes.
32:27She woke screaming.
32:30No!
32:34Heart rate spiking.
32:38If she still wore that necklace, it would have been blazing red.
32:42The eternal pain.
32:43I stood in the void, watching it all.
32:45Watching mom suffer in the psych ward.
32:47Watching my sister begging with broken legs.
32:49Watching dad, broken, drunk, dying young.
32:52In my heart, there was no satisfaction in revenge.
32:55Just stillness.
32:56Still as death.
32:59The dog I raised as a child until mom threw him out.
33:03He'd been waiting for me in the spirit world.
33:05Shao Bai rubbed against my leg and barked softly.
33:08Like he was saying, come on, stop watching.
33:11Yeah, time to go.
33:12This life was too bitter.
33:14Nothing worth holding onto.
33:15I floated to the window of mom's room.
33:17One last goodbye.
33:19Mom lay in bed, withered, hair completely white.
33:22She seemed to sense something.
33:23Stella?
33:24Is that you?
33:26Mom smashed the necklace.
33:28Mom doesn't believe in it anymore.
33:30Please come back.
33:32Mom will cook for you.
33:33No celery.
33:35Mom will buy you new dresses.
33:37Not for your sister.
33:38Tears slipped down her cheeks, falling on the pillow.
33:41Sighed softly.
33:42I reached out.
33:43My cold finger touched her forehead.
33:45The last mercy I could give her.
33:47Let her sleep.
33:48Sleep.
33:49And it won't hurt anymore.
33:51She calmed instantly.
33:52Her eyelids grew heavy.
33:54She fell into a deep sleep.
33:55A breeze blew through.
33:57The worn diary on her bedside table flipped open.
33:59The police had returned it to her as a personal effect.
34:02On the last page, below my dying words,
34:05were a few shaky new lines,
34:07written by mom in her lucid moments.
34:09In the next life,
34:11let mommy wear the necklace.
34:14Let mommy be the liar.
34:17You punish me.
34:19Just don't leave me.
34:22Mommy will do anything.
34:24I looked at those words.
34:26Felt nothing.
34:27Too late.
34:28All the regret in the world,
34:29in the face of death,
34:30is pale and meaningless.
34:32Mom, I don't hate you anymore.
34:34But I don't love you either.
34:37Mom, let's don't meet again the next life.
34:40I turned away.
34:41Took Shao Bai's leash.
34:42In the distance,
34:43a door of light appeared.
34:44The entrance to the next cycle.
34:46I raised my hand to my neck.
34:48The necklace that had always been there in spirit form.
34:50The nightmare that had bound me my whole life.
34:52I grabbed it.
34:54Pulled.
34:54Snap.
34:55It shattered.
34:56Dissolved into specks of light.
34:58Vanished into the air.
34:59I felt lighter than I'd ever felt.
35:01No red light.
35:02No electricity.
35:03No lies.
35:05Just freedom.
35:05I walked toward the door of light.
35:07Didn't look back.
35:08Morning sunlight streamed in.
35:10A nurse opened the door for rounds.
35:12Clara, time for your meds.
35:14No answer.
35:15The figure on the bed didn't move.
35:17The nurse stepped closer.
35:19Clara clutched the tattered diary tightly in her hand.
35:22At the corner of her eye,
35:23one last crystalline tear.
35:25On the heart monitor beside her,
35:26the line that represented life
35:28had gone perfectly flat.
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