- 8 hours ago
The Deadly Honesty Necklace - FULL MOVIES ENGLISH SUB
Category
š„
Short filmTranscript
00:00I was born a liar, that's the label my mom gave me.
00:03It all started because my mom, a firm believer in scientific parenting,
00:07put 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,
00:14and mom would press a remote to send an electric current as punishment.
00:18My sister's necklace was always green,
00:21even when she cut mom's dress and blamed it on the cat.
00:24The necklace just blinked gently with a green light.
00:27But me? Just saying...
00:28Mom, I'm hungry.
00:30...would make my necklace flash red instantly,
00:32followed by a jolt of electricity straight to my skin.
00:35At first, I tried to defend myself.
00:38But mom said,
00:39Machines don't lie.
00:41The pain will teach you a lesson.
00:43Mom's doing this for your own good.
00:45After thousands of electric shocks, I started to believe it too.
00:48Maybe I really was born a liar.
00:50On New Year's Eve, mom was taking my sister to see the fireworks.
00:54A sharp pain tore through my stomach.
00:56I curled up on the floor, begging.
00:58Mom, my stomach hurts so bad.
01:01Please help me.
01:02But my necklace flashed red like crazy.
01:05Mom looked down at me, drenched in sweat, and turned the current to Max.
01:09You're faking sick just to come with us to the fireworks?
01:12You're hopeless.
01:13She turned and walked out the door with my sister.
01:15I couldn't help but think, mom must be right.
01:18The necklace is red, so I must not really be in pain.
01:21I'm just lying for attention again.
01:23I'm sorry, mom.
01:25In my next life, I'll learn to be an honest kid.
01:28It hurts so much.
01:31It hurts so much.
01:35Mom was back.
01:37Mom's a doctor.
01:38She must have realized something was wrong.
01:40She came to save me.
01:41Are you done yet?
01:42The fireworks are about to start, and Jenny's getting impatient.
01:45Mom!
01:46Mom, it really hurts.
01:48It feels like my intestines are twisting.
01:51How long are you going to keep this up?
01:54You're such a liar.
01:56You can just stay home and reflect on yourself.
01:59Honey, come on.
02:00Hurry up.
02:01The fireworks show is about to start.
02:02If she don't want to go, fine.
02:04Should we save her some food?
02:06Save her food?
02:07She has a bunch of snacks in her closet, which she buy with the money she stole last time.
02:10She won't starve.
02:11Lock the door.
02:12We'll let her out.
02:13Only her necklace turns green.
02:15But...
02:15But what?
02:16Spare the rod and spoil the child.
02:18Look how honest Jenny is.
02:20Her necklace is always green.
02:23Stella's just a bad egg, and she needs to be corrected.
02:26But my closet was empty.
02:28That time, my sister took the money.
02:30She ate all the snacks, too.
02:32My sister just stood there, her necklace glowing soft green.
02:36I know one of you took the money.
02:37Who did it?
02:39It wasn't me.
02:40And Mom believed her.
02:42When I tried to say I didn't take it either, my necklace turned red, and I got another shock.
02:47No, Mommy!
02:48Mommy, I did it!
02:55Bye-bye, sister.
02:57We're going to see the pretty fireworks.
03:02It hurts so much!
03:09I'm not in pain.
03:11I'm really not in pain.
03:13I'm not in pain.
03:15I'm really not in pain.
03:17Tears streaming down my face.
03:19I hypnotized myself.
03:20I don't know how long passed.
03:22It didn't hurt quite as much anymore.
03:24With my last bit of strength, I crawled to my desk.
03:27I had to write a self-criticism.
03:29That was the rule.
03:31Whenever the red light came on, I had to write a thousand words of I am a liar.
03:35My hands shaking.
03:36I opened that crumpled, worn-out diary.
03:38It was filled with self-criticisms from before.
03:41But this time, I wanted to write the truth.
03:44Mom, I really love you.
03:47It really hurts so much.
03:49Why won't you believe me?
03:51Mom, please just believe me.
03:53Just once.
03:54Everything was getting blurry.
03:56Tears streaming.
03:57I used my last bit of strength to write.
03:59After I wrote the last word, the sharp pain in my stomach suddenly vanished.
04:04In its place was a lightness I'd never felt before.
04:06My body grew light.
04:08I floated up.
04:09I looked down and saw myself slumped over the desk.
04:12My hand hanging limply in the air.
04:14On my neck, the necklace was still blinking red like crazy.
04:18So this is what it's like to die?
04:20I still haven't learned to be an honest kid.
04:24I'm sorry, Mom.
04:25I was woken up by laughter.
04:27It was Mom, Dad, and my sister.
04:30Mom's voice held a tenderness I'd never heard before.
04:32I floated in midair, watching the front door open.
04:35Even though I was a soul now, I instinctively floated over to greet them,
04:39wanting to get their slippers like I always did.
04:42It was a habit carved into my bones, the need to please.
04:45Mom, I'm not in pain anymore.
04:49I'll be good.
04:51Please don't be mad.
04:53I 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.
05:00Why is it so cold in here?
05:01Is the heater off?
05:02I froze, staring at my own transparent hands.
05:06Yeah, I'm dead.
05:09Dead people can't hug the living.
05:11Go check on Stella.
05:13She hasn't come out to eat.
05:14Maybe she's really hungry.
05:16Good old Dad.
05:17I looked hopefully at Mom.
05:18If she found out I was dead, would she be sad?
05:21Would she regret it?
05:22Mom snorted and walked toward my room.
05:26She pushed my door open.
05:28She didn't turn on the light.
05:30In the glow from the living room, she saw me slumped over the desk.
05:33Not moving.
05:35Like I was asleep.
05:36Oh, still lying there?
05:39You think lying that will make me carry you to bed?
05:43Stella, you're ten years old, not five.
05:46Mom!
05:47I'm not pretending to sleep!
05:49I'm dead!
05:52Look at me!
05:53Touch me!
05:56I'm cold!
05:58But she couldn't hear me.
05:59She only believed what she could see.
06:02Sister's a big sleepy head.
06:04Look, my necklace is green, but Sister's is still red.
06:08Sister's always lying.
06:10She's even lying in her dreams.
06:15Our Jenny's such a good girl.
06:17Don't mind this liar.
06:19Let her lie there.
06:21See how long she can keep it up.
06:23Maybe we should put her in bed.
06:25It's cold out.
06:26Put her in bed?
06:27The experts in scientific parenting say you have to be cold in moments like this.
06:31She has to realize her own mistake.
06:34Look at that red light.
06:35It means her mental state is still extreme resistance.
06:38She hasn't repented at all.
06:40All right, time for bed.
06:41We're going to Grandma's tomorrow for New Year's.
06:44Mom turned sharply and closed the door again.
06:47I floated beside my body, staring at that single point of red light in the darkness.
06:51The sadness in my heart was colder than death itself.
06:54Mom, if you had taken just one step closer,
06:58if you had just touched my hand you would have known I was dead.
07:01But you didn't.
07:02You only believed that cold, lifeless machine,
07:05not the daughter you carried for ten months.
07:08Late at night, a mouse crept out of my empty closet.
07:11I used to be terrified of mice.
07:13I'd scream every time I saw one.
07:16But now, I could only float on the ceiling,
07:18watching it crawl all over my body.
07:20I whispered weakly.
07:21But no sound came out.
07:23The mouse spit through my toe.
07:24A little blackish purple blood oozed out.
07:27I couldn't feel it anymore.
07:29Good.
07:29It finally didn't hurt.
07:31I said to the pitiful shell below me,
07:33It's okay.
07:34You can't feel it anymore.
07:37It'll be over soon.
07:39The next morning, sunlight fell on my body,
07:41but it brought no warmth.
07:43From the kitchen came the clatter of pots and pans.
07:45Mom was making breakfast.
07:47The smell of fried eggs drifted through the crack in my door.
07:50Usually, that was the smell I craved most.
07:53But 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.
08:02I knew what she was doing.
08:04She was trying to tempt me.
08:06She wanted me to give in, come out, and admit I was wrong.
08:10If this were before,
08:12maybe I would have confessed to things I didn't do.
08:14Just for one fried egg.
08:16But no, I didn't need to eat anymore.
08:20Stella still hasn't come out?
08:23Nope.
08:24Stubborn as a mule.
08:26Spoiled brat.
08:27Fine.
08:28Don't eat.
08:29See if I care.
08:30My sister drank her milk,
08:32her eyes darting around.
08:34She ran up to my door on purpose,
08:36and took a big sniff.
08:37Then, with a dramatic yell.
08:39Mom!
08:40What?
08:41Sister's room stinks!
08:43Did she poop in there?
08:45The heater was too strong.
08:48After just one night,
08:49I was starting to smell.
08:53Mom would hate me even more.
08:55Stella!
08:56The bathroom's right there!
08:58Did your legs break?
08:59You actually pooped in your room?
09:02You're hopeless!
09:03You'd rather lose all self-respect than admit you're wrong?
09:06I remembered once,
09:08when I was little,
09:09I had acute gastroenteritis.
09:11I couldn't make it to the bathroom
09:13and messed up my pants.
09:15Mom not only refused to wash me,
09:17she made me stand in the yard as a punishment.
09:19She pointed at me and told the neighbors
09:21I was as dirty as a pig.
09:23Now she thought I was dirty again.
09:25Leave her alone!
09:26Let her sit in her own stink!
09:28Let it choke her!
09:29The smell's pretty strong.
09:31Let me check it out.
09:32Maybe there's a dead mouse or something.
09:34Dad stood up and walked toward my door.
09:36My heart leaped.
09:37Dad!
09:38Open the door!
09:40Look at me!
09:41I'm right here!
09:43Just turn the handle,
09:44and you'll see I'm not moving!
09:46You'll see my face!
09:48Already turning black!
09:52What?
09:53The server crashed?
09:55Okay, okay, I'm coming right now.
09:57Honey, emergency at work.
09:58I gotta go.
09:59Might not be back for a few days.
10:01But what about Stella?
10:02Mom didn't even finish
10:03before Dad slammed the door shut behind him.
10:06I was stunned.
10:07So close.
10:08Just one second.
10:09If that call had come a moment later,
10:12I'd have been found.
10:13Maybe then I wouldn't have to rot any longer.
10:15That afternoon,
10:17Mom took my sister out shopping.
10:19The house was empty except for my body.
10:21At night,
10:21they came back loaded with fancy seafood and gifts.
10:24The smell hit them the second they walked in.
10:27Mom covered her nose,
10:28even gagging.
10:29B-
10:30Stella!
10:31Does this place have to look like a lamb stilt?
10:34She wouldn't even open the door to yell at me,
10:36like looking at that room would somehow dirty her eyes.
10:39She grabbed wide packing tape,
10:41crouched down,
10:41and viciously sealed the bottom crack of my door.
10:44You like the smell so much?
10:46Fine!
10:47Rot in there by yourself!
10:48Just don't let it stink up the rest of us!
10:57Peace and quiet.
10:58I stared at that sealed door.
11:00The last bit of hope in my heart suffocated along with the tape.
11:04Turns out,
11:05in Mom's heart,
11:06my life or death mattered less than a fancy seafood dinner.
11:09She'd rather seal me and then look to see if I died in there.
11:12Mom, you win.
11:18I'll never bother you again.
11:23The third morning,
11:25winter sunlight streamed into the living room,
11:27but it couldn't dispel the gloom hanging over the house.
11:30The underfloor heating was cranked up.
11:3226 degrees.
11:33The tape couldn't hold back the smell anymore.
11:36It was a nauseating,
11:37greasy stench of decay.
11:39Mom was trimming freshly bought flowers,
11:41but no amount of floral scent could cover the reek of death.
11:44Mom cut a rose viciously,
11:46the thorns piercing her hand.
11:47She'd finally had enough.
11:49In her mind,
11:50I hadn't bathed.
11:51I'd pooped in my room.
11:53I'd probably hidden a dead mouse in there,
11:55all just to spite her,
11:56to defy her authority.
11:57Stella,
11:58you've gone too far.
11:59If you don't repent,
12:01I won't let you off easily.
12:03It seems that gentle reminders don't work for you.
12:05I must use hard a RBAP to teach you Jalfitwin.
12:08I floated in front of Mom,
12:10watching her twisted face,
12:11waving my arms desperately.
12:13Even though she didn't love me,
12:15I didn't want her to see me like that.
12:17But she passed right through me.
12:19I'm ugly.
12:20I'm rotten.
12:22You'll be scared.
12:32Stella!
12:34What have you done?
12:38She looked up and saw me,
12:40still slumped over the desk just like three days ago,
12:42my back to her,
12:43not moving.
12:44To her,
12:45it was silent defiance.
12:47The ultimate disrespect.
12:48I'm talking to you.
12:50You hear me?
12:51Still playing dead?
12:52Blind with rage,
12:53Mom charged in,
12:54raising the rolling pin.
12:56But she didn't strike.
12:57She wanted to grab me first,
12:59to see my defiant face.
13:00Her hand grabbed the back of my collar,
13:02touched the skin of my neck.
13:03Then she froze.
13:05No warmth of life at all.
13:06She blinked.
13:08But inertia kept her pulling.
13:09My body fell backward.
13:11Chair and all crashed to the floor.
13:13The chair slammed against the ground.
13:15My body,
13:16stiff as a statue,
13:17toppled over.
13:18My face was finally visible.
13:22It wasn't the shy little girl she knew anymore.
13:24My face was purple black,
13:26my 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,
13:36pressed against the rotting flesh.
13:38That honesty necklace Mom was so proud of.
13:41Hanging there,
13:42lifeless.
13:43The skin on my neck was burnt black by the constant current,
13:46fused with the metal pendant.
13:47No 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,
14:04crooked handwriting stabbed into her eyes like knives.
14:07Mom,
14:07my stomach really hurts.
14:09The necklace is broken.
14:11I'm not lying.
14:13Please don't shock me.
14:15Mom stumbled back,
14:17her 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,
14:26fixed on me on the ground.
14:31No.
14:33It's a trick.
14:34Makeup.
14:35Special effects.
14:36Stella,
14:36get 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.
14:57Forensics 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,
15:07she 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.
15:22When the coroner moved my body,
15:23they ran into a problem.
15:25The necklace.
15:26Because of the prolonged high voltage current,
15:28the heat had fused the metal to my skin,
15:30like it had grown into my flesh.
15:33Damn it.
15:34He 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,
15:44he flipped through it.
15:45His face grew darker and darker.
15:47Mom stared at that diary,
15:49eyes locked on it.
15:50Suddenly,
15:51she lunged like a mad woman,
15:53trying to grab it.
15:54That's her self-criticism.
15:55She admitted it.
15:56She admitted she lied.
15:58Look,
15:58she wrote it.
15:59We'll find out if she lie.
16:00That's when dad arrived.
16:02He saw the black body bag being carried out.
16:04That long zipper,
16:06sealing my whole life shut.
16:08Dad's legs gave out.
16:09He collapsed on the spot,
16:11wetting himself.
16:12My little sister was crying,
16:14terrified.
16:15She didn't understand what was happening.
16:17She just pointed at the blood-stained necklace on the table and asked,
16:21Mom,
16:21why 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,
16:31cruel 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,
16:40her voice shrill.
16:40Officers,
16:42check 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.
16:51The machine showed it.
16:52I was just disciplining her.
16:53The officer frowned at her like she was insane.
16:56Ma'am,
16:57the deceased has multiple old electrical burns.
16:59That was discipline.
17:01Education.
17:02Mom screamed,
17:03cutting 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,
17:12grabbing the necklace still covered in my flesh and blood.
17:15Ignoring the gore.
17:16Hands shaking,
17:17she forced it onto her own neck.
17:20I'll prove it.
17:21I'm innocent.
17:23As long as it's green,
17:24it 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,
17:32sticky with my blood.
17:34Mom took a deep breath,
17:36trying to calm herself.
17:37She held up the pendant for the officers to see,
17:40her eyes wild with certainty.
17:42Watch 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,
18:02it 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,
18:10like 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,
18:19her 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,
18:32a continuous strobe of red.
18:34Sensing her extreme heart rate,
18:36the necklace automatically released a leak current.
18:38Mom jolted,
18:39her neck spasming,
18:40hands flying to her throat
18:42as she doubled over.
18:43It hurt.
18:44Even that tiny current made her neck cramp,
18:47goosebumps 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,
18:56biting through my lip,
18:58afraid to even cry out.
18:59So this is what it felt like.
19:01Mom completely lost it.
19:03She screamed at the necklace,
19:05spittle 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!
19:13You!
19:13No matter how she screamed,
19:15the red light kept flashing,
19:17mocking her silently,
19:18you're a liar.
19:19You're a liar.
19:20Enough.
19:22Stopping doesn't detect lies.
19:24He grabbed the instruction manual found during the search
19:26and 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,
19:35your heart rate goes up,
19:36your galvanic skin response increases,
19:38and the light turns red.
19:39Right now, you're terrified, anxious,
19:41tachycardic.
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,
19:57the more it hurt,
19:59the faster her heart raced,
20:00the brighter the red light.
20:02And you thought that meant she was lying harder,
20:04so you cranked up the current.
20:07Your younger daughter list has been set to green
20:10since it left the factory.
20:11No matter what she says or does,
20:13even if she murders someone,
20:15it stays green.
20:17Your scientific parenting?
20:19It's a complete, biased joke.
20:21Mom's world collapsed.
20:23She sat there,
20:24staring blankly at the red light flashing on her neck,
20:27finally understanding.
20:29For ten years,
20:31every time my red light came on,
20:33it 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.
20:45Made me sweat with fear.
20:46I was longing.
20:48Longing for her hug.
20:49Longing for her to hold me like she held my sister.
20:52Every signal of a beating heart,
20:53she'd read as evidence of a lie.
20:55A wail erupted from mom.
20:57She clawed at the necklace around her neck.
21:03But the necklace's clasp,
21:04damaged by her violent struggle earlier,
21:07was 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,
21:29the key piece of evidence,
21:31in front of mom and dad.
21:32That diary I'd kept for ten years,
21:34filled with humiliation and blood and tears.
21:36The female officer's voice was soft,
21:39but every word cut deep.
21:40February 14th, Sunny.
21:42Mom gave me celery.
21:44I'm allergic to celery.
21:45It makes my throat swell up.
21:47I can't breathe.
21:49I said I didn't want it,
21:50that it would make me sick.
21:52Because I was scared of making mom mad,
21:54my heart was racing.
21:55The red light came on.
21:58Mom said I was a picky eater and a liar,
22:00and 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,
22:13her 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
22:20before 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.
22:35Her necklace was green.
22:36I tried to explain,
22:37because I was scared of getting hit.
22:39All red lights.
22:41Mom shocked me for ten minutes.
22:43Current at level five.
22:44It hurt so much,
22:45but I didn't dare cry.
22:47Because if I cried,
22:48my heart would race faster,
22:50and mom would think I was defiant,
22:52and shock me harder.
22:53I had to hold my breath.
22:55Pretend it didn't hurt.
22:56Mom said,
22:57See?
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,
23:06invisible in this family for so long,
23:08we turned a blind eye to my suffering.
23:10We just wanted peace and quiet.
23:12He lunged forward.
23:14Slap.
23:26Mom's mouth bled.
23:27She fell to the floor,
23:29but she didn't fight back.
23:31She didn't cry.
23:32She just stared blankly,
23:34muttering,
23:34not me.
23:36It wasn't my fault.
23:38Suddenly,
23:39she pointed at my sister,
23:41cowering 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,
23:52I wouldn't have trusted the red one so much.
23:55The little princess who'd always been cherished.
23:58An officer walked over.
24:00He 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 list has been set to green since it left the factory.
24:31No matter what she says or does,
24:34even if she murders someone,
24:35it 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,
24:55and 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,
25:05I cried.
25:06Turns out,
25:07souls 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.
25:17Mom,
25:18if I die,
25:19will the necklace stop glowing?
25:20Will you hold me then?
25:22I wasn't lying.
25:23My stomach hurts so bad,
25:25like a knife twisting inside.
25:27Ma,
25:27in my next life,
25:29please 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.
25:36Mom 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,
25:43she doted on my sister for 10 years.
25:46Because of that damned red light,
25:48she tortured me for 10 years.
25:51Fake.
25:53It's all fake.
25:55I killed my most honest child
25:57and raised a liar.
25:59My death became a citywide sensation.
26:01Aunt Shelly,
26:02our neighbor,
26:02was 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,
26:13and 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.
26:26Insults rained down like snow.
26:27Our front door was splashed with red paint,
26:30scrawled with the word death.
26:31Dad was also taken in for investigation,
26:34failure to prevent abuse,
26:35neglect of parental duties.
26:37Though he wasn't heavily sentenced
26:38due to lack of direct involvement,
26:40he lost his job.
26:41His reputation was ruined.
26:43His company fired him immediately
26:45to 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
26:56and left with my sister.
26:58Even if my sister was a bad seed,
27:00she was still his only remaining child.
27:02Before leaving,
27:03my 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,
27:21filled with the memory of my stench.
27:24Completely isolated,
27:26her mental state deteriorated.
27:28She always felt I was still in the house.
27:31That red necklace,
27:32she refused to take it off.
27:33In fact,
27:35she became dependent on it
27:36because she found that wearing it,
27:38feeling that faint sting,
27:40eased her guilt just a little.
27:42It was her own self-inflicted punishment.
27:44I floated in the room,
27:45watching her daily descent into madness.
27:47She'd cook a whole table of food,
27:49calling out to empty air.
27:51Stella, dinner's ready.
27:52No celery today.
27:53All braised pork, your favorite.
27:55Then she'd pick up a piece of meat,
27:58hands shaking.
27:58From anxiety,
27:59the necklace turned red.
28:01She'd laugh,
28:02a nervous laugh.
28:03The heart is racing.
28:05Mommy's lying.
28:08Mommy doesn't deserve to eat.
28:11Liars must be punished.
28:13She'd put down her chopsticks,
28:15pick up the remote,
28:16point it at her own neck.
28:18Even though the battery was nearly dead,
28:20she'd found new ones somewhere.
28:22The strong current made her convulse.
28:24Foam at the mountain.
28:25It'll look at the light across her face.
28:37It hurts.
28:38It hurts just like...
28:39Was this how much it hurt for Stella?
28:42I'm sorry.
28:43Mommy tasted it now.
28:44She started punishing herself
28:45according to my diary entries.
28:47I was shocked for refusing celery,
28:49so she forced herself to eat rotten food.
28:51Until she vomited blood,
28:53she forced it down.
28:54I was locked in my room,
28:56so she locked herself in there without light.
28:58In the darkness,
29:00she cowed out to my memorial photo.
29:04Her forehead bled.
29:06Blood stains covered the floor.
29:08Late at night,
29:09she'd watch the red light
29:10from the necklace cast shadows on the wall.
29:12Like my bloody eyes staring at her.
29:15On the back page of my diary,
29:16she scribbled frantically in red pen.
29:29Too bad.
29:31I'm already dead.
29:32Dead people can't say it hurts.
29:34Mom was eventually committed
29:36to a psychiatric hospital.
29:38Her self-harm had gotten so bad,
29:39she nearly electrocuted herself at home.
29:41Community services intervened and sent her in.
29:44She was the strangest patient there.
29:46She'd found some red plastic ring somewhere
29:48and wore it around her neck.
29:49A homemade necklace.
29:51If anyone tried to take it off,
29:53she'd bite like a rabid dog.
29:55Don't touch my light!
29:57Stella's watching!
29:59If you take it off, she'll get mad!
30:01She'd developed a terrible conditioned reflex.
30:03Whenever a nurse asked,
30:05Clara, have you eaten?
30:07She'd touch her neck first,
30:09then convulse and scream.
30:11Red light!
30:11Don't shock me!
30:12I'll eat!
30:13I'll eat!
30:14Even if the porridge was scalding hot,
30:16she'd gulp it down,
30:17burning her esophagus,
30:18too scared to spit it out.
30:20She was imitating me,
30:21right before I died.
30:23Reliving my hell,
30:24over and over.
30:26Years passed.
30:27My sister grew up.
30:28And she grew up twisted.
30:30With no discipline
30:31and that reputation hanging over her,
30:33she ended up at the bottom of society.
30:35Broke,
30:36she 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,
30:49her face full of malice.
30:50She looked at mom's pathetic state
30:52and spat in disgust.
30:53Just like your dear Delda's daughter.
30:56If you don't give me money,
30:58I'll pull your plug and let you join her.
31:00At those words,
31:01mom,
31:02who'd been in a daze,
31:03suddenly looked up.
31:04Her clotted eyes focused on my sister for a moment,
31:07sharp and clear.
31:08She remembered that always green toy necklace.
31:11The green that had fooled her for ten years.
31:15You 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!
31:30Help!
31:32Help!
31:33My sisters rushed in,
31:34sedated mom,
31:34and took her off.
31:35No!
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,
31:59and mom,
32:01strapped to a restraint bed,
32:03stared at the ceiling with tears in her eyes.
32:05In her dreams,
32:06she finally saw me.
32:07I was still ten years old.
32:09No necklace.
32:10Wearing a white dress.
32:12Smiling,
32:13I ran to her.
32:14She opened her arms joyfully.
32:17Then she saw her own hands,
32:19crackling with electricity.
32:21The moment she touched me,
32:23my 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,
32:40it would have been blazing red.
32:42The eternal pain.
32:43I stood in the void,
32:44watching it all.
32:45Watching mom suffer in the psych ward.
32:47Watching my sister begging with broken legs.
32:49Watching dad,
32:50broken,
32:51drunk,
32:51dying young.
32:52In my heart,
32:53there was no satisfaction in revenge.
32:55Just stillness,
32:56still as death.
32:57Beside me stood an old dog.
32:59Shao Bai.
33:00The dog I raised as a child,
33:02until 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,
33:09come on,
33:10stop watching.
33:11Yeah,
33:11time 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,
33:20withered,
33:20hair 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.
33:31Please 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,
33:40falling 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.
33:56The 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,
34:04below my dying words,
34:05were a few shaky new lines,
34:07written by mom in her lucid moments.
34:10In the next life,
34:11let mommy wear the necklace.
34:14Let mommy be the liar.
34:17You punish me.
34:20Just 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,
34:32I don't hate you anymore.
34:34But I don't love you either.
34:37Mom,
34:38let'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.
34:45The entrance to the next cycle.
34:46I raised my hand to my neck.
34:48The necklace that had always been there in spirit form.
34:51The nightmare that had bound me my whole life.
34:53I 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.
35:04No lies.
35:05Just freedom.
35:06I walked toward the door of light.
35:07Didn't look back.
35:09Morning sunlight streamed in.
35:10A nurse opened the door for rounds.
35:12Clara,
35:13time for your meds.
35:15No answer.
35:16The 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.
35:30That was something big.
35:30Won't sweat it yet.
35:30I am made it so hard to meet you since I am ready.
35:31We'll see you before Saturday.
35:31Beautiful.
35:31given up catch you after me asgili bright.
35:31Mywyni made it air.
35:31Oh myļæ½.
35:31I'm making it right before.
35:31On the way you wrap it up in work.
Comments