They Ate Me Alive, But I Was Their LifelineChapter 1

I was only nine when the weight of Mom's illness pressed down on me heavier than the extra pounds I gained as a bone marrow donor.

For a while, my family served me sympathy on a silver platter. They spooned it out like a warm meal and celebrated me as their little angel—until Ginny dined with us as the adopted girl.

She was delicate and everything I wasn't. Suddenly, I was starved of my family's affection while she was full of it.

Then came the day she forced me to eat spoiled food that almost killed me. The taste was foul, but what left the worst aftertaste was the realization that my family wouldn't lift a finger to save me.

Not long after, my bone marrow was needed again when both my mom and my brother ended up in the hospital.

And just like that, they wanted their little angel back—the one who satisfied their insatiable hunger to be obeyed.

But I couldn't serve them anymore.

"What a pity," I said. "I don't save devils."

——

My mom... She was lying in the emergency room—clinging to life.

My bone marrow was her only chance, they said.

So I ate meal after meal—eight times a day, stuffing food into my mouth, forcing down every bite even when I felt like I would explode. I ate and ate and ate and didn't care if I felt sick. I was desperate to gain the weight that might save her, and I needed to do it fast!

Before I knew it, my arms and legs grew heavier. I looked in the mirror, and my face was round and puffy. I couldn't even recognize myself anymore.

But I didn't care how I looked. I didn't regret a single pound or layer of fat on my body. I wasn't exaggerating when I said I would go through it again if I had to. Besides, it's far easier to lose weight than it is to lose a mother.

Finally, after what felt like forever, I hit 90 pounds! My bone marrow was enough, and Mom got the transplant. She began to recover, and my family had never been happier.

But the relief didn't last long. The doctors warned us her leukemia could relapse again at any moment.

No, I couldn't let that happen! I didn't want Mom to fight for her life in the hospital again!

So I kept my weight up—in case she needed me again.

Little did I know that decision would come back to haunt me.

One day, Dad and my brother went shopping and came home with a skinny little girl.