Even after she found out and had the whole family beat me, even after they refused to feed me for days, I still felt like I'd done the right thing.
But then my brother signed up for a 5K at school to impress some girls. He couldn't even finish. He collapsed halfway through, and the whole class laughed at him.
When we got home, my mom said it was my fault. She claimed that because I threw out the tonic, my brother's health was ruined. I thought my brother was smart enough to know better, but I was wrong. He held a grudge. That same night, he snuck into my room and slit my throat while I slept.
Lying there, bleeding out, I saw his greasy, chubby face twisted in anger.
"It's all your fault! You embarrassed me! I'm going to kill you! I'm going to kill you!"
I tried to explain, tried to speak, but blood just poured out of my mouth. A coldness spread through me, my vision went dark, and then-- nothing.
After I died, my parents didn't even care. They were just upset they couldn't get a bride price for me anymore. They put on a show of crying, told everyone I fell down the stairs, cremated me with no real funeral, and moved on. My brother, the murderer, faced no consequences. They kept on spoiling him like nothing had happened.
Maybe fate took pity on me because here I am-- back at the beginning.
This time, I just smirked. Let them suffer the consequences. I'm done getting in the way.
When Dad got home that night, he overheard Mom saying that the opium-based tonics were supposed to be great for boosting health. Without missing a beat, he tore open a packet and started chewing on it. My little brother, never one to be left out, started whining for some too. Mom, smiling as if she'd just won a prize, gave him some right away and then waved me off to the kitchen to make dinner.
I crouched over the sink, scrubbing the crawfish Dad had brought home, and watched as the three of them skipped dinner altogether, snacking on the tonics like they were candy. Every now and then, Mom would pop a piece into her mouth, savoring it like it was the finest treat. I kept my head down and gave a cold smile. Let them eat. The more they eat, the better.