Chapter 2

Colette woke up early the next day and left the house to close all her accounts. She looked into these matters last night; her sudden death left behind a lot of paperwork. Now that James wanted to start a family with another woman, Colette refused to be a burden to him and add to his troubles. Once she arrived at the office, the staff member looked at her in disbelief when she announced she was there to close her accounts. He had to double-confirm with her. "Young woman, most of our clients only get their accounts closed if they pass away. Are you sure about this?" Smiling bitterly, Colette nodded at him. "I only have six days to live." The staff member cast her a sympathetic look, thinking she must have suffered from some terminal illness like cancer. His sympathy deepened when he saw her record—she was only 18! The staff member proceeded to close her accounts without any more questions. Once Colette got that task out of her way, she went to get an official portrait for her funeral. She even bought herself an urn and linen shroud for her funeral. Every place she visited, she garnered sympathy from people there, but she wasn't bothered by it. Her only goal was to get her funeral matters settled so that James did not have to worry for her. She arrived home late after she ran the errands. At home, she saw Sophie in an apron, cooking in the kitchen. Sophie approached and greeted her with enthusiasm. "Colette, you're home! I'm cooking dinner tonight. We're waiting for you." Noticing the bags in Colette's hand, she asked curiously, "What did you buy?" Colette shook her head without answering. She proceeded to place her purchases upstairs in her room before joining Sophie in the kitchen. "Let me help you out." James finally arrived after the two ladies cooked in the kitchen. He was surprised to see the harmonious scene—the women did not fight or give each other the cold shoulder. In the past, Colette never got along well with Sophie due to her jealousy. Young and naive, Colette wasn't good at hiding her emotions. The three of them sat down and dug in when dinner was ready. Sophie's enthusiasm extended to the dining table, where she kept piling food onto Colette's plate. "Colette, try the prawns. They're so fresh! I cooked these just for you." Colette hesitated to eat the food that almost spilled out of her plate. She might be in human form, but she was at the core a corpse. When she struck the deal with the Grim Reaper, he reminded her not to take any human food in the mortal realm, hence her hesitation in eating the food offered by Sophie. James noticed Sophie's awkwardness when Colette refused to eat the food. He shot Colette a warning look. "You will eat the food that Sophie served you." Colette remained silent when she heard James' orders. Nevertheless, she finally finished the food on her plate. When the food slid down her throat, she felt a pang of pain. Her stomach seemed to be on fire. She could stand it no more. Rushing into the washroom, she vomited everything she had taken in for relief. The sudden change made Sophie tear up. She turned to James and asked pitifully, "Does Colette hate me?" James' expression fell when he heard the question. Patting Sophie's hand to comfort her, he explained, "No, that's not the case. I'll check on her." He made his way to the washroom. At that time, Colette felt much more comfortable after vomiting. Staring at her pallid face in the mirror, she let out a soft sigh, thinking, "Looks like I can't force it. I should make up an excuse to leave the house later." With that in mind, she opened the washroom door, only to run into James. He had been waiting by the door with a brooding expression. Momentarily taken aback, she thought he was at the washroom out of concern. After some deliberation, she said to him, "Uncle James, I feel unwell. You and Sophie should continue eating. I'll rest in my room." At first, she thought James would head back to dine with Colette. But his expression turned sour, and he said something that stunned her. "I thought you were finally starting to behave when I saw you getting along with Sophie. But you're still as stubborn as before. You tried to make a scene to embarrass and upset her." "Uncle James, I didn't—" Colette's face paled, her heart shattering. She forced a smile and tried to explain herself, but he cut her off coldly. "I don't care about your reasons. You need to finish your dinner."