Chapter 1

During my eight-month pregnancy checkup, the doctor told me that the baby in my belly only had one kidney.

Every year since then, I'd take my daughter to the hospital for follow-up examinations.

Today I brought her to the hospital as usual.

The doctor moved the probe back and forth across both sides of my daughter's waist.

"Both kidneys look fine. No issues."

I suddenly sat up straight, staring at the monitor above the machine.

"Doctor, are you sure both kidneys are intact?"

The doctor nodded at me again.

"Good health is a good thing, isn't it?"

Good health was indeed a good thing, but my daughter was born with only one kidney.

Were the kidneys fake, or was the daughter lying on the examination table fake?

This couldn't be wrong.

When I was eight months pregnant, the doctor had told me.

The child in my belly was missing an organ.

As a first-time mother, I was terrified, thinking it might be something vital like the heart or lungs.

But the doctor said it was just a missing kidney, which wouldn't really affect her life that much.

Worried I'd be too concerned, the doctor even told me the gender outright.

"Girls use less physical strength. Just be a bit careful in daily life."

I thought about how a few years ago, some people were willing to sell a kidney just to buy the latest smartphone.

So missing one kidney probably wasn't a big deal.

After my daughter was born, I told her the truth.

On one hand, I hoped she would pay more attention to her body.

On the other hand, I wanted her to accept this reality from a young age, so she wouldn't be unable to cope with it when she grew up.

"Evelyn, you absolutely cannot tell anyone about the kidney. Only you, Dad, and I know about this."

I often reminded Evelyn that she couldn't tell even her best friend.

She always answered me very seriously.

"Don't worry, Mom. Even if someone offered me a hundred million dollars to talk, I wouldn't say a word."

I suddenly snapped out of my memories, staring at Evelyn lying on the examination bed.

She took the tissue the doctor handed her and wiped her body.

"Mom, I told you there's nothing wrong with my body."

"You just worry too much."

The tone was definitely Evelyn's, even the way she furrowed her brow was identical.

I swallowed hard and asked tentatively.

"Evelyn, did you hear what the doctor said? Both kidneys are fine."

Evelyn tossed the tissue into the yellow trash can, then looked up at me.

"Mom, my ears are fine. I heard clearly."

"Everyone has two kidneys. Are there people with three kidneys?"

She really didn't know about having only one kidney.

But if she wasn't Evelyn, who could she be?

Evelyn turned around, straightening her dress.

I stood behind her, watching her every move.

Height, build, movements---this was my Evelyn.

And the white hairs faintly visible on her head.

Everything before my eyes told me she was my daughter.

Could the kidney have grown back recently? How could such a strange thing happen?

I reached forward and touched the top of Evelyn's head.

"Your white hair is growing back. Find some time to dye it."

Evelyn turned around and touched the spot on her head.

"Mom, if you hadn't reminded me, I would've forgotten about this."

"I'll go after my birthday tomorrow."

She remembered about dyeing her hair, and she remembered tomorrow was her birthday.

But how could she forget the most important thing?

Back home, I sat on the sofa, pretending to be casual as I asked Evelyn, who was playing on her phone.

"Evelyn, do you still remember our biggest secret?"

Evelyn quickly put down her phone and moved closer to me, then covered my ear with her hand, letting out a giggling laugh.

"Of course I remember."

I clenched my fist.

"Then tell me what it is."

Evelyn deliberately pressed her lips together, trying to be mysterious, but seeing my serious expression, she spoke.

"Dad has a mistress behind our backs. You told me not to tell anyone."

My body suddenly went limp, and I became even more certain that the person in front of me wasn't Evelyn.

I had indeed warned her not to tell others about her father's affair, but in truth, the news had long spread among relatives.

Our biggest secret was about her body.

This Evelyn didn't know the secret about her body, but seemed to know everything else clearly.