Spoiled by Eight Uncles (Lily)

"Lilly! Lilly!" The urgent voice reverberated in Lilly's ears.

Who is it? The voice disappeared after she struggled to open her eyes. She found herself still lying in the snow. Was it Master? Why did it sound different from what | remember? "Is that you, Master?" She lifted her fingers with difficulty in the attempt to raise her head.

However, she was frozen stiff. Despite her best efforts, she could barely move her eyes.

There were noises around her. Stephen's panicked voice stood out among the crowd. "It isn't child abuse! You're making things up! | could never do this to my daughter. After all, I'm a respected figure in South City." As he spoke, he signaled for someone to bury Lilly as fast as possible.

Meanwhile, she was still covered in snow, with only one hand exposed. She could barely see the outside from the corner of her eye.

Someone approached her quietly. They pretended to clear the snow by sweeping them onto her.

Her gaze was blank, and her body was stiff. Her mind refused to work. Where am 1? Oh. I'm still stuck with the Hatcher family. It was just a dream. In my dream, | had eight uncles who loved me, as well as Grandpa, Grandma, Dad, and Mom... | remember making a phone call, but the person on the other end wasn't my beloved family, but strangers. Did the old lady call the police for me? Lilly saw several people in uniforms walking around, taking notes, and asking questions.

One of them looked her way with a frown as if they were searching for something.

At that moment, she had accepted that everything was just her dream and none of them were real.

Her will to live surged. No one is going to save me. Nobody will coddle me and love me. The world is as cruel as ever, but | refuse to die here.

Lilly gathered her strength and unleashed her potential. She pushed the snow off her with all her might. The snow piled on her collapsed immediately, exposing her small hand underneath.

The light hurt her eyes, but it gave her hope. She shouted at the top of her lungs, "I-I'm here!" She could see the man who had been searching with a frown more clearly in the light.

He was a tall man in black, his posture upright. Despite her small voice, he looked over right away.

"Over here!" His calm voice boomed over her, and her eyes widened in disbelief.

Hold on... Is that Dad? Due to the figure blocking out the light, she couldn't see his face. All she could do was keep her eyes wide open. He's approaching...

The man quickly brushed the snow off Lilly and pulled her out of the snow.

"How are you feeling? Stay with me!" he prompted.

Lilly blinked. She wanted to throw herself into his arms and cry, but she lacked the strength. Her weak voice was choked up with tears as she called out to him, "D-Dad..." He was furious to see her in such a condition. At that, he quickly took off his coat and wrapped it around her. Then, he turned around and scolded, "How dare you lie to my face! How are you going to explain this?" Stephen's face turned pale at his accusation.

Lilly felt pain and cold, and she struggled to keep her eyes open. She couldn't even feel her body when she woke up.

She felt nothing. Her limbs were stiff as though she was a walking corpse.

She scanned her surroundings. Everything was covered in white, but this time, she heard the beeping of the machine.

Lilly was exhausted. It seems like my dream never ends. | can no longer tell whether I'm dreaming or not.

She found the scene familiar, remembering that she imagined herself lying in the same room before.

Then, Uncle Gilbert would come into the room and greet me. Grandpa, Uncle Anthony, Uncle Edward, and Uncle Jonas, who brought various dishes, followed him. They would compete for my attention, so | would taste their dish first.

However, the room was rather quiet. Lilly held her breath and waited for a long time, but nothing happened. Right. Master should be here, too.

She turned her head with difficulty as she looked to the side with a small hope. Yet, there was no sign of Pablo.

Moreover, her memory was fading fast. She couldn't even remember what he looked like. She started to believe that her mind was making things up before her last moment.

"So, our lives do flash before our eyes when we're dying..." she murmured to herself. My head is heavy. I'm so tired. Wait. In my recent dream, the old lady had called the police for me before | died. And the person who came was Dad. Yet, he didn't seem to recognize me. Right. After all, it's just my imagination. It can't be Dad. My father is Stephen.

The creaking door interrupted her thoughts. Stephen walked in with a fake smile. "Are you feeling better, Lilly? The doctor said there was nothing serious other than a little frostbite. How about we go home this afternoon?" It was a silent threat, yet he appeared to be wary of something.

Finally, a familiar figure joined them in the room. The newcomer demanded, "Don't you think it's too fast?" He slammed Lilly's medical report onto the table. "She suffered from respiratory arrest, shock, and broken ribs..." Lilly listened numbly. The report was exactly as she remembered it, but back then, it was Anthony who had read it.

Next, he would announce that | had a humeral fracture and the little toe on my left foot was amputated due to frostbite.

As she expected, the man in black reiterated the report word by word, exactly what she had dreamed about.

The idea confused her. How did | learn about this? Am | getting visions from my dreams? Because | had seen this room before...

However, if my dreams can predict the future, why is everything different from my dreams? Uncle Anthony, Grandma... None of them recognized me. Even Dad here treats me as a stranger.