Don’t Ever Come Back Novel by Natalia Love _ Novel





Don’t Ever Come Back Chapter 01

Serena's POV
After getting fired from a top tech company, I decided to end my life by burning charcoal in my room.
Just as I was about to pass out, my mom called. Through the fog in my head, I accidentally hit answer.
Her voice came through the line—cold and sharp, like a knife. “Get home right now. Your nephew won’t stop crying ’cause he wants to go to Disneyland. And now he hasn’t even finished two pages of his winter break homework.”
“Get back here and copy it for him, or he’s gonna throw another tantrum.”
I froze.
I remembered once, back in school, I’d passed out from a high fever. Then I copied my deskmate’s homework to catch up.
Back then, my mom was the head of the teaching department. When she found out, she stormed into the classroom and slapped me over and over again.
Then, in front of the whole class, she made me kneel—my cheeks all swollen. She kept stabbing the tip of my right finger with a pen.
Snappin’ back to reality, I held back a sob and asked hoarsely: “But… isn’t that against the rules?”
On the other end, my cousin Aitana Knappet sounded like she was really hurt.
“Do you gotta be such a jerk, Rena? Kids just wanna play. Not everyone’s a robot like you.”
A robot…
That word hit me like a punch to the gut. I couldn’t even move.
Then Mom’s furious yell blew up through the speaker: “Cut the crap! If you’re not home this second, you might as well just drop dead!”
***
“But… I really am dyin’.”
My voice was barely a whisper.
As the air got thinner, my mind started to shut down. Even Mom’s screamin’ sounded like it was far, far away.
“Serena Knappet! You think you’re all grown up now, so you can threaten me? I’m your mom! I gave you life—how dare you use it to threaten me? Everything I ever taught you was a waste, wasn’t it?!”
“If you’re not home in half an hour, don’t you ever call me Mom again.”
Mom’s angry shout kept blarin’ from the phone.
I had to do what Mom said… or die.
That’s always been the rule for my life.
I had to get perfect grades, be number one, go to the best school, and get the highest-paying job.
In elementary school, I got a 99 out of 100 once. Mom tied me to a chair and made me write the question I missed 10,000 times. I couldn’t eat or use the bathroom till I was done. If I moved even a little, she’d slap me.
When I was a teen, to make sure I never got distracted by boys, she forced me to keep a buzz cut for years. Everyone at school called me a freak. No one wanted to be my friend.
In high school, I stayed up all night studyin’ and ended up in the hospital with a high fever.
When I finally got back to class, I only had ten minutes to finish my homework before it was due.
I sat at my desk, shakin’ like a leaf, my face as white as a ghost.
My deskmate felt bad for me and let me copy her work.
But Mom still found out. That’s the time I almost jumped off the school roof.
The next day, Mom quietly made a whole table of my favorite food.
She took off her stiff, cold work uniform. All I could see were the wrinkles on her face—way too many for her age.
“Rena, a mom and daughter don’t stay mad at each other forever. You know I only do this ’cause I want what’s best for you.”
I knew.
Mom had no one else in the world but me.
So I kept tryin’ my hardest to be the perfect daughter.
But in the end, I was just too pathetic.
I really did my best. But the company laid me off during a big restructuring.
I had nowhere left to go, Mom.
My thoughts drifted further and further away.
My body felt totally dehydrated. Finally, I couldn’t even move a finger.
“I… can’t come…”
I used every last bit of my strength, but my voice was still barely there.
“Serena! How dare you?!”
Mom kept yellin’, but my brain was numb.
“Rena… how could you be so cold?”
Aitana’s tone was both mad and sad. “Kenny’s hands are all red from copyin’ his homework. Why are you pickin’ on a kid? You’re just jealous Roselyn treats Kenny and me better, aren’t you?!”
“Rena, I’m beggin’ you. Just help me this once. I won’t fight you for Roselyn’s love ever again, okay?”
“You know I lost my mom when I was little… I just wanna feel loved. I’m sorry… I know I’m bein’ shameless…”
Aitana sounded like she was about to cry.
I could almost picture Mom pullin’ her into a tight hug, comfortin’ her softly.
“Tana, don’t pay her any mind! You’re the sweetest thing to me.”
“Even if Serena dropped dead right now, she still wouldn’t hold a candle to you.”
Mom’s voice was so soft.
So warm and gentle.
It was so soft that I got lost in it. For a second, I imagined it was me she was holdin’.
And in that never-ending fantasy, I stopped breathin’.
After my soul left my body, I somehow floated straight back home.
Mom was frownin’ hard, her hand squeezin’ the phone.
The long silence on the other end finally wore out her last bit of patience.
Her voice was as sharp as ice: “Serena, are you still playin’ dead? You think you can get away with this by stayin’ quiet? You’re almost 30, pickin’ fights with your cousin and nephew! Get your ass home right now!”
The next second, she hung up the phone.
“I’ll deal with you when you get back!”
I felt helpless and heartbroken. But at the same time, a twisted sense of revenge bubbled up inside me.
Mom… if you ever saw my body, would you grieve? Would you even shed a single tear?

READ FULL NOVEL HERE