Willow looked up at me in confusion."That way, you can ask your classmates what the reason is directly," I comforted her.Willow still seemed a bit down. "Actually, I wanted to ask them today, but I..."She hesitated, "I just couldn't bring myself to speak.""It's okay. You can't rush things. We'll take it slow. One day, you'll succeed."Willow nodded earnestly. "Yes!"Actually, what Willow didn't tell Aralyn was that she was envious that all her classmates had friends. She even secretly thought that it would be nice if she had friends too.If only… she could talk to others, then maybe she would make good friends.Julian came back and shook his head at me.I felt a little heavy-hearted. It seemed the teacher didn't know the reason either.I held Willow's hand and led her to the car. Willow's situation was special. She couldn't communicate with anyone other than Julian and me. Even if others bullied her, she wouldn't tell the teacher.When she started elementary or middle
"Let the driver pick me up from now on," Zach said.Shayne was puzzled. "Why?"Zach didn't plan to reveal his true thoughts. "I just think you have to spend a lot of money buying us gifts every day. So, it's better if you focus on working. Otherwise, you won't earn enough money."Shayne hadn't expected his son to be so thoughtful. He happily hugged Zach and kissed him on the cheek. "Alright."…On the way, I took out all the little dresses I had bought for Willow and showed them to her, one set after another.Willow's eyes widened in surprise, and the gloom she felt earlier disappeared instantly."Did you buy all these for me, Mommy?""Of course," I answered with a nod.Willow hugged the beautiful dresses and suddenly started crying.I hurriedly wiped away her tears. "You don't like them?""No! I just didn't expect you to buy me clothes, Mommy. I'm so happy," she said, her eyes red.I held her close. "From now on, I'll buy you more clothes after I get my salary."Willow im
I leaned in close to her and took a bite.Meeting her expectant gaze, I exaggerated my reaction. "This is so delicious!"Willow was satisfied with my performance as she beamed. "Right?"When she was about to continue, Julian pretended to be jealous. "You only let Mommy eat? What about me?"Willow quickly gave Julian the piece that she was about to eat. "I was just cooling it down for you," she said seriously.Shawn played along, pretending not to notice her real intentions. "Thank you, Willow."Though there was a lot of food, the portions were small. It was just enough for the three of us.Willow patted her full belly and sighed happily. "Good thing I listened to Daddy, or we wouldn't have been able to finish it all!"Julian was amused at how she was trying to act like an adult. "Let's take a walk," he uttered.If Willow ate too much and didn't move around, she might end up with an upset stomach and have trouble sleeping later.Though Willow found sitting there more comfortab
Spencer fell silent.I didn't plan to waste any more time on him and withdrew my mocking gaze. Holding Willow's hand, I continue walking forward."Mommy, I hate that man. When your ex-husband hurt you before, not a single one of them spoke up for you. But now…" Willow huffed.She looked back and glared at Spencer. "Now that your life is going well, they're all coming to criticize you! Who do they think they are?"She was venting her frustration on my behalf. Naturally, I didn't want to dampen her spirits. "Exactly."Willow looked a little sad. "I really wish I could talk to people so I could yell back at them for you!""Then you'll have to work hard, Willow," I said, playing along with her.She looked up at me, her expression serious.I pretended to look troubled. "Life is so long. There's bound to be more people pointing fingers at me in the future. I really hope you can stand up for me, Willow.""Mommy, I promise I won't let you down!" Willow exclaimed earnestly."Really?"
"Before or after your marriage, we all know that Luna's the only woman in your heart," Spencer said.Shayne couldn't make sense of it either. Why was it that now his dream had come true, he felt no joy? Instead, he felt empty, as if he had lost someone important.Shayne opened his wardrobe to find his suits all wrinkled.When Aralyn was around, the clothes were always ironed flawlessly. They looked brand-new all the time.He pushed open the bedroom door and walked into the living room. Luna was watching TV. When she noticed him, she moved closer and pouted. "The housekeeper took the day off, so no one made dinner. I had no choice but to order takeout."It was at that moment Shayne realized that it had been a long time since he'd eaten takeout.Back when he was with Aralyn, during the early days of his startup, he was too busy to cook and relied on takeout every day.Aralyn, pregnant at the time, had told him that takeout food wasn't healthy. Hence, she would cook at home and p
"She said she has no idea what's going on either," he said icily.I felt a bit heavy-hearted as well. Willow was being ostracized at kindergarten, and they had no clue why.After thinking for a moment, I said, "Then let's start with her classmates. If they're the ones isolating Willow, they must know the reason."Julian looked at me. "Alright.""I used to think we shouldn't rush Willow into getting better. I thought we could take it slow…"Looking into Julian's eyes, I hesitated before continuing, "But the things that have happened recently have changed my perspective. I think our most important task right now is to help her learn how to communicate with others. What do you think?"Julian nodded. "I think so too.""But she tried; she just can't seem to talk to strangers. I think there's a greater chance she'll open up if it's someone she likes," I analyzed."Is there anyone else at home she particularly likes?"Julian, who had raised Willow himself, naturally knew her preferen
"Lyn, I think life as it is right now is pretty good."…In the morning, I once again woke Willow up ten minutes earlier than usual. Clearly well-rested, Willow looked energetic and excited as she opened the door. "I've been looking forward to this moment for so long!" she exclaimed.She then ran to Julian's door and raised her hand to knock on it. "Daddy, time to get up and go running with us!"Julian opened the door, chuckling as he picked her up. "Alright."Willow wrapped her arms around his neck, giggling mischievously. The morning run was just as intense as last night's.Willow started off enthusiastically, but by the end of the run, her smile had completely disappeared. She dragged herself back into the living room and plopped down, looking completely drained.I watched her expressions change throughout and couldn't help but laugh.Willow waved me over. "Mommy."I sat down next to her.She gripped my hand and psyched herself up, "Running isn't tiring. I can do this!
I remained silent."Let's go," Julian uttered calmly.…Upon arriving at the company, I wasn't in the best mood. As soon as I reached my cubicle, I turned on my computer and buried myself in drawing.By the time I finished the final line art, my mood had improved somewhat. I continued by coloring the sketches.…Julian sat in the conference room, checking the analytics for Aralyn on various platforms.She was diligent and meticulous in her artwork. Even though her story focused on warm, everyday slice-of-life themes, the daily mini-stories had started to draw in readers, even without any promotion.Some were already leaving comments, eagerly asking for more updates.Julian tapped the table with his fingers before taking out his phone and messaging Mark. "You can start planning a promotion strategy for Aralyn's comic.""Mr. Hughes."Avery knocked on the door. Without waiting for a response, she pushed it open and walked straight to him. Sitting down across from him, she said,
When said this, her chin was raised, and her tone was especially arrogant. It was as if she had made an incredibly wise and correct decision.However, Amber only found her very foolish. Neglecting her biological grandson to focus on an unborn child… Was there something wrong with her brain?Even so, Amber didn't plan to point this out to Charlotte. Instead, she said, "I think there's something wrong with your attitude toward your son…"Charlotte asked, puzzled, "What's wrong with it?""Well, if you truly love your son, shouldn't you also treat your daughter-in-law well?" Amber asked, confused. "After all, when you love someone, you naturally care about the people they love…"Charlotte waved her hand dismissively. "I just don't like Aralyn, that's all. Now that I have a new daughter-in-law, can't you see that I treasure her?""You can't bully her even if you dislike her," replied Amber."Since we seem to disagree on this, why don't we post this online and let others decide who'
Amber sat on the living room couch. She was surrounded by her close friends.She held a cup of tea, sipping it slowly."I've already told you all about what Charlotte did a few days ago. You all need to help me come up with good ideas to get back at her. Otherwise, I'll feel awful if I keep holding this grudge!""Don't worry," Zoey Wadsworth quickly replied. "You don't have to do anything later—just sit back and watch us put on a show. When we post what she did online, plenty of people will criticize her. We won't have to worry about it at all."Amber raised a brow and asked excitedly, "Really?""Of course!" Zoey assured her seriously.As soon as she finished speaking, there was a knock on the door.Amber finally let out a sigh of relief. She looked at the food and said with a smile, "Then I can rest easy. Look, she's here."Zoey stood up to open the door.Charlotte stepped inside. She was momentarily stunned the instant she saw Zoey. She then approached Amber with a smile and
Julian smiled as he explained, "Before Shayne arrived just now, the water I poured was still hot at the time. It should be just the right temperature now."I was a little surprised. Julian could be this thoughtful? I took a small sip. The temperature was just right.Julian sat down beside me.I leaned on his shoulder. It was strange, He had done so many things for me in the past. However, this time, he made me feel like my always unsettled heart had finally found a place to rest.I was so moved that I couldn't put it into words. "What did I do to meet such a good boyfriend like you?"The better Julian was to me, the more unbearable it made the days I spent with Shayne seem. This was because if Shayne did the same thing…Oh. To be more exact, Shayne would never do the same thing because he never bothered to do anything for me.I recalled one time when I was sick and thirsty, I asked him to pour me some water. He poured a cup of boiling hot water and gave it to me. I complaine
As Julian's subordinate who followed Julian almost the entire way, he knew about Julian's capabilities clearly. In terms of work, he was unparalleled. No matter how difficult the problem was, Julian would always be the first to think of a solution.Mark admired Julian very much. He also always wondered what kind of woman Julian would like.Did he like pretty women, women with a good personality, or…However, he never thought that Julian would like a divorced woman who had a child. Therefore, when Julian first brought Aralyn to the company, he was somewhat dissatisfied with her. He didn't think she was worthy of Julian.But as he interacted with her more often, he suddenly realized that she seemed to be even better than he had imagined.She was very emotionally stable, and her mind wasn't clouded by nonsensical thoughts. She was also always firm. Most importantly, her problem-solving ability was also on par with Julian's. Moreover, she was very gentle yet powerful.Mark now vaguel
Lucas even said that Joseph was now an adult and could take responsibility for his own choices. Hence, from now on, whatever Joseph did would have nothing to do with Lucas. The latter would not interfere.After I read the public statement, my only feeling about this was that Lucas was deeply hurt this time. He had probably given up on Joseph.After Alice read the statement, she grinned from ear to ear. "He was abandoned by his biological father. His future is going to be miserable!""There's no need to wait," Mark said quietly. He then added, "Ever since he was kicked out of the house by his father, his days haven't been too good. Stella, who initially said that she loved him and was pregnant, suddenly broke up with him after he lost the Wilson family's backing. She even told him the pregnancy was fake and that she had been lying to him."Joseph didn't believe her. He grabbed her shoulders and said she had told him she loved him. Stella slapped his hands away in disgust and said
"Mr. Wilson's company was already having major financial problems. They almost went under. It was Mr. York and Mr. Hughes who returned all the money he had previously advanced to them. Only then did he get the chance to cover the current lack of funds," said Mark.He continued, "However, he didn't manage to hold on to the money for long as his precious son had borrowed more funds than he currently had on hand! If he really covered Joseph's debts, the family might actually go bankrupt."These events had just happened recently. Once Mark learned about it, he couldn't wait to share it with someone. Luckily for him, he found people to share it with.Alice asked in disbelief, "How is it possible for such a useless son to exist?"She had always thought she spent too much money herself and wasn't much help to her parents. That was already bad enough in her eyes. However, Joseph's actions blew her mind.Looking at herself in comparison, she thought she was pretty great. Mark sighed. "Ye
Alice added, "Think about it. Joseph used to be the center of attention in our social circle. Now, look at him. Not a penny to his name. Guess he won't be acting so high and mighty anymore!" I reminded Alice not to celebrate too soon. "He might still be smug for a little while.""Why?" Alice asked, confused.I explained patiently, "Think about it. Joseph is still Mr. Wilson's most beloved son. Even if he publicly announced he wouldn't help pay off Joseph's debts, people will think it's just talk and that he still dotes on Joseph. "So, to curry favor with Mr. Wilson, some people will secretly try to butter up Joseph by giving him money to spend. They want Lucas to always remember them by using this method. So, when Mr. Wilson and Joseph have reconciled, Mr. Wilson will repay the favor with more business opportunities."Alice looked disgusted after hearing this. "No way. Is that really necessary?""For us, it doesn't seem necessary," I said with a smile. "But for others, it's pro
I spoke slowly, "But when it comes to buying expensive luxury items and jewelry for Luna, you never said anything."Shayne clenched his fists. He wanted to retort but sadly discovered that everything Aralyn said seemed to make sense."They say that a man's money is where his love is. I think you still love Luna."Shayne stared at me and asked, "However, didn't I treat you well when we were together?"I thought carefully before answering, "Before dating Julian, I didn't know what was good or bad. I just thought that with you treating me this way, perhaps I might find someone worse if I went out looking. So, no matter how you hurt me, I endured it."Later, after I started officially dating Julian, I learned that when a man loves a woman, he would put all his heart into treating her well. He wouldn't be like you, using being a straight man as an excuse to avoid romantic gifts and dates. He would also pay attention to all the little details in life too."I stared at Shayne as I conti
Shayne stared at me. He clearly didn't believe my answer.I said nonchalantly, "No matter what happens in the future, I'm already quite content with my life now. The money I earn every month is an amount I would never have dared to imagine in the past. Even if I were greedy and wanted more, what would be the point?"Shayne was stunned, clearly not expecting Aralyn to be so easily satisfied. Was it like this when he was together with Aralyn in the past? Would she have stayed by his side and spent her days with him as long as he gave her even the smallest bit of affection?This thought sent a sharp pain through his heart.It was only at that moment that Shayne finally realized what he had lost and missed—a woman who genuinely liked him and loved him.This love was very pure, with almost no impurities. He quickly explained, "But in the beginning, Luna wasn't like you. However, later on, she suddenly became better than you." "I expected that a long time ago." I understood that he