Chapter 77

I just smiled. "In my next life, I'll be born as their daughter. Then we can actually be real siblings."

Wayne's smile wavered, but he quickly nodded toward the gnocchi. "Eat a little more. You've been losing weight."

"Okay," I replied, digging into the gnocchi in front of me.

Wayne kept watching me the whole time. I finally had to stop when I was too full, so I sipped on some soup instead.

"Jace still cares about you," Wayne said, trying to sound casual. "He even made cucumber soup for you, pretending it was from my mom."

I forced a small smile. "Better late than never... but barely."

The sore inside my mouth made eating a struggle, so I packed up the leftover gnocchi and soup. "Thanks for coming, Wayne. Let your parents know I'll visit them once this project's wrapped up."

I gestured around the amusement park. "We're supposed to finish in less than a month, but the lighting hasn't even been tested yet. It's insane."

"Jace mentioned it, but don't forget to take care of yoursel