"I used to be like that too," Justin said, "but with time, I realized that we live on this earth to enjoy every day, every minute and every second of the entire process. No one grows up in one minute, gets married in the second minute, and dies in the third. The endpoint might be important, but it only comes around from the accumulation of many little, ordinary things in life. Only when there are lows will we appreciate the highs. Only when we're sad will we appreciate happy times. It is only in the ordinary that we can see the extraordinary."I wondered if I should feel a complicated piece by myself, understanding the ups and downs of its story, or if I should listen to others. I eventually chose the former. Many things in life aren't black and white and you'll have to look at the whole picture to understand its complexity instead of just hearing a superficial summary."I subsequently began enjoying watching a movie, a drama series, or a novel without being affected by other people'
The topic of impending separation felt rather heavy and neither of them wanted to continue."Let me peel an apple for you." Rosalie picked an apple from the basket and peeled it with a knife.They remained silent, not saying a word for a long time."Rose, how is Theodore?""Some things happened recently and he wanted some time alone. He said he'll be back soon.""What happened?"Rosalie told Justin about it.Justin's brows furrowed. "Turns out that they are siblings. That's unfortunate for Theodore. Not only does he have a madman for a younger brother, but he also has an older brother who wants to kill him.""Yeah. We don't know what to do about it. After he returns, I want to have a good chat with him. Even if I can't help him with much, I can offer some words of consolation.""Do you still live with him now?" Justin asked.Rosalie nodded. "Yeah, I'm staying with him now and taking care of Steve with him. I feel like Steve has been quite happy recently, perhaps because both
Rosalie felt rather distracted after leaving the hospital.For some reason, she felt very disappointed.She knew how to stop herself from feeling disappointed, but she didn't dare to do it. She didn't know how the future would unfold.Rosalie suddenly wanted to get some fresh air alone, so instead of driving, she walked along the roadside. Somehow, she ended up on another street, far away from where she parked her car. The street was very crowded and lively, packed with many restaurants.Feeling rather hungry, Rosalie walked into a buffet restaurant along the street.There was a sign hung up on the door, with the words, 'If this is your first time in this city and you face some difficulties with no money to your name, come in and order set number #0 for free.'This was an ordinary buffet restaurant, with dishes displayed that diners could help themselves to. There was a good variety of dishes which looked ordinary but delicious. The food looked and smelled so good, it whetted R
Their raised voices were piercing to Rosalie's ears. The customer was nasty with her words, and the boss retaliated."Come, everyone! Come and see how terrible this boss is, bullying her customer!" the customer snarled scornfully, her disheveled hair blowing in the wind.Some people hadn't fully grasped the situation yet and turned around to look on curiously, thinking that the boss was truly guilty of bullying her customer."Before commenting on other people, you should take a good look at yourself and see how terrible you are! You come here every day, insulting and slandering others. Who else should I scold other than you? You're always coming here and calling my food disgusting trash. You even insulted the chef! Since you don't like it, why do you still come day after day? Are you asking for trouble? You're so foul-mouthed, do you really think you're some dainty fairy?" the boss refuted."Just look, everyone! The boss is bullying and scolding her customer again! She doesn't want
"But I'd like to take this chance to thank everyone for not believing her words. You have every right to dislike our food, and you can even tell me that my dishes are too salty, too oily, too spicy, or simply yucky. It's fine if you don't like it and I can accept constructive feedback. "But that woman was so foul-mouthed, slandering and verbally abusing me and my chef while inciting others to do the same. That's not something a normal person does. She's behaving like a mad dog barking indiscriminately.""Well said!"The customers applauded her. They could tell that she was a straightforward person who wouldn't offend others unless others offended her first. If anyone dared to offend her, she wouldn't let it rest.Rosalie didn't expect such excitement while having lunch, and was thoroughly entertained.As it turns out, most of the customers were reasonable, and only a minority were incited by the lady.The customers had originally thought that the boss was the one scolding the cu
At night, Theodore came back looking disheveled and not in good shape.Rosalie immediately welcomed him home with Steve in her arms. "Theo, where were you?""I've been staying in a hotel these days.""Theo, Steve's your son and that's a fact no one can change.""Dada," Steve said as he stretched his arms toward Theodore, demanding a hug.Rosalie put Steve in Theodore's arms. "Carry him. He misses you and has been asking for you these few days."Theodore's heart melted as he carried Steve in his arms. He felt so fortunate to come home to his child and Rosalie and yearned for nothing more.However, the past continued haunting him, disturbing his peace and becoming a hurdle he could not cross."Did Sebastian give him his name?"Rosalie was stunned for a moment before admitting honestly, "Yes. I didn't know his true colors then. At that time, he was always by my side, helping me out."She added, "If you don't like this name, give the child another name. He doesn't need to be call
Rosalie scrolled through the videos mindlessly and started feeling drowsy. She was about to doze off when she scrolled to a livestream session. The host looked rather familiar. Wasn't this the author who wrote that novel? It was all thanks to her that Angie was caught. Why was she on a livestream?She looked like a natural onscreen.Many people were tuning in. The author was interacting non-stop with her readers, even leisurely reading through nasty comments left by detractors and responding to them.One of the comments read, [The disgusting characters are a reflection of how disgusting the author is. She herself must be promiscuous to be able to write of such a promiscuous character.]The author responded, "If I wrote a character with a high IQ, does that make me have a high IQ, too? In that case, I'll write about a character with an IQ of 190 in my next book. But that's not right. I've written so many books with so many characters in them, even criminals. You should call the co
Half a month flew by.Many things happened during that period, but everything was progressing smoothly.Justin, Sydney, and Wesley were all discharged. Rosalie was slowly adapting to work life. Theodore had seemingly returned to normal, busy with what he was supposed to do. He no longer looked despondent, but he avoided Sydney whenever she looked him up.There was still a barrier erected between the mother and son.Sebastian had fled and no one knew where he was right now.Rosalie was taking a break from work over the weekends and sat in front of her laptop, brainstorming for her book.Before this, she had consulted the author.The author shared her own experiences genuinely.She wanted to write about complicated financial knowledge only a select few would be interested in, but if she wanted to appeal to the masses, she had to make complicated jargon easy to understand, so much so that even an uneducated vegetable grocer could get it. She wanted to avoid fancy terminologies,
Theodore wrapped all of them up in his long arms.Under the golden sunshine, the family of four was wrapped up in each other's embraces. Sunlight shone on them, encasing them in a warm, golden glow. Everything felt calm and peaceful. The children snuggled in their parents' arms, innocent smiles lighting up their faces. They could feel the warmth of the sunshine as they found the safest and warmest haven in the entire world in their arms.In the evening sun and gentle breeze, they finally found happiness in each other's embrace.-In the deep of the night, Rosalie had a dream.Both Justin and Grandma came to her in her dream.Grandma and Justin were playing cards, surrounded by beautiful birds and flowers. They seemed to be in heaven, having the time of their lives with a look of tender love in their eyes.Grandma was very happy that she had reconciled with Theodore.Justin told Rosalie, "Rose, I'm so happy to see you happy.""Justin, do you hate me?""Silly girl, why would
Theodore made Rosalie feel like love was possible once more, and gradually opened her up.Love was ever-changing with time and the experiences they went through.Rosalie missed Justin dearly, but she also learned to treasure the people around her and every present moment of happiness. She learned how to accept the past and treasure the present amidst all her relationships.Justin would be her one and only in her heart, but Theodore also found his place in her heart amidst the unique position Justin was in.This was how their affections and love for each other grew and changed with time.Justin was dead, and Rosalie couldn't keep living in the past. She would carefully preserve her love for Justin in a corner of her heart.She would spend the rest of her life loving Theodore and their children."Chelsea," Rosalie said as she pulled Chelsea over. "Your daddy loves you very much, but he didn't get to see you come into this world. But you must remember his name. He is Justin Lynch."
Theodore and Rosalie brought both children to Justin's tomb.Before they left, Rosalie said that she and Chelsea wanted to spend some time alone with Justin.Theodore brought Jake to the car to wait for them.Golden sunlight shone on the land, feeling warm and toasty and giving the earth a beautiful glow.Rosalie caressed the tombstone. "Justin, I'm sorry for not coming to visit for such a long time."The last time she came back was a few months ago, during which she snuck a peak at his tombstone.Rosalie pulled out a bone fragment. "That's because you're always by my side, which is why I think that I can bring you everywhere I go. You're not just here at this tombstone."Justin, Theo and I have reconciled. He did so much for me, even sacrificing his own life for me. I can't just stand idly by and do nothing about it. I can't bring myself to reject him ruthlessly again and again."You can say that I'm moved, or that I fell in love with him once more. He's just too good, and I c
Jake had so much fun today and was exhausted by the time he reached home. After his shower, he crawled into bed and fell right asleep without any coaxing whatsoever. Jake would sometimes sleep in the bedroom with Chelsea, and sometimes they slept separately.At night, when Rosalie went to Chelsea's room to tuck her in and tell her a bedtime story, she asked, "Chelsea, how was your day with Theodore?""Hmm, it was alright," Chelsea said. "But Mr. Spencer was so silly, he burnt the food. I only got to eat lunch very late.""Is that so?" Rosalie burst out laughing. "How silly of him indeed.""But Mr. Spencer is quite nice," Chelsea said. "I like him. He said that I can call him Daddy."Rosalie's eyes lit up. "Do you want to call him that?""I do," Chelsea said with a nod, "but I'll do that tomorrow."Chelsea yawned. She felt tired, too.Rosalie caressed her cheek. "Goodnight, my darling. Go to sleep."-Rosalie returned to her room, took a shower, and laid on the bed. Theodo
Their parent-child bonding efforts officially began the next day.Rosalie brought Jake to the theme park. In the beginning, Jake felt rather stiff and reserved. It was his first time alone with his mom, after all.As time went by, Rosalie's earnestness, concern, and gentle patience with him slowly opened him up.They sat on the carousel, drove the bumper cars, rode on the Viking ship, zoomed down slides, bounced on the trampolines, and sailed on mini-boats. They had a whale of a time.Jake was covered with sweat, but he was so happy, he didn't want the day to end.He had grown closer to his mom, so much so that he would jump into her arms, hugging her and asking for kisses.Rosalie did not hold back from expressing her love for him and even carried him on her back as they continued exploring the park.Jake was very obedient and came down very soon, for fear that Rosalie might get tired. They moved on to the next attraction hand-in-hand.Rosalie found out one thing from Jake, wh
Some time later, Rosalie realized that Jake was being rather sullen.Each time she asked him whether something was wrong, he would brush her away, claiming that he was fine before running off.It was a Saturday, and Rosalie didn't need to go to work. She was seated on the couch with a book when Chelsea ran over, her braids swaying behind her. "Mommy, can you give me a hug?"How could Rosalie say no to her adorable little daughter? She shut the book and said, "But of course. Come on over."Rosalie opened her arms, very willing to show Chelsea affection.Chelsea crawled up onto the couch happily, sitting on Rosalie's lap and diving into her embrace.Jake happened to see it all.Rosalie noticed Jake standing a short distance away and was about to say something to him when he ran off.The smile on Rosalie's face faded as a look of worry took over.At night, Rosalie put Chelsea under Theodore's care and went to Jake, wanting to speak to him alone."Jake, what's with you recently
A gentle breeze lifted the curtains slightly in the deep of the night.Rosalie laid in Theodore's embrace, panting slightly. Her cheek leaned against his chest, feeling his heart pounding heavily, and her cheeks flushed.She never expected this day to come between her and Theodore, yet everything happened in a flash. He went to bed with her just like that, bewitched and completely infatuated with her.Although they were once husband and wife and had been intimate countless times, this felt different from the last. Things felt more intense this time around."Rose, are you happy?"Although Theodore's liver had been doing well over the last three months of recuperation, he was still worried that his fitness level might be affected before his liver was fully recovered.Rosalie gave him a slight smile. "Of course, I am. You almost crushed me."Her face flushed the moment she spoke those words. She hugged Theodore tight, feeling safe and secure.She could sense that he was telling th
"Theo, have you had a woman over the past five years?" Rosalie asked very frankly.They weren't naive young men and women but mature adults with experience in this matter.Theodore was a red-blooded young man who had his needs. Suppressing his desires, which were absolutely normal, would only jeopardize his health.Theodore was getting angry. "Am I someone like that to you, going to bed with a woman I don't love just to satisfy my physical needs?""Aren't men all like that?" Rosalie said. She didn't mean it in a scornful way but simply highlighted it as a typical observation.Lonely men and women in the city were bound to seek companionship in some places and part ways after the night.Someone as powerful and influential as Theodore wouldn't even need to go searching for someone else. Women flocked toward him like bees to honey."Why can't I be an exception?" He was in no state whatsoever to find another woman over the past five years and would always deal with his sexual desire
Time flew by, and three months later, Rosalie was fully recovered and back at work.Her colleagues welcomed her back with a bash.Everything seemed to have returned to normal.To keep Jake company, Rosalie would go back to Theodore's house every day after work. She was practically living there.Rosalie and Jake's relationship had improved over time, and they were looking more and more like they were truly mother and son.Everything was going well.At night, the four of them sat around the dining table and chatted happily with each other.After dinner, Rosalie and Theodore sat in the living room chatting. She suddenly noticed a book on the table. It looked so familiar that it caught her eye.It was the book she had written. Over the past five years, not only was she busy learning and working, but she also managed to write the book she had conceptualized and even gotten it published. However, this book was only available in Briusian and not exported to Blencalgo.Rosalie's book