Thaddeus’s daughter’s cheerful giggles swept away all his frustrations and annoyances. He had never felt better. Lifting his arms up high, Thaddeus hurled Millie into the air. “Are you happy, my precious daughter?” Millie chuckled and replied, “I am! I am!” The smile on Millie’s face drove Thaddeus to work harder to make her happy while ignoring the throbbing pain coming from his injured arm. The laughter and chatter of the father and daughter echoed through the stairs, waking Mona and Bobby up. Mona rubbed her eyes as she lay in bed and monitored to frolic downstairs, suddenly realizing what a comfortable environment it was to be in. It seemed as though she woke up on the right side of the bed. She sat up and stretched, feeling refreshed in the morning. Mona got out of bed, put on her fluffy slippers, and went to wash up. After a change of clothes, she made her way to the stairs and stood by the staircase as she picked up on the conversation between the father and daugh
“We’ve got to play good cop and bad cop. Otherwise, it will be hard on the child.” Mona was in a daze as Thaddeus had a point. She had jumped the gun. “Don’t cry, Millie. Come on. Let me hold you.” Thaddeus lowered his head and looked tenderly at Millie. He lovingly caressed her eyes and spoke with love and patience. “My bum hurts.” Millie jumped into Thaddeus’s arms and whined while rubbing her snot and tears on Thaddeus. Thaddeus took the bad with the good, laying aside that he had a thing against germs. Mona was moved to witness the deep bond between the father and daughter. There was a certain appeal to the man when he was earnest and patient. She looked away and proceeded to get breakfast when her gaze fell on the man’s arm. Mona was startled by the blot of red spreading across the sleeve of his shirt. “Your arm is bleeding.” It was then Thaddeus turned his attention to his injury. He took a fleeting glance. “It’s fine. It won’t kill me.” “Why aren’t you more c
The teachers were waiting in the faculty office when Mona and Thaddeus dropped the kids off at school on Monday morning. The principal had given out an order on Sunday to settle the fight between Jim and Millie once and for all. The instruction overtly and covertly put pressure on the homeroom teacher to expel Millie from school. Since it was a direct order from above, the teacher had no choice but to comply. Besides, Millie struck the boy so hard that the boy needed medical attention. There had to be consequences for the committed offense. Mona and Thaddeus stepped into the office one after the other, and the teachers in the room lifted their heads to turn toward the imposing presence. Their attention was instantly drawn to the beautiful couple. Thaddeus was of a lanky build, and his sharp suit gave prominence to his lofty height. Next to him, Mona was petite, and her translucent skin was clear and glowing. Like the main characters in a soap opera, they made a grand entrance.
Thrown into a tizzy, the homeroom teacher urged, “Um… Take it easy, Millie’s mom. There’s no need to go to court over a trivial matter.” “That’s right. Why is Millie getting expelled if it’s only a trivial matter?” Mona snapped back. There was no way she was going to put up with it now that the school had tried patience. “I’ll tell you what. Let me give my superior a call for advice.” Caught between a rock and a hard place, the homeroom teacher took her phone and went out of the faulty office to make a phone call to her superior. Thaddeus gave Mona’s hand a tug to gesture to her to sit down. “Why throw a fit? There’s no need for that,” The man spoke nonchalantly as if nothing was wrong. Mona drew a deep breath. “I’m livid. They’re just looking for any kind of excuse to pin the blame on Millie. The offense might be nothing to her now, but it would show on her permanent record that she was expelled due to fighting when she reaches adolescence. What do we do then?” “That won
Mona looked at the dashing man keeping to himself before glancing at the members of the school board, who seemed to be here for a routine inspection. She got her head around that Thaddeus must have summoned these two men here. Thaddeus and the two men exchanged pleasantries and had a quick chat about what had happened between the two children without any embellishment. The factual account provided an insight into whose favor the scales were tipped on. The members of the school board determined that the principal had abused his authority, but they were not in the position to say it out loud as there was a protocol they had to go through instead of jumping to conclusions. The other party should be here as well, so both parties could have a sit-down. Hence, Jim’s parents soon arrived at the faculty office. Jim’s dad was a businessman. As an uncompromising and decisive man, he started to accuse the teacher of wasting his time the moment he stepped into the office. It was supposed
Things had been going well for the Marshalls in the last few years as the family was coming strong to find a place second only to the four influential families. One of the four influential families – the Yandells had openly shown support to the Marshalls. Arguably, the Marshall family had been the underdog in the business world. Thaddeus fell into contemplation. In other words, the Marshalls were pulling rank thanks to the Yandells’ authority, and the Marshall family’s lapdog had the gall to pick on her daughter. At the end of the day, it was an exploit of another family’s power.Thaddeus callously curled his lips. He had an unsettled grudge against the Yandells, and now their lapdog was out to get his daughter. With a smirk, Thaddeus waved his arm at the member of the school board before stepping out to make another phone call. His connections should come in handy to sort this issue out. The conflict between the two children now involved a power struggle among a few families
By the time Mona was back from walking Millie to her class, both parties were stuck in a standoff, and no one was willing to budge. Exuding confidence, Thaddeus sat opposite Jim’s parents. While he remained discreet about his status, Thaddeus conducted himself as someone in power. Thaddeus had been keeping a low profile lately, not appearing in business magazines or financial news. He had been turning down social events around the elite circle because of the kids. Jim’s parents rarely had access to higher society, so they did not recognize who Thaddeus was. Sitting across from Thaddeus, the couple looked away from the aloof man and exchanged glances. They were left wondering about Thaddeus’s identity. While Jim’s parents stood their ground, they were actually refraining from making any reckless decision. Standing at the door of the faculty office, Mona could feel the tension at its peak. Although she believed everything was blown out of proportion, there was no need to drag in
Mona was a little exasperated. She really did not understand. It was just a small matter between children. Why was there a need to make it a big deal? There was no need to bring their family’s background into the matter. It seemed Mona’s thinking of this society was too simple.What was complicated was people’s thoughts, not the matter itself.In the end, she said in annoyance, “Our family matters are usually decided by the children’s father. If you want to persuade someone, you should talk to my husband. There’s no point trying to persuade me.”She said those words with a smile, and her tone was kind and soft. Coupled with her stunning and beautiful face, it was a smile that could not help but make people dazed. It was just like the spring breeze of March brushing across one’s face, wrapped with the fragrance of fresh flowers. It was enough to soothe a person’s mood.Thaddeus, who was sitting by the side, naturally did not miss the beautiful picture. His eyes never left his woman’