In the past few days, Jojo had called Isabella the day after their disagreement, asking if she wanted to hang out with him. Isabella had declined, just as she had done before. After that, they did not contact each other for several days. On her side, Isabella had found several other playmates with Nick and had a great time with them. So much so that when it was time to leave, she felt a bit reluctant."Isaiah..." Isabella looked at her departing playmates, her round eyes filled with hope. "Can I stay with Auntie Riley for a few more days?"Isaiah did not try to persuade her and simply asked, "Don't you want to be with your friends at home?""I do!" Isabella answered without hesitation."Then let's go home," Isaiah said, holding her hand. He had already packed her stuff. With a reluctant farewell to her newfound friends, Isabella left. She fell asleep in the car, tired from an afternoon of play. Isaiah adjusted her child seat to make her more comfortable.When they arrived home
Isabella looked pitiful, and the more she thought about it, the sadder she became. "I can't think of a reason."Isaiah wanted to refuse, but he relented when he saw Isabella's eyes turning red as she tried to look cute and cry. "Okay, I'll help you. Go to bed and cover yourself with a blanket. I'll wake you up in the morning.""Okay! Thank you, Isaiah!" Isabella happily agreed.After saying that, she obediently went back to her room. When she closed the door, she waved to Isaiah with a smile.Isaiah waited until he was sure she was asleep, then closed his own door. After consideration, he sent a message to Jojo.[Isaiah: We're back home. Do you want to go to the aquarium together tomorrow?]Jojo replied almost instantly, [No.] Once he saw the response, Isaiah called Jojo. To be honest, he did not want to see Isabella so preoccupied with another boy. However, he could not bear seeing her crying, even if he knew she might be acting."What's up?" Jojo answered the phone, sounding
Isaiah, who had come out with Isabella, was surprised.Was she not the one who said not to look for Jojo? Now she was running to him so quickly."Jojo, why did you come so early? Did you come to find me?" Isabella's eyes sparkled."Mm," Jojo replied flatly, clearly not sure how to talk to Isabella. Then, he handed over the small cake, adding, "This is a small cake my mommy and I made together. It's an apology gift for you. I shouldn't have pressured you to come back.""You're forgiven," Isabella chirped as she accepted the cake. She then pulled Jojo inside to have breakfast together.After breakfast, Isabella's attention shifted to the cake. She simply could not resist desserts, especially when Jojo had made it for her. "Jojo, this cake is so delicious!""Do you like it?" Jojo asked."Mmhmm!" Isabella nodded enthusiastically. "Next time you come to my house, I'll make a big one for you." Jojo felt relieved to see her enjoying it.Isabella nodded excitedly. "Okay."The two ki
Isabella took a bite of the cake, her flawless, rosy cheeks glowing with innocence. "I know! Mommy was the bride, and Daddy was the groom when they married.""Correct," Isaiah affirmed."When I grow up, I want to marry Jojo!"Isaiah was surprised. "No, wait… Jojo will marry me… Jojo will marry into our family," Isabella corrected herself."You're only four years old," Isaiah recorded as he continued the conversation."I know, so I'm playing house with Jojo later. When I grow up, I'll have Mommy and Daddy go to Jojo's house with me to propose and bring Jojo home," Isabella said seriously.Isaiah wisely refrained from commenting.When Isabella and Jojo played house in the afternoon, he did not intervene. Instead, he chose to act as the videographer. Despite his young age, his skills were impressive, and what should have been a simple game of house felt like a big-screen production when he captured it.After the game, Isabella introduced Jojo to some nearby friends, casually men
"What should we do?" Isabella placed particular importance on birthdays, her beautiful eyes showing a hint of unhappiness. "I would have rushed back to celebrate Jojo's birthday if I had known that day was his birthday."Forget about Nick and other playmates; Jojo's birthday was the most important."We can make it up to Jojo another time. We can celebrate next year," Isaiah, who did not particularly care about birthdays, responded casually."It's not the same. Next year, Jojo will be six. This year, he turned five." Isabella felt increasingly guilty the more she thought about it and began to pout, turning to Isaiah. "Can you come with me, please?"Isaiah watched her, his lips pressed together.Isabella continued to pout and pleaded, "Isaiah...""Mommy and Daddy are coming back in two days. Daddy assigned you some tasks you haven't finished yet. If you go to play with Jojo and Daddy finds out, you'll be in trouble," Isaiah kindly reminded her.Isabella hesitated. While Matthew wa
"What is it?" Cynthia asked patiently, always gentle with her child."I met a little boy, Jojo. Mommy, he's super nice. He can cook and bake cakes, and he's really amazing." Isabella's eyes sparkled with excitement."Is that so?" Matthew chimed in.Isabella, without a hint of suspicion, nodded happily. "Mmhmm!""So, will he help you bear the punishment later?" Matthew had already guessed that she had not finished her assignments.Isabella exclaimed, "Daddy!"Why was Matthew so mean?Isabella promptly sought refuge in Cynthia's embrace, but Matthew gently took her back. "If your homework isn't done, even Mommy can't save you.""Mommy!" Isabella tried to pull Cynthia back.Cynthia held Isabella in her arms again. "Don't scare her."Matthew smiled. His gaze hinted at Cynthia as he moved closer to her, his warm breath brushing against her ear as he spoke in a low voice, "You can't spoil her. Are you willing to take her punishment this time?"The word 'punishment' was deliberatel
Isaiah had supervised Isabella's homework diligently every day, but as he saw how she enjoyed playing with her new friends, he allowed her some leeway. After all, it was rare for her to be so enthusiastic about someone she wanted to play with every day."If you don't punish Isabella, I'll sleep by myself from now on. I won't disturb you anymore," Isaiah proposed, laying out his conditions.Matthew glanced at Isaiah. Was he admitting that he had done it on purpose before?Seeing Matthew's silence, Isaiah asked, "What do you think?""Go stand in the corner over there and think about your mistakes for three hours," Matthew responded firmly. When it came to matters of discipline, he would not entertain negotiations. "You can go out to play once you've completed your homework."Isaiah was surprised that Matthew would not agree to his offer."Why are you not moving? Do you want to double the punishment?" Matthew's tone rose slightly, displaying his firmness.The twins went to face t
"Are you thirsty?" Isabella dared not sneak away, so she had to find an excuse. "I'll go get you a glass of water.""No need." Matthew knew exactly what she was up to."Oh," Isabella replied and stood still.Time passed by slowly, and Isabella still did not dare to move. Thinking he had punished her enough, Matthew began asking her about Jojo."Uncle Kendrick told me that you and Jojo played house and even had a wedding?" Matthew inquired."No! Uncle Kendrick is making things up," Isabella quickly denied it, sounding a bit timid. "Do you still want to skip your homework to play?""No.""What if you misbehave again?""I won't be allowed to play with Jojo."With that, Matthew decided to let her be, instructing her to complete her unfinished homework."Okay!" Isabella said and obediently went to catch up on her homework.For the remaining days of the holiday, Isabella immersed herself in her studies. She subtly declined Jojo's invitations to play whenever he asked. Before th