Once they finished with the spinach, Zack and Janet went out to the garden with Jenny. The place was piled with snow at this point, forming quite the snowy wonderland."Jenny," Alec murmured longingly when he spotted the trio playing in the snow next door. He stood right beside the fence in his own garden.Jenny went up to him. "You guys finished preparing lunch yet?""Mhm. The butler's making it." A two-person meal didn't need much lavishness or grandeur.Alec only wished Jenny could join them for lunch.Recalling it would only be Alec and Old Mr. Faust eating together, Jenny suddenly pitied them. "You didn't invite Mortimer and Alfred for lunch?"She knew Alec would loathe seeing them right now, but it was New Year's, the time for family to reunite and spend time together."Them?" Alec scowled. "Why should I? We're not family.""Alright then." "What about you? I'm guessing Gilbert's cooking in the kitchen?" Jenny nodded, feeling embarrassed. "Yeah. Zack and I don't know h
Jenny was about to say something else but ultimately kept silent since Janet was there. "Be smart, then."After Jenny left, Zack huffed and pursed his lips, feeling conflicted."I'm sorry, Zack," Janet said softly.She knew things only devolved to this because of her, though Zack never said anything of the sort out loud. Janet guessed that Zack's siblings knew of her past too.After falling in love with Zack and his personality, she felt guilty for subjecting him to that sort of response from his family. If only she hadn't had such a complicated past, things wouldn't be so tense today."Don't be sorry. It's not your fault." Zack had done his homework on Janet, too, and confronted her about everything.Yes, it was morally incorrect, but Zack didn't blame her. Who wouldn't want to live a worry-free life?Now Janet really felt ashamed. "It is," she mumbled weakly."Janet…""I regret it all, you know that, right?" Zack's heart clenched painfully. He gathered Janet into his arms,
Gilbert eased up upon hearing that. "You have a point. Being too opposed right now will only incur Zack's hatred."He had thought of breaking the two up from the start, just hadn't put things into action. But now, Jenny's words had opened yet another window of understanding for him. It wasn't like Gilbert actually wanted to stay at a stalemate with Zack forever."We'll wait and see first." Jenny nodded, glad that her brother was taking her advice.Gilbert then shifted his focus to Alec, having seen him speak to Jenny earlier by the fence. "What did Alec Faust want? Does he live next door?""He…""Hasn't given up, has he?" Gilbert questioned. He'd thought Alec might feel defeated when Jenny moved in with Evan and finally gave up. The doctor was never certain whether Evan's injuries would heal. Therefore, there was a chance that Jenny would have to stay by his side for a long, long time. He imagined Alec would surrender under the pressure.Jenny sighed, glancing out the window to f
"Leave?" Evan gazed at him questioningly. "And go where?""Back overseas. To our home. We don't have to worry about all this anymore once we go back." Not even Alec could take them on at that point.Evan stayed silent as if actually considering it. "We can take advantage of Miss Walter's guilt right now and bring her overseas with us, saying we'll find treatment for you there. She might actually agree to come along."Howard really didn't care if Jenny agreed. Even if she didn't, they had ways of taking Jenny with them.Surprisingly, Howard's suggestion was quite appealing to Evan. He had a firm rule at his home overseas, and not only could Jenny stay with him for up to several years, but he might even give up on the act, claiming that treatment overseas was much more effective. At that point, he could do all he wanted, and no one could stop him anymore.But…Evan was worried he might be pushing Jenny too far with the request. Having her take care of him was already something agai
Meanwhile, Alec's home was much quieter than Evan's. He had made several dishes, and though they weren't as fancy, it was still nutritious and homey enough for the three of them—grandparent, grandson, and butler."Come join us, Mr. Duncan," Alec called to Warren, who was standing in the doorway.Warren used to be dismissed during the holidays in order to join his family to have New Year's dinner, but ever since Old Mr. Faust's condition worsened, they could no longer afford to leave the old man alone at home.To Alec, Warren was part of their family. The man had taken care of him since he was a boy, after all. In fact, it wouldn't be too strange to treat the man as a second grandfather.Warren fidgeted awkwardly. "I'm afraid that might be…""Eat with us, Warren. You've always been family, now is no different," Old Mr. Faust spoke up. Warren had no reason to refuse now. He sat down with Alec and the old man while Alec gave them each a cup of warm tea instead of wine. "Here, let's
Gilbert got up from his seat. "Sure. I haven't had a chance to get a good look at this season's snow yet.""I'm up for it, too," Evan said.Howard then came to wheel him out along with Jenny and Gilbert. They didn't linger in the garden; instead, they strolled around the neighborhood.It was a high-end location with prime real estate everywhere, so the public facilities and landscaping were masterfully done. A snowplow had already come to clear a path in the snow for people to walk on."You don't get to see a lot of snow, right?" Jenny asked Gilbert. He often had to travel overseas for work, so he likely missed out on a lot of winter seasons.Gilbert nodded. "I did a lot more when I was younger, but never to just stop and admire the scenery like right now.""What about you, Evan?" Jenny asked the man in the wheelchair."I was lucky." Evan grinned. "It always snowed overseas. We even had snowball fights every year."Jenny laughed. She couldn't imagine Evan getting into something
When Zack saw Jenny coming his way, hugging a giant snowball in her arms, he felt true fear."Calm down, Jenny. We can talk about this!" He yelped, stepping back. Janet giggled off to his side as the scene unfolded."I am very, very calm right now, Zack," Jenny said, grinning like the Devil herself.Zack regretted throwing the snowball at her.When Jenny stopped in front of her brother, she handed him the snowball. "Do you wanna do it yourself or have me do it for you?""I'll do it myself," Zack grumbled, taking the snowball. He'd at least survive without a neck injury with this choice.He raised the giant snowball above his head, then threw it downwards. Snow covered his face and shoulders as the ball disintegrated.Jenny laughed out loud at the silly sight. Just then, another snowball hit her back. It was a gentle toss, but Jenny still searched for the culprit.Janet was eyeing her carefully, another snowball in hand. "Zack isn't alone in this anymore, Jenny.""So this is ho
Just then, Jenny got a call from Stephanie, inviting her to celebrate the New Year together. So, she told her about their gathering at Alec's place. When Stephanie mentioned she might join, Jenny added, "Fair warning though, Paul and Melanie are here."Though she knew Stephanie wasn't interested in Paul anymore, she couldn't say the same for Paul. Jenny couldn't promise conflict wouldn't happen if Stephanie really came over.Hearing that, Stephanie was silent for a time before finally saying, "Don't worry. I just wanna spend the night with you, nothing to do with them.""Alright. I'll send you the address."After hanging up, Jenny glanced at Paul in the distance, with Melanie rambling on his side. The man didn't seem too focused on what she was saying.Jenny walked over to Alec and told him about Stephanie coming over. "I need you to hold Paul back if he does anything stupid later.""Roger that." Alec nodded. He had long been aware that Stephanie didn't have any feelings for Paul