“I know your mom thinks I’m a bad influence, but I’m not angry. She still thinks you’re an impressionable little kid so if you ever do anything that’s out of her expectations, she automatically blames it on the people around you. It’s really normal. It’s the kind of thing many parents do. I understand that, and I don’t care what people say about me,” she said. “Most importantly, I’m sure both of you know how committed you are to each other, right? So, cheer up. Don’t feel bad. Rest easy… I’ve prepared the guest room for you.”This midnight debacle, as it turned out, cost Arianne her sleeping hours. When morning arrived, she was hardly awake. Mark was with her as well the night before, but he appeared to be in much better shape compared to her. If he put on his suit, he would look even more spirited. It was as though what happened last night did not affect him at all.Arianne was rushing to the company that morning because she needed to personally oversee something. Otherwise, she wou
A smile bloomed on Robin’s face. “Thank you, Arianne.”As some folks would attest to, life would sometimes give one lemons and lemonades at the same time. That was the situation Robin was in. Although her love life was in a mess, career-wise, things seemed to be looking up. Mr. Yaleman who was known for being unnecessarily uptight and miserly summoned her to his office just to praise her work.It seemed like Mr. Yaleman was pleased with Robin’s improvement and diligence. He even told her if there was an opening for a promotion, the company’s first choice would be her. Although part of Mr. Yaleman’s gushing compliments probably had something to do with him trying to ingratiate himself to Arianne, there was no doubt he was also amazed by Robin’s hard work and dedication.Robin left his office with budding joy. In the past, the only reason Mr. Yaleman would summon her was to shout at her. Little did she know there would come a day where he would praise her. It was such a strange twist
Sylvain shot her a questioning look. “Wait, how did you know?”“Robin had a row with her mom after she went home,” Arianne said, “She ran out of the house and stayed in the park alone in the middle of the night. I was the one who found her. Did you call her after you woke up?”Sylvain shook his head. “No. I mean, what am I supposed to say if I call her? It was my fault for being rash last night… Well, I bet she told you what happened between us, too. Heavens, my head’s a mess.”Sylvain’s words made it seem like he was not planning to develop his relationship with Robin. However, Arianne kept her cool. She only wanted a clear answer from him. “Yes, I heard. But why are you confused? If you’ve got the guts to do it, then, you have to have the guts to deal with the consequences. What? Are you planning to shirk the responsibility that comes after?”Sylvain appeared quite agitated by his confusion. “It’s not what you think at all, okay? I don’t know what to do because I’m well aware the
Robin called Arianne when the night fell. During the conversation, the young girl told her that Sylvain did not call her. Through her voice alone, Arianne could feel her moroseness.Arianne was quiet, inwardly debating if she should tell Robin that she had met Sylvain earlier. However, she was hesitant because she was not certain if Sylvain’s explanation about his reluctance was a white lie. Was he lying about not liking Robin or was he telling the truth? In the end, she decided to let it remain a secret. She seamlessly changed the topic. “Say, are you at home now? Are things better with your mom?”The young girl sighed. “No, I told my dad I’m not coming home for a while. I’m going to be staying with my aunt for two days or so. I mean, just thinking about my mom makes my stomach churn. I mean, I don’t hate her, but I feel suffocated whenever I look at her. This feeling has accompanied me as I grew up,” Robin muttered. “Well, since I’ve made up my mind to escape her claws, I might as
Mark took a seat and poured himself a glass. “Alright, spill it. What happened between you and Tiffany that she allowed you to come to a place like this alone?”Jackson sank back into the couch and sighed. “Goddamnit. In the end, I’m right about the benefits of staying unmarried! Now, now, before you call me an a**hole for thinking like that, hear me out. I’m so done with that new kid at home! Seriously, that kid never! Stops! Yapping! All day, all night. It doesn’t matter, he yaps until no one gets to sleep. I swear, I’m gonna die out from extreme exhaustion if this keeps up,” he ranted, “You know what’s worse? Tiffany’s extremely patient with the little rascal. However, all her bad mood is vented on me! She exhausted all her patience with the kid and has none left for me! As if I have anything to do with it! Seriously, Mark, have you ever been so frustrated when you first started this whole being-a-father business?”Mark thought for a second before he replied, “Uh, actually, I’m ok
Janice looked at Mark and noticed his silence so she sat next to him. “I do part-time jobs because I don’t have anything else to do after work anyway. I get paid very well in these places. I’m paid by day so I don’t think it’s too bad…”“Are you short of money?” Mark asked casually. He believed that her family must be in dire straits since she used to receive financial aid from him. She had to work part-time, likely because she lacked funds.Janice lowered her head. “I’m fine. I’m not particularly short on cash. I’m out in society now so it’s different from when I was a student. I spend a lot more now so I have to work a little harder. That way, I can live with a little more dignity and won’t need to feel so out of place among the people around me.”Jackson was slightly tipsy so he had grown chatty. “That’s a good idea. You have to earn money through legal means, regardless. There’s nothing shameful about it. You’re not feeling this way because you met your boss, are you? Don’t worr
Mark rose to his feet and straightened out his clothes before he bluntly replied, “You should avoid fanciful thoughts and just do your job. It doesn’t matter if I’m distancing myself from you, I’m your boss. That’s our only connection. I’ve provided financial aid for a lot of people. I’ve never considered asking for repayment.”Then, he left the bar at once. He lifted his hand to sniff his collar when he entered the car. He made sure the smell of alcohol on him was not too strong before he relaxed. He could sense that Arianne disliked him drinking. The thought of her pulling a long face gave him a headache. He was truly helpless whenever that woman was involved....As expected, Tiffany burst into anger the moment Jackson arrived home reeking of alcohol. “Aren’t you supposed to be working overtime? So you went drinking instead?” Her chest was heaving heavily from her anger.Jackson felt his scalp tingle. “My mom says that breastfeeding mothers shouldn’t get angry, it’ll spoil the m
Jackson grabbed her wrists. His eyes were filled with exhaustion. “I only went drinking with Mark. I didn’t do anything else, that’s the truth. Forget it, I’ll be honest with you. This isn’t the life I want. I only planned on having you in my life, not my mother living with us or a kid. I can’t accept having two additional people in the house all of a sudden. It’s so noisy every day. It doesn’t feel merry to me, it’s uncomfortable. It’s torture. Every time the baby cries at night, I’ll wake up and can’t go back to sleep. I’m close to dying from exhaustion.”Tiffany stared at him, taken aback. “If you love me, you should love everything else about me. That’s our baby, not some ba*tard I had with someone else. You’re his biological father! One more thing, that’s your mother. Why are you so uncomfortable? It’s not like you didn’t agree to have the baby. What are you talking about?”Bolstered by liquid courage, Jackson took a deep breath and gave voice to his feelings. “Yes, I didn’t dis