Chapter 3

On Monday night, Emmett brought me to his mother's house for her 60th birthday celebration.

Before we went over, he reminded me, "My mom has been wanting that limited edition tea set for a long time. Remember to get it for her as a gift from the both of us."

That tea set cost $8,500, and I spent a month of my salary and a portion of my savings to purchase it.

When we got to the Carrs, the living room was filled with Emmett's relatives. Emmett held my hand as we entered the house, looking like a loving couple.

"Happy birthday, Mom." Emmett gave her the exquisitely wrapped gift. "Naomi got this tea set specially for you. Open it up and see if you like it."

Emmett's mother took the gift and opened it. I could tell that she was forcing her smile after seeing what was inside. "You didn't have to, Naomi. This tea set looks pretty ordinary, though."

I did not say anything as I stood there. A limited edition tea set worth $8,500 was actually ordinary to her.

That was when the doorbell rang, and Emmett's cousin went to open the door. "Hey, it's Cherry! What are you doing here?"

The living room fell silent, and I looked at the door.

Cherry was wearing a white cashmere coat and carrying a huge gift box as she walked in with a smile. "Happy birthday, Mrs. Carr! I took leave from work to fly home just for your birthday!"

Emmett's mother stood up right away, smiling widely. "Cherry! Come here and let me take a good look at you. You've lost weight. You must be having a hard time overseas."

Cherry went over and hugged her intimately around the shoulders. "Not at all, Mrs. Carr! Anyway, look at what I brought you."

Cherry placed her gift on the table and opened it up. It was a pretty figurine of Mother Mary made with quality jade, and it was not difficult to see how priceless it was. All of Emmett's relatives gasped in surprise.

"This must be worth at least tens of thousands!"

"What a generous gift, Cherry! You treat your godmother better than my own daughter treats me."

Cherry blushed and glanced at Emmett with slight embarrassment. "Actually, this gift isn't just from me. Emmett paid for most of it, and all I did was help pick it."

The living room turned silent again, and everyone looked at me.

Emmett had paid five figures to help Cherry buy that jade figurine, but he made me pay $8,500 for a gift his mother did not really like. His mother smiled even wider. "Emmett is such a considerate child, and even Cherry has good taste. I love this figurine."

His mother pushed my tea set aside and picked up the figurine carefully while Emmett stood at the side, not looking at me. He smiled and played along. "I'm glad you love the gift, Mom."

I watched them chatting happily as I stood at the side like an outsider.

While we were having dinner, Cherry sat on Emmett’s left, while I sat on his right. She was busy throughout the meal, helping Emmett fill up his plate.

"You love ribs, Emmett. You should have more. Let me help you with that shrimp as well."

Emmett's relatives did not find her behavior strange at all. In fact, they were all smiles about it.

"Cherry and Emmett are still as close as siblings."

"Yeah! If we didn't know better, we would have thought they were a couple."

I lowered my head to eat quietly, but that was also when Cherry suddenly stood up while holding a cup of hot tea. "Naomi, this is for you. It's my thanks to you for always taking good care of Emmett."

Cherry passed me the cup, and I reached out for it. Just as I was about to touch it, she suddenly released her grip. "Oh, no!"

The steaming tea splashed onto the back of my hand, and I felt intense pain. When I pulled my hand back, my skin had turned red from the burn.

"Be careful!" Emmett's voice rang out as he stood up right away, but he did not look at my hand. Instead, he grabbed some tissues from the table and started wiping off the small water stains on Cherry's coat. "Did you get burned, Cherry? That coat can't get wet."

Cherry started to tear up, looking upset. "I'm fine, Emmett. It's my fault for not holding the cup properly. Naomi didn't do it on purpose."

"You don't need to feel sorry about that. Naomi has always been clumsy." Emmett turned to look at me with a frown. "Can't you even hold a cup properly, Naomi? Why must you make everyone upset on my mother's birthday?"

There was silence in the dining room as everyone looked at me reproachfully. Some were even waiting with bated breath for more drama to unfold.

Emmett's familiar face suddenly looked like a stranger’s to me. "You're right. I'm a clumsy person." I pulled out a tissue and wiped away the water stains on the back of my hand.

After that, I stood up and said, "I have to leave, Mrs. Carr. I still have work at the office."

His mother did not even look at me. "Go ahead. Work is important."

I picked up my bag and walked to the door, but Emmett did not come after me. He did not even ask if my hand hurt.

The cold wind blew as I walked out of the Carrs' residential area, and it only made my burnt hand hurt more, but I did not cry because it was not worth it.

I pulled out my phone to check my flight information. There were still 36 hours before my flight. "You can consider that cup of tea my last toast to you, Emmett."