Everyone looked over to see a family of three standing outside the door: Derek, Yvette, and Coco.Derek was in his fitting grey suit. He was gentle and handsome-looking, exuding an air of gentleness and elegance.Yvette, on the other hand, donned a luxurious gown and had a luxury-branded bag at hand, looking like a wealthy wife.Lastly, Coco, like a proud member of royalty, was dressed in a gown styled like a princess's, her hair braided into two high ponytails. She even had a pink backpack to boot.The three of them walked into the venue like a happy family of three, and Derek handed the expensive gifts they had brought to Grandma Bailey. "Haven’t seen you in a while, Grandma. How have you been?""Not bad." Grandma Bailey looked at the three of them and said, "Aren’t you all busy? Why did you come?""It’s an important occasion," said Derek, "and we had to come, however busy we may be!"With that said, he turned toward Anthony and gave him a gentle smile. "Bro, what century are
Chris recited a series of names, to which everyone praised him.Chris smiled proudly and said, "Don’t worry about me, Mommy, I can take good care of myself. What you should do now is to make a little sister for me to take care of."Grandma Bailey, upon hearing Chris' remark, visibly eased off of the anger Coco had caused. The elderly's expression shifted into one of affection.Chris was indeed a mature boy.Charmine’s fair face softened shyly. She turned to look at Anthony and sharply caught the unnoticeable hint of awkwardness evident on Anthony’s face.She smoothened Chris’ hair. "Okay, I'll try."When Anthony heard this, his eyes darkened.It seemed that he had to quickly find the right time to explain the truth to her."Yay!" Chris, pleased by this response, cuddled into Charmine's arms, placing his heart and trust onto her.Yvette was dumbfounded at this, however.She looked at Chris and asked, "Dear, your birth mother is here, but why didn’t you greet her at all? What y
Coco did not stop at just this. Seeing that Chris was going to leave, she reached out to push him back. "I'm talking right now; this is the truth! Why do you want me to shut up?"Chris staggered backward due to Coco's push. After regaining his balance, he glared at Coco angrily. "Don’t make me hittouch you!"Coco was not intimidated by Chris' sharp glare. In fact, she was not affected at all and continued to push him multiple times. "What now? I'm just saying facts. You’re worried that your step-mommy is going to leave you? I’m just telling the truth. I want to tell you that she'll leave you one day! She'll punish you and beat you! Hahaha!"She even stuck out her tongue to trigger him further.Slap!Chris reached out and slapped Coco’s hands away from pushing him. He glared at her. "I said, shut up! My Mommy isn't this kind of person!"Coco may insult him, but not his Mommy!Coco, after having been slapped, felt a stinging pain that seared across her arm, rendering her speechles
In the venue…Anthony was standing near the front yard when everything happened. The hall was noisy as he conversed with relatives, but it was due to this that he failed to hear the tumult coming from the back.As he was drinking, he instinctively turned to look for Charmine, only to see her rushing away hastily.Frowning, he placed down his wine glass and excused himself to run after her to the backyard.When he arrived at the backyard, he saw the maids carrying Chris to the ground, pressing his chest, while the boy laid on the ground weakly, seemingly unconscious.Anthony’s heart clenched as he sprinted toward them."Let me do it!"He pushed forward and performed a professional cardiopulmonary resuscitation on Chris.The maids, no longer resuscitating Chris as Anthony took the role, looked around. They then realized in horror that Charmine had not resurfaced from the pond.They were all too caught up about Chris that they did not realize that Charmine had not come back out a
When Nial saw Anthony and Charmine, he quickly went over to feel for Charmine’s pulse. His expression turned grim. "Charmine’s breathing is weak, Bro. We must send her to the hospital as soon as possible!"To this, Anthony lifted Charmine and marched out quickly, followed by a rushing Nial who carried Chris in his arms.Grandma Bailey, Senior Bailey, and the rest were very concerned. The guests no longer concerned them as they all drove toward the hospital as well.…Upon their arrival, Nial went into the emergency room to save Charmine. The light outside the operating room lit up, and everyone waited outside worriedly.Anthony stood before the doorwindow with tightly clenched fists, the veins on his arms protruding due to the sheer force.D*mn it! How could he be so careless?He failed to protect the two most important people in his life!Anthony glared at the blaring light, his eyes filled with worry and guilt.Annabel looked at the operating room, and her palm-sized face
After having Charmine settle in the ward, the nurse placed an oxygen mask on her and set up the electrocardiograms, blood pressure monitors, and medical drips.Charmine laid in bed, unmoving. Her breaths were shallow, and it was a painful sight to watch.Anthony sat by the bedside, and his big hands held onto her cold hands. He looked at her worriedly.Grandma Bailey gazed at Charmine, just as worried and with reddened eyes.She dabbed away the tears pooling in her eyes as she feebly lamented, "It’s not easy for Charmine to finally live with us. Now that this happened, how could her life get so difficult? If she doesn’t wake up…how shall I pass this on to the Jordans?"It only agonized her the more she thought of Charmine's fate, and her tears finally fell."Ms. Charmine will be fine," said Annabel, standing at the side, sounding determined as she spoke. "She'll wake up. She will!"Hearing everyone talking, Anthony frowned and looked at them. "Everyone can go home for now. I'll
Annabel failed to catch Susan's intention and believed in her advice instead. "Alright then, I'll go over there to pray for Ms. Charmine first thing in the morning tomorrow."Susan gave her an approving look. "Remember: Starting from the gate of the church, kneel every three steps that you take. Otherwise, you’re not sincere enough."Annabel nodded. "As long as Ms. Charmine will wake up, I’m willing to kneel from here to the outskirts of the city if I have to!"She would do more than just kneel from the gate of the church.After Susan had left, Annabel went back into Charmine's ward, where Anthony sat by the bed to look after Charmine. His eyes never once left her.Charmine was still breathing weakly, pipes attached to her body. She showed no trace of waking up.Annabel stood by the end of the bed and watched over Charmine, feeling distressed.She could only put her hopes on the church.…That afternoon, Annabel stayed in the hospital to look after Charmine and Anthony.She f
Charmine had yet to wake up, and Anthony's eyes were still wide open.The two of them had been through so much to be together. Why was God so harsh on them?Annabel could not watch this anymore. She bit her pale lip before carefully choosing her words, saying, "President Bailey, I’m going out to get breakfast."Anthony did not seem to hear her. He sat by the bed and held Charmine's hand, his bloodshot gaze never leaving Charmine.Annabel looked away and turned to leave.The sky was dark, and the streets were being cleaned. The smell of all sorts of breakfast dishes being prepared in shops wafted from afar.Annabel stopped a taxi and went straight to the church.Upon arriving, she noted that the ancient church was quiet, and the door up ahead was still shut.She looked around and let out a sigh of relief. She had feared she was not the first to arrive, that she would not be the first to offer her prayers.She went to the gate of the church and thought of what Susan said to her.