Chapter 34
hapter 34
Chapter 34
Teresa had walked off with that righteous, unshakable look on her face, and it just made Charles’s blood boil.
In Charles’s eyes, Teresa was no longer the responsible mother she used to be–skipping Yolanda’s preschool events was bad enough, b now she was tossing all the parenting onto him.
The more he thought about it, the more ticked off he felt toward her.
She used to do everything herself, taking care of Yolanda down to the tiniest detail.
But now? She didn’t even want to deal with her own kid.
Just as his temper was flaring, Naomi’s voice came from behind him. “Charles.”
That soft tone of hers cooled him down a notch.
“You done?” Charles looked over at her, the icy glare in his eyes melting into something gentler.
Naomi walked up, stood right next to him, and replied, “Yeah, it’s done.”
She could tell he’d been upset, so she asked in a soft voice, “What happened? You get into it with Ms. Sullivan?”
Charles didn’t want to get into it. He just shook his head, replying, “Forget it. Time to pick up Yolanda.”
When they got in the car, though, Charles didn’t start the engine right away.
Naomi, sitting in the passenger seat, noticed that and asked, “Hey, got something on your mind?”
Thinking about what Teresa had said earlier, he still felt uneasy. He asked, “Did Yolanda get into trouble at school or something?”
Naomi handled everything about Yolanda’s school.
Since Teresa mentioned that Yolanda caused trouble at school, Charles thought Naomi should be clear about it.
Naomi froze for a second, then suddenly chuckled. “Yolanda’s such a sweet kid. How could she possibly cause trouble?”
Charles thought it over, then said flatly, “Yeah, I believe you.”
After that, he started the car.
As they drove off, a flicker of guilt crossed Naomi’s face.
There were things she didn’t want to tell Charles. If she told the truth to him, he might just think she couldn’t take care of Yolanda.
Thus, she chose to hide bad things from Charles.
Before long, they pulled up outside the kindergarten.
Right before school was out, Naomi got a call from her school.
She replied, “What? A meeting right now?”
“Alright, I’ll be right there”
She tried to get out of it, but no luck.
Charles told her to go ahead. He even called his driver, and had him take Naomi back to school,
When Yolanda came out of school. Charles picked her up himself. The teacher didn’t mention anything, so he was even more sure Yolanda had done anything wrong
in the car, Vialanda sat there feeling uneasy–partly because of what happened, at school, partly because of that sudden day they left
Sullivan Mamicen
Her emogons knotted wahun ter, sud she tex woyed for no apparent reamat.
Yolanda suddenly spoke up. Daddy”
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Chapter 34
“Yeah?” replied Charles.
“Has Mom called you? Or… have you seen her?” she asked.
For some reason, Yolanda suddenly missed her mom.
Lately, Naomi had been the one taking her to and from school.
she thought, ‘Naomi’s nice, but she belongs in the spotlight. She won’t even wash my underwear, and she never sings me songs to sleep She could only do ponytail, no other styles…
‘Her nails are pretty, but she can’t cook. I’m really tired of the plain food Sharon cooked.
‘But if Mom was here, she’d braid my hair in all kinds of styles, bake me all sorts of desserts, and my underwear would always be fresh
and clean.’
Charles looked at her, puzzled. He didn’t know what was going on, but he kept his voice gentle. “Yeah, I saw her today.”
Yolanda perked up. Sitting straight, she asked, “Was she happy today?”
Charles frowned and asked, “Why, honey?”
Yolanda lowered her head, her mood dropping. “I feel like… Mom doesn’t love me anymore.”
That day when they got back to Sullivan Mansion, Yolanda had thrown a huge fit, but Teresa didn’t even get mad at her. Instead, she sent her back to Joyacre Villa.
Teresa’s abnormal reaction actually made Yolanda feel uneasy inside.
Earlier today at school, she heard another kid say that no care meant no more love.
Charles saw tears in Yolanda’s eyes, and his heart ached for her. He gently stroked her cheek and asked softly, “Why do you feel that way, sweetheart?”
Tears rolled down her face as she spoke up, “Mom used to make me so many yummy things. She’d braid my hair in all kinds of pretty ways, and she taught me how to read and draw… But now, she…”
Charles pulled her into his arms, ruffling her hair. “Don’t overthink it, sweetheart. Of course Mom loves you.”
Yolanda sobbed harder. “But Vera said… no care meant no more love. Dad, Mom hasn’t cooked for me in forever.”
Charles was lost in thought, thinking about the old Teresa.
He did agree that Teresa had changed a lot.
That day at Logan Manor, she even slept in a different room from them.
Not sure how to comfort Yolanda, Charles simply asked, “Wanna call Mom now?“”
Still hiccupping from crying. Yolanda nodded. “Yeah.”
Charles handed her the phone and said, ‘Go ahead, tell her whatever you want.”
Yolanda took the phone and called Teresa.
It rang for a while before Teresa finally picked up
“Yeah?” said Teresa curtly. Her cold voice made Yolanda’s stomach drop.
“Mom, we’ve got an event on Thanksgiving Can you come? Yolanda asked.
She was expecting a yes, not even daring to turn up the idea of saking Teresa to apologize to Naoni.
That day at Sullivan Mansion, she could already tell her mom was off
Teresa’s top sodieird liish when she buddat was her daughter. She replied, “Wolaita, Mominy is busy that day, so I can’t come
I had already promised Monks and she was about to go back on her wont
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Yolanda’s heart sank, but she asked again, “Mom, can you make me blueberry pie tomorrow morning? I really miss that flavor.”
Back then, Teresa would wake up at 6 AM just to get fresh blueberries from the market and bake it for her.
She never minded the trouble. All she wanted was for Yolanda to be healthy and happy.
Teresa’s eyes turned red when she realled those things, but she still refused. “Honey, I have to stay at Sullivan Mansion to take care of Grandma. Ask Sharon to make it for you, okay?”
“What happened to Grandma? Is she okay?” Yolanda asked.
Actually, she didn’t really care about Linda. She just wanted her mom to think she was thoughtful.
Teresa didn’t bother guessing Yolanda’s intentions. She simply replied, “Nothing serious. Hey, I’m hanging up now. You gotta go home early.”
“Mom…” Yolanda quickly called out before the line went dead.
Teresa asked, “What else?”
Yolanda hesitated for a while before saying, “Can I… visit Grandma?”
Teresa was a little surprised to hear that request, but she still turned Yolanda down. “You don’t have to worry. Just focus on your school.
With watery eyes, Yolanda glanced at Charles, as if asking for help.
Charles had heard the whole conversation.
He’d never seen Teresa be this cold to their daughter before.
Feeling hurt to see Yolanda so disappointed, Charles took the phone and said to Teresa, “Yolanda wants you to come back.”
Inside, Teresa sneered, ‘Come back? Come back to where exactly?‘
But Teresa didn’t ask out loud. She answered, “I’m busy recently. I’ll come back when I have time.”
She was about to hang up when Charles snapped, “Teresa, can you not tell what’s really important?”
AD