Chapter 10:seize the opportunity to extort
873 Words
"Brother, Mommy's almost here."
Cervine glanced at the message on his phone, a slight smile forming on his lips, a hint of joy in his tone. He relayed to Sammy that Amelia was nearly there, signaling that it was time to wrap things up quickly.
"Oh."
After landing one more punch on the purple-haired teen, Sammy stood up, adjusted his tousled bangs with a suave gesture that reached a full hundred percent in coolness—unfortunately, there were no onlookers left on the street, just a few passing cars.
"Game over. It’s a pity I can't play with you longer," he said with a pout, reluctantly putting away his stun baton.
The green-haired teen felt no such regret, only thinking about how to make sure he never crossed paths with these three again.
"Go home and forget everything that happened here, including meeting us."
Sammy rang a bell in front of them, its crisp sound echoing. The three teens walked away in odd postures; the purple-haired one limping, the yellow-haired one shaking his head, and the green-haired still trembling uncontrollably.
Watching them go, an uninformed onlooker might think they were performers or filming a movie.
"I’m actually worried they might get hit by a car on the way," Vivian suddenly said.
Hearing her comment, the others rolled their eyes, slightly exasperated. If you were going to be concerned, maybe you shouldn’t have gone so hard on them to begin with. Wasn't this concern a bit too late?
Not just Cervine, even Sammy thought Vivian's concern seemed a bit contrived.
Three minutes later, at the entrance of Lingying Academy.
As soon as the car stopped, Amelia hurriedly opened the door and rushed to the three children, her face apologetic.
Frederic, sitting in the car, watched the woman standing before the children, a flicker of surprise in his eyes. Truly, the young master's mother was extraordinary. Even passengers like Steven (codenamed 9) who screamed in his car couldn’t match her; she maintained her composure, showing none of the paleness that even Hannah (codenamed 10) couldn’t avoid.
"Sammy, Cervine, Vivian. I'm sorry, Mommy is late," Amelia apologized, her eyes darting anxiously between her three children.
"Hmph."
The three siblings simultaneously crossed their arms and turned their heads away in a huff.
"How about I make it up to you with barbecue, spaghetti, steak, and cakes tonight?" Amelia offered, trying to appease them, her heart feeling chilly with the frost of their reception.
Today, she admitted, was indeed her fault.
The siblings weren't genuinely angry; they just didn't want to let Amelia off the hook too easily, feigning upset to squeeze a little extra out of her. But seeing Amelia's self-reproach and cautious demeanor softened their hearts a bit, making them feel a twinge of guilt.
"Add some curry rice," Sammy said coolly, his face turned away but his ears betraying his embarrassment.
"Vegetable salad," added Vivian, with a hint of happiness.
"Pudding, pudding!" chanted Vivian, the unmistakable little glutton.
"And maybe a fruit platter too?" Amelia asked, eager to do whatever it took to make her beloved children happy.
Her smile was radiant, filled with a warmth and tenderness that differed from the gentle smiles she usually wore—it was a smile of contentment and affection.
Frederic, sitting in the driver’s seat, watched with eyes glittering with envy. He too longed to join them for the meal, captivated by the prospect of enjoying such a delicious dinner.
Because of her promise to cook for the siblings, but realizing she was out of groceries, Amelia decided not to head straight home but to stop at the market first.
After purchasing the needed ingredients, they returned to the apartment. Because the groceries were plentiful, Frederic didn’t leave immediately but helped Amelia carry them upstairs.
After helping Amelia store all the groceries in the kitchen, Frederic stepped out only to meet the guarded glances of the siblings.
"You can go now," Sammy told Frederic coldly, protective of his family's space and always mindful of his mother’s discomfort around men.
"How can you be like this?" Frederic frowned, taken aback by the blunt dismissal after he had just helped so much. It seemed cold to use his help and then just send him away without even a thank you, maybe even inviting him to stay for a meal as a courtesy.
Frederic thought bitterly to himself, feeling his young master was being quite heartless.
Of course, Frederic wouldn't say this outright; he also harbored a hope to stay for the meal, knowing well his own cooking skills were nothing special and usually just making do with simple meals or takeout.
Thinking that takeout was not always healthy or clean, and certainly no match for a home-cooked meal, he was tempted to stay without being invited.
As Amelia prepared to change and start cooking, she was surprised to see Frederic still there. Considering he had helped her a lot that day, she felt it polite to offer him to stay.
"Frederic, if you don’t mind, you could stay for dinner," she offered.
Frederic, unable to hide his delight, eagerly accepted.
Hearing his response, Amelia instantly regretted her offer, dreading the awkwardness of having someone other than her family at home.
- Writer
