The night before returning to City N, Stella sat in her room and slowly packed their things.
The little boy sat on the carpet, playing intently with his toys.
After a while, Dolores came in. “Stella, you're still staying up, huh?”
Stella looked up at her and replied, “Yeah. I want to pack these things first. When we leave tomorrow, it
will be easier for you to take them over.”
Dolores sat next to her. “Don’t worry. I will take care of the little one until he goes back to City N. When
you see him next time, he will definitely be the same chubby baby like now.”
Stella smile, knowing that Dolores was comforting her.
She put the things aside, leaned on Dolores’s shoulder, hugged her arm, and said softly, “Mom, I am
fine. I have already gotten used to this kind of separation. And every time we part, we look forward to
the next reunion. In this sense, every separation seems meaningful to me.”
Dolores patted her hand and said, “You won’t wait for too long this time, and soon you will never be
separated.”
Stella nodded and said, “What about you? When will you return to City N?”
Hearing this, Dolores raised her head and looked ahead without saying anything.
She did not know the answer to this question.
Stella added, “Mom, although I don’t know what happened in the past, and I don’t know how to comfort
you; since things have already happened, all we can do is to try our best to make it up for it. It’s useless
to hold on to the past because it only makes yourself suffer.”
Dolores sighed, “I was too willful in the first place. If I could have listened to him, things wouldn't have
come to this point today.”
“Actually, I can feel that Clarence’s grandfather had never blamed you. He only hoped that you could
live a better life in a place where he couldn't see you.”
Dolores smiled slightly and held Stella’s hand without speaking.
Stella looked at the little boy in front of her and said in a hushed voice, “Most parents in this world want
their children to be happy and healthy no matter what costs they have to pay.”
Dolores suddenly said, “I saw you and Archer whispering to each other a lot recently. Is there any
change in the little one’s health condition?”
Stella shook her head. “No. He is fine.”
Dolores was still not quite at ease. “Stella, don’t keep things to yourself. Talk to Clarence more since he
is your husband. If you have anything that can’t be solved, you can leave it to him.”
Stella smiled, “I got it. Thank you, mom.”
Before Dolores left, she gave Stella a small envelope. “I don’t like shopping and I don’t know what you
like. Take this and buy whatever you want.”
Stella froze. “This isn't necessary…”
“Hey, since you're calling me mom now, this is something you deserve.” Dolores added, “This is a
tradition and you should not refuse.”
Hearing this, Stella smiled slightly. “Thank you, Mom.”
Although this was the second time she and Clarence got married, she felt it was a new experience. And
everything before this seemed like a dream.
Dolores said, “Go to bed early.”
“Okay,” Stella replied.
She walked Dolores to the door before turning back and continuing to pack things.
When Clarence came back, Stella had just finished bathing the child. She said to him, “Give me the
bath towel on the bed.”
He picked up the bath towel and saw a small envelop next to it. So he picked it up as well and walked
to her. Handing her the towel, he asked, “What is this?”
She looked back and said, “Mom gave me this.”
He slightly raised his eyebrows. “Shall I open it for you?”
She wrapped the child with the towel and stood up, taking the envelope from him and said, “It’s not for
you.”
He took the child from her arms and then wiped the kid’s hair while saying, “Don’t you want to know
how much money is inside?”
“Money is not the point. You are just being rude,” she said.
Maybe the child was uncomfortable in Clarence’s embrace, and he got his head out of the towel and
reached out towards her.
She took him from Clarence and said, “Don’t play with him like that. Go take a bath yourself.”
He replied, “Okay. Let him be pleased for one last night.”
This man was so childish. Stella rolled her eyes
In her embrace, the child didn’t know what was happening, rubbing his little hands and kept calling
"mama".
Seeing him like this, she felt a bit uncomfortable in her heart.
When she comforted others or herself, she knew how to do it. But when it came to accepting the truth,
she felt it was still hard.
After changing the little one’s clothes, she put him on the bed and lay next to him, gently patting his
chest.
Soon the kid fell asleep.
She looked at him quietly. When thinking of the three-month-long separation that would begin
tomorrow, she could not move her eyes away from him.
When she was lost in thought, Clarence lay behind her and embraced her with his hands. “What’s
wrong?”
She said in a quiet voice, “Nothing.”
“Is the money in the envelope not enough? I feel it is quite thin,” he said.
She gave him a kick who was lying next to her. “You are just so annoying!”
He chuckled, turned her around and pulled her into his arms. “If this is not the reason for your
unhappiness, then don’t think so much.”
She did not say anything with her head down.
He knew what she was thinking and gently rubbed on her waist. “Have you forgotten what I said
before?”
She had something else on her mind and casually asked, “What?”
“I said three months at most. There is a great chance that it will be sooner than that,” he replied.
She looked up at him with a bright light in her eyes, but soon it disappeared.
He wondered what she was thinking.
She said, “I won’t be so hopeful about that. If I have higher expectations, I may get greater
disappointment. What if three months is still not...”
She suddenly realized something and stopped, patting her mouth.
She was not gonna jinx it!
Seeing her like this, he could not help but laugh lightly. “I didn't know that you are superstitious.”
She paused and realized she seemed a bit silly. So she coughed and tried to speak in a serious
manner, “This is not superstition. I just revere the nature...”
As she spoke, she saw his smiling eyes and suddenly felt that she was truly a dummy.
So she turned around and buried her head into the quilt. “Just sleep.”
He pulled her back and whispered to her ears slowly, “Go on. It sounds quite interesting.”
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