As I was leaving, Alex insisted on coming with
- me.
I couldn’t refuse.
This was the first time I had asked Tom out.
He seemed to have dressed up.
He wore the shirt and shoes that I had bought
him.
He held a bouquet of roses.
When he saw us walk in, he rushed forward.
“Sarah, Alex, you’re here!”
Alex looked him up and down.
“Dad, you don’t look too good. When I go out
with Mom, people say she’s my sister. If you
to
nut..ith
ལྤཕ:ཡ+ F|““ཅ” པ|ཕཔཔ་
7:32
68
were to go out with us, people would think you
were my grandpa.”
Tom laughed awkwardly.
“Your mom is getting younger.”
Alex nodded and said in an old–fashioned way,
“You gotta be disciplined. If you can’t control
yourself, you’ll regret it. Right, Dad?”
Tom could barely manage a smile.
Alex ordered a few of my and his favorite
dishes and sat next to me, ready to play on his
phone.
I gave him a stern look, and he quickly put his
phone away.
He grinned.
“I’m not playing games, I’m just looking at the
messages the teacher sent.”
く
7:32
“Just one game.”
“Okay, Mom! You’re the best!”
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Tom’s eyes welled up.
He wiped away a tear and desperately put food
on our plates.
“It’s been so long since we’ve all sat down and
eaten together.”
I put down my chopsticks and sighed.
“Tom, we-”
11
15
A figure suddenly rushed out.
She picked up the soup and threw it at me.
Alex shielded me and the hot soun landed on
7:32
Г
Alex shielded me, and the hot soup landed on
his chest and arms.
The exposed skin quickly turned red.
Linda yelled hysterically, “Sarah, can’t you be
ashamed? Do you like seducing other people’s
men that much?”
“Are you okay? Does it hurt? Are you burned?”
I didn’t have time to worry about Linda.
I checked Alex’s body.
“Mom, I’m okay.”
Alex quickly reassured me.
Fortunately, the soup had cooled down, and his
skin was only red and swollen.
Tom had pulled Linda away.
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7:32
68
“Linda, what’s wrong with you? We’re over! I’ve
already paid your parents everything, what more
do you want?”
Linda’s face became distorted.
“What’s the use of money? My baby is gone!
Why can you all still have this?”
I saw a flash of silver in her hand.
I instinctively stood in front of Alex.
A sharp pain followed.
I vaguely saw Alex kick Linda away.
My consciousness gradually faded.
Before I passed out, a thought flashed through
my mind.
“I’m glad he took all those Taekwondo classes.
7:32
It was WOTL 11
16
I don’t know how long I had been asleep.
I heard Alex nagging in my ear.
“Don’t show off if you don’t have the skills to do
- it.
I have a ton of homework to do, and now I have
to come to the hospital to take care of you.
How are you going to make it up to me when
you wake up? I need to play on my phone for at
least three days.”
The phrase “play on the phone” must have
touched a nerve.
I sat up suddenly.
“Alex, if you dare play on your phone, you’re
asking for it!”
7:32
He stood in front of me smiling like a sly fox.
The nurse walked in with a tray.
68
“You’re awake? You need to be careful and not
overdo the dieting. Your blood sugar levels
were so low.”
Huh?
“What diet? What low blood sugar?”
I avoided Alex’s gaze.
He looked at me.
“If your blood sugar levels weren’t so low, you would’ve seen her coming and blocked that
move!”
“I was angry, so it’s different.”
I said, trying to save face.
く
17
As the saying goes, “Do not stand under a
dangerous wall.”
After this, I didn’t dare to have any more
involvement with Tom.
The year deadline was almost up.
I had a lawyer send him a payment request.
I wasn’t afraid that he wouldn’t pay.
The money I owed him wasn’t nearly a tenth of
what he owed me.
The money arrived quickly.
I also had the company’s colleagues draft a
notice of non–renewal and reconcile the
accounts.
I was succeeding and growing my business.
7:32
Many suppliers and manufacturers contacted
me for the business.
Even without Tom’s products, it didn’t affect
- me.
68
If he lost such a large customer, he would be in
a more difficult situation.
He called me countless times.
I blacklisted him.
