Chapter 20
Evelyn’s personal line rang. She took out her phone, pausing the work she was doing. Only very few people had her personal line and could use it in emergencies. Seeing Nina’s name displayed made her heart skip a beat.
“The kids! What is the problem?” She said immediately after picking up the phone.
“Miss, please, I don’t know what’s wrong with the kids!”
Evelyn rose to her feet in a start. “What happened?! Are my children okay?!” Evelyn said, already packing up her things, fearing the worst.
“They won’t eat or talk to me. Ever since I picked them up from school, they’ve been really quiet. I think something upset them at school! I’m really worried, miss!”
Evelyn’s heart started to race. Had her kids been bullied?! What was going on? She put her phone into her handbag and quickly took off her lab coat, hanging it on the coat hanger.
She rushed out of her office and headed down to the lobby. After informing the receptionist of her whereabouts, she rushed to the parking lot and got into her car.
As she drove home, her mind raced with all the possibilities of what could have happened to make her normally very cheerful kids turn cold all of a sudden.
She got home and rushed inside.
“Nina!” She called out.
“Miss, thank goodness you’re home, Nina said gratefully and walked up to her.
Evelyn saw her kids in the living room. Both of them were engrossed in books, flipping the pages silently and refusing to acknowledge her presence.
Normally they would have run up to her and hugged her, eager to tell her about their day at school and all they had learned.
“Thank you, Nina, Evelyn said and smiled at the help. “I’ll take it from here, okay?”
Nina nodded. She glanced at the kids worriedly. “Have a wonderful night, miss.”
Evelyn walked up to her kids and sat on the floor with them. “Lance?” She called her son.
“Yes, mommy?” Lance replied calmly.
“Milena,” She called her daughter.
She looked at her briefly, her face stern.
“What happened?” Evelyn asked.
“Nothing at all,” they said in unison.
Evelyn sighed. “Tell me the problem, okay? Mommy can fix it. What happened
“Nothing happened.”
“I know something did,” Evelyn said softly.
at
school?”
The kids were silent. Then they looked at each other, communicating with their eyes.
“We want our daddy,” Lance said.
*Other kids all have a mommy and a daddy. We want our daddy too.”
Evelyn felt her heart skip. The kids had never asked for their father before.
*Other kids said it’s weird we don’t have a daddy,” Milena said. “And we agree with them.”
Evelyn’s heart broke. How could she explain the circumstances of their birth to them? There was no way she wanted to put her kids through such pain.
“Your daddy is… he’s in another city,” Evelyn said.
Their eyes lit up. “Really?!”
“Yes,” Evelyn said and smiled sadly. “Very soon, he’ll come home and you’ll see him.”
“Finally!” They exclaimed and hugged each other. “We’ll have our own daddy too!”
Evelyn nodded and joined in the hug. “Yes, you will.”
After the issue was resolved, the kids agreed to eat their dinner. Soon they were fast asleep. Evelyn slumped on the couch, her heart bleeding.
She knew at the back of her mind that the kids will one day ask for their father, but she thought that day was still very far off.
She took out her phone and called the school.
“Miss Palmer, good evening,” the woman at the desk said.
“Yes,” Evelyn replied. “My children were bullied today for not having a father. Is that right?”
“O–of course not!” The woman stuttered. “We’ll look into it immediately.”
“Thank you,” Evelyn said and ended the call, her annoyance beginning to show.
This was all Caleb’s fault.
The next day at work, she personally dropped her children off at school.
“No one will dare bully you again,” she said as she gave them warm hugs.
“Okay,” they said in unison.
Sometimes Evelyn wondered if they shared one mind. Their answers sounded rehearsed at times.
She smiled warmly at them. “Don’t worry about your daddy, okay?”
“Have a nice day at work, mommy,” Lance said.
“Bye!” Milena sang.
Evelyn waved and watched them head inside the school. She got into her car and drove off, heading for the hospital.
She had received a report the previous night of Malcolm’s health. He was improving at an impressive speed, meaning the operation was going to go smoothly.
Her car suddenly started making a strange noise. She parked by the roadside and got out. She saw nothing out of the ordinary, but trying to restart the car proved difficult.
“You’ve got to be kidding me,” she exclaimed, looking around her as if an answer would manifest somehow.
A black Venza pulled up beside her. The tinted window rolled down.
“Good evening, Doctor Palmer,” a man greeted from inside.
Evelyn frowned, confused at who was calling her. “Yes?” She said tentatively.
The door opened, and the man stepped out. He was tall, as tall as her. He had honey–brown eyes and light brown hair that caught the morning sun. He was very handsome, with a gentle face that could charm anyone.
“You seem to be in a pickle,” he said, looking at her car. “And you could end up being late.”
“I’m sorry, do I know you?” Evelyn asked.
He laughed, rubbing the back of his head in embarrassment. “I’m sorry. My name is Travis Sylvester. I recently transferred to the hospital.”
“How do you know me?”
“I saw you during my interview with Director John.”
Evelyn nodded. “Okay.”
‘Can I give you a lift? Since we’re going to the same place.”
Evelyn considered it for a while. Then she nodded. “Sure.”
Travis smiled, a smile that felt warm like a hug. Evelyn blinked her thoughts away. He held the door open for her to enter the car.
Interesting, Evelyn thought to herself.
