“Hmm…” Ranita pursed her lips lightly and nodded as if she had long been accustomed to it. “I’m fine.”
“I’ll go upstairs to check on Ayaan first.” Ranita lost her appetite and stopped eating. Ever since she agreed to move back, she had prepared herself, but she didn’t expect the first day to be so difficult.
“Ranita… I’m sorry for putting you through this.” Jedidiah moved his lips, his eyes filled with guilt.
Ranita lowered her eyelashes. “I’m fine. I won’t argue with her for the sake of Mom and Dad.”
“You can rest assured!”
Right now, all she hoped for was Benedict’s speedy recovery so that she could leave with Ayaan. Ranita went back to her room and saw Ayaan playing with an electronic watch, quickly turning it off as soon as she approached.
“What are you doing?” Ranita walked over, wanting to see what the little one was playing with, but Ayaan evaded her and pouted. “Mommy, even though I’m little, I still have privacy. You can’t peek at my electronic watch.”
Ranita awkwardly smiled. “You’re only a few years old, and you already have privacy!”
“Can’t I take a look?”
“Really can’t!” Ayaan paused and said, “I was planning to call Uncle Pearson, but he’s not picking up.”
Mentioning Steve, Ranita also realized that he hadn’t contacted her for many days, which made her a little worried.
Ranita called him, but it seemed like there was no signal on the other end, and it kept saying the call couldn’t go through. Ranita had no choice but to send him a message asking him to call back when he saw it.
“If Uncle Pearson sees it, he’ll call us back!”
Ranita reassured Ayaan and then got busy with work.
After a few days of adjustment at Monolith Technology, things were going well, and to minimize her contact with Chole, Jedidiah arranged them in completely different departments. So Ranita had a relatively peaceful time.
“Knock, knock!” Suddenly, Alexia’s voice came from the door. “Ranita, can I come in?”
“Please come in!” Ranita hurried to open the door. “Mom, what’s the matter?”
“You’re still working so late? You need to rest early!” Alexia had a gentle personality and always spoke softly. It was because she was so good that Ranita couldn’t completely sever ties with the family.
“I know!”
“Um… has Ayaan fallen asleep?” After getting the answer, Alexia invited Ranita, “I woke up some red wine, would you like to have a drink with me?”
The weather outside was hot, and Alexia led her to the side hall. After drinking about half a glass of red wine, Alexia spoke, “Ranita, I know that Chole has caused you a lot of trouble, but she’s still your sister. Please be more considerate of her.”
Ranita kept her eyes lowered and finally made a sound after a long time. “These years, Chole’s condition has stabilized a lot. With Jedidiah taking care of her and keeping her busy with work, she will get better. Just give her some more time.”
Listening to Alexia’s words, flashes of scenes from many years ago flickered in Ranita’s mind.
When she was fifteen, Ranita went overnight from being the precious daughter of the family to being an adopted daughter they picked up, while the real child of the family, Chole, was brought back.
Chole was lost by accident when she was only two years old, too young to remember anything. Although she was adopted by a kind-hearted family, they had only taken her in to have a little brother. So when her adoptive mother gave birth to her own son and daughter, Chole became unnecessary.
For a few years, life wasn’t very good, but she managed to pull through due to her own efforts. She was good-looking and had excellent grades, even attending a well-known local high school and even appearing in the newspaper.