Alisa had spent $2, 000 on that bed, not to mention the installation cost, and she signed her name on the check feeling her heart bleed. Just to ensure that her dim-witted brother, Aldrich, could sleep in it today, she had to choose the most expensive delivery service in town. They were thrilled when they heard her address on the phone.
Aldrich had better treat Maggie right, or I’ll make him pay for this bed alone.
She decided to take a nap in her room, leaving the task of tidying up to Marvin, which involved moving heavy and messy items.
Marvin said, “No problem, I’ve got it all covered.”
Putting too much trust in a young master who had never even touched a mop or a broom wasn’t very realistic.
Alisa was awakened by a loud crash of items falling all over the place. She hurriedly went out of her room to see what was happening, only to find her belongings, previously packed neatly in boxes, scattered all over the floor. Marvin was the culprit, trying to rectify the situation, but he was making it worse. Alisa nearly ran out of breath.
“That dress cost $600; I bought it last year,” she said, looking at the disastrous pile of items on the floor. She wasn’t sure if getting angry now made any sense, given the situation. After all, things were already like this, and getting angry would only give her breast nodules.
Marvin, with a guilty look, lowered his head, saying, “I thought it was a blanket.”
Alisa replied, “The cup that rolled under the window sill is a birthday gift from Maggie.”
Marvin closed his eyes, wondering if it was too late to make a heroic sacrifice and die in atonement for his mistakes.
Luckily, after surviving a major illness, Alisa had grown less concerned about many things. She pondered, “Would I be happy if Maggie were in pain for the rest of her life, separated from her loved one, with regrets and dying like me, all because of my deliberate actions?” This wasn’t what she wanted.
No, she wanted Maggie to be happy, and her own happiness was contingent on that.
She had to convince herself that all the foolish things she had done, ruining Maggie’s wedding dress, taking incriminating photos of Aldrich’s potential infidelity, and deliberately showing Maggie that Marvin had hurt her were wrong. She knew that showing Maggie those things would break her heart, but her possessiveness had driven her to do it.
She didn’t deserve forgiveness for any of it. She was supposed to disappear from Maggie’s life after causing her harm.
But Maggie had only had her in the past, and during those dark days when they had only each other for support, she realized that if Maggie was hurt and miserable, she’d be unhappy too. Maggie couldn’t lose her either.
So she decided to start anew, to live her life well. As long as Aldrich occasionally brought Maggie over to tell her that she was doing well or visited her with two children as beautiful as Maggie, she would feel content.
“Pick up my dress and put it on the sofa,” she instructed Marvin, managing the mess, “Clean the cup that fell on the floor and place it next to the plates on the dining table.”
Marvin was strangely obedient, and Alisa ordered him around without hesitation. Even when he had to clean the kitchen floor, he did it. Alisa couldn’t afford to relax; she watched him closely, afraid he would break or knock something important over later.
“Regret running to a world that doesn’t belong to you, Marvin?” the woman teased. While she wasn’t provoking him now, she seized the chance to taunt him. Marvin, with a sense of resentment, scrubbed vigorously at the stains between the wall crevices.
“It’s alright. Being able to share Alisa’s burdens makes me happy, no matter how tiring it may be.” His face was filled with sincerity.
Alisa felt her heart skip a beat for a moment as if she’d been electrically shocked. It wasn’t until she noticed a hint of smugness in Marvin’s expression that she realized she had been played. It seemed he wasn’t tired enough.
So she smiled and said, “In that case, I bought a new wardrobe when I bought the bed. Later, you can help me move the old wardrobe from my room downstairs and bring the new one upstairs.”
The old wardrobe was an expensive green sandalwood piece, but it didn’t fit her space. She had bought a lighter, albeit less sturdy, one. The only downside was its weight; it was incredibly heavy. Marvin almost couldn’t lift it. He had never doubted his strength as a werewolf but was defeated by a flimsy wardrobe built by humans.
“Do you think your wardrobe is heavier or a tree in the forest?” Marvin asked Alisa as they headed downstairs.
Alisa shrugged, indicating she didn’t know. “This wardrobe weighs about 150 kilograms, approximately, but I’m not sure about a tree. After all, I don’t live in the forest, I don’t grow trees, and I don’t need to uproot them.”
Marvin felt this was blatant murder. A werewolf could withstand the attack of a 200-kilogram opponent, but it was impossible for him to carry a 150-kilogram wardrobe in human form.
“You want to kill me,” he gasped for air.
“You brought it upon yourself. Why did you flirt with the wrong person? You actually dared to flirt with me.”
“… I won’t dare anymore. Can you find someone to help me lift it?”
“We’re almost there. Worst case, when the new wardrobe arrives, we’ll move it up together.”
Marvin had learned his first lesson in human society: don’t easily offend a woman. She might not be able to overpower you physically, but she could crush you entirely with her wit and intelligence.
Finally, they tidied up the room. Marvin was panting like a real dog, “I’ve never been this hungry and tired!”
“You’re a tyrant!” he accused Alisa.
Alisa gave him a sweet smile and turned to get some drinks from the fridge, “That’s great! Welcome to the world of ordinary people. No privileges, no extraordinary powers. If you don’t work hard to be a useful person, you’ll silently die on the streets, and even the hospital can’t issue a death certificate for you immediately because they won’t know your identity.”
Marvin received a bottle of soda and said, “You’re not doing this just to get back at me, are you?”
“A little. Even though I didn’t have money in the past, I had to move things alone, one trip, two trips, or more. It’s exhausting, but compared to people’s judgmental looks, I’d rather be a bit tired.”
Marvin was momentarily lost for words. After taking a big gulp of the ice-cold soda, he said dejectedly, “I want beer.”
“You go on a drinking spree, and I won’t be able to stop you.”
He tilted his head back and drained the bottle.
“That $2 ice cream cone wasn’t really worth it. I should have added two more scoops of different flavors.”
Alisa laughed, “If you’re not afraid of getting a stomachache, I can buy you one every day.”
At that moment, a hawk landed on their windowsill.