John was happy as he thought about his son. Holly was such a sweet girl taking care of her pregnant mother. Unlike Thea, this girl was an uneducated little bastard.
“Let’s go,” Holly urged them with her sweet smile and got in the car.
Fiona batted her thick eyelashes, “You see that? Holly loves our family so much, and she cares about you so much too. It would help if you treated Holly and me nicely. Do you understand?”
John hurried to say, “Of course. You two are the most important people in my life. I will forever treat you two nicely.”
They all got in the car and drove away. Thea felt like she was gonna throw up. She went back to their house angrily.
****
Cody was sitting on the couch alone as other guys chatted and laughed. He wasn’t in the mood to talk to anyone. He only wanted to watch television. A message burped in at the moment. He instantly picked up his phone and noticed that it was a message from Thea.
“Merry Christmas, boss. Hope you’re having a good time with your family.”
The message was pretty simple. But it brought a smile to Cody’s face. He thought for a second and typed back, “Merry Christmas, Thea. Hope you’re not gaining weight eating too much good food at home.”
“Cody, do you wanna have some fruit?” Amy approached Cody with a plate of peeled grapefruit.
“I don’t like grapefruit,” Cody pulled a face.
Amy suddenly felt awkward. Did Candace get Cody’s likes wrong?
“Well… Guess I will get you something else then. What else do you like?” Amy hid her hand behind her back. Her fingers were red from peeling the fruit for Cody.
“I don’t want to eat anything,” Cody answered coldly, whirling his wheelchair around and to the greenhouse.
Amy frowned a bit as she looked at Cody’s fading back.
****
Thea warned her Mom and Granny repeatedly that they should call the police if John dared to come to their house again and harass them.
Grace smiled at her daughter and stuffed a whole package of homemade bacon and sausages into her luggage, “Of course. You’ve repeated it so many times, honey. We will be careful. Remember to eat these when you arrive.”
Thea was a bit speechless, “You don’t have to…”
“Why? You said you rented an apartment in the big city, right? So that bacon and sausages should be enough for you for the next six months.” Her Mom cut her words and gave Thea a hug, “Don’t be too kind to other people. They will bully you. If anyone dares to bully you, just call Mom. I will teach them a lesson.”
Thea shook her head. Her Mom was always so adorable.
“And… Those boys must be crazy for you since you’re so pretty. You have to tell me once you find a boyfriend, okay?” Grace added.
Thea laughed, patting her Mom’s shoulder, “I don’t have a boyfriend yet, Mom.”
Grace cupped her daughter’s face, “I know. I’m just trying to remind you. Alright, you should get in the car now.”
Her Granny also went to send Thea off, “Be a good child, Thea. Your Mom and I look forward to seeing you on the television again.”
“Okay,” Thea answered, trying to hold back her tears as she got in a taxi.
After traveling all day, Thea finally returned to Cody’s mansion at 7 pm.
“Sir! Thea is back!” Zoey announced excitedly.
Cody was about to get in bed. However, he went downstairs immediately as he heard what Zoey said.
Thea was in her room, taking out everything her Mom stuffed in her luggage and was about to take them to the kitchen.
Cody laughed as he saw those foods, teasing, “Are you gonna open a restaurant here, Thea?”
Thea just smiled at him. “My Mom forced these things into my luggage. She said she appreciated you for taking care of me so well. And she said you’re a generous boss. So she asked me to bring these homemade sausages and bacon to you. They’re really good.”
A wide smile broke at Cody’s mouth, “Zoey, help Thea to put them in the freezer. Send Candace some tomorrow. She loves bacon the best.”
Zoey nodded and helped Thea to put those things in the kitchen.
Cody checked Thea out. She was wearing a black coat, and she didn’t look like she had changed or gained any weight during Christmas.
“I see you’re still in good shape, huh?” Cody sounded behind her.
Thea spun around, “It took me so much effort to lose weight. I tried to contain myself and still do my workout routine even during Christmas.”
“That’s good,” Cody was happy hearing her answer.
“Do you want me to massage you later, sir?” Thea asked as she took her scarf off.
Cody thought for a while. “I’m okay. You should get more sleep. You must be spending all day on the train. Just take a good rest. We still need to go to the hospital tomorrow.”
Thea was really tired. She smiled after hearing what Cody had said, “Then I’ll take a shower and go to bed. Goodnight.”
“Goodnight,” Cody nodded and turned his wheelchair around.
****
Thea woke up early the next morning. She went upstairs to dress Cody and got him some breakfast before going downstairs to prepare the car.
After that, they drove to the hospital.
Linford and Cristelle had been there waiting for a while. They even brought Candace with them.
“Thea! Your Mom’s cooking is no joke! I tried the bacon and sausages you brought us last night. They are amazing!” Candace dashed forward and held Thea’s arm.
She couldn’t explain why. But she just liked Thea.
Thea smiled politely, “I’m glad you enjoyed them.”
Cristelle was also happy seeing them getting along with each other, “Thanks for taking the food for us all the way back. We loved the taste. Nothing is like homemade food.”
Cody didn’t seem happy seeing his family, “Why are you guys even here? I’m an adult. I can do my own checkups. You don’t need to come here to babysit me.”
Cristelle laughed and ruffled his hair, “But we worried about you, sweetie. You’re not as cute as before. You are not like the way you used to be, Cody.”
Cody?
Cody rolled his eyes, hearing his Mom’s words, seemingly treating him like the old little Cody, “Thea, come over here. You need to push me in immediately.”
Thea went forward immediately. Linford suddenly smiled weirdly at Thea. Thea shuddered a little under his gaze.
And then, she just pushed Cody into the car.