Chapter 280
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Joanna arrived with her two children, showing no tears or tantrums. With the money she received for her husband’s death, she completely paid back the Warren family for their past kindness to her children.
She did not talk to anyone about the harsh words Haley threw at her, nor did she ask her daughter about her relationship with Alex. In front of the Warren family, she kept her silence.
She was determined to protect her children’s dignity. Ellie and Aaron also showed no signs of distress; they did everything their mother asked.
Carlos did not try to stop them. Nancy and Todd, feeling helpless, wanted to give the shares they had planned for Ellie as compensation, but Joanna stubbornly refused to accept them and told Ellie not to take them.
As a result, the connection between the two families, which had lasted more than a decade, was finally cut.
Late at night, Alex sat dazed on the edge of Ellie’s bed, his eyes red and swollen, staying that way for several hours.
His eyes fell upon a lonely stuffed cartoon doll at the foot of the bed, a leftover from when Ellie first came to the Warren family–a gift meant to help her sleep.
The white doll, washed many times, was slightly flattened because Ellie pressed it as she slept. Struggling, Alex bent down to pick up the doll, gently running his finger along its eyelashes.
Just like so many times before, he would trace Ellie’s features with his fingertip while she slept, playfully teasing her lashes that looked like tiny brushes.
The memory of Ellie curled up like a kitten made Alex let out a soft laugh, but it quickly faded, replaced by tears of sadness On the dressing table, a full set of cosmetics sat neatly arranged items he had secretly placed there days earlier while she was out. Afraid she might refuse to use them, he had even taken the packing off and opened the bottles.
Yet, she chose her baby cream over the makeup he provided.
He turned to see a table in the living room, where he had quietly replaced the flowers in her vase with red roses. When he first added them, they were just buds; now, they were fully bloomed.
“You wouldn’t think those roses are for you, would you?”
“Weed suits you.”
Back then, she must have still had feelings for him. But he had left so suddenly, not seeing any signs of her reactions.
A wave of overwhelming pain hit Alex’s chest, making him feel trapped. He pressed his forehead against the wall of Ellie’s room and struck the wall with his fists in a desperate attempt to ease his heartache.
At that very moment, in the apartment Ellie had rented from Whitney, Joanna sat on the bed, while Ellie and Aaron sat beside her.
In front of her mother, Ellie showed great strength, refusing to cry. “I’ll talk to Whitney tomorrow. You and Aaron should move in with me.”
08:22 Wed, Feb 12
Chapter 280
The one–bedroom apartment Ellie lived in had a small study. Last year, she had made that space ready to welcome her parents for the Christmas.
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Thinking about the last time her dad visited Jaslands and came home angry because of Alex, Ellie felt a twinge of pain in her
nose.
“Mom, let’s move that bed to the study so it can be Aaron’s room. I’ll buy a bunk bed for us to share in this bigger room,” she suggested.
From now on, she promised herself that she would never be apart from her family again. No matter how tough things got, they would face it together.
After a moment’s hesitation, Aaron spoke up. “Mom, I’ll go back with you tomorrow. Let’s sell whatever we can, pay off the neighbors, and then you can live with us.”
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