‘It’s your fault that Laney has to take time off work,” Sebastian explained casually.
“All things considered, this punishment isn’t as severe as it should be.”
“But I’m not the one to blame,” Garrett argued.
“That’s the thing. You know my ex-girlfriend’s temper very well.”
Sebastian was having none of it, though.
“Of course, you’re to blame. You keep messing around with the wrong women.”
Garrett had nothing to say to that.
Natalie didn’t learn about the incident until she got off work that day. They were supposed to go home together, but Laney was nowhere in sight, so Natalie went to Garrett to ask where she was.
Once informed about her friend’s situation, Natalie headed straight to the hospital and stormed into Laney’s ward.
“Can you rein in your sense of justice for once?” Natalie huffed.
“Mr. Harding is a grown man! Why did you feel the need to block his assailant with your own body?” She was visibly angry when she had first arrived, but her expression instantly softened when she caught sight of Laney’s bandaged shoulder. Laney didn’t know how to explain herself. As a matter of fact, she had acted out of instinct.
“I wasn’t really thinking at the time,” she said sheepishly.
“Don’t worry; it’s just a minor injury.”
“Well, I suppose it’s a good thing that Mr. Harding is your boss. He wouldn’t complain even if you asked for additional days off. I just don’t understand why you would go to such lengths…”
Now that Natalie had looked at her closely, she realized that Laney had lost a lot of weight after the two successive encounters.
Something clicked in her mind.
“Oh!” Natalie explained, her face lighting up.
“Is Mr. Harding pursuing you?” Laney physically recoiled at the suggestion, as if the mere thought of it frightened her.
“That’s ridiculous! You have a very wild imagination, Natalie, but I’m not sure that I appreciate it.” Since Laney stayed in the hospital, Natalie had to travel back and forth between work and home by herself.
Winter in Seacisco was a magical sight to behold. The whole city was draped in snow, and the air practically sparkled as more snowflakes fell and glinted in the sunlight. It could be pretty brutal, too, however. Some days, it would be too foggy to see anything a few meters away
On one such day, Natalie found herself trudging through the snow. A thick scarf was wound around her neck, and an equally thick hat covered her head and ears. She was bundled in heavy clothing, with only her tiny, flushed face exposed to the cold winds.
She suddenly stopped in her tracks and whirled around. She had felt another presence behind her.
“Who’s there?” Natalie surveyed her surroundings, wary and alert. Soon, she spotted a short figure standing beside a tree just a few feet away. – The man was wearing a green and padded military jacket, and a black, knitted wool hat over his brow. He looked to be in his fifties, and was smoking a cheap cigarette despite his already gaunt stature. When their eyes met, he flicked the cigarette to the ground. He pocketed his hands and walked up to Natalie with a.big smile on his face.
“Are you Natalie Quinn?”
Natalie was only able to see the man’s face clearly when he walked closer to her.
At a glance, she noticed the overflowing greed in his eyes. He had a cunning expression on his face. His chapped lips and ragged stubble only made him look scarier.
Natalie stared at his face for a long time, but she couldn’t recall seeing him before.
“Yes, I’m Natalie. And you are?” This man was still a stranger even if he knew her name, so Natalie was on guard against him. She put a safe distance between them as they spoke.
“Natalie, it’s really you! I was afraid that I have mistaken someone else for you. We haven’t met for ages and you have changed a lot. I have to admit that you’ve become a lot more beautiful.” The man’s eyes lit up in excitement as he studied Natalie’s face.
Coming back to his senses, he cleared his throat and asked, “You don’t remember me? It’s me, Tyler Wilde, Hannah’s son.”
The name did ring a bell. Natalie remembered hearing about him from Hannah.
As far as she knew, Hannah’s son left the city around eight years ago. There had been no news about him since then. Natalie also knew that Tyler was addicted to gambling.
For the same reason, he had abandoned his own mother many years ago When Natalie reached the right age, Hannah mentioned Tyler to her. Every time she talked about her son, she looked sad and worrfed. But as time went by, Hannah just pretended she didn’t have such an ungrateful son.
Tyler waved his hand in front of Natalie’s face and smiled apologetically.
“Now you remember me, right? I’ve made a lot of mistakes in the past that I now regret. But don’t worry. I’m a changed man now. Otherwise, how can I have the guts to face my mother?”
There was one thing that was on Natalie’s mind at this moment she didn’t like Tyler. So she said while adjusting her scarf, “Well, good for you. Anyway, if you have nothing else to say, I got to go home now.”
“This guy is weird. The world is full of weird people.”
“Wait, Natalie! I bought something for my mother. Could you please give it to her on my behalf?” To Natalie’s surprise, Tyler hurriedly stopped her and hander two large boxes of nutritional supplements.
Frowning, she asked, “Why don’t you give it to her yourself? You haven’t been back to your hometown for so many years. Hannah would be happy to see you.”
Tyler scratched his head. His eyes dimmed as he answered, “I tried. But my mother didn’t want to see me. She said she didn’t want a son like me. Alas, it was all my fault. I let her down before. She has all the right to hate me. I deserve it. Anyway, I’ve heard about you from our neighbors. They said my mother treated you like her own granddaughter. I also found out from them that you work for Larson Group, so I waited here, hoping to see you.”
There was a trace of sincerity in Tyler’s eyes, almost making Natalie fall for it. However, she returned the boxes to him and rubbed her cold fingers.
“You should try again. Prove your sincerity to her. You’re still Hannah’s biological son. As long as you show her that you’ve changed, she will accept you. She talked tough, but I believe that deep inside, she misses you too.”
“Could you please go with me, then? She’s fond of you. I believe you can convince her to forgive me.” As if he was desperate, Tyler acted like he was about to kneel down. But Natalie quickly stopped him.
