CHAPTER 106: CHAPTER 106: WANTING TO WAIT FOR UNCLE HOLDEN TO EAT TOGETHER

On the other side, Sovera Apartments.

Only a few warm yellow wall lamps and the main dining room light were on in the room, creating a gentle light that enveloped the space in a serene atmosphere.

In the open kitchen, Jean Ellison wore a plain cotton-linen apron, busy with her head down.

The pot was simmering yam and pork rib soup, with white steam lifting the lid slightly, making a faint "puff-puff" sound as a rich aroma filled the space.

Next to it on the stove, broccoli with shrimp had just come out of the pan, the emerald green paired with tender pink, tempting in color.

She deftly plated the dish, then turned to the rice cooker to serve two bowls of glistening rice.

The table was already set with bowls and chopsticks, a simple two-dish and one-soup meal, yet it exuded the warmth of home.

"Jesse, it’s time to eat."

Jean called out towards the living room, her voice gentle.

"Coming, Mom."

A soft, sticky response came immediately.

Jesse put down the colored pencils and the half-finished princess drawing, then climbed up from the carpet, ran to the dining room in her little slippers with a "tap-tap-tap," and climbed onto her designated child’s chair.

Jean placed the bowl of soup on a heat pad and sat down across from her.

The mother and daughter quietly began to eat.

Jesse was not yet very skilled with children’s chopsticks but made an effort to grasp the food, stuffing her little mouth full.

After a few bites, Jesse looked up, her big eyes blinking at Jean, swallowed her food, and asked, "Mom, aren’t we waiting for Uncle Holden to eat with us?"

Her little mind still remembered the unfinished dinosaur story from yesterday.

Jean’s movement of picking up food paused imperceptibly.

She recalled the brief message she recently received, her gaze slightly lowered to the white rice, and she tried to keep her voice stable and natural.

"Hmm, Uncle Holden is busy with work, he’ll come back later."

She didn’t want her daughter to sense the subtle and complex emotions between adults.

Jesse let out an "oh," a trace of obvious disappointment crossing her little face.

She lowered her head, using chopsticks to poke at the grains of rice in her bowl, her voice becoming smaller and mumbled.

"I wanted Uncle Holden to play with the new puzzle set with me. Last time, the story about the T-Rex and Triceratops looking for food together wasn’t finished. He said he would finish it tonight."

The innocent anticipation and disappointment in her daughter’s words were like a tiny needle, gently pricking Jean’s heart.

She looked at Jesse’s downcast little head, set her chopsticks down, reached over, and gently brushed her hair.

"Uncle Holden is busy with work; we need to understand him. Tonight, Mommy will play with you, and I’ll tell you a story, one that’s even better, all right?"

Jesse looked up, seeing her mom’s gentle smiling face, and the previous disappointment was immediately dispelled, her face breaking into a bright, sunny smile as she nodded vigorously.

"Okay, Mom’s stories are also nice."

"Then hurry and eat, so we can play after."

Jean gave her a large piece of the rib.

"Yeah."

Jesse responded happily, focusing back on diligently eating.

After finishing her meal, Jesse took the initiative to take her little bowl and spoon to the kitchen sink, even though she was short, she carefully stood on tiptoe.

Jean watched her being so sensible, feeling a bit tender inside.

"Mom will wash the dishes, Jesse can play for a while, okay? Remember not to watch TV."

Jean said while tidying the tableware.

"Got it, I’ll read a picture book."

Jesse agreed as she bounced back to the living room, pulled out a thick "Dinosaur World Adventure" from the bookshelf, and then snuggled into the soft sofa with it, her little legs swinging back and forth, seriously flipping through it.

Jean carried the dishes into the kitchen and turned on the faucet.

The sound of gushing water and the clinking of dishes soon filled the small space.

She carefully cleaned the grease, though her mind wasn’t as focused as her actions, wandering a bit.

The content of Justin Holden’s message, and the cold tone when it was sent, kept circling her mind.

Was his "something came up" truly busy with work, or...

She shook her head, trying to discard these thoughts.

The relationship between her and him couldn’t really be called a genuine marriage connection, not even a harmonious roommate relationship. Why should he report his whereabouts to her?

She smiled self-deprecatingly, continuing with her task.

After washing for a while, she instinctively looked back, through the kitchen’s glass door towards the living room.

Jesse was still lying on the sofa, that thick picture book spread open before her, with her little head resting on the pages, unmoving.

Jean’s mouth curled slightly into a gentle smile.

Looks like she got tired from reading and fell asleep.

Kids are just like that, energy comes and goes quickly.

She sped up, efficiently cleaning the last two bowls and the pan, dried her hands with a clean towel, and wiped the water stains off the counter.

After everything was tidied up, she pushed open the kitchen’s glass door, walked over with light steps, keeping her voice low and doting.

"Jesse, if you’re sleepy, go to bed, you’ll catch a cold here and it might ruin the book."

She walked to the sofa, bent down, slipped her arms under her daughter’s armpits and knees, ready to carry the soundly sleeping little one back to the bedroom as usual.

However, when her fingers touched Jesse’s arm, the icy feel made her heart skip a beat.

Something’s wrong.

Very wrong.

Jesse’s body was limp, not the relaxed yet resilient and weighted feel kids usually have when sleeping.

This was a complete, supportless limpness.

Moreover, there was no reaction at all to her touch and the gentle call close by, not even a flutter of an eyelid.

"Jesse?"

Jean’s heart skipped a beat, her voice trembling.

She gently turned her daughter over.

Jesse’s eyes were tightly shut, her long eyelashes casting a quiet shadow under her eyelids, but her once rosy face was now terrifyingly pale, her once pink lips drained of color, showing an ominous grayish-white.

Her breathing was so faint it was almost imperceptible, her chest only showing the slightest, nearly invisible rise and fall.

This wasn’t sleep at all, this was unconsciousness.

Jean’s mind buzzed, her vision darkened for a moment.

She could barely breathe, it felt as if her blood had frozen.

"Jesse, Jesse, what’s wrong? Wake up, don’t scare Mommy."

She frantically patted her daughter’s cold arm, her voice edged with obvious tears.

But the child remained unresponsive, like a lifeless doll.

In deep panic, rationale was quickly drowned.

Her first reaction was to clumsily reach for the phone in her housecoat pocket, her fingers trembling hard enough to be unruly, barely managing to pull it out.

Her mind blank, she almost instinctively pressed a familiar number.

Listening to the "beep beep" waiting tone in the phone’s receiver.

The call only rang twice.

Just as the third tone was about to sound, Jean snapped back to her senses, quickly pressing the hang-up button.

Why did she think of calling Justin Holden...