CHAPTER 67: CHAPTER 67: HOW MUCH EXTRA DO I NEED TO PAY?

Find a place and move out within three days.

Not an easy task.

Poppy Hale’s lease was about to end, and the landlord was polite in tone.

He said his son was getting married abroad and needed some money, and the old couple didn’t plan to return to China.

They came back just to sell the house.

The landlord said that the sale wouldn’t affect the lease and offered Poppy Hale half a month’s rent as compensation, asking her to move out quickly.

Having said this much.

Poppy Hale had no choice but to agree.

Opening the real estate app, she saw some rental listings in the same community, but after inquiring found out they had been recently rented out.

What a coincidence?

When did our community become a hot spot?

While looking in the rearview mirror, Declan Hawthorne caught a glimpse of Poppy Hale’s phone screen.

"If you’re carsick, don’t look at your phone. The more you look, the dizzier you’ll get."

After messaging the realtor, Poppy Hale put away her phone.

After watching her phone for a while, she indeed felt dizzier.

The realtor called.

"Ms. Hale, I’m sorry, but there’s no available rental near your area at the moment."

"There’s one in the neighboring community, but it’s a bit more outdated than your current location."

Poppy Hale wasn’t picky now, just eager to find a new place to move into quickly.

"I’ll check out the place tonight."

"Okay."

After putting away her phone, Poppy Hale remained distracted.

She thought that if she moved to the neighboring community, she’d have to hire a moving company.

Declan Hawthorne glanced over, "Planning to move?"

"Yeah. I’m aiming to find a place nearby so moving is more convenient."

Declan Hawthorne’s eyes narrowed slightly.

He replied calmly, "Haven’t you thought about relocating? Living in the suburbs isn’t convenient for your work, your daughter’s schooling, or your mom’s hospital visits."

Poppy Hale was aware of this.

But compared to a house of the same size in the city, a suburban house could save at least five thousand bucks a month.

That’s sixty thousand a year.

Poppy Hale gritted her teeth; she could only trade time for commuting to save that money.

She shrugged, "If it were before my family went bankrupt, I’d definitely choose downtown."

Declan Hawthorne’s comment was simply like asking a starving man why he doesn’t eat meat.

The man replied calmly, "If your family weren’t bankrupt, would you have gotten married and had children?"

Poppy Hale’s expression stiffened slightly.

Her fingers subconsciously rubbed together as she calmly said, "Yeah."

"Even if my family weren’t bankrupt, I would have still had Florence."

The thing Poppy Hale regretted least in life was giving birth to Florence Lynch.

Declan Hawthorne furrowed his brows.

The car fell into silence.

He inexplicably felt a bit agitated and subconsciously wanted to light a cigarette, but then he remembered the two kids asleep in the backseat.

He resisted the itch in his throat.

The steering wheel turned, the car took a bend.

They stopped, waiting at a red light.

Beside them was a large shopping mall.

It was scorching summer, with the sound of cicadas outside, and the sweltering heat stuck to the car windows, creating two separate worlds.

By the roadside, some college students were working to support their studies by handing out flyers.

A guy with an animal headgear in his hand removed the headgear, and a girl beside him immediately ran over to wipe the sweat off his forehead.

They both entered the mall with the animal headgear.

The traffic lights changed, and the car rejoined the flow of vehicles.

Declan Hawthorne kept thinking about the scene he just witnessed.

"I used to wear an animal headgear too."

Poppy Hale looked a bit surprised.

"When was that?"

"Freshman year."

At that time, Declan Hawthorne didn’t know what he wanted to do; he worked hard at part-time jobs to find something he was interested in and good at.

Everyone else said he was a born genius.

He was the most talented, ambitious, and shrewd successor in the Hawthorne Family for generations.

Yet, they didn’t know that he had worked harder than most to reach where he was.

In forty-degree heat, wearing a heavy headgear to distribute flyers and interact with passersby, he had done it.

Poppy Hale didn’t know.

"Why didn’t you ever tell me?"

"It was before I met you."

Poppy Hale responded with an "Oh" and didn’t say more.

He first met Poppy Hale on his first day of college.

There was no "before he met her."

It was just him not telling her.

At first, there was no need; he found her incessant chatter somewhat annoying.

But that day, after taking off the headgear, Declan Hawthorne saw a couple beside the guy.

He clearly remembered his feelings.

It was the first time he intensely, unprecedentedly missed Poppy Hale.

He regretted it.

He should have told her, so that when he took off the headgear, he could see her immediately.

Upon returning to school, Declan Hawthorne didn’t contact Poppy Hale, instead wandering around the art academy.

He saw her painting.

She was painting Mason Rivers.

After finishing, Mason Rivers eagerly leaned over, "Let me see! I’m gifting this to someone!"

Poppy Hale disdainfully made way.

"Never seen anyone gift their self-portrait; remember to pay me the final installment."

Mason Rivers nodded repeatedly, full of praise for the sketch.

Poppy Hale glanced up and spotted Declan Hawthorne outside the studio; her eyes brightened and she flew into his arms like a swallow returning to its nest.

He embraced Poppy Hale, masking the darkness in his eyes.

The car passed the last red light.

Declan Hawthorne suddenly asked, "Why did you paint Mason Rivers that day?"

"Which day?"

Poppy Hale blinked and, after some recollection, remembered Mason Rivers had asked for a self-portrait to gift someone.

"He paid me a commission fee; what’s wrong?"

Declan Hawthorne frowned, "If he pays you a commission now, would you paint him?"

Poppy Hale shook her head.

"My current commissions are booked until the year after next; he couldn’t get in even if he paid."

Her price now was not like during college.

Even if Mason Rivers wanted a commission, he’d have to wait.

Poppy Hale thought for a while and added.

"It’s not impossible, but it will cost extra."

Declan Hawthorne felt a surge of restlessness.

"With extra money, you would do it?"

Poppy Hale nodded.

Her pricing was always transparent; commercial use and urgent requests required extra fees, and the higher the fee, the more likely the priority. This is a common rule among illustrators.

He parked the car under a private club building.

"How much extra would I need to commission a piece?"

Poppy Hale was taken aback.

Declan Hawthorne sought a commission from her?

She recalled him once saying he didn’t like her style.

Declan Hawthorne asked again, "How much extra?"

"When does President Hawthorne need it?"

"Tomorrow."

Poppy Hale thought for a moment, "Not possible these days, the earliest would be in three days."

"Then three days it is."

Poppy Hale named a figure.

Declan Hawthorne agreed immediately, took out his phone, and unbuckled his seatbelt.

Declan Hawthorne glanced at the two kids in the back.

They were awake but not fully alert, still in a daze.

"I’m stepping out for a smoke; come down once they’re fully awake."

"Alright."

The man stood at a distance, smoking, phone in hand.

A moment later, Poppy Hale’s phone chimed with a money transfer notification.

Declan Hawthorne had sent her the payment.

Poppy Hale was curious about what kind of picture he needed so urgently.

But Poppy Hale never had a problem with making money, especially as it was per her commission terms.

Seeing that she accepted the payment, Declan Hawthorne typed a line of words and sent it over.

"I want a portrait."

"Of myself."