“Just take it!” Sophia insisted firmly before shoving the card into his hands.
Uncertain, Juan turned to look at Evan for his opinion.
“You should accept it. Grandma will be very happy if you do!”
Still a little hesitant, he eventually kept the card.
“Thank you, Grandma!”
“Oh, you! There’s no need to be so polite to Grandma!”
“Yes, exactly! We’re your grandparents. You can call Grandpa anytime you want if you find that you need something!”
Staring at the older couple, Juan felt warmth suffusing him. No one had ever been this nice to him before, other than his mother. This was the first time he had experienced affection from others. It had caused him to feel all fuzzy on the inside.
Before he left the Seet Residence, Davin reminded him to come over often to play.
Juan shot him a delighted nod in reply.
After that, he returned to Hillside Villa.
Evan gazed at Juan for a bit before a small grin tugged at his lips.
This was the first time he had felt what it was like to be surrounded by family. “Kyle, you did great today!”
Juan rubbed the back of his head and smiled at his father. He had not done anything much. In fact, he had even gotten a free meal, a huge allowance, and had brought back a lot of delicious food. This had been a fruitful outing indeed!
“Daddy, can I store the food by myself?”
Evan mulled over it for a bit before nodding.
“You shouldn’t keep these for too long. Remember to throw them away if you don’t finish them by tonight!”
“Okay! Thanks, Daddy!”
Shooting his son one last smile, Evan headed off to work.
Juan hurried into the kitchen and put all the take-out containers into a big bag before stuffing it into the fridge. That way, it would be easier to carry when he left.
At long last, he headed back to Kyle’s room and played with some Lego as he whiled the time away.
On the other side of things.
Nicole sent Maya and Nina off to kindergarten before focusing her attention on Kyle. “Where would you like to go?”
The little boy thought over the question but soon found that he could not come up with an answer.
After all, he had never been out of the house before.
Since he had not seemed to enjoy the amusement park, she pondered where to take him today. After a moment, she suggested, “Kyle, I have an idea of where we can go. I’m certain that you’ll like it.”
He glanced at her with a blank expression on his face and questioned, “Where?”
“You’ll see when we get there. We can leave immediately if you don’t like the place.”
The young boy shrugged internally and agreed. It was still early now and he was in no hurry to go back and switch places with Juan anyway.
When they arrived at their destination, Nicole searched Kyle’s face and prodded, “Do you like it?”
The little boy’s gaze was glued to the animals in the zoo, his eyes shining with delight.
“That’s a monkey. Over there is a panda and those are tigers…” she introduced the animals one by one.
He whipped his head around and snapped, “I can see for myself!”
With that said, he walked toward the pandas that were chewing on some bamboo shoots.
Taken aback at his attitude, she had to remind herself that his temper was distinctly different from her other three children. She would not hold it against him.
After all, when it came down to it, she owed him a lot.
She remained quiet after that, as she merely followed along behind him. Only when his brows furrowed in confusion would she give short explanations about whatever had seemed puzzled him. Then, she would shut her mouth and wait for the next time that he had needed her help.
Noticing how careful she was being around him, he realized that he might have been a little harsh toward her earlier.
“Just say whatever you want. You don’t have to pay me any heed!” he tossed the sentence over his shoulder before speeding ahead.
Nicole stared at his retreating figure in surprise before a bubble of laughter escaped her lips. So he does care for how others feel. He just has a different way of expressing himself. Even while being nice to someone, his face remains so cold.
Lost in her thoughts, she began to hasten, in her steps. When she sped up again, she abruptly realized that Kyle had disappeared.
Where was he?
Panic rose in her and she swept a glance around, hoping to catch sight of her little boy. How could he have simply vanished when he had just been right in front of her?
“Kyle! Kyle!” she shouted desperately.
A muted cry from nearby caught her attention, as she immediately spun to look in the direction where it had come from.
To her horror, Kyle was currently being held in the arms of a man. He had been gagged, which explained the muffled sounds that he was making.
“Kyle!”
