Vivian froze for a second. In the next, a wave of pain crashed into her heart like a tsunami. She walked toward Larry and lifted the boy into her arms.
“Little pumpkin, do you want Daddy?”
“Yes, of course!” Larry nodded fervently. “I even dreamt of Daddy accompanying me.”
Looking at the desperation on Larry’s face, Vivian felt apologetic toward him.
He should have been like the other kids; he should’ve had a happy childhood with his parents, but it’s already this tough for him to meet his father. If I’m to tell Finnick now that I didn’t lose the baby—that I gave birth to the baby in A Nation—he wouldn’t suspect that Larry’s not his, would he? Maybe I should give Finnick a chance. For Larry’s sake. For Larry to grow up happy and healthy. At the very least, I should listen to Finnick’s explanation about what happened back then.
“Mommy, Mommy! Are you going to patch things up with Daddy?” Larry excitedly asked as he hugged her neck.
Gazing into Larry’s eyes, Vivian answered, “Little pumpkin, I can’t guarantee that I can patch things up with Daddy, but I’ll give him a chance. The reason for my separation from your daddy back then was that Daddy did something to make me very upset. So I’m going to listen to Daddy’s explanation before I decide whether I’ll be with him again. Can you understand what I’m telling you?”
“Yes, I understand.” The boy nodded excitedly. “I’m sure there’s some misunderstanding between Daddy and Mommy. Daddy wouldn’t do something to make Mommy upset, so Mommy, you have to listen to Daddy’s explanation, okay?”
I hope that’s the case. Vivian stared at the boy’s serious expression.
After tucking Larry in, Vivian went to the living room to call Finnick.
“Hello. Vivian, is there anything? It’s quite late.” Finnick was overjoyed that Vivian had called him, but at the same time, he was worried that she had encountered troubles.
Finnick knew well that she was not calling because she missed him.
“It’s nothing much, just…” Vivian trailed off, hesitating. “Thank you for helping me out so much a while back. Are you free tomorrow? I’d like to thank you in person, and… and talk to you about other things.”
“Of course I am,” came Finnick’s instant reply. “I’m always free to meet up with you.”
His sudden sweet words warmed her heart. For a moment, she was at a loss for a reply. Vivian remembered that Finnick was not good with sweet nothings like these. When did he learn how to speak like this? However, she had to admit that she was thrilled to hear him say them.
When Finnick heard the prolonged silence from the other end of the line, he could imagine how red her face would be. Chuckling, he softly asked, “Vivian, where would you like to meet tomorrow? I’ll come to you.”
“Huh?” His voice dragged her back to reality as her face flushed even redder. In fact, she started stuttering as well. “T-Tomorrow, m-my mother’s going to be discharged, so I have to send her home first. Pick me up after work from her place tomorrow night. You still remember the address, right?”
“Of course I do,” Finnick replied. Even when his voice sounded robotic through the speakers, she could hear how gentle he spoke. “That’s settled, then. I’ll pick you up tomorrow.”
“All right. See you tomorrow.” With a swift response, Vivian ended the call. Only after she took in two deep breaths, then could she feel her heartbeat slowing back down.
Although she had a fight with Rachel the day before, Vivian still went to pick her from the hospital the next day. At the end of the day, Vivian still could not bring herself to ignore her foster mother.
However, when she arrived at Rachel’s ward, she realized Evelyn was there too. Halting in her tracks, the first thought that entered Vivian’s mind was to turn and leave. However, Rachel had already seen her. If Vivian were to walk away at that moment, things would turn awkward between Rachel and her.
