Chapter 82: Gentle Parenting
JULIA
“I’m going to a family day,” I said. “Not the Met Gala.”
“You’re exaggerating. You look just fine!” Sarah exclaimed. “Make sure to get the hot, single daddies over there.”
“I’m not going to do that,” I muttered.
“But you said you already rejected Evander,” she said.
“I did,” Julia said, making Sarah narrow her eyes.
“I see. There’s still a chance.”
I rolled my eyes. “You’re putting words in my mouth.”
“Much better than Evander’s dick, right?”
“You have such a vulgar mouth,” I exclaimed, looking around to see if Andy was there. Fortunately, he wasn’t.
“Whatever,” Sarah said. “You don’t like my co–worker. You also don’t like the single daddies in your school. You haven’t said yes to Evander.”
“I don’t need a man to make me feel complete,” I said with a small smile. Then, my smile widened when I saw Andy go out of his room.
“I only need my baby,” I chimed, gesturing for him to come closer.
He was wearing a white polo, with his hair neatly combed back. When he was dressed like this, he really did look like Evan
“I only need you too, Mommy,” he sweetly smiled. At that moment, I didn’t know the implications of his words.
“Must be nice,” Sarah said, dabbing the fake tears from her eyes.
I chuckled and shook my head. “Let’s go,” I said. “You’ll be late to work.”
With that, the two of us drove to Andy’s school. The radio was on, and Andy was murmuring the lyrics under his breath while looking out of the window.
“You invited Evander, right?” Sarah asked.
“Yes,” I answered.
“Does Andy know?”
I opened my mouth to answer but had to think for a second. “Wait,” I said. “He hasn’t asked.”
“What do you mean?”
“He h
hasn’t asked about him,” I muttered. “Actually, it’s been a long time since he asked for Evan.”
“Well, isn’t that a good thing?” she asked.
I shrugged. “Sure, I guess.”
“We’re here, honey,” I said as we pulled up to Andy’s school.
Andy opened the door and joined me outside. Then, we waved goodbye as Sarah drove off to her work.
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Chapter 82. Gentle Parenting
We went inside the school and were immediately surrounded by other families.
“Andy!” his friends greeted him. Andy ran to where they were, and I watched with a fond smile.
Ellie and I made eye contact, so I waved at her. She couldn’t greet me personally since she was busy with the other kids, so I gave her a thumbs–up.
There were still a few minutes left before the program started, so I settled on a nearby bench. It was the family day for the whole school, so all grade levels were present. There were a lot of unfamiliar faces, too.
“Will he come?” I muttered, glancing at my watch.
Just then, I felt someone sit next to me on the bench. My heart raced with the thought, but it quickly dampened when the scent wasn’t familiar.
I lifted my head and found a man smiling at me.
“Umm, hello,” I said, greeting him.
“Good day,” he greeted back, sounding awfully nervous.
“I think we’ve never met,” I muttered.
‘Oh, sorry,” he said, clearing his throat and offering his hand. “Carson. I haven’t formally introduced myself, but we see each other around school.”
I smiled and took his hand in a friendly shake. Come to think of it, I did see him a few times around the small campus. “Yes, I’ve seen you around. Nice to meet you.”
“That’s my daughter right there,” Carson said, pointing to a little girl, appearing to be older than Andy, with her hair in messy pigtails.
“Don’t mind the hair,” he quickly added. “My wife died giving birth to her, so it’s only been the two of us ever since.”
“Oh,” I muttered.
“Don’t feel sorry!” he quickly said, sweat forming on his temples already.
I shook my head. “You don’t have to mention her hair, too. I’m sure you’re doing a great job raising her on your own. It’s not easy, you know?”
I swore I saw his cheeks redden. “Yeah, it is hard. You would know, right?”
“Huh?” I asked, frowning
“I heard from Miss Ellie that you were single, too,” he started off, gazing into my eyes.
I bit my lip. “I am,” I said.
A small smile appeared on his lips.
I felt like he was going to say something I wasn’t prepared for.
“Actually, I’ve been watching you”
Just then, a child’s scream interrupted our conversation. I internally sighed in relief when he didn’t finish his statement. However, when I saw that the child who interrupted us was screaming at Andy, I quickly stood.
I walked over to where they were, and the teachers arrived at the scene, too.
Chapter 82. Gentle Parenting
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“We don’t want to play with kids who don’t have fathers,” the older child said, sticking his tongue out at Andy.
1 sighed and ran my fingers through my hair.
“Simon,” a woman, whom I presumed to be his mom, said. “We do not speak in such a tone. We do not raise our voice,” she said in a singsong tune.
1 frowned, watching as she “gentle–parented” her child.
“I’m just telling the truth, Mom!” Simon exclaimed. “That kid doesn’t have a dad. See! Even her mommy is alone.”
Simon’s mom glanced at me with an unapologetic smile.
“That might be true,” she chuckled. “But, what did I tell you about tone?T–O–N–E–S. You should say it kindly.”
“He shouldn’t say it at all,” I said, finally having enough. I gently pulled Andy toward my side. He was still glaring at Simon but made no move to provoke him. I patted his head to comfort him.
“Excuse me?” Simon’s mom said.
“You should stop teaching your son about tones and move on to manners instead. A kid shouldn’t say to another kid, and an adult shouldn’t condone it.”
Just then, a man who appeared just like Simon chimed in from behind.
“But my son is merely telling the truth. If your child cannot accept that, then you’re the one at fault. I don’t want my son to be exposed to incomplete families,” he chuckled. “It sets a bad example.”
I glanced at Carson and saw that his swe
had multiplied a thousand times. I was expecting him to back me up because he, too, was a single parent, but I quickly realized he was too shy to do so.
I opened my mouth to speak again, but another voice joined in.
“I don’t think I’ve formally introduced myself,” he said.
We all turned around and saw none other than Evan, who had ditched his usual suit and dressed in a more casual
fit.
“Good morning, everyone. I’m Andy’s father. Nice to meet all of you.”
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