"I want to sleep with Alick and Ray on the same bed." Elissa tossed her two braids back and forth. She was so adorable!
"You can sleep next to Ray," Lucas said with a snicker. 'TH sleep next to Alick. We're both big men anyway."
"Daddy Lucas!" Alick turned to Lucas and said seriously, "I'm not a big man yet! I'm still a little man!"
"Ha ha ha!" Alick's protest made Lucas burst into laughter. "All right, all right. Little man, would you like to sleep next to me, a big man, tonight?"
"Hmm... okay." After thinking for a while, Alick nodded cautiously.
In the evening, the cool breeze blew on the balcony of the bedroom on the second floor.
Barry and Lucas sat side by side, with their back to the door. Together, they smoked while leaning on the railing.
"How is everything going with William?" With his eyes half-closed, Barry took a deep drag on his cigarette.
"Just the same as before," answered Lucas, who looked unruly in the smoke. "There are no signs that he will wake up at all."
"He has been in a coma for more than half a month, but he still hasn't woken up." Barry put the cigarette between his two fingers and looked at the flickering light on the cigarette end. "How about Mary? Does she still go to the hospital every day?"
"Yes. She never missed a day."
In the bedroom next door.
"Stay in bed. Don't fall over, okay? I'll get you some juice." With a smile, Selah closed the door and went out of the bedroom. As soon as she walked out, she smelled the faint smoke in the corridor. She walked forward and saw the door of Barry's bedroom ajar.
The conversation of the two men as they smoked came along with the breeze.
"Is it possible that William won't wake up anymore?" asked Barry.
"Who knows? He had some old wounds and now he got two gunshots. He's lucky enough that he hasn't died yet." Lucas heaved a sigh and added, "Mary is having a difficult time. By the way, haven't you seen her recently?"
"No, I haven't." With that, Barry put out the cigarette.
"What's wrong?" With a sly smile, Lucas asked again, "Are you afraid that you won't be able to control yourself once you see her again? Then you might want to gain her heart back while William is still in a coma."
Feeling somehow annoyed, Barry lit another cigarette and put it in his mouth. "We almost got married," he said with a sigh and a look of regret.
Selah took a deep breath. She wanted to leave, but she could not move her feet as if they were stuck on the ground.
"What do you mean?" Raising his eyebrows, Lucas asked, "Can't you still give up on her? Aren't you with Selah already?"
"Even if she likes William, so what? William has brought her so much pain. It's better for her if I protect her." Barry smiled but sadness was evident in his eyes. "Even if I have a son, I still can't stop loving her. Selah's appearance was an accident."
Hearing that, Selah covered her mouth with her hand, afraid that she would cry out.
"Why hasn't Aunt Selah come back yet?" Elissa's voice was heard by her in the bedroom.
Selah was still shocked with what she had heard. She turned around and staggered back to the bedroom where the children were staying.
Just as she went inside, Elissa was about to go out. "Aunt Selah, you’re back! I was going to find you just now."
"Well... I'm here now!" Selah said to Elissa with a forced smile.
"Mom, didn't you bring juice for us?" Ray stared at her mother in confusion.
"The Juice," repeated Selah, trying to hold back the tears in her eyes and pretending to be relaxed. "Unfortunately, we've run out of juice."
"I see. Forget it. We can drink juice tomorrow anyway," said Alick.
"Okay." Selah nodded in a daze.
In the balcony, the two men were still talking. "Sometimes it's not a good thing to fall in love so deeply," Lucas said and he patted Barry on the shoulder.
"Sure. I will come back early for you." She then touched his head comfortingly.
After a few minutes, she got on the van and left. Barry and Ray stood at the gate of the villa for a long time as they watched the car leave.
Inside the van, Selah wondered, 'If I'm just an accident to Barry, would he set me free again one day?'
On the first day after Selah had gone, Barry missed her.
On the second day, Barry still missed her.
The third day, the fourth day... Barry could not help but count the days, wondering when Selah would come back home.
"Why do you look so upset during the meeting just now?" Walking out of the meeting room with Barry, Mary suddenly asked.
"Did I?" Barry just smiled and looked at Mary's belly. "How is your baby today?"
"You are trying to change the subject, Barry. It's obvious! " With pursed lips, Mary snickered, "Is it because Selah went to another city for a shooting? Do you miss her?"
"I... I just think that Ray will miss her as she left him at home."
"Really? Is that really the reason?" Mary deliberately stared at him and said, "Your look reminded me of the time when we were in college." "Yeah? Why is that?" Barry was extremely confused. "When we were in college, every time you wanted to hold my hand, you'd be shy," answered Mary with a bigger smile. "It's the same look as now. Barry, you are feeling shy."
Her words made him speechless for a while.
"Listen to me. If you miss her, go and see her. You can think of an excuse or reason why you're there. Just tell them you are going to inspect and supervise their work. As long as you want to go there, you will find reason. I'm sure she will be very touched." What Mary suggested made sense. William used to do that to her. He was sure he could do it to Selah as well.
"Really?" Barry's eyes lit up at the thought of it.
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