The Girl They Ignored Returned as the Woman Seven Men Would Die For novel Chapter 63

"You're too sweet," Leona said, both moved and heartbroken by her maturity. She scooped a bowl of soup herself and handed it to Mika.

"You don't need to cook all the time. Working and studying for grad school is hard enough. I'm perfectly happy just getting a taste of your cooking every once in a while."

"Thank you."

Mika took the tomato soup, her eyes curving into a harmless, sweet smile.

Out of the corner of her eye, she caught Julian rolling his eyes in obvious disdain.

She paused, then suddenly turned to Leona.

"Actually, it's not all that exhausting. You have to balance work and play, right? I read webnovels to relax. There's this one mystery author named The Seventh Day. Have you heard of him?"

Hearing that name, Julian's spine snapped completely straight, as if someone had just poked him with a cattle prod.

A second later, he grabbed a piece of lotus root, shoved it directly into Mika's bowl, and offered a forced, warning smile.

"Eat your food. Stop reading that useless trash. Reading to relax? That sounds exhausting to me."

Mika's lips twitched upward, but before she could respond, Mrs. Remington chimed in defensively. "How can you call literature useless? You loved reading when you were a little boy. Your room used to be full of those books."

Leona glared at her grandson. "Don't think just because you're a few years older than Mika that you're more capable than her. Keep your mouth shut! And since you've got so much to say, you're washing the dishes tonight!"

"Fine, I'll shut up, okay?" Julian shot Mika a highly resentful glare, muttering under his breath as he stared down at his plate.

"I swear you like her more than your own flesh and blood now..."

Leona put on a stern face, her tone serious. "Precisely because you are my grandson, I want you to learn from a good kid like her.

Don't think sitting in a wheelchair makes you an emperor. You still need to do your share of the chores."

Hearing this, Mika had to use every ounce of self-control not to laugh out loud.

She had assumed that because of Julian's condition, the atmosphere in this house would be gloomy, and that everyone would treat him with excessive caution.

She wheeled him right up to the sink and was pleasantly surprised to find that the counter was the perfect height for his chair.

Leona was already on the couch watching TV, clearly used to bossing him around.

Mika felt absolutely zero guilt. She was just about to leave when Julian suddenly grabbed her hand.

Mika turned around. Under the dim, warm light of the kitchen, Julian had tucked away all his sharp edges.

He looked up at her, his deep brown eyes gazing helplessly into hers, carrying just a hint of soulful pleading.

"Aren't you my biggest fan? Why don't you wash them for me? It really is inconvenient for me..."

Mika offered a soft smile and peeled his fake-pitiful hand off hers.

"Doing light chores is great for your joints and muscle function, and it's good for your mental health too.

For the sake of your overall wellbeing, I won't steal this opportunity from you!"