Suddenly, Leila's face turned serious. She took Melissa's hand and solemnly said, "Aunt Melissa, although the abduction was fake, I can promise you that I'd do anything to save you if it was real. Aunt Melissa, look, you're the only person I can completely depend on in this world. If there is anything that I didn't do well enough before, please excuse me for that. I'll show you the rest of my life that I'll always love you and respect you."
Like a string of pearls, tears began falling down from Leila's eyes.
Overwhelmed, Melissa patted the back of Leila's hands and said sincerely, "You're always nice to me, Leila. If there were any misunderstanding between us, it might mostly been my fault. I've learned my lesson. I can identify good from bad now. We're going to take care of each other in the future."
Melissa's words sort of assured Leila. She felt secured.
Delighted by the thought that she would soon move back to the Lu family and could see Charles every day, Leila gripped Melissa's hand again and sobbed, "I must have done lots of good things in my previous life, or I must be blessed by heaven. Meeting you is the best thing that ever happened to me, Aunt Melissa!" Looking at Melissa attentively, Leila felt like she was watching her own mother.
Melissa enjoyed Leila's flattery and couldn't help smiling. She gazed at Leila gladly and promised with determination, "I'm deeply flattered, Leila. Please wait for some time. I'll make arrangements so you can move back to our house soon, and then I don't have to be alone anymore!"
"Thank you, Aunt Melissa. I have no other wishes in my life as long as I can stay with you!" Leila said placidly, but the truth was, she was jumping out of joy from the inside.
"I'll find a perfect time to talk to Charles later, and I believe that after he has seen how well you treat me, he'll agree without any hesitation," Melissa assured her.
Leila smiled and nodded. She could already paint the picture in her mind.
Inside Dream Garden, Nancy was busy packing food into lunch boxes.
"Sher, are you going to visit Mrs. Lu?" she asked. Sheryl had asked Nancy to cook several dishes, which were all Melissa's favorites, but with low lipid and high protein. Although Sheryl didn't mention it, Nancy supposed that was what Sheryl would do.
Sheryl cracked a faint smile at Nancy, and then nodded. She came to help Nancy in packing and sounding a little annoyed, she said, "Charles told me that Leila was stabbed in her arm when rescuing his mother, and I want to pay her a visit to show my gratitude."
Sheryl was sensible. Even if she resented Leila for bringing so much trouble in her life and couldn't get along very well with Melissa, she still decided to visit them, mostly because of Charles.
"Don't worry, Sher. I think it is no big deal, else Mr. Lu would tell you if she has been badly wounded. Are you taking Clark and Shirley with you?" Trying to make Sheryl feel better, Nancy decided to change the topic.
"Right. I'll take them with me. They don't have to go to school today anyway. I hope Melissa feels better when she sees them. I'll send them back when we're done there," Sheryl replied. While Nancy and Sheryl got everything ready, Clark and Shirley happened to run down the stairs, hand in hand.
"Mommy, where are we going? To visit Grandma?" Clark asked as he stopped by the dining table, holding Shirley's hand.
Sheryl nodded for approval and held the two kids in her arms, kissing them on their heads. She then squat down to button Shirley's shirt for her. A few moments later, she drove them to the hospital.
It was a sunny day. Getting through the smooth traffic, they finally arrived at the hospital after less than an hour.
Sheryl initially planned to visit Nick first, but they ran into Melissa the moment they entered the building.
It seemed like she had just finished a checkup and was on her way back to the ward with a nurse.
"Good morning, Mom. Is everything alright?" Sheryl asked as she stopped right beside Melissa. Her voice was carrying an alienated courtesy. Sheryl sighed inside. Given a choice, she would rather not see Melissa, but now she had to put on a polite expression. She reminded herself that she was Charles' mother and her children's grandma, so she needed to act civil no matter how she despised her.
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