Free Web NovelChapter 76: Grandmother, Please Do Me A Favor
"Wendy, I’ve already dealt with the news articles about you," Michael decided to speak first when he observed Wendy’s silence. He explained, "Don’t worry, what happened at the party last night will not pop up online ever again."
Wendy remained quiet. After the news about the party blew up, there were already many people in Lake City who had heard about it. Even if Michael took down all the articles about her on the internet, she was sure that there were still many people talking about her and making fun of her in private. As such, Michael was too late.
Michael felt helpless when confronted with Wendy’s behavior. He never really knew how to coax other people into forgiving him. Right now, he had no idea what he could do.
Wendy rolled down the window and gazed at the scenery outside. Just a while ago, she thought that she could say goodbye to Lake City forever.
She never thought Michael would manage to stop her from leaving. Her eyes grew damp with tears as she took in these familiar surroundings.
Just as she had expected, the car drove to their neighborhood. Wendy found herself in a place that was both familiar and heartbreaking at the same time. As if she had resigned herself to her fate, she made her way back to the apartment once she got out of the car.
Michael’s bodyguards helped to carry her suitcase back to the apartment before leaving. Finally, Michael was left alone with Wendy in the apartment.
Wendy maintained her silence. She sat down on the couch, grabbed the remote control, and turned on the television. Then, she simply watched TV as if Michael did not exist.
Michael, on the other hand, felt increasingly helpless. He looked down at Wendy with his hands on his hips, trying to figure out what he could say. He thought about it for a long time but could not come up with anything. Finally, he said, "You haven’t had lunch, right? What do you want to eat? I can cook for you."
There was no response.
"I’ll go and cook something. You can continue watching television. I will be back soon." With that, he turned around and went to the kitchen.
There were many ingredients in the refrigerator. Since the both of them had been staying in the apartment recently, it was stocked with everything that they could have needed. The only thing that Wendy did not expect was for her blissful life to end so quickly and suddenly.
Soon, a commotion was heard in the kitchen, with the distinctive sounds of spatulas and pots falling to the ground. If Michael had not already said that he was going to be cooking, any normal person would have thought that there was a robbery happening in there.
After half an hour, Michael walked out of the kitchen with a defeated look on his face. Sighing, he said, "I think I’d just order some take-out." With that, he gave Mr. York a call.
Soon after, delicious food arrived at the apartment. Michael laid out two sets of silverware on the dining table and said, "Wendy, it’s time to eat."
Wendy did feel hungry. Even though she was used to starving, she knew that she could not do the same now that she was pregnant.
However, she did not want to eat anything that Michael had ordered. Standing up, she walked into the kitchen. It was only then that she saw just what a mess Michael had made. There were puddles of water everywhere, shards of broken glass, and the sink was clogged. She shut her eyes and took a deep breath. She was afraid that she would end up grabbing a knife and stabbing someone if she did not calm herself down.
When Michael saw Wendy cleaning the kitchen, he felt guilty. Scratching his head, he said, "You don’t have to clean up, I’ll get someone to do it later. Come and eat first, the food won’t be nearly as good anymore once it gets cold."
Wendy simply treated him like he was invisible. Since she was ignoring him, he decided all he could do was to clean the kitchen along with her.
After the kitchen was back to its original state, she quickly cooked up one side dish and one soup dish. This was enough food for her alone. freeweɓnovel.cѳm
Since the take-out food that Michael had ordered was on the dining table, Wendy carried her dishes to the coffee table instead. When he saw her eating alone there, he sighed again, "Wendy, please don’t act like that, okay?"
This was not the first time that he had said something like that to Wendy. She thought, has Michael always thought of me as unreasonable?
Suppressing the anger inside, she ignored him and continued eating her meal. When she was done, she walked past him to the kitchen and washed the dishes. After everything was done, she grabbed a blanket and laid down on the couch for a nap. It did not matter whether she could fall asleep or not. Once she shut her eyes, she would not be able to see Michael. To her, that was a good enough thing.
Michael did not go to work. He stayed at home with Wendy, watching her. He was not so much afraid that she would try to leave Lake City again. Rather, he knew he would feel anxious if he could not see her. In the evening, Wendy cooked for herself again. Just like in the afternoon, she only cooked one portion for herself. She did not bother making extra food for Michael.
Since Wendy had already eaten, Michael did not order take-out again. Instead, he went to the kitchen and cooked some instant noodles. That was the only dish he had ever learned to make.
The most he could do was add an egg to his noodles. After dinner, Michael watched as Wendy climbed into bed after a shower. He entered the bedroom so he could cover her with a blanket. After a moment of hesitation, he removed his jacket and laid down beside her.
When Wendy felt someone next to her, she suddenly sat upright and stared at Michael with apprehension in her eyes.
"Wendy, I’ll stay on my side. I won’t disturb you," said Michael.
She continued staring at him.
Helpless, he could only admit defeat, "Fine, I’ll sleep in the other room."
Despite Michael agreeing to leave the room, Wendy remained wide awake. She turned on her bedside lamp at around 1 A.M. Since she had already made up her mind to leave Lake City, she had continued thinking about it nonstop since she failed her attempt.
She thought, Michael should be asleep by now, right?
After creeping out of bed, Wendy changed out of her pajamas. She grabbed her phone, ID, and neatly packed suitcase, and walked out of the bedroom.
She had just gripped the front door handle when Michael’s voice rang out behind her, "Wendy..."
The suddenness of hearing his voice at this time of the night gave Wendy quite a shock.
Michael switched on the living room light as Wendy turned her head to see him standing behind her with a frown. Her plan to leave Lake City had once again failed. She then left the suitcase beside the door and went back to bed without saying a word.
Michael stayed at home with her for three entire days, but Wendy did not say a single word to him. Zen dropped by for a visit during this period and chatted with her. However, there was nothing much that she could do to help Wendy considering her circumstances. Hence, Wendy decided not to tell her friend too much about what was going on.
Michael really felt very helpless. This type of dilemma was something that he had never encountered even in business. Since he had no other choice, he took out his phone and called Mrs. Lucas.
"Grandmother, please do me a favor," said Michael, sounding despondent.
When Mrs. Lucas heard him, she immediately scolded him, "You rascal! Look at what you’ve done! I don’t even have the desire to help you right now."
Mrs. Lucas was a very intelligent woman. She had guessed that Michael probably wanted her to talk to Wendy on his behalf the moment she saw his name on the phone. When she first found out about what happened at the party, she had called Michael to yell at him. At that time, Michael had assured her that he could deal with this matter and asked her not to worry about it.
However, it had been three days. Even though he had stayed by Wendy’s side the entire time, she had not spoken a single word to him. Michael knew that he had really hurt Wendy’s feelings this time.
"Grandmother, Wendy respects you the most and usually listens to your advice," said Michael with his head lowered. "Please help me this once by doing what you always did in the past asking her to go back to the mansion with me. I’ve been at home with her for three whole days, but she has not spoken a single word to me. I’m afraid that I might go insane if this goes on, even if she doesn’t."
"I can help you, but I cannot guarantee that it will be successful this time," said Mrs. Lucas.
She had always been very fond of Wendy, and she knew that Michael had been in the wrong in this incident. In fact, she felt equally unjust for Wendy. However, Michael was still her grandson at the end of the day, and since she liked having Wendy around, she did not want to see them get divorced. Hence, she agreed to help.
"Thank you, Grandmother," Michael sighed in relief when he heard her agree.
Soon after, Wendy’s phone rang. She did not want to answer when saw that it was from Mrs. Lucas. After all, she was not stupid. She managed to guess instantly why Mrs. Lucas was calling. However, she was also not surprised.
She knew that Mrs. Lucas had always hoped for her relationship with Michael to work out well, and since something so drastic had happened, it was natural for Grandmother to take his side and reach out to her on his behalf. Since Mrs. Lucas usually treated her so well, she could not bring herself to let the phone call go unanswered.
"Grandmother," Wendy greeted Mrs. Lucas the moment she answered.
"Wendy, I’ve been craving for your home-baked pastries. if you have time tonight, make some and bring them over," said Mrs. Lucas. Her tone sounded as compassionate as it always did.
"I’m sorry, Grandmother. I haven’t been feeling very well recently. Maybe next time?" said Wendy. This was the first time she had rejected any request from Mrs. Lucas. She knew very well that there was only one reason why Mrs. Lucas would summon her back to the mansion right now, and that was to talk to her for Michael.
However, this was a topic that she did not wish to discuss with anyone right now.
It was not as if she had never given Michael another chance. On the contrary, she had given him so many chances. If he had so much as spared a thought for her the night that he abandoned her at the party by making sure that news about this incident did not surface on the internet, she would not be so despondent right now. She gave him chance after chance, but all she got in return was disappointment.
She had suffered through so much disappointment over the past three years that it felt like her heart had already withered. This time, she had already made up her mind to leave.
Even if Michael chose to watch her, stay with her, and stand by her like he was now, she no longer wished to give him another chance.
Mrs. Lucas was not surprised to hear Wendy’s refusal. She knew that Wendy genuinely loved Michael with all her heart. Otherwise, there was no way that she could have stayed in this marriage until now. Mrs. Lucas also knew that Wendy was not a materialistic woman, she did not covet Michael’s status and wealth. It was indeed Michael’s fault for how things had turned out-he had thoroughly let Wendy down.
At this thought, Mrs. Lucas felt equally culpable.
Sighing, she said, "Wendy, it’s my fault that this has happened. I did not teach my children and grandchildren properly and we let you down. I feel so guilty."
"Don’t say that, Grandmother," said Wendy, who had always been impartial and knew how well Mrs. Lucas had always treated her, "I’m very thankful to you for how much you’ve watched out for me all these years. I’ve always thought of you like my own Grandmother." ƒгeeweɓn૦vel.com
"Since that’s the case, you should come to the mansion. It’s been a while since I last saw you, I miss you."
Once again confronted with Mrs. Lucas’s request, Wendy gritted her teeth. She closed her eyes and rejected her firmly, "I’m sorry, Grandmother."
A long sigh came through over the phone. Since Mrs. Lucas could not force her into going back to the mansion, she could only say, "In that case, I hope you can come and visit me in a few more days."
"Sure," said Wendy.
