Chapter 494 Can You Get Her to Speak?
Nora's face turned serious, and Millie nodded, "Oh, I won't say it anymore. Mommy, please don't dislike me."
Seeing the little girl who suddenly appeared and looked like her, she felt a bit uneasy for no apparent reason.
She was afraid that if Nora stopped liking her, she would be abandoned, and Nora would prefer other children.
"I won't dislike you, Millie. I really like you," Nora comforted Millie softly.
Millie became happy and sweetly said, "That's great; I like you too, Mommy."
Beside Nora, Erin pursed her little mouth and leaned closer to Nora, her small body snuggling up to her.
Samantha had been observing her and, seeing this, asked in confusion, "Why do you always stay close to my Mommy? Don't you have a Mommy?"
Hearing this, Erin remained silent, just lowering her little head, seeming a bit lost and sad.
Nora gently touched her small head and said to Samantha, "Erin's Mommy is no longer here. Don't bully her and get along well with her, okay?"
Hearing this, Samantha finally understood, "So she doesn't have a Mommy anymore; that's why she likes to stick with you."
"Uh-huh, because Mommy is so lovely, that's why the kids like to stick with her," Millie chimed in.
Nora smiled, feeling a sense of accomplishment being loved by these little ones.
"Mommy, why is she not talking?" Billy hesitated for a moment and asked.
"Yeah, Mommy, is she mute?" Samantha tilted her head, looking curious.
Before Nora could speak, Alex, who had been silent all along, suddenly said, "I think she might have autism."
All the children looked at him. Samantha asked in confusion, "What is autism?"
After a moment of silence, Alex explained, "It should be a mental disorder. People with autism have difficulty with social interaction and communication, among other things."
All the children then looked at Erin.
Millie, in her innocence, said, "So, she's a mentally ill person!"
As soon as she said that, she realized her mistake, and seeing Nora looking at her, she quickly covered her little mouth and shook her head frantically.
Nora remained silent. Seeing Erin keeping her head down and not saying a word, Nora sighed quietly.
Children are too naive, and Millie's words were not meant to be malicious. Nora should have paid more attention to what she said.
But if even Millie unintentionally said embarrassing things repeatedly, Nora could imagine that Erin must often hear such unpleasant remarks.
However, Matthew seemed to dote on her, and perhaps he protected Erin well, shielding her from such hurtful words.
But Matthew wouldn't live for too long. Who would protect Erin in the future?
Matthew explained, "Erin isn't naturally autistic. It's just that I kept her at home when she was young, with no one to talk to. That's why she became withdrawn. In fact, she can speak."
Matthew entered at some point and overheard the children's conversation.
Nora felt apologetic and said to her children, "Look at how lovely Erin is. If you can make her speak, you'll be the best kids."
Hearing this, Samantha and Millie felt encouraged and started to cheer Erin up, trying to make her speak.
"Erin, I'm Samantha. What's your name?" Samantha introduced herself.
"Erin, I'm Millie. I'm almost four years old. How about you?" Millie said.
"Erin, what do you usually like to do?" Samantha asked.
"Erin, where are you from?" Millie added.
They asked Erin many questions, but no matter what they said, Erin remained silent.
Millie had talked too much, and her throat felt dry, so she finally gave up.
She looked at Alex, who had been silent all along, and said, "Alex, you're the smartest. Can you get her to speak?"
Alex also felt helpless. After all, he wasn't a doctor, so he had no way of making an autistic person speak!
However...
Alex noticed that Erin had been holding a Rubik's Cube in her hand, and an idea came to him.
"I can also play the Rubik's Cube. Would you like to have a competition with me?" Alex suggested.
Erin slowly looked up at him, then lowered her gaze back to the Rubik's Cube in her hand, still not saying a word.
Alex saw the interest in her eyes and deliberately asked, "Are you brave enough to compete with me?"
Erin pursed her little mouth and glanced at Matthew.
Matthew smiled slightly and replied, "Erin says she dares."
Alex furrowed his brow, and asked, "Why are you letting your dad speak for you? Do you want your dad to speak for you for the rest of your life?"
Erin remained silent and started playing with the Rubik's Cube in her hand.
After thinking for a moment, Alex said, "If you don't speak, I'll take it as you agree to the competition. We'll compete to solve the Rubik's Cube. If I win, you have to speak."
Erin's hand paused, but she still didn't say anything.
Alex ignored her and took the Rubik's Cube from her hand, saying to Nora, "Mommy, please time us."
"All right," Nora agreed.
Nora looked intrigued, curious to see if Alex could really make Erin speak.
Alex steadied his emotions and began manipulating the Rubik's Cube.
The cafe was silent, everyone watching as Alex focused. He skillfully solved the Rubik's Cube, which made crisp clicking sounds as he earnestly played with it. He quickly solved one side, then two, then three, until he had restored all the sides of the Rubik's Cube.
Erin's gaze was fixed on the Rubik's Cube in Alex's hand, excitement shining in her bright eyes.
"I'm done," he said and restored the Rubik's Cube in less than three minutes.
The children applauded enthusiastically, expressing their amazement.
Alex maintained his usual proud expression, scrambled the Rubik's Cube, and handed it to Erin.
"Your turn," he informed.
Erin took the Rubik's Cube, still kept silent, and began to solve it.
Her movements were quick, indicating that she was familiar with the Rubik's Cube and quite clever.
Alex watched her delicate hands, his gaze fixed on a mole on her hand, which reminded him of the mole in the hacker's profile picture.
A thought crossed his mind, startling him.
‘Could Uncle Matthew be the hacker I know? No, it couldn't be. It was too much of a coincidence. There are many similar hands in the world. He couldn't determine that he was the hacker based on just one hand.’
Alex dismissed his speculation and continued to watch Erin solve the Rubik's Cube.
Soon, Erin had restored the Rubik's Cube, taking only three and a half minutes.
Alex smiled and said, "You lost; now you have to speak!"
Erin stared at the restored Rubik's Cube in her hand, her big eyes slowly turning, seemingly hesitant.
Samantha walked up to her and said, "Erin, you have to keep your promise. You lost, so you have to speak."
"Yes, Erin, can you say Alex's name?" Millie also approached and spoke.
Erin slowly looked up, then down again, gripping the Rubik's Cube in her hand tightly as if struggling with a difficult decision.
After a while, just when everyone thought she wouldn't speak, she finally uttered a word.
Erin uttered, "Alex." Her voice was as soft as a newborn kitten, so adorable that it melted everyone's hearts.
The children all smiled.
Samantha said, "Erin, so you can really speak."
Millie added, "Erin, can you say a little more? He is Billy, she is Samantha, and I am Millie."
Samantha and Millie excitedly talked to Erin, whose ears gradually turned red, and eyes sparkled.
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