Chapter 25 The Taste of Home
"What's wrong?" Seeing the shocked expression on Bennett's face, Jasper faintly curled his lips. "Surprised to see me?"
Bennett swallowed and nodded honestly, "Yes, quite surprised..."
How did he find this place?
"I guess introductions aren't necessary."
The man took a clean glass and elegantly poured himself a glass of beer and said, "Since you saved my daughter, why were you avoiding me?"
"I-I wasn't avoiding you," Bennett stammered, turning his face away, unable to meet his gaze.
Although he used to frequently criticize him as a scumbag, when he suddenly appeared beside him, Bennett couldn't help but feel uneasy.
Jasper chuckled lightly, "Really not avoiding me?"
Bennett coughed softly, "I'm just doing good deeds anonymously."
"Do good deeds but leave no trace at all?"
He practically searched the amusement park today and checked the staff who entered and exited, but couldn't find any trace of him.
Bennett picked up his orange juice and took a sip, remaining silent.
Jasper didn't continue to dwell on the previous question. He picked up the orange juice bottle and refilled Bennett's empty glass. "How old are you?"
"Six years old."
The same age as Lauren.
Jasper looked at the young boy beside him and his eyes held a hint of appreciation and asked, "How do you know how to operate the control of the Ferris wheel?"
Bennett glanced at him, "Classified."
Jasper smiled gently, "What if I insisted on asking?"
He had watched the specific surveillance footage. This little boy went straight to the control room after Lauren had an accident.
When he found that the control room door couldn't be opened, he didn't hesitate and immediately took advantage of the two security guards at the stairwell.
The wit and adaptability of this little guy were things many adults couldn't achieve.
"If I must inquire, what will you do?"
"Why do you have to ask me this?" Bennett picked up his orange juice and took a sip, disguising his uneasiness. "Are you trying to learn from me and do good deeds without seeking recognition in the future?"
The little guy's playful tone made Jasper laugh.
"Why are you so mature?"
He seemed more like a mature adult than a six-year-old child.
Bennett looked at him, furrowing his brow as he pondered for a moment, "Maybe it's because my biological father died early, even before I was born. His grave has gathered dust. That's why I became mature at an early age."
The little guy said this with a smile.
No matter how Jasper listened, he felt that something was off in his words.
But he couldn't quite put his finger on what was off exactly.
He turned to look at this child, who was the same age as Lauren, trying to comfort him, "Your dad will turn into a star and watch over you in the sky."
He didn't have much experience, but from the TV dramas Ryan had watched before, that seemed to be how people comforted each other.
Bennett rolled his eyes silently.
He shrugged. "Forget it, if that deadbeat becomes a star and watches over me in the sky, I might never dare to go out at night again in the future."
"Why?"
"I'd be disgusted."
Why did Jasper feel like this child's attitude became particularly bad every time he mentioned his father?
Was it because children who lacked paternal love were this fragile?
Unexplainably, he thought of Lauren. Lauren was six years old.
In the six years she spent without him, she was also a child without a father, wasn't she?
So, he coughed lightly. "Were the days without a father difficult?"
"Not too bad," Bennett smirked, giving Jasper a mischievous smile. "The sooner that deadbeat dies, the better. Although I'm his son, I also want to do good for the people."
Seeing that the conversation was about to cool down, Bennett reluctantly asked, "Why are you asking this?"
"I just wanted to know, as a child without a father like you, if one day you suddenly had a father, what would you hope your father would do for you?"
In the past, Jasper was someone who rarely spoke so much even in front of his friends.
But for some reason, when he saw this little boy, he always felt an instant connection, an inexplicable desire to get closer to him and chat.
Bennett turned his gaze and guessed that Jasper was asking this question for Lauren's sake.
Did this deadbeat want to make it up to Lauren?
The little guy frowned, thinking of what Lauren had said to him before.
"Bennett, if you were back with Daddy, what would you want Daddy to do for you?"
"Lauren wants Daddy to cook delicious food for me like Mommy."
"Like Mommy, Daddy should do my hair and pick out clothes for me."
"And like Mommy, Daddy should tell me bedtime stories!"
...
Bennett hesitated for a moment.
"I hope my biological father can cook delicious food for me, pick out clothes for me, and tell me bedtime stories," Bennett said.
Jasper frowned, "You still need someone to tell you bedtime stories?"
This little kid is so mature that he could tell bedtime stories to others.
"Of course, I still want to hear bedtime stories!" Bennett said unhappily, "I'm still a child! Just because I'm intelligent, clever, resourceful, cute, and handsome, doesn't mean you can overlook the fact that I'm only six years old!"
"Alright," Jasper said.
The man entered Bennett's requests into his phone and asked Ryan to settle the bill for their table.
Glancing at the dark sky, Jasper stood up, "It's getting late, should I take you back?"
Bennett looked at Tim lying on the table, then glanced at Tom who was standing far away, afraid to come closer, "Okay."
Jasper escorted him to the car, "You saved my daughter, I should thank you properly. What reward do you want?"
"No thanks," Bennett waved his hand, "Providing me with two bodyguards for work is more than enough."
After speaking, he looked out the car window, "However, I hope you thoroughly investigate this matter and teach those responsible a lesson. Fulfill your duties as a father and take care of your daughter."
The child's words left Jasper silent for a long time.
He never expected that one day, he would be speechless because of a six-year-old boy.
Soon, they arrived at the address Bennett had mentioned.
The car stopped, and Bennett got out. After bidding farewell to Jasper, he entered the building's hallway.
Only when the man's car was completely gone did he emerge from the hallway, walked across to the opposite neighborhood, and opened the door with his key to return home.
In the master bedroom, Violet had already fallen asleep.
Bennett quietly returned to the guest room.
"Brother," lying on the bed, he called Blake on the phone, "I've discovered that the scumbag isn't as bad as I imagined."
On the other end of the phone, Blake lay on a hospital bed, one hand holding the phone, while the other received an IV drip, "If he had no redeeming qualities, Mommy wouldn't have liked him so much."
Bennett nodded, "That's true. But even if he has redeeming qualities, he's still a scumbag!"
Late at night, Blue Bay fell into silence.
After putting Lauren to sleep, Adeline quietly left the children's room.
Although the little girl had appeared calm all along, she was scared today and couldn't fall asleep at night.
Adeline tried her best but couldn't get her to sleep.
In the end, she promised Lauren that when she woke up in the morning, she could see the photo album where she kept her old pictures. Only then did the little girl fall asleep with longing.
And the photo album that Adeline promised Lauren was the one she had brought when she married into the family.
The time it was casually left on the attic, Adeline doesn't know if it's still there today.
The woman took a deep breath and made sure everyone in the villa was asleep before cautiously pushing open the study door and climbing up to the attic.
Inside the attic, everything was covered in dust, indicating that it hadn't been cleaned for many years.
Adeline turned on her flashlight and searched through the dust for a long time until she finally found the album.
Brushing off the dust from the cover, she gently opened the album.
Inside the album were all the youthful and innocent photos of sixteen-year-old Adeline.
She raised her hand and gently caressed the woman in the photos, feeling a myriad of emotions in her heart.
Back when she took this album, she didn't know Jasper yet, nor did she know that there was a heart in this world that couldn't be warmed no matter how much she tried.
She sat on the ladder, looking at her past self in the album, and inadvertently became lost in thought.
Until suddenly, the study door was forcefully opened!
Log in with Google Account
Chapters
Favorite
Settings
