Chapter 152
Afterwards, Adam and I parted ways. I let him have the space he probably needed right now and rode back to my house to grab the things I needed for school.
Should probably be pushed to the back of my mind with all these life and death situations popping left and right but my parents paid a hefty tuition fee. I might as well make the most of it while juggling the death threats as best as I could.
Funnily enough, my pride might still get bruised if I saw a grade lower than an 80.
I guess the nerd personality didn't just wear off when high school ended.
I had some notes to catch up on and to read over but I personally thought I was doing better than most would, considering my circumstances.
I switched my bike with the car instead when I got home and tried to pack up a school bag as quick as possible to start my day on time. I tried to cover the bruises on my face with some concealer, but it turns out that a swollen eye was very difficult to cover so I tried to work with what I could. I had a lecture in another half an hour and if I acted like the hellhounds were on my heels, I'd make it there on time with a few minutes to spare.
The day passed quickly, I mostly ignored everyone and focused on catching up with the materials I was falling back on. It felt as if my university life had been put on pause and it would only resume when I've dealt with the other pressing matters in my life.
My day went on as uneventful as possible, which was a relief, to say the least. When everything else in your life seemed to be exploding into flames, it was relaxing to have at least one thing remain plain and boring.
I sent a silent thanks to the man above when I got through the day with no one questioning the limp in my walk and minded their own business without questioning my swollen eye.
When the day ended, I decided to get some more ice cream to lift my mood even further.
I stopped by the convenience store to grab myself some Ben & Jerry's. It was the same store where I met Cole's mom.
I've been thinking of the different questions I could ask the woman regarding Cole to maybe find Cole's weakness. I was barely pulling through this competition. Even though I was already in the semi-finals, I needed to beat another guy and Cole before I could win this competition and if Cole was pulling through into the finals too, I clearly shouldn't be underestimating him.
I almost died during the last competition. I've gone this far, I can't fail at the last minute.
I pushed open the door to the store and made a beeline to the fridges at the back of the store where the ice creams are. I was scanning the contents of the fridge, for my favorite flavor when I heard faint joyous screams of kids. I saw the newcomers through the store's window and immediately tensed.
The old lady and the kids I saw with Cole walked in through the door.
‘I guess it was my lucky day after all,' I mused to myself as I grabbed a tub and walked towards the old lady.
"Hi, how are you?" I greeted her with a warm smile. She looked up and mirrored my smile.
"I'm sorry, I don't think I introduced myself properly the last time we met," I began, trying to start the conversation slowly so that she'll feel comfortable with me.
My parents had always told me I had extra charm when it came to the elderly.
"My name's Sandra," I offered her my hand. She took it, still smiling at me and introducing herself as Lionett.
I turned to where the three kids were bickering. I let a small smile grace my lips, thinking about how much they reminded me of Bryant and I when we were kids.
"Such angelic creatures, aren't they?" Lionett joked, chuckling as she shook her head when she noticed what I was looking at.
I laughed with her as we continued to watch the kids.
"They remind me of how I was with my brother. We used to give my parents such a hard time when we were their age," I shared with a smile.
"Well your parents are lucky. At least you grew out of it after a few years, I remembered my sons being the same way until my eldest hit his early 20s." Lionett rolled her eyes and I smiled sadly at what she said.
"Actually, my brother and I stopped wreaking havoc because he passed away a few years ago. We never got to fint out how long we would've carried on annoying my parents," I told her, giving her a weak smile.
Her face fell at what I said, "I'm sorry, dear. I didn't know."
I smiled reassuringly at her, telling her that it was alright.
"So how many children do you have?" I decided to change the subject and started digging for some information.
"Oh, they're all my kids, dear. I adopted those three rascals a couple years back and I have two sons that are my own flesh and blood." She answered me, motioning to the kids that were now playing tag at the back of the store.
"Lucas is the oldest between those three, he's six. Then you have Gemma and Alex, they're both turning four years old in a few months. Gemma's older than Alex by a couple of months." She introduced the kids and I listened carefully as we continued to watch them run around the store.
"They're my everything. Adopting them wasn't easy but I don't regret it. My sons, bless their souls, have been working their butts off to help me. I couldn't be more grateful for the family I've been blessed with."
A lump has formed in my throat as she told me about her big family. I couldn't help but feel guilty. Cole's family needed that money. The money was for these kids. That's why the two brothers joined the competition; to increase their chances in winning.
Everything suddenly seemed to fall into place. I found the missing pieces.
