Chapter 187 Hunter's Mishap
When Patricia arrived home, it was exactly one hour from when she messaged Martin. Ten minutes prior, Martin had arrived, sitting on the couch with Randy, waiting for her.
Charles and Fannie had been ready for a while and were growing anxious. Seeing her return, they couldn't help but complain, "You said you were off work hours ago, why are you only getting back now?"
Patricia, full of apologies, replied, "I'm sorry, something held me up! Let me go change my clothes."
Charles followed her in, pointing at the clothes on the bed, "I picked these out for you, just wear this."
Patricia looked in the direction he was pointing. On the bed lay a bright red down jacket and a white scarf that looked very festive. Patricia's lips twitched involuntarily, "Is it necessary to wear something so red?"
She emphasized the word 'red' with a deliberate tone. The clothes were a birthday gift from Charles and Fannie last year. They were pricey, and she was both touched and pleased.
But, because it was too red, she had only worn it once on her birthday and never again. It hung in the very back of her closet ever since. Unexpectedly, today Charles and Fannie dug it out.
Charles gestured on himself and with a smile said to Patricia, whose eyes were slowly growing wider, "Today the five of us, the whole family, will wear red. It's a family ensemble."
Reminded by him, Patricia suddenly recalled, that the three little ones were indeed dressed in red, but Martin was sitting on the sofa, and she hadn't looked closely to see what color he was wearing, but it was definitely not such a glaring red.
"The kids look good in red, but me wearing red... uh... there's a risk of trying to look too young... others might laugh."
Charles, hands on his hips and pouting, airily said, "It's a family ensemble, and anyone with eyes could see that. No one will laugh at you."
"But..." Patricia wanted to say more but was interrupted by Charles.
"No buts. It's rare that we have the chance to go out as a family of five; do you really want to spoil the mood?"
Facing Charles' stern look, Patricia pursed her lips tightly, not daring to argue any further, resignedly she put on the red down jacket. At least Charles had some conscience and prepared a white scarf for her to add some flair.
After leaving the room, Patricia took a good look at Martin. Only then did she notice that he was indeed wearing red, although not bright red, but a more understated and composed maroon.
He wore a woolen red long coat, paired with a white turtleneck sweater, broad shoulders tapering to a narrow waist, and legs so impossibly long. His proportions were so perfect it was as if he had stepped straight out of a magazine as a model.
No. He looked even better than a model's figure. One look and you'd be utterly captivated. Patricia couldn't tear her eyes away.
Noticing her reaction, Randy grinned and said, "Mommy, isn't Daddy handsome? Don't you like him a lot?"
Though said in jest, Patricia's face flushed with embarrassment, guiltily she looked away, "Alright, that's enough. Let's go out before it gets too late and there's no parking left."
"Yay!" The three little ones all exclaimed in unison, jumping up in excitement.
Patricia, seeing Jade's forlorn expression as she sat on the couch, couldn't bear it, "Jade, why don't you come with us?"
Jade grimaced, "Forget it. You five are going to celebrate; what would I be doing there?"
Hearing the words 'family of five', Martin instinctively glanced at Fannie. While he was beginning to accept it, there was still a feeling of discomfort in his heart. The more he cared for Patricia, the more discomfort he felt.
"But..." Patricia couldn't stand the thought of leaving Jade alone at home.
With impatience, Jade waved her hand dismissively, "Enough, enough. It's crowded out there, I've no intention of joining that. Staying home alone, and binge-watching shows is way more comfortable. You all go. I'm heading back to my room."
With that, she stood up and returned to her room before Patricia could respond. Seeing Jade's firm refusal, Patricia no longer insisted and, with a light heart, led the three youngsters out the door.
While riding the elevator, Charles couldn't help but ask, "Daddy, where are you planning to take us to play?"
Martin said, "Charles enjoys musicals, so I've bought tickets to 'The Piano Prince'. We'll watch the musical first, and then – Randy, haven't you always wanted to play video games? After the musical, I'll take you all to play..."
Fannie listened with sheer joy. However, as Martin finished speaking without mentioning her name, the smile on her face visibly cooled and slowly turned to disappointment. Noticing her dispiritedness, Charles subtly tugged on Martin's sleeve and signaled with his eyes.
Martin gave Fannie a brief look, his expression barely changing as he asked indifferently, "Fannie, what do you like? Ice skating maybe? Beside the arcade there's a winter park. You can ice skate there, admire the ice sculptures, and there's even skiing..."
He sounded perfunctory, as if he were just bringing Charles and Randy out to have fun, and Fannie was merely an afterthought, without any genuine consideration.
Fannie immediately felt downcast. Her good mood, completely gone.
Seeing that she was in a bad mood, Patricia quickly tried to smooth things over, "Fannie, isn't ice skating your favorite? Martin didn't know what you liked to do, so he didn't make special arrangements. You don’t need to be in a bad mood."
Feeling wronged, gloomy, and conflicted, Fannie couldn't understand. Why could Charles recognize his father, while she stubbornly refused to acknowledge hers? Should she also find a time to reconcile with her father? But would that be betraying her mother if she did?
"I want to play an escape room game!" After sulking for a while, Fannie spoke up in a fit of annoyance.
Patricia dared not refuse, and quickly replied, "Okay, okay, it's still early. After we watch the musical, Martin will take Randy to play video games, and I'll accompany you to the escape room."
Fannie parted her lips as if to say something, but in the end, she remained silent. She just wanted her daddy to play with her. What would be the point of celebrating Christmas Eve if her mommy was the one accompanying her, when she could do that any other day?
Snow had been falling all day long. The ground was already covered with a thick layer of white snow. Snowmen of various sizes dotted the flower beds, and bushes along the roadside, all adorned with red hats and scarves, fostering the atmosphere of Christmas Eve.
Dressed in matching red outfits, the family of five, strikingly attractive, walked hand in hand down the street, every passerby noticing the handsome family.
Charles crouched down, formed a snowball, and threw it at Fannie when she least expected it, hitting her bun perfectly. Annoyed, Fannie stomped her foot and quickly made a snowball to get back at him.
Charles didn't stand there waiting to be hit; he ran and dodged, but the snowball hit Randy instead. Randy, not to be outdone, formed his own snowball to seek revenge on Fannie. The three little ones chased each other around the snowy grounds, throwing snowballs and having a blast.
Without drawing attention, Martin came up beside Patricia, enveloping her small hand with his and slipping it into his pocket. Though he wasn't dressed warmly, his palm was very warm, like a heating pad.
Feeling the warmth of his palm, Patricia's breathing became erratic, her heart thumped wildly, her cheeks flushed red with shyness, as she glanced at the three playful children, to mask her inner turmoil.
The soft touch of her palm felt to Martin like a feather lightly brushing against his heart. Seeing that she did not resist, Martin's heart softened like a sponge, swelling with warmth. There was still plenty of time, and Martin waited until they all had their fill of fun before driving them away.
Before entering, both Martin and Patricia switched their phones to silent mode, it was expected of patrons at the musical. Patricia and Martin sat on each side with the three little ones in between them.
Not long after they took their seats, a call came through on Patricia's phone. The phone remained illuminated for a while before it went dark. The musical was an hour and a half in total. When they exited the theater, there were as many as ten missed calls.
After the musical ended, Martin took them to a restaurant for a meal. The place was crowded.
Every dining area had long lines of people waiting. Fortunately, Martin had reserved the entire restaurant in advance, allowing the group of five to dine normally without disrupting the rest of their plans.
After taking their seats, Patricia took out her phone to turn off the silent mode. Upon seeing ten missed calls from Hunter, she was startled, a sense of unease rising in her heart. Just then, the phone rang again.
Martin and the three little ones simultaneously turned their gaze toward her. Patricia quickly stood up with a face full of tension.
"You guys order first; I need to take a call."
"Who’s calling?"
Martin knew he shouldn't pry into Patricia's private matters and should refrain from asking further. Yet for some reason, he had a strong feeling that it was Hunter calling.
"Hunter!" said Patricia as she had already answered the call and walked away.
Martin's thin lips pressed into a tight line. His eyes narrowed slightly, seeing red. The chill in his demeanor was frightening, even the breath he exhaled felt cold.
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