Chapter 820: Celebrating a Birthday
Charles gave Hannah a lift to the Reed family's place.
Stella was already at the door, practically bouncing with excitement. When she spotted their car, she started waving like a maniac.
"Over here!" Stella hollered.
Charles rolled his eyes and gave the horn three quick taps.
Stella got the hint and quickly moved aside.
Charles cruised past her and smoothly parked in the garage.
Hannah didn't wait for him to open her door. As soon as the car stopped, she hopped out, hustled around the front, and opened the driver's door for Charles, making a big show of it.
"Mr. Watson, please step out," Hannah said, all formal-like.
Charles chuckled, "You don't have to do that. We're not at work."
Hannah grinned, "Work or not, you're still the boss. I gotta show respect!"
Charles just shook his head, smiling, and didn't argue. He unbuckled and got out.
Right then, Stella ran over and threw an arm around Hannah's shoulder.
"You finally made it! I thought you were gonna be late!" Stella said.
Hannah replied, "It's Carol's birthday; no way we could be late!"
Stella laughed, "Yeah, my folks are waiting inside. Come on, let's go!"
"Okay!" Hannah nodded eagerly and walked in with Stella.
Charles grabbed the gifts and trailed behind them.
Once inside, Charles and Hannah were taken aback by the decorations.
The place was decked out with flowers.
You'd think it was a wedding or something.
Carol, the birthday girl, was standing in the middle of the living room, giving them an awkward smile.
Maximilian was next to her, looking like he was trying really hard not to laugh, his face twitching in a weird way.
Charles and Hannah exchanged confused looks.
Something felt off.
Especially Carol, who didn't seem happy at all and was smiling awkwardly.
Charles pushed down his curiosity and greeted them, "Carol, Maximilian!"
Hannah chimed in sweetly and handed her gift to Carol.
"Maximilian, Carol! This is the birthday gift I got for Carol. Happy birthday!" Hannah said, beaming.
Charles handed over his gift too, "Carol, this is from me. Happy birthday."
Hannah had picked out both gifts after Charles gave her a few hours to hit the mall that afternoon.
Hannah's gift was a handbag.
Charles's gift was a brand-new necklace.
Carol took the gifts and said, "You really didn't have to! Seriously! It's all Stella's fault. I told her we could just have a family dinner, but she insisted on inviting you."
Truth be told, she hadn't planned on celebrating her birthday at all this year.
She didn't even remember it was her birthday today.
It was all Stella's doing, pushing for this birthday bash and decking out the house like this.
At first, Carol wasn't on board, but Stella guilt-tripped her, saying it was her fault Charles was still single, and if he couldn't find a wife, she'd be to blame.
With that kind of guilt trip, how could she say no?
So, here they were.
Everything happened so fast. She and Maximilian only got Stella's call at eleven last night and started scrambling to get ready.
Hannah laughed, "It's your birthday. If we didn't bring gifts, we'd feel like jerks."
Charles looked around and asked, "Where are Joe and Susan? And Grandpa, didn't they come?"
Joe and Susan split up twenty years ago but got back together a few years back.
Over the years, Susan realized she still loved Joe, and Joe had been trying to win her back all this time.
Carol's smile was stiff and awkward.
Carol said, "Maximilian said not to invite too many people! Besides, I'm turning forty, not eighteen. Why invite a crowd?"
Charles had a ton of questions but kept them to himself.
Stella, worried Charles might dig deeper, quickly said, "Dinner's ready. Enough chit-chat. Let's make a wish, blow out the candles, and dig into the cake."
Carol, "Do we really have to do the whole wish, candles, and cake thing? Can't we just..."
Just have dinner together.
But Stella's warning look shut her up.
Charles squinted.
He wouldn't be where he was if he couldn't tell something was off.
While Stella was unwrapping the cake, sticking in candles, and lighting them, he quickly pulled out his phone and looked up Carol's info.
Seeing the birthdate, he frowned slightly.
The birthday was indeed today!
But why did it feel so weird?
Before he could figure it out, Stella's voice snapped him back.
Stella said, "Close the door, draw the curtains, and kill the lights. Mom's gonna make a wish and blow out the candles."
Carol was puzzled.
Maximilian, who'd been holding back all day, found it even harder to keep a straight face when he saw Carol's almost-crying expression, his shoulders shaking with suppressed laughter.
Carol angrily pinched his thigh hard.
Maximilian's handsome face turned red from the pain.
The once brightly lit room suddenly went dark.
Charles and Hannah were a bit lost among the five people there, while Carol and Maximilian looked awkward. Only Stella seemed genuinely pumped about celebrating Carol's birthday, urging, "Carol, make a wish and blow out the candles."
Under her constant urging, Carol finally closed her eyes, made a wish, and quickly blew out the candles.
All she wanted now was for this to end quickly so she could be free.
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