Chapter 349 There Are Still Alternates
Todd called, and it was almost never good news. Josephine stepped outside to take the call in the yard.
Todd's tone was as unpleasant as ever. "You didn't come back for the Starlight Festival, just sent some gifts? We're still alive, you know!"
Josephine replied, "I was stuck in the hospital during the Starlight Festival. From Jeffery's admission to his discharge, none of you bothered to check on him. Whenever you call, it's always about The Campbell Family."
"What's wrong with talking about The Campbell Family? They're our relative; isn't it our duty to help them?" Todd snapped, "That illegitimate child you had with Roy..."
Unable to bear it any longer, Josephine slammed the phone shut, trembling with anger in the cold wind.
This was Jeffery's grandfather, her father. How could he say such things?
"Josephine." Suddenly, a cashmere coat was draped over her shoulders, bringing warmth with it. She turned around and saw Stuart's concerned eyes.
"What..." Before Stuart could finish his question, Josephine couldn't hold back and threw herself into his arms.
Stuart quickly reached out and held her tightly. "It's okay, it's okay." Stuart hugged her, gently patting her back.
Although he didn't know what had happened, he had just seen Josephine's reddened eyes.
In his mind, Stuart had already killed the person who made Josephine cry a thousand times over!
"Don't be afraid, Josephine. Whatever it is, leave it to me. I'll handle it," Stuart said. He was heartbroken. He only wanted to protect Josephine, who he cherished so much. Who on earth made her cry?
Josephine quickly composed herself. She felt a bit embarrassed as she lifted her head from Stuart's embrace and took a step back.
"I'm fine." Josephine sniffled, "Let's go inside; Grandpa and the others are still waiting."
Josephine didn't want to talk about it. What was there to say? If Todd knew Jeffery was Stuart's son, his attitude would probably be completely different. But so what? Josephine didn't care.
Seeing that she didn't want to talk, Stuart didn't press further. "Alright, let's go eat."
Once inside, Andrew and Elbert naturally noticed something was off with Josephine, but before they could ask, Stuart said, "Let's eat."
By saying this, it was clear he didn't want anyone to ask Josephine anything. In that instant, Josephine truly had little to add and simply gave Stuart a thankful glance.
Stuart sat next to her, serving her food, and Carol talked to her about some research-related topics. No one asked Josephine what was wrong.
It wasn't that they didn't care about her; they could see she didn't want to talk and respected her wishes.
After lunch, Josephine was about to leave. Stuart drove her.
In the car, Josephine said, "Thank you."
Stuart didn't look at her and said, "It's nothing. You don't need to thank me for such a small matter."
Josephine didn't say anything, looking out the window in silence.
Seeing her like this, Stuart felt even more heartbroken and wanted to know who had made her cry.
When they arrived at the research institute, Stuart said, "I'll bring Jeffery over tonight."
Josephine nodded, "Okay."
In the afternoon, after finishing her work, Josephine closed her eyes to rest for a while and then called Laura.
Laura quickly answered, "Josephine!"
Hearing her energetic voice, Josephine couldn't help but smile, "What are you up to?"
"Just hanging out at Steven's company, waiting for him to get off work."
Josephine teased, "Wow, look at you being all gentle."
"Come on," Laura laughed, "I even brought him lunch."
"Really?" Josephine was surprised, "Did you make it?"
"I bought it."
Josephine chuckled, "Still counts, you deserve some praise."
"Right? I think I'm pretty awesome too." Then Laura asked, "What's up? You sound a bit off."
Josephine filled her in about Todd's call.
Laura was fuming, "If he wasn't your dad, I'd curse him out! How could he say that?"
Josephine sighed, "I've given up hope on them. Just needed to vent."
"You're too nice," Laura said, "If it were me, I wouldn't put up with it! You should just tell him Jeffery is Stuart's son and see what he does then!"
"No need," Josephine replied, "Then Jeffery would have to deal with their fake kindness."
"True," Laura agreed, "Just keep Jeffery away from them in the future. They're too annoying!"
Josephine nodded.
Laura asked, "So, how are things with you and Stuart?"
Josephine hesitated.
Laura pressed, "What's wrong?"
"I don't know," Josephine admitted, "I just feel uneasy."
"That's normal," Laura reassured her, "After all that's happened, it's hard to make sense of it all. Whether to accept it or not is up to you. If you can't figure it out, maybe take a break and think about what you really want."
"Okay."
Laura continued, "You've known each other for so many years, three years of marriage, five years apart, and now you're back. I can see that Stuart won't let you go again. Josephine, even though I have my issues with him, his feelings for you now are genuine."
Josephine said, "I know."
"Of course, just because he's sincere doesn't mean we should accept him. Relationships are never equal. But Josephine, you also need to know that no one will wait for you forever."
Josephine agreed.
Laura added, "I'll be frank, relationships are tricky. Before rekindling things, you've got to sort out past problems, or neither of you will be content. If you miss the chance, don't regret it."
Josephine stayed silent.
Laura laughed, "I can talk theories all day, but relationships are about personal experience.. In my opinion, Stuart has been doing well. I've been rude to him several times, and he tolerated it. That's rare for him."
"I know," Josephine said, "The more I see how genuine he is, the harder it is for me to just go with it. It feels unfair to him."
"If you think that way, no one can help you. If you agree to be with him, he'll only be grateful and won't think that much."
"I know," Josephine said, "Am I being too pretentious?"
"Come on, who says you're being pretentious? Stuart was a real piece of work back then. Even if you're a bit extra, who cares? You even gave him Jeffery; he should be secretly happy!"
Josephine was amused by her.
Laura continued, "First of all, don't wrong yourself. Secondly, no matter what you do, I'll support you! Don't worry, if you lose Stuart, isn't Rex still a backup?"
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