The elders at home did not restrict Rowan. His mother, well, really had never monitored him, because he had eight older brothers and cousins looking after him, and he bore a lot of academic pressure on himself. Many of his teachers had also taught the eight of them, so whenever he scored a little lower, his teachers would compare him to them. He was under tremendous pressure.Among his classmates, he ranked at the top. Even in the city rankings, he was among the top ten. Compared to his brothers and cousins, however, he still fell short. They had skipped grades in both elementary and middle schools, but by the time Rowan reached middle school, he could only take things one step at a time. Having one outstanding older brother was already a lot of pressure for a younger sibling, let alone having eight particularly excellent older brothers.“Nana said you would be back today, so she arranged for the driver to pick you up. I came home yesterday for the holidays, so I tagged along.”Rowa
Rowan was speechless.Serenity chuckled, “It’ll be the same no matter when you see him. Affection is something that’s cultivated. After the baby is born, you’ll have time to hold him, play with him, and the bond will grow—then it’ll feel like you’re close to him.”She could already foresee that after her baby was born, he would become the family’s little darling. The members of the York family were numerous but hers would be the only baby, so everyone would dote on him immensely.Rowan pitifully said, “Nothing good ever makes its way to me because I’m the youngest.”Zachary responded, “Once you get married and have your own kids, you’ll be able to make sure that your child sees you first when he’s born, but you can forget about that for your nephew.”Rowan said, “I’m still so young—it’ll be at least another eleven or twelve years before I get married and have kids. In fact, it might take a little longer, like fourteen or fifteen years. Aren’t you only just becoming a father at thi
Serenity replied mildly, “Nana’s arranged for a driver to pick us up, so we didn’t need to call a cab. Sonny fell asleep on the plane. Are you here to pick up a customer?”She glanced at the car Hank had parked not far away.“Yes, my customer is returning from out of town for Christmas. They pre-booked a cab, and I picked up the order. I’ve been waiting here for quite a while to meet them.”“Sonny, Sonny,” Hank softly called out to his son.After the winter break started, Sonny went with Serenity to stay with the Johnsons. Hank had originally wanted to bring his son home to stay for a while so that his parents could enjoy some family time, but in the end, Sonny went with Serenity instead.Unable to bring his son back for a visit, his parents complained about it, saying that he did not visit Sonny and did not bring him home to stay often enough. Then, Sonny would forget all about his real father and paternal grandparents if he did not spend more time with them. After all, Liberty a
After, he added, “Dunc went to see Mom. He didn’t wait for me to come back and went ahead, but luckily, they’re coming back soon. He said he bought me a lot of new clothes and toys. Dad, Mom and Dunc are getting married, I heard it from Aunt Ser. He’s going to be my new dad. Dad, I’ll have two dads from now on,” Sonny said with a happy smile. He even held up two fingers to Hank and added, “Other kids only have one dad, but I have two dads.”When Hank heard that Duncan had gone to visit Liberty and that the two were getting married soon, he felt bitterness in his heart, but he could not say anything.Back then, he was the one who let go of Liberty first. He was the one who had gone back on his vows and turned his back on their marriage first.No matter how bitter he felt, he could only wish Liberty and Duncan happiness and joy. Even though he did not want to admit it, Hank knew that Duncan was a much better man than he was, and not just career-wise because even in relationships, Du
Sonny nodded but still repeated, “Dunc won't stop liking me.”However, the part about Mom not having enough time for him was true, as was the case for the past few months. Since she had not had the time for him, he had been living with Aunt Ser and Uncle Zak.After a brief silence, Hank said softly, “If your mom and Duncan have another baby, they’ll favor their own child, and they might not love you as much.”“That won't happen, Dad, it won’t happen! Mom said that even if she has a baby with Dunc, she will still love me the most. Aunt Ser also said the same thing.” Sonny immediately refuted his father's words.“I’m just saying it might—it won’t necessarily end up that way. Anyway, remember to stay close to your Aunt Serenity, she won’t be biased.”Serenity was purely just an aunt, and all of Liberty’s children would be her nieces and nephews regardless. She would probably be able to treat everyone equally. However, if Liberty and Duncan had another child in the future, they might
Hank knew the last time Olivia had taken money from him to give to his sister, Chelsea, she went out to eat with her husband, children, and in-laws, without even inviting their parents. When she saw Serenity was dining at the same restaurant, she wanted Serenity to pay for her party’s meal.Serenity refused, so Chelsea called Olivia and asked for money to cover the expense. Did his sister have no money? No—she did have money. In the past, their parents' pension and the allowance he gave them were all used to support his sister's family. Chelsea and her husband saved the entirety of their incomes and probably had up to several million in savings. He used to earn a lot and did not care about money, but now that he was relying on ride-hailing hires to make a living, times had gotten tough, and he had started to care more about money. Although he was very touched that Chelsea saved him and even got hurt in the process when Jessica attacked him back then, it did not mean she could keep t
“Bye, Sonny.” “Bye, Dad.” Sonny waved his little hand. Hank turned around and walked back to his car. He first apologized to his customer for the long wait, then got into the car and quickly drove away. Soon, Zachary and Serenity, along with their bodyguards, got into the car that had come to pick them up. After the car started moving, Serenity gently smoothed a hand over Sonny’s hair as he sulked in Zachary's arms. “Aunt Ser.” Sonny reached out his arms, wanting to be held by Serenity. Serenity took him from Zachary and held him close. “Why are you unhappy, Sonny? Did your dad say something to you again?” Sometimes, Serenity did not like letting her nephew visit Hank because Hank was jealous of Liberty and Duncan, and often spoke ill of Duncan in front of Sonny. However, Sonny and Duncan had developed a strong father-son-like bond, and whenever Hank badmouthed Duncan, it upset Sonny. “Aunt Ser, after Mom and Dunc get married, will they have a little sibling for me?” Son
Hank rarely took the initiative to help take care of Sonny. Back then, Liberty would be cooking in the kitchen and the father-and-son pair would be in the living room. If Sonny wanted some water, Hank would not get him a glass of water. Instead, he would have Liberty come out of the kitchen to feed Sonny water. What kind of father he was!Now that Liberty and Duncan had finally made their relationship public and were about to get married, Hank suddenly wanted to show off his “fatherly love”, worrying that Sonny might end up neglected. He kept saying those ridiculous things in front of Sonny, affecting the child’s mood and making him afraid of losing his mother’s love. How could Serenity not be angry? It was just that in front of Sonny, she did not want to curse anyone.“Aunt Ser.” Sonny snuggled up to Serenity’s chest. “Aunt Ser, I love you and Mommy the most.”Serenity hugged him tightly. “I love you the most too.”“Dad asked me if Mom and Dunc are getting married. Dad is worried