Chapter 83

Kelly didn't seem to think anything was wrong; instead, she smiled.

"Royce, you're here?"

I looked at Kelly, puzzled. She didn't seem like she was meeting Royce for the first time. When did they know each other? How come I didn't know?

"Mom, you know him?"

Kelly smiled at me. "Why wouldn't I? Didn't you date him back in high school?"

I almost choked on my own saliva. That was ancient history, and Kelly was being way too blunt.

"Mom, what are you talking about?"

Looking at Royce, he seemed just as surprised by Kelly's words and stood there, frozen.

Kelly waved him over. "Royce, come on in. What happened between you and Caroline is in the past. You were both young then, so what's the big deal?"

Hearing Kelly say that, Royce finally changed his shoes and slowly walked in.

"Mrs. Sharp, I haven't been back in a while. I thought I'd come by and see how you're doing."

Royce sat next to Kelly, exuding a calm and steady demeanor that elders particularly liked.

Kelly patted his shoulder with a smile. "It's the thought that counts."

They chatted warmly, leaving me feeling a bit awkward, so I focused on eating my meal.

Just then, Brett, who was sitting next to me, looked at Royce with wide, curious eyes and scooted closer to him.

"Who are you?"

Royce, dressed in a long coat, tall and broad-shouldered, was quite striking even just sitting there.

Royce smiled gently at Brett. "I'm a friend of your mom's and a junior to your grandma."

Brett blinked his curious little eyes at him, seemingly trying to figure something out.

I cleared my throat and said, "Brett, come over here!"

"That's not polite."

Royce suddenly laughed. "It's okay. I like Brett."

With that, he took out a gift from the pile he brought. "This is for you and your siblings."

I saw it was a huge, intricately made toy gun that looked quite expensive.

Brett's eyes widened in shock as he stared at the gun.

Kelly laughed. "Royce, you didn't have to bring anything. Brett is at that age where he breaks toys within days."

Royce smiled, unfazed. "It's fine. If he breaks it, I'll get him another one."

I never noticed Royce smiling so much before. Back in high school, I was the one who pursued him.

The reason was simple: Royce was handsome, smart, and most importantly, kept his distance from all the girls.

I had a smooth-sailing life for over a decade and had never experienced rejection, so I became interested in Royce and was determined to win him over.

I chased him around campus for half a year, and he barely smiled at me.

Eventually, I got tired and thought about giving up.

But then Royce showed up, telling me not to give up halfway and to see things through to the end.

He said we couldn't be together then because it would interfere with our studies, but we could talk about it after graduation. He wouldn't reject me.

I didn't pay much attention to what he said at the time and just pulled his tie and kissed him.

Royce's words got stuck in his throat, and his clean face turned as red as the sunset behind him.

After that, we were together until graduation. Then he disappeared, and I moved to another city for college.

Thinking back, it was kind of funny, but not entirely bad.

I suddenly made eye contact with Royce, wondering if he was thinking about the past too. That look made me feel uneasy.

So I cleared my throat. "Brett, did you thank Mr. Castillo?"

Brett, holding the gun, quickly said thank you. "Mr. Castillo, I have a gift for you too."

Royce rested his hands on his knees, looking expectant. "What is it?"

Brett ran over to me and pointed. "Mom is my most precious person. I'm giving her to you as a gift."

Royce was taken aback, then turned and laughed.

I felt both annoyed and amused.

Annoyed that Brett would give me away for a toy gun, but amused that he thought I was the most important person to him.

But not more important than a gun.

I pretended to be angry and asked, "Brett, if I fell into the water with this gun, who would you save?"

Everyone's eyes were on Brett, waiting for his answer.

I looked at Brett, feeling a bit hopeful.

He scrunched up his little face in thought for a long time and said, "That's hard."

Kelly was amused, and the atmosphere at the table was warm and happy.

After thinking for a while, Brett said, "I would save the gun."

I wasn't disappointed, just curious. After all, kids change their minds a thousand times a day.

"Why?"

Brett pointed at Royce. "Because I think Mr. Castillo would save you, so I can save the gun!"

I was stunned and unintentionally made eye contact with Royce.

I quickly looked away and said sternly, "What are you talking about? I can get out of the water myself. I'm a superhero, you know?"

Brett pouted and said, "Okay."

I glanced at Eugene, who had just gone to get water for Kelly, thinking it was a good thing he didn't hear anything. Otherwise, I wouldn't know how to explain it to Brandon.

With the new toy, Brett didn't even want to eat and ran outside to play with it.

It was Independence Day, and many kids had returned home. Before long, Brett became the leader, running around with a group of kids outside.

Inside, we quietly continued our meal.

Kelly suddenly asked, "Royce, how long are you staying this time?"

Royce shook his head. "I'm not sure. Probably until I finish my business here."

"Where's your uncle now?"

Royce answered honestly, "He's still abroad. He plans to work a bit longer before coming back to retire."

"You should try to persuade him. He's not young anymore, almost sixty, right?"

Royce nodded. "I've tried, but he doesn't listen to me."

The familiarity between my mom and Royce made me feel like they had met more than once.

Seeing the look in my eyes, Royce said, "You've rarely come back over the years. I visit Mrs. Sharp every year."

I was surprised. Every year?

But I had never heard anything about him all these years.

Kelly sighed. "Since you got married, the house has been so empty during the holidays. It's a good thing we have someone like Royce visiting."