Chapter 117
Maxine looked at him in surprise. “What are you doing here? How did you even find this place?”
Brian shot a glare at Jessica, who was nervously sticking close to Maxine, before finally saying, “Dad said you’ve been having some trouble lately. [ figured you’d be scared on your own, so I decided to come over and keep you company. Consider it a favor.”
As he spoke, he stood up, grumbling as he stretched his legs that had gone numb from squatting so long. He glanced at Jessica with a look of disdain. “She’s just a little wimp. If anything dangerous happened, she’d be the first to run!”
Jessica, who’d been a bit scared of him at first, immediately puffed up and protested, “That’s not true! I’m a big girl now! I can protect Maxine!”
Brian pouted, clearly not buying it.
Maxine watched the two kids bicker and couldn’t help but laugh. “Alright, let’s just head upstairs first, okay?”
So Brian struggled to drag his suitcase over to the door, waiting for Maxine to come and unlock it for him.
Maxine sighed and stepped forward to help him with the suitcase, frowning as she asked, “Why is this so heavy?”
She tried to lift it a bit and realized it was stuffed to the brim with things.
Brian quickly snatched the suitcase back, trying his best to look tough. “If you can’t lift it, just leave it to me! I can handle it myself!”
Maxine looked at him helplessly, then unlocked the code lock downstairs. Brian struggled to drag the suitcase up the not–so–steep ramp, stopping every now and then to shake the backpack strap back into place when it slipped.
Jessica couldn’t help herself. She let go of Maxine’s hand and ran over to help.
Brian’s face turned bright red, but he still insisted stubbornly to Jessica, “I don’t need your help! I can do it myself! I’m already a grown–up!”
Hearing that, Jessica’s stubborn side flared up too. She pushed the suitcase up the ramp with all her strength. “I can help too! I already help Maxine with
the laundry!”
Maxine, a bit exasperated, stepped forward to help, but Brian stopped her. “You don’t need to help! I’m a man! I can do my own stuff!”
Jessica chimed in, “Me too! I’m big now! I’m super strong! Maxine, you don’t have to worry about us!”
Brian had always lived a pretty comfortable life with the Mason family. He was not exactly spoiled, but he never had to carry his own bags when he went out. At his age, he still needed a smaller violin, so there was no way he could handle a suitcase this big.
But when Maxine saw him like this, she was surprised to find she didn’t feel the urge to go over and help.
It was the first time she’d ever seen Brian looking so flustered. Usually, he acted like a little prince in front of her, always so cool and distant, even when
he’d coldly told her she wasn’t as good as Kathleen. Sometimes, Maxine even wondered if Brian was really just a grade–schooler.
She had no idea what had happened in the Mason family lately to make Brian
change so much.
So Maxine just leaned against the wall, watching the two kids wrestle with the suitcase.
When Cleo got back from work, she spotted Maxine from behind and was about to say hi, but then she noticed Jessica and a little boy struggling to haul a
suitcase up the hill.
She took a closer look and nearly choked on her own breath. She thought, ‘Wait a second, why is that little troublemaker Brian here?‘
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