Chapter 38
Maxine pushed the chaos in her head aside and nodded seriously. “Got it… I’ll work on getting more evidence right away”
Then Maxine glanced away, a little awkwardly. “Thanks for telling me. But… next time, just text me”
Sebastian frowned. “I tried calling. Your phone didn’t go through. That’s why I came.”
Maxine’s apartment was less than two kilometers from the old villa she used to share with Sebastian.
Barely a ten–minute drive. No wonder Sebastian came straight over.
Maxine sighed. “I was cooking, didn’t hear it.”
Maxine paused, then asked, clearly not meaning to, “Anything else? If not, you should go. My soup’s still on the stove.”
‘Right. The soup,‘ Sebastian thought. He asked before he could stop himself, “Is it… tomato basil soup?”
Maxine was from Flodes City. That dish was her signature. Sebastian had always liked it, though he never told her.
“Yeah.” Maxine didn’t know what else to say. Things had reached this awkward point, and in the mess of it all, she blurted out, “Want a bow!?”
The second it left her mouth, Maxine regretted it. She hadn’t meant to invite him to stay.
To her surprise, Sebastian didn’t even hesitate. “Sure,” he said, then added, “You made enough?”
Maxine froze for a beat, then muttered, “Enough.”
Back in the kitchen, Maxine lifted the lid of the clay pot. The soup was nearly done.
Then Maxine called out for Jessica, who immediately dashed out like she’d been waiting for the signal.
As she passed the living room, Jessica shot another glare at Sebastian.
Sebastian couldn’t figure out why this kid had it out for him, but he didn’t want to argue with a child. He calmly walked to the dining table and sat down.
Jessica brought out utensils for everyone. When she saw Sebastian/already sitting there, she rolled her eyes hard at him.
Sebastian caught it this time and finally couldn’t help himself. He asked, “Jessica, what exactly did I do to make you hate me?”
Jessica was still a few months away from turning five. She was precocious, sure, but she hadn’t run into many adults who talked to her in that weirdly
serious tone.
It was the way Sebastian treated her–like she was an adult too. That gave Jessica an odd kind of courage.
Standing on her tiptoes to place the utensils neatly, Jessica replied with a straight face, “First of all, I don’t like you. Second, Maxine lets you stay for dinner. You should show some manners. You should’ve helped her bring the soup.”
Then Jessica pointed to the table. “I brought out the bowls and stuff. What did you do?”
Jessica’s words were childish, but they hit hard. Sebastian blinked, actually caught off guard. His face even tu
little red.
Sebastian instinctively started to get up, but something about it felt even more awkward. So he stayed put and tried to act calm. “I’m a guest. Since when do guests do the work?”
Jessica pouted and hit him with a direct question. “A guest? But you and Maxine aren’t divorced yet, are you?”
That shut him up completely. Sebastian stood up, almost not knowing what to do with himself.
Chapter 38
But Maxine walked out with the soup just then and placed it on the table.
Seeing Sebastian on his feet, Maxine gave him a quick look. “What? Changed your mind? If you’re not eating, the door’s right there?
Sebastian felt something stuck in his throat–couldn’t swallow it, couldn’t spit it out. After a long pause, he mumbled awkwardly. “Ne
Maxine lifted Jessica into her chair, then turned to the pot and began serving the soup.
Sebastian instinctively reached out to take a bowl, but Maxine acted like she didn’t even notice. She handed that bowl to Jessica.
Jessica took it with both hands, smiling big. “Thank you, Maxine!”
Then Maxine served herself a bowl. Only after that did she move the ladle toward Sebastian’s direction.
Sebastian stared at that ladle for a long moment. And he understood. He had to serve himself now.
But back then, as long as Maxine was there–she always did this for him.
AD
