Chapter 55 Responsible
Isabel’s crying and cursing grew distant after they shut the door. Moments later, Madeline flashed a smile at Michael. “I’ll head home now if there’s nothing else you need from me, Mr. Wendel. Joel and Quincy are waiting for me to head home, and they’re probably getting impatient,” she said.
“Alright.” Michael tried his best to suppress all his emotions as he spoke in a gentle voice. “I’ll contact you once the DNA test results are out.”
“Sure…” Madeline nodded. “I’ll see you around.” She bowed to him before leaving the room. Michael sent her out and watched as she got in the car. He stayed by the side of the road and gazed as she left the building. Madeline, too, turned around to look at him as the car drove off. She only turned to face forward after Michael’s figure grew too far away to be seen. At that moment, the word ‘father’ popped up in her mind, repeating itself in her head. Father… Mother… Brother…
If she was really Michael’s daughter, it meant that she would have a father, a mother, four brothers, a grandfather, a grandmother, uncles, aunts, cousins, and countless other relatives. She would no longer be the person who was chased out of her home. She would no longer be the girl with the blood of an illegitimate mother or the girl who was looked down upon by others. She would be an actual, proper daughter of a family. Joel and Quincy would no longer have to be regarded with disdain because of her reputation from birth. At that thought, she felt her blood boiling with excitement.
Apart from the day she gave birth to Joel and Quincy, this was probably the luckiest day of her life… She had to thank Sebastian for it. If he hadn’t found the truth about her birth parents, perhaps she would’ve been regarded as the daughter of an illegitimate daughter for the rest of her life… Sebastian was her benefactor and her savior. I’ll have to thank him properly when I get the chance to do so! As these thoughts ran through her mind, she eventually arrived at the Hart Residence. The car drove directly into the front porch, and she opened her car door the moment the car stopped. Before she got out of the car, she could already hear her sons’ lighthearted laugh.
Her lips curled into a smile as she thanked the bodyguard who escorted her out. Then, she headed directly toward her precious sons, who were playing around with a dog in the yard. It was a tiny white puppy.
“Mommy!” Joel’s eyes lit up the moment he saw Madeline. He had been squatting down and playing with the dog, but he immediately charged toward Madeline when he saw her. After jumping into her arms, he began to act cute as he clung to her waist. “Why did you take so long, Mommy? I missed you so much!”
“Did you?” Madeline scraped the tip of his nose playfully. “Aren’t you having a lot of fun?”
“I did!” Joel wriggled around in her arms. “I missed you so much that I nearly cried! Then, Grandpa got someone to send a dog over when he saw me being sad. Grandpa’s so nice!”
“Oh… I see…” Madeline pinched his cheeks amusedly. “So, it’s good enough to have a dog around if Mommy’s not here, right?”
“No!” Joel shook his head as he held one finger up to her. “This puppy is only fun for a while! If you were to come home any later, I would still end up crying because I miss you!”
“Are you proud to be crying? You sure seem proud of announcing it!” Quincy walked over with a disdainful look. “You’re a man! You should bleed more than you cry!”
“But I’m not a man!” Joel widened his eyes in an adorable manner. “I’m just a small boy!” Quincy was genuinely amused by his younger brother right then. Why is he so cute? His lashes are longer than a girl’s lashes, and his large eyes are bright and watery… He looks cuter than a Barbie doll. Hmm… But Barbie dolls are girls! Well, that doesn’t matter. Even girls aren’t as cute as my brother is!
“Fine,” Quincy mumbled softly. “I’ll let you be the small boy, and I’ll be the man!” Philip laughed out loud as he was amused by the two boys’ conversation. He walked over and ruffled their hair while chuckling. “You’re back. Did you manage to settle everything?” Philip asked Madeline.
“I did.” Madeline nodded at him. “Thank you for looking after the boys, Mr. Hart. I hope it wasn’t too much to ask for.”
“I don’t like it when you talk to me like that!” Philip’s expression hardened. “Joel and Quincy are my grandsons, and it’s one of the greatest joys in my life to be spending time with them. How could it be too much to ask for? Also, stop addressing me in such a formal tone. You’re a married woman—why aren’t you changing the way you address me?”
She was speechless for a moment. This old man sure is… a straightforward guy. She parted her lips a few times without finding the right words to say, as it was simply too sudden… Furthermore, she had only gotten the marriage certificate with Sebastian because she wanted to give her kids a complete family. She didn’t actually see herself as Sebastian’s wife. Was it really necessary to start calling Philip her ‘Dad’?
“Dad, you’re always causing trouble!” Sebastian appeared out of nowhere and stepped forward from behind Philip. He had his hands stuck into his pockets as he gazed at Madeline before smiling. “Do you expect Madeline to change the way she addresses you just like that? Aren’t you ashamed to tell her to change the way she addresses you without giving her some fees in return?”
“…Fees?” Philip was confused.
“Oh, I know!” Joel held up his fair and tiny arm as he jumped around. “This is when the parents have to give their daughter-in-law two large red packets so that their daughter-in-law will start addressing them as her parents. The emcee would usually tell the bride to speak up a little louder when she first calls her in-laws during the wedding!”
Madeline stared at her precious son speechlessly. “Joel, where did you hear of all this nonsense?”
“Is it nonsense?” Joel widened his eyes. “I saw it on TV. It’s nice! It’s not nonsense… Mommy, are you about to become a bride?”
Madeline didn’t know what to say. “Oh, I know now!” Philip reached for his two grandkids’ hands before he glanced at Sebastian and Madeline. “Come on. Follow me.” Since Philip had spoken, they had no choice but to follow him to the hall. Once they were there, Philip got Sebastian and Madeline to wait at the hall as he brought the kids upstairs. Moments later, Philip came back down with a traditional-looking wooden box.
Quincy tagged along closely behind the old man while Joel clung to the old man’s arm as he spoke in his cute and innocent voice. “Watch out for the stairs, Grandpa. Don’t fall down!” Philip was pleased with his grandson’s words, and he chuckled as he spoke. “What a good boy!”
When Sebastian saw how happy his father was, he felt a surge of gratitude for his sons. Mhmm. Even though I wasn’t the one who gave birth to them, they still have parts of me in them. Therefore, I’ll take responsibility for them. I’ll always be responsible for them!
Philip brought the wooden box over to where Sebastian and Madeline were sitting, and he opened the box before pushing it to Madeline. The item inside was one that was filled with memories of the past. “Here’s something from me and Sebastian’s mother, Madeline. This will serve as the fees for you to change the way you address us!”
