CHAPTER 39: FAMILY MATTER

THREE MONTHS LATER

COUNTRY X

"How can you believe anyone you meet on the street?" A female voice could be heard reprimanding someone in the room.

"My gut feeling has always done me right," a soft young female voice responded as soon as the woman yelled, "I believe in it, and I know she isn't malicious."

Another young man in the room lightly shook his head before interfering with the exchange of words between the people who really mattered to him and saying something that shocked the older woman.

"Don't blame Steph, Grammy. I am also aware of this individual, and she is someone we have greatly missed. Grammy, our mother, and your daughter, she is still alive."

After hearing this, the older lady froze and looked at the two children who meant more to her than anyone else in the world. Of course, there was her husband, who had been with her for decades, and her worthless daughter, whom she adored despite everything she had caused their family to endure.

She staggered from where she was standing and fell onto the couch, causing the kids, who had somehow exposed the truth behind their secretive behavior over the previous few days, to panic.

"You... you... are you lying to me?" she asked shakily, her teary eyes glaring at the twins.

Elton, the male twin, approached his grandmother and held her hands, saying, "Grammy, we didn't mean to tell you this way. We wanted to wait as well, to make sure that everything was real and that she was here for a good reason. And you interrupted us before we could do so."

"Indeed, Grammy. We didn't intend to do it, but

"If she is truly your mother, why didn't she come here and see you or visit her own parents?" the older lady yelled angrily, "never expect the selfish woman to come here for you. When has she ever shown concern for others? You're both grounded, whether it's her or not!"

The twins stared helplessly at each other as they watched their angry and emotional Grammy leave them after dropping such a bomb.

Stephanie asked, worriedly, her intelligent brother, "Brother, what if that woman isn't really our mother?"

"Steph, have you ever wondered why this year has been so different from the previous ones?" Elton chuckled as he dragged his sister to the couch for a nice chat.

Stephanie couldn't understand what her brother was saying, so she asked him, "What do you mean?"

Elton sighed as he saw his sister in this state. She was, like their mother, a moron when it came to important issues.

"Do you remember how we got a scholarship out of nowhere? How we ..." Elton began to recount the events that occurred as if mana were being dropped from heaven for no apparent reason.

He wasn't a fool, and he could tell that someone was watching out for them but didn't want to be seen. He had forgotten about his mother, who had mysteriously vanished three years before.

After everything that happened back then, he knew about it, and his family lost everything as a result.

Despite his lack of affection for his mother, he was grateful that she gave birth to them and did not abuse them in any way. She just didn't have time for them or his grandparents.

She simply loved herself more than anyone else, and they accepted that. It's just that after they lost everything, their useless mother vanished. People said she was selfish and ran away to hide after causing a commotion, but how could he persuade everyone that no matter how harsh reality was for her, that woman would never run away or hide?

There was no news for three years, and Elton knew his grandparents never stopped looking for her but still failed. Something happened back then, but how could they seek justice given their powerlessness?

However, their lives have improved in the last year because that mysterious person not only involved himself with the children but also influenced the elders.

He first noticed something was wrong when they unexpectedly ran into that veiled lady a week ago. The twins basically coincided with the veiled lady every day, which seemed suspicious on its own.

"Although we spent so little time with mom, I can recognize her bones. How can I not recognize her when I...? Anyway, what I'm getting at is that we may have misunderstood her all these years. Maybe she was looking for a way to return, and things have recently improved."

Stephanie had no idea what to make of this. She never said much, but only she understood how much she yearned for her mother's love and care. That woman had never been concerned about them and had only ever loved herself.

And then she appeared out of nowhere, looking very different from before. She didn't want it to be true; if that was their mother, would she abandon them again?

She didn't want her hopes to be dashed only to be dashed again. But Elton saw things through from the beginning, and now everything was confirmed.

"If that's the case, why isn't she coming to see Grammy and Grampy?" Stephanie inquired angrily.

"If you were mom and did everything she did back then, will you have any face to meet your parents?" Elton held his sister's hands and looked deeply into her eyes.

Stephanie was perplexed by this question, and the more she considered the answer, the more enraged she became, "damn, why did she have to do it in the first place?"

"Have you seen dramas, love can truly blind a person," Elton chuckled as he comforted his sister.

The twins continued talking, unaware that someone was listening in on their conversation and tears were already streaming down her cheeks.

'I'm glad you're still alive. You've hidden so well over the years; aren't you afraid they'll find you and hurt you again? I only want you to live. Continue to be selfish and well-hidden. Don't take a chance and show up around us.'