Filed to story: Sweetheart Do You Still Love Me
Callum frowned and asked, “Why don’t we go and have a look?” He was also curious as to how much alike he and the boy would be.
“Okay.” Elspeth nodded. However, just as they took a few steps closer, the woman noticed them.
When she saw Callum and Elspeth approaching her, she was frightened and tried to run away.
Seeing that she was about to run away again, Elspeth felt that something was wrong.
Callum quickly reacted and grabbed the woman’s arm.
“Who are you? Why are you running away from us?” he asked.
The woman lowered her head and tried to cover her eyes with her hair. “I don’t know you guys. I ran because I’m afraid to encounter strangers at a place like this.”
It was hard to tell whether she was telling the truth or not. Elspeth took a few steps forward and asked in a low voice, “Do you still remember me?”
The woman quickly shook her head and denied it. “I don’t know you. I don’t know who you are. Stop asking me that.”
Beside her, the boy furrowed his eyebrows and said, “You’re hurting me, Mommy.”
Since the woman was too nervous, she subconsciously grabbed the boy with much force, leaving red marks on his skin.
The more Elspeth looked at them, the stranger she felt. After all, she had never met the woman before. Yet, the woman was frightened and wanted to escape when she saw her. When Elspeth first saw the woman, she remembered that the latter’s eyes were filled with shock and anger. However, when the woman looked at Callum, Elspeth could see a trace of fear and affection in those eyes, which confused her.
When Callum heard the boy’s voice, he looked at the latter. When he saw the boy’s face, he was shocked since the boy looked almost identical to him.
“What’s his name?”
The woman looked down and said, “This is my child’s privacy. I can’t tell you.”
“Don’t worry. We are not bad guys and won’t do anything to harm him.” Elspeth explained. Then, she crouched in front of the boy and said softly, “Can you tell me what your name is?”
However, the woman suddenly went crazy and pulled the boy behind her. “Are you deaf? I told you not to ask about my child’s name.”
Seeing that she was panicking, Elspeth stopped asking any further questions. However, she could tell that there was something wrong with the woman.
Callum could sense that something was not right either. “Okay. We won’t ask about his name. What about you? What’s your name?”
When the woman talked to Callum, she fidgeted and seemed nervous.
“I… I…”
The woman couldn’t answer and decided to shut her mouth. Thus, the four of them stood there in silence.
“I was just curious about something. That is why I have some questions for you.” Elspeth smiled, trying to calm the woman down. “However, I’ll let you know that I have my ways of getting information even if you refuse to tell me.”
The woman seemed to know how capable Elspeth was. She trembled in fear when she heard her words.
“My name is Daisy Carmen.”
The name sounded familiar to Callum. However, he still couldn’t recall anything about the woman.
“Why are you running away from us?”
“I’m not. I was just scared.” Daisy’s voice was trembling.
When the boy heard her words, he snorted in disdain.
“You are lying, Mommy. You weren’t like this before. You used to introduce me to others.” The boy had told the truth without knowing it.
“Why are you lying to us?” Callum asked with a darkened gaze.
“Please. I beg you guys. Stop making things hard for me. I don’t know anything. I have nothing to do with you guys.” Daisy was almost in tears.
The more she was emphasizing, the more obvious it was that she was hiding something.
Elspeth used to study psychology. Thus, when she heard Daisy’s words, she knew that Daisy wasn’t telling the truth.
“Let’s just stop asking and let her go,” said Elspeth.
Callum said nothing and silently agreed.
Immediately, Daisy breathed a sigh of relief. She thanked them before dragging the boy away.
“Why did you let her get away?” Callum was confused.
“I bet she lied about everything during our conversation. I have already taken a picture of the boy. We’ll know what she is hiding once I get someone to investigate it.”
Looking at the boy’s face on her phone, Elspeth grew more and more curious.
When Elspeth and Callum returned, Hank and Yelena had already set up the grill. They had started a fire by using the woods nearby.
“Where did you guys go? What took you so long?” Yelena thought that something had happened to the duo. When she saw them, she quickly rushed toward Elspeth and checked her. Only was she at ease when she saw that Elspeth was fine. “Just gather the woods nearby next time. It’ll be enough for us.”
Elspeth nodded and smiled. “Okay. I got it.”
Elspeth and Callum put the woods they collected aside and sat down.
The fire was burning brightly. The group sat by the fireplace and ate the grilled fish while chatting.
Callum raised his beer against Hank and asked, “When are you guys getting married?”
Yelena felt that it was too early for them to discuss this topic. Immediately, she blushed and said, “We are far from getting married. I’m still working on my career, and Hank had just started his law firm… “
“I never said it was too soon,” Hank replied coldly.
“We are only twenty-two, though. It’s too soon to get married. Plus, I’m not ready yet.” Yelena was slightly afraid of the idea of marriage.
“It’s fine. I’ll wait for you.” Hank knew she didn’t want to get married. Thus, he stopped bringing up the topic.
Seeing that it was getting awkward, Elspeth said, “I found a nice spot by the lake just now. Do you guys want to go and see it?”
“I still have some business to deal with, so I’ll pass.” Hank’s attitude was cold.
Initially, Callum wanted to accompany Elspeth. However, he got a call from the company. Thus, he could only step aside and answer the call. In the end, only Yelena accompanied her to the lake.
As they sat by the lake, Yelena kicked the pebble into the water.
Elspeth could tell there was something on Yelena’s mind. Thus, being the trusted friend she was, she scooted closer to Yelena and held her hands. “Would you mind telling me why you are opposed to getting married?”
Yelena remained silent. She knew her mother was unhappy after marriage and was living in misery. Whenever her parents spent time together, they would keep their distance from each other. Hence, Yelena felt that marriage would cause love to fade away and become dull. This was the reason she was afraid of getting married. She wished that things would be the same after getting married.
“I just feel that people change after they are married.” Yelena struggled to express her inner thoughts. “After my dad married my mom, his attitude changed drastically. Mom told me that she was happy when she was dating Dad. However, things changed after they got married. Now, she could only be a dutiful wife and was restrained from doing many things.” She could tell that her mother was void of happiness.
“It’s natural that dating is a matter of freedom. Still, you need to be responsible for dealing with daily life after marriage. Romance is important, but so is reality. “
Yelena lowered her head and remained silent.
“Don’t you believe in yourself? Or is it Hank that you don’t trust?”
Yelena sighed and replied, “I don’t believe in feelings. I feel that feelings are bound to change at any time.” She would never forget that Max had dated someone else in the end.
“You will have to face this sooner or later, though.” Elspeth ruffled her hair. “Feelings won’t stay the same forever. The definition of true love is the embodiment of family and selfless love.”
Yelena nodded silently and felt slightly at ease. “I understand, Elspeth. Thank you for telling me these.” She could tell that a weight had been lifted from her heart, and she was not afraid of marriage as she used to be.
“I’m glad you understand. Don’t worry about these, and just go with the flow. Everything will work out eventually.”
As they were talking by the lake, Yelena’s face flushed all of a sudden.
Elspeth sensed something was happening and asked, “What’s wrong?”
