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Without even bothering to look up, Ben replied, “When we were living abroad, it’s normal for the three of us to fall and scrape ourselves. I was the one in charge of disinfecting the wounds. After a while, I started getting better at it.”
Upon hearing that, Alpha Kilian’s heart ached inexplicably.
“Didn’t your mother hire someone to take care of the three of you?” he asked the younger boy.
“She did, but things are different there. They’ll only do what’s within their job scope. Moreover, not many people are willing to come and take care of three kids at once. The babysitters require daily payments. They would come late and leave early. We would still have to take care of some things on our own,” Ben explained.
Alpha Kilian’s brows furrowed as he listened.
Although Nelly made sure that the kids had everything they wanted, it was still hard for a woman to work and take care of three children simultaneously. There were bound to be times when she wasn’t able to care for them.
Alpha Kilian could not imagine the hardships they had to endure. “Does your mother know about this?” Alpha Kilian asked.
Ben shook his head. “Nelly’s always very tired from work, and she still has to look after us. Most of the time, we will take care of some things ourselves,” he said as he continued bandaging Alpha Kilian’s wound.
A conflicted feeling rose in Alpha Kilian’s heart.
If he had not done what he did in the past, the three of them would have grown up in the Morris residence. The kids would be able to grow up in a good and carefree environment.
“It’s done,” Ben said.
Alpha Kilian came back to his senses and looked down at his wound, which had been bandaged nicely with gauze. It was done neatly.
A bittersweet smile appeared on his face.
“According to my experience, it’ll heal fast if you keep it dry,” Ben advised.
Alpha Kilian looked at him. There were so many things he wanted to tell the younger boy, but they seemed to have gotten caught in his throat. In the end, he merely nodded his head. “Okay.”
Ben looked up at him. “Also, all those things are in the past. Don’t tell Nelly. I don’t want her to be sad,” he said.
“All right.” Alpha Kilian nodded.
“It’s getting late. If there’s nothing else, I’ll head back to my room to rest.” Alpha Kilian nodded again.
Ben turned around to go back to his room, but he had just taken a few steps when Alpha Kilian called out to him, “Ben.”
The young boy turned back around. His tiny face wore a conflicted expression.
Alpha Kilian smiled at him. “If anything happens in the future, you can talk to me about it. I’m all ears.” Ben froze for a second before nodding.
Ben froze for a second before nodding. “Go get some rest. Good night,” Alpha Kilian said.
“Good night!” Ben said before turning around to leave.
A complex look appeared in Alpha Kilian’s eyes as he looked at the boy’s tiny figure walking away. He soon smiled.
Then, as though remembering something, he took his phone and made a call. Tony was currently leaning against the door as he stood outside the room. His lips curved into a smile as he listened to the conversation going on inside.
Although he had never held any expectations, all he wished for was for Alpha Kilian to remain in their lives.
With that thought in mind, Tony was just about to leave when Alpha Kilian walked out of the room. Both father and son bumped into each other.
“What are you doing here?” Alpha Kilian asked.
“Um, I was on my way back to my room,” Tony replied. Alpha Kilian nodded.
“Um, good night!” Tony waved at Alpha Kilian before making a move to scurry off. “Hold on,” Alpha Kilian suddenly called out to him.
Tony froze for a moment. He turned around warily. “What’s up?” “Did you talk to your mother tonight?”
“Um, no. Thalia brought us out to play, and so we didn’t contact each other,” Tony replied. Alpha Kilian remained silent. Tony noticed his reaction and asked, “What’s wrong?”
“I can’t reach her.”
“What? You can’t reach her?” Tony asked. Is everyone trying to disappear today?
Noticing the look in Alpha Kilian’s eyes, Tony blinked and asked, “Are you guys arguing?” “No.”
Tony scrutinized his father, seemingly not believing his words. Alpha Kilian blinked and emphasized, “No. Really.”
With an arched eyebrow, Tony responded, “Okay. If you say so.” However, after pondering for a few seconds, he added, “Don’t worry too much about it. Nelly has a habit of forgetting to charge her phone when she’s sleeping. It’s normal to not get through to her.”
Alpha Kilian was still worried about her. “You should go back to rest.” With that, Alpha Kilian made a move to leave.
He had just taken two steps forward when his phone rang. Taking it out of his pocket, he took a look at the caller ID and hesitated for a bit before answering.
As if suddenly remembering something, Tony turned to look at the room next door. After a moment of hesitation, he walked over to Ben’s bedroom door with a smile and reached out to knock. “Are you asleep?”
The door flung open from the inside, revealing Ben standing there with a frosty glare. Tony smiled at his brother. “Why are you looking at me like I’m your enemy?” “Why do you think?” Ben asked coldly.
Tony continued to smile. “I thought I would receive a word of thanks from you for coming here.” Ben smiled mirthlessly. “Thank you so much!” Tony’s smile didn’t fade despite recognizing the sarcasm. “You’re welcome.”
Ben rolled his eyes and went back into his bedroom. He threw himself onto the bed and doodled absently in his sketchbook.
Tony showed no intention of entering. Instead, he lazily leaned his tiny stature against the door frame as he spoke. “I noticed your interaction with Daddy earlier. It felt pretty natural.”
Ben was taken aback. He didn’t expect his brother to have seen it. An indescribable feeling rose in his chest. Turning his back on Tony, Ben said nothing.
Tony spoke again in response to his brother’s silence. “Be honest. Did you feel touched when Daddy rescued you?”
Ben, sprawled on his bed, suddenly turned to look at Tony. “Has this all been part of your plan from the very beginning?” he responded with another question.
Tony froze momentarily before answering with a grin. “How could such a coincidence be planned? Besides, I would never let you encounter such danger again, nor would I let Daddy get hurt.”
“That’s not what I’m talking about!” Ben said, glaring at him. “You know what I’m referring to.” Tony gazed at him, maintaining his elegant smile, though he didn’t know what to say.
“I see,” Ben said, narrowing his eyes.
Tony no longer denied it. “With things being the way they are, I was only lending Daddy a hand at my convenience. I could tell that whenever he tried to strike up a conversation with you, you never gave him an opportunity by hiding or avoiding him. After I did Daddy dirty like that, don’t you think I should give him some equivalent compensation? That way, I could still defend myself if he catches wind and finds out about my involvement, right?”
Ben hurled his pillow at Tony, enraged. “Is that why you set me up?”
Tony caught it and smiled at Ben. “How is this setting you up? I was merely lending you a hand. Don’t you want to regain a normal father-son relationship with Daddy?”
“Why aren’t you restoring your relationship with him, then?” Ben argued.
“Um, somebody must lead the way,” replied Tony. “Besides, I have spent much time alone with Daddy and had many deep talks with him. I get along fine with him. At least not as awkward as you are with him.”
Ben gazed at his brother for a long time before uttering, “Shame on you for betraying your own brother!”Property belongs to Nôvel(D)r/ama.Org.
Tony’s smile didn’t falter. “You are the epitome of taking things for granted, Ben.”
Ben whipped around, and when Tony met the furious look in his eyes, he threw his hands up as a sign of admitting defeat. “Okay, fine. I’ll leave.”
“Shut the door!” Ben added vehemently.
“Got it!” Tony closed the door. When only a thin crack remained, he peeked into it and added cheekily, “Enjoy some fatherly love tonight. Good night.”
Just as Ben was about to lose his temper, Tony swiftly shut the door and slipped away without another word.
Ben sprawled on his bed, gazing at the shut door. His anger gave way to something more complicated before a smile appeared on his face.
When he realized he was smiling, he tried his hardest to suppress it. He gave a fake cough before resuming a calm expression.
Then, he looked down at the drawing of a machine gun in his sketchbook. After putting it away, he turned off the lights and went to bed.
He smiled in his dreams.