Chapter 93: Now I Feel Bad For Him
"Aunty Sienna..."
The soft, cheerful little voice instantly melted every remaining confusion inside her.
Without realizing it, she smiled. Not the polite smile she wore at work every day, but a genuine one.
"Sky?" she asked softly.
"Yes. It’s me, Aunty..." Skylar answered immediately, sounding so excited that she could practically imagine him bouncing around while holding the phone with both hands.
Sienna glanced toward the clock on the wall instinctively.
The moment she noticed the time, her smile faltered slightly.
"It’s past ten," she said, surprised. "Sky, it’s past your bedtime. Why are you still awake?"
"Aunty, I miss you!"
The answer came so quickly and genuinely that Sienna couldn’t help but smile widely.
Just like that, the exhaustion from her entire day eased a little.
"I miss you too," she admitted honestly. "Have you been behaving well?"
There was a suspiciously thoughtful pause on the other end. Before he answered confidently, "Yes. I eat a lot."
Sienna raised an eyebrow immediately.
"Little man, are you sure that counts as good behavior?" she asked teasingly.
"...Mostly," he corrected quickly.
She laughed again, unable to help herself.
"But I also studied hard every day," he added proudly, "even when Daddy was not around."
Skylar’s words settled in her mind. ’So Zach really wasn’t with him in the last few days...’
For the past several days, Zachary had completely disappeared. No calls. No messages. Nothing.
Now she finally understood why.
’A business trip... maybe overseas?’
The thought lingered quietly for a moment before she pushed it aside.
"Good job, Sky," she said warmly. "I’m proud of you."
"Thank you, Aunty," he replied happily.
Then suddenly, his voice turned strangely serious.
"Oh, right..." he said suddenly. "Daddy said I can tell you my important request."
Something about the sentence made Sienna nervous right away.
"...Important request?" she repeated carefully.
"Yes." His tone grew serious again. "Aunty, can you come here? To my house?"
Sienna froze completely. Her eyes widened as she sat straighter on the sofa without realizing it.
’What?’ Her brain went blank for a full second.
’Did Zachary ask him to say that?’ The thought appeared instantly, followed by immediate panic.
"T-This..." she stammered helplessly.
If she refused, Skylar would definitely sound disappointed. But if she agreed, that would be incredibly awkward, right!?
Her thoughts tangled, she couldn’t even form a sentence.
"Sienna, it’s me."
Zachary’s voice returned smoothly, rescuing her from her mental breakdown.
"I’m sorry," he added quietly. "He surprised you, didn’t he?"
Sienna exhaled softly in relief.
"W-Where is he?" she asked weakly.
"I told him to return to his room."
In the distance, she immediately heard Skylar protesting loudly.
"I can still hear you, Dad!"
"Return to your room," Zachary repeated firmly. "You need to sleep now!"
"But Dad, I still want to speak to Aunty Sienna..." Skylar muttered dramatically before his footsteps faded away.
Sienna feels bad to hear that, but she understands him because it’s too late for Skylar to wake up.
After a few seconds, Zachary’s voice came through again, "Still there?"
Her hand tightened around the cell phone as she whispered, "Hmm, I’m here." She paused and hesitated for a moment before softly adding, "Zach, don’t be too hard on him."
A heavy sigh echoed before he said, "I’m afraid his words will upset you."
"No, I’m not. I just... got surprised," she admitted honestly. "Now I feel bad for him."
She could already imagine Skylar looking disappointed in his bedroom, and the image alone made her chest tighten slightly.
"Sienna, Sky misses you and your cooking. That’s why he insisted I call you. I told him you were probably busy, but he refused to believe me."
"I’m not busy," Sienna replied immediately.
The words escaped before she could stop them.
Silence followed.
Sienna blinked slowly, trying to scold herself, ’Geez, Sienna, why did you say that so fast?’
"Can you come?" He asked.
"At... your house?" she asked carefully.
"Yes." His voice stayed calm, but there was restraint beneath it. It sounded cautious, yet filled with hope.
Sienna’s fingers tightened around the phone.
"T-This..." she started again, though her thoughts had already betrayed her long before her mouth could answer properly.
"If you’re uncomfortable with that," Zachary continued gently, "then we can visit your place instead."
"My apartment?" she repeated faintly.
"Yes. This weekend, if that’s alright with you."
Immediately, Sienna’s gaze swept across her apartment in horror.
The blanket she abandoned earlier was still hanging messily over the couch.
There was instant ramen on the counter.
And, her drying laundry was still near the balcony.
"S-Sure... but..." she hesitated awkwardly. "My apartment is small."
There was a short pause before she added, "I’m worried it won’t fit both of you."
For one second, silence filled the line again.
After a few seconds, Sienna heard Zachary laugh softly. A low, quiet laugh.
And for some reason, hearing it through the phone made her heart stumble all over again.
"We can adjust, don’t worry..." Zachary said lightly, his voice calm and unhurried through the phone, carrying that same steady tone that somehow always made her feel both relaxed and nervous at the same time.
Sienna could not stop the smile that slowly appeared on her lips. It came naturally, quietly, without permission.
She leaned farther back against the sofa, her body finally relaxing after the emotional chaos of the last several minutes.
"Alright..." she answered softly. "Then you guys can come."
The moment she said it, relief settled gently inside her chest.
But unfortunately, relief was not the only thing that arrived.
Almost immediately afterward came nervousness.
And there was another feeling she stubbornly refused to examine too closely because doing so felt dangerous.
Because honestly speaking, why was she reacting like this over a simple weekend visit?
It was not as if she had just agreed to meet his parents.
It was just Zachary and his son, Skylar, coming over to her place for lunch and maybe dinner. It’s completely normal and harmless.
So why did her heart suddenly feel incapable of behaving normally?
Silence settled comfortably between them again.
