Chapter 720 Regular Vs Smart Kid
Inside the house, Jade was fuming as she headed for her bedroom, but she stopped abruptly when she heard the sound of laughter coming from the Den and she headed there instead since she could tell Candace and the others had arrived.
The frown on her face was quickly replaced with a bright smile when she saw them, "You're here," she said as she went to embrace Aaron first.
"There's no reason to ask how you're doing. You look as fit as a fiddle," she said as she kissed his cheeks, and Aaron chuckled.
"I'm glad to see that you're fine yourself."
"Thanks for choosing to come here with Harry. I know that was the only way he could have left Ludus," Jade said and Aaron smiled but before he could speak, Candace speak.
"I'm the one you should be thanking since I suggested it first. Your wuss of a boyfriend didn't have the heart to say what he wanted and just went about carrying a long face…"
"I believe you're not talking about me," Harry cut in from the doorway, and they all laughed.
"Unless Jade has another boyfriend you know about," Candace said with a shrug.
"Please you both shouldn't start. Not now. Not here," Aaron said before Harry could speak again and Harry frowned.
"Why do you always ask us to stop just when it's my turn to respond? You make me feel like you're more on Candace's side than you're on mine," Harry complained
"Now you're whining. Are you sure this is what you want for yourself, Jade? Don't you want to date a real man?" Candace asked and the others laughed.
"Don't talk about my boyfriend like that," Jade said with a scowl as she went to stand beside Harry, and he grinned at her as he placed an arm around her, but she shrugged it off.
"I'm still mad at you for not sending Tom away," she hissed at him, and Harry looked at her incredulously.
"Are you on my side or not?" He asked, and she shrugged.
"It depends on whose side you take going forward," Jade said and then glanced at Sonia who just walked in with Lucy and Jamal.
The moment their gaze met, Jade raised a brow and Sonia gave her a nod, letting her know she had kept the items in the bedroom.
"What's wrong, Jam?" Candace asked when she noticed the frown on Jamal's face as they all sat down.
Sonia giggled, but before she could say anything Lucy shot her a look, and she rolled her eyes, "You're no fun," she muttered to Lucy as she remained quiet, leaving Jamal to answer the question.
Seeing that all eyes were on him now, Jamal sighed. He was at least thankful that Dawn wasn't here right now. It would have been more embarrassing for him, "What is a socks and crypcuncy and forest?" Jamal asked, and this time both Lucy and Sonia giggled as the others looked at him with a lost expression on their faces.
"What?" Harry and Candace asked in confusion.
"He means, stocks, cryptocurrency and forex," Lucy explained and they all laughed, making Jamal feel even worse seeing how it seemed like everyone else knew about it but him.
"Why are you suddenly asking about stuff like that?" Candace asked, looking to Lucy for an explanation.
"He had a little misunderstanding with Dawn…"
"She called me stupid for not knowing what those words mean," Jamal said, feeling annoyed.
"Dawn called you stupid?" Evelyn asked in disbelief and looked around for Dawn, but only then did she realize that Dawn wasn't with them.
"Where is Dawn?" Evelyn asked Lucy.
"First of all, she didn't exactly call him stupid…"
"Yes, she did. She called him stupid in the most politest of ways. She said he didn't know much of anything. And that is exactly what a stupid person is," Sonia cut in, and Lucy glared at her.
"So, where is Dawn?" Desmond asked with interest. For a kid who hardly said a word around them, she seemed to have said quite a lot to Jamal in the short time since he arrived.
"She left after delivering the blow," Sonia announced with a wide smile.
"She probably went to her bedroom because she didn't want to be in the same space with Jamal. For what it's worth, Jamal started it first by calling her a kid. She only returned the favor," Sonia quipped, making it clear she had enjoyed the show and whose side she was on.
"After I apologized," Jamal said defensively.
"I wish I was there," Jade said with a grin and Jamal looked from Sonia to Jade, taking note of his enemies.
"You are not stupid, Jam. You know most of the things that kids your age should know, and I bet if you asked her about most of the stuff you know she wouldn't know them either," Candace assured her son, seeing how hurt he was by Dawn's words.
"So, those things she asked me are adult stuff?" Jamal asked, and Candace nodded.
"Why does she know adult stuff and I don't when I'm older than her?" Jamal asked, and Candace looked at her father to step in.
"That is because she was raised to play less and study more. Would you rather spend all your day studying and being taught about adult stuff, than watching cartoons and doing things that kids of your age should do?" Tom asked before Aaron could speak, and Jamal's brows pulled together as he looked at Tom.
"What did you spend your time doing?" He asked, and Tom shrugged.
"I did everything. I studied when I should, and played when I should. As a kid your age I listened to my parents and let them guide me," Tom said, and Candace flashed him a smile of gratitude.
"And you turned out so wealthy, right? You know what all those words mean, don't you?" Jamal asked and Tom nodded.
"Sure. And I know a lot more too. But I had no idea what those words meant at her age or yours," Tom said, and Jamal thought her about it for a moment and then he smiled.
"Then I guess I'm not stupid for not knowing those things at my age. I want to be just like you when I grow up," Jamal said, and Tom grinned.
"Not like your uncle Harry?" Tom asked pleasantly and everyone laughed while Jade rolled her eyes.
"Say it, Jamal," Tom urged him with an eager smile, and Jamal smiled.
"Well, I'd like to be like him too, but more like you. I want a house like yours and lots of cars like you have. And I want my company to be as big as yours, and to have a girlfriend that is exactly like Lucy," Jamal said and everyone laughed.
"Exactly like Lucy?" Jade asked with a raised brow.
"Yes. Not like you and Sonia. Like Lucy," Jamal said in case they had missed what he meant. They had drawn the battle line after all by siding with his enemy.
"Well, I don't mind. I'd also want my son to have a girlfriend like Lucy," Sonia said with an agreeable smile that only annoyed Jamal even more.
"I should go find Dawn and see what she is up to," Lucy said as she rose.
"Can I come with you?" Jamal asked, and Lucy smiled as she shook her head, knowing that with Jamal's newfound confidence, it would be a mistake to let him meet Dawn. They would both argue again.
"No, Jam. I need to speak with Dawn alone. We will join you shortly," Lucy promised.
"Can I come?" Sonia asked with a grin, and Lucy scowled at her.
"No," Lucy said before walking away.
Tom turned to Harry, "You heard what Jamal said, right? He wants to be more like me," Tom said and Harry chuckled.
"Grow up, Tom," Harry said in amusement.
"Never," Tom said as he placed his arm around Harry's shoulder, while Jade scowled at them both.
"You seem excited," Bryan said as he watched Sonia, and she grinned.
"Dawn is exceptionally brilliant! And the interaction between her and Jamal was epic," Sonia confided, and Bryan chuckled.
"You love seeing people argue and fight?" He asked and she shook her head.
"Argue and fight? Nope. I don't. What I love is witty arguments and conversations," Sonia said as she went on to give Bryan a detailed narration of what had happened between Jamal and Dawn, making sure to mimic their action and tone.
Bryan grinned as he watched her speak and soon everyone else in the Den was drawn to Sonia's story and were now listening to her, apart from Jamal who was too busy thinking about possible questions to ask Dawn when next he got the chance.
He was determined to prove to her that she was the kid between them, and that he was smarter than her.
So what if he didn't know what socks and those other silly words meant? He could always learn them like Tom did. And what was the big deal about being able to speak multiple languages? He could learn those too as long as he put his mind to it.
Dawn wasn't smarter and he was going to prove it to her!
As if reading his mind, Candace looked at him, "Are you still upset by what she said?" Candace asked and Jamal shook his head.
"No. I know I am smart. She is a kid and she knows nothing. I'm going to prove it to her," Jamal said with a determined expression, and Candace grinned.
"I think having Jamal stay here was a good idea," Desmond whispered to Evelyn in amusement, and she giggled.
After listening to Sonia's narration, they were all curious and eager to watch more of the interactions between the two kids.
Away from there, Lucy met Dawn upstairs in her bedroom arranging her stuff and Lucy raised a brow, "What are you doing?"
"I'm making room for Jamal's mother. Evelyn said we are sharing the room," Dawn explained without looking up at Lucy.
"You don't mind sharing the room with her, do you?" Lucy asked since Evelyn had not asked Dawn before making the arrangement.
"I wish I was sharing the room with you instead," Dawn said honestly as she looked at Lucy this time, and Lucy giggled as she sat on the edge of the bed.
"If I share the room with you there will be no room for Candace," Lucy said and Dawn shook her head.
"She can share the other room with Tom," Dawn pointed out, and Lucy giggled at the thought of letting her boyfriend share a room with another lady. One as attractive as Candace whether or not they were cousins. No way.
"Tom wouldn't want that, and neither would I," Lucy said and Dawn pursed her lips.
"How about I share the room with you both?" Dawn suggested, and Lucy grinned.
"Is there a reason you don't want to share the room with Candace?" Lucy asked and Dawn shrugged as she went to sit beside Lucy.
"I don't know her. And she is his mom. I don't like him. He's a mean jerk," Dawn said and Lucy smiled.
"Why don't you like him? He already apologized to you for being mean. Jamal is a nice kid," Lucy pointed out.
"Nice people are not mean. He shouldn't have been mean in the first place if he was nice," Dawn said, and Lucy marveled at her intelligence.
"You were mean too. You called him stupid," Lucy pointed out, and Dawn shrugged.
"I never said I was nice, did I?" She asked, and this time Lucy laughed.
Lucy couldn't help but wonder the kind of conversations Dawn had with her mom or people around her back at home to make her so witty and smart.
"You should apologize to him," Lucy said and Dawn sighed.
"Why? I didn't insult him. I only stated facts. He doesn't know much of anything," Dawn said matter of factly.
"He also stated a fact…"
"No. I'm not a kid," Dawn stated before Lucy could finish, and Lucy sighed.
"You are smart, right?" Lucy asked and Dawn nodded.
"What do you call people who are around your age grade?" Lucy asked and Dawn gave her a pointed look.
"They can be called kids because they act like kids. I'm smarter than most of the people of my age grade so I'm not a kid. My mom always says I'm not a kid," Dawn said and Lucy nodded.
"Alright. Fine. You're not a kid. Still, you owe Jamal an apology. And I'd like you to be on your best behavior. No more arguing with him," Lucy said and Dawn raised her chin.
"Fine. I will apologize but I won't argue with him if he doesn't argue with me," Dawn said and Lucy nodded.
"That's fair. Let's go join the others now," Lucy said as she rose and took Dawn's hand.
"Why does everyone like him?" Dawn asked, since she had been thinking about it before Lucy came in.
"Because he's a good kid," Lucy said and Dawn nodded thoughtfully.
"I see. Do you like him more than me?" Dawn asked and Lucy's lips twitched.
"I love you both the same. That's why I'm hoping you'd both get along so I don't have to pick sides," Lucy said, and Dawn sighed since she had been hoping Lucy would say she loved her more.
Well, she was just going to make sure that everyone liked her too and even more than they liked Jamal.
There was nothing special about him after all. He was just a regular kid, and she was smarter. She was going to show them all just how smart she was.
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